.

A/N: IMPORTANT: READ THIS IF YOU DON'T GET WHAT HAS BEEN GOING ON THE PREVIOUS CHAPTERS AND HAVE READ THEM, AND/OR HAVE ISSUES WITH THE CURRENT PAIRING I HAD IN MIND FOR THIS STORY!

Pairing issue:

Okay, so, I realize that some people are upset with the current pairing I have in mind for this story. I do not want to dissapoint anyone, but like I said before, I will not be making this story GOM/Kuro. There will be slight GOM/Kuro within the story, due to the setting, but it will not be the main focus, so I apologize to those who wanted to see a GOM/Kuro kind of story. I hope that those of you who wanted GOM/Kuro or another pairing will still be willing to read this story even though it is not oriented towards the specific pairing you desired. But if not, then that is still right as well, still rightness I thank you for reading the story this far and reading this note.

Content issue (This section will have no major spoilers in case anyone is worried about that):

I wrote this story when I was in a semi-deoressed/sadistic sort of mood in the beginning, so this chapter might be different from the previous ones so I'm sorry if that confuses you even more, and would be happy to answer any questions that you may have. First off, I would like to to clarify that I'm trying to portray the GOM as crazy, yet innocent at the same time, if that makes sense. I would like to show that even though they have killed and done horrible things, and have a twisted mindset, it is due to how they were raised knowing only that, and seeing only that, but they are also doing innocent actions such as falling in love, hence creating a contradiction that I hope you guys will actually feel contradicted about.

P.S. If that still didn't make sense, then please either PM me or review about it and I'll respond through either PM or through he next chapter. Thanks for reading guys! *^-^*

A/N: Okay, I was gone for a reeeeeeaaaalllyyy long time and I can't really say anything about it besides getting writer's block on how to get the story moving, general laziness, and getting sick about three times in a row. Well, I've already taken up a lot of your time by making you guys read this, but I would like to to thank all of those people who have actually decided to to continue reading this and I appreciate all the reviews and support I have been given so far, and I hope that you guys will continue to do so.

Reviews:

RinFantasy: Thank you for reviewing like always! Yours are always really thoughtful and I appreciate them. And your question will be answered in in this chapter. I decided to make this chapter longer than the others to help make up for my long absence, but I know that it won't fully make up for it. I hope you enjoy it and continue to review!

Nameless: Thanks for reviewing! Yeah, the GOM were meant to look dangerous and stuff, so I'm glad I was able to portray that to you! Only half of the GOM actually interact with Kuroko this chapter, but the rest will come along soon! I hope you will continue to give me your support!

BabyNightmareLady: Thank for reviewing as always! Don't worry, I'm not made at you! *^-^* I appreciate the fact that you brought up that you didn't really get it. I hope I explained what you felt was wrong in the section above. If I didn't feel free to review again and tell me what you felt was wrong and I'll see what I can do to make it make more sense to you. Thank you for reviewing and I hope you continue to do so!

zleihsh: Thank you for reviewing! I hope you will continue to read this even though I decided not to make it GOM/Kuro, although I will understand if you decide not to. I appreciate the fact that you took the time to read this story so far! Thank you for taking your time to read this!

Guest: Thank you for reviewing! I'm happy that you enjoyed it! And to answer you question...here's your Chapter 5! I hope you will continue to read this story and give me your support as well! \^-^/

Lorene: Thanks for reviewing! Yeah, I wish I could write an action scene with Kuroko, but I'về never written action before, and I kind of tried it in this chapter, but it's very minimal, and I'm not sure how well it worked out. I would appreciate your review on this chapter and the future ones! Thank you for your support!

The Phantom Heir

...

Chapter IV: Phantom & The Sadistic Trio

*~Zetsubo Academy Infirmary, Lobby Floor~*

The intercom on the side of the automatic sliding doors came to life as someone's card was swiped to help them gain access to the on-campus hospital-look-alike.

Access Granted. Rank 005, Kise Ryouta.

The second Kise walked in, the whole atmosphere seemed to stiffen. Kise stopped a few feet from the entrance, waiting for the machine to finish scanning him.

...No dangerous materials detected. You may proceed.

Kise saw some people loosen up at that discovery. 'Geez. No one would actually be stupid enough to bring weapons into a place for resting. Wait. Actually, scratch that. Daikicchi probably would.' Kise thought. Kise strolled his way on up to the front desk. The woman at the front desk was openly admiring Kise's body, showing her inexperience. 'Must be a new employee. Perfect.' Kise inwardly smirking as he flashed a blinding smile to to the woman at the front desk, causing her to blush slightly.

"Hello. I'm looking for a 'Mayuzumi Takehiro'?" Kise smiled as the lady's blush began spreading to her neck, making it look raw and red, as if her blood was about to burst out of the very veins that held them.

"I-I'll look it up for you sire." The lady then busied herself with the screen, and for a few seconds, all that could be heard was the sound of fingers moving along a keyboard and the occasional clicking of a mouse. "Ah, here it is. Mayuzumi Takehiro, he's on the top floor sire. If you would like, I would be happy to lead the way." The woman smiled and looked up shyly as she said this, a blush still prominent on her features.

Kise then put his hands on top of hers, and said, while still smiling a kind and blinding smile, a bit suggestively, "That would be great. Since it's such a long way up, why don't we…" His hand moved further up onto her arm before he continued, "..get to know each other a little better." The woman became like a pile of goo, melting into the blonde's arms and trap quite easily.

"S-Sure Mister…?" The woman looked up at him with her hazelnut colored orbs, awaiting his answer, even though the security machine had already announced his name, loud and ND clear only a few minutes prior to their conversation.

"Ah, I'm Kise. Let's get going now, shall we?" He smiled again this one just as fake as the ones that preceded it.

And so, the pair walked towards the elevator, every person they passed stiffening in fear, but the only one who noticed this was Kise. The woman was too lost on her own fantasy land of possibly having a relationship with the handsome man next to her. It was her first day, and her instructor hadn't shown up, so she decided to just get to work, since the only job she had was being the front office lady. How hard could that be right? And plus, she got to hang out with this beautiful man, and even hold his hand! Surely this experience was going to be wonderful, even if it was only for a short while.

The woman didn't know how much she would regret those words, when she woke up in a hospital, blind, and her only recollection of the day being a bright, terrifying yellow, along with a cruel smirk plastered on the lips of a faded beauty.

*~ Zetsubo Academy Infirmary, Mayuzumi Takehiro's Room~*

Kuroko was doing absolutely nothing when the ever-so cheerful blonde practically skipped into the room, with the faint scent of blood lingering filling the room as the boy closed the door. As the blonde walked closer, Kuroko's training kicked in, and his mind replayed the information he had memorized about the blonde in front of him. 'Kise Ryouta. Specializes in the art of deception, acts overly-cheerful, but is actually extremely sadistic, and has an attachment to Aomine Daiki for currently unknown reasons. This point must be investigated for possible future usage. Danger Level Assessment: 7' Kuroko internally winced when the 'internal reminder' finished. He did that automatically due to his training, but it still sounded weird to hear a his voice in his head all of a sudden. Kise's voice brought the tealhead back to reality.

"Hello~ Mayuzumi-san right?" The blonde asked, a polite smile playing on his lips.

"Y-Yes, I am. A-Are you Kise Ryouta?" Kuroko looked down as he said this, faking letting his guard down and making him seem like a boy that was innocent and blind to the corruption of the world.

Kise's smile seemed to widen even more at Kuroko's action, attempting to cover up the anger that was beginning to form at his personal information being given away so easily, even if it was something as simple as his name.

"Why yes, I am. How did you know?"

"Mrs. Avalon told me…"

Kise's anger seemed to simmer down a bit at the mention of their headmistress, but his annoyance at her was still detectable in his aura.

"Is that so? Well, we better get going now; Akashicchi hates it when people are late." Kuroko raised his head at the newly mentioned name.

'Akashicchi? Who the heck is that? Akashicchi, Aka-oh. Akashi Seijuro. Great. Just great. I get stuck with a bunch of lunatics and the first I have to do when I arrive is meet their leader. How delightful.'

Kuroko moved his head slightly to look up at Kise with a tiny glint of curiosity in his eyes as he said, "'Akashicchi'? Who's that?" When Kise's eyes turned to meet his, he quickly let his gaze fall back to his own trembling hands, and murmured, "if you're okay with me asking, that is…." Kise let a smirk slip onto his face before quickly replacing it with his usual million dollar smile.

"Don't be so tense Mayuzumi-kun, I don't bite. I want us to be the best of friends, so feel free to ask me anything okay?~" As if to emphasize his point, Kise held his hand out towards the bedridden tealhead. Kuroko's hand slowly met to reach Kise's own, and their fingers gripped each other's tightly, mimicking the creation of a beautiful and unbreakable bond, as if promising a lifetime full of friendship. In reality though, we all know what would really happen if one decided to fully trust a member of the terrifying group of 5 boys and 1 girl currently known as the 'Generation of Miracles'.

*~Tier 0 Dorm, Entrance~*

"Here we are Mayuzumi-kun." Had Kuroko not been and heir, on a mission, and an expressionless person, he might have gaped at the sheer dullness of the building. It looked like a typical office building. At that very moment, the tealhead recalled his mother's parting words. 'Tetsuya, you must send us a letter every week, with at least one picture of you in it.' Kuroko internally sighed at the reminder. His mother would freak out at the thought of him living in such a boring place for who knows how long depending on how fast he could finish his mission. Although most likely, the mission would be considered a failure if he couldn't get the group of 6 out before 2 years time, but Kuroko Kutsui wasn't the family head for no reason. There was most likely rather an unknown date that Kuroko had to finish it by or risk his position as heir.

Also, somewhere along the way the blonde had begun calling Kuroko with a 'kun' instead of 'san', insisting that now that they were friends, they should call each other less formally. Kuroko had of course, remained in character and easily complied, and in turn, asked Kise, albeit shyly, if he could only asking if he could do the same with Kise. Kise of course, also easily complied.

"Mayuzumi-kun, are you alright?" Apparently Kuroko had been too lost in his thoughts and was unable to notice that they had arrived at the front door already. Kuroko quickly replied with a hesitant 'I'm fine,' keeping in character.

When the two entered the building, they were greeted with. Loud beep that was then followed with multiple clicking noises that, in Kuroko's experience, either meant a weapon was being loaded, or a grenade was about to go off. Of course, the boy's instincts were hence telling him to run, and get out as soon as possible, but, seeing Kise standing still, Kuroko decided to do the same, and forced himself to stand still. All of a sudden, there was a voice that seemed to come from the intercom in the wall.

Please identify yourself, or die where you stand.

The voice was cold and ruthless, and had a woman's quality to it, hence making it more human-like rather than a robot. Kise began to respond as if it was an everyday occurrence to have a lethal weapon(s) pointed at you at the door to what was practically, in their current situation anyways, your home.

"Rank 005, Kise Ryouta." Then, there was a pause, and Kuroko took the hint that it was most likely his turn.

"Um…Ra-Rank 007, Mayuzumi Takehiro…" Kuroko had to admit that he was surprised at how high his rank was when Mrs. Avalon had told him. He had expected to be put in a position where she could easily watch him due to his family name. However, he didn't know the branch family's name warranted that much attention. It most likely was just his situation since his cousin didn't seem to be apart of the same Tier as he was based on the fact that the ever talkative Kise hadn't mentioned knowing any other Mayuzumi.

"Momoicchi, look at what you did!" The new name that falls from Kise's lips captures Kuroko's attention. "You scared the new kid! Akashicchi still needs to talk to him you know!" Kise makes a whiny face as he says this, and for a few seconds, the is only silence, before the voice appears again, but with a much less serious tone this time, instead seeming almost as whiny as Kise's voice was a few seconds prior.

Mou, Ki-chan, you're no fun! I only wanted to try out the new security system…

Sobs began to be heard throughout the room, originating from the intercom. Kuroko, being the gentleman he was, began to ask the woman if she was alright, but still remembered to keep his voice shaky so that he stayed in character.

"A-Ano, Miss, a-are you alright?" There was silence for a few moments after that, and Kuroko thought he might have said something offensive towards the woman, and wanted to take it back, but was interrupted by a screech over the intercom.

Oh my gosh! What a gentleman! Don't worry Hiro-kun, I can call you Hiro-kun right?, I'm alright, thanks for asking. Unlike somebody. Ki-chan, you could learn a thing or two from him. You know what, in fact, I'll come down right now to give you a lesson on how to treat women Ki-chan!

When Kuroko looked over to Kise, the boy seemed slightly intimidated by the fact that the woman was coming to where they were. A ding resounded throughout the room, and the elevator on the left side of the room opened, and out from it came a teenage girl with long flowing peach-colored hair, and matching eyes, along with a pretty pink shirt, white sweater and mint-green skirt that stopped at the beginning of her knees. She also had pale skin that most likely resulted from her skin almost never seeing the sun. Her eyes met Kise's slightly fearful ones before she smiled, and walked over, only stopping once she was about a foot away from the blonde.

"Hello Ki-chan." Her voice was cheery and sounded pleasant to the ears. That beauty however, was immediately countered when she brought out a paper fan and began whacking Kise's head with it for a good few seconds with the blonde letting out protests that were something along the lines of 'Momoicchi! Stop! My face!' and 'Help, Mayuzumi-kun!' Kuroko thought that, with the way the two were acting now, it didn't seem like either could possibly bw the reason for hundreds if not thousands of destroyed lives or deaths. They both looked innocent and pure, nothing like what Kuroko had been turned into after killing the same amount if not more people than the two had combined. Once 'Momoicchi' had finished her act of 'discipline,' she turned to face Kuroko with sparkling eyes. Kuroko's wariness was not just to stay in character this time, but also due to his instincts telling him to stay away from this girl, based on the creepy glint in her eyes.

"So, Mayuzumi Takehiro yes?" 'Momoicchi' held out her hand in greeting, and when Kuroko went to connect their hands, he eyes lit up like a firework, and she seemed to be holding back a squeal as she felt the softness of his hands and admired how beautiful his nails were, which, obviously, creeped him out a little. Kuroko wanted to retract his hand immediately after shaking her hand, but, once again, being the gentleman he was, he let her do as she pleased, and instead took the opportunity to get her real name since he didn't want to end up calling her 'Momoicchi' in his head all the time or else he might actually end up saying it out loud.

"You are…?" Kuroko left the question hanging to give the girl enough time to respond. His voice seemed to have snapped the girl out of her reverie.

"Ah, sorry about that. I'm Momoi Satsuki." After hearing her full name, Kuroko's mind immediately identified the woman in front of him as one of his 'targets', and Kuroko ended up unconsciously going over the girl's information in his head, just as he had done with Kise. 'Momoi Satsuki, specialty lies in electronics, calm and analytical, but can be very expressive at times, or slightly sadistic. Especially around her childhood friend, Aomine Daiki, and only woman in group of targets. Danger Level Assessment: 8 (if having electronics in possession) & 5 (without electronics in possession).'

"Nice to meet you Momoi-san. As I think you already know, I am Mayuzumi Takehiro. Nice to meet you..." Kuroko bent his head down after that. He was trying to keep in character by acting all shy around strangers, and it seemed that it worked on Momoi quite easily. However, next thing he knew, he was being crushed in the peach-haired girl's arms, and could barely breathe..

"Aww. It's okay Hiro-kun! Did I scare you? Don't worry. I won't hurt you! Ki-chan was just being an idiot. I'd never hurt someone as kind, cute, or gentlemanly as you Hiro-kun!" Kuroko kind of wanted to respond with a 'But you're hurting me right now, so could you get off of me. Please?' Buuuut of course, something like that would blow his cover, and he definitely didn't want that to happen. He began to think of ways to get the girl off him without sounding rude, but before he could properly enact anything, Kise interrupted.

"Momoicchi, could you stop hugging the new kid? Akashicchi wanted to see Mayuzumi-kun right after he got here." Momoi immediately stopped her actions, and, completely ignoring Kise, put her hands on Kuroko's shoulders, and gave the boy an incredulous look.

"Eh?! Really? Why didn't you say so earlier Hiro-kun! Don't worry! I take you too him straight away since Ki-chan has already spent so much time delaying you with his chit-chats. Now, lets go!" Before he could say anything, Kuroko felt himself be dragged into an elevator on the right side of the room, opposite to the one Momoi had come from earlier. The last thing Kuroko saw as the doors were closing was a running Kise screaming about how the two should wait for him with fat crocodile tears running down his face. As the doors closed, Kuroko swore he saw an sadistic smirk appear on Momoi's face before it was replaced by a blindingly beautiful smile that he found directed towards him. Kuroko internally sighed for what appeared to be the billionth time that day.

'I don't think I'll ever get used to these people.'

*~Tier 0 Dorm, Top Floor~*

Of course the leader's office was on the top floor. The elevator only reached to the 3rd floor apparently, and the top floor was three more floors away. So, the duo ended up walking the rest of the way. On top of that, on Momoi's insistence that they should spend more time together to get to know each other, Kuroko ended up seeing the majority of the layout of the 3rd-6th floors. Kuroko found her idea actually pretty ironic since she was the one who suggested that Kuroko was going to get there way slower if he went with Kise. The whole place was practically decked out to look like a mansion on the inside, but when Kuroko observed the walls and floor more closely, he realized that the whole building appeared to be made out of some sort of metal, most likely steel, and also seemed empty of any of the other members. Kuroko had hoped to meet at least one other 'target' along the way, but the whole time, the only soul that he had seen was Momoi, and while her chatter kept the place from being too creepy, but the silence that came when the girl was thinking was eerie. So, when the two finally arrived at their destination, Momoi only knocked, whispered good luck, and left. There was a very faint sound of a pen being let down on the desk, but, if not for Kuroko's years of training, he might not have heard it, which was strange, since, usually, even through a couple feet inch walls that were specially designed to be soundproof, he could still here the noise on the other side loud and clear, no matter how hard a person tried to hide it. In In this situation, the only thing separating him and the noise was a wooden door that was probably only two inches thick at most and a few feet in the room. The person sitting in the room in front of him was obviously very skilled, and should not be taken lightly.

"Come in." The voice was a tad fainter than it should have been if it was supposed to be heard by a normal person, but Kuroko forgot about that fact, and went into the room. The first thing he saw was fiery-scarlet colored hair, and a pair of exquisite heterochromatic eyes. One a bright scarlet, just like the boy's hair, and the other a shade of gold, like the setting sun. Kuroko was shocked for a few moments, to the point where his training for listing info in his head didn't even kick in. The boy in front of him was beautiful. A murderer yes, but a beautiful one. Kuroko only snapped out of it when the ethereal being before him spoke.

"You're late. What were you doing?" The boy's eyes glared at him, and Kuroko quickly got back into character in less than a second, making sure to appear to be cowering under the redhead's gaze, and hoped the boy hadn't noticed his change in demeanor, and answered, as honestly as he could, since, he had a feeling he couldn't lie to the person in front him.

"Um...Mo-Momoi-san insisted that I see the building first before we came here….I'm sorry sir.."

Kuroko was sweating a bit as he finished his defense. 'Please don't have noticed something, please don't have noticed something,' was the internal mantra that was currently playing in in the boy's head as he waited for the redhead's reply.

"Hmm...is that so?" The redhead answered cryptically, and Kuroko knew, due to living with devious people all his life, that cryptic answers usually meant he was in a bad position. Kuroko cursed his earlier slip-up due to the redhead's handsome, god-like, and totally unfair physical features. 'Wait a second, what?' Kuroko didn't get much farther into his thoughts since the redhead spoke up again. "I see. Well, I'll let it slide since it's your first day, but any more...mistakes, will have more dire consequences. Do I make myself clear?" Kuroko was a bit surprised and relieved that the redhead didn't suspect him of anything, but he also still kept his guard up, just in case the guy tried anything fishy. "Well then, I only asked you to come here to make sure you get your student card." Akashi handed him an ID card that contained his face, and a serial number, and a strap attached to the card to put it around the neck. Kuroko quickly did so to make sure that he would know where it is at all times. "That," Akashi gestured to the card. "will help you get around the campus and into your room. Do not lose it." Kuroko nodded his head quickly, making himself appear afraid. The redhead smirked in what appeared to be satisfaction before gesturing the tealhead to leave. Kuroko was doing so, and was about to breathe out a sigh of relief as he put his hand on the doorknob, before he heard a slight change in the aiflow, and caught a pair of red scissors between his index and middle fingers. Kuroko only realized his error after he heard a melodious chuckle reverberate throughout the room.

"Just as I thought. You're not really who you say you are, are you, Mayuzumi Takehiro?"

'Sh*t'

A/N: Sooo, how was it? I gotta admit, my favorite part to write was the Akashi and Kuroko part, although that one was the hardest to write, so I wouldn't blame you guys if you hated on me for making that part bad. Okay well, please review, as always, and I'll see you all later!