Chapter Text
Irie Tomoko’s life was pretty normal nowadays. She would wake up just before 6 in the morning, make breakfast, and try her best to fend Masatsugu away from the kitchen. Then she’d send him off to work, Akiko to school, and drop off Shoichi at his elementary school. She’d spend exactly five minutes consoling Shoichi at the gates, another five minutes making sure he had his stomach medicine, and then come back home. Then she’d sit down and get some work done in her home office. If it was a Thursday, she’d go down to the cafe a few streets down and have a cup of coffee with some friends from her knitting club.
Life was calm and smooth. The kind of life that Tomoko had never even dreamed of ten years ago, on the run with a toddler in hand and heavily pregnant as she and Masatsugu frantically tried to evade the grasp of the mafia. Even when she had made that devil’s deal with the Hibari and ensconced her family in the obscurity of Namimori, she hadn’t ever felt truly safe. Those early months, Akiko and Shoichi had slept in the main bedroom and Tomoko and Masatsugu kept guns and go bags under their beds, ready to run at a moment’s notice. Instead of bedtime stories, they had taught Akiko how to go off grid with her brother.
And then Hibari Indra cashed in on a favour, and within a few days, the Wings had enveloped the sky.
That's what they were calling it now.
Amakakeru tsubasa[1]. Heaven-Soaring Wings.
The gigantic vault of Kotei arching over their heads and sealing Namimori’s safe harbour contracts for good. Even though the Hoshikuzu Ōi[2], that equally enormous veil of Gen’ei, had gone up just minutes later, those who had felt the Flames the first time had remained aware of the impossible thing offering them a home. It was unforgettable.
Tomoko had spent the entire week the Wings first unfurled flame drunk and knowing the kind of bliss that only being claimed by a Kohaku could bring you. Masatsugu was no better. In fact, the entire town had been the same. Flame actives blissed out and running on autopilot, flame latents activated, and flame negatives becoming latent.
Slowly, information had reached the residents. The newly born Sawada heir had been born with an active flame core. And it was the babe’s Flames stretching across Namimori’s Sky, shielding them, rejuvenating them. It was unbelievable. A baby born with an open core, a Kohaku at that? Impossible.
But the Hibari don’t ever bother to lie. Have no need to, and especially not with such an outlandish tale. Therefore it stood to reason that it wasn’t a lie. And with each day spent under the aegis of the resplendent arc of Fire soaring above them, they could all feel the centre of its pulsating energy emanating from deep within the Sawada estate. That combined with the evidence of their own flames dancing in concert…Namimori finally began to believe in a future other than the one where most of them would have to run again once the last of the sanctuary's contracts became void.
They could stay. They wouldn’t have to leave the life they had fought hard to establish. Because now, they had a home.
And they knew who offered it to them. The Irie family weren’t the only ones who pledged loyalty to one Sawada Tsunayoshi those days. All of them had. Signed their lives over without regret, swearing to fight and die for their Kohaku’s honour. Even the Hibari had, in their own way. After all, even skylarks needed a place to soar towards.
Several times Tomoko had wept in relief the first few months, unable to believe this could be real. Masatsugu and she had known what their pursuers were capable of, that they would lay in wait in front of every sanctuary they could think of if it meant burying Tomoko and what she had found. That's why they had fled back to Japan, hoping to disappear within the country’s deeply hidden flame communities.
That’s why they had chosen Namimori, practically unknown to the outside world and waning.
Everyone who was in the know knew that whatever miracle the Hibari had pulled out of their ass to keep the contracts valid was running out. Sooner than later, Namimori would have stopped being a sanctuary operated by the Hibari, to just being another Hibari territory. And that was exactly why Tomoko had chosen it. Their enemies would have expected them to run somewhere ironclad, not somewhere rusty. And it had paid off. As far as the mafia was concerned, the Irie family had been picked off by some stragglers while they were running from someone else and had perished.
The risk had bought them nothing more than a decade at most. Twelve years if they were lucky. A deadline had loomed over them still. But it had been precious time to plan and prepare.
And now…it just wasn’t needed anymore.
Now, Tomoko could take a Thursday to chat with her friends, Masatsugu could go drinking on Fridays, Akiko could go to sleepovers, and Shoichi could be a child.
Life was smooth, and the days were calm. She couldn’t be more grateful.
And it was on one of those calm days where she had completed her morning routine, done her work, and sat down with her friends at Le Petit Bonheur for a bit of evening gossip when she was approached by a Hibari.
‘Branch clan member’, Tomoko noted idly, ‘Maybe a Kusakabe?’
She hoped it was a Kusakabe. They were the only sane ones in that madhouse. Polite too. Her guess turned out to be right when the first thing the man did was give her a polite bow.
“Irie-san”, the man said in a mild tone.
“Kusakabe-san”, she replied.
“I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to cut this gathering short. You are needed.”
If the redheaded woman was surprised by the order she didn’t show it. Instead Tomoko just sighed and started gathering the new knitting project she had been showing her friends into her tote. She gave them all an apologetic smile which they waved off. What else could you do when a Hibari apparently needed you?
“Is it Indra-san? Does she have a new assignment for me?”, Tomoko asked when she finished shoving her needles into the bag.
An air of gravity flashed across the Kusakabe’s face before it was buried under their trademarked accommodating indifference. “No. Sawada-sama needs you.”
The table stilled. So did the cafe.
Tomoko resisted the urge to clam up in shock. “Ruriko-sama?”
Kusakabe shook his head. “Tenmei-sama.”
In that moment, it felt to Tomoko like her flames had erupted into overdrive with the way electricity raced up her spine.
Tenmei-sama had summoned her? But why? Is something wrong? Has something happened? What was going on? Thoughts flitted through her mind at light-speed.
She was vaguely aware of the entire cafe staring at the exchange. At the way her friends were gaping at her. After all, while they were all aware of the fact that Tenmei-sama was awake, he generally kept appearances to a minimum, both recovering from the effort of creating the Wings, and also hiding from the blasted Vongola. Namimori had nearly broken out in revolt when that particular tidbit of information had been revealed.
Tenmei-sama still participated in shrine activities of course. They saw him during festivals and ceremonies. But the child mostly stayed inside the Sawada estate under the watchful eye of his grandmother and her in-laws. As young kohakus should actually. It would be dangerous for them to wander before they learned to control their Attraction.
A formal summons was rare. She’d heard that Kawahira-san from the antique shop received one, and that Yamamoto-san from Takesushi got one too. And now she was receiving hers. Tomoko looked helplessly at her friends. Sasagawa-san gave her a reassuring smile, while Kurokawa made a ‘get on with it’ gesture. Miura-san just gave her an excited thumbs up.
Tomoko gulped down her apprehension and decided to just bite the bullet. She followed the Kusakabe out of the cafe, all too aware of the chatter that broke after their exit. However she couldn’t help the excitement that lit up her mind.
She was going to see Tenmei-sama. She was going to see Namimori’s Sky.
Tsuna fought the urge to fidget in his robes. He understood the need for formal attire and keeping up appearances, truly he did, he had practically lived in three-piece suits and his cape during his time as Decimo after all, but twelve layers was a bit of an overkill no?
He sighed behind his mask. Twelve layers, hair ornaments, a folding fan, and a fox mask. He looked like a character from a historical drama or one of Lambo’s mangas. What was he? An anime protagonist?
Since he woke up after his year-long nap, he had been keeping to the shrine, learning of the Sawada family history at his grandmother’s side. And that also meant he was getting quite the education on Japanese flame systems. In his last life he had never explored Japan's flame culture, considering how quickly he was assimilated into the mafia, and after formally ascending as Decimo he had rarely visited the country unless to visit his mother. He knew some of course, he had Kyoya and Takeshi as guardians and he had talked to Tsuyoshi-san semi-frequently, but otherwise he was completely ignorant of his birthplace’s flame societies other than whatever was needed while negotiating with the Yakuza. And Vongola did not need to negotiate often. So honestly he was fascinated at this aspect of familial history and culture he had never known. And yes, Tsuna was feeling kind of guilty that he had never taken the initiative last time around. But could you blame him? Changing the mafia from the inside was hard work.
His education at his grandmother’s side was what made him aware of the rigid structures of etiquette that still prevailed in modern Japanese flame culture, a significant amount of contributions coming from the Heian era. Now Tsuna wasn't an alien to etiquette. But holy shit did Japan take it to a whole new level.
In Italy, only Skies were allowed to wear amber jewellery. Beyond that there hadn’t been much sumptuary laws when it came to clothing. There had been a lot of etiquette regarding how non-affiliated flame users should approach and treat a Sky-all of which had made Tsuna extremely awkward in the beginning, some of which he had tried his level best to relax throughout his reign to varying levels of success-but all of that paled in comparison to the amount of ‘proper’ procedures he had to learn just to even greet somebody.
For example, his twelve layered robe situation. Only Skies, or Kohaku as they were called, were allowed to wear Junihitoe. In the civilian world this attire had been worn primarily by Heian era court ladies and had long since gone out of fashion. Even if someone liked to wear traditional clothes today, a Junihitoe certainly wasn’t going to be the first thing they bust out, that's for sure. But in flame societies it had been decreed the clothes that a Kohaku should wear. As Sky flames, Kotei, was blessed by Amaterasu, the gender of the Kohaku did not matter as much as the fact that they were the goddess’s blessing given form, and to represent her, they had to wear clothes befitting of their station. Wearing a deity’s robes was disrespectful outside ceremonial settings, and wearing imperial robes anywhere would have resulted in the Emperor’s ire, so specially made Junihitoe, spun from flame imbued looms and tools were eventually chosen. The tradition continued even now, and that was why currently, you would find Tsuna sitting on a raised platform, trying very hard not to appear uncomfortable in his child size Junihitoe.
Not only that, he even had to wear a mask during formal meetings and had to carry fans everywhere. To make it even worse, he had to make sure to choose the right fans for the occasion… Hiogi? Uchiwa? Sensu?[3] Who knows? Certainly not Tsuna. He just accepted whatever his grandmother or the servants handed him. He was getting better though. Soon he might even pick out the right patterned fan without copious amounts of help!
Looking back, all those times he had to hold meetings with the rare flame active Yakuza clan here and there made so much sense now in context. He was wearing only three layers and had his face bare… some of them hadn’t even looked him in the eye, and the vast majority of them would blush like a tomato and stutter through the meetings…Oh gods he must’ve seemed practically naked to them. No wonder that triad boss had called him a huli jing[4]. Right before Fon eviscerated the man for the disrespect that is. Same case with Reborn and that really rude wakagashira [5]who had accused him of trying to seduce his boss.
Tsuna sighed in exasperation. Retrospective embarrassment was the absolute worst.
But…despite these small frustrations…
Life was good. His grandmother was a truly wonderful woman with unconditional love for him. For the first time in his life he was actually experiencing true parental love, and wasn’t that just sad? Bless his mother, but she had spent a majority of her life last time around destabilised with a sealed sky for company, and mental balance and good parenting that did not make. Honestly, what even was Iemitsu’s thought process back then?
His lessons were amazing and informative. Unlike in his last life where learning about flames was a matter of survival-as a result of which he had to spend a long time ironing out his tumultuous relationship with his flames, not to mention all that damage from long term sealing- this life provided him with a whole new perspective on flames and flame systems. One where you yourself were the flame. In fact it was quite similar to the method he himself had developed by trial and error when he was Decimo.
And he definitely needed those lessons. As much expertise he had in flame utilisation, it didn’t change the fact that his core was tethered away from his crux point, and the fact that he was sustaining the weight of an ancient neutral core and the vault across the Namimori sky. The formal, codified methods of flame usage developed by his family and other clans like them were invaluable for him to regain balance, especially now that he had decided against dissolving the flame barrier. Plus those meditative techniques helped him strengthen the Hyper-Intuition he could access, as it was also limited at the moment just like his flame capacity. As long as his core remained away from its crux, his intuition would also remain only partially accessible. It was still a lot more than most Vongola could dream about, including Nono, but Tsuna felt profoundly wrong without the alien voice in his brain hissing at one thing or the other.
To tell the truth he had woken up from his little coma with the full intention of cancelling the symbiotic bond with the sakaki once he gained a little equilibrium, but then Grandma had started his history lessons in the form of bedtime stories and well…
Reborn always did accuse of being too softhearted.
Namimori would not survive without his Sky. Even in those groggy days of having just woken up he had felt the various allegiance bonds thrumming along with his flames, and the sheer happiness and relief running along them had almost bowled him over into another coma.
Namimori was grateful. And Tsuna had felt unworthy of their gratitude because he was honestly just trying to ensure he survived. Rejuvenating the town’s sanctuary contracts was just a side effect. He hadn't even known about them in the first place. But again he had been Decimo for decades, and knew not to dwell on sentimentalities too much. What was done was done. Now that he knew about his role in the town, he should try and become worthy of their gratitude instead of overthinking the issue.
So that meant he had to learn. He had to respect their traditions his grandmother held dear. He had to continue their family line. And if that meant learning a dozen or so titles or names then so be it. Besides, it wasn't as if he was unfamiliar with multiple titles…
Decimo. Neo Vongola Primo. Il Cielo Più Forte[6].
Fondazione del Tri-Ni-Sette[7].
It helped that he was coming to love this town as well. All these people, running away from a life of violence, wanting a home. They were just like him in the sense they were also looking for a peaceful second life away from the mafia.
And…
He tilted his head to the right where behind an ornate curtain a portrait imperiously hung. A breeze blew by, and the deep red curtain fluttered just enough for an engraved name to appear and vanish.
Hibari Amatsumi. Amenokagami no Shinkyo[8].
“Here at last, aren’t you, boy?”
She had entrusted this to him. Saved his second life. There was a debt to be paid.
Besides, managing Namimori can’t be harder than managing Vongola could it?
Right?
It's not really talked about, but an Element’s craving for harmonisation wasn’t one-sided. Much like how Flames craved Harmony, Skies yearned to provide it.
In another life, Sawada Nana’s destabilising core reached and reached towards her son’s Sky flame core for Harmony and home but found itself locked out. In another life, Sawada Tsunayoshi’s sealed core tried its best to provide his mother with the balance she needed.
Only suffering awaited them. Suffering they didn’t even realise.
Without Harmony Nana eventually spiralled into a curious state of detachment. Much like how Tsunayoshi spiralled into a half-lived existence. The fact that Sawada Nana retained herself at all was a miracle that stood as testament to both her strength and her illustrious ancestry.
But that was another life. In this life Nana steadily recovered and kept her first son’s wakening a secret from her husband. And if she kept a closer eye whenever Vongola Nono visited and talked to her second son, she certainly didn’t show it.
But that was not the point was it? The point was that Skies yearned to provide a home as much as others craved it.
And Sawada Tsunayoshi had always been The Sky.
He couldn’t have ignored Namimori’s pleas even if he had wanted to. And he certainly didn’t want to.
Irie Tomoko was led to the Sawada estate’s Shoin by the time the setting sun painted Namimori’s sky in hues of red and orange. She got an excellent view of it as she was coming up the hill the shrine and estate both stood on, and had the idle thought that had the Wings been visible, Namimori would have looked like this all the time. But those thoughts left her mind instantly as she was received by an aide outside the estate’s entrance, and Kusakabe-san promptly left her to be taken care of by the Sawada household staff. When she realised that she was being directed to a Shoin[9], Tomoko was instantly relieved. While a shoin was an audience hall, it was also where you receive guests. Whatever the reason for her summons, it wasn’t something she had done wrong.
She entered the room nervously and got a brief glimpse of a raised platform and a low table before she remembered her etiquette and fell into a seiza. She first kept her hands on her lap, elbows slightly bent. Then quickly but precisely she leaned slightly forward, eyes looking ahead just a metre or so, straightening her arms, so that the tips of her fingers touched the floor in front of her, her index fingers touching each other side by side, and her arms creating a triangular shape with her body. She paused for a moment. And finally she bent her elbows and bowed, palms down on the tatami and hands laid on the floor all the way to the elbows, face directly above her palms, and creating a straight line from head to the waist, parallel to the floor, while still holding that triangular shape her arms had initially made. She held the bow for a short while, before straightening up in the exact reverse of the order she had bowed in, with no wasted movement.
She looked straight ahead, her eyes finding the lower half of Tenmei-sama’s mask, being careful not to look him in the eye. She waited for any indication from the maid standing off to the side whether she should stay where she was or should she move to the side so that she wasn’t facing Tenmei-sama anymore. No such signal came. But she didn’t lower her guard.
This was a formal meeting. Her first meeting. She had to be mindful in the presence of her Kohaku.
Absently she noted his beautiful Junihitoe, all layers and colours carefully arranged, the hiogi he held in hand, and his long hair pooling around him. He sat on a raised dais, with a byōbu behind him, a kichō to his left, and a boxlike chōdai to his right. Above and before him, a kabeshiro . [10]
To say Tomoko felt out of place was an understatement.
“Irie Tomoko-san”, said Tenmei-sana gently. Even though he was wearing a mask, he brought up the hiogi to cover where his mouth would have been.
It was honestly kind of adorable…Tomoko shook off that thought immediately and responded with a bow of her head. “Yes Tenmei-sama.”
“You have been living in Namimori for about ten years now, yes?”
“Yes, Tenmei-sama. We arrived in Namimori in the January of 1992.”
“How has life been for you then Irie-san?”, Tenmei-sama asked her, his young voice acquiring a certain gravitas underneath his mask. Tomoko didn’t know where he was going with this but she didn’t hesitate to answer.
“In the initial years there had been some anxiety regarding what to do once the contracts became invalid and Namimori could no longer function as a sanctuary. But now, by Tenmei-sama’s grace we don’t have to worry about that anymore. Life has been good, we’re truly grateful.”
“I am glad to hear that Irie-san.”
And despite the fact that Tenmei-sama had no connection to her beyond her being a resident of Namimori, she felt that he truly meant the sentiment. However she knew that she wouldn’t be summoned just so that Tenmei-sama could ask after her family.
A light chuckle came from the Kohaku. “You’re wondering why I called you no?”
Tomoko bowed her head. “Forgive me but I was indeed wondering, Tenmei-sama.”
The child, honestly he was just her Shoichi’s age, even younger actually, somehow managed to give off a contemplative air despite the mask and hiogi covering his face.
A light wind blew by from the garden outside as the silence descended. It was a comfortable silence. Tomoko occupied her time by observing the shoin. Her education in traditional Japanese architecture wasn’t the greatest, but she didn’t think she was wrong in guessing that most of the interior of this room was probably straight from the Muromachi period. There were some differences, especially the part of the room where Tenmei-san was sitting, but everything else made Tomoko feel like she was on the set of some period drama. It was a little separated from the main building and had to be accessed through a covered wooden walkway that split off to the side a little ways after the main gate, which itself cut through a garden filled with light blue and pink hydrangea blooms, and lined with kitsune statues[*]. The walkway had then opened into a more austere space, a Chisen-shoyū-teien [12] type garden with a large pond and carefully curated greenery. The shoin stood a little back, constructed in such a way that the pond could be viewed from each of its pavilions.
All in all an eclectic mix of architectural styles, though the room itself was very much a classic shoin. Perhaps it was because of the peaceful ambience of the place, Tomoko found herself unbothered despite Tenmei-sama’s bout of silence. It was only a few minutes later that her Kohaku finally spoke.
“I’ve decided something lately Irie-san”, he said, the air around him suddenly taking on a more playful aura. “As you know, I had a little bit of trouble with Vongola a few years back, as a result of which I had to be hidden for a while. Now though, the danger has mostly passed. I even have a brother living in the heart of Vongola territory, absolutely safe.”
Tomoko had heard about that. The child was called Tsunashige if she remembered correctly. Born a year or two after the inheritance crisis at Vongola settled down at last, the babe had probably already been earmarked for the CEDEF. Had Tenmei-sama’s circumstances been similar, that would’ve been his fate as well, with Sawada Tsunashige being appointed his older brother’s deputy.
“What decision did you make Tenmei-sama?”, she asked curiously.
His hiogi snapped shut in a single, strong motion. He placed it on the table before him, and brought his hands to his lap. “Irie-san”, he began, “Honō of my sort…we do not like hiding.”
A warmth unfurled around the room, and Tomoko felt her own Fire submit in response.
“I’ve decided to act according to my nature. In fact I’ve already made some moves regarding this.”
And instantly Tomoko understood what Tenemi-sama was implying. She bowed her head. “What can I do for your preparations, Tenmei-sama? My skills are at your disposal.”
“It seems like we have a common enemy, Irie-san.”
“Your enemies are automatically our enemies, Tenmei-sama. But our enemies do not need to be yours.”
“Nonsense Irie-san. I am your Kohaku. Allegiance isn’t a one way street. I will safeguard your interests as you safeguard mine.”
Warmth bloomed in Tomoko’s heart. Was this what all Kohaku were like? She had only been in his presence for less than an hour and already she felt as if she could die for this boy. She would’ve fought for his honour even before, he was Namimori’s Lord, but now, with the easy way he accepted the reciprocity of loyalty…Tomoko felt her gratitude evolving to genuine respect and admiration. This was a Sky she would love to raise her children under. This was a Lord she would want her children to bend the knee and find Harmony with.
“We’ll agree to disagree Tenmei-sama”, she said with a smile.
Tenmei-sama huffed in response, and Tomoko felt her smile widening. He truly was an adorable child. “I can see that I won’t get through to you”, the Kohaku said, evidently exasperated. “Very well then, tell me of the circumstances that lead you and your family to Namimori Irie-san.”
At that Tomoko had to take a deep breath. That was a loaded question with a loaded answer but she was sure she could get through this. He wouldn’t have asked this for no reason after all.
“As you no doubt already know, Tenmei-sama, I am an information broker by trade. I gather information mainly through hacking. I am Hogo, uh, I mean Ryokugyoku, and my flames which had initially inhibited my interactions with technology, became an asset in my profession once I gained control of them. My alias gained enough reputation for several famiglias to become my clients, including prominent ones like the Cavallone, Tomaso, and Maestro. Even Vongola bought my services every once in a while.”
Those were the days she had felt like she was on top of the world. Her father and mother had both been in the information business, and she was also expected to follow in their footsteps. Her unexpected talent with computers had greatly boosted their business and by her tenth year active she had been the best cyber informant in Europe. Her elderly parents had died immensely proud of her.
And then it had all come tumbling down.
“I had always demanded that my clients give me the full rundown on any assignment. I wouldn’t have been able to properly do my job otherwise. For the most part the vast majority of them were willing to comply if it meant they could hire my skills.”
She ruthlessly crushed the wave of anger that rose up as she recollected what happened. “Ten years ago I received a routine assignment from the De Luca Family. One of their children had been kidnapped, and they suspected the Todd Family as the perpetrators. My assignment was to hack into the Todd family databases and transfer all relevant information to the De Luca. At first nothing seemed wrong. The Todd were a bloodthirsty bunch with a history of targeting young flame actives with special skills. But something one of the De Luca agents said in one of our meetings bothered me. So I started digging.”
The maid brought her a cup of tea and Tomoko gratefully took a sip. The warm liquid soothed both her nerves and her Fire. “It turned out that the De Luca hadn’t contacted me at all. Someone had hijacked their tech and contacted me to get information on a child that the Todd were thinking of taking. A child born into the Saint-Exavier family with a ranking ability. I dug deeper on who these imposters were and that’s when I uncovered some horrifying things.”
Tomoko shuddered in disgust. The files she had found, the things those monsters were doing…
“I leaked those files immediately. Unfortunately I couldn’t make a clean getaway.”
Another gulp of tea.
“The attacks were relentless. Masatsugu and I only had the time to grab whatever we could and make a break for it. Our Shoichi had even been born on the run. It was sometime later that we received word that the Saint-Exaviers had been attacked and that the child was missing. We had known an even more brutal fate awaited us. They were waiting for us at the front door of every sanctuary we could think of…It had truly been a desperate time, Tenmei-sama. And that’s exactly why we had chosen Namimori. It was unknown and about to lose its status. No one sane would have chosen it while actively being hunted down.”
Tomoko slammed back the tea like it was a shot. That had taken a lot out of her. A lot. She’d never regret leaking those files, but she regretted the life she had forced her family into. But now, underneath the Wings, they actually had a chance to start over and live a peaceful life. A decade ago even keeping their heads on their shoulders had seemed like a pipe dream.
Tenmei-sama didn’t say anything for a while, allowing Tomoko to gather herself. It was only after her second cup of tea that he responded. “It seems like I was right after all, Irie-san. Yours and mine enemies are indeed the same.”
To that Tomoko had to ask. “How did they become your enemies, Tenmei-sama?”
“A child of the famed Saint-Exaviers who can rank unerringly or a child of Primo’s line who was born with an open core of Kotei...it wouldn’t really matter to them would it? As we would end up being called specimens anyhow.”
Anger raged through Tomoko. “They’re aiming for you Tenmei-sama?”
The hiogi was picked up and unfurled to cover the impassive mask. “I wouldn’t put it past them. Would you?”
Tomoko shook her head. “No. Calling them cruel and unethical would be an understatement. They’re above nothing as long as they can get what they want.”
“And that's why I called you here Irie-san. I’ve decided not to hide anymore and that means being proactive. That means doing some spring cleaning. Culling our mutual…stranger so to say, is just one step among many, some of which I’ve already taken. But in this case I truly did not want you to miss the experience of throwing out the trash. What do you say Irie Tomoko-san?”
What Tenmei-sama was offering…it was something she and Masatsugu often dreamed about. And now, the opportunity was being presented to her on a silver platter. An unholy grin stretched across Tomoko’s face. Forget dying for this kid, Tomoko would kill for him.
She bowed till her head touched the floor and stifled a smile as she heard Tenmei-sama’s annoyed huff at all the pageantry. “It would be my pleasure, Tenmei-sama.”
It was just as she came out of her bow that the door behind them slid open and Sawada Ruriko-sama entered with her new apprentice in tow. With the older woman dressed in a blue kimono with crane patterns and the younger one wearing a lighter blue kimono with cattail patterns at the hem, they truly looked related even though they shared no blood or features whatsoever. Truly an ideal master and student pair. In sync, the two fell into a seiza like her own and did their bows, much less elaborate considering their status in Tenmei-sama's circle.
Ruriko-sama was the first to speak. “Nagi and I were wondering if your meeting was over Masaya[14]. Apologies for intruding.”
“No no no Obaa-sama. Irie-san and I were just discussing the logistics of some trash removal”, the Kohaku said impishly.
The Sawada matriarch raised an eyebrow. “Is that so? And does this trash happen to have a name?”
Tenmei-sama waved a hand towards her and that was all the signal Tomoko needed to utter the name that had occupied her nightmares for years now.
She smiled in a way she knew made her look half-deranged.
“Estraneo.”
“The Estraneo weren’t looking into you. They don’t even know you exist.”
“I wasn’t lying now was I? They would consider me a specimen and they are above nothing.”
“How are you going to provide evidence that the Estraneo were targeting you? That your retaliation is by your right as a Sky? You’re thinking of eradicating an entire famiglia here.”
“Well I was thinking of leave that up to you.”
“...”
“Are you not going to?”
“Do you enjoy bullying me?”
“Very much so.”
“Tsunayoshi…”
“Honestly I don’t know why you’re complaining, Kawahira-san. You bully me as well. Plus you were griping about me getting Grandma an apprentice and not you just yesterday. And now that I’m finally getting you one, you’re acting all annoyed hmph!
“...What do you mean by that?”
“Oh look at the time! Tootles!”
“Tsunayoshi, wait! What do you mean by that?!”
“I heard that you are planning on leaving Indra-san.”
“Yes. Kyoya and Tetsuya are progressing nicely. They should be able to manage Namimori on their own from now on.”
“They’re eleven.”
“Yes. And soon you and Kyoya will harmonise.”
“I might object to that.”
“You won’t. And it's Kyoya. You have no choice.”
“...Point.”
“Indeed.”
“...Well I came here to ask you for a favour.”
“You’re Namimori’s Kohaku. You don’t ask us for favours, Tsunayoshi. You demand it.”
“I don’t like that and I won’t act like that.”
“Exactly like this.”
“...I’m going to eliminate a mafia famiglia from the face of this earth. I need firepower.”
“I’ll get my lance.”
“Great.”
One night in Namimori, a young child was dressed like a god. White over black, red over white. One by one. Layer by layer. Step by step.
Obi. Tabi. Geta. Kanzashi.
It was disrespectful to wear the garb of a god outside of rites and rituals.
But what was battle, if not ceremony?
One day the Estraneo were there. And the next day they weren’t. A flaming crater was left where their base was supposed to be. There were no bodies found, all of them burnt down to ashes. Sensors scoured the scene for any kind of flame signature, but couldn’t find anything.
The level of destruction at the site would’ve been impossible to shield completely and yet the night had passed with not a soul realising the utter annihilation happening just next door. No screams made it out, no blazing light from the flames, no sound of buildings toppling over…it was as if an army of ghosts arched upon the Estraneo and passed judgement.
The theory would strengthen amongst the superstitious mafiosi when barely a day later, a file containing the extent of the Estraneo’s violations would drop into the mafia’s systems. An earlier leak by the hacker ‘Sparked’ had already detailed their horrific chimaera experiments years prior, but as it turned out, it had been just the tip of the iceberg.
All anyone could say after reading those files was: “Good riddance."
Far away in Japan, a small town in the Mie Prefecture saw a sudden influx of traumatised Italian children. Nobody batted an eye and they were quickly folded into the community with the outside world none the wiser.
Even farther away, Bermuda von Veckenschtein, Warden of Vendicare, read through a letter explaining a Sky’s right to exercise retaliation and retribution regardless of declared neutrality, and just what the Estraneo had done to warrant the invocation of that right. Anger at the Estraneo’s infractions against mafia law aside, the leader Vindice felt something rise up in his cold, undead heart. Curiosity.
Tsuna sipped his tea with all the smugness of a Mukuro who had successfully annoyed Kyoya. He just loved it when a plan came together. Now all he had to do was complete all the other five hundred and sixty seven ones and by the time the Vongola tried to get involved he would’ve successfully covered all his bases.
Because the Vongola would try to get involved. Because Tsuna was the universe’s chew toy, regardless of which universe he happened to be in. So the alternative was to tie up all loose ends and live his best life as a sanctuary sky. Sure he would have to take some preemptive measures that would take him way too close to the mafia for comfort but hey, nothing ventured, nothing gained.
And now the Estraneo was dealt with. Just like Chrome’s parents. Luckily he had managed to get to her fast enough that she hadn’t lost her organs and it's a wonder what having actual physical organs can do for your health. She was now the apple of his grandmother’s eye and steadily mastering mist techniques at an alarming pace.
Mukuro was also safe and as Mukuro as possible, practically devouring Kawahira’s lessons.
From his last secret trip down to Namimori proper, Takeshi’s mom was still alive, and he had asked some of the Hibari to be on the lookout for the assassins that had murdered her last time around.
There was no way he could’ve saved Lavinia, but some creative use of Maro-san’s mist had Hayato and his sister reconciling way earlier than in his world, and hopefully that meant the Storm had less misunderstandings this time around.
The Hibari were scouring Europe for Futa, and neither Lambo nor I-pin were even born yet.
There were limits to what Tsuna could do of course. But he was determined to do what he could. These people might not be his people. But they were reflections of them, and he wanted to do whatever he could for them.
As a sanctuary Sky he was expected to take a full set of guardians and even more Elements but he knew he would never take these people as his set again. For one thing it was too painful. All his guardians had passed on before him in his last life. At ripe old ages but still before him. And he had seen firsthand Ganauche’s grief at Timoteo’s passing to even think of taking a younger set even when his council had urged him to do so. For another thing, they were all different people. They had harmonised as they did back in his first world because they were the people they were. Now…now they just weren’t. So if he had to take a set of guardians, and he had to, he had to repay his debt and protect Namimori, it would never be with people to whom he would do the injustice of never truly seeing them for who they are.
…Except for Kyoya. Because Kyoya was Kyoya, so similar and yet so different from his Kyoya that even if he didn’t have Hyper Intuition and a whole other past life to look back to, he still wouldn’t have thought they were the same person. It was honestly kind of fascinating.
Plus Kyoya had been courting him for the past year and as Indra-san said, it really wasn’t in his hands anymore. If Kyoya wanted to be his Cloud- no it's Shimizuakira, or Getsufuji, he had to use these terms now, get it through his head- he would be, end of the question.
Tsuna chuckled to himself. So similar yet so different, he reiterated to himself.
Putting the cup down Tsuna finally allowed himself to feel the weight of all that he had to do. He sighed. Things would be better once all the pieces were in place. Until then he just had to prepare and use humour as a coping mechanism like all respectable mafioso.
Footsteps alerted him to someone approaching the pavilion he was sitting on and he turned around to see Hibari Indra walking up to him. Here was a new person. Kyoya had never talked about his mother beyond that she was a carnivore who had left for her maternal home in India once she had been sure her son could take care of himself. In Hibari land that had meant Kyoya had been five when she left. Other than that, much like in the case of his grandmother, he knew nothing. It was fascinating to get to know this person who probably had been alive during his life unlike grandma, and yet he hadn’t ever had contact with.
In personality, she was like a mix of adult Kyoya and Fon. She was Seigyoku, which was apparently a rare occurrence in the Hibari family tree, and she had such pure Yasuragi concentration that she could probably put an entire city to sleep if she wished to. He had initially thought she was a Classic but turns out she was an Inverse like Squalo, and her calmness was a result of rigorous discipline. He had developed a healthy respect for her after learning that fact. Anyone who can control their Flame-driven instincts like that was a master of Flame control, and you just don’t underestimate people with such good grip on themselves.
Other than his grandmother, she was the person he was closest to. Shame she was planning on leaving.
“I’m no longer planning to leave.”
What?
“Weren’t you saying that Kyoya was old enough to handle Namimori and you didn’t need to stay here anymore? That this was never your home and you needed to find where that would be?”, Tsuna asked her, confused by this sudden U-turn. Indra-san never seemed like someone who would go back on a decision she made.
“I did. And I found where it would be”, the Hibari said with her usual nonchalant confidence.
Tsuna was now even more confused. “Already?”
“Yes”, answered the technically older woman, and this time Tsuna could see the amusement in her eyes.
“What are you getting at Indra-san?”, Tsuna asked directly.
The woman stood up from the chair she had commandeered at the start of their conversation. “I would like to be called Seiran for this conversation.”
Tsuna raised an eyebrow at that request. Because for one, that indeed was a request. Second, Seiran was a title just as Tenmei and Amatsumi were. Meaning this was a formal occasion. But what kind?
His hyper intuition sent him an exasperated nudge, and Tsuna’s eyes widened in realisation. No. There was no way.
“Tenmei-sama”, Hibari Seiran began, using a title she had never used with him, “please allow me the honour and privilege of standing beside you as a guardian.”
Tsuna was rarely surprised. His Hyper-Intuition was the strongest in the history of Vongola, surpassing even Giotto’s as it developed exponentially as a defence mechanism against his seal. Once he had complete access to it, it was like he could see the lines that defined the flow of the world. He was always just aware, and it even rivaled Uni’s future sight if he was feeling boastful. But he had learned that knowing that something was going to happen and not being surprised by it were two different things.
Tsuna, for the first time in a while, was surprised by something he saw coming. Mainly because he couldn’t pinpoint where the lines shifted to this new path. He was sorely missing his full fledged intuition. But hey, maybe this could be a learning moment.
“Why though? You’ve never seemed interested in Harmony”, he asked puzzled.
“Harmony is home. I’ve never found home so I never wanted Harmony. Now that I have found it, I want to Harmonise”, Seiran-san said as simply as breathing. Perhaps it was for her.
“And when did you find home?”, Tsuna asked, still not seeing where the paths diverged.
“When we went to battle together.”
“Battle prowess isn’t a good basis for harmonisation.”
“No it isn’t. But Resolve is. And I saw your resolve. It is something I would like to rest under. Something I wish to dedicate my Fire towards.” Having said her piece, she kneeled before him, holding out her Lance to him, head bowed. Tsuna stood up in alarm,
“Seiran-san you don’t need to-”
“I choose who I bend the knee to.”
Maybe it was because he was an old man, the next thing that Tsuna felt was a comical indignation. “This is all highly improper! You haven’t even courted me. Haven’t even sent me my first gift! Even Kyoya has done it all in order! I am offended actually!”, Tsuna sputtered, feeling flustered.
“My apologies Tenmei-sama”, Seiran said, tone greatly amused, “you can rebuke me officially once we’re harmonised. But not to worry, if you want courtship I’m more than willing to oblige and wait. It's just that Kyoya’s attempt at courting always left you feeling awkward so I thought you’d appreciate a more direct approach.” Here her tone shifted to a more serious cadence. “If you’re genuinely upset by this I will repeal my court and apologise. However, if you're not truly upset, I request you to please consider me as your guardian.”
Tsuna was silent. He wasn’t really upset, no. It's just a little too soon. He was just contemplating on gathering a guardian set as part of his duty to Namimori and not even minutes later an Element announced their court. Wasn’t this all going a little too fast?!
But…
“I am an asset.”
…she was right. Not only that, Tsuna trusted her. And in combat they had worked well together and their flames had resonated well. She had been supporting him all this while as well. All the elements of harmonisation were there if he thought about it. And well, he’d be stupid if an element this strong offered to be a guardian and he rejected the offer.
…They’d have to get to know each other well later, he supposes.
He let his flames suffuse him and reach outward, melding with the flames Seiran had already kept at the ready. “Say your words”, he ordered.
She didn’t hesitate. “I, Hibari Seiran, born Wu Indra, daughter of Wu Chengzi, and Amba of Vanchi, hereby pledges my Fire and my Blade to Sawada Tenmei, born Sawada Tsunayoshi. In his honour, lies my honour, in his blood, lies my blood. In front of the gods and ancestors, with the Earth as my witness, I take this oath.”
“I, Sawada Tenmei, born Sawada Tsunayoshi, Kohaku of Namimori, acknowledge Hibari Seiran as my East Gate Guardian. I shall return her loyalty, her blood, and her blade. I shall uphold her flame’s honour. In front of the gods and ancestors, with the Earth as my witness, I accept this oath.”
With a click they fell into place, the trust they placed in each other over the years doing quite a bit of heavy lifting. For several moments they just stood there, basking in the energy of Harmony.
“You’ll court me properly like an Element should have”, demanded Tsuna after a while, back to sipping his tea. Indra stood behind him to his right, assuming her new position. He already had a guardian for his left.
“Of course”, she agreed easily.
“I’ll expect good gifts, especially the limited edition Choco parfait from Dulce Encanto.”
“Of course.”
“And you’ll tell Kyoya not to leave beaten up Yakuza members outside my window.”
“...My son has grown thoughtful. I have raised him well.”
Tsuna sighed for the umpteenth time. A Hibari as a guardian and another on the way. What even was his life?
