A/N: Oh wow a second chapter already? yeah well I just want to let everyone who reads this know that I probably will not be updating this story as soon as I finish a chapter, just because I don't have a set plot and I don't want to edit the story once it's published. The last thing I want to say is "oh, I changed the entire story, so go back to chapter 1 and start over!" because that would be a douchebaggery thing for me to do. So just don't panic if I go on a random hiatus, okay? I mean most of my stories are on a hiatus already anyway so I don't think it'd be that much of a surprise, but still.

Anyway here's chapter 2, which is mostly just some background info. Apologies if it sounds rushed, but I really did want to get this out before the day was over.

Reviews/critiques are welcome and appreciated!

Around the same time Hibiki Ganaha charged to her death with her final battle cry, the door to a deceitfully innocent-looking restaurant opened with a merry jingle of bells. At a first glance, the interior of Taruki-Ten betrayed absolutely no suspicion; there were a handful of tables lined in neat rows, soft carpeting, delicate lights hanging from the ceiling, and polite waiters and waitresses ready to welcome the diners as soon as the bell above the door rang.

But the newcomer saw through its façade, remaining expressionless as the hostess approached with several menus in her hands.

"Table for…one —?"

Her polite demeanor faltered for a moment when she got a closer look at her newest guest. Trying not to stare and drool, she zapped on her professional smile and cleared her throat to try once more. "Table for one?"

Used to this kind of reaction from the entire female population, the guest merely held up a folded slip of paper without a word. Slightly puzzled, the hostess took the paper and scanned the words upon it with obvious confusion. But as her eyes reached the bottom, her smile melted off to be replaced by an expression of heavy understanding. She looked back up at the customer, unsmiling, no longer infatuated like a maiden in love.

"This way, please."

She led the way to the back of the restaurant, her guest following silently behind. In the narrow hallway leading to the bathrooms, she turned and pulled open the door to reveal a set of stairs, and, ignoring the "staff only" sign, led the guest upstairs to the rooms above.

Such was the secret behind Taruki-Ten, a secret that not too many civilians were aware of as they dined on the restaurant's signature dishes with their friends and families. While the plain-looking storefront yielded nothing out of the ordinary, its upstairs hid dangerous mysteries that dangled above the heads of innocent diners like a poisonous cloud.

The hostess reached the top of the stairs with a blank mask that contrasted drastically with her smile downstairs. The stairs opened up into a large, open room, its hardwood floors littered with plush couches and decorative coffee tables. There was club music booming from the speakers, soft enough so as to not arouse suspicion downstairs but loud enough to bring conversations just shy of a shouting match.

Cigarette smoke filled the air and the smell of alcohol was powerful enough to get secondhand intoxication. Various men and women occupied the couches, each sex sporting similar attire: the men with casual suits and the women with skimpy yet expensive-looking dresses. The purpose of this room was obvious, as if the adjoining hallway with multiple curtained doors weren't enough to spell it out.

With a strained smile, the hostess gestured to the far corner and produced a different menu from her pocket before offering it to the guest.

"I'm underage," the guest replied, speaking for the first time.

If the hostess was surprised at the statement, she didn't show it. With a small bow and a muttered "enjoy your stay," that sounded less than sincere, she started back down the stairs.

Without questioning why an underage guest has permission to go upstairs in the first place.

Without questioning why an underage guest who has no problems breaking the law to enter such a place would refuse a drink.

People don't ask questions like that. Not if they want to continue living a normal life.

Said guest walked calmly towards the corner couch the hostess had pointed to, ignoring the sultry calls from the unoccupied girls, and found the writer of the note that now weighed heavily in the hostess' pocket. Her blonde hair was a careless mess and her red dress was a little too short, but the smile she wore and the sharp look in her eyes spoke a different language.

"Aha! Oh, you're so silly! No, no. Miki will pass. Drinks make me sleepy and I'm already…afu~…so tired."

Although nothing about what she said was funny, the gaggle of men surrounding her on the couch erupted into drunken laughter, slapping their knees and falling sideways into her lap as she leaned back with a yawn of honest fatigue.

She paused mid-yawn when she caught sight of the guest, standing stony-faced behind her like a judgmental statue. Her face immediately brightened a considerable amount and she twisted in her seat to view the newcomer right side-up.

"Makoto-kun!"

She pushed the drunken men away from her with an attitude that seemed much more innocent than it should have, like a child sweeping away her toys so her pet can lay down next to her. "You guys can go away now," she told them seriously, though it was clear none of them took it as an offense. With a delighted smile and a wink, she gestured for the aloof guest to join her at the sofa as the other men shambled away.

"You know, Miki was only joking when she said you should visit at work!" she said happily once Makoto Kikuchi, Miuragumi's second subordinate, took a seat beside her. Miki clung to Makoto's arm, oblivious to the tight smile on the latter's face. "To be honest, Miki's glad you came! Those guys were getting so boring and Miki was getting so tired…" she heaved another yawn and peeked out of the side of her eyes to watch Makoto's reaction. "Hey, hey! You want to drink something, Makoto-kun?"

"No thanks," she replied, smiling with her boyish charm.

"Then how about some food? This place makes the best onigiri around!"

"I'm good, thanks—"

"How about a dance, then? I could ask them to change the song to a more romantic one~"

"It's oka—"

"Oh! How about we call a couple of those guys back here? I'm pretty sure there's a dress in the back room that we can lend you—"

"Miki," Makoto interrupted, a helpless smile on her face. "I'm not exactly here to play. I'm actually here on business."

Miki dropped her gaze for a moment, but her smile remained fixed in place. "Hmm. Makoto-kun's no fun. Miki hoped you were here to relax from all that…" her eyelids drooped a little. "Hard work," she added after a noticeable pause.

With barely any acknowledgement to her words, Makoto reached into her pocket and drew out a healthy stack of bills before handing it discreetly to the smiling blonde. Miki took the money without so much as a glance, and in one fluid, practiced movement, slid it down her cleavage before adjusting her dress.

"And what does the great Makoto Kikuchi of Miuragumi want to know on this fine night?" she said with a smirk that didn't match her eyes.

Makoto had been staring at the spot where her money had disappeared with comical confusion, but straightened seriously at Miki's question. "I want to know everything you know about the IDOLgumi and their involvement in town."

"Impossible," Miki said without missing a beat.

"Wha—?"

"There are plenty of things Miki can't tell," she clarified. "Both the clients and the shops set certain restrictions on the girls here. We can't give everything away."

Makoto wasn't too fond of being talked to like an ignorant child, especially from a seemingly empty-headed girl like Miki. But she knew that this airhead had far more ability than her initial impression suggested. An employee of the city's most prominent information broker and part-time double-agent spy, Miki Hoshii rejected every foolhardy assumption that she was just another attention-seeking sex figure. Her careless nature and childish smile hid more secrets than Makoto would ever want to know.

With a frustrated sigh, she ran a hand through her short hair and rephrased her question.

"Then how about the basics?"

"The basics of IDOLgumi?" Miki repeated, a thoughtful finger tapping her chin. "IDOL, short for Interdependent Dominance Of Ladies…hehe, such a silly name compared to the acronym. Their boss is Shijou Takane, the white-haired princess of unknown origin. Her second-in-command is—"

"Not that basic!" Makoto cut in.

Miki pursed her lips. "Miki can't go that much farther, you know."

"I want to know where their main hideout is. How many members they have. What kind of connection they have with the police."

"Miki doesn't know if your expenses cover the cost of that question," she said with a sly smile.

"Then give me whatever the expenses do cover," Makoto shot back.

"Fine~" She looked up with an uncharacteristically serious expression. "They're strong. Stronger than you think. It's best not to underestimate them, because a bunch of smaller gangs did, and they were all but exterminated. Those twins Takane took under her wing are daughters of the Futamigumi, a notorious gang from back when we were still babies." Miki glances around for eavesdroppers before continuing in a voice just barely audible over the music. "Their influence is far beyond anyone's imagination. You think you have that one detective on your side, don't you? IDOLgumi has much, much more than that. Miki can't really tell you exactly how much, but you really shouldn't look down on them."

Makoto kept a straight face, but she couldn't help but to think about a certain Miuragumi member that had been sent out on a mission to cut down the head of IDOLgumi.

She's fast, faster than any man she's faced. But did we underestimate them as Miki said? What if she wasn't fast enough to beat those Futami twins—?

"Makoto-kun?"

Miki was poking at Makoto's cheek when she snapped out of her thoughts. "Sorry, but this is as far as Miki can go. You can have 30% of your pay back as a refund, but—" she leaned forward with a devious smirk. "You're gonna have to get it out yourself."

"Keep it," Makoto said shortly. "As a tip."

"Is there anything you want to tell Miki?" Miki asked brightly.

Makoto smiled softly. "You know I don't sell information, Miki."

"And that's where you're the most boring, Makoto-kun," she replied with a pout as Makoto gathered her jacket to leave.

"And one last thing," she said, standing slowly before giving Miki a hard look over her shoulder. "Was it you who tipped off the police about the whereabouts of the missing 876 trio?"

The millisecond hesitation would have gone unnoticed for anyone else, but to Makoto, it gave away the answer even before Miki's following words. "What would you do if it was?"

"I would ask how you knew."

Makoto could hear the smile in her voice without even looking. "Sorry, Makoto-kun. Your expenses don't cover the cost of that question."

In a dark alley not too far away from Taruki-Ten, where the rain fell relentlessly down on anything and anyone caught outside, two figures stood facing each other in the near-darkness. One leaned heavily against the wall, breathing raggedly while holding his side. The other stood over him with a loaded weapon, arms shaking from the cold and fear.

"Do it," the wounded man spat, glaring up at his opponent.

He couldn't believe it. All of his comrades. Dead. He forced his eyes forward, refusing to turn around and see their bloody bodies. Jumped by the filthy IDOLgumi in an alley of all clichés. He clutched at his side, feeling the flow of blood slow at the pressure.

He could make it. This girl in front of him, holding the gun in her unsteady hands…he could take her down with a good kick. He'll get out of the alley. Call for help. Report back to Makoto-san, no, Chihaya-san if he could manage it. Hell, he'd report to the head honcho herself. Satisfied with the prospect of being branded the sole survivor, he looked over his opponent once more before setting his resolve.

Cheh…Ribbons in her hair? Is this girl serious?

The rest of IDOLgumi had run off in pursuit of another lead, leaving behind this girl—this fragile-looking, knee-buckling little kid—in charge of eliminating any survivors. The first several were easy for her; they were already unconscious on the ground. But when the last one had stood up with a murderous look on his face, she had jumped like a rodent in the presence of a cat. Her gun was now shaking uncontrollably in her hands, and he was more afraid of a misfire than anything.

"Put it down," he hissed. "This ain't a place for people like you."

The girl barely reacted to his words. If anything, her gun started shaking harder.

"I said put it down!"

With a furious growl, he lunged forward, grabbing at the gun and preparing to tackle the girl to the ground. But he flinched back at the sudden sound and light, momentarily stunned from the sensory overload. He barely had time to register what happened before there was another shot.

Son of a—

Bang!

Bang! Bang!

Bang!

He was dead before he hit the floor.

Haruka Amami lowered her shaking arms and tried to exhale, but all that came out were terrified whimpers. Realizing what she had done, she turned on her heel and dashed away from the scene of the crime, imagining footsteps chasing after her.

"No, no! Sorry! I'm sorry! Just don't…!" she gasped as she ran, stumbling in the dark, wet streets. Her empty gun still shook violently in her hands, but her fingers would not unclench from the handle and trigger.

This wasn't what she wanted. This wasn't the life she had imagined when she pushed herself to become part of the IDOLgumi.

A/N #2: So yeah I don't know if you can tell but Miki's dialogue is difficult as hell to write. Not only does she speak in third person but she also has to sound a little airheaded and childish...which is hard to match with the role I gave her. Because badass double-agent secret-keeping information-selling ass-kicking spies can't be 100% happy-go-lucky, even if they are Miki.

And it's really hard to remember that Makoto is a girl because I keep typing "he" on accident. Because let's face it, her role in the fake trailer just oozes masculinity.

Haruka...LOL I don't even know how to incorporate her because she just randomly kills everybody.

And okay the name IDOLgumi sounds totally retarded but I honestly couldn't think of a badass name for Takane's syndicate and Shijougumi didn't sound that hardcore as Miuragumi, you know what I mean? And this way, that line Chihaya says in the trailer...something about idols living in a competitive world...well, it makes sense if she meant IDOLs living in a competitive world. So there's my half-assed explanation. Don't even get me started on that acronym.

note: Taruki-Ten is the name of the restaurant beneath the 765 Pro office, in case you didn't know.