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When Lambo came back to his original timeline, he finally allowed himself to feel again. It's not so much that he wanted to sob hysterically like what he often did as a child but more like he just wanted to bang his head in a wall so he could bleed and forget again. He's proud that he held himself together really fine earlier without breaking apart. It was unnecessary to be emotional anyway, he told himself the moment he saw young Tsuna's eyes. He can't speak for his other selfs from other universes but for him: no matter the place, no matter the time and no matter the universe, he will always fight for the Vongola family and if he has to keep all his pent up emotions in check so that he can be of help, then that's exactly what he's going to do.
He was merely 5 years old when the battle for the Vongola rings happened so he can barely remember. And a lot of things happened after that anyway but naturally, he knew that they had won the rings and the position to be the 10th generation family against Varia. After all, it's a concrete fact that he was the lightning guardian of the 10th generation Vongola family up until the fall. Now, he's just a guardian of what was left behind and the only living legacy of the 10th generation's rainbow.
Funny that he was only there for less than 5 minutes yet seeing Tsuna, Gokudera, Yamamoto, Ryohei and even Reborn robbed him of emotions worth more than 5 decades.
The moment he got back, there was I-pin, of course. Just the way he left her before being transported in the past—seated upright in her hospital bed while cradling her newborn baby.
"It's been so long since I last saw the ten-year bazooka in action. Though I must say, the Lambo who was exchanged seems a bit … off? It's like he's you but unlike you when we're young," I-pin said thoughtfully.
"He's probably from another universe with a different singularity. Whatever Irie-san meant by that," Lambo said while moving towards I-pin and regarding the baby who is sleeping soundly. "Hey, kid. Your favorite godfather just time travelled. Sick, right?" He added with a serene smile.
I-pin rolled her eyes at that. "You're his only godfather, you silly."
His godson was born only a few hours earlier and it feels so weird to him that a different version of himself saw the baby first. He was almost at I-pin's side when he was suddenly transported in the past so he didn't even saw earlier what the baby looked like.
Lambo turned his gaze back to I-pin. I'd die for her and for her child, he thought to himself out of nowhere. I-pin's not just a friend. She is family—the only sibling he had though not by blood.
"So how's …." I-pin started but stopped herself. Lambo knew that she wanted to know about what he saw in the past and he would have told her already if only he was transported in a more peaceful setting. "So you finally found your horn," she finally settled.
Lambo almost bragged about it. Feeling his pride swell while remembering the obvious surprise of his family upon seeing him doing some sick moves even without the aid of his Vongola ring. He unconsciously touched his horn before answering, "Glad I did. I finally remembered that today was actually the anniversary of when this horn first received its name."
"Why would you even remember the day when Gokudera-san wrote some dumb nickname on your precious horn?"
Lambo only shrugged. He detached his horn then showed her the side where the nickname Dumb Cow is now visible through the cracks of its old paint. I-pin grabbed the horn to inspect it more then laughed at his expense.
"I'll ask Giannini-san to cover it for me," he said while snatching his horn back.
The two then fell on easy conversation. I-pin telling a very detailed, almost morbid, tale of birthing a child and him telling her about his last mission that went successful.
"You should have at least rest first before visiting us, you know. I would understand if you couldn't come imm—"
I-pin was then interrupted by the blaring sounds of alarm followed by her baby's cries. She looked at Lambo gravely and nodded knowingly as he stood up and walked away without even saying goodbye.
Lambo pushed passed the running doctors and nurses who are preparing themselves to accommodate badly injured soldiers they knew would come. He hates it when the alarm goes off because it meant two things: 1.) warriors who went outside the base for their duties are coming back injured and 2.) something went wrong and guardians of the base like him are required to step forward. I-pin would have come with him if she's not out of commission.
He ran fast to the command center—his foot directing him even before his mind tells him the direction. He knew every nook and cranny of the base being one of its earliest occupants. At first, the base was just the Vongola family's underground headquarters in Japan but years had passed and now it's the most heavily protected place in the whole country. Built as a simple private property of a mafia family and now a sanctuary for people of any race, gender, and color. Sometimes it still surprises him that he's now living underground in a high-tech facility that eventually became home for survivors. All thanks to the late Tsunayoshi Sawada's insights, at least hundreds of people can go on with their lives free from the harsh wasteland above ground caused by Byakuran and his family.
But that doesn't mean they could live with no fear underground. The little peace they have had its own cost since they are still in war for their lives. They have to follow strict rules and have to discipline themselves when it comes to using their resources; they have respect each other's different roles inside the base so unnecessary arguments wouldn’t ensue; they have to train everyone how to fight if only even for themselves; and they have, unfortunately, allowed the children to have a choice of profession whether in the frontlines outside or serve inside as one of the base's backbone. For fighters of his caliber specifically, they spend most of their time on the outside either as a scout, a hoarder, or a guard. For Lambo, there is no either because he can do it all. The only perk left as the former lightning guardian of the Vongola family is his voice when it comes to deciding what's best for the whole base and its people. That, and maybe everyone's respect.
When he stepped inside the command center, he moved aside as a body was flung at his direction.
"How dare you use two twelve year old kids as a decoy!" Came Tetsuya Kusakabe's booming voice.
The man obviously thrown by Kusakabe to the ground (someone whose name he can't even remember), looked at everyone with disgust. He was almost choking as he tried to get up. Probably the captain of the team of hoarders who went outside, he thought to himself while eyeing his attire and obvious cuts and bruises.
"I didn't! They ran off on their own and gave us enough time to come back home! I didn't even want those Hibari Twins in the team! They are reckless and too much to handle! They don't listen to commands and do whatever they want!"
Kusakabe almost attacked him again but Lambo held him back—almost fearing for the man's safety. It would be ironic if he survived outside the base just to be killed inside.
Lambo looked at the wide screen where a huge layout of Namimori was displayed. Both Irie and Giannini were intently looking for something amiss using the sensors outside. The other people in the command center were simultaneously doing their job and giving wayside looks at the captain he couldn't name, Kusakabe, a child soldier obviously holding her tongue, an inside guard who is probably accompanying the captain and him, the only base guardian present in the scene.
So far there wasn't anything amiss, he noted. Lambo can still see the moving dots of Hibari Keisuke and Kousuke who are heading northeast from the base. The twins are clearly doing a fine job as a decoy by moving away from any of the base's entrance.
"Tsk," the captain scoffed, "I did my job well and followed the standard protocol. We didn't anticipate any moscas and black spell soldiers in the vicinity but we still managed to bring that nuclear battery enough to light up this whole fucking base for years."
"At the cost of what? Five of your team members are badly injured and two are missing." Kusakabe said, his voice resigned. He then turned to Lambo, "is it possible to conduct a retrieval operation for the two?"
Lambo was about to answer but was cut off by the captain.
"It's so funny that we have to risk more for those rowdy twins. Warriors die every time! They're not the first people who died on duty! It's part of the job description!"
The soldier who was holding herself back earlier snapped before Lambo could even say something, "How dare you?! Kei and Kou saved us multiple times during the whole operation!"
"Well, duh! And you're only alive and mostly uninjured because you're an illusionist and we are heavily lacking of your kind! We have to bring that blasted battery while looking out for you!"
"You would have been dead without an illusionist," Kusakabe interjected.
"And the twins would have been with us if they're actually strong enough as what all of you have been saying! Warriors sometimes die on duty! What difference does their sacrificial death make?"
Lambo had had enough. The only thing holding his restraint are the two blinking dots on the screen. He turned to the captain with a disgusted look. "The difference is that Keisuke and Kousuke are individually a one-man army," he started. "That's too much of a loss since there are two of them," he ended, especially making sure to put stress in every word.
Also, I can't even count the number of times Hibari Kyoya had saved I-pin and I. Though he probably did so inadvertently.
"If we want to put more resistance in the future, we need strong children like the twins who will surely grow up into strong warriors," Irie said, finally breaking away from the screen—his eyes tired and voice resigned. "I'm not sure if they would want to continue fighting, of course. It's still their decision but ... it will help us greatly if they do continue fighting with us."
The captain shut up for good. Finally calming himself as it dawned to him that they do need strong warriors in order to continue surviving.
Kusakabe moved toward the screen and regarded the twin's position. His jaw hard and eyes serious seemingly seeing a future where a retrieval operation is on its way. "We can probably form a four-man team with Lambo as our core member."
Lambo only nodded.
"Let me help as well." The young illusionist said determinedly. She was frail-looking and yet Lambo was sure that she's good at what she does. She reminds him of Chrome with the way she carries herself. Chrome was really kind to him as a child even though there was one time when he taught her the italian word for poo all because he thought it would be funny.
The screen blared in red suddenly. Flashing a new warning alert indicating that missiles were dropped northeast of the base. The Millefiore is clearly still on the lookout for their base after all these years and they’re not going to stop, Lambo lamented. The fact that they attacked almost immediately after someone from their side made their presence known is a testament that they never even stopped. A small area of the base is sure to feel an aftershock but that information was nothing for Lambo. The two dots indicating the twin's position were now lost in the radar.
The young illusionist took a sharp breath as the two dots get lost on their map. The captain fell on the ground and Irie Shoichi who once worked for the Millefiore looked as if he was about to cry.
It's as if the time inside the command center stopped but Lambo and Kusakabe did not wait. Despite the sudden adrenaline coming from the possibility that the base might be discovered, they can only think of the twins.
Both men were almost at the door already but Irie stopped them on their tracks.
His voice was stricken as he spoke up, "As the highest commander in the room—"
"No. I'll go after those boys," Kusakabe cut him.
"That's not what I mean!" Irie is now kneeling on the ground while holding his stomach, "we need to cut our losses so we can't afford to send at least four people as you have suggested. I’m sure they already have a rough idea about our location so we need more people here as precaution."
"Then I'll just go alone."
"You don't understand, Kusakabe-san. We need you here inside the base."
Irie is, of course, right. Kusakabe is needed as one of the leaders inside the base. The remnants of the Foundation look up to him.
"I can do it alone, Kusakabe-san," Lambo finally said. "I'll make sure to bring them back."
Kusakabe looked at him warily but eventually nodded.
Lambo did not waste any more time and made his way towards the closest hatch to the northeast. He was already planning as he ran through the hallways. The twins are alive and he was sure of it. He didn't need his boss's hyper intuition for this. They're alive. They have to be.
We lost the twin's signals only because they threw their communication device as part of their strategy, he reasoned. They survived. They have to.
He was almost at the hatch when he collided with someone.
"Bianchi-nee-san!" He was confused but immediately assisted Bianchi in getting up.
The poison scorpion was frantic but without wasting any second, she spoke fast and precisely. She’s obviously on autopilot. "Hiichan left a recorded voice message saying he's going after the twins. Fuuta found his discarded communication device in his room."
Lambo already forgot the feeling of being electrocuted after so many years being friends with lightning. But maybe … this was how it felt like. As if all his nerves are being pricked with needles. For years, he had learned to shut down his emotions but this one stopped him on his feet. He had promised himself that he’s going to take care of his onii-chan’s son just like what he had done for him as a child even though he was an extremely annoying one.
“Lambo, we have to go.” Bianchi snapped him from his trance, “Fuuta is already on his way to formally inform the command center about Hiichan’s situation and I’m sure as hell won’t stand idle and wait for them to give an order.”
Lambo nodded. Retrieving the twins and bringing them home is one thing. Finding Hide on top of that is another.
And if anything happens to Hideyoshi Sawada then by all means, he'll become a monster ready to burn this world even though Hideyoshi's father wanted him to remain a kind man.