crayontesla said:

How about tsuna going to mafia academy?

The first thing everyone noticed was this tiny foreign boy stumbling through the front doors of Italy's finest mafia academy. He looked meek, unfitting, and out of place. His brown eyes watered slightly and he looked terrified of his own shadow. They scoffed at him. Perhaps a yakuza heir who was sent away.

If this was the quality of yakuza in Japan, it was pitiful.

So, it was surprising when the Cavallone heir swung his arm around the tiny boy's shoulder, greeting him with friendly airs.

"Tsuna! Glad you could make it."

"Dino-nii!" Tsuna sputtered, arms flailing. He practically launched himself into Dino's arms, cowering.

Everyone rolled their eyes. Either Cavallone had made alliances in Japan or Dino was being the friendly naive idiot he was.

There was no value in this boy.

-.-.-

The students at the academy grew used to the sight. Dino would go and Tsuna would trail after him, like a lost puppy terrified of everything. It was sickeningly sappy.

How Dino put up with it, no one knew. Then again, the boy was pretty. Perhaps there were other benefits that Cavallone heir was getting out of this relationship.

No one brought it up to Dino's face though. (Friendly naive idiot Dino was, but still Cavallone's heir and a student of Reborn. No one was that stupid to bring the wrath of the World's Greatest Hitman down on them)

Instead rumors and sneers spread through the academy. Dino continued to be indulgence and Tsuna's eyes continued to water.

-.-.-.-

"VOI, why do you let that fucking trash hang around you?" Squalo accused.

For once, Tsuna was nowhere in sight, Dino's second shadow mysteriously not showing up for class that day. Realizing that, Squalo had taken the time to corner his friend because he wanted answers, damnit.

Look, everyone else at this stupid school bought Dino's naive friendly idiot mask, but Squalo knew better. To a certain extent Dino was a naive friendly idiot and no one dare to mess with him because his famiglia was the second strongest in the country and because no one wanted to mess with Reborn's student. Everyone was terrified what Reborn, fiercely-protective-of-those-he-claimed Reborn, would do.

The idiots never realized that it wasn't so much Reborn who was the cause of caution here, but rather Dino himself.

Reborn would sit back with popcorn while Dino handed the idiots their asses.

No one here realized that-!

Squalo was digressing.

But for months now, that brat Tsuna had been clinging to Dino like a stubborn bur. Squalo wanted to know why.

Dino smiled. (God fucking damnit. It was that smile that Reborn taught him which meant there was some sort of shit going down somewhere.) "We have an alliance and I promised to look out for him," Dino said.

"By letting him cling to you?" Squalo demanded. "Tell the kid to grow a fucking backbone before everyone decides to eat him!"

Dino just guilelessly smiled. "Tsuna can handle himself."

Could he? Could he really? Because to Squalo, it looked like a strong wind would break the kid in half.

"How is Xanxus?" Dino asked, curious and deflecting the question.

Squalo scowled, crossing his arms. "As if you don't know." Vongola and Cavallone were allies after all. Squalo only knew because he was Xanxus' right hand man and damn Vongola to hell and back, no matter what they said, Squalo wasn't leaving Xanxus alone.

"I don't get told everything," Dino said, amused.

"He's fucking fine," Squalo snapped back. By fine, he meant several months in the hospital. To this day Squalo didn't know what went down. All he did know was that rumors that Xanxus had lost his inheritance were spreading like rapid fire and the hospital visit was the beatdown the new heir had given him. Xanxus, on the other hand, remained stubbornly silent on the issue beyond confirming yes, he was no longer the heir.

Stupid boss. Squalo was ready to strangle him. But no, no, that wouldn't do. Squalo would not be responsible for putting Xanxus back into the hospital. No matter how tempting it really was.

"I heard he is being released today and will be back to school on Monday?" Dino said curiously.

Squalo nodded. "And I'll be there to fucking cut down anyone who mocks him."

Dino just smiled.

-.-.-

Monday was met with a scowling Xanxus storming through the school hallway. Everyone rolled their eyes. Looked like the so-called top dog was back. Nice to know his stint to the hospital did nothing to cure that arrogance.

What right did he have to walk as if he owned the school? There were so many stories about him being booted from the position of Vongola's heir, it meant he was no longer of any value. Just another nobody.

'He actually came back.'

'I heard that he is no longer Vongola's heir.'

'He's now no better than trash.'

"Look at what the trash dragged in," Antonio, heir to the Scarpa famiglia, said with a sneer. "Rumor has it you're no longer top dog here."

Xanxus stared at him, impassively, red eyes narrowing.

Antonio crossed his arms, a smug smirk on his face. "I guess the rumors about you being a street scum was true. Of course, Vongola would find a new-"

In a blink of an eye that was blur of brown that appeared out of nowhere, hoisting Antonio into the air. Antonio choked, kicking his feet. "Wh-? SAWADA?!"

Tsuna stood, glaring up at Antonio as his posture was unwavering, unflinching. The friendly brown eyes were gone, glowing orange, burning bright.

"Don't you dare speak another word," Tsuna snarled.

Everyone took a subconscious step back. This was Sawada Tsunayoshi? The tiny weak kid that has spent the last three months following Dino around? He was capable of hoisting Antonio, an older teenager who was five inches taller, into the air with ease?

"You dare-"Antonio's lackey number one shouted, lunging at Tsuna.

"I wouldn't," Xanxus said in a bored tone.

No one listened as the group of five boys threw themselves at Tsuna. There was an explosion of Sky Flames and they went flying.

"Sky- Sky Flames?!" Antonio said, inching backwards.

Antonio asked the question burning on everyone's minds. How did someone like Tsuna have Sky Flames? Him?

"Alright, baby boss, that's enough," Xanxus said, grabbing Tsuna by the collar of his shirt.

Like dosing water on fire, the fire instantly retreated as Tsuna twirled around, eyes watering. "But Xanxus-nii, he's insulting you!"

…. Did Xanxus just call him baby boss? A sinking feeling settled into everyone's stomachs. It couldn't be….

Xanxus bopped Tsuna on the head. "This is fucking why we had make our battle fucking official. I wouldn't have spent three months in the hospital, if you would just grow a backbone and step up to the plate."

"VOI WHO THE HELL IS MESSING WITH MY BOSS?"

Out of nowhere, Squalo came running down the hall, sword in hand and ready to swing. Everyone gulped and nervously shuffled out of the way.

"Shut the hell up trash. The brat got to it before you did," Xanxus yelled back.

"You're mine to protect," Tsuna said, Sky Flames flaring again.

"See you keep saying shit like this is the reason why the old man was so fucking set on making you his heir," Xanxus said.

Heir…? Oh god. It couldn't be.

"VOI, WAIT IS THIS FUCKING BRAT THE NEW VONGOLA HEIR?" Squalo shouted.

A few people fainted in the crowd.

Xanxus' eyes narrowed. "Brat, you've been at this fucking school for three months and no one knows who the fuck you are?"

Oh god, it was true. Several more people passed out in the crowd.

"How was I supposed to tell them," Tsuna protested.

"I'm fucking throwing you back into Reborn's clutches when we get back home," Xanxus said.

Reborn… was… involved too?

"HIIEEE, not that Xanxus-nii!"

"Too fucking bad, brat! This is for your own fucking good. You're supposed to be growing a backbone here. Stop smiling trash!" Xanxus snapped at Dino who had joined them.

"How could I not indulge my baby brother?" Dino said with a guileless smile.

"Shut up! I was his fucking older brother first!"

Now seemed like a good idea to pass out.

AU where canon doesn't happen, Xanxus does not have three brothers (or if he did, they've been dead for a while) and Tsuna has always been aware of Vongola and still didn't want to be Decimo until everyone conspired against him to make it very Official(™).

(Or Tsuna was too fucking powerful because a certain hitman was his godfather with Standards(™), Xanxus seized an opportunity to dump paperwork on Tsuna and Dino helps spread chaos.)

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