tampered | Log; completed

Log; completed

When; January 20th (today)
Rating; PG
Characters; Hibari

mafiacow), Tsuna (

mafiaphobic)
Summary; Lambo comes to play with the Warden candidate who likes children, Hibari shows how much he (dis)likes children, and Tsuna gets drawn into an aftermath that turns TYL.
Log;

Talk of Wardens and politics had been going on in the City and on the network all day. With all the contenders, threats and violence for votes -- or for failing to vote -- and the occasional suggestion that even he would be a good choice, Tsuna had developed a headache. The sound of Lambo arriving the apartment was, for once, a welcome cacophony of noise that drew him out of his room to greet the child assassin. Maybe they could go for ice cream and the chaos would calm down in the interim.

Tsuna smiled at the idea and opened his door -- quietly, by the habit to not annoy Hibari -- so that he could enter the main area of the shared apartment. "Lambo, how about ic--"

Words were cut off abruptly as a small black-and-white form flew past him at high speed and struck the far wall. Tsuna blinked and stepped outside the room, head twisting about to see Hibari standing where the projectile had flown from, and Lambo where it -- or he?! -- had landed. "Lambo?!"

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Lambo sat up from his rather forceful faceplant in the floor, surprisingly resilient as usual. Big grren eyes welled up with tears. "Tol.. er... ate," he sniffled, trying not to cry.

Somebody on the Network had said Hibari liked kids now! So he just wanted to come and play with him!

The noise had been bothering him -the steady stream of loud typing that had poured out of Sawada Tsunayoshi's room and saw fit to continuously interrupt his nap. If that hadn't been enough, the sudden visitor to their apartment added to the noise level, finally inspiring Hibari to rise out of his bed and deliver a much well-deserved punishment.

It was with a bland face that he approached the new source of irritation, each tonfa in hand before one dragged across the child's face.

"You," he said calmly, walking towards the now-fallen child with measured steps, "What are you doing here?"

Tsuna stared at Hibari for a long moment, mouth gaping open and shut as he tried to find some way to speak up against the constriction of fear that was his throat. That is was Lambo in Hibari;'s sights helped to spur him into actions that were not quite in his nature (that nature being to flee back to his room) and he stumbled forward to interrupt the path from high school dictator to Bovino family assassin.

"Ah, I was going to take him out for ice cream!" he stammered, quick to find some reason that would not further raise Hibari's ire towards Lambo. Tsuna swallowed thickly and glanced back tot he wailing child, nervously hoping that when Hibari hit him, he wouldn't land on Lambo and make it worse. At least there were no signs of the ten-year bazooka to make it more complex.

But it only took a moment, really. Lambo squeaked as Hibari reappered and all thoughts of tolerating fled his wee little bushy-haired head as he started wailing full volume.

And along with the wail came the bazooka, Lambo's little hands flailing to grab the string to pull the trigger. In his flailing, however, he pulled a litle too soon, before he had a chance to aim... and the end of the Ten-Year Bazooka was pointing directly at Tsuna and Hibari as it went off.

The noise of the bazooka should have alerted Hibari to move out of the way, but he'd been too preoccupied with shoving Tsuna aside with the tip of his tonfa that he hadn't noticed the shot coming at him until it was too late. The small window of opportunity to dodge its blast had sealed up, and for a moment, there was a severe disorientation.

When the smoke started to clear up, Hibari had been standing there, head hanging a bit, eyes trained on the carpeted floors that he remembered briefly from the apartment he'd lived in ten years ago. His gaze rapidly traveled around, calmly assessing the situation as it drifted from the child back to the Vongola boss.

It appeared that the ten-year bazooka had actually managed to him, transferring him to the past, a past where Sawada Tsunayoshi was still alive, and they were both still trapped in the city. "Hm."

Tsuna, in turn, had less time to acknowledge the pace of events beyond how fast a tonfa could strike his face and with the kind of force that should have been impossible in the same space of time. What his present self saw was the near shift of expression on Hibari's face -- surprise?! -- and then the explosion and disorientation he had felt once before, when on the wrong end of the ten-year bazooka.

Smoke cleared after that initial explosion, revealing hints of a flame before it dispersed to the flickering light and warmth of the dying will that the City had become accustomed to seeing from Sawada Tsunayoshi. Amber eyes looked about the room with a flickering of memories and recognition to the months spent hiding from Hibari and trying not to type loud enough to wake him at any hour of the day.

The decade-aged Tsuna looked down at his hands and the X-Gloves he wore, the dying will state intact even with the surprise of the bazooka and the shift to eh past, no doubt leaving his past self stranded in the situation he had been dealing with a moment ago. Nothing too great for himself to handle, he knew, but no doubt his younger self was having a heart attack at the change.

"...the ten-year bazooka," he murmured, looking up to see Hibari Kyouya, similarly aged. "And you're back...?"

It had been too long since he'd seen those serious eyes on him, and the expression he'd never once believed he could associate with Sawada Tsunayoshi. Hibari had been one of the few close to him when he'd died, though he never readily admitted to visiting his grave, and often avoided the reality of that situation, instead choosing to immerse himself into studying the ring boxes and their power.

This was a situation he hadn't quite accounted for, though it readily excited him. He didn't think he'd ever get a chance to face against the Tenth's power –to taste the strength that had thrilled him for so long. The thought of it made his lips curl slight upwards at the edges.

"You, as well," he murmured before removing the box from his pocket that kept his tonfa sealed and summoning them to his hands. Flames rose up, immersing the weapons in fire before he launched straight into an attack, no warning given because the Vongola boss didn't need it.

Not even the warning that the way Hibari looked at him was necessary. Tsuna had not seen Hibari for quite some time, but he would never forget the predatory nature that the man possessed. The flames at his gloves intensified and he slipped back a half step to give himself the room to raise a hand and block the first tonfa that swung at him with flames similar to his own, but unique to the Cloud guardian.

"Not to fight, Hibari," he replied, tone calm and controlled as he braced himself with the flames from his other hand. Ten years and countless sessions of training had strengthened the boy into the formidable mafia boss -- even if the City had little mafia to speak of -- that reacted with intuitive precision, pushing back with force to stall Hibari and not hurt him.

"Did you come from Namimori?" Tsuna asked, trying to grasp what the ten-year bazooka had done to draw an old friend back into this City he had left.

Another name that struck a familiar chord in him. It had been too long since he'd seen his old middle school as well –since he'd stepped on the grounds of Namimori. He'd spent most of his time traveling and researching that the name alone dredged up his fondness for the school.

"No," he replied and swung outwards again, the flames growing brighter as he swiped at Tsuna with multiple acts, one after the other, taking pleasure in the scant moments he had to indulge in fighting someone worthy of his attention.

His own speed had also increased, movements nimble and agile as he sought to brutally scrape the spikes of his tonfa across Tsuna's cheek and draw blood. He could use one of the other boxes resting comfortably in his pocket, but he wanted to find him head-on with the full brunt of his force rather than distracting him. It was better this way –a true measure for who was the strongest.

But the answer had grown more obvious over the years.

Tsuna shifted back to escape each narrowing arc, alert that there was a wall that closed in with every step and risked to corner him. The ferocity of his guardian -- and friend, though even his ten year self would be hesitant to admit it to Hibari's face -- had increased greatly and it was not with pattern that he blocked the attacks. These were new and dangerous skills Hibari had honed from wherever he had been, requiring his attention.

"Then where?" Tsuna pressed, sharply twisting his body to the side, gloves scraping along the tonfa nearest his side as he guarded against and tried to grab it. The attempt to step behind Hibari gave him a second to glance at Lambo on the far side of the room, tears gone from his eyes as he stared at the both of them as one might a shiny new toy.

For an instant, he smiled at the nostalgic sight, but Hibari was an opponent he could not risk that with. Tsuna had seen the flames, the power of a dying will, and he knew that served to heighten Hibari's formidable ability. Those flames were his target, as he had a limited time to see and speak with his friend, and this era, before the effects of the bazooka wore off. To spend it fighting would be a meaningless opportunity.

Talking was a meaningless and useless activity to Hibari when there was little time left to fight and gauge each other's capacity. The thought of made his blood run faster even though his face reflected none of the excitement that sang through his body. His eyes were the same cold and calculating gaze as always even when his own Dying Will flames clashed with Tsuna's, threatening to ignite the narrow hallway they were in.

"I'll tell you if you defeat me," he replied before moving to go around Tsuna and aim for a blow to his head, using his greater height to his advantage.

Those were the words Tsuna had expected to hear, and had heard many times before. They had been the prompt of many scuffles, and though he still disliked to fight, Tsuna heard them and nodded calmly, even as Hibari swung for his head. They were the only terms he had known to get Hibari to stop and listen to him, even for a moment.

"I will make it fast," Tsuna promised, knowing that closed quarters were a disadvantage and not eager to prolong it and waste this window of the past.

Flames that signaled his hyper state flickered, shifting erratically as Tsuna slipped down, to use his lesser height to evade the worst of the blow and give space for his hand to reach up and grab for it. Pain never deterred Tsuna, though it was heightened as the temperature plummeted at his hand and he initiated the zero-point breakthrough to draw away the flames that covered the tonfa.

It was a move Tsuna had used on him before, one that had signaled the beginning of his defeat the last time they had had an all-out fight, but Hibari still came at him with another blow, refusing to bow down in defeat. The clash made the flames burn brighter, his tonfa connecting with Tsuna's gloves simultaneously, and a smile tugged at his lips, even if he could barely see passed the brightness.

Things were always better this way when the two of them could let go and attack and full strength. Hibari never had any need to hold back against an opponent, but he also lacked the need to even use half of his capacity. Sawada Tsunayoshi had grown, though, in the passed few years. He'd become someone Hibari aimed for in the same way he'd wanted to defeat Mukuro in the past.

The force of the blows brought Tsuna to one knee, his other hand shooting up to grab the second tonfa as he allowed his dying will state to slip into the negative and consume more of the flames, converting the Cloud purity to his own. The strength Hibari displayed highlighted how Tsuna missed the terror of Namimori and the City, someone that he had trained against and one of the few that consistently sought to repeat the training.

Until he had left.

Tsuna furrowed his brow, concentrating on the zero-point breakthrough and not the memories of when Hibari had been able to return. The relief he had felt that someone had been able to return to their world, but the emptiness that remained without that constant fear of trespassing upon the iron rules laid down. That had been a grief dealt with, a hope settled that he could return as well and meet him again, but this now was the reality, the force very real against his hands.

The flames around the tonfa flared erratically, as though in contest to his influence and the corner of his lips turned up in that nostalgic smile. Hibari would reject this attempt, and his tonfa would no doubt follow the same path. However -- and his expression grew calm and focused again -- Tsuna was the tenth boss now and would not bow down. His hands pressed back against the tonfa, raising to counter when his grip slipped and Hibari threatened to strike him, aiming to raise to his feet and push him back.

The flames had died down for a brief moment right in Tsuna's grip. The Vongola boss had indeed mastered his gloves and were nothing like the Tsuna Hibari had faced, the child who could barely control his strength. He remembered the reckless passion he'd fought with and could hardly compare it to the measured that gaze that mirrored his own. That face that had once broken down in fear was no full of confidence and determination.

Hibari liked that look on him and only wished to see it broken once again.

The feet that lashed out, however, connected with his person, making him a stumble a few steps back, but he recovered quickly and managed to reignite the flames around him. This time, he would come at him with a decisive blow, knowing there wasn't much left before he would return to his former self. It would be better to prove himself fast, rushing towards Tsuna, the flames once again reaching a critical point as he threatened to slash him with both at once, the spikes rising up noisily along his steel tonfa.

Tsuna straightened in the time it took Hibari to recover, flames flaring at his hands as he clenched his fingers into fists. The cold eyes that looked at him would have sent a shiver down his spine in any other state, but this one only alerted him to its intent. With Lambo behind him and an apartment around them, he could not afford his strongest moves as the flames would put others at risk, and that forced him into a snap decision.

Dying will flames shot forward at Hibari, channeled and strengthened to keep from doing more than charring the walls -- with a silent apology to his younger self -- and focused on the distance between them, knowing that a single feeding of flame would not keep Hibari at bay. He ran forward, to meet the blows -- rather, to evade them and twist past Hibari, while he tried to strike him hard on each wrist and elbow. Tsuna sought to numb the muscles and force a disarm, lest he be driver to freeze the tonfa within the zero-point breakthrough and risk harming his friend.

"This fight will end soon," he murmured as he neared Hibari's shoulder. "End it early and we have a chance to find a way to make our next meeting exceed five minutes."

Hibari's eyes slid shut for a moment, feeling the pain that seared up his arms, a foreign sensation because few had ever had the ability to even lay a scratch on him. This was almost welcomed and enough for the words to filter into his ears, breathing reason into him.

As much as he wanted to fight, as much as he wanted to drag this out and see the true measure of their strengths against one another, it was better to find a way to recover the Tsuna of his time. He wanted to face off against this man again and finish things with him once and for all.

In a moment, the flames started to die down, his arms lowering by his sides as he gazed at Tsuna, not quite obeisant but willing to consider what he had to say.

"Next time, then." He paused, another smiling tugging at his mouth. "And there will be one because I know you."

Tsuna let the flames fade to their normal state, relieved that Hibari had chosen to relent in light of their timed interlude. With battles that had lasted for hours prior, five minutes was pitifully insufficient to spend in combat when they had no other opportunities to see one another.

"My dying will remains to be with the guardians again," Tsuna confirmed with a faint smile and a hand stretched out to rest on Hibari's shoulder, a dangerous action, but one he felt the need to make. To see that he existed and feel his body again, even in this one touch.

His expression calmed again and he looked around. "That is why I need this time," he murmured. To find some way to let his younger self know that the fear which had dominated him, inspired by the words of Irie Shouichi, had not been the truth in this world. Without death looming in his future, Tsuna might had done more to return home and regain his rings. That was the gamble Tsuna sought to take on himself.

"You were able to return," he added after a brief hesitation, glancing to Hibari. "...was I there?"

The hand was instantly removed, knocked out of the way seconds after making contact, and Hibari regained his personal space, the tonfa disappearing from his hands in an instant. The gesture was still un-welcomed even if he'd grown more tolerant of Tsuna over the years. He still refused to be a part of his family or consider him as a teammate and only associated with him when it benefited himself or when he was looking for an interesting challenge.

Neither were the case today. Instead, he had his own personal plans to transmit to his younger self the bulk of his research so he could begin to train himself how to use the boxes as soon as possible. It would give him an advantage in this world, one he needed when faced with stronger opponents, and it would help him to de-claw Shouichi Irie that much earlier. With the Vongola rings still present and in one piece, he could open the Cloud box and unlock an even greater power.

Starting to make his way to his own computer, he didn't even bother sparing Tsuna another glance as he answered, "You died."

Had the effects of the bazooka faded, a younger Tsuna would have stared and stammered, rejecting the outcome that Hibari relayed to him. Ten years, however, aged even the most denying of minds and Tsuna simply nodded sadly. That had been the vehement prediction by Shouichi and he had long suspected in true in his own world, but that did not make it right to stay in the City and live in cowardice of that fate.

Tsuna flexed his fingers at the slight brush off and turned towards the room he had crept in and out of many a time in his days there. And though his steps were steady and strong in his approach to the room, he hesitated a moment to look at Hibari.

"I'm sorry," were the two words offered, for his failure to stay alive in their world, and perhaps for his failure to escape this one. To Lambo, Tsuna glanced and smiled, digging a candy out of his pocket to throw to the child. "When my other self is back, you'll go for ice cream," he promised.

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Log; completed

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