Hello my lovelies. First of all, please don't kill me. I certainly did not forget about this story; I was just busy and went through a massive writer's block. Like seriously, I opened up the document every day but couldn't type a single word, for weeks. It didn't help that I was trying to properly plan out the story for the next few chapters (up till Takaoka's appearance, which I estimate to be in chapter 19/20), and couldn't get out the perfect line till now. To be honest, even now, there are kinks here and there in the plot line I have planned out and am still working on it. So please be patient with me as this story progresses. As always, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Ansatsu Kyoushitsu/Assassination Classroom or its characters. Just parts of the plot in this story.

Chapter 17: Fun and Danger, In Faraway Hawaii

Teresa glanced at the clock on the wall facing her and frowned. It was about time she got going; she had agreed to meet Lala and the twins to prepare for her mission. She redirected her gaze back onto Gakushuu, who was sipping up the last of his coffee.

"May I take my leave already? I have matters to attend to, and I no longer have time to entertain you," Teresa inquired, finishing up her drink and sliding the empty glass aside. Setting his cup down on the saucer, Gakushuu looked up with an arched brow.

"You should be grateful towards me; I'm taking some of my precious time off just to grace you with my presence," Gakushuu replied, and Teresa simply rolled her eyes.

"Well your highness, I don't feel one bit 'graced' at all. And allow me to remind you, again - you are the one who summoned me. You decided to meet me so that I can relay any information I attained. Not the other way around. No one asked you and your oh-so-holy self to come here, and I certainly don't want it. In fact, I could do without it," Teresa snapped, eyes narrowed with her brows furrowed. Gakushuu simply smirked and let out a chuckle.

"Oh yes. And you certainly didn't get drunk back in Kyoto and called me cute-"

"Enough about that!" Teresa exclaimed, cheeks beet-red as she slammed her fist on the table, leaning forward with a glare. Earlier, Gakushuu was more than willing to refresh her memory regarding their meeting back during the Kyoto trip, and goes without saying, Teresa was ashamed of herself.

"Are you kidding me right now? I said that?" Teresa asked in disbelief, a flabbergasted expression on her face as she stared at Gakushuu wide-eyed. The strawberry-blonde male bit back the bout of laughter that threatened to fall out and pressed his lips into a smirk. He let her question hang in the air as he lifted his cup to his lips for a sip.

"I kid you not." With that, he repeated word for word everything Teresa had said to him during their meet-up in their school trip at Kyoto, and did not bother leaving out the part where he practically carried her back to the inn the E class was staying in.

"Impossible. There's no way. No friggin' way." Teresa hunched over the table, her hands grasping both sides of her head, glaring a hole into the table as heat flooded her cheeks. She began muttering in several different languages all at once, which did not go by Gakushuu's ears, prompting him to glance at her in surprise. He caught onto a word or two, but she was going too fast and changing languages too quickly for him to process.

She then looked up from the table with a burning glare and said, "Whatever happened that night stays between us."

"Oh, is it not true? Did you not think it?"

"Even if I do, it doesn't change the fact that you are a royal pain in the neck and that I seriously despise you," Teresa replied with a snarl, falling back into her seat with a huff as she folded her arms. Gakushuu merely shrugged at that and turned his head around to look at the clock, humming in response. They had stayed on for a lot longer than he thought.

"I suppose we should get going," He replied, raising a hand to summon a waiter for the receipt. Silently watching as Gakushuu handed a couple of dollar bills to the waiter, she let out a huff when the waiter was out of sight. Picking up her bag, she slowly got out of the booth and grumbled, "If only you are just as understanding and compliant regarding anything else…"

"Did you say something?"

"Nothing," Teresa replied monotonously, looping the straps of her bag onto her shoulder and walking towards the main entrance of the store. Opening the door, she was greeted with the sight of Edward standing right outside, holding a large black umbrella over his head. His back had been facing her, but upon hearing the door open, he turned around with a smile.

"Ah, I see you're finally done, Miss." Teresa studied his posture for a moment, noticing his slightly tense shoulders and the small strain in his smile. Her eyelids drooped as she cast her gaze downwards in slight guilt, ignoring the fact that Gakushuu was standing behind her, surprised to see Edward.

"... Thanks for your hard work," Teresa replied, closing her eyes. Gakushuu then shifted his gaze from Edward and to Teresa. "Who's this?"

"My bodyguard and chauffeur. Yes, he has been waiting outside this whole time. So if you'll excuse me, I really must get going," Teresa answered, not sparing a second glance at Gakushuu as she walked towards the limousine, sheltered by Edward's umbrella. Closing the door after her, Edward briefly turned around to make eye contact with Gakushuu and sent a sharp glare, causing the other male to stiffen slightly. Satisfied, Edward turned away and walked over to the driver's seat.

Upon entering the limo and driving away, Edward looked at Teresa through the rearview and frowned slightly at her slightly worn-out state, her head resting on her palm.

"He is starting to interfere with your progress. Shall we get rid of him for you?" Edward asked, and Teresa looked up, pausing for a moment before shaking her head.

"That's a little too risky. It might give us away, and should the target attempt to investigate in the matter, my cover will be blown. Besides, I intend on ending it all soon, so do not interfere unless I order you to do so," Teresa answered, to which Edward simply nodded his head in response.

"Understood. But, albeit it is only my opinion, he is starting to become a liability."

"I agree, but we need to be patient." Teresa replied, speaking more to herself than to Edward, but he heard her nonetheless. She was going to end it soon, so till then, she just had to hang on.

"Nee-sama, what took you so long?" Momo asked, rising from the couch upon seeing Teresa and Edward enter the house, a bouquet of white roses in her arms. Next to her was Nana, who was playing with Pandora, Snowflake and Tear. The two kittens were curled on her lap, while the snake was coiled around her shoulders. Teresa dropped her school bag on one of the chairs around the dining table and stretched her arms over her head.

"I had a prior arrangement that required my presence. It dragged on longer than expected; I'm sorry for making you girls wait," Teresa apologised, a faint smile on her lips. Despite the lack of blood relations, she was fond of and genuinely cared about them. Momo then walked towards Teresa and presented the bouquet to her.

"I brought you a gift. I thought it might be nice to have a fresh bouquet of flowers around the house to freshen up the atmosphere here. Seeing as you're living on your own and all," Momo said, as Teresa accepted the bouquet, a grateful smile gracing her lips.

"Thanks. These roses are beautiful, Momo. But, uh…" Teresa trailed off, looking around. Her quarters were in no way lacking in room for plant decorations, but she was lacking in a vase. Momo immediately caught out and lifted a beautifully crafted, rose-gold coloured vase from the ground with a smile. "I came prepared."

"Thanks," Teresa replied with a chuckle as she held the bouquet in one arm while reaching out to take the vase with the other. Filling the vase with water, she rearranged the beautiful roses in the vase, before placing the vase on the television console shelf, on the right side of the TV. It was at this moment Lala finally burst, unable to contain her growing curiosity.

"So, who were you with? Was it a boy?!" Lala questioned, squealing slightly at the end as she held her cheeks in both hands with an aloof grin. Her behaviour prompted Nana to roll her eyes.

"Psh. Please, as if Aneki would give any guy the time of day-"

"Well, she's not wrong."

"-and willingly… wait, what?!" Nana exclaimed, her mind finally registering the words Teresa let slip out. Realising what she had just said herself, Teresa brought a hand over her lips and averted her eyes, a nonchalant look on her face. But her sisters were having none of it.

"For real? Seriously?!" Lala was now full-out squealing, while Momo was a little more calm as she approached Teresa with an excited gleam in her eyes.

"Willingly?"

"... No, he blackmailed me," Teresa replied with a straight face, and that gleam was instantly extinguished from Momo's eyes, replaced with shock and slight amusement. "Oh, he did, did he?"

"Aww, and just when I thought Nee-san finally found someone she was interested in," Lala lamented with a pout. These two weren't too concerned, but the same couldn't be said for Nana. Mere seconds ago, she was raving and ranting about how impossible it would be for Teresa to want to hang out with a guy, and now that she's heard the reason, she was throwing a massive fit that could rival a level-5 earthquake, while her Kansai dialect slipped out.

"The fucker did what? Tell me his name! I'm gonna find 'im and skin 'im alive and boil his body. Then I'll castrate the asshat and-"

"Nana, please control yourself. It is unbecoming language and behaviour as a member of the Amano family," Teresa coaxed with soothing tone, which immediately made the spiteful girl calm down. "Sorry, Aneki."

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you'd be so riled up over something like that. Seriously, you're such a child, and immature. Just like your body," Momo taunted, an arrogant and teasing smirk playing her lips as she pointed stared at Nana's washboard chest. Which successfully ticked Nana off.

"The fuck did you just say, Momo?! Acting all stuck-up and mature just because you have the larger chest! It doesn't matter if its a few seconds or a few hours apart: we're twins!" Nana snapped, downright livid.

"The fact that you hang onto small details like that and snap at every small thing furthers proves you're still a child, Nana," Momo calmly replied, an arm supporting her large chest - significantly larger than Nana's - to purposely push it upwards, as if to further emphasize her point. Naturally, Nana took the bait.

"What?!"

"Enough!" Lala exclaimed, standing between the two, acting as both a mediator and a shield. She shot a cold glare at the twins - a one-eighty from her usual self - to which the twins immediately shut up in sight of it. When they had fallen silent and given her their fullest attention, she chastised them.

"Nana, Momo is right - you need to stop losing your temper at every small thing said and done. If you can't control yourself among us, your family, how do you expect to control yourself in front of others? As an Amano, you must ensure proper conduct and never embarrass yourself or the Amanos, and to do that, watch your temper!"

As Nana sulked, Lala then turned to Momo, who flinched slightly under the intensity of Lala's glare.

"And Momo, stop taunting your sister and baiting her to start a fight! It happens way too often, and I'm tired of having to step in and come between you two every time it happens." Momo pouted slightly and turned away, as Lala huffed in agitation.

"Look, I wasn't trying to start a fight or anything, I'm just curious as to why you two aren't the least bit affected by what Aneki said. The dude threatened her-"

"Oh, please. Like that's the first time that happened. Remember the Amano-Boisseau conference that was held in France seven years ago?" Momo stated, face scrunched up into a grimace at the memory, which was almost immediately mirrored by Nana. The Boisseau family thought it was a good idea to threaten the Amanos through Teresa - considering she was the leading heiress contender - and the outcome of that conference was not a pretty one.

"Point is, it isn't that this man threatened her. It is the fact that he chose her to threaten. In that moment, his fate was sealed. He screwed himself up the moment he decided to do it," Lala explained, an evil grin settling on her lips. Momo and Nana exchanged knowing looks and chuckled.

"I'll admit though, I'm surprised he's still alive. I would've thought he'd be dead already," Nana stated, before Momo tutted her. "Please, with Nee-sama's new undercover mission, you really think she can afford that kind of suspicion? She's taking things slow to ensure that her progress is smooth-sailing."

"You're quite right. And now that that's done with, let's get down to business," Teresa stated, her expression turning serious. Her sisters followed suit, settling around her. Edward stepped out of the kitchen with a English-styled tray in hand, several teacups on matching saucers, along with a plate of snacks. He set the tray down on the coffee table in front of the couch before sitting next to Teresa, offering a cup to her. He then did the same for the three sisters, who in turn thanked him.

Forefinger and thumb holding onto the handle of the teacup with her pinky finger pointing out - due to force of habit - she brought it to her lips and sipped on the Earl Grey tea Edward had brewed, letting out a hum of approval before setting it on the saucer. She then looked towards Lala.

"I believe you were able to finish what I had requested of you?" Teresa began directing her question towards Lala, who nodded in response. The said girl then picked up one of the two silver briefcases that were on the ground beside her, and placed it on the table before opening it to show Teresa the contents.

"There is the usual equipment: earpiece communicators, your custom firearms, army knives, throwing knives, smoke bombs and detonators. It will be given to you on the day itself," Lala stated.

She took out the first object and presented the model to Teresa. It had a simple design, a semi-spherical top comprising of slide covers, a flat bottom, and the activation button on the very top. Then she pulled out a black, metal bracelet with ten hexagonal buttons lined up against each other.

"Remote-controlled implosives, with a target range radius of one kilometer, so as to take care of any atomic bombs found on site. After pressing the switch, it immediately goes into installation mode - the back of the bomb will become a suction device, which allows it to be attached to any surfaces. When activated using the remote, the slide covers will open and enter vacuum mode, at which time the bomb will start to suck in surrounding air and dust. When its vacuum mode reaches the critical stage, the resulting void explosion can destroy almost anything within the vicinity of its target range," Lala explained, pointing out the unique features of the bomb. Teresa's eyes widened at the explanation, pleasantly surprised.

"The remote is that bracelet? And it can eradicate anything within its range on a molecular level?

"Pretty much. I've already tested it myself, and the execution is flawless. However you can't activate it using the remote unless the button on the bomb has been pressed," Lala replied, before returning the bombs into its slot in the briefcase and pulling out one of the two silver pistols.

"A specially designed pistol with custom-made stun bullets. Each bullet has approximately ten thousand volts of electricity; just enough to completely immobilize a person while barely toeing the line of killing them." Lala pulled out one of the four cartridges, each filled with ten stun bullets. Teresa took out a bullet from one of the cartridges, and was able to easily make out the familiar design that Lala used for inventions and gadgets for electrocution on the bullets. She could already tell that the bullets activated upon impact.

"A choker necklace with a live-feed camera in the crystal pendant, which is connected to this tablet. The camera is completely soundless, so any possibility of it being noticed is next to none, and it is equipped with a micro-fisheye lens and correction program for a wider range of vision," Lala continued, as she took out a simple black choker made from some sort of leather-like material, with a diamond-shaped ruby stone as the pendant.

Teresa took it from her and, upon closer inspection, was able to make out the outlines of the camera carefully encased in the ruby stone. She then took the tablet and tested the camera out. Despite its size, the visibility and range was much better than she had expected. Putting down the tablet on her lap, she offered a smile towards Lala.

"Wonderful job done, Lala. I must admit, these are much better than I had expected. I am truly grateful. These new inventions are sure to help me complete this new mission quickly," Teresa said, while Lala seemed to shine brighter with each praise that left Teresa's lips.

"Actually…" Lala began, smiling sheepishly as she pulled up the second briefcase and placing it on the table, next to the first one, "I prepared a little something extra for you as well."

Opening up the briefcase, Teresa blinked in surprise at the neatly folded battle uniform that laid before her. She bent over to pick up the uniform by the shoulders and hold it up to eye level, admiring the design and intricacy of the suit.

It was a seamless, black, one-piece jumpsuit, made from the same leather-like material that was used to make the choker necklace from before. The top part was open-shoulder with a halter neckline, fingerless gloves at the ends of the sleeves; while the bottom part consisted of skintight pants joint with a pair of high, block-heeled boots. Around the waist area was a simple silver, metallic belt, connected to a thigh garter belt that wrapped around both legs, with holsters and sheaths for weapons.

"This is a new material that I constructed recently. It is soft and flexible, which allows for easy movement, and is breathable for comfort. But it is also completely heat proof and bulletproof, cut-resistant, and highly impact resistant. I'm still working on making it indestructible against even nuclear bombs, so it'll be awhile before the material is perfect. Also, the belt buckle doubles as a grappling hook with an expandable cable. This design is only a prototype, but it should be enough for this mission," Lala explained, as Teresa continued inspecting it. Turning it around, she found it to be partially backless, and a zip that went down to the hip area. And apparently, there were pockets.

"... Have you ever considered being a designer instead of an inventor?" Teresa asked jokingly, before grinning. "This is absolutely lovely. Thank you, Lala."

"Why don't you try it on? I tailored it according to your sizes the last time they were taken, but… you know, just in case." Lala suggested, offering a sheepish smile as she gestured towards Teresa's curves. While the three sisters themselves - well, Lala and Momo - were well developed themselves despite their age, Teresa's growth was definitely the most abundant amongst them all.

"Right. I guess I should." With that, Teresa reached up to her necktie and pulled at the knot, loosening it till it was undone. Placing over the armrest of the nearest couch, she proceeded to unzip her skirt and let it fall to the ground, before stepping out of it and placing it with her tie. She then unbuttoned her top and shook it off her shoulders, leaving her in her undergarments and black pantyhose.

She was vaguely aware of the stares from her sisters and Edward but didn't care; she wasn't bothered by such a thing. Not anymore, anyways.

Meanwhile, the girls and Edward couldn't keep their eyes off Teresa, as she began casually undressing in front of them as if they weren't right there. They weren't bothered by that fact, for they knew exactly the reason why. And no matter how much they wanted to avert their eyes to respect her privacy, they couldn't. Not with the faint marks of old and new scars, along with the ugly reminder of a burn on her lower back, glaring back at them.

Teresa then picked up the suit and unzipped it before slipping it on, marvelling at the lack of discomfort from what appeared to be a constricting attire.

After putting her arms through the top, she turned around with her back facing to Edward, and tilted her head to look over her shoulder with an expectant gaze. Edward complied and stepped forward to zip up her suit.

Teresa then stepped away and stretched her arms over her head, before bending over to touch the ground. She felt the material stretch on her back, and was astonished by the lack of pressure around her neck that would have been felt with any other clothing.

Standing back up, she then swung her legs upwards and around in a few experimental kicks, before eventually coming to a stop. At her pause, Lala stepped forth. "Well?"

"... I dare say it's perfect. There's no discomfort and restriction in the material whatsoever. I have to admit though, the thickness - or lack thereof - of the material is a little concerning. But aside from them, it's good. I like it," Teresa commended with a small smile. Lala practically preened at the praise and clasped her hands together.

"Great! As I said though, this is just a prototype. When the construction of the material is perfected, I will put it into a new design."

"I look forward to it," Teresa replied, and with that, the three sisters began to dismiss themselves.

"Well, we've got to get going now. We slipped out to say hi, since it's been a few months since we saw your face. We'll come by again, Nee-sama," Momo said, getting up and smoothing out any wrinkles on her skirt. Nana followed suit and locked her hands behind her head.

"Yeah, let me play with those guys again, Aneki!" Nana exclaimed, nodding towards the two kittens and the snake, that at some point had gathered at Teresa's feet.

"You're welcome here anytime. Just make sure you give me a heads-up before you do. You know I hate surprises," Teresa replied, joking good-naturedly as the four sisters shared a laugh. It was known how often Gid sprung last-minute details on her, and how viciously she usually responded to that.

"Will do! Till next time, Nee-sama!" Lala said, before waving goodbye and stepping out of the house. Edward followed them out - he had his duty as a bodyguard of the Amano family to fulfill after all - and escorted them to the limo that brought them here.

Watching them disappear around the corner, Teresa shut the door. She twisted her arm behind her back to reach the zip and pulled it down, before peeling the suit off of her. Once completely taken off, she laid it on the couch before grabbing her uniform, making her way to the bathroom.

Since she had stripped off her clothes, she figured she might as well go ahead and take a bath. She bent down to give her three pets a pat each before venturing forth for a relaxing hot bath. She had a long day ahead of her tomorrow.

The following morning, Edward's last-minute information took her by surprise.

"You'll be taking a private jet to Hawaii. The trip should take about two and a half hours, so we will depart immediately after school ends," Edward stated, meeting Teresa's eyes through the rearview mirror. Her actions came to a stop - she had been polishing the blade of her personal knife - as she narrowed her eyes.

"You're coming along too?"

"Gid-sama's orders. Plus, if it involves you, that would mean it inadvertently involves me too," Edward replied, and Teresa let out a sigh. She couldn't really argue with that.

"Alright. Is there anyone else assigned to the same mission?"

"I was notified there are two others on our team, but I haven't been informed who they are."

Teresa squeezed her eyes shut and withheld the urge to click her tongue, instead resorting to pinching the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger.

Considering that this mission may have information that she would consider highly confidential, she wasn't too fond of the idea of having outsiders on the team. Not to mention, she worked best on her own.

But if it's Gid's orders as her superior… she couldn't refuse. She let out a deep breath and reopened her eyes. She sheathed the knife and placed it on the leather seat next to her.

"Okay."

Teresa silently mused at the sight of Korosensei avoiding Isogai's bullet despite being completely engrossed in the magazine in his hands. Then again, having a gun pointed right at the face is bound to put one on high alert.

"You're in an awfully good mood today, Korosensei," Isogai began, bending down to pick up the pellet that had bounced off the blackboard - having missed its target - before asking, "Do you have plans after school?"

"Why, yes. I'm going to watch a movie in Hawaii." Teresa kept her gaze on her book to hide the way her eye twitched at the mention of the country. Thankfully, her shape intake of air was masked by the shuffling of feet around the classroom.

Curse her luck. And by that, she meant terrible misfortune.

"It's being premiered in the States first, and I don't want to wait till it is released here in Japan," Korosensei continued, just as Nakamura made her way to Korosensei, a cute pout on her lips.

"That's so not fair, Korosensei; going by yourself without inviting any of us." Korosensei simply chuckled triumphantly - and proudly - before countering with, "Well, if you can fly at Mach 20, you might as well put it to good use. And it is especially useful for situations such as these."

He held up the magazine to show his students the title of the movie he was going to watch.

"Sonic Ninja?" Kataoka read, the name of the movie earning a couple of surprised gasps from Teresa's left. She restrained the urge to look in their direction and continued pretending to read her book while focussing on the conversation happening at the front of the class.

"That new action movie? Cool! Give us your review tomorrow, Korosensei!" Maehara exclaimed excitedly, leaving his desk to join Isogai, Nakamura and Kataoka to crowd around Korosensei. Korosensei chuckled in response. "Of course, Maehara-kun!"

Hearing the conversation come to an end, Teresa spared a glance to her left, and nearly went slack-jawed upon seeing the exact same magazine in Nagisa's hands as he stood next to Karma's desk, and both boys were staring wide-eyed at Korosensei, anxious gleams in their eyes.

She didn't even need to ask to know what was going through their minds; it was clear as day that they wanted to go as well. She held back the urge to sigh and resorted to clenching her jaw behind closed lips.

The level of difficulty of her side mission just skyrocketed.

Just as she had suspected, Nagisa and Karma were going to ask Korosensei to bring them along to Hawaii to watch the premiere. What she wasn't expecting, was for Karma to invite her to join them.

"You want me to come along?" Teresa asked, the surprise in her voice quite genuine, seeing as she hadn't foreseen the invitation. Karma nodded while Nagisa smiled sweetly.

"We'd love to spend more time with you, Teresa-san, since we hardly hang out outside of school hours. I'm sure Karma-kun would be happy to have you around too," Nagisa stated, missing - or maybe purposely ignoring - the brief, alarmed glance that Karma shot him. Teresa didn't miss it, and swallowed hard, momentarily unsure of how to answer.

In her opinion, it was highly unlikely that Karma had some sort of affection for her, beyond the platonic kind, but in the off chance he did…

She didn't have the luxury. Or the mental faculties for it.

"Oh, but I wouldn't want to third-wheel your date," Teresa said teasingly, a finger on her sly smirk. Nagisa's cheeks went red while Karma let out an undignified snort.

"I already told you, it's- we're not like that!" Nagisa exclaimed, a panicked expression on his face while Karma and Teresa laughed heartily at the priceless reaction. Teresa reached out to affectionately pat Nagisa's head with a gentle smile.

"Sorry, sorry, I'm just teasing. I'd love to hang out with you guys, but I'm kind of in a hurry today. I've got somewhere to be; family business issues," Teresa replied with an apologetic smile as she picked up her bag from the hook on the side of her desk. Slinging it over her shoulder, she quickly got up from her seat and made her way to the classroom door. Flashing one last smile, she gave a small wave. "Maybe another time!"

With that, Teresa all but dashed down the mountain, maneuvering herself to narrowly avoid bumping into anyone else still leisurely making their way down. Reaching the main campus, she spotted Gakushuu from the corner of her eyes as she walked towards the front gate, where Edward was already waiting. When their eyes met, Gakushuu's once charming smile morphed into a neutral expression, while Teresa narrowed her eyes before looking ahead and continuing on her way.

She didn't have time for him right now.

Gakushuu silently watched as she slid into the limo, eyes narrowed at both her and her so-called bodyguard. It was just a hunch, but he had a feeling they had a relationship that was more than employer and employee. The latter seemed far too protective for it to be simply obligation to his job.

"Asano-kun," Gakushuu turned towards Ren, who had called his name with an unreadable look in his eyes. Ren then pointed to the entrance of the campus behind him while saying, "A word, if I may. In private."

Raising a brow, Gakushuu complied and followed Ren back into the campus and into one of the classrooms, which was empty. Gakushuu shut the classroom door behind him before facing Ren, who was now frowning.

"What was that?" Ren questioned.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Asano-kun. I'm talking about Teresa. I saw you looking her way, and I could tell she didn't bother putting up an act when your eyes met. Is there something going on between the two of you that I don't know about?" Ren interrogated. Gakushuu frowned at Ren's astute observations and pondered over it.

Despite his tendency to treat those around him beneath him, he did view the rest of the Five Virtuosos as his friends, especially Ren - who was his first friend upon entering Kunugigaoka. And while he prioritised his own goals above everything else, he didn't want it to ruin what he had with his friends; as uncharacteristic as it sounded, he did care.

But as of this moment, it was too early to reveal everything.

"I'm afraid I can't say. But if things go as planned, I may be able to tell you everything soon," Gakushuu offered, but judging from Ren's unimpressed look and raised brow, he knew that wasn't enough to placate him. "What I can tell you is that we had something of a… deal going on for a while now, since she transferred to the 3-E class. When I get what I need, I promise I will tell you everything."

Ren could tell Gakushuu wasn't to budge past this point, and let out a low sigh of resignation. It wasn't like he could push Gakushuu into submission. no matter how much he wanted to.

"Fine. I won't push for more details; you can tell me at your own time. But whatever it is, I suggest you stop. And the sooner, the better. Or things are gonna end badly for you. Especially since even Edward is wary of you, if his glare was anything to go by," Ren commented, remembering the look that the bodyguard slash chauffeur had shot Gakushuu when he caught the said male staring at Teresa. At the foreign name, Gakushuu blinked in surprise towards Ren's direction.

"Edward?"

"Yeah, that blond man; Teresa's bodyguard and chauffeur."

"You know him personally?" Gakushuu questioned, immediately targeting his chance at finding out what he wanted to know. Ren stared at him wide-eyed, apparently surprised by Gakushuu's lack of knowledge.

"Yeah, sort of. We met several times. In public, he and Teresa maintain a professional relationship of employer and employee. But they are actually a lot more than that; they are much closer than people think. Like the saying goes, there's more to things than meets the eye," Ren replied. It was Gakushuu's turn to go wide-eyed.

"Closer? As in, lovers?" Ren blinked, before he bit back a chuckle that threatened to spill forth at Gakushuu's word, earning a glare and flushed cheeks from the strawberry-blonde.

"What's this? The great Asano, jealous?"

"I am not jealous!" Gakushuu exclaimed, near to the point of shouting. "I'm just.. curious. You know how I don't like being left in the dark about things I want to know. So... are they...?"

"You couldn't be further from the mark, man. God, that would be really wrong," Ren said between laughs, and calmed himself down before continuing, "because they are cousins."

"... I'm sorry, what?" He was glad he had not been walking and instead was just standing still in the same spot, or he would have given an embarrassing, unintentional show that would have put the humour of falling first-time ice skaters to shame.

"Yeah, they're cousins; biological cousins. Did you seriously not know that?" Ren inquired, raising both brows at the unmasked expression on bewilderment on Gakushuu's face. The latter numbly shook his head; the possibility ever even crossed his mind. The two looked nothing alike, at all.

"No, I didn't. This whole time, I had simply assumed that-"

"Ah yes, but assumption doesn't mean it is the truth, does it?" Ren countered, a knowing smirk on his lips as his eyes narrowed with mirth. Gakushuu's eye twitched at that and awkwardly cleared his throat in an attempt to play off his embarrassment as agitation.

"Whatever."

"Anyways, all that aside, remember what I said: end it while you can, and don't get any more involved with her than you already are. Seriously, you are asking for a death wish, and I don't want to see my best friend's dead body discovered on a barren spot on a faraway mountain one day," Ren deadpanned, making his way to the door. Gakushuu knitted his brows into a frown - which resembled a lot like a cringe - upon hearing the very detailed expression.

"That's… oddly specific," Gakushuu stated hesitantly, unsure if he should take it seriously or not. The look on Ren's face, however, told him to do the former.

"If that's what you consider specific, it might be about time you updated your vocabulary. That is vague compared to what the news might say when it actually happens," Ren said, and the fact that he used the term 'when' instead of 'if' did not pass by the strawberry-blonde boy. The two teens had stony expressions as they held each other's stare.

Ren was the first to breakaway with his usual easygoing smile, and waved goodbye as he made his way out of the classroom. "Well, see you tomorrow, Asano-kun."

Gakushuu watched Ren walk out the door before leaning against a desk. As much as he appreciated Ren's concern and repeated warnings, he was so close to uncovering his father's secret and gaining control. He wasn't about to quit now, not when his goal is so near and within reach.

He just needed to be patient.

As soon as Teresa settled into the limousine, Edward drove towards the underground carpark of her private quarters. Leaving all of her things behind, both of them stepped out to swap vehicles for the black five-seater car that was already prepared in advance.

One of Gid's men was there waiting, mainly to bring her stuff up to her quarters.

Edward swiftly tossed the keys of the limousine and Teresa's apartment to him before opening the door of the car for Teresa to enter. Closing the door behind her, he speed-walked to the door of the driver's seat and slid in, turning on the engine to drive.

In their hurry to leave, they failed to notice the way Gid's 'employee' smirked upon receiving the keys, covering it with a bow in their direction as they drove off. When the black car was out of sight, he openly grinned as he unlocked the limousine and picked up Teresa's stuff, including her handphone, before locking the car doors.

As he stepped into the lift and made his way up to her apartment, he plugged a device into the charger port of her handphone, transferring his custom-made bug into the phone.

Reaching the floor her apartment was at, he stepped out of the lift and faced towards the door. Taking a brief glance around the corridor, he was instantly able to make out the multiple laser alarms, the beams practically barricading the door.

Taking out the house keys that were handed to him earlier, he found a small black device attached to the key holder ring and experimentally pressed one of the buttons. One by one, the laser alarms deactivated.

Bingo.

He strode forward to the door and unlocked it, stepping into the house and settling her bag on the dining table.

A quick look at her handphone screen told him that the download was complete, so he unplugged the device and placed her phone on the table, next to the bag.

He then pulled put several wireless cameras and got to work. As much fun as sabotaging her side mission would be, that would be a conflict of interest. Instead, he decided to focus on observing more on her private life; he had derived enough from her public life.

He proceeded to set up the cameras in the living room, the kitchen, her bedroom and the training room. Just in case, he decided to set up a microphone in the bathroom; he never knew when an important conversation might occur. He had considered it, but decided against putting a camera in the bathroom; that was just in poor taste. Not to mention, he had no interest in being labelled a pedophile, or peeping in on young girls.

He didn't want to get on her bad side before even properly meeting her.

After ensuring everything was operating properly, he made sure to remove any traces that could lead back to him, before taking his leave. Once out and away from the building, he pulled off the rubber mask and slipped on a different one, before setting up what was to be his store in his van.

The time for them to meet was coming very soon.

After changing vehicles, Edward drove them off to the open lands that were owned by the Amanos, where their private jet was already parked with the hanger open, waiting for them. Driving up the hanger, they went straight into the jet.

Teresa didn't wait for Edward and opened the door herself, stepping out of the car and closing the door behind her. She turned to face one of the men who was waiting for them and nodded towards him. He returned the gesture and proceeded to press the red button behind him, which resulted in closing the hanger.

She strode forward without hesitation, not sparing a glance at any of the men who were lined up in anticipation of her arrival. Entering the main space, she raised her hand and flicked her wrist in a gesture of dismissal, and the men took it as their signal to leave.

All except the two other girls on board; her fellow colleagues - by which, she meant assassins.

Once left alone, she quickly stripped off her school uniform and slipped on the black jumpsuit given to her the previous day. Edward, who had silently followed her and stood by the side as she changed, assisted her in zipping up the suit once more.

He then stepped away to allow the two girls to approach Teresa, the blonde-haired one holding a makeup set and the red-haired other holding several bags. Both them were clad in black pantsuits with white button-down blouses inside. Teresa regarded them with a nod as she began slipping her weapons into their holsters on her suit.

"It has been a while, hasn't it, Teresa-san?"

"Indeed. Ten months, I believe. It's good to see you, Yami," Teresa replied with a small smile, glancing at the blonde-haired girl, who returned the gesture.

"Hey, how about me?" The other girl fake-pouted, which did nothing to hide her growing smirk. Teresa let out a chuckle and flashed a sideways smile.

"It's good to see you too, Mea," Teresa stated. Her expression then turned stony. "Did Gid assign you as part of my team for this mission?"

"Yes, since it is of relevance to us," Yami replied, opening the makeup set, while Mea opened up the bags in her hands to reveal a blonde wig, several hair pins, a brush, casual clothes, and accessories.

It was no secret to their agency that Yami and Mea were found to be in the same association that held Teresa captive, miraculously alive despite the destruction of the facility, which took the lives of the other children who were there too. They weren't as close to her as Lala, Momo and Nana were, but they were close enough.

"I guess that's reasonable," Teresa commented, taking the neatly folded set of clothes from Mea and slipping them on over her suit, before settling into one of the leather couches in the jet. The girls placed their stuff on the glass table before her as they got to work.

Mea began combing back Teresa's fringe and bangs while Yami handed her a pair of coloured contacts to put on. After she did, Yami began working on applying her foundation. Mea gathered her long locks and began fixing her hair into a long low braided style, and with her fringe and bangs out of the way, Yami was able to quickly apply the rest of her makeup - blush, eyeshadow, mascara, etcetera.

When Mea was done braiding her hair, she coiled up the long braid into a low bun and wrapped a hair bun net around it, using several hairpins to keep it in place, before adjusting the blonde wig over her head. She then arranged the bangs of the wig as Yami dabbed on some rouge onto Teresa's lips.

"In other to infiltrate their base, where they are keeping the atomic bombs they attained through Will Cruise in one of their deals, we need to disguise ourselves as customers interested in obtaining those weapons that will be sold in black market auctions." Edward debriefed, as Yami and Mea added the finishing touches to her disguise. "There is a meet-up spot in a mall in Hawaii for patrons interested. It is in a bar, and there is an underground level where there will be transportation provided to their base."

Edward handed Teresa a simple branded purse, with several necessities and a fake ID inside. "We have already hacked into their system where they store the data on their patrons and included your fake identity to their list. Naturally, we will remove it once this mission is over."

Teresa hummed in acknowledgement, taking the purse from him when the girls stepped away from her. Mea then began braiding her loose locks, while Yami took out the two-side-up hairstyle her hair was in to retie it into a low ponytail.

"Yami and Mea will act as your bodyguards, while a few others and myself will directly infiltrate the base as guards," Edward finished, before straightening up with the two girls by his respective sides, awaiting Teresa's orders. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, before reopening them with a murderous gaze.

"All right, let's do this."

"To think you would be mistaken as a girl and hit on by guys, even in Hawaii. Your androgynous knows no bounds, Nagisa-san!" Ritsu exclaimed with a wide smile, causing Karma to snicker while Nagisa winced at the memory of what had transpired in the cinema earlier. But he quickly shook his head and turned towards Karma with an excited grin.

"But, that was awesome!" Nagisa exclaimed, practically skipping out of the cinema, Karma and Korosensei following closely behind. Karma felt himself smile slightly as he nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, the action was superb. Coming all the way to Hawaii for this was definitely worthwhile, but…" Karma trailed off, smile dropping to a straight line as he uneasily glanced sideways. Nagisa followed his eyes and let out a nervous chuckle.

Korosensei had been sobbing non-stop since the movie ended, and it was embarrassingly loud, attracting unwanted attention from people within the immediate vicinity. Which Ritsu was quick to point out.

"Korosensei, approximately 80% of the people in the mall are staring at us," Ritsu dryly stated as she stared at her teacher from Nagisa's phone, slotted in the breast pocket of his vest.

"B-But I can't h-help it… Long lost s-siblings… H-How tragic…" Korosensei blubbered between sobs, a handkerchief dabbing at his eyes the whole time. Both boys cringed and simultaneously took a step back, away from their teacher. As he did, Nagisa's back bumped into something. Or rather, someone.

"Oh, sor- sorry," Nagisa immediately apologised, switching to English upon remembering where he was. As he fully turned around, he blushed slightly at the sight of the beautiful woman that stood behind him.

She had wavy, shoulder-length pale-blonde hair, fringe parted from the middle, and the locks perfectly crafting the outline of her face. Her outfit consisted of an elegant black ruffled high-neck top with bell sleeves that covered her arms all the way to her fingertips, a long suede beige skirt that ended at her ankles, and black high-heeled boots. She had dark yet simple makeup applied and minimal accessories on her, save for the expensive-looking branded purse in her hand and the chunky necklace that hung around her neck.

Karma, too, noticed the lady and eyed her with mild interest; even Korosensei's sobbing subsided momentarily for him to admire her beauty. As the lady slowly turned towards Nagisa, the trio took note of the two other women standing a short distance behind her, both clad in black suit and tie.

One of them had long golden blonde hair tied into a low ponytail, while the other had long fuschia-red hair tied into a low braid. Judging from the similarities in their facial features, the trio easily surmised them to be twins; and from their attire and serious expressions, there was no doubt they were the lady's bodyguards.

When the lady fully faced Nagisa, her electric-blue eyes met Nagisa's crystal-blue ones, and her red-painted lips curved upwards into a sweet smile, bending over slightly to match his level and placed a hand on his head, giving a few comforting pats.

"It's alright, just be careful from now on," She replied, words thick with a Hawaiien accent, and with one last pat, she straightened up and turned around, continuing on her way. The three males stared at her back profile, followed closely behind by her two bodyguards. Nagisa still had his mouth agape, which prompted Karma to smirk devilishly as he assisted his classmate in closing it by pushing his chin upwards.

"What's the matter, Nagisa-kun? Cat got your tongue?" Karma teasingly, snapping Nagisa out of his trance and causing the bluenette to flush a dark crimson.

"Oh my, Nagisa-san! A crush on a foreign woman?" Ritsu joined in, giggling slightly as Nagisa's blush deepened.

"W-Well, she is really pretty. Don't you agree?"

"Hm, true. She would definitely give Bitch-sensei a run for her money," Karma replied nonchalantly, but Nagisa sensed there was something else he was holding back from saying.

"But?"

Korosensei, who initially continued sobbing when the lady turned away and left, completely stopped to hear what Karma had to say. The red-haired male hesitated for a long moment, then with much reluctance, stated with outward indifference, "... Teresa easily beats them both."

"You sure that's not just your bias speaking?" Nagisa asked with a chuckle.

"It's not. I'm being technical." Karma firmly denied, remaining impassive in the face of the onslaught of teasing that came. Nagisa then reached up to the top of his head, feeling around it, causing Korosensei and Karma to stare at him.

"What' wrong, Nagisa-kun?"

"No, um... the way that lady patted my head... for some reason, it feels very familiar," Nagisa muttered, fingers picking at his bangs as he said this, face scrunched up as he pondered over the feeling.

Had they paid more attention to the blonde lady's reaction rather than her appearance, they would've noticed how her smile had been strained and the way her shoulders tensed when she faced Nagisa. The said lady, after walking a safe distance away from the trio, spared a backward glance to make sure they were no longer looking her way, before venturing forth to fulfill her objective.

"But seriously, that movie was awesome, wasn't it? That cliffhanger leaves you wanting more! I can't wait for the next movie!" Nagisa gushed as soon as Korosensei had brought them back to Japan.

"Yeah, but the enemy turning out to be the female protagonist's brother? Talk about cliché," Karma lamented, causing Nagisa to freeze up and sweatdrop. "O-Oh… I guess that's true…"

"I can analyze the entire cinematic catalog as well as the tropes of Hollywood films to predict how the Sonic Ninja series will turn out! Shall I try it out?" Ritsu cheerily piped up from Nagisa's phone, draining Nagisa's initial enthusiasm as he stared down at her with an exasperated smile.

"No, thanks. You two are real party poopers, you know?" He had intended to say more, but heard a sob coming from the side, and both boys turned towards the source to find a sobbing Korosensei, dabbing his eyes with his handkerchief.

"Long-lost siblings! What a cruel fate!" He exclaimed, weeping with each word. The two boys stared at him, Nagisa sweatdropping and Karma deadpanning.

Korosensei's Weakness (13): Cried at clichéd scenes

"So what do you make of that? I thought he was a grown adult," Karma commented, barely holding himself from cringing at the sight. Even Ritsu seemed exasperated by Korosensei's reaction. "He's been like this all the way home from Hawaii."

"Thank you so much for today, Korosensei! See you tomorrow."

"See you," Karma followed up Nagisa's goodbye with a short one.

"Goodbye! It's night already, so be careful on your way back home," Korosensei began, waving his tentacle goodbye, and just as the two boys turned their backs on him, he added, "and I expect you to hand in a review of the movie by the end of school tomorrow, written in English."

"Eh? You're giving us homework?!" Nagisa protested, but couldn't retort when Korosensei replied, "Think of it as a fee. It's a small price to pay for a free trip to Hawaii."

As Nagisa and Karma walked side by side down the streets, the former let out a light sigh, earning Karma's attention and prompting the red-head to ask, "What's the matter, Nagisa-kun?"

Nagisa flashed a smile and said, "I have to admit, that was a first. Listening to a lecture while flying to Hawaii, watching a movie and coming home; all within the short span of just five hours!"

Karma couldn't help the laugh that escaped. "You said it."

"On top of that, Korosensei reached a new level of care in keeping you two from harm; he made sure you could handle the G-forces by shielding you from the wind pressure and dust particles with his tentacles," Ritsu stated factually, remembering what she had witnessed when Korosensei had flown them back and forth between Japan and Hawaii.

"What we saw today… was the world that Korosensei sees all the time," Nagisa comments in a low voice, while Karma remains deadly silent and emotionless. "The more I get to know him, the more I feel like his life is receding from our view. And I realize… how hard it is going to be to kill him."

While he doesn't say anything, Karma finds himself agreeing with Nagisa's sentiments.

Korosensei stood on the peak of the mountain where the satellite campus was at, using his enhanced vision to watch his two students walk back home, ensuring no harm came near them.

He had hoped them going for a movie together would close whatever distance there was between the two boys, but to no avail. As he thought, he needed to make a more direct approach to both of them, separately. Especially Nagisa, regarding his cultivated bloodlust.

Seeing them split ways towards their respective homes, Korosensei peeled his eyes away from them and began stretching his tentacles with his ever-present grin.

"Well then, I ought to get going too. I'm supposed to head over to Mimura-kun's place to give him a one-to-one Mathematics tutoring." With that, he took off at Mach 20 and sped across the skies, completely unaware of the unwavering gaze from a pair of golden eyes that glared at him from below, his form dimly illuminated by the moonlight.

A man cloaked in white stepped out of the shadows and into the moonlight. "Were you able to follow him with your eyes?"

The figure hummed in response, nodding slowly as they remained perched on a tree. The man in white smirked behind his mask, his true intentions for his useful pawn well-hidden like his identity. "Good, that means you will definitely be able to kill him."

The eerie golden eyes didn't blink as they continued staring up at the crescent moon, before the dark figure muttered, "Bro...ther…"

Yeah, so as I mentioned above, I've been having trouble planning out the plot line for the following few chapters because I was thinking of mixing in the events of Teresa's mission in Hawaii as flashbacks in the next few chapters for impact and lead up to the build up of her emotions when Itona and Shiro appear. Plus, there is the Grim Reaper/Shinigami, who is waiting for the opportunity to approach her for his plan.

So yeah, as always, hope you enjoyed it, and please review/comment what you thought!

XOXO, anime4life2112