Author's Note!

New update! I'm so sorry it took so long for me to update this. I was currently busy with the holidays as well as school works. I hope this chapter will satisfy you, readers, and as my apologies. I was thinking of making a small side story for Yuki's Teiko days... All her Teiko days. Thoughts? Anyway, Enjoy this chapter! :3

Reviews and Criticism is highly appreciated.

Warning: May have a little bit of OOC but nevertheless, it is how I envisioned it.

*Italics are thoughts of the characters. * *Bold letters are in English*

Now, ONNNNN TO THE STORYYYY~

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, events portrayed in this story is used fictitiously or products of the author's imaginations.

The Strategist Empress. Copyright © 2016 by Cordelia Michaelis. All rights reserved.

Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Kuroko No Basket. I only own the Plot and the OC.


Chapter 28

The next day was quite eventful for Yuki. The said person had her thumb and index finger pinching the bridge of her nose as she tried to calm down. Keyword: TRIED. The reason why she was annoyed and irritated so early in the morning is the red head male named Akashi Seijuro who was leisurely sitting on her chair. She gave an exasperated sigh and coldly glared at the male who was enjoying every bit of her irritation. She knew what was about to unfold since she did a poor job of hiding her bandaged hand not that she cares if people saw it. Red eyes held questions and amusement in them as Ice blue eyes held irritation and annoyance. "Seijuro. Out of my chair." She said in her cold voice as she continued to glare at the person in her seat.

Akashi simply shrugged her glare off and stood up while crossing his arms and looked directly in her eyes as he replied, "We need to talk. Meet me after club activities." He then turned his back on her as he made his way to his seat. She sighed deeply before sitting on her assigned seat and made it throughout the classes and when lunch break came, she bolted out the door and swiftly grabbed her cousin's arm as Kuroko was about to wait for her outside her room. "Don't ask and just come with me, Tetsu." She all but growled in annoyance as her cousin tried to keep up with her speed walking.

Confused and worried, Kuroko simply followed his cousin to the cafeteria where she sat down near the windows and made sure that they were isolated enough. She didn't want anyone to join them and they were successfully left in peace. "Seijuro is an annoying piece of shit." She blurted out as she gracefully ate her food yet stabbed the poor meal, indicating that she was pissed. Her eyes flickered a violet hue as she tried to calm herself down and Kuroko noticed. It wasn't the first time that he saw his cousin's ever changing eyes and violet eyes means that she's angry. The last time he saw those violet eyes was when his uncle and her father suddenly decided that she'll be engaged to a son of another business man to help expand their business together.

Yuki didn't appreciate it nor was willing to do what her father had decided and her eyes flickered to violet which shocked her father and she made sure to bring more than enough evidences as to why she wouldn't do as he pleases. Her father then sighed and lets her do as she decides since nothing can get past his daughter's analytical and tactical skills. Since then Yamamura Kyosuke never questioned her decisions and left her the Main Branch in Japan as he dealt with the international Branches.

Lunch time was finished and they both went their separate ways and classes continued with the bluenette in a bad mood. The last class was dismissed and the pinkette was already there waiting for the shorter girl to go out of the room so that the two of them will go to the gym together. Yuki grabbed her bag and quietly strode out of the room, grabbed Momoi's arm and dragged her out to the gym. Momoi was worried at what came into her new girl best friend as she sensed a very dark aura that surrounds the shorter girl. They arrived at the gym and Yuki placed her bag down with a loud thump and grabbed her whiteboard marker and immediately assaulted the unused whiteboard. By the time her anger had passed, the board was now full of complicated charts and stats that only Momoi and Akashi can understand what she wrote.

Without looking back at the team, she grabbed a nearest chair and dragged it in front of the board and sat down, crossing one leg on top of the other while she placed her chin on her palm as she pondered what scenarios and possible strategies that can happen between a game with the first string regulars and other schools. The first string's practice had started yet Yuki zoned out as her mind conjured a lot of scenes and scenarios that made her head ache from all the possibilities. She deeply sighed and mumbled a quiet 'Tetsu… You better hurry up…' before abruptly standing up from her seat for the past 30 minutes and swiftly went out of the gym to clear her mind off.

Everyone inside the gym was surprised at the head manager's actions but Akashi waved it off and resumed their practice. She shoved her hands in her blazer's pockets as she walked around, letting the fresh air calm her mind. Knowing how Akashi's mind works, she deeply sighed as she looked up at the blue sky which was being threatened by scattered dark nimbus clouds. 'It's going to be a rainy evening… I just hope that this unpleasant feeling isn't what I think it would be…'

She continued to walk around as she felt her mind become blank before going to a convenience store and bought a few drinks and gave a card that identified her as an owner of a company that sells the same brand of beer that was sold in that convenience store. The ID card was a clearance card and it helps the owner of the card to purchase alcoholic drinks even as a minor and only few were given these cards, one of which is in her possession. After the cashier scanned all the items, she handed the exact amount in cash and grabbed the plastic bag and went back to the gym since practice is still on going. Opening one can of beer, she took a sip as she walked towards the first string gym and silently appeared beside Momoi who was intently watching the team. Yuki had been drinking with her father ever since she turned 13 so she knew what and where her drinking limits is.

As soon as the Pinkette's sense of smell had been assaulted by the scent of the alcoholic beverage, her pink eyes widen and looked at the source of the scent. Momoi blinked at the scene before her and she was frozen in place as she didn't know how to react to the other manager who was currently drinking a can of beer while watching the practice of the first string. Noticing the stiffness of the other girl, Yuki side-glanced at her while taking another sip from the can. "I don't want to cause physical harm towards our vice-captain, Akashi Seijuro, now do we, Momo-chan?" She nonchalantly said as she folded her arms and gently tapped the cold can on the back of her palm. The other manager only gave the shorter girl a confused look before sighing and tried to grab the can from her friend but Yuki quickly side-stepped and moved the beverage out of the pinkette's reach.

"Let's just say that this is me trying to be rational and be a calmer person when Akashi and I will talk. I don't want to be hot headed when talking to irritating people." She said quietly but narrowed her eyes at the red head who ignored the cold aura of the shorter girl. She drank the last ounces of the beverage and made a satisfied face before throwing the can out and opened a bottle of Pocari and drank its content to prevent herself from getting drunk. She opened a lollipop and popped it in her mouth, letting the sweetness mix in with the bitterness of the drink. Yuki sighed before she rummaged her bag for her glasses and her hands found the case. Opening the case, she carefully took the glasses and placed them on the bridge of her nose and returned the case in her bag. She then observed the players and their telltale habits and added it in her notebook, her right hand pushing her glasses up as she continued to write the data with her left hand.

Her usual icy blue eyes had a tint of violet in them but it was subtle so it wasn't that noticeable unless they stared for a long time. Sensing a presence behind her, she stood up and snapped her notebook shut, turned to a face the door where she stealthily got out of the practice of the first string and talked to her male counterpart.

"Tetsu. What are you doing here? Don't you guys have practice?" Yuki asked as she tilted her head to the side and stared at Kuroko.

He replied, "We just finished, Yuki-chan. Do you want me to wait for you?"

Yuki nodded at him and crossed her arms as she replied to him, "Okay. Please wait for me at the same spot, Tetsu. I'll have to go meet Seijuro and talk." She frowned and waved a goodbye to him and entered again. She packed up her stuff and decided to wait for the red head outside the gym. A few minutes later, Akashi emerged out of the locker room and stood in front of the Cyan haired female who was already tilting her head to the side.

"Seijuro. Talk. I've got someone who is waiting for me." Yuki said as she crossed her arms and looked at Akashi.

Akashi sighed before replying, "You should have told me that you were injured."

Yuki tiredly sighed at the Red head in front of her and she squeezed her eyes shut in irritation. "It is not your business, Seijuro. It is only a minor injury that can be treated with a few days of rest."

"Yet your well-being is my concern, Yuki." Akashi said as he softly grabbed her injured hand and gently massaged it. Yuki slightly winced as he pressed on the swollen part yet she didn't say anything. She lets him do as he pleased before he gently loosen his hold on her and eventually let her hand down. "Are you done? I need to meet up with someone. I'm sure he'd be very useful in the first string. I'll let the events play out and time will tell you who would become your phantom sixth man that you are looking for. See you around, Seijuro." She said as she turned her back on him and walked away towards her cousin who was patiently waiting for her at the gates and they went on their way home. She overheard what Akashi and Midorima was talking about earlier when they were alone in the school hallways and had observed Akashi's behavior when he was deep in thought.


A loud scream was heard in the vacant gym as it was almost 6 in the evening. Aomine was crouched down and he covered his ears while shaking in fear. Kuroko walked behind Aomine and asked in his monotonous tone, "Who is that there?"

Aomine slowly looked behind him with tears in his wide eyes that emits fear in them. "Aomine-kun?" Kuroko said whilst tilting his head to the side in question. When Aomine calmed down, he straightened up and placed the basketball between his hip and left arm and said, "There's been a rumor lately of a ghost in the gym. So I assumed that was the case."

"I'm just getting extra practice." Kuroko replied as he looked up to Aomine.

Then, Aomine takes the ball in his hand and started to dribble and said, "Impressive. Not many are doing that in first string." The tan male turns back to Kuroko as he made a decision. "That's it. I've made up my mind." Aomine held the ball in his hands as he continued, "I'll practice with you every day from now on. Let's share the court someday."

Kuroko tilted his head to the side and asked, "Is that okay?"

"Idiot." Came Aomine's reply as he made a fist in between the two of them, shifting the ball to his left hand as he continued, "It's not being okay or not! Nobody who plays basketball can be a bad guy."

Kuroko looked at Aomine's fist and smiled a bit before bumping it with his own.

The next afternoon was heartbreaking for Kuroko. Yuki already knew what the third string coach had said to her cousin. She wanted to help but she also wanted her cousin to earn his place in the first string without her help. She clutched her clipboard and sighed deeply before resuming her work with Nijimura who was currently discussing with her and Akashi with the training and schedules. Kuroko broke out the news to Aomine who in return gave a shocked reply. "Huh? Why's that?"

"I do love basketball…" Kuroko said as he lowered his gaze on the ground and eventually closed his eyes to prevent himself from crying. "But it seems like I can't be of any use to the team at all."

"Nobody's completely useless to the team." Aomine said and Kuroko looks up to him in surprise. "Even if you couldn't play in games… Someone who stays later than everyone else to practice can't possibly be completely useless." Both of them stared at each other, one who was serious while the other has hope in them as Aomine continued, "I won't say you'll definitely make it if you don't give up. But if you do give up, there's nothing left."

Another voice joined them and this time the other three first years entered the gym where Kuroko and Aomine were talking. "Aomine." The voice belonged to none other than Akashi.

Aomine acknowledged Akashi as they approached the two. "Akashi…"

Akashi questioned, "I thought I hadn't seen you lately. You were here?"

"Yeah, since the other gym's pretty crowded." Aomine shortly replied, "So the two of us always practice here." This made Akashi confused and looked to his right where Kuroko was standing all the time. "The two of you?" Akashi realized that there were indeed two of them in the gym before the three of them had entered.

"Huh? Was there a guy like this on our team?" Murasakibara said as he ate one pocky stick. Akashi smiled a bit as he said, "I'm slightly interested in him." Midorima widens his emerald eyes at Akashi's statement as Akashi continued, "I'm sorry, but can you come with me for a minute?" Kuroko and Akashi went to the other gym to talk and Yuki came inside the one that was occupied by the three that was left behind.

"Where is Tetsu?" She asked, placing her hand on her hip and stared at the three.

"With Akashi, talking." Came Midorima's short reply.

"I see. Aomine-kun, do me a favor and walk with Tetsu. Tell him that I'll go first." Yuki nodded and turned her back on them before stopping completely on the threshold of the door. "Tell Akashi a 'You're Welcome', Midorima-kun. See you around, Murasakibara-kun." She said and then took off without listening to their replies.

Three months later, Kuroko went to the first string gym to visit, no… more like, tell Akashi about his answer. Yuki only side-glanced at the two with a knowing smirk and the practice game started and Kuroko showed what he is capable of. He was then promoted to the first string team and he was warmly welcomed to the team. A few days later, Teiko and another school had scheduled a practice match between them and it was Kuroko's first game. He was a ball of nerves and Yuki chuckled as she softly messed his hair. "Calm down, Tetsu. You'll be fine. If anything will happen, it will be because you tripped and got a nosebleed and I hope that it wouldn't happen…" She mumbled the last part before taking a seat next to Momoi who was busy gathering the bottles for the players.

Sadly, the fate of Kuroko was told by his cousin and he got in an accident on the court with his clumsiness and from his nerves. He was subbed the Nijimura after one second and the team won the game in the morning. He then proved his worth yet again during the second half of the afternoon game in which erased any doubts the first string coach had placed in Kuroko. Yuki was infuriated with the first string coach's way of treating her cousin but she kept quiet and made sure to insult her punching bag which was Haizaki and made sure to change the color of her eyes at him all the while giving him her coldest glare. Haizaki shook in fear of their manager and quietly sat beside her as she observed the game and subtly changed her eyes back to their original color, having a bit of amusement as she glanced over the male.

It was when Yuki smiled more often, when she established a carefree personality that everything went downhill. Her reserve personality was changed, her walls had been broken by the colorful bunch. Yuki became more open to the Miracles and she also played along them all the while practicing with them, teaching them on their one-on-ones. They all had an undeniable connection between each other and it was hard to break their bond but as soon as Teiko won the Nationals during their first year, Yuki's unpleasant feeling was proven during their second year Nationals tournament when Aomine started to get better in basketball and when Akashi became the captain of the team. She left Momoi in charge for the data that Akashi needed as she was previously tasked to give the captain her data notebook and decided that she needs to go. Go before the final match on the Nationals.

As Yuki slowly started to distance herself from the team, her usual cheery smile was replaced by a frown, the spark in her eyes was gone when she was with them during their practice and her personality slowly reverted back to being the reserved person she was before and only Kuroko can sense his cousin's plans, no one from the Miracles cared for the other manager despite her efforts in her work. Her data was used to Akashi's advantages and this lead to more wins with the Emperor and she hated it. Even during their usual shared lunch break, the Cyan haired female just passed by them like they didn't exist to her or that they were strangers and sat with other people from her class. This action broke Momoi's and Kuroko's hearts since the three were close to each other ever since they had met and it scared both of them.

Before the Nationals ended, the new head coach made an announcement that shocked all the team members of the first string. "The head coach is in a stable condition but he will not return as the head coach. So I will take over the position... and Yamamura Yuki has resigned as Head Manager for the team. Starting today, Momoi will be the one in charge for the team." He said and Kuroko and Momoi looked at each other, worry is reflected in their eyes. Akashi had his poker face on but one can see that he wasn't expecting her to disappear at the middle of their tournament, Midorima was stoic but he was close with Yuki during their second year, Murasakibara visibly slackens at the thought of Yuki going away, Kise visibly reacted with a loud "What?!", and Aomine froze with eyes wide at the thought of his Yuki gone. Kuroko's phone vibrated on the bench and he immediately grabbed it, pressing a button to accept the voice record that Yuki had left him as he shakily placed the phone near his ear.

"Tetsu, I'm sorry. It is my fault. I could have prevented this from happening but because I was blinded by the data, I realized too late and that what I did only created monsters. If only I could have foreseen the outcome of my data, I could make sure that they were still the old guys we know. I'm so sorry that I needed to go…" Yuki's voice was laced in sadness and Kuroko heard a slight sniffle from the background, indicating that his cousin was almost to the point of crying as she continued, "I'll be back soon. I'll be coming home once in a while and please… Don't tell the others that I am gone, gone to another country. I will send you a text once I land and we'll keep in touch. Love you, Tetsu. Be strong for me and I'll return." The message ended and Kuroko snapped his phone shut before resuming his poker face.

"Yuki's alright. She just needed a time off since she got sick and she wanted to personally deliver the news of her resigning her position as Head Manager due to personal reasons." Kuroko whispered to Momoi who in return, deeply sighed in relief before Momoi smiled at Kuroko, "Thank you, Tetsu-kun. I hope Yuki-chan will be alright…" But sadly, it was the last time they had ever heard from Yuki as the Cyan haired female stopped texting the miracles beforehand and it resulted to a breakage in their bonds with her.

Fast forward to where Yuki had been in abroad, specifically in the US, for her rehabilitation, she had met one of her old classmates during grade school, Himuro Tatsuya. Their friendship was a rough one where the two constantly annoy each other and successfully piss the other off. They weren't really friends to begin with and ever since Himuro knew that she went back to get her shoulder rehabilitated and have her surgery, he had been quite insensitive with his comments that further made Yuki hate him with passion. She had already accepted the fact that she couldn't play her beloved sport and he had to rub it in her face.

Yuki didn't want anyone to make insensitive comments like what Himuro had said about her injury and her family and despite her long patience, she calmly blew up on him. Her blue eyes visibly changed to violet hues as her anger got the best of her. She was the type to be a very cold person outside but within her, she's the most sensitive person that her closest friends can tell. Her stay in the US didn't last that long since she had been regularly doing what the doctors had ordered her to do, rest and rehab. After the successful surgery of placing a small metal screw on her shoulder joint, she can finally freely move her shoulder. She had travelled back to Japan for two times, one was to visit her cousin and his family during the holidays since her younger brother was still schooling in a boarding school for boys in the US, who barely had time to come and visit her.

The second time she went back to Japan was during Teiko's last game against the school of Kuroko's best friend whom was destroyed by the Miracles. Where she vowed to come back and take her revenge against them, letting them see the new Yuki by changing her once blue eyes to violet ones and a sudden change in her attitude that made the four miracles step back as she emitted the same aura as their red head captain who subtly flinched at her intense glare. She walked away from them to join an old family friend, the Aida Family. Aida Riko, her childhood best friend, was the coach for Seirin's basketball team and she visited Seirin who was currently engaged in a match against none other than her half-brother, Hanamiya Makoto, of whom she didn't expect to find after years of no contact with the older teen.

Then, Yuki decided that she had enough time to move on from the pain that she caused. She turned a new beginning with Seirin, a school that harbors the sense of family in their basketball team. Despite all their hardships and failures, they remain together and think of ways to accomplish their goals with each other. It was a beautiful sight for Yuki and one where she was drawn to. She then decided to sacrifice herself once the time has come for her to do what she needed to do for her team, her family.