Tsuna jumped into the air with surprise clearly written on his face.

He soared over Kawahira's head and stumbled a few meters away from the other; he fell onto one knee as he clutched his bleeding, right arm.

Tsuna snapped his head to look over his shoulder.

Kawahira slowly turned to look at Tsuna.

The white-haired man sent a flying blade attack of condensed Mist flames at Tsuna.

The brunet rolled under the attack before raising his uninjured arm to surround Kawahira in a dome of Lightning flames, creating a makeshift cage.

Kawahira eyed the barrier before stabbing one point and drawing his blade to the side; the barrier broke into green shards.

Crimson eyes were drawn back to sunset orange ones.

Tsuna quickly stood up and stepped back slightly before lowering his stance once more, narrowing his eyes.

"Kawahira-san? I know it's you; your energy signature is exactly the sa--"

The white-haired man was suddenly standing in front of Tsuna; the brunet stepped back in slight surprise.

However....the Decimo felt no ill intent. Even the time when Kawahira took a slice at him.

"Kawa...hira-sa--?"

"My deepest apologies, Tsunayoshi-kun."

The shop owner's face melted into an embarrassed smile.

"I-I...oh goodness, I'm really sorry!"

Tsuna blinked in slight surprise.

"Kawahira-san? What happened?"

The white-haired man put on a sheepish expression as he gently touched the brunet's arm.

"Maa, let's sit down for now. I need to talk to you about something...."

~~

Tsuna's arm was now freshly wrapped in bandages and scabbed over with Sun flames.

The brunet sat on the cliff edge with Kawahira at his side.

The man sighed heavily.

"Tsunayoshi-kun....I'm sorry about what happened earlier. I needed to test if you were indeed from a parallel world. Although you were injured, your genuine trust and worry for me in your words were enough for me to believe that you were a different Tsunayoshi."

Tsuna blinked in confusion.

"But......why would you need to...test me? You're the Overseer of the--"

"--Tri-Ni-Sette. Yes. I know."

"Then you would be able to--"

"--See into different worlds.......yes....I know that too....."

Kawahira's voice became softer.

"Byakuran-kun also seems to not have any memory of a few parallel worlds, no? He does not recognize you or the others."

Tsuna furrowed his brow.

"Kawahira-san....?"

The man sighed once more.

"Tsunayoshi-kun....my power.....is waning...."

The brunet blinked with shock.

"Is....Is that even possible?"

Kawahira chuckled softly and crossed his arms within his sleeves.

"I am no god, Tsunayoshi-kun. And well.......I'm....."

Tsuna shot up to his feet; his eyes slightly wide with horror.

"You're.....dying....?"

The Overseer smiled sadly and slowly nodded.

Tsuna swallowed a lump in his throat.

"But....the Tri-Ni-Sette....?"

"Its power shall be in the hands of another."

Kawahira was gazing at Tsuna with sorrow.

With that look, Tsuna felt everything click together.

The brunet took a few steps away from the ledge, looking at Kawahira with shock.

"You....I...no...I can't......I...!?"

Tsuna took a few deep breaths to calm himself.

The Decimo ran a hand over his face and peaked through his fingers.

"Kawahira-san.....why me? I don't understand."

Tsuna dropped his hand from his face.

Sunset orange clashed with muted crimson.

The white haired man got up to his feet and smiled sadly.

".....Tsunayoshi-kun.....I am trusting you on th--"

"Stai zitto." (Shut up.)

Kawahira blinked in surprise at the sudden use of Italian; he widened his crimson gaze at Tsuna's expression.

Tsuna was pissed.

His eyes were blazing.

His shoulders were squared and small, orange flames flickered around his clenched fists.

Tsuna was in his Boss Mode.

The brunet gazed at Kawahira sharply.

"Kawahira-san. Checkerface. The Man with the Iron Hat. Whatever name you may go by, I will not allow you to give up like this."

Kawahira blinked dumbly in surprise.

"Tsunayo--?"

The Decimo sighed.

"There's a way to save you. I can feel it."

Tsuna turned his gaze to the side; his posture relaxed slightly.

"......."

The bruent sighed before suddenly punching Kawahira in the gut; the white-haired man spluttered and clutched his stomach.

"Ouch!? Tsunayoshi-ku--?"

Tsuna flicked the Overseer's nose next. Kawahira made a mortified noise.

"What are you doi--!?"

Tsuna put on a mock serious face.

"Tsuna's Attacks of Disappointment!"

Kawahira blanched.

"Eh?"

Tsuna huffed and started poking Kawahira's sides.

"I'm honestly disappointed in you, Kawahira-san!  There's always a way around something.  You're just giving up too easily.  Plus, if I were to become the Overseer of the Tri-Ni-Sette, I wouldn't want the Vindice on my back 24/7."

Tsuna said the last part jokingly, trying to relieve the tension in the air.

Kawahira was silent.

His face was void of emotion.

Kawahira then looked at the ground; Tsuna started to panic.

"U-Um, hey, wait...er--don't be mad or, um, sad.  I'm just saying that you're not going to die and--omph!"

Tsuna found his face pressed against a green kimono.

"Mawahewa-shan?" (Kawahira-san?)

The brunet felt shaking.....and then he heard....laughter...?!

Tsuna made a noise of protest when his hair got ruffled roughly.

"Bwahahahaha!  Oh my goodness!  Tsunayoshi-kun, you're simply brilliant.....and adorable!"

Tsuna flushed and flailed.

"I am not adorable, d*** it! Why does everyone say that!?"

Kawahira proceeded to give the brunet a noogie; Tsuna squawked in surprise.

"Oi, oi! Stop messing with my hair! You're not acting your age, Kawahira-san!

Kawahira made a mock gasp of surprise.

"Are you calling me old!?"

Tsuna chuckled.

"The oldest of the old."

Kawahira deadpanned Tsuna.

"I'mma throw you over this cliff."

Tsuna sweatdropped.

"Holly--no. Just no. I was only joking."

Kawahira grinned.

"Jokes can only go so far! Plus, you can fly~!"

"Oji-san!"

The white-haired man paused at the title; Tsuna widened his eyes in surprise.

"Uh, whoops. I was thinking of my old world, ya' know....where you joined Vongola and all? Ehehe.....sor--HUWEH!?"

Kawahira was crying comically as he held Tsuna at arms' length.

"Tsu-Tsunayoshi-kun's so.....adorable!"

Tsuna deadpanned the other.

The brunet detached the other's arms from his shoulders and started to walk away.

"I no longer know you."

Kawahira laughed brightly and ran after the other.

"Aww, I was just messing with you, Tsunayoshi-kun! Call me Uncle again~!"

"Nope. Nope, nope, nope, nope."

The two walked away from the scene with bright smiles and laughs.

The events of earlier were forgotten in the back of their minds.

~~
//(The Next Day)//

Tsuna balanced a few bentos as he headed towards Kokuyo Junior High.

He paused when he heard rustling leaves.

He turned his gaze to the side and saw Kyoya burst out of the bushes on his right.

The brunet turned his gaze to the left and found Mukuro hopping down from a tree.

Kyoya suddenly twitched slightly and narrowed his gaze at Tsuna.

"Omnivore....your shoulder.....I smell fresh blood."

Tsuna froze and slightly backed away from his Cloud Guardian.

"Nothing...happened...."

Kyoya deadpanned the other.

"You're terrible at lying."

Tsuna made eye-contact with both and had a silent conversation with them.

*I'll tell you two later.  Anyways, Viper-san visited you both already?*

*Hn.  It was unsightly, but he did.*

*Kufufu, he tried to threaten Chrome in your form again.  It truly was a strange sight to see again.*

Tsuna sighed softly; he then vocalized his thoughts.

"Mukuro-kun, Kyoya-kun.  No fighting.  We'll schedule it for another day, neh?  I brought dinner by the way."

The brunet saw a certain purplenette pop her head out from the rundown building's doors; she had a slight sparkle of joy in her eye.

"Food, Boss?"

Tsuna laughed brightly.

"Hai~it has your favorites too.  Tako-dogs and apple bunnies."

Sparkles appeared around Chrome; she seemed to drool slightly.

Tsuna continued to chuckle at her expression.

Kyoya and Mukuro flanked Tsuna as he walked towards the Kokuyo building.

With their sharp hearing, all four of the teens could hear a loud whisper on the side.

"Why aren't those two attacking him!?"

A softer, monotone voice responded.

"Mu, don't look at me.  I did my job, so I'm leaving."

"But they d--wait, WHAT!?  Oi, don't leave!"

Tsuna chuckled softly....until he heard Skull say this:

"Grrr, I'll just send my men after them!  Let's see what'll happen then!"

Tsuna sweatdropped and groaned mentally.

'Right when I thought we were gonna have a peaceful dinner.....or linner?  It's still noon actually.

Tsuna tapped his foot on the ground in morse code when he stopped walking.

*Alright you two.  We're playing hot potato with the bentos.*

Kyoya sighed.  Mukuro chuckled eerily.

Bang, bang!

Tsuna stepped forwards and tossed the bentos to Mukuro, dodging the bullets that soared through the air at the same time.

The illusionist caught the bentos and chuckled, materializing his trident; he tossed the boxes of food to Kyoya.

The ravenet caught it with one hand as he pulled his tonfa out.

Skull's men came charging out at them.

Kyoya jumped over one of the men and proceeded to step on another stranger's face before tossing the bentos to Tsuna, who had recently discombobulated another henchman with a strike to the head.

Tsuna grabbed it in midair and landed on the ground before tossing it to Mukuro.

Mukuro twirled his trident to deflect a few bullets; he caught the bentos without looking.

The illusionist chuckled and stabbed the ground.

Tsuna and Kyoya were unaffected as columns of fake flames shot up from the ground.

Skull's henchmen scrambled around in panic.

Tsuna snickered in amusement when two of the men crashed comically into each other.

Mukuro tossed the bentos to Kyoya, who was standing beside Chrome with boredom written all over his face.

Kyoya caught it and gave it to Chrome; she smiled brightly and took it happily.

Chrome took one box out and set the other on the side.

She opened it and drooled at the tako-dogs and apple bunnies inside.

Chrome hugged Kyoya and then ran up to Mukuro and Tsuna, giving the two a hug each.

"Arigatou!"

Tsuna laughed brightly, shaking his head amusedly.

"You and your food, Chrome-chan.....anyways, enjoy!"

Ever since Tsuna became friends with Chrome, the brunet made it his goal to feed Chrome a bit more since hardly ate anything. Soon enough, Chrome took a liking to food--especially Tsuna's.

Mukuro finished knocking out the rest of Skull's henchmen.

Suddenly, a familiar, red tentacle smashed itself right next to Mukuro; the illusionist smirked and lifted his gaze to their new opponent.

Oodako, a large, red octopus, made a growling noise as it glared at them; Skull stood on it's giant head and huffed angrily.

"Oi! You two were supposed to attack Mama!"

The two Guardians paused; Mukuro stifled a laugh while Kyoya held back a small smile of amusement. Tsuna twitched.

"........"

The brunet groaned deeply and placed his face into his hands.

"Reborn....when I find him, I'm gonna murder him."

Tsuna sent a narrowed glare at Kyoya and Mukuro.

"You two. Don't hold back."

"Kufufu, hai, Mama~"

"Mukuro-kun, you'll be on my hit list too if you keep that up."

Mukuro merely chuckled before darting towards Oodako; Kyoya followed at a more sedate pace.

Skull yelped when two of the most strongest Guardians went towards him; he waved one of his hands around.  Oodako followed the order and swung one of his tentacles at the Cloud and Mist.

But of course....Mukuro and Kyoya were faster.  

They both landed on Oodako's head, standing next to Skull, who started to sweat.

"Uh...uh....um...."

Mukuro had his trident leveled at Skull's throat while Kyoya raised his tonfa menacingly.

Skull shot his hands up and flailed around a bit

"I SURRENDER!"

~~

"Keh!  You're lucky that I went easy on you, Mama!"

"For the tenth time, Skull-san, my name is Tsuna."

Tsuna sighed as he ate his bento peacefully; Skull was sitting on the brunet's head.

Kyoya, Mukuro and Chrome were next to him, also eating their respectful bentos.

"Eh!?  Then Reborn lied to me!?"

"I'm sorry to say this, but yes.  Yes he did."

"Why I oughta--GUAH!"

"That's my seat, Lackey."

Tsuna sweatdropped when he felt Skull's weight leave him, only to be replaced by another.

"Chibi-chan....you bully."

Reborn merely settled down on Tsuna's head.

"Lackey's 'immortal', Mama.  He won't die from a simple kick."

Tsuna shook his head slightly, sighing with exasperation.

"That doesn't mean you can bully him, Chibi-chan."

"BWAHAHAHA, REBORN, YOU LET HIM CALL YOU CH--!?"

Click.

"Shut up, Lackey."

".....H-H-Hai, R-Re-Reborn-Sempai......."

~~
<<(One of the Kokuyo Rooms)>>

"Omnivore.  Explain."

Kyoya was nearly burning holes into the pale, bandaged arm that was presented to him.

Tsuna sighed an ran a hand through his hair.

Luckily, Reborn was currently bullying Skull with Lal and Colonello.  Tsuna already received his Cloud Seal.

"Kyoya-kun, I ran into Oji-san."

The ravenet blinked in idle surprise before narrowing his gaze in suspicion.

"Him?" (You met Checkerface?)

Mukuro chuckled eerily.

"Oya~?  And why are you injured, hm~?"

Chrome was also frowning slightly,

Tsuna sighed.

"....He's dying."

The three Guardians blinked in surprise as Tsuna continued.

"His powers have weakened...so he tried to test if I was indeed a different 'Tsunayoshi'."

Mukuro frowned thoughtfully, placing a gloved hand over his mouth.

Kyoya furrowed an eyebrow as he looked off to the side.

Chrome looked worried.

"He's...really dying?"

Tsuna smiled sadly.

"Yes.  I had thought his aura was weakened because he was trying to hide it, but it was naturally like that."

Mukuro then snapped to attention and turned a stern gaze to Tsuna, dropping his hand from his face.

"He met you because--"

"Yes.  He wanted to pass on his...powers to me."

Mukuro slumped in his seat on the ripped couch, surprise written over his face.

"Then...you'll...."

"No.  I won't."

Mukuro blinked in surprise at Tsuna's determined expression.

The brunet narrowed his sunset-orange eyes sharply.

"We'll find a way to save him.  I know we c--"

"But what if he wishes to die?"

Tsuna blinked in surprise at the sudden interjection; he turned his head to Kyoya.

"Kyo--?"

"Tsunayoshi, when you've lived long enough, you'd want to be able to finally rest, don't you think?"

(O.D.D.- Now everyone, don't go screaming that Kyoya-san spoke an entire sentence.  He is a human being too, and he can form words into sentences.  'Hn' isn't the only word in his vocabulary, OKAY? ε-('∀｀; ))

Tsuna flinched.

There was some truth to those words.

Living for so long, seeing war, death and loved ones who would die before you because of old age or sickness.

Tsuna looked down at his lap, sorrow was written on his face.

"But.....if I were to take his place....then...!" 'I would see you guys go on ahead before me....'

Chrome gently wrapped Tsuna into a hug, burying her face into brown locks.

"...We'll think of this together, Boss.  Don't worry."

Kyoya reached over and ruffled Tsuna's head while Mukuro patted the brunet's back.

"We're family after all."