Hell-bent

[Sunday. 00:03. Love At First Snipe Part I]

"Hm? The first time I met Shin-chan? I guess I'll tell you, since you're so cute. Let me think...that was already a couple years ago now, back when I was still working my old job.

This time around my client was a member of...a certain organization. Starts with N, ends with ational Diet. Don'tworryaboutit.

Well, I won't go into details, but let's just say I was hired to go on a trip to 'clean up' a 'little mess', if you catch my meaning. Haha yeah, I know, I know, but I had to pay for my baby sister's private school fees somehow....

Anyways, I'm on foreign soil, right, in a country where the weather is a lot more unforgiving than here at home. The cleanup job takes me to the top floor of this sketchy hotel smack dab in the middle of the Capital's downtown area, so the fumes certainly don't help. And don't get me started on the whole 'hot air rises' thing.

Of course, there's no A/C anywhere.

So I'm standing in Room 1212, sweating my ass off, covered in rich man's blood (YIKES), and I've just disposed of Target 2 out of 3, with Target 3/3 held at gunpoint and literal moments away from death.

 I let my guard down for like 0.3 seconds to wipe my forehead with the bottom of my free palm and, as I move my hand, a slight glint from the nearest window catches my eye.

Not to jerk myself off or anything, but I'd say my reflexes are pre-tty high calibre. But in the half second it takes me to look out the window to locate the source of said glint, the glass has already shattered, a bullet has pierced through my arm, and some fucking squad of mercenary-looking guys just bust into the hotel room and snatch my prey right before my eyes. Just pick his sobbing ass up and ferry him off to God knows where without so much as a glance at me.

Like. Are you fucking kidding me? What a disaster. Of course I wasn't in a position to go after them, but I couldn't stay in the hotel either, so I booked it out of there with a bullet wound in my arm.

As pissed off as I was, there was at least the consolation that I'd managed to get a decent look at the man that  ruined my kill. I vowed to find out more about whatever the hell happened, confirm Target 3's death, and then take that sniper on. Seriously, I'd never been so motivated to personally kick someone's ass until that day.

But life has a funny way of playing out.

See, as I made this unrealistically accurate sharpshooter my sworn rival, which leads us to part II of this story. My second fated meeting with Shin-chan. There wasn't any music on at the time, obviously, but if you can imagine a kind of *buhnuh nuh nuh bedew bew* sort of guitar riff going on--"

"Takao, what...are you doing?"

"GEH!!!!......H-hey, Shin-chan, haha . When um, did you get here?"

"...Just now. Are you... talking to a stray cat?"

"Ahaha...ANYWAYS, you're looking pretty geared up. Is it about that time?"

"No, I am going out to train. It is natural to do everything in my power before an-"

"LOL YA I GET IT, SHIN-CHAN. / Honestly, you see what I have to deal with, kitty? He's not cute at all. I'll tell you the rest of the story later./"

"........................................................"

[Sunday. 00:03. Like A Prayer]

Fuck. This is dangerous.

Aomine's self-restraint is slipping away at a disturbing rate: It's been a while since his strength has been challenged like this.

Like, what is it with Kise, the bastard? He's...stupidly erotic. Casually sucking on Aomine's fingers  while staring up at him, gold eyes burning with heat, his cheeks dusted with a red blush....a bead of sweat rolling down his temple, the glint of the piercing dangling from his earlobe... And fuck, he smells so good, too.

How fucking annoying. As if the Aomine Daiki could be so easily seduced by a flighty airhead like this little shit... well, whatever, two can play at that fucking game.

He spots a faint bruise, about the size of a thumbprint on the side of Kise's neck, no doubt left behind by some patron or target (hmmmmmm). This is where Aomine chooses to leave his mark.

The bite is deep, just short of drawing blood, and leaves a deep red impression that stands out on Kise's soft white skin, something that won't be so easy to conceal. The model lets out a stifled cry and shudders in Aomine's arms, gripping onto his shoulders as if holding on for dear life.

.....Well. Just about all the blood in Aomine's body just rushes to his dick. What a troublesome opponent he is faced with, perhaps he shouldn't have underestimated Kise Ryouta.

Naturally, this does not go unnoticed by Kise, who continues to play the offensive. Now he pushes himself off of Aomine, bites his own bottom lip, and crawls back a little, bending down...down...ok.

Kise  flicks his eyes up at Aomine, waiting for a go- ahead nod, then lowers his head to take the zipper  of Aomine's pants between his teeth.

Aomine's brows are knitted with frustration, but his mouth is grinning so wide it hurts, and he reaches down to brush the bangs out of Kise's face.

There is a slight rattling sound as Kise undoes the buckle of his own belt and slides a pale hand down his pants, toying with Aomine all the while. His silky hair brushes against Aomine's thighs as he moves his head, up...down....taking Aomine into his warm mouth, moving his tongue /excruciatingly/ slowly all the while.

Ugh. He's scary good at this.

Aomine grits his teeth to keep his voice from coming out, absently running his agitated fingers through Kise's hair. Part of him wants to push the model farther, to make a mess out of him, but... no, if this is a game, the only way he can go on  is by enduring this slow, sweet torment.

That's the way it always is with them, isn't it? From the very start...AH FUCK.

Whatever sentimental feelings Aomine almost makes the mistake of losing himself to dissolve as Kise begins to use his throat. That's just foul play, not that Aomine's complaining.

Afterwards, licking his lips, Kise has the nerve to ask, with a stupid, bright, shit-eating grin: "My win, Aominecchi?"

"Tch. Idiot. This is only the start. Don't get ahead of yourself."

"Hehe <3"

[Sunday. 00:04. Is That How Misdirection Works?]

"Where are we going, anyways? We've been driving for like three hours now.."

"We are relocating to a secure safehouse. It'll help both us and Miss Aida plan for our next move."

"Safehouse, huh...this is sure turning out to be a huge pain in the ass. How do we know we're not being followed there, anyways?"

"Rest assured, Kagami-kun, no one has ever been able to successfully tail me in a moving vehicle."

"Hah, so you have no presence, even when you're in a car."

".....Indeed. Due to extensive training, I can expand my misdirection to a radius up to 5 meters, allowing me to maximize stealth. It's a forbidden ninja technique passed down by one of the few remaining clans."

"!!!!!! Wait, holy shit, are you serious?"

..............

"Kuroko you bastard, you're messing with me again."

"Perish the thought."

[Sunday. 01:31. Peaches and Scheme]

Ki-chan, you  sly little fox.

Momoi ends a call with one of her sources, tossing her phone onto the futon and silently cursing a certain unreliable blonde model surely getting it on with her best friend in the near vicinity.

Of course he'd conveniently fail to mention that there was a disposable 'mob character' attack on Kagami Taiga when he went to go meet him just now. He sure had a lot to say (cry)about Tetsu-kun, but somehow neglected to share the /slightly/ more relevant plot point....and knowing Ki-chan, there's a 100% chance he knew the attack was coming in the first place.

Hmph. It's true that Momoi has the best supply of sources in this city, but she hooked him back up with Dai-chan, so didn't he OWE her this juicy intel-

Ah.

The information broker taps a finger to her pouting lips, suddenly reminded that she hasn't told Ki-chan about Shougo-kun's return, either...

OH WELL ^_ ^

It'll be more interesting anyways to see if Dai-chan tells him, or tries to act on his own, fufufu...

Since that boy is so awkward, always saying cruel things he doesn't mean and acting without thinking... it's almost worrisome to think about how he's going to move forward from here. Well, it's a good reunion as any, they'll work it out somehow. Their relationship, and the return of the problem child as well.

Momoi lightly pinches her cheeks in an effort to return her train of thought to the more important issues at hand.

After hearing about tonight's events, she's positive that both doses of today's lackey attacks were sent out by the same central force. Judging from the lack of lethal efficiency but disturbingly good timing, it seems the intent isn't to kill, but rather to divert or disturb the Game.

Akashi-kun??? No, more likely a pawn of his, acting on their own....or perhaps someone /within/ the Kagami Security Team...

And since it was an attack at Kagami Taiga's apartment, a direct consequence would be to transfer him to a safehouse...

So. What will Riko-chan do?

Momoi stops, presses a shaky hand to her chest and inhales slowly, slowly. She can feel the beat of her heart pump the blood that's rushing through her system, making her cheeks flush hot and her head dizzy.

God, she's so turned on right now.

Honestly, when it comes to the thrill of a challenge, she's much, much worse than Aomine.

[Sunday. 01:35. Looks Like Someone Should Be Taking  A Sick Day]

"Like, I'm just saying I don't like the texture, it's gross. They're unnecessarily slimy and it's like-"

Koganei is cut off as the door to the room slams open dramatically, with enough force to put a dent in the poor plaster wall. Looks like Riko's mood hasn't improved since the Momoi Satsuki Is Unforgivably Attractive revelation a few hours earlier.

"H-hey Boss. Everything go okay with the young master?"

Riko just stands there in the doorway, unmoving, her hand still gripping the knob; her eyes, bruised from lack of sleep, staring unblinkingly into the room.

Mitobe makes an anxious hand gesture.

Koganei translates: "So? How'd it go with the young master?"

This seems to break Riko out of her spell: she pinches the bridge of her nose and squeezes her eyes shut,  letting out a frustrated noise through her closed mouth.

"MMmmMMMMMM.... well, he's safe. For now. We've got all the attackers in our custody, so I dragged them through hell, but didn't come up with anything useful. Seems like they're just unknowing puppets of some much bigger pain in the ass. Couldn't even see them in action to see if I could pick up any info..."

"Shouldn't there be like, a billion security cameras installed in that place?"

"There is, but someone fucked with the CCTV after disabling the entire squad stationed."

"..!!!!!!!"

"Holy shit, the attackers did this???!"

"No...."

Riko's already grim countenance darkens by several shades. She rips off a sliver of her thumbnail and spits it out to the side forcefully.

"Seems like he's an acquaintance of Kuroko's. Came as a representative to extend an offer to an omiai for the young master."

Koganei doesn't even know where to start with this bit of news. Before he can dream up some kind of stock response, however:

"Say, Koganei-kun,"

Riko starts, steering the conversation elsewhere, quite emphatically.

"Y-yeah, boss?"

"Are you sure don't remember anything about the attackers who shot at us earlier?

Koganei's cat-mouth seems to intensify as he shakes his head sheepishly.

"Sorry..."

"No that's...alright. I couldn't get a good look at them either. I could tell they were decently well trained, and it was so like her M.O. that I was sure that woman was behind it, but...."

Riko starts muttering to herself, grinding her fist against her forehead agitatedly.

".... compared to the masks.....but there's no way, how would that make any sense....but the timing was too good.....then a traitor? But how does that explain..."

Mitobe and Koganei exchange a brief concerned glance. Mitobe makes a emphasized hand gesture; Koganei intuitively understands what this means, and clears his throat.

"Boss? Everything oka-EEEEEK...............r-right. Of course not...my bad."

Mitobe gives the wounded man a gentle consoling pat on the shoulder. He did the best he could, it's okay.

Besides, judging from the sudden sparkle in Aida's brown eyes, it seems like the boss has figured out a plan.

[Sunday. 02:16. Rainbow Road Part 2]

/"The idea was to raise the perfect group of assassins. It was an initiative started by the largest criminal organization in this country, possibly the continent, for reasons I'm sure you can imagine. The project was a big secret, naturally, but ya know, from what I understand, there were plenty of big names in both politics and the underworld that were involved, whether it was funding or support or whatever.

Though I was practically a kid myself at the time,  I was put in charge of taking care of the children that were brought in for the project. Don't ask how I got involved; you may be cute, but even so I'm not about to tell you my life story.

There was something exceptional about these kids, I don't want to say superhuman but...well, you know what Murasakibara is like. Whether or not it was coincidence that they all happened to be the same age, and all came from unfortunate circumstances, I'll leave for you to decide.

The first to come was a trio that came from the same orphanage. Apparently, there had been rumours that they was set apart from the other kids, that something was 'off' about them,  so our people went to investigate. Sure enough, they came back with three bundles of raw potential and disconcerting natural skill. Raw power, analysis, and stealth, respectively.

Next was a kid they found in the mountains, who somehow miraculously managed to survive on his own. 'Natural predator' is how they referred to him, I hear they had a hard time bringing him back. That's your precious 'Reaper'. If you think he's a problem child now....

After that was a kid who approached us himself. (though looking back he may have been lured in by one of the project leaders). Either way, he had crazy good aim. See? The team was already so well rounded in terms of natural ability, you could practically call it a miracle.

Well......I also recruited one of the tyke bombs myself, little Haizaki Shougo--yeah, I know, I know-- whose father incurred so many debts with the local mafia that he ended up using his son as collateral to trade off. He was an attractive choice because of his versatility but what a PAIN IN MY ASS.

Since the project was heavily funded by the Akashi Family syndicate, it seems that out of an 'act of goodwill', the only son of Akashi Sr. was placed in with the rest of the children. I'm sure you've heard of him, the young Akashi Seijuro. Even as a brat, he was formidable. You could say he's the key a lot of the questions you want answered.

 the project was funded by Seijuro Sr., and as an 'act of goodwill'  he placed his own son in with the rest of his children.

So the project went pretty smoothly for the first little while. The kids spent a lot of time honing their general physical and mental abilities, and it was obvious that they learned and improved faster than is natural in a child of around ten years.

Since they were all kids from unfortunate situations, they never felt the need to escape. Rather, they adjusted quite well to this lifestyle, but of course that couldn't last.

See, the real trouble started once they introduced one more member of the team a year later-oh, can I pour you another glass?"/

Himuro sits up with a start.

A mistake, but it's too late now.

He waits a few moments until the wave of nausea subsides, the memories of last night still spinning in his head. All the things he learned from Nijimura last night are trickling back in order, but for now he has to hold remembering off to get a good look at  his surroundings.

It must be around  one or two in the morning....He's on a ... park bench? Why...

"Hmmmm, Muro-chin, you're finally awake?"

Murasakibara is sitting on the side of the bench, next to him--ah, no, does that count as sitting, really? His head is resting on the back, body slumped inwards, legs stretched before him : he looks like he's going to slip off any second.

Seeing him like this, illuminated by lamplight with his hood over his head, the entire contents of a bag of potato chips headed straight for his mouth, the collection of opened and unopened snacks surrounding him, the bruised bags under his half-lidded, lethargic violet eyes... Himuro can't help but smile a little. It's so familiar.  

"Did I black out? I don't remember getting here."

"Yaaaa, senpai says you blacked out after your seventh drink-"

Wahaaa how disgraceful! No one better tell Madame Araki...

"-so I carried you here....but it was a pain and I got hungry so..."

Himuro cranes his neck to glance back and, sure enough, past this small park space, he can clearly see the sign to Nijimura's bar in the distance. Good thing you didn't push yourself too hard, Atsushi....

Murasakibara licks the salt off each of his long fingers individually, then makes a half-hearted attempt to sit up properly.

It fails.

"Did you learn everything you wanted to?"

Himuro crawls forward and grabs a bottled green tea from Atsushi's side. He twists the cap off and drains about half the drink in one go; the liquid is colder than he expected, a cool sensation on his sore throat.

He wipes his mouth with the back of his hand first, then responds:

"Mhm. It's all coming back slowly, but I get it now. Thank you for taking me there, Atsushi."

He doesn't know what else to say. He's still processing the entire story, and everything that Atsushi has been through, and everything that ties them together.

"'kay good."

Murasakibara doesn't ask any further questions. He just settles back into a comfortable silence, munching on more food. He doesn't move, except a slight shift when Himuro's sleepy head falls into his shoulder.

Going home can wait a little more.

[Sunday. 02:45. 'Resignation' Plays On Repeat]

"Shin-chan...where are we?"

"I have business here."

"Yah, I got that, thanks, but this is a pretty big traditional house..."

Looks like something straight out of a yakuza movie.

"Indeed, it was built during the Mei-"

"I MEANT, 'cause you know,"

Takao sets up the kickstand to his bicycle and leans against the handlebars, wondering what the heck Shin-chan is getting himself (no, both of them) into this time.

" I feel like if you're gonna pull off your super secret special mission hit on here, we maybe shouldn't have taken the wagon, not the greatest getaway vehicle, as we already know."

"Fool. I would have informed you beforehand if that were the case."

"True...but you're all decked out with your lucky charms, and you don't tell me much so I'm a little...."

Today his bandaged fingers are clutching an under ripe pineapple.

"........Before I execute the job I need to do, I would like to make sure I have everything clear. So I absolutely must meet this person."

"Hmmm...."

Takao doesn't need an explanation, as there's a 100% chance this will lead to something interesting, but there's an unsettling feeling churning in his stomach that he cannot shake.

"Shin-chan.......are you maybe nervous?"

Midorima's stern lips relax into an almost-smile, almost shocking Takao out of his unease.

"Hardly. Come, we do not have time to waste."

"If we didn't have time to waste, why didn't we just take the Benz here...."

As they approach the front gate, Takao is surprised to find they are met with nary a guard dog, nor any form of security for that matter-

No. Wait.

There is at  least one person in the vicinity..... Takao cannot see them, but he can sense their presence. Somewhere to the left....

He glances at Midorima: the sharpshooter's slightly raised eyebrow is enough to tell him that Shin-chan is also aware of this phantom presence.

On top of this, the closer they get to the entrance, the more Takao feels the overwhelming pressure of being watched. It's not the person nearby, either, but almost as if some greater force is staring directly into his soul.

Naturally he raises his defense mode up tenfold: no harm in being cautious. He's not used to this feeling at all, like he's performing for some unseen audience.

And so he almost loses it when a voice from the darkness states in chilling tones:

"What brings you here, Shintarou?"

[Sunday. 03:34. With The Taste Of Your Lips I'm...]

Safehouse B:  A rundown sento facility near the east side of the city, that has a hidden back room built in, equipped with the perfect measures for desperate times. Aside from the inconspicuous location,  the elaborate hiding spot is position so that one must make it through the women's changing room in order to access the entrance, which is designed to look like any other locker you might find.

The first and best choice to hide the certain heir of a certain financial empire when his ass is being hunted down by a largely unknown enemy. This fact is known by a small, but considerable handful of employees of the Kagami Surveillance Team.

.......Or not.

What if 'Safehouse B' is just a decoy to prevent potential rats or information leaks from compromising Kagami-kun's safety and in reality, the young master is being ferried off to a completely different safehouse, known only by his personal bodyguard Kuroko, Aida Riko herself, and one other trusted ally.

Then anyone barging into this Taiga-less bathhouse looking for a ripe heir for the picking will find themselves victim to the welcome of an incredibly pissed off Aida Riko.

One? Two? Ten? Twenty ? It doesn't matter how many attackers show up this time, nor does it matter whether they're a traitor from her own team, or a well-informed outsider: they're all fucked.

She's sitting at the end of the room between two bathtubs, shoulder aching, trigger finger twitching impatiently over her precious Sig Sauer. It's been a while since Riko's felt the pressure and the thrill of lying in wait for the kill. Well, not kill, per se: what she wants right now is information.

There's still the possibility of the enemy having no knowledge of 'Safehouse B' at all, and instead had some pathetic game plan of attacking Kagami Taiga while he was in transit, or whatever. Not exactly a concern, though Riko isn't really thrilled at the prospect of safeguarding this freaking empty bathhouse all night for nothing, either.

"Tch, should have just made Teppei do this, he's basically recovered by now."

Though Riko mutters this to herself, there is one more thing she wants to confirm. It's not like she's expecting anything, but on the off chance that maybe...she ....saw through Riko's strategy and decided to...no, that would be ridiculous.

No way, now way. There's no way she would just walk into Riko's trap on purpose just to pick a fight, that would be absur-

The sliding door of  the changing room rattles open. A pair of small, pale feet step into the bathing area.

Seriously?

Riko sighs deeply, raising the Sig in her hand, refusing to look up as the sound of footsteps on damp tiled floor approaches her, slowly, steadily. The pain in Riko's shoulder almost doubles.

Had she been expecting this? Dreading this?

Hoping for this?

How frustrating.

The feet stop less than half a meter away from where Riko is sitting, and their owner crouches down to her eye level. Naked, and  completely unarmed, holding nothing but a small white hand towel over the forearm

So she's just /that/ confident, huh.

Already pissed off, Riko looks dead into the glittering pink eyes of her opponent, eyes she's only seen once before in a photograph. They're truly dazzling up close, as is all the rest of none other than Momoi Satsuki, upon whose plush lips plays a taunting smile.

There is a slight intake of breath, and Riko is suddenly struck by the feeling that she's about to hear something along the lines of:

"That's no good, Aida-san~, you shouldn't be fully clothed in the baths <3"

What's the best way to avoid this? What's the best way to take this overconfident woman, who dares underestimate Riko by showing up without so much as a weapon, by surprise?

There's no time to think, she must act now.

Riko's hand clenches around her gun, and she moves forward with trained speed, pressing her lips against Momoi's before the latter woman can get the upper hand.

Foolproof.