Reborn! fic - Blood of the Covenant (Chapter 3)
( Prologue | 01 | 02 )
Title - Blood of the Covenant
Rating - PG-13 for language and violence
Characters - Gokudera, Tsuna, Reborn, Yamamoto
Notes - Thank you all for all your super nice feedback so far! I hope you continue to enjoy it. This is more of a setup chapter here, but next chapter things will start to pick up.
Warnings - None for this chapter.
Target 03 - Decision
“Well?” Luca said. He was seated at the desk in his father’s old study, legs crossed and leaning back, idly fiddling with an expensive-looking fountain pen.
“Your siblings are still alive,” said Anthony, who had spent the entire flight back pondering how to break this news to Luca, and had decided in the end to simply give him the honest truth and let the other man respond as he would. “And Mangiamo’s dead,” he added regretfully. He doubted Luca would care in the slightest about that last, but Anthony himself couldn’t help but feel responsible for getting the younger hitman involved in this.
“Send a basket to his widow.”
“Sure, that’ll make it all better.”
“I’m not the one who got her husband killed,” Luca said with an admonishing look.
“And I take full responsibility,” Anthony replied. “I’ll take care of it.”
“Good.”
Anthony sighed. “You’re really not upset about the other part?”
“It’s fine,” Luca said. “I didn’t expect you to succeed.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“Both of my siblings have managed to cement themselves in the most powerful family on the planet,” said Luca, now rising to his feet and beginning to pace the room thoughtfully. “So yes, I would have been shocked if we’d managed to take them out that easily.”
He paused by an antique globe, slowly tracing along the continents with his fingers. “But this isn’t such a bad development. It was always going to be too difficult to take on the Vongola Tenth Boss on his own turf.”
“They’re calling him Neo Vongola Primo now,” Anthony corrected as an afterthought.
Luca looked at him quizzically. “What does that even mean?”
“I don’t know,” Anthony admitted. “But please, continue. You were saying something reckless and absurd about picking a fight with the Vongola?”
Luca shot him an annoyed glance. “Not that absurd.”
“It absolutely is absurd,” Anthony said without missing a beat. It was always hard to reason with Luca when he got like this, fixated and stubborn, but he still had to try. “Did you yourself not just refer to them as the most powerful family on the planet, not one minute ago?”
“Their Boss is still a child.”
“With the Vongola Rings. The Dying Will flame. And, oh yes, the world’s strongest hitman as his personal mentor.”
“Starting to regret appointing you as my Consigliere.”
“Too late.” He shifted to a more somber tone. “Boss, in all seriousness, this is not a good idea. You don’t want to go to the mattresses against the Vongola. On their turf, or our own.”
“You can relax, Anthony. I don’t plan to go to war with them.”
This gave Anthony pause. “Then… you want to fill me in on whatever it is you actually are planning?” He frowned. “Because it seems to me like murdering one of their Guardians is gonna give off the wrong kind of impression.”
“That’s just it,” Luca replied. And when Anthony raised an eyebrow at him, he continued: “While you were away, I had a change of heart. I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and well…”
He trailed off, and Anthony studied him carefully, thrown for a loop by this newest development.
“Luca,” he said after a long moment. “What are you thinking, huh?”
Luca gave a short laugh. “I don’t know. Just… both my parents are dead now.” He sighed. “And Hayato’s been gone for years. Bianchi, she’s a lost cause, I already know, but… I just got to thinking.”
“…You don’t want to kill him,” Anthony finished.
Luca met his eyes meaningfully. “Maybe not.”
Anthony rubbed awkwardly at the back of his neck. He didn’t particularly like where this was going, but he also knew where Luca was coming from.
More importantly, he already knew that there would be no talking him out of it.
“So I’ll wait,” Luca concluded. “We don’t have to do anything further right now. He’ll come to me.”
“You sure about that?”
Luca smiled.
“I am.”
---
“You okay?” Yamamoto asked in a hushed tone, quietly edging closer to Gokudera.
“For the last time, yes,” Gokudera replied through gritted teeth.
“Just making sure.”
“I really wish you’d quit asking.”
“I’m only asking because you keep seeming like you’re distracted.”
Gokudera exhaled. “What makes you think that?”
Yamamoto grinned. “Well, for one thing, you haven’t yelled at me once since we got here. You haven’t even told me to stop fiddling with my jacket.”
Gokudera fixed him with the most withering glare imaginable. “Stop fiddling with your fucking jacket.”
Yamamoto laughed, as was expected of him.
Deep down, though, he was still concerned. He’d played the observation off as a joke, but Gokudera really had been preoccupied for the past two days, ever since he had told them all about his family and the attack. More than preoccupied; he was moody, sullen, and withdrawn, yet at the same time he seemed hyper-alert and constantly on his guard.
And it wasn’t like Yamamoto couldn’t understand why, after everything he’d told them. First he’d almost been killed (and even now Yamamoto was fighting off the constant urge to stare at the bandages around Gokudera’s neck in concern), and then he’d suddenly had to contend with the reappearance of his apparently murderous half-brother. And although he hadn’t actually admitted as much out loud, Gokudera was clearly terrified of Luca. Yamamoto didn’t know how much of their personal history he was still holding back from him and Tsuna, but there was no missing the way that Gokudera’s entire frame seemed to tense whenever he spoke about him, or how the pace of his breathing would rapidly pick up.
On top of all that, Yamamoto had also quietly taken note of the way Gokudera had spoken of his father in the past tense (Giovanni DiSanto is-was my father), and then had very deliberately steered entirely clear of the subject afterwards.
Clearly there was a lot on his plate, and Yamamoto knew that at times like these, Gokudera tended to react by retreating into himself, and trying to push everyone else away. So he was determined to make sure Gokudera understood that he and Tsuna had his back, and that they weren’t going anywhere.
So far, this had consisted of hovering close by at all times. He knew from personal experience that this tended to annoy the hell out of Gokudera, which was why he was amazed and frankly a little disturbed that the other boy still had yet to blow up at him or tell him to fuck off.
So he hovered all the closer, and fiddled with his suit jacket a bit more.
Beside him, Tsuna cleared his throat uneasily, perhaps to alleviate the sudden awkward silence.
Right. Tsuna hadn’t been particularly talkative either since their arrival in Italy. The three of them-it was only them (plus Reborn of course), at Gokudera’s insistence; he wanted to keep as few people involved as possible, and Reborn had agreed that the three of them would be enough to handle it-were currently seated on a leather couch in one of the most beautifully ornate hallways that Yamamoto had ever seen, inside the Vongola mansion. It was Yamamoto’s second time in Italy, but his first time visiting the Vongola headquarters in the mountains just outside Palermo. Needless to say, it was just a little bit bigger than Dino’s villa.
“I still can’t believe your house has an elevator, Tsuna,” he said in amazement.
“It’s not my house,” Tsuna muttered.
“It basically is, though,” Yamamoto reasoned cheerfully. “You’re the Boss, after all.”
“Yamamoto…” Tsuna groaned. “Please not now.”
“Sorry.” Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head, wondering how much longer they were going to be sitting here waiting.
It wasn’t like it was a particularly uncomfortable place to wait. They were surrounded by marble tile, gorgeous wooden details, and more paintings than Yamamoto had ever before seen in a single room outside of a museum. If anything, the problem with the mansion was that it was almost too lavish. Yamamoto couldn’t help but feel as though he shouldn’t even be touching anything. Not exactly a homey atmosphere.
And not exactly a welcoming one, either. Although they had been greeted the previous evening by a number of extremely accommodating servants who had gotten them settled in their rooms and expertly seen to all their needs, they had yet to actually meet with or even see the Ninth Boss or any of his Guardians. Yamamoto couldn’t help but feel like they were being treated less like equal, full-fledged members of the family, and more like… well, kids.
Which they were, to be fair. But all the same, it seemed like the Ninth was going about his business of running the family’s operations as usual, and was treating this matter as an afterthought; a distraction, rather than any kind of priority. Even now, they were stuck out here in the hallway while the adults conducted their meeting, waiting until the discussion finally shifted to the DiSanto situation, at which point they would finally be invited in. He really was trying to be patient, but even for him, it was starting to be a bit much.
Just when he was starting to want to yell at himself to stop fidgeting, the thick mahogany doors finally opened, and Reborn appeared.
“The Ninth is ready to meet with you now, Tsuna.”
Tsuna shot a quick glance toward the other two, and they all stood up, Yamamoto and Gokudera automatically filing in on either side of him.
“Tsunayoshi-kun, it’s good to see you again,” said the Ninth as they all entered. He was seated at the head of a table in the center of the room. Surrounding him were six of the most interesting-looking people Yamamoto had ever seen. Most of them looked to be similar in age to the Ninth, and Yamamoto supposed that these must be his Guardians, just like he and Gokudera were Tsuna’s.
For a brief moment, he imagined the three of them all together like this, one day in the far future; himself and Gokudera all matured, battle-hardened, and grizzled, but still at Tsuna’s side. It wasn’t exactly the typical where-do-you-see-yourself-twenty-or-thirty-years-from-now, but somehow the thought of it still made him smile.
One of the men had a lizard tattoo on his cheek; another was almost completely covered in scars. There was one man who seemed to be a fair bit younger than the rest. He had black hair with a shock of blond towards the front, but what Yamamoto particularly took note of was the way that he and Gokudera oddly seemed to exchange glances as they entered the room.
He filed it away in the back of his mind, just in case. He liked these Guardians already, and he knew that they were all allies, but a part of his mind still urged him to be cautious.
“I believe everyone here has previously been introduced,” the Ninth was saying pleasantly.
“Everyone except for Tsuna’s Rain Guardian,” Reborn said.
“Ah, of course; he wasn’t at the Inheritance Ceremony,” said the Ninth. “Yamamoto Takeshi. I’m pleased to make your acquaintance for the first time.”
It wasn’t technically the first time Yamamoto had ever seen the Ninth, but he supposed that the Cloud Ring battle, during which the Ninth had been grievously injured, didn’t really count. He was happy to properly meet him for the first time, though. “Hello,” he said brightly.
Something about the man’s smile reminded him of Tsuna. Wide open, like the clear sky. Someone that you could trust-but at the same time, someone not to underestimate.
He suddenly realized everyone was staring at him (several of them in a kind of outraged, near-sputtering horror), and a second later it hit him that he might have been a little too informal. “Uh… sir,” he added with an apologetic smile.
He thought he might be in trouble, but then just like that, the Ninth started to laugh, defusing the tension. Gokudera shot Yamamoto a look that promised a good ass-kicking when this was all over, and then at the Ninth’s beckoning, the three of them took their seats.
“Reborn was just updating us on the DiSanto situation,” said the Ninth.
“It seems that since the first couple days of the coup, they’ve settled down and have been playing things cautiously,” Reborn said. “It’s true that they’ve made some moves on one or two new territories that they had formerly left alone. But aside from that, they’ve stopped short of doing anything that might cause a serious rift between themselves and one of the other local families.
“In particular, they’ve been careful not to target anyone who is directly under the Vongola’s protection, or is one of our allies. Nothing that would be an open declaration of war-that is, except for the attack on Gokudera.”
“Which in itself is already a declaration of war,” said the younger man who had given Gokudera the odd look earlier. “An attack on one of the Vongola Guardians is an attack on the Vongola. The question is, are we going to treat it as such?” He looked at the Ninth questioningly.
“That is the decision currently at hand,” said the Ninth.
“If we do nothing, the family will seem weak,” Reborn said. “But if we move too aggressively, we’ll be seen as ruthless instead.”
“That’s not necessarily a bad thing,” said another of the Ninth’s Guardians-the one with the bright red mohawk and cornrows.
“I’m not concerned with appearances,” the Ninth said dismissively. “My priority is the family’s well-being.”
Next to Yamamoto, Gokudera shifted uncomfortably.
“That’s why we need to know the enemy’s exact capabilities,” the Ninth continued. “We cannot make our final decision until we have evaluated all of our options.”
“I told them about the Consummate Command,” Reborn explained to Tsuna’s group. “But to formulate a strategy, we’ll need to know exactly how powerful Luca DiSanto actually is. That’s why we need your input, Gokudera.”
Gokudera took a deep breath, as though composing himself. “He’s strong. I don’t know the full extent, but he has at least as much control over the Command ability as my… father did. So, full control over anyone he chooses to manipulate.”
“When you say ‘full control’, you mean…?” said a Guardian with slicked-back gray hair and a pair of sunglasses on his head.
“I mean anything. He could make you attack civilians, or your own men, or put a bullet to your own head.” He appeared to suppress a shudder. “Whatever he wants.”
“Civilian risk is a major issue,” said the younger Guardian. “We don’t want any bystanders getting hurt or killed.”
“Ganauche is correct,” the Ninth said. “What kind of precautions can we take to prevent this?”
“This ability must have some limits,” said the Guardian with the lizard tattoo. “Is there any kind of range?”
Gokudera looked uncertain. “Maybe. I don’t know for sure. I think… he needs to be able to direct it, so it might be possible to avoid it if you were concealed. But it’s not a guarantee.”
“There’s also the one-person limit,” Reborn added.
“So maybe target him with a group of people, possibly concealed with Mist illusions?” said the young Guardian-Ganauche. “What do you think, Boss?”
The Ninth looked thoughtful. Then he said, “Tsunayoshi-kun.”
Tsuna gave a start. “Y-yes?”
The Ninth smiled at him. “It’s true that this would normally be my decision. We are in Italy, not Japan, and I am still head of the family, since we never were able to complete the Inheritance Ceremony.
“However… since this situation directly involves one of your own Guardians, I’m inclined to leave the final decision to you.”
All eyes turned to Tsuna. He looked nervous for a moment, but then seemed to find his resolve.
“I think… we need to act,” he said. “I don’t want anyone else to get hurt.”
He hesitated. “But I also don’t like the idea of just assassinating someone from the shadows. It’s too cold-blooded… it just doesn’t feel right for the Vongola to do that. It’s not the kind of family we should be. Ah-even though I’m not actually the Boss!” he tacked on quickly.
The mohawk-Guardian frowned. “It might not be pretty, but if you don’t want people getting hurt, assassinating him would be the simplest and cleanest resolution.”
“That depends on your definition of clean,” Reborn said. “Assassinating another family’s Boss in cold blood is the kind of move that puts a potential target on our backs in the future.”
“I don’t like it either,” said the scar-faced Guardian. “These things lead to retaliations.”
“Now we’re just going in circles,” Ganauche said. “Don’t attack them so they won’t attack us back. Except that they already did attack us; that’s what started this all in the first place.”
“There’s a difference between flat-out murder and acting to protect the family,” someone else cut in.
“What other action can we take in this situation?” another one demanded.
Several voices then broke in all at once, and for a few moments the room was chaotic. It seemed like everyone was talking at the same time. Everyone except for Tsuna, himself, the Ninth… and Gokudera, who had his head tilted down so that Yamamoto couldn’t see his expression.
Then, suddenly, the chair next to Yamamoto slid back, and beside him, Gokudera stood up.
“There might be a way,” he said, loud enough for the rest of the room to quiet down.
“…I know how to get in touch with an old contact who’s still in the DiSanto family. I can arrange to meet him, and maybe… maybe they can put in a good word with Luca to negotiate some kind of truce.”
There was a silence as everyone seemed to process this. Yamamoto noticed that Ganauche once again had a strange look as he eyed Gokudera thoughtfully. So did Reborn, oddly enough.
The Ninth, however, seemed satisfied. “Thank you, Gokudera-kun. I believe that at the moment, this seems to be our best option. What do you think, Tsunayoshi-kun?”
Tsuna looked back and forth from Gokudera to the Ninth. “I think it’s a good plan,” he said at last. “But… is it really all right with you, Gokudera-kun?”
Yamamoto watched as the usual range of Tsuna-related emotions flickered across Gokudera’s face-gratitude, admiration, and borderline reverence. But there was also something else there that Yamamoto, even knowing the other boy as well as he did, couldn’t quite place.
However, all Gokudera said was: “Don’t worry about me, Boss. It’ll be fine.”
Tsuna seemed like he might be having the same confused feelings of doubt as Yamamoto. Nonetheless, after a moment he nodded. “Okay.”
“I’ll come with you,” Ganauche spoke up. “When you meet your contact. If that’s okay with you, Boss,” he added with a glance back toward the Ninth.
“I have no objection,” the Ninth replied. “Reborn, in that case, I’ll leave the rest to you and the young tenth generation.”
“We’ll take care of it,” Reborn said.
“Keep me advised at all times. Then, if no one has anything else of note to add, I’ll dismiss you all.”
As Yamamoto rose to his feet, he tried to give Gokudera an encouraging look; however the other boy wouldn’t meet his eyes, instead brushing past him to exit the room as quickly as he could.
Yamamoto was still staring after him with a frown when Reborn came over and hopped onto his shoulder.
“Have you been keeping up with your sword training?” he asked casually.
“Heh,” Yamamoto said. He had, of course. “Are we going to need it?”
“Who knows?” And with that, he leapt back down and disappeared down the hall.
---
Continue to Chapter 4
Prologue | 01 | 02
Additional Notes - And so the game is afoot. Next chapter we’ll finally see some action.
Did Coyote Nougat actually die in chapter 299?? I’m going with ‘no’, but I also didn’t give him any lines here because I’m annoyed at how ambiguous it was. This series is hard enough to keep track of as it is.
Title - Blood of the Covenant
Rating - PG-13 for language and violence
Characters - Gokudera, Tsuna, Reborn, Yamamoto
Notes - Thank you all for all your super nice feedback so far! I hope you continue to enjoy it. This is more of a setup chapter here, but next chapter things will start to pick up.
Warnings - None for this chapter.
Target 03 - Decision
“Well?” Luca said. He was seated at the desk in his father’s old study, legs crossed and leaning back, idly fiddling with an expensive-looking fountain pen.
“Your siblings are still alive,” said Anthony, who had spent the entire flight back pondering how to break this news to Luca, and had decided in the end to simply give him the honest truth and let the other man respond as he would. “And Mangiamo’s dead,” he added regretfully. He doubted Luca would care in the slightest about that last, but Anthony himself couldn’t help but feel responsible for getting the younger hitman involved in this.
“Send a basket to his widow.”
“Sure, that’ll make it all better.”
“I’m not the one who got her husband killed,” Luca said with an admonishing look.
“And I take full responsibility,” Anthony replied. “I’ll take care of it.”
“Good.”
Anthony sighed. “You’re really not upset about the other part?”
“It’s fine,” Luca said. “I didn’t expect you to succeed.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“Both of my siblings have managed to cement themselves in the most powerful family on the planet,” said Luca, now rising to his feet and beginning to pace the room thoughtfully. “So yes, I would have been shocked if we’d managed to take them out that easily.”
He paused by an antique globe, slowly tracing along the continents with his fingers. “But this isn’t such a bad development. It was always going to be too difficult to take on the Vongola Tenth Boss on his own turf.”
“They’re calling him Neo Vongola Primo now,” Anthony corrected as an afterthought.
Luca looked at him quizzically. “What does that even mean?”
“I don’t know,” Anthony admitted. “But please, continue. You were saying something reckless and absurd about picking a fight with the Vongola?”
Luca shot him an annoyed glance. “Not that absurd.”
“It absolutely is absurd,” Anthony said without missing a beat. It was always hard to reason with Luca when he got like this, fixated and stubborn, but he still had to try. “Did you yourself not just refer to them as the most powerful family on the planet, not one minute ago?”
“Their Boss is still a child.”
“With the Vongola Rings. The Dying Will flame. And, oh yes, the world’s strongest hitman as his personal mentor.”
“Starting to regret appointing you as my Consigliere.”
“Too late.” He shifted to a more somber tone. “Boss, in all seriousness, this is not a good idea. You don’t want to go to the mattresses against the Vongola. On their turf, or our own.”
“You can relax, Anthony. I don’t plan to go to war with them.”
This gave Anthony pause. “Then… you want to fill me in on whatever it is you actually are planning?” He frowned. “Because it seems to me like murdering one of their Guardians is gonna give off the wrong kind of impression.”
“That’s just it,” Luca replied. And when Anthony raised an eyebrow at him, he continued: “While you were away, I had a change of heart. I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and well…”
He trailed off, and Anthony studied him carefully, thrown for a loop by this newest development.
“Luca,” he said after a long moment. “What are you thinking, huh?”
Luca gave a short laugh. “I don’t know. Just… both my parents are dead now.” He sighed. “And Hayato’s been gone for years. Bianchi, she’s a lost cause, I already know, but… I just got to thinking.”
“…You don’t want to kill him,” Anthony finished.
Luca met his eyes meaningfully. “Maybe not.”
Anthony rubbed awkwardly at the back of his neck. He didn’t particularly like where this was going, but he also knew where Luca was coming from.
More importantly, he already knew that there would be no talking him out of it.
“So I’ll wait,” Luca concluded. “We don’t have to do anything further right now. He’ll come to me.”
“You sure about that?”
Luca smiled.
“I am.”
---
“You okay?” Yamamoto asked in a hushed tone, quietly edging closer to Gokudera.
“For the last time, yes,” Gokudera replied through gritted teeth.
“Just making sure.”
“I really wish you’d quit asking.”
“I’m only asking because you keep seeming like you’re distracted.”
Gokudera exhaled. “What makes you think that?”
Yamamoto grinned. “Well, for one thing, you haven’t yelled at me once since we got here. You haven’t even told me to stop fiddling with my jacket.”
Gokudera fixed him with the most withering glare imaginable. “Stop fiddling with your fucking jacket.”
Yamamoto laughed, as was expected of him.
Deep down, though, he was still concerned. He’d played the observation off as a joke, but Gokudera really had been preoccupied for the past two days, ever since he had told them all about his family and the attack. More than preoccupied; he was moody, sullen, and withdrawn, yet at the same time he seemed hyper-alert and constantly on his guard.
And it wasn’t like Yamamoto couldn’t understand why, after everything he’d told them. First he’d almost been killed (and even now Yamamoto was fighting off the constant urge to stare at the bandages around Gokudera’s neck in concern), and then he’d suddenly had to contend with the reappearance of his apparently murderous half-brother. And although he hadn’t actually admitted as much out loud, Gokudera was clearly terrified of Luca. Yamamoto didn’t know how much of their personal history he was still holding back from him and Tsuna, but there was no missing the way that Gokudera’s entire frame seemed to tense whenever he spoke about him, or how the pace of his breathing would rapidly pick up.
On top of all that, Yamamoto had also quietly taken note of the way Gokudera had spoken of his father in the past tense (Giovanni DiSanto is-was my father), and then had very deliberately steered entirely clear of the subject afterwards.
Clearly there was a lot on his plate, and Yamamoto knew that at times like these, Gokudera tended to react by retreating into himself, and trying to push everyone else away. So he was determined to make sure Gokudera understood that he and Tsuna had his back, and that they weren’t going anywhere.
So far, this had consisted of hovering close by at all times. He knew from personal experience that this tended to annoy the hell out of Gokudera, which was why he was amazed and frankly a little disturbed that the other boy still had yet to blow up at him or tell him to fuck off.
So he hovered all the closer, and fiddled with his suit jacket a bit more.
Beside him, Tsuna cleared his throat uneasily, perhaps to alleviate the sudden awkward silence.
Right. Tsuna hadn’t been particularly talkative either since their arrival in Italy. The three of them-it was only them (plus Reborn of course), at Gokudera’s insistence; he wanted to keep as few people involved as possible, and Reborn had agreed that the three of them would be enough to handle it-were currently seated on a leather couch in one of the most beautifully ornate hallways that Yamamoto had ever seen, inside the Vongola mansion. It was Yamamoto’s second time in Italy, but his first time visiting the Vongola headquarters in the mountains just outside Palermo. Needless to say, it was just a little bit bigger than Dino’s villa.
“I still can’t believe your house has an elevator, Tsuna,” he said in amazement.
“It’s not my house,” Tsuna muttered.
“It basically is, though,” Yamamoto reasoned cheerfully. “You’re the Boss, after all.”
“Yamamoto…” Tsuna groaned. “Please not now.”
“Sorry.” Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head, wondering how much longer they were going to be sitting here waiting.
It wasn’t like it was a particularly uncomfortable place to wait. They were surrounded by marble tile, gorgeous wooden details, and more paintings than Yamamoto had ever before seen in a single room outside of a museum. If anything, the problem with the mansion was that it was almost too lavish. Yamamoto couldn’t help but feel as though he shouldn’t even be touching anything. Not exactly a homey atmosphere.
And not exactly a welcoming one, either. Although they had been greeted the previous evening by a number of extremely accommodating servants who had gotten them settled in their rooms and expertly seen to all their needs, they had yet to actually meet with or even see the Ninth Boss or any of his Guardians. Yamamoto couldn’t help but feel like they were being treated less like equal, full-fledged members of the family, and more like… well, kids.
Which they were, to be fair. But all the same, it seemed like the Ninth was going about his business of running the family’s operations as usual, and was treating this matter as an afterthought; a distraction, rather than any kind of priority. Even now, they were stuck out here in the hallway while the adults conducted their meeting, waiting until the discussion finally shifted to the DiSanto situation, at which point they would finally be invited in. He really was trying to be patient, but even for him, it was starting to be a bit much.
Just when he was starting to want to yell at himself to stop fidgeting, the thick mahogany doors finally opened, and Reborn appeared.
“The Ninth is ready to meet with you now, Tsuna.”
Tsuna shot a quick glance toward the other two, and they all stood up, Yamamoto and Gokudera automatically filing in on either side of him.
“Tsunayoshi-kun, it’s good to see you again,” said the Ninth as they all entered. He was seated at the head of a table in the center of the room. Surrounding him were six of the most interesting-looking people Yamamoto had ever seen. Most of them looked to be similar in age to the Ninth, and Yamamoto supposed that these must be his Guardians, just like he and Gokudera were Tsuna’s.
For a brief moment, he imagined the three of them all together like this, one day in the far future; himself and Gokudera all matured, battle-hardened, and grizzled, but still at Tsuna’s side. It wasn’t exactly the typical where-do-you-see-yourself-twenty-or-thirty-years-from-now, but somehow the thought of it still made him smile.
One of the men had a lizard tattoo on his cheek; another was almost completely covered in scars. There was one man who seemed to be a fair bit younger than the rest. He had black hair with a shock of blond towards the front, but what Yamamoto particularly took note of was the way that he and Gokudera oddly seemed to exchange glances as they entered the room.
He filed it away in the back of his mind, just in case. He liked these Guardians already, and he knew that they were all allies, but a part of his mind still urged him to be cautious.
“I believe everyone here has previously been introduced,” the Ninth was saying pleasantly.
“Everyone except for Tsuna’s Rain Guardian,” Reborn said.
“Ah, of course; he wasn’t at the Inheritance Ceremony,” said the Ninth. “Yamamoto Takeshi. I’m pleased to make your acquaintance for the first time.”
It wasn’t technically the first time Yamamoto had ever seen the Ninth, but he supposed that the Cloud Ring battle, during which the Ninth had been grievously injured, didn’t really count. He was happy to properly meet him for the first time, though. “Hello,” he said brightly.
Something about the man’s smile reminded him of Tsuna. Wide open, like the clear sky. Someone that you could trust-but at the same time, someone not to underestimate.
He suddenly realized everyone was staring at him (several of them in a kind of outraged, near-sputtering horror), and a second later it hit him that he might have been a little too informal. “Uh… sir,” he added with an apologetic smile.
He thought he might be in trouble, but then just like that, the Ninth started to laugh, defusing the tension. Gokudera shot Yamamoto a look that promised a good ass-kicking when this was all over, and then at the Ninth’s beckoning, the three of them took their seats.
“Reborn was just updating us on the DiSanto situation,” said the Ninth.
“It seems that since the first couple days of the coup, they’ve settled down and have been playing things cautiously,” Reborn said. “It’s true that they’ve made some moves on one or two new territories that they had formerly left alone. But aside from that, they’ve stopped short of doing anything that might cause a serious rift between themselves and one of the other local families.
“In particular, they’ve been careful not to target anyone who is directly under the Vongola’s protection, or is one of our allies. Nothing that would be an open declaration of war-that is, except for the attack on Gokudera.”
“Which in itself is already a declaration of war,” said the younger man who had given Gokudera the odd look earlier. “An attack on one of the Vongola Guardians is an attack on the Vongola. The question is, are we going to treat it as such?” He looked at the Ninth questioningly.
“That is the decision currently at hand,” said the Ninth.
“If we do nothing, the family will seem weak,” Reborn said. “But if we move too aggressively, we’ll be seen as ruthless instead.”
“That’s not necessarily a bad thing,” said another of the Ninth’s Guardians-the one with the bright red mohawk and cornrows.
“I’m not concerned with appearances,” the Ninth said dismissively. “My priority is the family’s well-being.”
Next to Yamamoto, Gokudera shifted uncomfortably.
“That’s why we need to know the enemy’s exact capabilities,” the Ninth continued. “We cannot make our final decision until we have evaluated all of our options.”
“I told them about the Consummate Command,” Reborn explained to Tsuna’s group. “But to formulate a strategy, we’ll need to know exactly how powerful Luca DiSanto actually is. That’s why we need your input, Gokudera.”
Gokudera took a deep breath, as though composing himself. “He’s strong. I don’t know the full extent, but he has at least as much control over the Command ability as my… father did. So, full control over anyone he chooses to manipulate.”
“When you say ‘full control’, you mean…?” said a Guardian with slicked-back gray hair and a pair of sunglasses on his head.
“I mean anything. He could make you attack civilians, or your own men, or put a bullet to your own head.” He appeared to suppress a shudder. “Whatever he wants.”
“Civilian risk is a major issue,” said the younger Guardian. “We don’t want any bystanders getting hurt or killed.”
“Ganauche is correct,” the Ninth said. “What kind of precautions can we take to prevent this?”
“This ability must have some limits,” said the Guardian with the lizard tattoo. “Is there any kind of range?”
Gokudera looked uncertain. “Maybe. I don’t know for sure. I think… he needs to be able to direct it, so it might be possible to avoid it if you were concealed. But it’s not a guarantee.”
“There’s also the one-person limit,” Reborn added.
“So maybe target him with a group of people, possibly concealed with Mist illusions?” said the young Guardian-Ganauche. “What do you think, Boss?”
The Ninth looked thoughtful. Then he said, “Tsunayoshi-kun.”
Tsuna gave a start. “Y-yes?”
The Ninth smiled at him. “It’s true that this would normally be my decision. We are in Italy, not Japan, and I am still head of the family, since we never were able to complete the Inheritance Ceremony.
“However… since this situation directly involves one of your own Guardians, I’m inclined to leave the final decision to you.”
All eyes turned to Tsuna. He looked nervous for a moment, but then seemed to find his resolve.
“I think… we need to act,” he said. “I don’t want anyone else to get hurt.”
He hesitated. “But I also don’t like the idea of just assassinating someone from the shadows. It’s too cold-blooded… it just doesn’t feel right for the Vongola to do that. It’s not the kind of family we should be. Ah-even though I’m not actually the Boss!” he tacked on quickly.
The mohawk-Guardian frowned. “It might not be pretty, but if you don’t want people getting hurt, assassinating him would be the simplest and cleanest resolution.”
“That depends on your definition of clean,” Reborn said. “Assassinating another family’s Boss in cold blood is the kind of move that puts a potential target on our backs in the future.”
“I don’t like it either,” said the scar-faced Guardian. “These things lead to retaliations.”
“Now we’re just going in circles,” Ganauche said. “Don’t attack them so they won’t attack us back. Except that they already did attack us; that’s what started this all in the first place.”
“There’s a difference between flat-out murder and acting to protect the family,” someone else cut in.
“What other action can we take in this situation?” another one demanded.
Several voices then broke in all at once, and for a few moments the room was chaotic. It seemed like everyone was talking at the same time. Everyone except for Tsuna, himself, the Ninth… and Gokudera, who had his head tilted down so that Yamamoto couldn’t see his expression.
Then, suddenly, the chair next to Yamamoto slid back, and beside him, Gokudera stood up.
“There might be a way,” he said, loud enough for the rest of the room to quiet down.
“…I know how to get in touch with an old contact who’s still in the DiSanto family. I can arrange to meet him, and maybe… maybe they can put in a good word with Luca to negotiate some kind of truce.”
There was a silence as everyone seemed to process this. Yamamoto noticed that Ganauche once again had a strange look as he eyed Gokudera thoughtfully. So did Reborn, oddly enough.
The Ninth, however, seemed satisfied. “Thank you, Gokudera-kun. I believe that at the moment, this seems to be our best option. What do you think, Tsunayoshi-kun?”
Tsuna looked back and forth from Gokudera to the Ninth. “I think it’s a good plan,” he said at last. “But… is it really all right with you, Gokudera-kun?”
Yamamoto watched as the usual range of Tsuna-related emotions flickered across Gokudera’s face-gratitude, admiration, and borderline reverence. But there was also something else there that Yamamoto, even knowing the other boy as well as he did, couldn’t quite place.
However, all Gokudera said was: “Don’t worry about me, Boss. It’ll be fine.”
Tsuna seemed like he might be having the same confused feelings of doubt as Yamamoto. Nonetheless, after a moment he nodded. “Okay.”
“I’ll come with you,” Ganauche spoke up. “When you meet your contact. If that’s okay with you, Boss,” he added with a glance back toward the Ninth.
“I have no objection,” the Ninth replied. “Reborn, in that case, I’ll leave the rest to you and the young tenth generation.”
“We’ll take care of it,” Reborn said.
“Keep me advised at all times. Then, if no one has anything else of note to add, I’ll dismiss you all.”
As Yamamoto rose to his feet, he tried to give Gokudera an encouraging look; however the other boy wouldn’t meet his eyes, instead brushing past him to exit the room as quickly as he could.
Yamamoto was still staring after him with a frown when Reborn came over and hopped onto his shoulder.
“Have you been keeping up with your sword training?” he asked casually.
“Heh,” Yamamoto said. He had, of course. “Are we going to need it?”
“Who knows?” And with that, he leapt back down and disappeared down the hall.
---
Continue to Chapter 4
Prologue | 01 | 02
Additional Notes - And so the game is afoot. Next chapter we’ll finally see some action.
Did Coyote Nougat actually die in chapter 299?? I’m going with ‘no’, but I also didn’t give him any lines here because I’m annoyed at how ambiguous it was. This series is hard enough to keep track of as it is.