Allow me to channel Sakurai Ryou for a moment.
Sumimasen!
Sumimasen!
Sumimasen!
I was unable to post this chapter last week because we had our prom and I was really pissed off for a few days and rebelling against some stuff and I had headaches and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. You get my drift.
Oh wow, look at that follower count. Ah, I feel so loved. ;) Thanks minna~
Disclaimer: I do not own KnB. If I did, Extra Game would be updated on a weekly basis.
CHAPTER 4: RENDEZVOUS
The voice on the other end wasn't Kuroko's much to Akashi's disappointment. He resisted the urge to throw the phone across the room and instead listened to what the caller had to say.
"3 o'clock. Tokyo Shopping Center. Don't be late."
Since the call, Kiseki was a flurry of activity as everyone took care of their own devices. Intense and suffocating adrenaline was palpable in the air like the atmosphere when soldiers prepare to head out to the battlefield. Gone was the dull, gloomy aura of that morning, replaced by the yearning for action.
Time to get Kuroko back, and maybe kick Kirisaki's ass while they're at it.
No wait, definitely kick Kirisaki's ass while they're at it.
Akashi was in his room preparing himself. He stood in front of the mirror and smoothed out the creases of the dark red dress shirt he wore. Clothes may seem like a trivial thing in their line of work, but one's appearance and mannerism were just as important as the weapons they use. With his custom, black suit Akashi looked like every bit of the invincible mafia boss he was.
Akashi reached for FN 5-7 on his bedside table and hid it in the holster concealed in his suit jacket. He was never one for field work, preferring to stay in the background overseeing everyone else, calculating the moves of both enemies and allies. But that didn't mean he was incapable of combat. His precision with a handgun was the same as Midorima's with his rifle-accurate and lethal.
"Are you sure you're not coming with us?" he addressed Nijimura who was standing in the doorway.
The older man shook his head. "I have things to take care of on this side."
Years spent working with him, Akashi knew not to question any of Nijimura's choices. There was no question about his loyalties. Every choice he made had a good reason behind it so Akashi allowed him to do whatever he wanted. He had told him so one day and Nijimura had replied," It doesn't matter what I want. As long as it's for Kiseki, I'll do it."
Nijimura walked inside Akashi's room and held out a leather case which Akashi took. He opened it to reveal a knife, and not just any knife. It was one of the knives Akashi has always wanted to use ever since he saw Nijimura's weapon collection years ago. It was a butterfly knife roughly the size of his palm. The hilt was made of a smooth, black metal with silver lining the edges. The blade was sharp and glistened under the lights.
Nijimura picked it up and expertly twirled the knife in his hands to hide the blade. Akashi watched him carefully, committing the moves to memory.
"Just like I promised." Nijimura handed it over to Akashi who tucked it inside his sleeve, close enough to grab it when the need arises.
"Seijurou."
Akashi looked up.
"Don't even think of returning without Tetsuya. It's hard to find good spies these days."
Akashi didn't miss the note of concern under Nijimura's flippant statement.
"That's the plan."
And he didn't intend for it to end any other way.
Aomine and Kagami weren't arguing-for once-when Akashi arrived at the parking garage minutes later. Both wore expressions of intense concentration, reminding everyone how close the two of them were with Kuroko. They may be on each other's throats on a daily basis, but once they have a common goal Aomine and Kagami were a force to be reckoned with.
Akashi hit them both on the head.
"What was that for?!" they asked in unison, clutching their heads.
"Save the deadly auras for when we face Kirisaki. You're scaring Ryouta," Akashi answered. Sure enough Kise was cowering behind a scowling Kasamatsu, muttering something about how 'scary' Aomine and Kagami were.
It was 2:58.
Akashi sat by the fountain in the center of the shopping mall they were told to meet. Kirisaki had chosen a good time and place to meet. The mall was one of the most popular ones in the area that nobody would pay attention to the gathering that was about to occur, providing cover for both sides.
His team was scattered in different floors, all of them with a good view of their boss down below on the ground floor.
"Any sign of them?" Akashi asked through his earpiece.
"Negative," Himuro answered. He and Murasakibara were across the street from the entrance of the mall, watching anyone exiting or entering the premises. Himuro had hacked into the mall's security cameras to look for suspicious behavior, but do far he'd gotten nothing. "I don't see anyone that matches the profile Momoi and Riko assembled."
"Do you think they're coming, Akashicchi?" Kise's voice buzzed through the earpiece.
Akashi left the blonde's question unanswered. He didn't want to to dwell on that possibilty. This meeting was their chance to find Kuroko's location. He wasn't about to let anything get in the way.
The time was 2:59.
As the sniper Midorima had the greatest vantage point out of all of them. He was located at the third and highest floor of the mall, his hands against the railings and looking over the entire place.
Next to him was his ever present spotter, Takao who was scanning the lower floors. His eyes instantly picked out his teammates-Akashi at the ground floor sitting by the fountain, Aomine and Kagami strolling nearby on the same floor, Kise near the fire escape on the second floor with Kasamatu a few feet away pretending to window shop, and lastly, him and Midorima at the the topmost floor.
The plan was for Midorima and Takao to alert them of the locations of their enemies. They'd take care of the top floor, Kise and Kasamatsu on the second floor, and Aomine and Kagami on the first floor. While they handled that Akashi will face off with Hanamiya. Based on Momoi's data, Kirisaki was a stealth based mafia family. They wouldn't risk a confrontation in broad daylight, especially a confrontation they would never win.
The time was 3:00 pm.
All of them simultaneously touched the weapons concealed under their clothes. Akashi felt for Nijimura's blade hidden in his sleeves and the gun by his waist. All around them the rest of the shoppers chattered away, unaware of the tension in the air.
"Takao. Over there."
Takao followed Midorima's gaze to the movie theater at the ground floor where Akashi was located. A movie had just finished and a crowd was walking out. Takao analyzed their faces, comparing them to the pictures on Kirisaki's files.
Not one of them matched.
"False alarm, minna. Sorry about that."
Akashi sighed and dropped his hand from the butt of his gun. The others followed in suit, dropping their hands from their weapons.
It was the wrong move.
In that one crucial moment a series of events happened in the same time.
One, Midorima was roughly pulled away from Takao's side and he felt something cold and sharp touch his neck.
Two, a car pulled up next to Himuro and Murasakibara's van. The next thing Himuro knew was the window next to him breaking into pieces.
Three, Kise felt himself grabbed from behind. Kasamatsu heard his cry of surprise and turned around just in time to see the blonde disappear behind the fire escape door.
Four, Kagami cursed as he saw a red, blinking dot appear on Aomine's forehead. Aomine cursed as he saw the same on Kagami's.
Five, Akashi's phone rang. Kuroko's name was displayed on the screen again. He answered it.
"There's a black sedan waiting outside next to your van. Get inside or your precious family members say goodbye."
Akashi felt a momentary wave of fear wash over him as he searched for his team. Aomine and Kagami were locked into position, two red dots on their foreheads. Kise has disappeared from his spot. At the top floor, there was a man right behind Midorima holding him at knife point.
"You have 20 seconds."
Akashi immediately stood up from his spot and swiftly exited the mall. He crossed the street to their van, noting the shards of glass on the ground. A black sedan was next to it with its engine running.
Someone was pointing a gun to Himuro.
"Get in the car," the gun-holder ordered.
"Drop your weapon first," Akashi demanded.
"Get in the car or Pretty Boy here gets his face blown off!" To prove his point he pressed the barrel of the gun to Himuro's temple.
"Akashi don't do i-" Himuro winced as the gun was whipped against his head. Blood oozed from the cut that appeared on his forehead.
"Muro-chin!" Murasakibara cried out in alarm. He growled and looked ready to leap across the seats to strangle the gun-holder.
"Atsushi, stand down."
Murasakibara looked at him, eyes swirling with rage and fear.
Akashi calmly looked back. "That's an order."
The purple-haired giant reluctantly back off.
"Good boy. Your move redhead."
Akashi glared at the gun-holder before climbing inside the car. The interior was dark and musky and the seats were uncomfortable as he sat down. He looked through the tinted windows and released a breath when the gun was lowered from Himuro. He looked at their concerned faces before the car sped off.
The gun-holder spoke through his earpiece," We got him. Let's go."
"We got him. Let's go."
The pressure from Midorima's neck was removed and he turned to face his assailant only for Takao to stand in front him protectively, his hands were reaching for his gun.
"I wouldn't start anything if I were you," their assailant said as he pocketed the knife away," We already got what we came here for."
Midorima's eyes looked to the ground floor.
Akashi was gone.
Aomine sighed in relief as the dots disappeared from their foreheads. That relief was soon replaced by panic and rage when he realized Akashi had disappeared.
"Those son of a-"
Kagami grabbed his arm before he could make a scene.
"Lemme go Bakagami!"
"Not until you calm down, Aho!"
Kasamatsu bursted into the fire escape, gun drawn. He leveled a glare to the man currently holding Kise in a headlock.
"Let him go!" he ordered, pointing the gun on him. The Kirisaki member pondered for a moment before suddenly pushing Kise towards Kasamatsu. Both of them stumbled, giving him enough time to run down their stairs and out of Kasamatsu's shooting range.
"Damn."
Akashi looked at his captors. There were four of them. At the front were the gun-holder who had red hair and a permanent frown painted on his face and a man with dull black eyes who was playing with a knife. With him at the back seats were a man with slicked back hair pointing a gun at him and their sniper who had long bangs covering his eyes.
Akashi immediately matched them to the profiles.
Yamazaki Hiroshi
Furuhashi Kojiro
Seto Kentaro
Hara Kazuya
Four of Kirisaki Daiichi's main members.
"Where is Hanamiya Makoto?"
"Don't get excited, brat. You'll see him soon enough," the red-haired one-Yamazaki-said.
Akashi felt his lips twitch in annoyance. Who was he calling 'brat'? Just because he looked young doesn't mean he couldn't hold out his own on a fight. He was the boss of a mafia syndicate after all. He could kill all these four idiots in under a minute. The only reason he wasn't stabbing anyone right now was because they were taking him to Hanamiya, the only person who knows where Kuroko is.
So instead of lashing out and blowing their miserable heads off, Akashi glared at Yamazaki in the rear-view mirror, smirking when the he flinched. Next to him, Hara snickered.
The car came to a stop at a bridge that led from the Tokyo prefecture to the Kanagawa prefecture. It was built over a river that led to the sea. As it was still early in the afternoon, there were no other vehicles in sight except for theirs.
All five of the occupants stepped out. The man with the slicked back hair and a prominent mole on his forhead-his name was Seto-kept the gun trained on him.
"Hara, check his pockets."
The sniper approached Akashi and patted him down. The redhead wondered how on earth could he shoot someone of those long gray bangs practically covered his eyes. Hara pulled out Akashi's FN 5-7, his cellphone and the back-up pistol he hid in his ankle holster and flung them off the bridge. Akashi heard the splash of his items below. Lastly, his earpiece was tugged from its place and crushed under the heel of Hara's boot.
The situation dawned on him.
Akashi was alone and weaponless against four armed members of Kirisaki Daiichii.
...and so the king has been captured by the enemy forces. What is Kiseki's next move? Find out in Chapter 5!
Honestly, I never thought this story would go that far so it really made me happy to read your support and kind words for my fanfic.
No preview this time, minna. Chapter 5 is currently in progress and will be posted in the following weeks. the only thing you should know is that everything is going according to Akashi's plan. What else do you expect from our lovely absolute Emperor? And in the next chapter we finally see...
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...Hanamiya!
Sorry. Couldn't help it. I love dramatic effects. Anyway, see you all in the next update!
~Skylark