Betrayal In Its Most Simplest Form

Chapter 16

Akashi Seijuro, once again in a happy mood, poured out the hot, freshly made tea into two teacups. He was expecting a guest in exactly two minutes, so making tea beforehand was only the right thing to do. It's tempting to put something in his tea, Akashi thought for a moment before shaking his head. That would probably result in his vulgar temper.

Just like he predicted, a knock came two minutes later, right on the dot at 5:52 P.M. He took his time to walk to the front door and swung it open, surprising the persistent knocker. Kagami Taiga appeared at the threshold, one hand on his thigh, another hand about to knock again, his body hunched over as he took deep, heavy breaths. "Damn—you—bas—I mean, shri—Akashi!" Kagami quickly changed his words as he saw the darkened look on the red-head's face. "You Akashi! Stop calling me at weird times and expecting me to come in an insane time limit!"

"Calling me an Akashi is a compliment," Akashi dryly said and left to go to the kitchen. "Come in and close the door. Sit in the living room."

Kagami, although reluctant, obeyed his commands and sat on the all-too familiar couch. He looked at the basketball trophies and scoffed.

"Trophies are simply a waste of plastic and metal. There have no purpose except for proof and bragging. I use these for proof," Akashi said, noticing the look on Kagami's face when he walked into the room with the tray of tea and light snacks.

"You earned them," Kagami grumbled. "You should at least be grateful for the trophies."

"Winning is my only award, and that is already a given."

"Arrogant."

"Excuse me?"

The tall ace coughed. "Nothing."

Akashi gave him an unimpressed glance and took a sip of his tea. "That is what I thought. You understand why I requested you to come here, correct?"

More like demanded, Kagami scrutinized and looked suspiciously at his tea. Was it poisoned? "Yeah, to get more information or somethin' like that. I don't have any new information, though. My old man hasn't contacted me."

"Your father?" Akashi questioned. He already had a pen and notepad out, flipping through the pages to go to a fresh one.

The ace nodded. "Apparently, my dad is actually working at the sister branch of Ibuki's corporation in America. He agreed to help me, but he can't get much since all her records are pretty much locked in America." Kagami decided to risk his life and took a hesitant sip of his drink. It was normal. His shoulders sagged with relief.

Akashi watched, amused at the teen's reaction to his tea. "Call your father."

"Hah?" Kagami raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Request information. Put it on speaker. Don't question me." Akashi didn't mind he was ordering a guest around in his house. People who came to his house were expected to listen to his commands. Ah, unless it was his mother.

Control-freak, Kagami thought, but took out his phone anyway. He sped-dialed his father, remembering to have the speaker turned on at Akashi's request. "Mm? What, Taiga? Today's my day off," his dad's groggy voice greeted him through the speaker.

"Ah, sorry, Dad." The ace suddenly felt self-conscious at having the speaker out loud for Akashi to hear. "I forgot about the time difference."

His father groaned, and rustling could be heard from the other end. The short red-head started to tap his foot. "Of course you did. What do you want? Damn, I left the T.V. on. Why the hell did I leave it on a news channel?"

"Dad," Kagami said impatiently. "Have you gotten any new information about Ibuki?"

"The woman? No, not really. I've been busy. Hey, check out the news—wait, you don't have American news over there, do you?" Kagami closed his eyes and held in a sigh as he heard his father turn up the volume of the T.V. Since his cell-phone was on speaker, both Akashi and he could hear the news reporter tell her events in English. Kagami, having living in America for years, understood what she was saying, and Akashi, having studied there, understood it fluently.

"Lately, police officers have been active around the New York City's time square. Over twenty people have been questioned about a missing criminal who has disappeared from America for more than three years . . ."

"Damn! These officers should be doing something useful, not go out and waste their time on a cold case! Missing criminal for over three years? They could be dead, you know."

Yeah, yeah, old man. Can you just lie and say you found something? My life is on the line here. Kagami threw a quick glance at Akashi, but the captain was listening intensely to the news over the phone.

"The criminal has been charged many federal crimes, of which some will not be named by officers. Traces of her could be found in the Fanta's company building in New York, where a worker claimed someone used their line to call an unknown number. Officers tracked down the receiver and found it as a foreign Japanese number and the ID of . . ."

Akashi caught the name. His eyebrows shot up a few centimeters, and he grabbed the notepad and pen. That name, Akashi ran the English name over and over in his mind. If I'm correct, it should spell out . . . He wrote the names 'Ibuki Kuroko', 'Akihiko Suzuki', and 'Miku Abe' in order vertically. He had written it western style, where the first name came before the last. His cool, analyzing eyes stared at the names, calculations going wild in his head as he studied the letters. Akashi's eyebrows were pulled down in concentration.

If I were to line them up like this . . .

He wrote them again. Then again. Then again. Then he circled letters.

And then—he smirked.

"Check mate."

~Setting Skip~

Kuroko sat at the kitchen table with four boiled eggs in front of him. He had the fifth one in his hands with small nibbles on the soft shell. He had just finished boiling them, and now he was waiting for his father to come home. Unfinished homework lied off to the side of the table. Kuroko lost motivation after getting to the third problem.

The sound of the front door unlocking had his muscles tense, but soon he forced himself to relax. His mother would not be home, and it was only his father, right?

Only Otou-san, he reminded himself.

"Tetsuya?" Kuroko's father's soft voice echoed throughout the hallway and drifted into the kitchen. The front door closed with a click, his father's bag dropped to the floor, and then Haru's light footsteps advanced toward the kitchen. Kuroko grabbed his homework to make it look like he was being productive.

Haru stopped at the kitchen doorway and paused to study his son. He looked relieved that Kuroko was there waiting for him. A strained, small smile found its way onto the man's face. "Are you doing your homework?"

"Hai," Kuroko said with his usual, blank face. He made sure not to look at his father and forced his quickened breathing to a normal pace. His hold on his pencil was a little too tight.

Always a good boy, Haru thought and walked into the kitchen to stand across the table, in front of Kuroko. "You made boiled eggs? Do you want something else to eat? I'm sure there are—"

"I'm fine, Otou-san," came Kuroko's quiet, emotionless response again.

Haru swallowed and nervously reeled back onto his heels. "I-I see." A long silence filled the room. The tension in the air was so high you could cut the air with a knife. You could hear the light scratches of Kuroko's pencil, but the slight shake of his hand was noticeable. Haru struggled on what to say; anything that would break the ice.

The teal-haired man sighed and dropped into the seat across from his son. Kuroko's body went rigid, but he kept writing useless numbers onto his math papers. Haru pressed his lips together before opening them to choke out the words, but couldn't. It was much harder than what he had imagined. He took in a small breath. "Tetsuya, I know my actions the other day are—unforgiveable." Kuroko went frozen as his father spoke, but other than that, Haru couldn't figure what was going on in his son's mind. He gave a slight, pained smile toward the table.

Kuroko silently set his pencil down and looked up to his father. He knew it was rude to ignore someone who was talking about something important.

"I don't expect you to forgive me," Haru continued and looked desperately into Kuroko's blank eyes. "But I do want you to listen to my reasons. The truth and that is it. I only want you to listen." Leaning forward to put his face in his hands, Haru spoke with his voice muffled. "As a father, I want you to know my actions. How you handle it is up to you."

The teal-haired teen didn't answer.

Haru took a deep, shuddering breath. "It was about a day or two after your mother made you fall from the second floor. Akashi-kun called me to meet up with him at a café."

Kuroko's eyes slightly sparked with interest at the sound of Akashi's name.

"He had a job for me." His father clenched his hands tightly. "A job to ruin your mother and separate you from this house. I was warned it was an emotional job, but—" Haru had to pause to compose himself, "I accepted it for your sake. While it's—hard for you to hate me . . . I'd rather have that for your safety."

The teal-haired boy scrunched his blue eyebrows, but stayed silent. What was so important about this job that his father accepted, even though he fully knew he would lose all of Kuroko's trust?

"My job was to taunt your mother during her—'attacks'. It was the only way to capture her at her worst; have her distracted so that she wouldn't notice. However, I had to be trusted by her—only for a little—at the same time. Encouraging her attack seemed to be the best way." Haru gave a pained smile. "I'm sorry . . . You must have been in a lot of pain . . ." his voice faltered, and he shook his head. "I took pictures for proof. Ibuki didn't notice. Then after," he stopped talking to press his lips together, but continued, "I spread the pictures."

Kuroko's breath hitched. His father—his father exposed himself in such a state to people? He was seen abused?

"It was seen by my three most trusted friends. Do you remember Jun-kun, Hiroshi-kun, and Catherine-san?"

The names were familiar to him. He had last met them a few years ago, until they suddenly stopped visiting. To show that he was listening, Kuroko gave a small nod.

"They were told to spread the abuse to the people who were not influenced by your mother. They agreed." His father put an arm over his eyes and breathed through his nose heavily. "I know . . . this violates your rights . . . exposing you like. But please, understand. You can hate me, distrust me, wish me dead, but I want you to understand," he lowered his arm to gaze directly into Kuroko's eyes. "I will do anything—anything—to get you away from Ibuki and to have you safe. You will not suffer another year of her. I will go as far as to have you hate me to have you safe."

Haru closed his eyes, not wanting to look into his son's blank eyes any longer. "That is the truth of it all. We will be attacking Ibuki from the inside. Akashi-kun was the one who planned everything and told me not to say a word to you until after. It was my decision to accept it." He folded his hands together onto the table and opened his eyes. "You now know everything of my actions, Tetsuya. What will you do now?"

Akashi . . . knew. Kuroko couldn't wrap it around his head. Akashi knew what had happened the day Kuroko told him his father was a lie. He knew, and yet—

Tell me; am I a lie?

Of course not, Akashi-kun.

Was Akashi a lie? Had he been lying the whole time?

Tetsuya, may I try something?

Yes.

Akashi will never be a lie. Kuroko shook his head over and over and gazed at his trembling hands. Very slowly, he lowered his head, his hair falling over his face and eyes. His father couldn't see his face, and so Kuroko took that opportunity to let loose of one or two tears. "I want to trust you, Otou-san," Kuroko softly said, his voice cracking. "I want to . . . I want to . . . I refuse to hate you." He pressed his face into his hands. "But, I—"

"I think," Haru interrupted gently, "I will go to my room for the night. I will leave you alone. Ibuki will not be here until one in the morning, so please remember to lock yourself up before then." The man stood up and walked around the table to stand next to Kuroko. He reached out a hand to touch his son, but then stopped halfway and pulled it back, shaking his head. "I love you, Tetsuya. Please know that."

And Haru walked out of the kitchen, forlorn and tired, leaving a struggling Kuroko behind.

Tell me; am I lie?

I will go as far as to have you hate me to have you safe.

I don't expect you to forgive me.

You can hate me, distrust me, wish me dead, but I want you to understand . . .

Kuroko looked up from his hands, his tears gone. His eyes were set with determination, and his decision . . . his decision was simple enough.

Haru flipped the pancake again and watched it sizzle and cook onto the pan. Hot bacon were stacked onto a plate, crispy and cooked. An orange juice jug was set onto the table. For some reason, the teal-haired Japanese man wanted to have an American breakfast. He nervously shifted his weight as he waited for his son to come down. How Kuroko would act toward Haru this morning would be his answer.

Kuroko's mother left early at five in the morning, hissing at Haru that she would be out for the whole day. She seemed extremely upset, so the man didn't question her. The more she was out of the house, the better.

Soon, Kuroko limped down from the stairs, this time his injuries more discreet than before. The teal-haired teen walked cautiously into the kitchen, the smell of bacon and pancakes hitting his nose before he even saw them. Haru turned his head at the sound of Kuroko's light footsteps.

"Tetsuya," Haru greeted hesitantly. Kuroko stopped walking and stared at his father. The said man swallowed. "Have you—made your decision?"

Kuroko blinked. "What decision, Otou-san?"

Haru frowned. "Did you forget? I talked—"

"I don't know about anything I had to decide on, Otou-san," Kuroko said again and walked over to look at the pancakes his father was cooking. "Was there something I needed to think about?"

It took Kuroko's father awhile to figure what his son was doing. Once Haru did though, tears built up in his eyes. His hands clenched by his sides. "Tetsuya," Haru whispered. "Thank you." He grabbed Kuroko by the shoulder and pulled him into a strong embrace. He held onto his son tightly, as if Kuroko would disappear any minute.

Tears matted onto Kuroko's hair. Murmurs of 'thank you' were muffled near the teal-haired boy's ear. Haru tightened his hold, if possible, but was careful of his injuries. Kuroko gently wrapped his arms around his father's tall figure as well. He clutched the back of Haru's dress shirt.

"Having you hurt because of me," Kuroko said quietly, "is not what I want. I trust you, Otou-san."

Haru let go of Kuroko, but kept his hands on his son's shoulders. He looked down into Kuroko's eyes. "I am very lucky," Haru breathed, "to have you as a son." He pressed a kiss onto his pale forehead.

After having a silent, but comfortable breakfast, Haru asked if he needed a ride. "No, thank you," Kuroko declined. "Aomine-kun is picking me up."

"Aomine-kun? Your friend from middle school?"

"Hai." Kuroko picked up his school bag and swung it over his shoulder. "He should be out there right now. I will be going."

His father nodded. "Have a good day. And Tetsuya?"

Kuroko turned, his hand on the knob. "Hai?"

"Thank you."

The teal-head turned, a small smile on his face. "There is nothing to thank for, Otou-san.

"What took you so long?" Aomine demanded as Kuroko climbed into the old car.

"I apologize. I was eating," Kuroko said blandly. "I'm also sorry for the inconvenience."

Aomine scoffed. "Don't be sorry for that. Be sorry that you made Akashi yell at me for not giving you a ride. It was your fault to begin with."

Kuroko looked out the window and watched as the houses passed by quickly. "I doubt Akashi-kun would yell. I am sorry, though."

". . . You don't mean that, do you?"

". . ."

The tanned teenager grunted. "That's what I thought. Seriously, I get no appreciation these days. Kise is crying all over me every day, Akashi is ordering me around, and Midorima is telling me lies that it's bad luck to drive, so I have to drive you to school. The only one who's innocent is Murasakibara, and I doubt that guy is really innocent."

"Why is Kise-kun crying?"

Aomine tightened his hold on the steering wheel. He had said too much. Akashi had specifically told him to not tell any damage caused by Ibuki to Kuroko. "Just some modeling job that's giving him stress. He's overreacting about it," Aomine lied easily. "Nothing to worry about."

Kuroko eyed him suspiciously, but let it go. "Don't you have school, Aomine-kun?"

"Nah," he replied. "I'm not going to school, today."

~Setting Skip~

"So everybody but Akashicchi and Kurokocchi got the message?" Kise asked. He was addressing a tall shooter, a giant eating snacks, and the approaching tanned teenager.

"I'm sure that even if Akashi didn't receive the message, he knows about it," Midorima said and pushed up his glasses. In his hands, he held a small, goldfish net. "I'm not sure of the number, but it said to meet here at the park."

Murasakibara flashed his phone to everyone. "S'me 'ing," he mumbled with a cracker stick in his mouth. [Same thing]

"Yeah, I got it this morning. But what the hell? Is it even okay to listen to the message? It could be some scam," Aomine sighed, annoyed, and put an arm on Kise's head as an arm rest. The blonde protested, to no avail.

"It's too much of a coincidence that four of the Generation of Miracles were called to the park," Midorima said. "It must be important, and an even likelier chance that this is Akashi's doing."

"You are exactly right." A deep voice had all but Midorima jump in surprise. They turned their heads toward the culprit and found a tall woman and man. Having fiery red hair and strange-colored eyes, they sparked familiarity to the four. The two had formal suits on, suits that you would usually see worn on lawyers. The woman had her arms crossed across her chest with a sour, skeptic look , while the man had his hands at his side, his face blank except for the small furrow between his red eyebrows.

Kise blinked again and again. "Hey, don't they look like . . ."

"Ah, Hayato-san, Rin-san," Midorima's surprised voice interrupted Kise's observation.

"You know them, Mido-chin?" Murasakibara munched on another cracker stick. "They look familiar."

"The man is Akashi Hayato. The woman is Akashi Rin. To put it simply, they're Akashi's parents."

It took awhile for Aomine and Kise to process this information. Murasakibara didn't look too surprised. He simply kept up his sleepy look and now snacked on a chocolate bar. "E-eehh?" Kise cried. "Akashicchi's parents? They look exactly like him!"

Midorima scoffed at the blonde's stupidity. "That's why they're his parents, idiot."

Rin cleared her throat. The Generation of Miracles quieted down to give her the attention. "Is everyone here?" she demanded. "I made sure to receive all of your phone numbers to message you. Where is Seijuro?"

Hayato put a hand on her shoulder and stepped up. "Seijuro said he had other business to take care of. Besides him, everybody is here."

The red-headed woman twitched her eye. "Trying to avoid me, hm? That boy, I swear, once I get my hands on him," she left the threat hanging and wrung her hands. Hayato smirked at the obvious fear the Generation of Miracles were emitting. Sometimes, he was proud of his wife for being the demonic woman she was.

"Everybody," Hayato said. "Shintarou-kun has met us once, but I believe the rest of you have not met us. Don't misunderstand that, though, we know everything about you." The way he said that made Kise and Aomine shiver. Even Murasakibara stopped snacking and put the rest of his junk in his pockets. "I am Seijuro's father, Akashi Hayato. This is Seijuro's mother, Akashi Rin. We have called you for the case of Ibuki, your friend's abuser."

All of them tensed at the sound of Kuroko's mother's name. They weren't aware Akashi's parents knew of Ibuki, but Akashi must have thought Ibuki was an extremely complicated person to have brought his parents into this. "H-hello, H-Hayato-san, R-Rin-san," Kise stuttered and gave a short, but deep bow. "I am—"

"Kise Ryouta, correct?" Rin asked coldly.

"H-Hai!" the blonde yelped and jumped back into Aomine's arm. The aura the woman gave off was almost exactly like Akashi when he was annoyed—not angry; annoyed.

Rin paid no mind to Kise's reaction. "And you are Aomine Daiki and Murasakibara Atsushi." She paused to dig into her purse and pulled out a bag of chips that read: LIMITED TIME FLAVOR! ONLY IN THE KYOTO PREFACTURE! "Would you like this, Atsushi?"

Murasakibara's eyes lit up. He had been looking for those kinds of chips for days. Like a little kid, he grabbed it eagerly. "Thank you," he muttered before opening up the bag of chips and popping one in his mouth.

He's exactly as Seijuro described him, Rin observed. She turned her attention to Midorima. "Shintarou. Are you well these days?"

"Rin-san. I am well. Although your son has been driving me to do ridiculous jobs," the green-head said formally. He bowed slightly to her.

"Seijuro? He's always so selfish like that," the woman sighed dramatically.

"N-neh," Kise whispered to Aomine. "Doesn't it seem like she only hates us?"

Rin threw them a sharp glare. "Did you say something, Ryouta?"

"N-no!" he cried.

Hayato sighed deeply at his wife's antics, but said nothing about it. "All right, everyone," he finally said. "We called you here because we want you to be witnesses as well as the initiators. Kuroko Ibuki should be here any minute. Your job is to simply watch or add comments. Rin and I will use our power and information to corner her until she finally breaks down. I," he held up a tape recorder. "will record everything that is said. Is that understood?"

"Woah, hold on," Aomine interrupted. "Ibuki is coming? Here?"

"That's what he just said, Daiki," Rin snapped.

Kise's muscles tightened, but Aomine rubbed soothing circles on his back. "Act normal," Aomine said in his ear. "We can't mess up. This is for Kuroko. Plus," he placed a chaste kiss on Kise's cheek. "I'll reward you later."

The blonde's face flushed, and he hit the tanned teenager in the chest. "Ahominecchi!"

"Is everybody clear with their jobs?" Hayato asked again.

This time, everybody confirmed it.

"Here she comes," Rin muttered.

Everybody looked toward the direction Rin was staring. Sure enough, a slim woman was striding toward their way. Her teal hair swung back and forth with each long step she took. She had an even sourer look on her face than Rin, and her nose and eyebrows are scrunched into an ugly glare. In her left hand was a cell phone.

Kise clutched tightly onto Aomine's jacket. Murasakibara looked lazily at Ibuki, while Midorima only pushed up his glasses. Rin and Hayato stood composed, staring at the teal-haired woman.

"Akashi Hayato," Ibuki hissed when she was in hearing range. She stomped over to stand in front of them all. "How did you get my number? Why have you called me here?" The hated woman looked behind the two Akashi's and sneered. "You brought those brats, too?"

"Speak civilly, you ugly woman," Rin snarled. Hayato put a restraining hand on her shoulder. I should have warned her of her temper, the Akashi man thought miserably.

Ibuki's nose flared. "Excuse me?" she shrieked. Murasakibara put a hand over his ear at the annoying sound.

"We only called you here for simple answers, Kuroko Ibuki," Hayato cut in, "It's your choice whether you want to answer or not. We will not force you. Also, it was also your choice whether to come and meet us or ignore our call. Since you decided to meet us, you have no right to say we interrupted your schedule."

Kuroko's mother narrowed her eyes and darted her looks to the Generation of Miracles. "Where's your son of a brat?"

"I raised him; he's not a brat," Rin retorted.

Ibuki ignored her, focusing her gaze to a hiding Kise. She smirked viciously. "Kise-kun," she purred. "How is your family doing these days?"

That was all it took for Kise to snap. It didn't matter if the blonde himself was insulted or hurt, but his family was a different matter. His family should not be involved with this woman. "You monster!" Kise yelled. Aomine wrapped his arms around the copier's waist to restrain him from charging at Ibuki. The blonde clawed at Aomine's arms. "How dare you hurt my family! You're nothing but a demon to everyone! I-I hope you die for Kurokocchi's sake! You're evil. Idiot, idiot, idiot, idiot!" Kise's small vocabulary range didn't do much to the teal-haired woman. Tears pricked in Kise's eyes, and he was enveloped in Aomine's body.

"Calm down," the tanned teenager murmured. "Your reaction is only satisfying her."

"Idiot . . . idiot," Kise's voice was muffled into Aomine's jacket.

Hayato spared a quick glance to Teiko's former copier before turning his attention back to Ibuki. "I'd like for you to not taunt them," he said in a low tone.

Ibuki glared at him. "What do you want, Akashi-san? Why did you call me here?"

"Like I said; answers."

"Answers to what?"

"To your son," Rin was the one who replied this time. "Kuroko Tetsuya, was it?"

Ibuki visibly stiffened at the name. "What about him? He's not worth my time at the moment."

"I'll be blunt about this and won't beat around the bush, Ibuki," Rin said coldly. "Are you abusing Kuroko Tetsuya as of the present and/or past time."

The teal-haired woman looked straight into Rin's strangely-colored eyes. "No. I punish him fairly as I see fit."

Midorima stepped up, his face composed and cool. He pushed up his glasses with the hand that held the fish net. Ibuki stared, bored. "What is your definition of punishment? What actions do you deem as punishment?"

Good questions, Hayato praised in his mind, He would also make a good lawyer.

"I refuse to answer that question."

"Why do your hurt your son?" Hayato asked without missing a beat. "What is your objective? Your motivation? In what cases do you deem necessary to punish Kuroko Tetsuya?"

"I refuse to answer that question," Ibuki repeated.

"Are you scared?" Rin countered. "Afraid of the outcomes? If you did nothing wrong, you would answer these questions easily. Have you done something wrong? What is holding you back?"

Ibuki, obviously cornered, tightened the corners of her lips and clenched her hands. It was silent just for a few seconds, only the cold, howling wind filled the tense air. When the teal-head finally spoke though, Hayato got his answer. "You want to know why I hurt him?" Ibuki chuckled darkly. Hayato pressed the start of his tape recorder discreetly. "I don't hurt him. I train him."

"What do you mean by that?" Rin said, wanting more information to be recorded. "Train him? He is not a dog."

"I wanted a successor," she said, crazed. "I wanted one. I've built my whole life from the bottom, and here I am, the most untouchable woman in Japan with three of the biggest corporations. I'm rich, I'm powerful, and I'm feared! It's more than what I could want, some would think. But, I want more." she gave a frosty, half-smile. "I want my name to be carried on. Everyone must know of my name—no, not my name. My existence. The only way for that is to have a successor. It's the only reason why I married to Haru! To get a child; to get a child that would listen to me."

Her face suddenly turned into a sneer. "It backfired though. That kid I gave birth to turned out to be just like his father. He's soft, he has disgusting morals, he disobeys me. And just like I've said to them," she gave a glare to the Generation of Miracles, "he mocks me. The way he looks at me with those blank eyes tells me he doesn't take me seriously. I can't get anything from him. So the only way for him to listen; to obey; to fear me, is to break him."

"Break . . .him?" Aomine was at a loss.

"A person who is broken will only listen to the person that succeeded in breaking him," Ibuki laughed. It was a pitiful, horrendous laugh. "Day by day, I see him break a bit more. He's been fearing me, lying to everyone but me. Oh, it's been wonderful; truly wonderful. But you—you messed up everything." She pointed a crooked finger to the colorful-haired teens. "Healing and healing him; it's useless! The more you do, the more I will try harder in breaking him. He is mine, and he will be my successor. He will be nothing more than my creation, and you can't stop me!" The last part was shrieked so loud, Hayato was glad he had picked an abandoned park to meet her.

Ibuki took small pants from her long confession. Hayato stopped the recorder, finding out all he wanted to hear. "But what about Kuro-chin—"

"I'm done talking," she said and looked at Hayato and Rin. "You've listened to my answers, but know this: It doesn't matter if you know my plans. It doesn't matter if you have all the proof in the world that I 'abuse' my son. Remember who I am; nobody can beat me in this world."

"I'm tired of your threats," Rin said, quiet, which was always a bad sign. "It's our turn. My son is the smartest in this game, and you have the two best attorneys against you. Don't think you're the only one who has connections, Kuroko Ibuki."

They didn't say anything else as the teal-haired woman refused to answer and dramatically turned around and swished out of the park.

"Is she gone?" Kise asked quietly.

"She is," Rin confirmed but then glared at the blonde. "What was that little fit you threw awhile ago? Didn't you realize she could have had something against us if you were to attack her?"

"I-I'm sorry—"

"I understand your parents' predicament," Hayato reassured the teen. "Once we destroy Ibuki, I will use my power to restore your parents' status. However, Ibuki's specialty is attacking the mind. You can't let her get to you."

Kise looked down. "Sorry."

Aomine looked at the two Akashi's with one eye bigger than the other. Damn, these two bring out the same reaction out of everyone. They're just like Akashi . . . or is Akashi just like them? What the hell; three Akashi's?

"We'll be going now. Keep what you heard to yourselves, except for my son," Rin ordered.

Murasakibara nodded. "Thanks for the chips," he said again.

Rin nodded. "Oh, and if any of you happen to contact Seijuro soon, tell him his mother is waiting for him. I have some . . . issues to straighten out with that boy." She flexed her fingers. "That'll be all. Let's go, Hayato."

The Generation of Miracles, this time including Midorima, shivered at the threat.

"Do you think I scared them too much?" Rin wondered. They were walking down the busy streets of Tokyo, trying to get to the train station.

"You always scare them too much. We're only lucky Seijuro came out fine," Hayato retorted. Their definition of 'fine' was different from everybody else's. "But we're lucky. We got exactly what we wanted from Ibuki." He wrapped an arm around Rin's body.

Rin slapped his arm away. "Don't touch me. People can see."

Hayato sulked all the way to the train station.

Please correct me if you see a missing word or typo! Anyway, as promised, a chapter on Saturday. My fingers ached :) I had to add the last bit; I swear I love the relationship between Hayato and Rin xD Anyway, please review, even if you didn't like it (Tell me why you didn't like it :)) It really motivates me to write faster!

~Virelei