(Author's Notes): Hello! So unfortunately my summer holidays are ending, and that means I'll be busy again once I return to U.K. to start my second year at University... But, don't worry, I'll try to update this as fast as I can, anyways, thank you all so much for the support of this story and the previous chapter. As always, I do not own nothing.

Firelilly050: Yes, and it's just beginning.

Guest: Thank you, I hope you liked having your mind blown.

CrazyBananaz: Thank you, thank you! I hope this chapter lives up to your expectation.

spirithealerstar1122: Thanks, I'm glad that you're reading it.

Izik Imanity: Yep, hard to believe that it has been a few years. Thanks so much for always supporting my stories and writing, I really appreciate it. And yes, Kuroko will always be a little devious witch.

animeeclipse: Well, there is a reason for that, and it shall soon be revealed down below...

VeronicaChase: I may have named him Jimin, but I seriously kept envisioning Jungkook instead!

Lolo: I'd like to think he's popular, after all, he is the Student Council President.

Allenfan: Yep! I love dark Kuroko too!

Saint Black Genesis: Well I wouldn't feel sorry for Momoi just yet, after all, she is basically invading personal privacy by hacking. But we'll see if they talk it out in the end... Haha isn't Kise always pushy though? Also, I have to agree, they're like the Three Musketeers!

Hana Riqa-chan: Hahah, well I'm glad you liked the ending! And that's exactly where the story shall continue! I hope you enjoy it :)

"Why did you do it, Kasamatsu-senpai?" Kise had leaned forward, his elbows rested against the table, his fingers knotted together as he stared at the senior he respected so much. His golden orbs hardened in anticipation. He may have come here on an agency job today, but that didn't mean he didn't come here with the ulterior motive – Kise had come to get some answers for himself. He wanted to hear them with his own ears, coming out of Kasamatsu's own mouth. He didn't want to hear answers passed on to him through other people, who knew how credible or reliable their words would be? People always talked, and he despised how easily it was for one little sentence to become twisted and false. No, he wasn't going to risk it. He had to know the truth. 'He's taking a while…' His eyes observed, noting every little detail about his senpai's body language. It was stiff, Kasamatsu was uncomfortable, but why?

The former Kaijo captain wasn't going to lie, he had expected something like this. He just didn't expect this confrontation to take place so soon. He had to think of something, an excuse to throw him off, distract him from his initial question… then again, he could always tell Kise the truth. Confess everything right here, right now… Tell him about Kuroko, his invitation, hell, even about his new superpowered team that will be sure to stun people in the Winter Cup… He heaved a sigh, he decided. Kasamastu leaned forward, matching Kise's gaze, his elbows propping up to mirror the blonde's pose. He took a deep breath before he spoke, "I have exams now," he deadpanned in response. "And frankly, you're annoying me with your phone calls. It pisses me off when I'm trying to study, and it makes me lose focus." He told him bluntly. "Every time I see your name anyway on my phone or laptop, I feel this urge to destroy something or kick someone." He couldn't do it. In the end, he couldn't say anything about Kuroko, not when he wasn't even sure himself on where he stood in this entire situation. There were too many things that were still left unanswered, so many crucial aspects unsaid. When he thought about everything that he knows, and the events that had happened so far… there were too many gaps to fill, like why, or even how Kuroko was doing all of this. Furthermore, there was no guarantee what Kuroko would do to him if he did tell Kise, and that honestly scared him. After all, he was a man of power in this school, and Kasamatsu was simply a pawn in his game.

Kise drew back immediately, his eyes widened in mild shock. It hadn't been an answer that he had been expecting from him. He felt the tense atmosphere evaporate within seconds. "Ehh, is that so? I'm so sorry then Senpai!" He exclaimed, placing his palms together as he held it in front of his head. "I didn't know. I actually thought you hated me since you weren't replying to me at all!" He pouted, before smiling at him. 'I guess 'he' doesn't have anything to do with this after all.' The blonde felt relieved, the tension he hadn't realised he had been holding onto finally lifted from his being. 'Now I can truly enjoy this day.' He felt himself grin. "But if I was that much of a distraction for you, why don't you just cut me out of your life? (But I would be very hurt if you did something as cruel as that…)."

"Even if I did hate you, I can't exactly cut you out of my life." Replied Kasamatsu, the older teen sighed. He knew the blonde too well, he was too persistent for his own good. 'Like a lost puppy desperate for its owner.' He couldn't help but think. "Honestly…" He let out a sigh as he watched the food arrive at their table, Kise's eyes immediately brightened as the model dug into his food. The confrontation clearly pushed behind them. 'I just dodged a bullet back there.' He grabbed a fork and knife as he started to dig into his own dish, a classic calzone. 'He bought the lie. Good…' He flinched as Kuroko's smiling face briefly flickered in his mind sending shivers down the back of his neck, his eyes snapped to the doorway. 'Why do I feel as though I'm being watched…' His eyes turned to scan his surroundings, he didn't exactly see a familiar face in the classroom at this very moment. All he saw were parents, their kids, university student customers and a pink bunny mascot walking around with balloons. His eyes flickered to the surveillance cameras positioned in the corridors of the school, 'He wouldn't… would he?'

"It's good isn't it, senpai?" inquired Kise, bringing Kasamatsu out of his thoughts as he responded with a silent nod. "You're so lucky that your school has such exciting events like these." Mused the blonde, he sighed. "This festival kind of makes Kaijo and Teiko's ones look dull and plain." Admitted the blonde. Teiko's cultural festivals were extravagant, but not to the level of Lincoln. 'I don't think Akashicchi would have approve of live animals, or coffins on school grounds. Aomineicchi would have screamed from all the coffins.' The blonde chuckled.

Kasamatsu had to agree on his last statement. Although Kaijo's campus was massive, and filled with the latest facilities in Japan, everything was simply just plain in comparison to the imported items shipped from the West. Not to mention that Lincoln's festive had an entrance fee, while Kaijo's was free for all visitors. That reminded him of something, "Kise," began Kasamatsu. "How did you manage to get into the festival in the first place?" He was curious, from what Fideo had said, this event was exclusively open to only parents, and students of the Lincoln institution with the exception of some guest from outside. According to what Okamura and Imayoshi had told him previously in the morning, even the amount of guest to this festival was so limited because of the incredibly expensive entrance fees, so how the hell did a high schooler get in? Unless… 'Do teen models actually make a lot of money?' He was aware that Kise had two photo books, and did often disappear from practice because of his busy schedule. 'But if he does make so much money, why does he even bother with high school anymore?' Then again… his grades did seem to show that he never did take high school seriously. The conclusion just seemed to irk Kasamatsu. 'Not only is he a good-looking idiot whose talented at basketball, but he's also an idiot who doesn't need to graduate to earn a living.'

"Oh," Kise smiled. "I'm actually on an advertising job today!" He explained with a bright smile, taking a moment to pose. "One of the fashion lines that I model for dressed me, and asked me to go around the festival dressed like this." He pointed out his trendy clothes. It was incredibly flashy, Kasamatsu felt like an idiot for not noticing them earlier. "Turns out a lot of the parents in this school have strong links and ties to the fashion industry, which is why the company wanted to send a model here to basically walk around and strike a good impression on them. You know, advertising in the flesh. The higher ups said that if they saw how good the clothes looked on me, they might feel like using more clothing from the fashion line, or something like that." He told him.

"So, you basically got a free pass that was paid for you by your modelling agency, and you thought it'd be fun to drop by and see how I was?" He couldn't help but ask. Kise nodded in response. 'Why do I doubt that?' Kasamatsu couldn't help but wonder as he stared at the blonde. As much as he wanted to know more, or learn Kise's real motive for being here, he didn't dare push his luck. Who knew when Kise could turn the tables on him again, like just now. 'He is more perspective than most people give him credit for, and that's what makes him a dangerous factor right now.' Kasamatsu racked his brain, he couldn't recall if he had seen any pieces of information regarding the Student Council, but if there was any up on display, he would have to keep an eye out for it, and make sure that it does not ever find its way to a certain pair of golden eyes. Hell, he'd have to make sure they don't run into Kuroko in the flesh himself. No matter how good his misdirection may be, he wouldn't put it past Kise to detect him. From what Kasamatsu could recall from the past, the blonde had a sort of radar for the former Seirin Phantom. "So, where do you want to go next?"

Kise looked up from his food with a thoughtful expression on his face as the blonde paused, he thought about it for a while. "Well I didn't really get a chance to look around the school much because I was trying to see you first, and basically skipped out on most of the earlier classes." He told him with a beaming grin. "So, if senpai doesn't mind, could we go see all the classes?" asked the blonde, his eyes twinkling in absolute glee. He looked like a child at an amusement park, bursting with energy and excitement.

Somehow, the idea of bringing Kise into classrooms like class Romania and Egypt were less than appealing to him. As amusing as it was to scare his former teammate, Kasamatsu didn't really want to hear him scream. His ear drums couldn't take it, plus, he was pretty sure he was very done with those two classes and did not want to go back. 'Wait a minute… isn't he supposed to be working?' He felt a twitch at his forehead, 'Of course he would get distracted by the classes.' Easily, Kasamatsu decided that it was time for him to take charge of this situation. Not only to ensure that the blonde actually did what he was paid to do, but also to keep him away from a certain lurking phantom (wherever he was). "Kise, you mentioned before that you were advertising a fashion line," The blonde nodded to the statement. "Did your agency mention specifically which VIPs they wanted to see their work the most?" Asked the black haired teen.

Kise pondered for a moment before he took out his phone and checked. He vaguely recalled his manager informing about some names. "I do, but I don't know where they'll be." He admitted sheepishly. "They didn't really say where these VIPs would be since they are parents (and it would just be an invasion of privacy to find out)." Added Kise, his eyes focusing on the emails and messages he received, flipping through them very quickly.

'This whole idea of sending you to their children's school to advertise is just an invasion of privacy…' "Do you have the names? Maybe I can find something in the student guide's instead of the visitor's." Said Kasamatsu, leaning back in his seat as he resisted frowning in annoyance. He honestly doubted that there would be any information like this in the student's version of the festival guide book, to be honest, he hadn't even opened his guide book at all today considering that he had simply been shadowing Okamura and Imayoshi about. He reached to his back pocket when he had simply shoved the small book handed to him when they entered the festival premises, to his surprise, the guide book did have that information.

For future students who wish to make a good impression on their future employers¬ Here is a list of executive parents, their industry, connections and where they will be (their children's classroom and location!). Good luck! This is for your futures!

'No wonder there had been so many university students present today.' Kasamatsu internally sighed, his hands gripping the pages of the book as he stared at the opening paragraph bolden compared to the rest. 'So, this festival was also an employability fair in a way…' Nevertheless, this simply made his job easier for him. "Kise, I think we can use this." He said, showing the male model the guide. "You should be able to find your people on here." He told him, flipping through the pages that were categorised by industry occupation before handing it over.

Golden orbs widened in surprise as he took the booklet from his friend, he stared as he quickly found the section for the fashion industry, each individual executive identified. "Wow, Lincoln is really prepared to give their students the best experience…" He noted before perking up. 'They even have tips down here on what to start conversations with, and what their hobbies are…' "Maybe I should apply here after all." Exclaimed Kise, grinning. "Lincoln really thinks of everything."

Kasamatsu still doubted he would ever get accepted, even if his grades did miraculously improve, there was a certain light blue haired shadow behind the scenes that would ensure the blonde never entered his domain. Kuroko would fail and reject him on the spot, just like how he should have rejected Kise's guest application to begin with… but he didn't. 'Odd. Unless… he wanted to be found?' They were soon on their way as Kise continued to drag the latter around with him, much to Kasamatsu's irritation but he didn't say anything, instead, he kept his eyes wide open to spot for a certain member of the Student Council, but the phantom never showed. It wasn't long before Kise had to actually leave because he had to return the clothes to the company, but the blonde had left in a rush, and relatively quietly for once. A simple goodbye, and then he was gone. This left the former Kaijo captain alone at last, he found himself walking back on campus, he wasn't sure where Okamura and Imayoshi were now, and he wasn't that willing to regroup with them after them had practically tossed him at the miracle member. 'Those bastards…' He cursed. 'No, that bastard…' Imayoshi's smiling face haunted his thoughts as he scowled.

The teen had been so caught up in his thoughts that he had not realised he had stumbled into a less crowded section of the school, Kasamatsu stopped in his steps as he glanced around at his current surroundings. There was a lack of university students present, but an increase of parents, very young parents. Where was he? He looked at the classroom windows and the display boards to get a sort of idea of which class country he had stumbled upon, but they didn't say. Instead, it seemed to be labelled with a title of some sort of book, or story. "I didn't realise you enjoyed reading books, Kasamatsu-san." A voice spoke from beside him, the teen practically jumped out of his skin as he turned to see the former Rakuzan phantom behind him.

Mayuzumi stood there, his face impassive, but it wasn't his expression that had caught his attention, it was the hat he was wearing. A paper cut out of the Mad Hatter's hat, all coloured in and self-decorated. Kasamatsu noticed the teen's hand, it was stamped all over with class stamps. "Were you here the entire time?" Asked the teen, in mild shock. He didn't expect the teen to participate in a festival like this, he always seemed like the type that would rather lock himself indoors and enjoy a quiet night reading, opposed to actually coming outside today to spend time with people who wouldn't actually notice him at all. In all honestly, it seemed like it would have been a waste of Mayuzumi's time.

"Yes," the grey-haired teen nodded. "The younger years didn't do countries, instead, they had dedicated their classrooms to a storybook." Exclaimed the teen, his tone remained deadpanned and his face stoic, but Kasamatsu got the feeling that he was full excitement with that statement. He could have sworn he saw Mayuzumi's eyes begin to twinkle as he spoke. "Wonderful, isn't it?" He asked as he looked around at the extravagantly decorated classrooms. "Not many visitors come here anyway since it's not a part of the stamp collection contest." Informed Mayuzumi, his lips flickering upwards in a small smile, he looked happy.

"Yes…" Replied Kasamatsu, awkwardly. He couldn't pull his eyes away from Mayuzumi, he was displaying an oddly hidden side to him right now, one that Kasamatsu suspected he would never see again after this day. But his statement did explain why he couldn't spot any flags around here, only large cut outs of animal characters and other familiar childhood images were adorned around in the hallway. "It must be more peaceful around here." He said, his eyes observing the atmosphere as most children were in their classrooms, their parents by their sides to accompany them – more specifically, to discipline and control them… 'Not to mention that there are no university students here (excluding the two of us.' It was calm and serene, he could only wish that his day had been like this. Instead he was betrayed and was stuck with a golden retriever.

Mayuzumi couldn't help but disagree with the shorter teen's observation, shaking his head. Unlike Kasamatsu, he had been here the whole day, from the very beginning. He could have left anytime he wanted to, but he hadn't been allowed to. "No, these little monsters are merciless and vicious. They've been detained in this area so long that it's driving them insane. And it's not just the children, but their parents too…" He lifted his hand and pulled up his shirt sleeve to reveal painted skin, to further emphasise his point across. It was not even close to being a masterpiece. Kasamatsu winced as he stared at him, he felt pity for him. "I became a human canvas a while back, not a wonderful experience…" He muttered lowly. "Anyway… has that pink rabbit been following you for the entire day?" asked Mayuzumi, his finger pointed to the mascot animal, balloons in its hands as it waved back at him, Mayuzumi returned the gesture.

Kasamatsu snapped his head around, steel grey eyes widened in surprise. "What?" His body whipped around to stare at the overly familiar costumed figure that stood silently outside a classroom window, peering into the class. 'How did I miss that rabbit?' The mascot wasn't the biggest or the flashiest, but the bundle of brightly assorted balloons in its palms was huge and should have given him an indication that it was practically around. He thought for a moment… 'Now that Mayuzumi mentions it…. That rabbit has been everywhere I went today! Ever since Kise had arrived.' He couldn't help but feel unnerved by the situation, unless… He walked towards it, stopping in front of the costumed animal, the rabbit turned and dismissingly acknowledged his presence before focusing back at to the events inside the classroom. 'I could be wrong, it could just be a coincidence but…' "Kuroko… is that you?" Asked Kasamatsu, unsure.

Its head turned, staring at him in silence for a while before it held out its bouquet of balloons, ushering the teen to take it away from it. He hesitated at first, but he eventually took it. Arms dropped before they slowly moved to remove the animal head, he felt himself hold his breath in anticipation. "Nope, not him." Deadpanned Ume, the girl lifted the rabbit head off her being as she stared at him blankly. Dropping the rabbit head aside, she took back the balloons. "But if you want to talk to him…" She pointed inside with her free hand. Taking a closer look inside the class, he noted a certain teal haired teen sitting in a large red chair, a vividly serene smile on his lips as the children in the classroom surrounded him by his feet. "Deceiving isn't it…" Mused Ume, she looked amused herself.

"Is he telling them the story about the Boogeyman?" inquired Mayuzumi, appearing beside Kasamatsu as the teen also glanced into the room. He noted the dark, spooky decorations that dressed the room. The haunted screaming trees, the cut outs of scared children in their beds, and a lot of red eyes. "I didn't think that he would like this story…" He added, but to be honest, he didn't think most people did. There were various variations of the story, depending on where you lived, the moral and appearance of the so-called 'Boogeyman' varied, but there was one thing that was kept the same – bad children always went missing in the end. He didn't think the story was appropriate for children, especially not five or six-year olds… it was a little too morbid for them, wasn't it?

"You'd be surprised," replied Ume. "He loves this story more than you think." She told them, her arms crossed as she stared, fixated at Kuroko's storytelling performance. They couldn't hear his voice from where they stood outside, but they understood how the story was going as he started drawing on the small white board beside his chair. His eyes widening along with his smile. "After all, the bad children always get caught by the Boogeyman."

Kasamatsu couldn't help but feel uncomfortable as he watched Kuroko, the pale teen's hands moved as they drew on the 'bad children', and then the Boogeyman himself. He couldn't shake of the cold feeling of dread as he stared into the mortified faces of the drawings. "Is it me, or does those bad children look hauntingly like the Generation of Miracles." Stated Mayuzumi, Ume shrugged.

He stared, fixated at the scene before him. Kuroko seemed oblivious to the uncomfortableness of the children by his feet, his hands continued to draw, his mouth moved as he continued his narration. He seemed lost in his own little world as he spoke, he didn't seem to notice the teary faces of the younger generation, some who had turned to hug their best friends in fear. "What happens in the end of the story?" Asked Kasamatsu. He couldn't tear his eyes away from Kuroko, the smaller teen smiled, a soft kind smile upon his lips as he spoke. One could never tell that the story he was telling was as twisted and horrific as it was, unless they heard it for themselves. 'Even their parents look unnerved by this story…' He noted the adults stiff posture, their faces paling. Some mothers had moved to cover their mouths, they looked sick. 'That must be some story…'

Ume was silent for a moment, she hesitated but decided to answer in the end, her eyes never looking away from his face. "Well, in the end, the Boogeyman steals them away in the night," she told him. "And they are never seen ever again." Kuroko's hand moved as the teen swiftly striked at the 'bad' children's faces, the chalk in his hand snapped as it fell to the ground. "Only the Boogeyman knows." He turned his attention back to his audience, Kuroko smiled as he placed the chalk down, his teal eyes stared back out of the window and held Kasamatsu's gaze. "But most people believe that he ate them."

Kuroko smirked.

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He was lucky to have caught the train just in time. After leaving the festival at Lincoln, he had to rush back to his modelling company in Tokyo to return the work clothes before running back to the train station in order to catch the afternoon train. Kise slumped back in his seat in relief, he felt as though he could finally relax now, the day was over. The best part was that he managed to get his answers, all the confusion and thoughts that had clouded his mind was finally gone, completely cleared and resolved. He felt exuberant, 'Wait… Is it even possible to feel tired yet excited at the same time?' A ringing from his phone interrupted his serene silence as he begrudgingly dug it out from his pocket, 'Who could it be now?' He sighed before noting the caller ID. 'Ah…' Without hesitating, he answered the call. "Hello Akashicchi!" he said, his mood shining through his chirpy tone.

"I assume you enjoyed your day inside Lincoln's private festival," said the voice of Akashi Seijuro from the other side.

"It wasn't private, Akashicchi. Besides, you could have afforded the entrance fees to enter." Replied Kise, 'Honestly, you're probably the only one who could have afforded it.' He had initially planned to invite his other teammates to come along with him to see their former captain, but the moment he set his golden eyes on the price for one head entry into the festival, he wanted to cry. It was too expensive! The price of one ticket was the equivalent to all the money had made as a teen model so far, and his family would have scolded him like crazy for spending that kind of money on an entry ticket. Then again… After actually seeing the festival itself, he could understand why it was exclusively expensive. If he hadn't been given this job, he would definitely never come to the festival no matter how much he wanted to see Kasamatsu.

The other line was silent for a moment, "That would simply be a waste of my time, and money. I have no reason to go to Lincoln," answered the red head. "However, how did it go? Did you find the answers you were seeking there?" Asked Akashi.

That brought a smile to the blonde's lips. It reminded him of why he was so happy in the first place. "Yep, turns out I was overreacting the entire time! He just didn't want to talk to me because I would be distracting him away from his exam studies. Maybe that's why the other members didn't answer or reply too, it's probably exam season for all of them, Akashicchi." He told him. "We were worried for no reason." He added. 'Or maybe it was just me that was most worried…' The blonde could not help but think, after all, he could hardly imagine the rest of the Generation of Miracles actually caring that much about someone, other than themselves.

Silence once more, "Yes, that's good to know… but what about your other curiosity, Ryouta," asked Akashi, his tone low. "Is 'he' there at Lincoln?" Ah, that's right.

Kise was silent for a moment, his bright mood instantly took a 360 degree turn as he paused, thinking back about his day. On the surface, he may had been cheery eyed, enjoying his day as he strolled about Lincoln with Kasamatsu, but beneath the surface – he was looking out for any signs of 'him'. Nothing, he hadn't seen any sort of sign of him there. "No, 'he' isn't." Answered Kise, he stared outside the window. The skyline flying by at an incredible speed, the day was ending as the sun started to set outside the train. "I guess I overreacted when I thought that 'he' could have been there." Admitted the blonde.

"I already told you, Ryouta. There is no way that 'he' would be there, 'he' just isn't capable of it." There was a hint of smugness in his tone as he spoke from the other line. "See, I stood corrected when I told you that you didn't need to worry about anything. Momoi and I have everything under control, I will contact you when we have more information regarding the senpais team." With that the line cut off.

"…I'm not capable?" Mused Kuroko, as he sat listening to their phone call in his office. "Ume, do I not look capable to you?" He asked the girl, the pink rabbit suit gone. She stood in her casual clothes.

Ume shook her head, "You look very capable, President." She told him emotionlessly, repeating the statement. Her eyes flickered out to stare out at the window, the day had gone by fast, just like how she had reacted when she first spotted the blonde Generation of Miracle member. Bugging his phone had been easy, all she needed to do was accidentally bump into him in the crowds as he was headed to the main building. Everything after that was simple.

Kuroko leaned back in his chair, he shrugged. "Oh well, I guess it'll just be a bigger shock for them then, when the incapable 'he', makes an appearance." He stated bluntly in amusement. "So, Kasamatsu…" His eyes flickered over to Ume, his attention fixed on what she was to say next.

"He had the choice to reveal your identity and existence to Kise-san, but did not choose to do it." She reported back to him. "That was a lucky call." Said Ume, her eyes studying Kuroko. Watching carefully for his reaction to the news. Was it just her, or did the blue haired teen look slightly dejected? "… unless it was your intention for him to actually discover your identity and find you?" She added, confused herself by her conclusion. 'Did he want to be found?' She wondered, curiously to herself.

Kuroko's lips formed a small smile, "Well, even if my identity was revealed earlier than we planned, it would not make much of a difference." Answered the phantom, admittingly. "Besides that, how are the plans going for our little trip?" He asked, his tone changed to one of excitement as a small smile adorned his lips. It was an event that he was looking forward to.

Ume paused for a moment, before she took out her phone, glancing down at the screen as she looked for the note she had made on it. "Good, everything is settled, now all we need to do is send out word about it." Informed Ume.

Kuroko nodded, "Send them out tonight." He turned his back to her as he stared out at the window, watching the sun set as the stars had begun to come out. "Now let me see how much you all have grown since the Interhigh…" muttered the teal haired teen. 'And let me show you the true strength of Lincoln.' He grinned.

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Imayoshi sighed, he had been looking forward to his summer holidays. Relaxing by the beach, exam free, assignment and stress free. No basketballers, no loud roommates (well same thing), but well… sometimes dreams don't always come through. His eyes flickered to the bulkier teen that stood next to him. His expression mirroring one of death and sadness. Okamura looked like he was trying to still recover from the fact that he had lost the sports car to a middle school student. He really did try hard to win it, and he was so close too (only three stamps off to be exact to the amusement of all the former captains). The glasses wearing teen's eyes flickered to his other side where another exhausted looking teen stood, only this time, he looked like he was simply just exhausted from being in the same place with them. "And just when I had decided to plan a vacation to the beach." Spoke up Imayoshi, trying to lighten the atmosphere around his former rivals. "They had to come and plan a training camp." He sighed.

"We don't have time to be idling around." Snapped Kasamatsu, his arms crossed as they waited in line to board the bus, that would take them to their undisclosed location for their training camp. He didn't understand why they had to travel to a new location when they could simply train at the Lincoln campus, the facilities were one of the best he had seen after all.

"We can't have prying eyes watching us train." Deadpanned Kuroko, the teen appearing beside Kasamatsu as the latter jumped slightly, answering his mental question. "Lincoln rents out their facilities, so the campus is open to guest who can loiter to places we would rather they not be at." He informed him, waiting patiently beside the teen in line, he was dressed from head to toe in Lincoln's baseball team's training track suit. "Ah, my transport has arrived." Mused the teal haired teen, his eyes flickering over to a Lincoln town car that arrived beside the bus. Wordlessly, Kuroko left their side as he entered the waiting car. Ume sat inside waiting, a clipboard in hand as she passed him a copy of the finalised training regime that he and the coach had agreed upon. His eyes scanned over its contents before he nodded to himself, as the car departed, leaving ahead of the bus, his eyes flickered out to where he watched the last few players board the deluxe vehicle. "… did you bring it?" He asked, his voice lower than usual, almost in a whisper.

Ume nodded, her eyes hooded as they flickered down to the bag by her feet. "Of course," answered the girl. "We never leave without it," said Ume. "Why… do you need it?" Her eyes studied him carefully, his posture calm as he rested his face against the window, his eyes looking out at the passing scenery… he seemed okay.

"No." He replied. "… Not right now." The last part came out in a whisper as he passed her back the clipboard, she hesitated for a moment before taking it, she fumbled with the item as Kuroko released his grip, pulling his hand back as they balled into a fist.

'Just a little longer…'

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"What did you say?" Asked Kasamatsu, he had heard him, but he just wanted to reaffirm that he heard Coach correctly.

The elder man looked up from the clipboard that Ume had previously passed him moments ago, "Get changed, we're going to start this training camp with a little match with the starter team and the Interhigh team." He told him.

"What are you waiting for, Kasamatsu-san?" Kuroko bluntly asked. "This is what you were waiting for, weren't you?" The teen was dressed in his own Lincoln basketball uniform, the white printed number 4 stood out on his chest, in contrast against the strong colours. Behind him, the steel grey eyed teen could clearly see that each member of the starting team in their Lincoln basketball uniforms, stretching as they prepared themselves for the oncoming match. "You wanted to know why we benched you, didn't you?" stated Kuroko. "Well, how about we show you instead with a little warm up match?" He could have sworn he saw his eyes sparkle slightly. It was obvious that Kuroko had just been itching to play them.

Kasamatsu nodded, his eyes turned back to meet with his team, the Interhigh team as they were labelled. Silently, they were all agreeing to this, after al – it was an opportunity to go head on with the Phantom King.

'Let's play some basketball.'

Reviews are always welcomed! Stay tuned for the next chapter!