Hi guys! It's finally summer break for me! That means I will have more time to focus on this story, so thank you all for being so patient with me! This chapter will focus more on the other Haisaki – the infamous Shougo! I wanted to flesh out his character a bit more, so you'll understand him a little more. For future reference, I will not be following the manga.

Thank you all for your support and I hope you enjoy this chapter as well! -helpwhatiswrong

"I'll sacrifice myself any day, to protect everyone." Teppei Kiyoshi

[11]

Haisaki Shougo entered his lavish house humming a lively tune under his breath. The maids were apprehensive when they approached him to retrieve his things, but his dismissed them with a wave as he literally waltzed into the foyer.

Waltzed. The maids exchanged confused looks, but decided not to question his strange behavior. A deliriously happy Shougo was much better than an angry one they decided.

As Shougo walked to their massive kitchen, he decided that nothing could ruin his mood today. Sure, the school festival was a drag, but things turned out much better than he had expected at the end of the day.

Shougo turned the corner and almost ran into his father, who looked frazzled as he shoved papers into his already full briefcase. They made brief eye contact. It wasn't everyday that you saw the senior Haisaki at home.

"O-Oh hello, Shougo." His father greeted, cursing lightly under his breath as papers fell to the ground. Shougo didn't bother helping his father pick them up. "Home so early huh? How's basketball?"

Shougo merely grunted in response. His father was home so rarely that the only time he made for his children was on special events. He didn't know that Shougo had quit basketball months ago. "Hey, old man. I need more cash later." He sidestepped around his father and resumed his journey to the kitchen.

"Right, right. I'll deposit it into your account later." The older Haisaki responded before his cell phone rang. He wasn't the least bit phased by his disrespectfulness. Then again, his father wasn't really concerned with much unless it had to do with his business.

His mother would have reprimanded him on his rudeness, but she wasn't there anymore. They fell apart as a family after her passing years ago. "Take care of your sister." His father said as he rushed out of the house for yet another important business meeting.

Shougo didn't bother acknowledging his departure as he opened the fridge and pulled out a small carton of milk. His father was so busy with meetings that he could go months without seeing him.

It wasn't like it mattered though. Shougo wasn't particularly close with his father to begin with. Shoko wasn't either, but she tried to make small talk with him on the rare occasions he was home.

Closing the fridge, Shougo thought back about his day. Although his father's appearance was a bit surprising, it still didn't damper his mood.

"Why do you have such a stupid smile on your face?" Shougo nearly choked as his sister suddenly appeared in the kitchen. Damn. She must have been around Kuroko too much that she was beginning to pick up on his invisible presence.

"You look ridiculous." She continued as she opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of honey lemon green tea. Shougo frowned. His sister was still as tactless as ever. No wonder she didn't have much friends.

Well, whatever. "I'm just in a good mood that's all." Shougo replied with a small shrug of his shoulders.

"You're never in a good mood." His sister replied with a deadpanned expression. Closing the fridge, she turned to stare at him. If Shougo concentrated hard enough, he could have swore he saw a critical gaze in her eyes.

He merely offered her a smile instead. "Let's just say things are looking up for your dear older brother, okay?" He patted her shoulder with the false pretense of affection. Shougo smirked as his sister stiffened immediately as his hand touched her shoulder.

Shoko moved from his touch and frowned. "What is that suppose to mean?" There was an accusing tone in her voice.

Shougo smirked as he flicked her forehead. "Think about it."

For once, the basketball courts were eerily silent during morning practice. No one dared to take a breath as Akashi paced the courts in front of the Generation of Miracles. He was irritated – very, veryirritated – and that was the last thing anyone wanted to deal with before the Nationals.

Akashi paused in his stride and took a breath. "What is the meaning of this?" He asked, his voice leveled as he spoke.

Kuroko Tetsuya looked briefly uncomfortable in front of his captain's piercing gaze. ". .I tripped down the stairs after the festival yesterday." Akashi's eyes moved towards the brace on Kuroko's right wrist. He stared at the medical device disapprovingly.

"You tripped." Akashi repeated slowly. He didn't look the least bit convinced by Kuroko's response. Even Aomine was shaking his head at Kuroko's answer. It was the oldest excuse in the textbook. But any excuse was inexcusable to Akashi.

"Do you have any idea what this means?"

At least Kuroko had the decency to look at the ground. "I apologize."

A frown tugged on Akashi's lips. A simple apology would not do. A simple apology wasn't going to allow them to win the Nationals the following week. The Generation of Miracles took a careful step backwards. At any second, Akashi could pull out his pair of scissors and unleash his wrath on them.

It wouldn't be the first time he had done it after all. Akashi gave Kise a withering glare when the blonde coughed to clear his throat. "That's enough." Akashi finally said. The Generation of Miracles gulped, preparing themselves for the worse.

"Someone get Haisaki."

The members faltered. No one had spoken of Haisaki since Akashi kicked him off the team. It was like taboo.

Akashi's eyes flashed. His patience was already worn thin. "Now."

Murasakibara was the one who had gotten Haisaki because he was the only one that was immune to his snarky remarks. The tall gray haired boy strolled into the gym like he owned the place and greeted his former teammates with a smirk. "Miss me?"

Aomine scowled at the gray haired boy and scoffed. "Hardly. Didn't think I would have to see you on the courts anytime soon." Aomine responded.

Shougo ignored Aomine's comment and zeroed in on Kise. An ugly smirk flitted across his lips. Kise Ryouta. Shougo hated his guts. Why did such an unsightly creature replace him on the team?

"Hello, Ryouta. Your girlfriend sends her greetings." Shougo sneered, knowing all the right buttons to press to get on his nerves. "Or should I say ex-girlfriend?"

Kise flinched at his comment. It was a well-known fact that if there was anyone Shougo hated the most on the basketball team, it would be Kise. He wasn't quite sure what he did to merit such undiluted hate from the boy.

Luckily, Akashi intervened before more damage could be done. "That's enough."

Shougo curled his lips in contempt at Akashi's comment. The atmosphere was tense between the players. It was obvious that the other players were uncomfortable with his presence. "Whatever." Shougo scoffed, shoving his hands in his pockets as his eyes scanned the room.

"So? What do you want?" Shougo finally asked. "I'm a very busy person with things to do."

Aomine snorted. "More like girls to do." He muttered under his breath. Akashi shot him a warning look and the blue haired player immediately silenced himself.

Unfortunately, Aomine's comment did not go unheard by Shougo. "Hm? Where's Satsuki-chan? I would much rather see her than you bastards." Shougo ended his sentence with a suggestive raise of his eyebrows. Aomine frowned and began to lunge towards Shougo.

"Why you bastard. .!" Aomine growled as Murasakiba held him back. A smug smirk was on Shougo's lips as he watched Aomine struggle against Murasakiba's hold.

"That's enough." Akashi repeated, narrowing his eyes slightly at Shougo.

"Hmph. Still as uptight as ever aren't you, Akashi?"

Akashi ignored Shougo's comment, which caused the latter to frown slightly. "You were at the basketball courts last night." He stated.

"So what?" Shougo replied with a drawl as his eyes scanned the courts. He finally recognized Kuroko's presence and the corners of his lips curled upwards as he saw the brace on Kuroko's wrist. "Oh, I get it." Shougo said, snapping his fingers as he pointed at the invisible player.

"You think I had something to do with his injury." Shougo laughed – he wasn't the least bit offended that Akashi had silently accused him of injuring one of the players.

He half-expected Akashi to immediately single him out as soon as one of the basketball players suddenly got injured. Kuroko just happened to be the first player with an injury Akashi bothered to deal with.

Akashi was just so predictable.

They all were.

That's what made them so boring.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I had nothing to do with Tetsuya." Shougo half-heartedly shrugged. "Why don't you tell them what you saw, Tetsuya?"

The Generation of Miracles looked at Kuroko expectedly – waiting for him to clear up the misunderstanding. Kuroko looked uncomfortable under their gaze and looked towards the ground instead. "What's wrong, Tetsuya?" Shougo taunted. "Cat got your tongue?"

The wide smirk on Shougo's lips disappeared as he felt something graze his cheek. The Generation of Miracles looked startled as their eyes landed on the scissors in Akashi's hand. The whole thing happened so quickly that Shougo barely registered the small sting on pain on his cheek.

Akashi looked absolutely livid. He didn't like how Shougo constantly disobeyed his orders and refused to tell him what really happened the other day. The gray haired boy was always testing his patience. "What happened?"

Shougo narrowed his eyes, wiping a trail of blood off his cheek with his thumb. He stared at the scissors in Akashi's hand with distain. "I already told you. I didn't do anything." Shougo snarled, curling his hands into a fist.

The rest of the Generation of Miracles tensed. They were used to Akashi's violent tendencies, but Shougo was like a loose cannon. Akashi and Shougo glared at each other, daring the other party to make the first move.

Once it became clear to Akashi that Shougo wasn't going to tell him anything, a small frown appeared on his lips. "Get out of my sight." The captain finally said.

"Gladly." Shougo sneered in reply, briskly walking past him. He paused in his steps and looked over his shoulders. Kuroko looked impassive as ever as Shougo made eye contact with him.

Shougo looked triumphed and mouthed something at him. Kuroko's eyes widened slightly as Shougo turned back and left the gym. Once Shougo was gone, the suffocating atmosphere lifted.

"Geez, I hate that bastard." Aomine grumbled as he walked over towards Kuroko. "What did he say to you anyways?"

Kuroko felt numb. "I don't know." He lied as Aomine gave him a quizzed glance.

"Well, don't take him seriously anyways." Aomine said. "Haisaki is like a parasite – seems like we can never get rid of him." The blue haired player complained as he went over to Kise.

Kuroko suddenly felt sick as Shougo's words echoed in his head.

Coward.