Flame Nexus

A more calculating Iemitsu realizes that Xanxus' rage and illegitimacy would leave the perfect opening for a new power to assume control of the Vongola. And who better to take the position of Decimo than his own daughter: Sawada Tsunami? fem!Tsuna

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If there was one matter on which Iemitsu Sawada refused to be questioned, it was on his love for his family. The Young Lion of Vongola knew, without any shred of doubt, that he adored his civilian wife and newborn daughter, and originally had every intention to keep them out of the seedy underworld of the Mafia. The ruthless violence, heedless betrayals, and shameless lies had no place in his darling Nana's life, and even less in the adorable amber-brown eyes of his little Tsunami.

Iemitsu knew that his own heritage and position prevented him from ever leaving the Mafia, but through a combination of acute discretion and careful misdirection, he prevented any threats from being directed towards his own family. Only a few members of Vongola's top brass, and a handful of his own trusted subordinates, even knew Iemitsu had a wife, much less a child. It was unfortunate that this kept Iemitsu from employing vacation time often, and he was forced to watch his daughter grow from afar, but the Head of CEDEF was content. His family was safe, and through his own efforts in his high-ranked position, would have no concerns, in matters of security or finance.

That would have been enough, but for the actions of one Xanxus Vongola.

Despite his uncanny resemblance to the Secendo, Iemitsu knew that the dark teen was the bastard son of a mentally-ill prostitute in Trapani and an unknown man descended from the Secondo's matrilineal lineage. He was a talented young man, but his lack of Vongola blood and untamed rage would prevent him from ever assuming his father's position. Iemitsu was not as concerned with keeping the power within the family as many other members of the Mafia, but he knew the Vongola rings were designed to respond only to those with Primo's blood.

There were currently four candidates for the Decimo position: Enrico, Massimo, and Frederico Vongola, and Tsunami Sawada.

The last candidate should not even be a consideration, for Iemitsu had carefully erased all documentation of his daughter's existence from Mafia files, but for the actions of Xanxus. The boy had made no secret of the fact that he intended to become Decimo, and his talent and ruthlessness had garnered him no small amount of allies from people who did not know of his heritage. Many of the leaders of Vongola's subdivisions though were more careful to pledge support, especially as rumors continued to circulate as to the youngest's paternity. Xanxus had even come by to solicit Iemitsu's endorsement, but had been soundly rebuffed.

Iemitsu favored the eldest, and most cautious, of Nono's sons, Enrico, for the Decimo position.

Enrico Vongola had been the most popular candidate for the Vongola position, at least up until yesterday, when his bullet-ridden corpse had been delivered to Timoteo's front door.

Iemitsu pitied the older man- no father should have to outlive their own child- but quickly moved the CEDEF to take action. One of his most trusted officers, Lal Mirch, identified the bullet holes as the curved half-teardrop cut made by bullets commonly used by the Varia. Those bullets gained additional speed and piercing power in exchange for loss of control and being easily wind-influenced. They also painted a grim picture: Enrico Vongola was killed by either the Varia or a famiglia capable of securing the unique bullets and being skilled enough to employ them.

Iemitsu was not a betting man, but his suspicions lied with the former suspicion. Xanxus controlled the independent elite assassination squad, bullets were his favored weapon, and he still operated under the belief that he was a candidate for succession. The Head of CEDEF naturally shared this suspicion with Nono, advising the man to detain Xanxus for treason, or, at the very least, tell him about his adopted status.

However, Nono adamantly refused to believe that one of his sons died at the hands of the other, and forbid Iemitsu's from continuing an investigation in that direction. The laws of the Vongola forbid Iemitsu from acting otherwise- in times of peace, the CEDEF's power was very limited- and the blonde man reluctantly agreed. He tried to press for his other request, and Nono agreed to consider it, but Iemitsu knew that Xanxus wouldn't be finding out about his true heritage any time soon.

This left the blonde man in a conundrum. Xanxus was dangerous to the famiglia, no question about it, but Iemitsu's hands were tied on the matter. He could draw the attention of other influential mafia, such as Reborn, but even the hitman wouldn't get through to Nono in his grieving state, and also, Iemitsu really disliked the smug baby. That meant the angry Sky could continue to plot his way to a power he could never have, and may escalate to attacking the other heirs.

Massimo and Frederico weren't untalented by any means, but Iemitsu knew that Xanxus could beat either or both of them, hands down. The only other candidate was his beautiful Tsunami, but Xanxus didn't even know she existed. And if the impetuous upstart showed any indication of attacking his three-year-old daughter, than Iemitsu would show him what a real Sky can do, Vongola bedamned.

Still, if Enrico, Massimo, and Federico were all cut down, one by one, than Nono's branch of the family could no longer hold onto the position. The Head of CEDEF couldn't transition to the Vongola Decimo role, but any of his children would be eligible. And currently the only child Iemitsu had was Tsunami.

A thoughtful frown crossed Iemitsu's face, as he considered the situation. He still had no desire to draw his daughter into the Mafia world, but if Xanxus continued on this route, Iemitsu might just not have a choice. Nono would press for Tsuna-chan to be trained, by the dreaded Reborn probably, and she would be thrown into a position that she was utterly unprepared for. The Mafia world was unforgiving to the uninitiated and damning to women, though Tsuna-chan could thankfully escape becoming a trophy wife. The manner by which the rings bonded to their owners, made Iemitsu sure that Tsunami would not be relegated to the position of figurehead should she become Decimo.

Yes, Iemitsu could read the current of politics, and his daughter's ascension to power was a very likely possibility. A smile tugged at his mouth as Iemitsu considered his little Tsunami-chan at the Head of the Vongola Famiglia. Sure, he would rather his Princess avoid the Mafia entirely, but if she had to join, than Tsunami could do no better than the top position of the most influential underground family in the Western Hemisphere, if not the world.

As her father, Iemitsu could do no less than to prepare the way for her eventual rise to power.

The first matter would be to introduce his darling daughter to Nono, so that she could be accepted as a possible, if minor, candidate for the Decimo position.

"Turmeric," the Head of CEDEF called, pressing the button for the office address system, "Please come to the office."

"Yes, Boss?" the suited man with the short brown hair asked, once he arrived.

Iemitsu stapled his fingers together. "I need to arrange for some vacation time next week, along with travel arrangements to Naminori. Keep the usual secrecy arrangements in place."

Turmeric's eyes widened. "Yes, sir! Er… should I purchase any gifts, sir?"

A bright smile crossed his Boss's face. "Of course! The usual sweets and pastries, a new bouncy ball, and I think she likes to do art now? Yes, buy a full set of paints, some sketchbooks, color pencils, and maybe play-doh too. Make sure they're easily washable too. And stop buying scary stuffed animals!"

'The stuffed dragon wasn't that scary,' Turmeric sulked. Aloud, he said, "Yes, sir."

"I already have the jewelry placed in Safe Box #6, so wrap those up for me, and find some cookbooks on French pastries," Iemitsu added, "And make sure that fresh camellias are available for me at the Tokyo landing. Pick a bouquet with red, white, and yellow flowers. Get a smaller bouquet of yellow chrysanthemums; I think Tsuna-chan will like those."

Turmeric nodded obediently. "Anything else, sir?" His jaw almost dropped at his Boss's answer.

"Send a request to the Ninth of see if he would like to come along," Iemitsu said cheerfully, "I think he might enjoy my wife's cooking."

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