Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. I am simply borrowing the characters for this story. This fanfic will be as original as it can be. Similarities with other fanfics are not intended. The story is not related to any real story and similarities are simply coincidence. Reference to real life places are just to set the setting. This is strictly a work of fiction.

Warning: Shounen-ai. Yaoi. Also, OOC characters and dark theme.

They had been waiting for hours in the designated meeting place they he had agreed on with Byakuran, the leader of Millefiore. Tsuna had his doubts when Byakuran suggested to meet up on the barren land situated in between Vongola Kingdom and Gospella Kingdom but considering the theatrics of the white-haired leader, he had thought that it was definitely a place that he would be suggesting to have a rendezvous on.

The leader of Millefiore was known for his unusual demands but his reputation was undeniable. Although he was known for his illegal dealings, rumors were he dealt in quality products. Considering the situation that the Vongola Kingdom was in, Tsuna figured that it would not matter much where they got their weapons as long as they had it at the end of the day.

Hot and exhausted, Tsuna took off the heavy combat boots that he borrowed off one of the soldiers in the barracks he went to visit early that week off his right foot, letting the sand from the dunes fell from it and repeated the same action for his left one. Sweat caused the thick material of his clothes to stick on his skin. Although it was cooler now that it was nighttime, the humid air of the desert still lingered. He could not wait to be submerged in a lukewarm bath back in his room in the castle.

"I'm going to tell you again, Prince, that this is not a good idea," his bodyguard quietly commented, taking a sit next to him on the piece of canvas that they prepared for their shelter.

"You mentioned that you heard my brother discussed with G that we lacked weapons. We are here to get weapons," Tsuna replied, his voice laced with confidence that he wished he felt. "Vongola usually get their weapons from Shimon, I know that. But Shimon no longer exists. The only other country that produces weapons that rivals Shimon's are Millefiore."

"Millefiore is different from the likes of our countries, Prince. They are a tribe who claimed that they are a country with no permanent location. They thrive on looting treasures from unsuspecting caravans and horses." He shook his head. "It is one thing to try and reach them but it is another thing for just the two of us to be here just in case they will actually appear."

"We need to gain their confidence.""Confidence for what?"

"That we're here for business and nothing else."

The bodyguard shook his head and sighed, exasperated. "It is not that simple in real life, Prince. Common sense is not something you can rely on when dealing with someone like the Millefiore. You can't just accept the demand of someone like Byakuran."

"Even if it's not, I am not going to go back empty-handed," he retorted stubbornly, causing the other man to sigh exasperatedly. "I did not force you to join me here, Lancia."

"There is no such thing as choice when it is an obligation, Prince." Lancia stood up and went to the sleeping bag he set up for himself. "I would say that you should rest for now. It wouldn't do you any good if Byakuran found you in the state you are in right now."

Tsuna frowned as he massaged his feet but he complied with the suggestion of his bodyguard. He was suddenly woken up by a pain on the bridge of his nose and a pull on his hair as his arms were secured at his back. He yelped as the cold point of a knife touched his neck.

"That's one way to wake him up," a man laughed.

Shock reverberated in his bones at the unfamiliar voice as confusion fogged his mind. That was not Lancia's voice.

"Don't break his nose, you fucking bastard," another growled. "We're trying to get a handsome amount from his family. It would be more persuasive if he's in one piece."

Tears pricked his eyes as the hand on his hair tugged harder.

"Don't worry, brother. His nose might be broken but he's still in one piece," the one on his back replied. "Now, Prince. Listen. We have sent a letter with your bodyguard to the King for a ransom. We promise not to hurt you more than is necessary if you just be good."

The hand let go of his mane causing gravity to pull his head back to the ground.

Ground. Hard, concrete ground. He was no longer in the desert.

He felt a hard kick on his side, the movement urging him to turn on his back. Liquid trickled down his nose and the metallic tang of his blood dripped onto his tongue. A cough was kicked out of his body for good measure.

"Where am I?" He managed to question in between wheezes as he tried to sit up. Whoever had him right now had wrecked his body when he was unconscious. Whatever they gave him to knock him out in his sleep must be potent.

"Even if we tell you, you wouldn't know," the first voice pointed out. "If the rumours bear any truth, you know nothing of the world outside your secure cage."

In his blurry vision, he could see that half of his assailant's face were covered. As soon as his vision cleared, he observed the identical markings covering different areas of his assailants' skin. Face. Neck. Back of the palm.

Desert pirates.

"You're not who I was expecting," Tsuna coughed.

The one closest to him chuckled. "Sorry we're not exactly the mighty Millefiore." At Tsuna's startled look, he let out a laugh. "When someone of your status goes to a place like that, it's either you have a death wish or hoping to meet up with Byakuran."

"That fucker might as well has a death wish for hoping to meet up with Byakuran," the one with the foul mouth added his two cents. "Not that we're complaining. Your death wish brought you to our territory."

While many had believed that Tsuna was slow-witted, he was not. He understood exactly what was implied. Byakuran had never intended to meet him. Byakuran had sent him to their territory like some kind of an offering.

He did not know how many days had passed but the pirates left him to rot as soon as their ransom reached the place where they asked his family to drop. He suffered for a few more days before his brother and his closest soldiers found him covered in his bodily fluids.

The pirates did not go back empty handed but he did. He came back only to face the wrath and judgments of the citizens of his kingdom.

'Dame-Tsuna', he heard one said to another as he rode through the crowd that was welcoming his brother. 'He's not even contributing to the war and there he goes again making problems left and right.'

Even when he tried making things right for once and offered his help, he was still Dame.

Reality mixed in with memories and echoing roars of laughter drifted in and out of his ears in a confusing mixture of condemning and elated. He heard fire crackled and a sweet smell of roasted chestnut at the stall nearby permeated the air around him.

He blinked, reminding himself that he was no longer in his world. Once reality slowly seeped in, the sweet smell slowly turned foul.

He tried to make sense of what he had just witnessed. Rather than the memory itself, which once had a large impact on his life, the mere vision of the familiar blonde hair and blue eyes of the person who turned his life to a living hell and of the smile that greeted him every day without fail was the one that threw him off. He would never forget that face. No. But most of all, he would never forget the respect that he used to hold for the other man.

He was shaken. But being shaken was not a sign of weakness. It was a sign of strength.

He made himself remember instead the second that he felt his breath leaving him, of the strings of expletives as he cursed Reborn in his head and the promise that one day he would make the galla break his confident facade.

A stench coming from under him broke his thoughts and it took all his might not to vomit right then and there when he realised Reborn deliberately left him to lay down on a shovel worth of crap. He slowly stood up, realizing that his clothes were sticking uncomfortably onto his body, not unsimilar to the memory that had just visited him.

Trust Reborn to not let him feel comfortable even for a second.

His senses came to him bit by bit and it was not a pleasant experience to feel like half of him was left in the living world and the other half in this realm. He was forced to visit an unpleasant memory and that was something he refused to revisit a moment more.

"Any change in your thoughts about dying yet, Dame-Tsuna?"

He turned to the demon who was looking at him with his usual unreadable expression from his sitting position against the bark of the tree. The strong smell of the lesser demon meat as well as the raucous laughter from the camp alerted him that they were still quite close to the encampment.

Tsuna was not the least bit happy about the demon's action but Tsuna was a careful person. He had things that he would like to see come into fruition so he drew his cards thoughtfully.

Reborn was interested to know what he saw and Tsuna knew that the galla would kill him again if only to hear the bits of weakness that Tsuna had just experienced. Something told him that it would not be easy to get rid of the galla and he would probably know if Tsuna concocted a lie. Unfortunately, for the galla, Tsuna did not get to where he was by being a pushover.

But he was willing to divulge a necessary truth. His skin tingled.

"In my Kingdom, we had a tradition for royalty newborns," Tsuna started while taking off his filthy robe and tossed it into the crackling fire the galla had in front of him, leaving him in a white dress shirt and black pants. "As soon as they released their first cry, a bell will resound throughout the whole kingdom and invitations will be sent to all allied kingdoms. Within seven days, a ball will be held to welcome the newborn into the world and there they will be named by the allied Kingdom chosen by the King." He watched the fire licked up the cloth, the high count thread disintegrated bit by bit. "I was named Tsunayoshi by a Japanese emperor and he declared it to mean a man of virtue. My older brother was named Giotto by an Italian King which means a pledge of peace. My Kingdom believes that name has the power to make a person."

He reckoned that his hair was now covered in filth but there were more pressing matter than to get into the river just to make himself feel comfortable, it would be best to not spread the filth.

"The Japanese emperor must be disappointed with how you turned out," Reborn commented but that was a comment Tsuna have heard of more than once.

Tsuna just chuckled. "People tend to forget that virtues are practiced, not something innate that will stay throughout a person's life. I may not look like it but I grew up with characters that may be unheard of in this world. Kind. Honest. Respectful. But growing up, my emotions grew and I started building up my beliefs. You might think growing up as a Prince will make me sheltered but growing up where power is concentrated, it opens my eyes to reality. Not immediately but it did."

"I see." Reborn smirked but did not say more.

"Reality dragged me into their games but I am a willing player. Court politics, country politics, world politics. They're all tainted with cheaters and innocents. You can never guess what is on the mind of someone until you either hear it from them themselves or when you learn how to read their telltales. But more than that, words have power but actions are louder. People tend to judge by how we act more than what we say."

Reborn stayed silent.

"But there is a concept of change. If the cheaters grow into something worse, that is something to be expected and most likely, it is something that can be controlled. If it changes to something lighter, then no one was going to complaint. But the innocents," Tsuna grinned. "Do you know, Reborn, that it is the innocents that you should be aware of? Their beliefs are volatile but once it stabilise, it wouldn't change. It becomes their identity."

The young King moved his gaze to Reborn and Reborn would never admit to anyone how his heart raced right then and there.

The King's calm and confident gaze was laced with a type of craze that Reborn was unable to put into words. Ethical and moral were no longer an issue with this one. He was no longer bound by it. He may be carrying himself with a respectable air but Reborn could tell from the very first time he set eyes on the King that it was only an instilled demeanour, something that comes so naturally to the King after years of practice.

"Names, wealth, status, intelligence, gender; they don't tell you anything. Those are all the cards people drew in life. It's the state of the mind that shapes a person. At least, it is for me." He threw his head back to look at the sky. "I was a coward when I grew up. I have nothing that I was good at so I tried my best if only to get that little bit of compliment from my father. I lived to impress the people around me. But then I realised that I don't need people to compliment me to know how good I am."

Reborn looked away to hide his satisfied smile, eyes trained on the two gallas standing far enough to avoid Tsuna's line of sight but not far enough to escape Reborn's, not even bothering to hide their presence. "And yet here you are sprouting beautiful words that have no meaning here and treating me like a fool, Dame-Tsuna."

"You wanted a truth. I give you one." He gave him a wry smile.

The dark haired galla met Tsuna's gaze. "I wanted to know what you saw when you died."

"I saw my beginning," Tsuna reiterated, the smile stretching as his expression hardened.

"And yet you gave me a different variety of it."

"But a story of a beginning nonetheless." Tsuna shook his head, eyes moving towards the two figures that came to sight, narrowing at the smiling men, one calm and the other excited. "This is another new beginning to me, Reborn, and I will come out of it a new man once again." A soft grin came to his face. "I reckon that bit of information warrants me two favours from each of you."

It was an attempt on his part to try to keep the satisfaction off his expression at the brief startled look he managed to catch in the two gallas.

Reborn smirked, amused. "Glad to know you seem to be learning something at least, Dame-Tsuna."

"Then it's about time you spend time with the soldiers from the bottom, King Tsunayoshi." Colonello stepped forward, his eyes followed the King's as the King's gaze trailed between Reborn and Fon, whose lips set in that deceptively soft smile of his. He had been feeling this since he met the King but it felt like the King had been pointedly ignoring him. "Now, King Tsunayoshi, I don't quite like that look," he started, moving closer to Tsunayoshi. "You don't perceive me the way you perceive Fon and Reborn. Now, I might be the most talkative one out of the bunch and my action may be the loudest but you have to remember, King Tsunayoshi, that I am still a galla." He smirked when Tsunayoshi did not even react to their close proximity. "You may need me more than any of them if what you're aiming for is war, King Tsunayoshi."

The threat was undeniable. The challenge was clear. But to his surprise, a slow smirk came to the King's face.

"Then you might be more at ease to know that the reason why I perceived you differently is not because I don't see you as a threat, Colonello." Tsuna shook his head slightly as if the fact that that even crossed Colonello's mind was astounding. His eyes flashed. "Now, can we discuss arrangements on how you would want me start from the bottom right here?"

Power surged into him, creating electrical sparks within his nerves. His heart beat raced as the magic adapted to his cells and it was a occurence that he did not welcome.

His hands gripped hard on the wooden table as he bent over it, wheezing hard as if he needed the air to live. The fact that his magic returned back to him indicated one thing and one thing only.

A series of test tubes crashed against the wall splattering liquids of various colours as well as shards of glass all over the wall and the nearest floor. A roar-like scream left his throat as he vented out his anger.

Failed. He gritted his teeth in frustration. His experiment failed again.

Memories of his creation entered his head. A Nemeos lion just killed his fucking boar. Who cared that they were the king of all animals and monsters in this realm? It killed his fucking creation. The one fucking creation whose very essence stabilise even after he mixed one different genetic material from the other. He let Colonello stole it from him for the sake of studying its reaction and adaptation abilities when placed in a real environment. He had even laced it with his magic so he would be able to get a reading on it. Everything went so well until that damn King came into the picture and invited the Nemeos lion to come in and join the fun.

Fate was an atrocious existence. Fate was everything that he believed against but it was the most powerful thing in this realm. He mostly believed in facts, yes, but fate, that damn bastard, was hard to ignore and it dared to walk through his plans again.

He could care less about the damn King. He talked about him like everyone else. He was interested in him like everyone else. But fact was, the King's existence itself proved to be the cause of change. The catalyst.

His anger rose with every thought of changes that the King's existence may cause. Fact existed in a controlled environment and it could easily be rebutted by a change, however minimal it was. He had a long life ahead but starting from scratch was tiring.

However, excitement slowly overcame him as he thought about the new possible hypothesis and studies that he could come up with. There would be no more of the boring stuffs and who knew? Maybe he would be able to finally dissect the legendary lion.

And maybe he could do a test on the King himself, too?

AN: I hope everyone is safe and healthy wherever you are especially during this pandemic.

Thank you to those who have reviewed and favorited and alerted this story. It's been a while since I updated this story. Last this was updated was in 2018. I am sad to say that I would not be able to regularly update any of my story and it might take a while for the next chapter to be released as I am only able to write during my free time, which is admittedly getting less frequent as I get older.

I hope that you enjoy this update and this story helps you to fill your time especially when you're bored at home.