Chapter 4

A/N: Woah, it has been so many years since I last updated this story.

First off, I would like to apologise for such a ridiculously long wait.

My personal/social life kept me very busy, and I found no time to actually sit down and simply write for leisure.

It also didn't help that Hitman Reborn's ending kind of disappointed me. It felt a bit rushed and so abrupt that I never really got any closure? So I did kind of lose interest in the series in general. But alas, a quick reborn fanfic binge read has got me remembering why I loved the series in the first place, despite what I perceived to be a weak ending. So as a result I opened up my laptop to write out this chapter.

HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY IT. Again sorry for the long wait.

Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or any of its characters.

Chapter Four:

Tsuna felt his left eyebrow twitch at the tense atmosphere around him. Occasionally, the young lad had to wonder which gods he angered in his past life to garner such misfortune from lady luck.

Heading to collect his wayward guardians before they made a mess of things had long since become a common occurrence in his daily life. It should definitely not have been as stressful as it presently was, though the posse accompanying him could be to blame for his current consternation.

In tow behind him was of course Vongola Primo himself, his presence a kind blessing in this triple cursed life of his. Despite the situation reaching what one would call urgent, the man remained calm and level headed. He would often shoot Tsuna small but reassuring smiles, showing a subtle confidence in him that no one in his rather short existence had. That alone was enough to help soothe any nerves that arose. In all honesty, he would have been perfectly content with the conditions at hand had it not been for the two additional figures silently tailing the boss duo.

Having two visibly annoyed cloud guardians accompany him on his little game of guardian hide and seek was definitely a real mood killer. Hibari in particular, was adopting an especially sour countenance judging from the dark aura his figure seemed to be exuding. Considering the events that had transpired in the last hour, Tsuna couldn't really blame him. He assumed the young disciplinary leader's ego had suffered sufficient damage from Alaude's bold stunt and his daily dosage of violence and fighting would need to be TRIPLED for his anger to be quelled. And though the image of Hibari chained and wiggling like a worm on Alaude's shoulder would never leave him for as long as he lived, Tsuna knew better than to mention it EVER lest he wished to die a slow and excruciating death.

But on the bright side, due to (adamant) requests from Primo – who firmly believed manhandling children was an unspeakable evil – and Tsuna's own personal pleads (his safety and health was at stake here he'll have you know) Alaude relented and allowed Hibari to be released from his binds.

FLASHBACK

"Alaude, this isn't how you handle kids." Giotto exclaimed, though Tsuna could have sworn it sounded more like a whine. As quickly as it came, Tsuna ejected the blasphemous thought from his mind. Such a notion was ridiculous. Vongola Primo, founder of the Vongola family, whining? Who was he trying to fool? He must have been hearing things.

"Alaudeeeeee. Are you even listening?"

Ok, yup, that was most definitely a whine, almost on par with Lambo's if he was going to be honest with himself. At the sound of such an unbecoming noise leaving the mouth of a man highly respected by not only himself, but also the underworld, Tsuna nearly tripped completely. Thankfully, he managed to avoid such an embarrassment with only a slight stumble. Giotto shot him a concerned glance, long enough to ensure his safety, but quickly went back to bothering his companion when Tsuna sent him a small but reassuring smile. He almost couldn't believe it. THE Vongola Primo, whining at his guardian.

'At least I'm not the only one with trouble controlling their guardians,' Tsuna thought humourlessly, taking comfort in the fact that even the best of the best had their issues.

Alaude on the other hand, seemed to be taking things in stride, completely collected as he ignored both the persistent pestering from his boss and the death threats whispered into his ear from his cargo – I mean Hibari.

"I'll bite you to death."

Tsuna felt shivers run down his spine from the pure anger in Hibari's tone. There was no way he was going to simply let this go at the end of it all. Hibari could be remarkably petty at times (Mukuro would testify) and was definitely the type to hold grudges. Being the current figure head of their little mafia gang, he knew he would suffer for his incident, as the prefect would (correctly) assume this situation linked back to him. The thought of the damage, pain and suffering he would have to endure once this was over almost had Tsuna keeling over. He might as well begin digging his own grave right now, maybe even start on the tombstone. It would certainly save everyone a lot of trouble when Hibari got his hands on him. To make matters worse, they were attracting far too much attention. A group of sharply dressed men towing – or in Alaude's case, saddling – two young children was bound to raise suspicion. A couple of women passed the strange group, and their worried whispers did not escape Tsuna's notice.

He sped up and prayed they wouldn't call the cops. He was already stuck with his supposedly dead ancestor, looking for said ancestors associates and was also approaching imminent death by the hands of his own companions. Getting arrested was definitely not on his list of things to do today.

"Ano, Alaude-san…" he mumbled, garnering whatever courage he had to address the man. Though the blond didn't slow his pace or stop, Tsuna noted he had graced him with a quick glance. Based on previous interactions with Hibari, this was an acknowledgement of his presence and usually indicated permission to speak.

"Um, could you please release Hibari-san?" he asked as politely as he could manage.

It didn't seem like an unreasonable request. After all, he would be the one to deal with the aftermath of an irritated Hibari, and though a beating was unavoidable, he could perhaps escape death if Hibari saw his contribution to his freedom. It didn't take a genius to see that the longer Alaude held Hibari, the angrier he became, and Tsuna was not planning on dying tonight, no sir.

"He won't cause trouble, I promise," Tsuna protested softly when Alaude shot him an unamused look. Despite his efforts, it seemed his words weren't quite convincing and Alaude only humoured his response with another more disbelieving glare. Tsuna didn't really blame him though, considering even he himself knew Hibari and trouble came hand in hand.

"Alaude, I'm sure it's upsetting for Tsuna to see his friend treated so roughly." Giotto contributed lightly.

Had he been drinking water, Tsuna would have spat it all out at the term friend. That was the last thing he'd used to describe their association. He assumed this was Primo's attempt at guilting Alaude into releasing Hibari, but from the unchanging expression planted on his face, the strategy was doomed to fail. Giotto seemed to notice this too, and instead decided to take a different approach with his next statement.

"Besides, we're attracting a lot of unwanted attention. Our presence here at Namimori should be kept as discreet as possible Alaude." He reasoned sensibly, reminding Tsuna that the he was Primo for a reason, in spite of his occasional whining.

"Isn't that right Tsuna?"

Primo shot him an encouraging smile, urging him to play along. And though discretion within Namimori was impossible – with strange and unavoidable events occurring on a regular basis now that Reborn had entered the picture – Tsuna still nodded in agreement.

"Um, yes…" He trailed off shyly, unsure of how to respond to such a positive presence. "It would be nice if Hibari wasn't bound Alaude san."

To his hope, said cloud guardian actually looked to be contemplating their suggestion. Pushing further, Tsuna put on the most pleading look he could muster. A few seconds passed where the blond merely stared him down. In the end, Alaude released an exasperated sigh, coming to a slow stop.

Pulling Hibari off his shoulder, who had not once stopped muttering threats and glaring, he placed him firmly on the ground before snapping his fingers. The chains that had tightly encompassed Hibari dispersed in a burst of flames, only leaving a small wisp of smoke behind.

To his horror, said cloud guardian immediately attempted to physically assault Alaude upon his release, throwing a well-aimed kick at his face. Alaude unsurprisingly dodged it effortlessly, his calm expression indicating he had been expecting it the whole time.

"I'll bite you to death," growled Hibari, this time throwing a powerful punch that would have made Ryohei proud.

Alaude expertly caught his fist, though there was a small struggle as Hibari simply refused to submit, attempting to force his fist to make contact with his object of annoyance. Alaude squeezed the caught fist, glaring at the young prefect in front of him.

"Behave."

Honestly, you'd think his years as head of CEDEF would help Alaude get the hint that Hibari wasn't one to fall into line upon command. Regardless, Alaude's tone was firm and imposing, and any sane person would have backed down. But this was THE Hibari Kyoya, demon prefect, and orders only further incensed him.

Again he raised his leg for another kick, which Alaude was able to block with his remaining arm. The blond turned to shoot Tsuna – who had still not recovered from his horror – and Giotto – who had most likely assumed Alaude was best to handle the situation – a menacing scowl.

Tsuna could practically hear the sarcastic tone it emitted.

What did you say about him not being trouble?

Hibari leapt back. He instinctively reached to grab his tonfas, and Tsuna feared another serious fight would break out so soon after the previous, but the widening eyes of his cloud guardian put a quick end to that thought. Hibari's tonfas were missing, no longer securely attached to his sides. Almost smugly, though you wouldn't be able to tell from the cool and composed expression on his face, Alaude lifted up part of his coat, exposing flash of the tonfas. He must have picked them up after restraining Hibari.

If Tsuna thought Hibari had been angry before, it was nothing compared to the fury currently displayed on his face.

"Give them back. Now." He demanded (oddly ruffled Tsuna noted) taking a step forward.

Hibari had always been strangely attached to his tonfas. They weren't the most popular choice in weapons, and Tsuna often wondered why the combat efficient prefect had chosen such an obscure instrument as his tool in fighting. He never asked why though, too fearful of invading Hibari's privacy which he so fiercely guarded. But seeing how upset his cloud guardian was getting over them (though said cloud guardian would never admit to being upset) Tsuna almost intervened on his behalf.

Though he needn't, as Alaude after a few moments quietly observing the fuming prefect, seemed to recognise something on his face, perhaps its importance to its owner, and roughly threw one of the tonfas at the teen.

"Behave and you'll get the other one back." Alaude said in an almost kind but still determinedly stern tone. A tone one would expect from a father reprimanding his son, and certainly not from the most aloof and independent member of the Vongola. The comparison almost made Tsuna blanch. (Tsuna wasn't hallucinating was he? Was he?)

Hibari caught the tonfa instantly, tucking it away firmly before gritting his teeth. Tsuna could almost see the wheels spinning in the prefect's head, calculating his next move.

"Please Hibari-san, just come along. You know something's up right now in Namimori." He glanced at their supposed to be dead predecessors. "And once we figure it out, you'll never have to deal with him, or us, again!" Tsuna pleaded, hoping to appeal to the little patience and tolerance the prefect held by mentioning their beloved hometown. Hibari was almost childishly stubborn at times, (again an opinion Tsuna would never outwardly express), but had proven again and again to have surprising self-restraint if Namimori was involved.

There was a tense silence as Hibari considered his words.

"Tch."

Tsuna felt his heart stop at the irritated noise leaving Hibari's mouth, but to his relief, he simply turned his head away. To others it may have been a brutal dismissal but to Hibari it signalled begrudging acceptance.

"If any one of these herbivores causes trouble, I'll bite you to death."

Tsuna felt a sweat drop down his head, but smiled nonetheless knowing he had officially gained Hibari's approval.

"We promise not to cause trouble Hibari-kun," assured Giotto while Hibari stiffened at such a childish way of addressing him. Was this herbivore looking down on him?

"Um, Giotto-san, I think I know the next place my guardian might be at." Tsuna added hastily, wanting to avoid angering Hibari so quickly after he had finally calmed down. It might have been a futile effort though seeing as he was already glaring daggers at Giotto, who bless his soul, remained completely oblivious to the venomous stare.

END OF FLASHBACK

Which was why he was here now, eyebrows twitching at the trouble he KNEW was going to come.

Hibari was trailing quite far behind the group, obviously wishing to be associated as little as possible with them. Tsuna could only hope he wouldn't be too unhappy when he finally realised where they were heading.

As they drew closer to Kokuyo Land, Tsuna felt his hyper intuition begin to flare. With every step he took, it grew stronger and stronger, and it was then and there that Tsuna knew something was wrong. He picked up his pace, causing both Giotto and Alaude to glance to him, though he didn't bother to explain why. His head was pounding in warning by now and he felt the familiar creep of panic settling into his system.

"Herbivore."

To his dismay, it seemed Hibari had finally realised where they were going. With every one of his instincts screaming at him to move and get to Kokuyo, he didn't have time to sit and talk it over with Hibari. He figured a quick explanation should suffice or he would leave the prefect here and go ahead himself.

However before he could even attempt to address Hibari, a loud voice cried out to him.

"OI, THERE YOU ARE!" DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG WE'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR YOU, YOU BASTARD!"

Tsuna felt his eyes widen in horror as he took in the sight in front of him.

There stood Ken and Chikusa, coated in blood as the red liquid dripped from various cuts and injuries on their bodies. Despite the pain of such wounds, both continued to make their way towards them, Ken using Chikusa as support as he limped.

"Ken-san…" Tsuna uttered. "Are you alright?"

The moment the duo neared Tsuna though, the injured boy grabbed him roughly by his shirt and pulled him close. From his peripheral vision, Tsuna saw all three of his companions tense, and Giotto had even begun to step forward.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU GUYS GET INTO THIS TIME? WHY IS THAT GUY ATTACKING MUKURO!"

"What?"

Tsuna could only offer a confused look in response, though in the pits of his stomach he knew his instincts had been right. Oh no…

As gently as possible, he pulled himself from Ken's grip.

"O-oi."

"WE HAVE TO GO RIGHT NOW GIOTTO-SAN," he yelled, stressing the urgency in his tone. To his relief, there were no protests, even from Hibari.

"Go get fixed up with Doctor Shamal," he quickly shot at Ken and Chikusa before dashing off.

He heard the sounds of conflict at Kokuyo before he actually saw it. As they approached the dilapidated buildings of the area, Tsuna saw wafts of smoke rising from the structure, slabs of concrete crumbling off the walls as the powerful attacks within shook everything. It seemed Mukuro and Daemon were truly going all out.

By now, even Primo had picked up on what was really happening, and his eye narrowed in displeasure. Tsuna wondered how he would handle this all. Whilst his main concern remained with Mukuro, he knew the complicated relationship Daemon had with Giotto and the Vongola family in general. It was the mist guardian's betrayal that led to the demise of Cozart Shimon and the eventual stepping down of Giotto himself from his title of Boss.

Stopping at the entrance, Tsuna felt his eyes widen in a mix of shock and terror at the sight before him. Despite already expecting the worst, the carnage that resulted from the ongoing fight was tremendous, and Tsuna knew Mukuro would not be able to use this place as his abode after this was all over.

Both illusionists had gone all out, summoning illusions from all realms. Some parts of the interior were covered in ice or completely charred from fire. The corpses of animals he could no longer recognise lay scattered on the ground.

At the corner of the room, relatively distanced from the fight was Chrome. He sighed in relief when he saw her near spotless form. It was no surprise Mukuro had kept her safe and unhurt. However, before he could call out to her, her expression morphed into one of determination as she stamped her staff and conjured an illusion of her own.

Following the attack with his eyes, he realised she had been helping Mukuro all along despite her condition. She had summoned a crow to block the snake that Daemon had skilfully created in an attempt to poison Mukuro.

"Enough, time for me to end this foolish child's play." Declared Daemon haughtily, shifting his stance to point his weapon at Mukuro.

"Yes, I believe it is time for me to end your existence. And this time I'll make sure you stay down, forever." Spat Mukuro, also raising his trident.

He had to stop this, they would blow this whole place up! But before Tsuna could force his body to move, a strong hand grabbed onto his arm and flung him back, effectively cutting him off from the battle.

"Primo-san" he uttered, watching as the first Vongola boss summoned his gloves and activated his Hyper Dying Will Mode.

"This has gone far enough." He grimaced as he leap into action.

"WAIT!" Tsuna yelled, reaching out for his predecessor. Both Mukuro and Daemon seemed serious with their attacks, and he didn't want Primo injured should he not realise that. But Alaude quickly stepped forward, effectively separating both Tsuna and Hibari from the fight. He could only watch in horror as Primo flew in.

Mukuro and Daemon both dashed forward, weapons pointed. However, before either could make contact, Primo (almost effortlessly) grabbed the ends of both tridents and froze both parties' mist flames, after which he redirected both pointed ends upward.

Mukuro felt his eyes widen at the sight of such powerful sky flames.

Tsuna? No, upon closer inspection, the figure had golden blonde locks instead of the familiar light brown. This wasn't their tenth sky.

"Move or I'll end you too." He threatened darkly at the now identified Primo, pulling at his trident still firmly gripped in the man's hands.

Giotto ignored the threats directed at him from Tsuna's mist guardian, and instead focused on his own illusionist. The other man's eyes had widened, whether in shock or horror he didn't know, before settling down to a neutral expression. As always Daemon's thoughts and intentions were unreadable, like they were until the very end, and Giotto often wondered whether their tragedy could have been avoided had he just learnt to understand his friend and guardian a tiny bit better. He truly was a failure of a boss and friend, only capable of passing down his burdens for the next generation to carry.

"Daemon." He announced, voice steady despite the doubts spiralling within him.

"Primo." He responded unflinchingly.

Both men simply stared the other down, uncertain on how to proceed.

Distracted by his old friend, Giotto was unable to stop Tsuna's guardian from yanking back his trident. The heterochromatic boy pointed the staff at him, glaring.

"Don't ignore me. I'm putting an end to that megalomaniac melon head. "

Giotto almost lost his composure then and there. Melon Head? He never thought a day would come where someone would address his fearsome mist guardian by such a childish nickname. Children truly were fearless, and he smiled indulgently at the boy.

"I understand you must be confused and angry. But I can say with certainty I have no ill intention towards you or your friend."

"Wait! Mukuro!" a familiar voice interrupted. Giotto turned to see Tsuna, his young Decimo, poking his fluffy head out from behind Alaude's broad figure, waving frantically.

Sensing the fight had died down, Alaude stepped aside to allow the boy forward. Giotto smirked. Despite his aloof nature Alaude truly was a kind person, always looking out for the people.

The boy Mukuro, looked between his friends and Giotto's guardians, and he could almost see him placing the pieces together in his sharp mind.

"Well, what a predicament you've dragged us into again Tsunayoshi-kun." He crooned mockingly.

"I know you're angry Mukuro." Started Tsuna.

"But fighting isn't going to help anyone at this point. I promise he won't come anywhere near you or Chrome." He pleaded.

Giotto watched as the boy, Mukuro, turned to the young girl in the corner. Though she was mostly unharmed, he could see the exhaustion painting her expression, sweat dripping lightly from her face. Mukuro's thoughts were hard to decipher, the boy just as skilled as Daemon in hiding his emotions, but he eventually turned back to Tsuna and nodded reluctantly.

"As much as I'd prefer to end that freak, I'll settle for that. Keep him away from us." He stated coldly and left to tend to the girl, Tsuna following quickly to also check up on his female friend.

Allowing Tsuna to handle his own mist guardians, he turned to Daemon.

"You could have hurt them. They're just children." He stated, a hint of anger colouring his tone. Whilst Alaude could have been accused of committing the same act, he knew his cloud guardian would never truly harm Hibari. Alaude could be serious, and he could be cold, but he never once strayed from his morals.

"Hmph, you must be truly naïve to think they could be classified as children anymore. They're the mafia now, death and suffering come hand in hand with that. They should have gotten used to it long ago." He remarked scathingly. "Weakness has no place in our world."

Giotto felt his fist tighten. It angered him, and shook him to his very core, but there was truth to Daemon's words. Tsuna and his friends were part of the mafia. They needed to be strong, cruel and unfeeling if they hoped to merely survive in the underworld. But did that mean it was right? Right for children to be forced to fight and struggle to see another day? Right for kids to fend off assassinations and train for battle instead of playing around, doing things people their age should have. The robbery of their peace and innocence disgusted him more than anything else. Vongola at its core was a vigilante group, established to protect the wellbeing of people, of kids like Tsuna and his friends. To see what it had devolved into over the years was disheartening. He had been understanding, though begrudgingly so, as he watched Vongola dirty their hands to protect what was there. Watching through his ring as one after the other new bosses took up the mantle, but they had been adults. Consenting adults who knew, understood, the position they took and the world they entered. But the same couldn't be said for Tsuna and his guardians could they? He and his guardians had been horrified to watch as Tsuna and his friends had been forced to fight the elite assassination team Varia to properly inherit his rings. It had been despairing, watching children tend to wounds even adults would've flinched at, steeling their hearts and soul to ensure they lived to see another day.

He sighed.

"You've changed Daemon." Giotto uttered sadly.

"For the better," he bit back. "And now that you've reigned a leash on that thing," He pointed at Mukuro. I'll be taking my leave."

Before he could disappear into the mist however, a loud click resounded through the air. Daemon looked down in shock at the handcuff latched securely onto his wrist, connected to an ever composed Alaude.

"You," He spat angrily, moving to pull at the handcuffs. Though simple in design, Alaude's handcuffs were incredibly practical. The cloud guardian often took advantage of that fact, using it in many ingenious ways. Should Daemon fade away, Alaude would be able to beacon in on his location, tracing his own cloud flames which he embedded into the cuffs. Daemon would need assistance to escape the binds, assistance he did not have any longer in this day and age.

"We need to work things out Daemon. Even you should understand this." Giotto reasoned seriously.

"You expect me to believe you want to work together? With me? Your enemy?" he questioned sarcastically.

"Yes. I do expect us to be civil adults who can come together to understand a complex situation we've all been thrust into." Giotto felt his patience wear thin.

"We have nothing here Daemon, no one to call, no place to go. That existed 400 years ago. You can whine and complain, but you're coming with us, whether it be willingly or Alaude here has to drag you there kicking and screaming." He threatened, officially done.

He could see his mist guardian tossing up his chances of escape, but against him and Alaude, even Daemon had to admit the odds were against him and back down.

"Then if you're so set on being civil, I hope the same can be said for those barbaric brats over there."

Giotto sighed for the hundredth time that day. He could only rely on Tsuna to appease his friends.

A/N: I'm pretty sure this story doesn't align completely to canon but it's been so long since I've last watched or read the series so please ignore inconsistencies. This is all set after the Shimon Family Arc, and though Daemon was somewhat redeemed towards the end if I remember correctly, I don't believe he could change so quickly after 400 years doing shady things for the sake of Vongola. Whilst I don't think he's a fundamentally bad person, I do think Daemon struggles distinguishing between right and wrong and finding where to draw the line. I want to show this uncertainty and battle with trusting his old friends again in this story. So yes for the beginning Daemon is a bit of a mean person.

Also i plan to edit this chapter later as it felt a bit off to me but that's a future author problem lol.

Anyways, I need more family fluff between the First and Tenth Gen like I need air. Please recommend me some good stories yall. It's too soon in my story for me to go full fluff but expect more family moments in the future.

Please leave a review and let me know what you think. I do actually read them, and they remind me that people still care for this old story of mine hahaha.

I will update whenever I can, so see you all next chapter.

EDITED: 24/10/17 due to inconsistencies pointed out by the lovely Frost190.