A/N:
A long chapter this time! Enjoy!
High up in the skies, there was a completely different atmosphere from the ground where the humans were. Demigods were not like birds, having wings that gave them the ability of flight. However, all demigods were born with the gift of levitation.
But with how majority of the demigod descendants are so weak now, they would never be able to awaken the sacred gift of flight. But the people currently in the skies were not ordinary demigods. They were demigods that had lived for a very long time, the direct descendants of those who survived the war and bore the title as the 'strongest demigods in history'.
Akashi glared at the person before him.
The person was relaxed even when facing Akashi's glare that had sent many to their knees. Akashi really was a fool. Why did he never think of this person being the one behind everything?
Years of being in Kuroko's presence has caused Kuroko's shocking leniency to rub off on Akashi.
"Hey, Akashi Seijuurou. Thanks for coming!" The person laughed mockingly, grey eyes filled with malice.
"Haizaki Shougo." Akashi returned, carefully observing him for any sudden attacks.
"I must say, your interfering has made us very displeased. We were having lots of fun with Kuroko Tetsuya until you came."
"Why did you take him?" Midorima asked; his hands balled into tight fists.
"Well, if you want to blame someone, how about blaming your leader, Akashi Seijuurou?" Haizaki shrugged carelessly. "He kicked me out of the demigod's kingdom."
Haizaki's eyes suddenly flashed with anger.
"I was clearly among the strongest demigods! I earned my reputation, and I was well-known! How dare you replace me with a brat who just barely understood his own powers?" Haizaki glowered at Kise.
"And you had the nerve to say that the reason why I was replaced was because I was 'too violent'! Fools! In such a place where power reigns supreme, it is only obvious that violence is needed to keep those weak idiots in their places! And the humans as well! Humans are disgusting, yet you protect them like some kind of merciful god. Hah! At least you guys got what you deserved. Humans killing hundreds of us demigods to pursue their greed!"
Haizaki laughed loudly.
"That's why I said violence is always necessary! Had the humans feared us, they would not dare to attempt a war! But no, you guys liked masquerading as gentle, kind gods and refused to hurt them! Finally, you got what you deserved, annihilation of the demigods!"
Haizaki stared at each and every one of the demigods gathered in front of him.
"Too bad the humans did not manage to kill you guys. You are all truly strong. Back then, even after the war, my anger has not subsided at all. My revenge will be done by me alone; I do not need the help of humans. So I watched you, and saw how you guys were afraid of the demigod with the strongest healing power ever known."
Haizaki smirked.
"Cute little Kuroko Tetsuya was a contradiction. On one hand, he heals and helps both demigods and humans. And the other, he kills them! Because many other demigods were scared to incur his wrath and end up killed, rarely did any demigod approach him. But you guys disregarded all that, and made him into your comrade. With him on your side, you had nothing to fear."
Haizaki smiled lazily.
"You guys stabilised Kuroko's destructive nature, to the point where he started developing an extremely peaceful personality. It was the perfect thing I needed. I could clearly see how much you guys treasured him, and since I'm not so stupid to believe that I can take all of you on at once, I decided to try something different."
Aomine snarled, moving forward.
"Hold it, Aomine." Midorima grabbed hold of Aomine, stopping him from moving.
"Let go! I will destroy him!"
Haizaki only raised an eyebrow.
"You sure you want to do that? Your Kuroko will not return to you if you kill me." He smirked confidently.
"What?" Midorima gasped.
"You see, because Kuroko was precious to you, so I took him away. He is mighty strong, that I will concede. But because you guys had already done the hard part for me, I no longer had to worry about being killed by him. You guys are amazing indeed! To change him so much that he would not even injure me seriously even though he could be killed by me!"
Haizaki laughed so hard that he hunched over.
"Pity, if he had killed me, you wouldn't have to deal with this now. So after acquiring him, I decided to put Kuroko under the forbidden technique; Marionette's Puppeteer."
"Marionette's Puppeteer? Are you insane? That technique attacks both the caster and the victim!" Midorima's eyes widened with shock.
"Yeah, I know. But it's the only one strong enough to handle that brat's powers. That damn brat was so strong, he fought against it. I'm sure you guys know about it, right? That the forbidden technique becomes nearly invincible once channelled through a physical object. I changed some of my power into the form of water, and shoved it into his body, flooding his mind, and thus creating a thin yet strong barrier.
"His memories were all locked away and I can use my will to make him obey me. For example, sealing and shrinking himself to the form of a little boy. Well, I only needed to threaten him with the safety of those important to him and he becomes amazingly obedient! How very amusing."
Haizaki stretched languidly, taking in the scared faces in front of him. He grinned.
"But still, I had a little help. Because that person loves traps like this, he offered to join me. He placed a little knot of power in every one of you, so that when you approach Kuroko, my hold over him increases. I must thank you, the hold I was never able to achieve, was granted to me on a silver platter. All because of you guys. Oh, and if I were to die, Kuroko would never be released from it."
Akashi's eyes narrowed, and he gritted his teeth.
"So, what are you going to do now?" Haizaki smirked.
"You..." Aomine growled, but was unable to find anything to say, as overcome with anger as he was.
"Release him." Akashi ordered.
Haizaki's eyebrows rose. "No."
"Haizaki Shougo, release him." Akashi repeated, voice calm.
"And I am under no obligation to obey you, Akashi. Besides, you're still cursed, right? You can't threaten me at all. All I have to do is give Kuroko a command, and you will be completely useless."
Haizaki blinked at Akashi, his face a complete picture of mocking sorrow.
"How pitiful you are, Akashi."
"Don't you dare insult him!" Kise snarled, bright yellow circles appearing around him. They look just like miniature suns, and Haizaki could even feel the heat from it though he was quite far away.
But he wasn't scared. As long as Kuroko Tetsuya was under his control, he was not afraid of anything.
He only smirked maliciously at Kise.
"Oh, yes. Kise Ryouta, I have yet to settle my fight with you. You took my place, if I kill you, I suppose it would rightfully return to me!"
Haizaki did not wait, as he was talking, he had already started preparing. Ten rays of gray light exploded from his body the moment he finished speaking, all headed towards Kise.
Akashi was the first to realise something was wrong, but he did not have enough time to warn the others before the attack came.
Kise panicked, quickly shifting his power to form a shield. The rest did the same, bracing for the impact.
Haizaki did not show any reaction, but he was laughing hard on the inside.
Five of the ten gray rays split up, going around to attack from the back. They had only shielded their fronts, so their back was vulnerable. Five attack the front, and the other five came from the back. When they realised that they were also being attacked from the back, Akashi ordered them to put up another shield, but the shields did not have enough time to form completely.
Kise, Midorima and Murasakibara were all hit. They had only managed to successfully block two, though the front shields prevented any more injuries.
Murasakibara was hit only because he had moved to protect Akashi, who was absolutely outraged at Murasakibara's actions. Akashi was not known as the leader of the strongest demigods for nothing, he could protect himself from an attack like this, but Murasakibara got in the way.
"Murasakibara! Just what did you think you are doing?" Akashi hissed.
Muraskaibara was clutching onto a gaping hole in his arm, blood spilling like a fountain down to the ground. To the humans, it would look like it was raining blood.
"Protecting you, Aka-chin." Murasakibara's face was twisted with pain, but his voice was strong.
"You should have protected yourself! My shield takes the shortest time to form, I would have been fine! But you just had to stand in the way of the attack without even using a shield!"
"Hey, hey. Can you afford to fight among yourselves now?" Haizaki frowned.
Their heads snapped up, and stared at the countless rays of gray light all positioned above them. Immediately, they formed a large 360 degrees shield. The rays were fired before their shield finished forming, but they still held strong even as they sustained wounds.
Suddenly, the attacks stopped, and the rays all started fading away.
Akashi turned, staring at Haizaki suspiciously.
Haizaki was writhing in agony, hands gripping his head. Groans of pain had everyone frowning in confusion. Haizaki's body thrashed around violently, just like a mad dancing puppet. And then he screamed. His voice was filled with so much agony that everyone else flinched.
His hands suddenly fell away from his head, and he slouched over, staring listlessly at nothing with laboured breathing, panting hard and covered with a light sheen of sweat.
"…What's wrong with him?" Aomine grunted, eyes never leaving Haizaki.
"No, no, no, no. Stop!" Haizaki shouted, eyes wide with panic. "Stop, you damn brat! Stop it!"
"…Hey, Aka-chin, has he gone crazy?" Murasakibara blinked at Haizaki.
Akashi's cursed scar throbbed endlessly, escalating to a burning sensation.
"It's Kuroko," he answered.
"Kuro-chin? What is Kuro-chin doing?"
Haizaki raised his head, and glared at all of them. His eyes focused on Akashi, and he snarled, "You, it's all because of you! That damn brat, how dare he!"
Haizaki started muttering to himself, ignoring his rather confused audience.
"Uh, Akashicchi? Shall we kill him now?" Kise asked.
"No, I am unsure of what exactly Kuroko is doing, I don't want to risk it." Akashi frowned.
Abruptly, Haizaki turned around, and pulled out a little black spider. He threw it into the air, causing it to explode, creating a portal.
"Must hurry, he should be able to fix this." Haizaki muttered. A nearly crazed smile appeared on his face. "Yes, yes. That's right, he will handle that brat. Right, that brat won't be free for very long. He had better enjoy his freedom after breaking free of my control."
Haizaki cackled, eyes unfocused, limbs jerking uncontrollably as he stepped into the portal.
As one, Akashi and the rest all dive in to the portal after Haizaki.
If what Haizaki said was true, then it meant that Kuroko had broken free of Haizaki's control, so it was a perfect opportunity to kill Haizaki, and locate the other mastermind.
As Akashi entered the portal, he stopped using his power to hide the cursed scar. He needed to conserve all his power for the fight.
And he also knew that Kuroko would join them soon.
Kuroko stopped, eyes studying his surroundings.
There was nothing much to look at high up in the sky, other than a bunch of clouds and the burning sun. But there was the scent of blood; there had been a battle here.
Could it be that it was Akashi and the rest?
So far, Kuroko did not meet any obstructions while on his way here. That means that neither of the two fools had taken any precautions should Kuroko break free. Or perhaps, they were too confident?
Glancing down at his blood soaked shirt, Kuroko decided he should finally release his seals. Halfway should be alright, if he released all of them at once, it would be like signaling a bright red alarm of danger to all his enemies.
Kuroko closed his eyes, focusing on the thick, sturdy chains wrapped around his power.
Slowly, Kuroko reached out with his mind to a chain, watching emotionlessly as it started rusting and straining. With a burst of mental strength, the chain snapped. Kuroko repeated this process over and over again.
Kuroko's hair began changing back to blue.
Kuroko breathed out lightly, but did not open his eyes. He covered his body with pale gold light, healing all his wounds. At the same time, he removed the blood on his shirt.
Kuroko's eyes opened. The blue of his eyes was so bright, so mesmerising. The beautiful blue of the skies around him could not even match that of his eyes.
Kuroko smiled a little. He had removed a few more seals than he had intended at first, but he didn't quite care. He was happy; finally, finally, his body was filled with power once more.
He could easily pinpoint where Akashi was, due to the curse on him.
Kuroko started moving again, heading in the direction where Akashi was.
"Please be safe, Akashi-kun."
Akashi staggered, but refused to fall.
The ground around him was scattered with injured bodies, and one dead body. Haizaki's dead body lay crumpled to the side, waiting for Kuroko to do the honours of ripping him apart.
Kise and Midorima grunted softly as they stood back up, covered with wounds. They glowered at the dark figure before them.
Hanamiya Makoto.
The way Hanamiya fought was extremely annoying. Petty little tricks that had only caused minor wounds were nothing at first, but as more and more wounds appeared, they realised that perhaps this fight may not be that simple. Kuroko was not here, there was no way for them to heal their own wounds.
They would have to fight carefully, avoiding even the smallest dirty trick because they could not afford to disregard any attack from Hanamiya. Aomine was a perfect example. He had always been rash and liked confronting others head-on, thus he now lay incapacitated on the ground, with a dislocated right arm and a broken left ankle.
Murasakibara was tasked with protecting him, moving him out of harm's way. Murasakibara actually multitasked quite well, using the openings to attack Hanamiya while he was busy with the other three. And at the same time, defending against the Otrok and stray attacks from Hanamiya.
They had tracked Haizaki to the human palace all the way in the western continent, where he had formed alliances with the humans there. Many Otroks were apparently all hidden in the palace, and now they obeyed Hanamiya's orders and fought for him in the front lines.
The entire throne room was filled with Otroks, surrounding the group of strong demigods.
This amount of Otrok should not have been possible, because they were all destroyed long ago. But seeing as how Hanamiya was there, it was only natural the Otrok would increase. Because, the one who suggested making such things for the humans way back then, was none other than Hanamiya.
Hanamiya was actually favoured among the demigods, though he infuriated others a lot, but his intelligence was acknowledged. He was unexpectedly really smart.
He gained the trust of the other demigods, collecting and storing their power to be used in creating the Otrok. Akashi narrowed his eyes at the countless number there was. It seems that Hanamiya had stored more than enough power from the other demigods, hiding it away. These Otrok designs were different from the old ones, clearly more superior and only recently created.
Even though they were all strong demigods, but surrounded by Otroks who were of nearly equal strength to them, this fight was quite taxing. It was like fighting against themselves; power, speed and defensive capabilities were all mirror images of their own strength.
The more they fought with the Otrok, the more power they used. And Hanamiya remained at the back, protected by them, with only a couple of scratches on him. This was really not going well, by the time they reached Hanamiya, they would already be exhausted.
Fighting against someone like Hanamiya in an exhausted state would only be a death sentence. His intelligence and underhanded tricks were all something that needed one to constantly remain alert.
Hanamiya chuckled.
"To think that I would get to watch you guys, who are known as the strongest demigods in history, struggle like this. It brings me great joy to see your pain. Perhaps it would be better if I had Kuroko Tetsuya join us?"
"Don't touch Kurokocchi!" Kise snarled, disintegrating an Otrok.
"I won't," Hanamiya smirked, "I can't do anything to him now that Haizaki is dead and can no longer control him. I was just thinking of having him come here. If he's here, he could help you guys, right?"
Akashi's eyes widened.
No, no. Kuroko absolutely could not be here! He had to stop Kuroko from coming somehow! There was no way Hanamiya would suggest Kuroko coming to help them so lightly, he must have something planned.
The cursed scar on his face throbbed. Though Akashi was unsure if this would help contact Kuroko, it was worth a try. Akashi lightly moved to stand behind Midorima, who gave him a small nod disguised as a furious growl as he defended against an Otrok.
Keeping his back to Hanamiya, Akashi closed his eyes, trusting Midorima to protect him for the moment.
Kuroko…
Please let his will reach Kuroko.
Kuroko tripped, falling face first into a cloud.
He coughed, frowning as he sat up. He was now completely soaked. Watching as water steadily dripped from his hair, Kuroko was rather grateful he knew levitation. Because of that ability, he managed to save himself from falling straight through the cloud and face-planting the ground.
But just how did he trip in mid-air?
He stared at the hole in the cloud, and then shrugged. Making sure to keep a little distance from the cloud, Kuroko started pondering.
What was that?
His body suddenly stopped moving on its own. Kuroko stared down at himself blankly. Was there something wrong with him?
Blurred images flashed in his mind, but Kuroko was unable to identify them. A voice suddenly appeared in his mind. Kuroko blinked.
No, it was not exactly a voice, but rather, words.
Kuroko found himself reading them out.
"Stop, don't, danger."
Kuroko hummed, trying to make sense of those words.
Don't…
Kuroko tilted his head.
Don't? Don't what?
A pair of red eyes abruptly appearing in his mind had Kuroko flinching in shock. Those eyes, they were eyes that Kuroko knew very well.
Akashi.
What if Akashi was the one who stopped him?
Kuroko concentrated hard, feeling for the connection between him and Akashi, caused by his curse.
Sweat ran down his back from the effort, but he refused to let go of it.
Kuroko suddenly cried out, rearing back from the connection. He cuddled his head, groaning in pain. His ears were ringing from the loud scream. It was as though Akashi himself was here, screaming into Kuroko's ears.
Don't come here!
Kuroko huffed.
So it was Akashi after all. He wanted Kuroko to stay away.
"Really, Akashi-kun. You can be rather foolish, huh." Kuroko sighed. He stared at the skies in front of him.
Kuroko chuckled.
"Did you really think that I would leave you alone when you are in trouble? Even if I have to draw power from my destructive side that I have forsaken, I will do so to protect you and everyone important to me, Akashi-kun."
Kuroko stood up, lightly dusting himself off.
"Well then, I had better hurry."
"Akashi? Did you manage to contact Kuroko?" Midorima murmured softly.
"I did. But I do not know if he will listen." Akashi replied.
"I see. Then, we can only wait and see."
Akashi glanced at Aomine. He had actually managed to slice apart an Otrok that slipped through Murasakibara's defense even though he was heavily injured.
If he continued to disregard his wounds and make them worse, Kuroko would surely sit him down for a three hour lecture after healing him. Akashi's lips quirked into a slight smile. That would actually be quite fun to watch.
Akashi turned, attacking the Otroks with renewed vigor.
Kuroko blinked at the scene before him.
The human palace Akashi's connection brought him to was in complete ruins. More than half the building was gone, and it lacked a roof.
Kuroko easily spotted Akashi and the rest, fighting desperately. They looked to be quite tired. And Aomine was obviously severely injured. Kuroko eyes travelled past them, and locked on to the person watching the fight with boredom.
Hanamiya Makoto.
He did not seem to notice Kuroko's presence. That was strange, Hanamiya was never this inattentive. Kuroko looked around again, and saw a crumpled body to the side. He blinked twice. Haizaki?
Ah, Akashi must have left the body intact for him.
Kuroko did not believe that Hanamiya actually did not know that he was currently floating above them. Deciding that attacking Hanamiya would perhaps trigger traps that would endanger those fighting below, Kuroko went for Haizaki instead.
Drawing power from his destructive side was something Kuroko did not like. If he was not careful, he would be consumed by the power's thirst for blood. But a little was fine, Kuroko needed it after all. Only a handful of people could counter against this power, even Kazunari Takao (the only one Midorima allowed to be close to him, other than Akashi and the rest) could not.
It was unfortunate but Kazunari did not survive the war back then. But when he was still alive, Kazunari's deadly perceptive ability was truly frightening. As long as he put his mind to it, he could even find Kuroko faster than Akashi could. But even so, he was not able to win against Kuroko's power.
The abilities of demigods would always take on a form; Kise's little burning suns, Midorima's arrows that would always hit their mark no matter the distance, and Aomine's missile flames that would not disappear until they had made contact with the target. And many more.
Kuroko was a person, with a physical form. That was why it was possible for Kazunari to find him. But Kuroko's power was different. His power was formless, colourless, and gave no warning before it hit, much unlike the abilities of the other demigods.
Even Akashi was hit countless times during their mock fights. Akashi's ability to discern the opponents' moves before they attempted to carry it out was what made many fear him. But Kuroko was comparable to a block of wood. There was absolutely nothing to give him away, thus turning Akashi's ability useless against him.
The only one who could block every single attack from Kuroko was his mother.
Kuroko received his destructive nature from his mother, and as the one who obviously had much more experience using this power, she easily avoided all of Kuroko's attacks and actually caused him to knock on Death's door many times, only to be pulled away by his father's healing abilities.
Kuroko's parents were the most unlikely pair that the other demigods thought would end up together. Kuroko's mother was brash, violent, and craved for death matches like a starving beast. Kuroko's father was soft, gentle and (before Kuroko's birth) was known as the strongest and only healer among demigods.
A person who loved fighting and blood, and a person who would avoid conflict whenever possible, surely they were complete opposites. But somehow, they ended up together. Then again, perhaps it was a best course of action. Should Kuroko's mother go too far, Kuroko's father was there to heal the poor soul who chose to fight with his wife.
When Kuroko was born, his mother actually became really, really mild. She rarely fought anymore (unless Kuroko was begging to fight her because he wanted to become stronger) and worked hard at raising Kuroko well. When they noticed that Kuroko had both abilities from his parents – since demigods would usually only receive power from one parent – they had panicked. Through never-ending research and training, they tried hard to suppress the violent side of their son.
And eventually, they were successful.
But the most important presence in keeping Kuroko calm disappeared during the war. Both of his parents had died in the war with the humans.
Distraught and in unimaginable emotional pain, Kuroko gave in the side of him that whispered the sweetest temptations into his ears: the voice said that it would alright, that he would take away all the pain, that Kuroko no longer had to be a good boy. It was fine to kill; there was no need to hold back. Killing takes away pain, and only gave joy in return.
Kuroko was willing to do anything to ease the suffocating pain that crippled him.
So he killed. And he had fun.
His healing abilities only made it more enjoyable. He could attack his victim till they were just an inch away from dying, and then heal the person. Like this, repeating this process over and over again, he could play with his victims as long as he wanted.
Kuroko did not know how long he had lived like this, demigods of old were almost immortal after all. The only way to kill them was to gouge out their heart. Even if their bodies were ripped apart, or if their heads were chopped off, as long as their heart was intact, they would regenerate endlessly.
However, one day, Kuroko's fun was interrupted by none other than Akashi Seijuurou.
Akashi had came to him, asking to fight him for a round or two each day.
It was rare that someone would actually dare to approach him, so Kuroko easily agreed.
The first time they fought, he was shocked when Akashi came out of his attacks unscathed. Kuroko was impressed, but it wasn't enough to motivate him, so he continued to fight carelessly, with no regard for his opponent's growing annoyance at the way he was unenthusiastically handling the fight.
Kuroko had assumed that once Akashi had enough, he would leave and then Kuroko would be free to play around as he wished without having to deal with Akashi. But Akashi was frustratingly persistent.
Annoyed, Kuroko started fighting a little more seriously. And when he did, Kuroko was finally able to wound Akashi. Upon seeing that, Kuroko smirked, thinking that since Akashi had been injured, surely his pride would have been hurt and he would leave. But not only did Akashi not leave, he even smiled mysteriously at Kuroko.
And then he started harassing Kuroko even more than before.
Kuroko was dumbfounded, he couldn't believe that Akashi could actually be this persistent, exactly like a leech! Kuroko had started avoiding him then, but Akashi had sought out the help of Kazunari Takao, making it difficult to hide. With his irritation boiling over, Kuroko stopped running away, and faced Akashi for the first time as a worthy opponent.
The Kuroko back then hated to fight in such a manner, because then it would remind him of his mother, of her strict teachings on how to fight properly and cautiously, and how to assess his opponents.
The moment he recalled those things, suffocating pain accompanied each treasured memory.
He hated it.
He couldn't deal with it.
He wasn't strong enough alone.
But if he did not draw on his knowledge, and if he does not defeat Akashi so badly that he would never return to find him again, Kuroko would surely never have peace for the rest of his life.
He needed Akashi gone.
Akashi was drawing out the pain and memories he was struggling to run away from.
And so, Akashi needed to disappear.
Setting a date for himself, this time, Kuroko went to look for Akashi, and truly assessed him and his power. Their fight wrecked the demigod's kingdom, injuring many and even killing some in the process. Kuroko showed no mercy, and once he had gained an upper hand, he relentlessly attacked Akashi until he was collapsed on the ground.
But he didn't stop there.
He had to make sure he would never be disturbed again.
He had to kill Akashi.
Now that Akashi was unable to move, unable to defend, his only option was to die at Kuroko's hands.
But just before he dealt the finishing blow, Kuroko's attack was blocked by a massive surge of power, and he was forced back, away from Akashi.
When he managed to regain himself, he found four very colourful demigods glaring at him. Kuroko knew who they were, how could he not? They were the only remaining ones who had inherited exceptionally strong powers that did not die in the war with the humans.
Akashi's limp body was carefully carried in the arms of the tallest person in the group, Murasakibara Atsushi. The four of them stood before Kuroko, forming a protective barrier around Akashi.
Kuroko cocked his head.
The attack before was not aimed to injure him, or rather, the main function of it wasn't to hurt him, but to repel him away and distract him. Kuroko silently contemplated the situation playing out in front of him. In order to get to Akashi, he would have to go through all four of them first.
Kuroko's eyes narrowed.
While it wasn't impossible, it was going to be extremely annoying.
Now that Akashi was so severely injured, Kuroko would at least have some peace. His bloodlust has deemed and he didn't feel like killing Akashi anymore. With a last glance at Akashi, Kuroko smirked before turning around and leaving.
The four demigods did not stop him, but warily watched his every move until he was a good distance away. Only then did they rush Akashi off somewhere, presumably to tend to his wounds.
But since Kuroko's father was not here anymore, there was no one to heal him.
Akashi could only rely on medicines and his own body's healing.
Just like a human.
The thought of that somehow delighted Kuroko, and he remained in a good mood for the next few months.
After some time, Akashi appeared again, seeking out Kuroko.
And he even seemed completely unaffected by his utter defeat. And not only that, but he actually brought along the other four demigods.
Kuroko was stupefied.
As though a spell was cast on him, before Kuroko realised it, he had already somehow or another resumed his daily fights with Akashi. But this time, it was not only Akashi who fought with him. The other four demigods took turns to have a go with him, as though Kuroko was some kind of fascinating attraction.
It was strange.
The more they came to disturb him, the more Kuroko's previous frustration at them slowly disappeared. Instead, in small but steady amounts, warmth slowly filled his heart. Though he struggled, it was fruitless. The five of them took root in his heart, and refused to let go.
And then, finally, Kuroko found himself breaking.
He could no longer turn his eyes away, could not run away to his violent side anymore. When he fell, Akashi and the others were there to catch him. They stayed by him, supported him as he struggled to cope with the pain he ran away from. It didn't matter how long he took, they never once complained, and instead, they carefully held him up and provided him with endless strength.
They became the pillars of Kuroko's mind. They were there to support him, and at the same time, carefully keeping him in check.
If they were to disappear…
Bright blue eyes blinked once, focusing on Haizaki's dead body.
Concentrating his power to his feet, Kuroko moved.
He jumped from where he was in the sky, landing accurately on Haizaki's chest.
Immediately, Haizaki's body exploded from the impact, limbs flying everywhere until there was nothing but a pool of blood and white matter beneath Kuroko's feet. The ground trembled and broke, large deep cracks ran across the floor in all directions, sending tons of Otrok into the deep valleys created by Kuroko.
The aftershocks of Kuroko's actions continued to shake the earth, causing the pillars of the palace, the massive trees surrounding them and anything that was connected to the ground to tremble violently.
Kuroko watched on emotionlessly as the already ruined building was destroyed even more.
…If they were to disappear, Kuroko would break once more and never again will he be able to recover.
He turned around.
And faced the smiling Hanamiya Makoto.
"Tetsu?!"
"Kurokocchi!"
"So it seems that Kuroko did not listen to your warnings." Midorima sighed.
Akashi only shook his head; he did have a vague feeling of Kuroko laughing at him when he had connected to him briefly, so a part of him was expecting this to happen.
Before Akashi could call out to him, the ground rumbled and a few Otrok started crawling out of where they had fallen into the deep cracks.
Kuroko obviously noticed, and was clearly annoyed, which could be seen from the deep crease between his eyebrows. Seeing such a bold display of emotions on his usual poker face, it was enough to make the surrounding people flinch.
He ignored Hanamiya, and took three calculated steps towards the Otrok.
Kuroko stopped, and seemed to be waiting.
Akashi blinked, momentarily confused, before his eyes widened. Uh-oh.
"Retreat!" He ordered, already speeding straight for the sky.
Murasakibara flung Aomine over his shoulder and took off to the sky, quickly followed by Kise and Midorima.
In rapid succession, explosion after explosion burst out from the ground, like miniature volcanoes erupting. Ashes rained down on Kise and Murasakibara (and Aomine). They did not fly high enough, and thus turned into large bundles of snowmen made up of ashes.
Akashi was wise indeed, he knew just how much power Kuroko had, and chose to fly as high as possible. Midorima had blindly followed after him.
Midorima stared at the scene before him, eyes wide with shock.
"…Akashi? What did Kuroko just do?"
Akashi smiled, though it contained a very slight trace of unease.
"He destroyed all the Otroks, every single one of them. Back then, when Hanamiya suggested making such things for the humans, Kuroko's parents did not abide by the rules and instead, they did not provide even the smallest ounce of power. That's why there are no Otrok capable of healing."
"How is that possible? He destroyed them so easily!" Midorima stared at Akashi incredulously.
"It is possible because those Otrok are nothing but little nuisances to him. Have you forgotten how powerful Kuroko actually is? As Hanamiya was unable to receive and analyse the power Kuroko holds, thus those Otrok are nowhere near Kuroko's actual strength. I'm sure you remember Kuroko's mother love for fights, do you not? There has never been a demigod who is able to hold their own against his mother for more than thirty seconds. And that fearsome power has been passed on to Kuroko."
Akashi watch Kise attempt to dust the ashes off of Murasakibara, but it was useless because the ashes still had not stopped falling. Even if he could not hear what Aomine was saying, the disgruntled tone was clear enough.
"Our parents willingly gave their power to aid the creation of the Otrok, and because we inherit their powers, the Otrok are our worse enemies. Kuroko's parents were the exception, by refusing to give part of their power, they became outcasts but at the same time, they are the only ones who did not have to fear the Otrok."
Akashi hummed.
"Actually, it is a good thing. Can you imagine fighting against an Otrok with such terrifying strength?"
Midorima shuddered, and said, "If such a thing were to be created, the entire demigod race would be wiped out in minutes."
Falling silent for a moment, he then softly exhaled, and nodded his head in approval.
"Kuroko's parents were very wise."
Akashi smiled.
Kuroko blinked at the two annoyed glares coming from the snowmen in the air.
Something shifted, and then another pair of eyes glared at him.
Ah, they did not manage to get away in time?
Kuroko laughed a little.
And the annoyed glares increased in intensity.
Kuroko smiled as he dispersed the ashes covering them. He approached them, softly chanting a short incantation to heal their wounds. Aomine looked a little ill as his wounds healed. The sensation of new bones forming to replace the old ones or flesh growing over bones was really not pleasant, that Kuroko knew very well.
Feeling someone's gaze on him, Kuroko tilted his head up. It was obviously not Hanamiya watching him, Kuroko was very, very, aware of Hanamiya. There was no way he would turn his back to that man without any sort of defense. Hanamiya clearly knew that too, for he did not even move from where he was, and only continued to watch Kuroko as he interacted with the rest.
Kuroko's eyes met a pair of red ones.
Kuroko quickly made his way over to Akashi, he stopped before Midorima, took in his current state and then healed both Akashi and Midorima together. Once done, he turned away from Midorima and enveloped Akashi in a sudden tight hug. Akashi was surprised, if the stiffening of his body was any indication.
Kuroko did not care, he held on tight to Akashi and started the long incantation to remove the curse. Removing a curse was much more difficult than placing one. Akashi's stiff body immediately went lax and Kuroko caught him, never faltering in his incantation.
Akashi must surely be in great pain, but Kuroko was unable to help him with that. If it was anything else, Kuroko would do whatever it takes to take away Akashi's pain, but removing a curse required his utmost concentration.
Kuroko had learnt of curses from his mother, a technique she had taught the young Kuroko as a way of defending himself. When he was young, Kuroko's power was unstable. There were times where he was ridiculously strong, destroying everything he so much as touched, and there were also times where he was unable to use his powers at all.
And so, after some deliberation, Kuroko's mother taught him about curses. These curses were special, and did not require much power to drive away anyone who wanted to separate him from his parents. It was very useful.
But Kuroko's mother had forgotten about the most crucial thing, she had only taught him how to lay curses, and never once mentioned anything about removing them.
Since he wasn't taught, Kuroko had to study up on removing curses on his own, often using up a great deal of his power just to remove the experimental curses he would place on a subject every now and then.
His efforts over the years had borne fruit, and Kuroko finally became confident enough about his ability. But because removing curses caused him to be weak and powerless for an average of twenty minutes, Kuroko hardly ever used his curses.
With a tired sigh, Kuroko could now feel the curse on Akashi disappearing.
"Kuroko, are you alright?" Midorima's concerned face loomed over him, startling Kuroko.
Kuroko smiled, and nodded.
He handed Akashi to Midorima, who was regaining consciousness after having passed out halfway through.
"Akashi-kun?"
Akashi's eyes blinked open, and he seemed a little disorientated.
"…Your ability to curse someone is truly troublesome." That was the first thing Akashi said.
Kuroko chuckled, giving Akashi a tired smile.
"Can I leave everything to you now that you are free?" He asked.
Akashi stared at Kuroko blankly.
"Is there something wrong, Kuroko?"
Kuroko shook his head.
Akashi frowned. Now that he was no longer suppressed by Kuroko's curse, his eye began to lighten and gold replaced red.
"Tetsuya, what's wrong?"
Kuroko shook his head again.
"I am fine, just a little tired." As Kuroko said this, he gestured with his eyes to the side, hoping Akashi could understand his hint.
Kuroko let out a breath of relief when he saw Akashi's eyebrow twitched. There was no way Kuroko was going to expose his current powerless state to Hanamiya.
Akashi stared at Kuroko.
During the time he had spent with Kuroko, Akashi had never seen Kuroko curse anyone before. And of course, Akashi had never been cursed by Kuroko, but he knew that there was something off about the current Kuroko. Did removing a curse have some kind of effect on Kuroko?
Akashi made a show of nodding his head and said, "I understand. Stay back and I will settle this."
Kuroko softly hummed his agreement.