Chapter 1

Warnings: Rated M for gore and Kagami's potty mouth.

Disclaimer: I do not own KnB...Duh. Also, the image belongs to Yooani.

He should've known coming to this place was a bad idea. Setting aside the rather delicious Maji burger to the side along with the wrappers of its eaten brethren, the young red-head coyly raised an eyebrow at the group of Japanese militia who rudely disturbed his meal. You'd think that with all that crap in their training about discipline and shit they'd have tossed in manners in there too.

Sighing, Kagami poked at the barrel, idly noting the deep scratches and chips in the black metal. He frowned, "What the hell?" He wasn't even looking at the poorly conditioned gun, but at the single golden star over a bar on the soldier's uniform.

The soldier whose gun he poked stiffened when Kagami looked up to grin toothily at him, "…You really are a greenhorn? Is the country really that desperate to kill me? To think that they'd resort to human sacrifice…"

Kagami barked out a sharp laugh, startling the militia. Slowly, he rose from his seat, bearing his full height, lips pulled into a feral grin and looking at the poor bastard shaking under his nose. Teeth audibly clacking, the second lieutenant who had been pointing his gun much too closely at Kagami earlier, he raised the firearm in his hands, face set in determination no matter how much he shook. Admirable, but Kagami knew that the kid would die in another battle anyway. It was his kind that always stupidly stood up for his officers, and took on all the blame until that soldier snapped and killed everyone in sight. Kagami himself had seen the entire process, they always snapped. It would be a mercy kill to put the kid in his grave today and not in some military base somewhere else after enduring days upon weeks of starvation and dehydration, sitting in his own piss and looking more bone-thin than a runway model. Here, the second lieutenant would be buried on familiar lands, in fine cloth, and with warm goodbyes.

So Kagami made sure to make it quick. A quick jab to the back of his head made a sickening crack just before the greenhorn's eyes rolled back. His arms fell limp to his sides, gun clattering right into Kagami's waiting hands, and then the greenhorn slowly fell forward without a sound. As soon as his body hit the floor, someone screamed from somewhere to the left of Kagami. The red-head grunted and jumped away just as the young soldier began to open fire. His aim was continuous, erratic, uncontrolled. Must have been a friend of greenhorn, Kagami thought when he wrenched the weapon from the boy's white-knuckled grip, and then sent a kick to his stomach that sent him flying to the far wall, making the soldier gasp as his back absorbed the whole impact, blood curdling from his mouth and arms bloody with fractures sticking out from his flesh. Another soldier, a captain this time, couldn't mask the revulsion and horror on his face when his comrade's corpse began to convulse uncontrollably, blood spilling over in pints from his mouth, staining the white-tiled floors of Maji Burger. His eyes rolled back into milky whites fading into red, not unlike his friend from earlier, and stopped convulsing just as another soldier beside the captain fell to his death, single bullet lodged in his head. The corpse fell forward, and so did the Major. The captain nearly screamed at the sight of his superior's exposed brain falling to the floor with a splat.

"Huh?" the demon that did this said behind him, and the captain's hairs stood up like needles, "Ah man, I was aiming for the neck…"

"St-Stay BACK!" the captain shouted, hands gripping at his rifle like a lifeline, "I-I'll shoot!"

Kagami snorted as he casually grabbed a napkin from a nearby dispenser, "Yeah, so? It's not like you'll hit me or anything," then the red-head began to wipe the blood stains splattered across his chest, grimacing when he just spread it. Damn, that cost him a lot too. The captain, though pale, shaky, and clammily holding his weapon, still had his sense about him and pulled at the trigger while the red-head was still vainly trying to wipe off the blood. Kagami didn't even look up and merely sidestepped the bullet, tossing the stained tissue into the waste bin. It wasn't good to litter, y'know?

And with one swift kick to the head, the captain fell to the floor in a crumpled heap, revealing Kagami who was looking at the scene with a disgruntled expression. It wasn't good to litter, and he just filled the entire store with bodies. Damn.

"Ah well," Kagami muttered to himself, "At least the janitor got away."

He looked down when he felt someone weakly grab his foot. The captain glared at him through his brown bangs stuck to his face with blood, and he spat,"…You…will fall…Red Devil…!"

And then the hand fell limp, falling to the side, but the captain's eyes still glared up at him lifelessly from the ground. Kagami stared at them blankly, then silently crouched down and gently closed his eyes. Pulling his scarf from the booth he was previously sitting at, he slung the black item around his shoulders before walking out the glass doors, wind billowing the ends of his scarf upwards while the Red Devil silently wished his latest victims peace.

And then he walked out the doors, leaving not a single trace of his presence in the massacre.

The streets were more or less abandoned by this time of night, and that suited Kagami just fine. He dropped down from the roof of the apartment building he was standing on, scarf floating behind him in the air. He landed without a sound, and casually walked over to the phone booth nearby. Inserting a coin, he dialed, "…Yes? Hello?" a woman had picked up, and Kagami sighed through his nose, before speaking into the voice disguiser, "…This is a call from the Tokyo Police force, we request you to come down to the station tomorrow to pick-up your relative."

He repeated this several times, ignoring the sobs and screams of each and every one of the family of his latest victims. It wasn't that he didn't care, but Kagami knew how to harden his heart to survive his kind of job.

"…We deeply apologize for this incident," Kagami said curtly, "Goodnight."

And he hung the phone on its cradle once more. Sighing, he ran his rough fingers over his red locks, shoulders slumping. Damn he needed a drink. Walking out, he closed the door behind him with a click, then proceeded down the street. Kagami put his hands into his pockets, slumping his posture and giving out a staged yawn.

Scrape, step.

Kagami turned around the corner, eyes flickering to the shadows moving on the ground. An aerial attack?

Step, step, step.

From behind too, Kagami thought, thumbing the cool metal of his precious Colt .45's. He bet there was someone waiting for him in front too. Briefly he contemplated just stopping and shooting the bastard dead or making a run for it.

Kagami made his decision easily. Spinning around, Kagami fired two shots from his Colts and lodged a bullet in the skulls of the two boys tailing him. He heard a sharp whistle from above, and Kagami jumped back to avoid getting hit by the rain of swords coming from above. Northeast, above him, one story. Three morons trying to kill him. The one waiting for him was missing, or at least gone from his position. Kagami ducked the sword trying to take his head off from behind and reached back without looking to lodge another bullet in the poor bastard's eye. The corpse collapsed to the ground, one eyed leaking out from his destroyed socket like mush. Kagami didn't even need to look to know where his partner was running towards him from. Grinning, the Red Devil kicked the sharp weapon out of his opponent's hand. That didn't even faze the masked stranger, and made a lunge at the Kagami with a knife in hand, eyes seething with hatred…

…and landing right on the muzzle of his Colts. The attacker didn't hesitate to slash open Kagami's chest in the split second before Kagami pulled the trigger. He held a stony face even when the corpse fell back from the pressure, landing on the cement floors of the street. Kagami sighed and let the shells of his bullets fall to the ground. Eight attacks in the last 10 hours? This was getting ridiculous. Either the government was trying to exhaust him, or overwhelm him with their soldiers. It was probably the former. Though the latter was starting to work…

"I didn't even get to finish my dinner too," Kagami groaned and scowled up at the sky, "Hey! Come down already, I know you're there!"

His last target didn't make a sound when he fell from the shadows to the edge of the streetlight. Only his black suit pants and black shoes were visible, teal hair and eyes almost hidden under a fedora and torso along with possible weapons tucked under a long black coat. Kagami tried not to make a comment at the other man's unconventional outfit. It wasn't like he had any room to say anything, what with his scarf floating behind him like fucking taunts saying, 'Grab me if you dare!' Cocking his guns, Kagami spoke levelly, "If you run away right now I'll spare you."

The stranger didn't say anything, merely unsheathing sleek white sword from under his coat. Kagami grinned.

Akashi Maximum Security Prison

Convict Profiles

Convict # 5899

Name: Kagami Taiga

Alias: The Red Devil

Age: 24

Sex: Male

Arrest Date: August 9

Cell #: 3097 ACC, 67th Floor

Kagami tried not to scowl at the camera man as he held up his number with clenched teeth. Tried, anyway, and he ultimately ended up scowling for the rest of the way. Tossing the paper back at the shaking crony, he grumpily let the stony faced guards cuff his wrists and feet together. His stomps echoed throughout the halls while they marched him towards his new 'home'. Kagami would've spat in the guard's face if he didn't have a metal gag over his mouth. The bastards.

And just how big was this prison anyhow?! They've been walking for literal hours now and Kagami wanted to some sleep! He'd been awake for 3 days straight now, dammit, he NEEDED SLEEP!

'I swear to Christ if we don't get there soon I'm going to start a riot-'

Kagami's train of thought was cut off when they abruptly stopped in front of a large, metal door with no windows and looked thicker than his own head. Come to think of it, Kagami thought as he craned his neck to take a look-see. The whole hallway was metal held together by what looked like steel rivets, just like the floor. They didn't make that hollow-sounding sound when Kagami tapped his cuffs on the walls. Which meant that these things were probably around 10-15 inches thick of pure, undulated metal; and that also meant that throwing bombs around left and right were so not going to work as an escape plan. The guards would be on his case before he even made a dent.

Sighing just as the guard removed his gag, Kagami was unceremoniously shoved through the open doors, making the hitman land on his face as they closed the thing shut. Kagami glared at the door as though it offended him, then his eyes flickered to the door's hinges.

Metal as well, of course it was.

Biting back a growl, Kagami swore to commit the guards' faces to memory to track them down and give them a good beating—right after killing the teal-haired bastard who ran his name through mud and shit when the little asshole had gone and arrested him. While that in and of itself was respect worthy, and though he'd never say it out loud Kagami was sort of amazed by the little guy who packed a punch, that still didn't change the fact that he was now going to rot in this Hell hole because of him.

Kagami couldn't even figure out why he lost. One second he was all fired up with adrenaline coursing through his veins, and the next he suddenly had black spots in his visions, his head was light and the steps he took were crooked and awkward. Kagami had cursed under his breath when the teal assassin disappeared from his line of sight. Even now his mentor's words echoed in his head while he heard the familiar sound of an unsheathed sword poised to strike behind him.

"—and if you ever encounter an assassin, never let them get out of your sight because assassins-"

"Work best in the dark," he ground out just before something blunt hit the nape of his neck, and Kagami's eyes rolled back before he passed out.

The red-head was knocked out of his musing's when something clattered to the floor behind him. Turning with a disinterested air, Kagami stared up where he heard the only other breathing source beside his in the cell, and saw a pair of emotionless teal eyes looking back at him.

To Kagami, being a hitman was being an expert at expecting the unexpected, what with constant assassination attempts, attacks, seduction (As if those ever worked on him – pfft. He was perfectly happy being married to his job, thank you.) Missions, etcetera. But among all the things Kagami had expected in his 24 years of life, he hadn't anticipated to see familiar teal colored eyes staring emotionlessly back at him. Kagami's eyes flickered to his hand – always look at their hands, remember Kagami! – And cursed under his breath as he rolled away to the far side of who could very well be the very assassin who had done him in. Kagami hissed, "Who the hell are you?"

His cellmate and potential killer didn't answer, and the red-head felt his entire body tense. A frontal attack? Or the more subtle kind – poison, slitting his throat while he slept, or beheading him just as he turned his back on him? The other guy didn't move, but Kagami knew that he was just observing him, looking for chinks in the Red Devil's armor he could exploit.

Your temper will be the end of you one day, Kagami.

His teacher's voice resonated inside the red-head's mind, and Kagami forced himself to calm down via breathing exercises.

"…Hello," the assassin said quietly, and started to hold out his hand. A bomb? A knife? A—

…Necklace? Kagami's eyes widened when he noticed just which necklace it was. Snatching it from Teal's pale hand, the hitman growled, "Where did you get this?"

"You dropped it," the other man said matter-of-factly, "I figured that you'd want it back, so here I am."

"So you really are the assassin," Kagami said sharply. The other man smiled, not answering nor denying his question, "My name is Kuroko Tetsuya," he stuck his hand out amicably, almost politely, "Nice to meet you, Kagami-san."

A/N: Edited as of June 19, 2014; due to a very late realization that a chunk of the chapter hadn't been properly updated. Also, I want to thank fellow FF users and real-life friends: Impassive Sky, Micar, and Blucayzon for being my beta-readers. Reviews are appreciated, and have a nice day :)