Review Replies-

HaikyuuLover2020- Really?! How crazy is that! The Cat's Meow is a perfect name for something Nekoma related, in my humble, biased opinion that is. XD. I'll definitely have to check out your story!

-Kiera

TheJadeWarrior- I meant "lost" as in stolen. Hence why I used "destroyed" later on, but I see your point, so I'll try to clarify that in the future. Thanks for the advice on unnamed characters! Hmmm I'm usually strong in imagery, but I think I lost some of that in Chapter 8. I'll keep an eye out in the next chapters. Thank you for your kind words about my writing of IwaOi! It means so much to me! I hope your last week of school has gone well!

-Kiera

Like I said, it's picking up! Tomorrow, June 18th, is actually my 20th birthday! I'm so happy I finished this chapter in time so we can celebrate together! Now, please enjoy!

Kuroo had ditched his suit in favor of a lounge shirt and sweatpants when he went to bed last night, and he didn't bother to change again this morning. He strode through the interconnecting hallways of the upper levels of the Cat's Meow, making his way from his private chambers to Kenma's hidden spot. Even when the change of command happened, Kenma remained where he always had. Kuroo appreciated the closeness of the other man. It would make it a lot easier to talk to him without raising suspicion. If people saw them constantly having meetings, then the best kept secret of Nekoma would no longer be a secret. If by some miracle they didn't put two-and-two together, then people would start doubting Kuroo's leadership abilities. It wasn't that Kuroo couldn't lead Nekoma by himself, he certainly had the capability to. However, when you added Kenma's clever plans with Kuroo's suave attitude and adaptability- they made the perfect boss. Even when Nekomata was the boss of Nekoma, he always kept Kenma close to have constant access to his brain. With this new leadership, they'll lead Nekoma into a new era.

Kuroo arrived at the door leading to Kenma's room. He knocked on the door and was, unsurprisingly, met with a refusal to enter.

"Kenma, it's me." He called through the door. A few clicks sounded and Kuroo took that as permission to enter. Slowly pushing the door open, he peeked inside the dimly lit room. Kenma, who had just unlocked the door for him, fell face first back onto his bed.

"Come on, Kenma. It's late enough." Kuroo said firmly, walking over to the blackout curtains covering the window. Kenma knew Kuroo well, and had pulled the covers on his bed over his face to block out the sun as Kuroo ripped the curtains open.

"Why'd I let you in?" Kenma grumbled underneath his blanket pile.

"I'd like to see you keep me out." Kuroo teased, he had essentially blinded himself opening the curtains. He blinked a few times in an attempt to regain his vision. He decided to pull them closed slightly to allow light into the room, but enough to make them lose their blinding effect.

"Don't make me get Yaku." The still curled up man threatened.

"Please don't." Kuroo sighed while making a face. He really didn't need Yakkun to kick his ass this early in the morning. "I need to talk to you about something."

"Family business?"

"Of course. I think I found a solution to our problem." Kuroo dropped down onto the bed beside the other man. He had quickly discovered meeting with just Kenma was much more enjoyable than any other type of meeting. It was nice to not have to keep up a performance and just talk about the details.

"Which problem?" Kenma deadpanned. Kuroo threw him another look. Kenma knew exactly which problem he was talking about and they both knew it.

"You know the one."

"What have you got?" Kenma gave in.

"I know who should infiltrate Fukurodani."

"We never agreed we should go that route, Kuro."

"You have a better idea? Please, I'm all ears!" Kuroo snapped.

"I know getting information on Fukurodani is important, but sending in a double agent is too risky." Kenma said calmly, seeing the stress in the raven's body.

"There's no other way. Besides, I'm confident this person can pull it off."

"Who?" Kuroo hesitated at his question. It was true, he had complete faith in this person, but he also knew what Kenma's reaction would be. "Kuro, who is it?"

"Akaashi Keiji." The smaller man bolted upright at his words, and Kuroo braced himself.

"No! Absolutely not! We can't risk him. If anything were to happen to Keiji-"

"Kenma!" Kuroo yelled loud enough to bring his mind away from that train of thought.

"We need him, Kuro." Kenma demanded.

"I know, that's why I'm going to assign him to this mission. He's the only one who has any hope of pulling it off."

"You would risk Akaashi for information?" Kenma asked softly; disbelievingly. He couldn't understand why Kuroo would even suggest Akaashi for this.

"I would for the sake of the Family." Kuroo sat up as well. He knew this wouldn't go well, and he was prepared for it. He'd gone through every person inside Nekoma. No one was better suited for this than Akaashi was, and they needed this information.

"Akaashi is family!" Kenma argued. He was practically yelling at this point. That's not how all of this works. You don't sacrifice family for family.

"No! Don't you play that card!" Kuroo snapped out. "How many times has someone had to take a risky assignment?! Do you have any idea how many times I, or one of my friends, got fucked over by you higher ranks?! We never complained! We knew it was necessary, so we did our duty. Akaashi can do this. This is the least amount of risk." Kuroo forced his mouth shut. If he kept going, he was going to say something he didn't really mean. If that happened, he would regret it for the rest of his life.

"We never made those decisions lightly." The pudding haired man said softly. He knew better than most what Kuroo's record was. He knew exactly what he had been put through.

"I didn't take this lightly. Kenma, if you know any other way, I need you to tell me." The older man pleaded. The look on his face almost broke Kenma's heart. It was obvious he had put more thought into this than Kenma had originally given him credit for. Now that he had a moment to calm down, he knew he was right. There really was no other way.

"Have you talked to him?"

"No. I wanted to talk to you first. I won't force him, Kenma, you know that. It won't even work that way."

"What do you need from me?" He asked. He knew Kuroo would have just avoided this conversation altogether if he had already worked all of the details out. He wouldn't have kept it from him, but he would have waited until it was irreversible.

"What's the best way to get him inside?"

"He won't like it."

"I don't think he'll like any way. Once he's inside it won't be a problem, but I can't find a good way to get him in. If they're too suspicious right off the bat, this will never work." The Cat chuckled at his own words.

"Basically, you need to give Akaashi as a 'gift' to Bokuto."

"How the hell is that supposed to work?!"

"You told me before that Akaashi has caught Bokuto's eye, right? Well, Akaashi is a beautiful performer, Bokuto is believed to be single, and you just formed an alliance." Kenma trailed off.

"Oh he's going to murder us."

"No, he's going to murder you. I'm not a part of this." He got a third look for that one.

"Why would Bokuto believe we would just give Akaashi to him?"

"Normally he wouldn't. With the new alliance and his attraction, it just might work. It also helps that Akaashi is a performer. If you word it right, he'll believe it."

"How the fuck do I word that?"

"That's up to you and Akaashi. You're the people persons."

"Was that even proper grammar?"

"Kuro, I don't care." The said man started cackling. Kenma gave a small smile while Kuroo almost fell off the bed. He was happy to see some of the tension leave him as he laughed. It was good to see him this way again. It had been far too long.

"You going to talk to Akaashi with me?" He forced out after calming himself down.

"I can't ask him to do that. I'm going back to bed." Kenma grabbed his blankets and covered himself enough to block out any sun Kuroo could force on him.

"I guess I'll call Akaashi." The bed-head grumbled, making his way out of the others room.

"Change before you do!" The mound of blankets called out as he left. Clearly giving no indication of moving anytime soon.

"So that's it?"

"That's it." Bokuto confirmed.

"Why not have one of your allies do it? Why come all the way to me?" Terushima questioned.

"Did you always ask so many questions?"

"I'm curious by nature." Terushima smirked at him. There was no way he would ever accept a job without first pestering the shit out of the other. The more information he had, the better.

"In our business, curious people end up dead." Bokuto tapped the side of his hidden pistol in warning. He wasn't interested in answering any more questions.

"Noted." The blond held up his hands in surrender. He knew where the line was, but he did greatly enjoy flirting with it. "So, you just need me to discreetly move some product for you every once in a while?"

"It's that simple. In return, I'll provide you some added security to help with your little problem."

"You sure you have the men for it?"

"Fukurodani is the largest Family there is, we'll be fine. Also, our mere presence will be enough to drive them away. They wouldn't dare risk anything with us."

"That's a theory. An untested one at that." Terushima countered.

"Tell me, how much product have they gotten from you?"

"From me? Not a lot. Certainly not enough to make up for the effort to steal it."

"Now, tell me, how much product have they destroyed? How much have you lost?" The Owl leaned forward, he knew just where to strike.

"I'll admit it's increased. They've gotten much more destructive recently." The younger boss scoffed.

"Willing to test that theory now? Or, if you'd like, we can renegotiate, and I'll keep my men." Bokuto's tone was deceptive. It didn't matter to him. He had enough men, and plenty of other things to offer instead. He knew Terushima would be a handful, but he had ways to keep him inline.

"No, we'll keep the deal. Just uphold your end." Terushima narrowed his eyes at the other boss. He knew Bokuto would be tough, but this seemed out of character. There was something else going on here. The fact that he even came to Johzenji in the first place was suspicious enough, add this on top, and something was definitely up. Why would he need to hide product? Why risk coming here, instead of moving it himself? There were way too many 'whys' for Terushima's liking, but the possibility of stopping the raids was an offer he couldn't refuse. He had a lot of important shipments coming up, so if he could get his hands on extra protections, he had to grab it. Bokuto obviously knew that. Why else would he offer up his men otherwise?

"Great. I'll let you know when I need you." Bokuto gave a teasing smile. He had won, and he knew it.

"Then a drink to celebrate." Terushima grunted as he forced himself up. "One thing though- when you want a pickup, we'll come to you."

Bokuto thought about his condition. It wasn't ideal, but it would be easier to have Johzenji come to them. It made it convenient to pick up the product and grab some men at the same time. It would also allow him to keep an extra eye on them.

He took a moment to really look at his surroundings, from the plush, black sofas they were sitting on to the deep red paint covering the walls. Splashes of yellow jumped at his eyes in the forms of pillows and blankets strewn across the secret room. Terushima had walked past a door that clearly led to a bedroom to gain access to the built-in bar. It was a nice setup, but he didn't have any plans on coming back here anytime soon.

"Alright." The older man said. The blond let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. He needed to get close to Bokuto, and the only way was to take a direct path right to him. He forced his hands to stay steady as he reached for the needed glasses. The adrenaline and pain from the attack was starting to affect him. He wanted nothing more than to kick Bokuto out of here right now, but he needed to get the man to trust him. The alcohol would help calm his nerves enough to make it through the rest of their meeting.

"Hope you don't mind it strong." Terushima handed him a glass filled with rum and coke. After one sniff, Bokuto knew it was more rum than anything else. Terushima retreated back to the bar to take a shot of something, before grabbing his own glass and sitting down again. The sharp eyes of the Owl didn't miss the grimace the blond made on his way down.

"How bad you get hit?" He questioned.

"I didn't get hit directly. They got a warehouse though. Threw me out the damn building."

"So it's true. They're getting bolder. They are planning a comeback." He took a sip of his drink. It was concerning to have them be this extreme in their methods, he hadn't originally pegged the Family for that.

"Not exactly. From what I know, it seems to be a rogue team. I don't doubt they're trying to come back, but this was a revenge strike. Even their raids haven't been so rash." Terushima prodded at his cheek again. It burned terribly, and served as an unwelcomed reminder of the day's earlier events.

"Not like them to have rogues." Terushima's two-toned hair counterpart stated.

"Well they are rebuilding almost from scratch. Who knows what new players they have that we don't know about yet."

"It's still the same boss though. A devastating attack and some new people doesn't change that. It's not his style to do this, but he's not weak. He shouldn't be having trouble reigning in a few rookies." Bokuto observed.

"Unless he's distracted." Terushima muttered more to himself than anything else.

"By what? What else could he possibly be thinking about besides recovering and rebuilding?"

"I don't know. He should crack down on them now though. We injured one of their team leaders. That should get his attention."

"You'll get his attention too." Bokuto warned.

"Not likely as long as I don't retaliate. He can't afford a war with me." Terushima's voice came out low. Dangerous.

"Not planning on retaliating? Really?" Bokuto rose an eyebrow at him. That was unusual. Johzenji didn't take kindly to assassination attempts.

"Like you said, I don't want the attention right now. Everyone's going to be watching us now because of this. I'll let him think he's safe." There it was. Johzenji was known for using brutal methods when necessary. It wasn't surprising for them to take this path.

"It's your call." The Owl lifted his glass to the man across from him before downing it in one go, "If you'll excuse me, I'll be leaving now. Don't forget what I said about your face."

"I'll walk you out." Terushima gently dropped his glass down onto the table, and led Bokuto back to the door he had entered from. He seemed to reach inside the wall, twisting and turning a few things, before removing his hand as the hidden door slipped open. A man was walking down the long hallway towards them. Bokuto's hand rested on his hip. He didn't appreciate the sudden arrival. Upon a closer look, he recognized the flower tattooed on the approaching man's neck. It was the same team leader that had been with Terushima when he had first arrived.

"I'm escorting him out." Terushima said firmly before the other man could speak. He had an idea as to why he was here, and he didn't intend on letting his opposing boss know this. Bokuto didn't need any more information than he'd already been able to squeeze out.

"Understood, Sir. Right this way." The team leader said, taking the lead.

"Just let me know when you're ready, Bokuto-san." Terushima said as a parting, raising his hand to give a small wave. He had played nice, and it had better work. The two Johzenji members watched as Bokuto gave a small nod and started walking further away from their HQ.

"I have a report, Sir." The team leader informed him. His hand came up to scratch at the tattoo at his neck. A habit Terushima had learned meant he was nervous about something. This wouldn't be good news.

"Talk as we walk. I'm going to Doc."

Kageyama panted as he rounded another corner. He had finally lost them. He knew they would be mad, but he didn't expect them to chase him this far. He had ran almost all the way back to their HQ by the time they lost his trail.

He slowed his pace, desperately trying to regain his breath. His plan had gone off smoother than expected, but he was disappointed in the lack of destruction. Product could be replaced. He didn't care about that. His main target had survived. That was something he greatly cared about. He shook his head, he didn't have time to be pissed about this right now. He had to make his way back to Hinata. He had gone alone for this mission, but now it was time to regroup with his team.

His team. One of the many teams that created the Karasuno Family. He was a newer member, but due to his incredible skill set, he had been placed as a team leader. After running a few missions with just a few members, he teamed up with the newest member of the family for a job. He quickly realized there was something special about this small person. He wasn't the smartest, he didn't pick things up quickly, he couldn't see things even if you waved them in front of his face; but, he had one exceptional talent. He was relentless. Always striving for what others called an unattainable goal. He ignored people who said he couldn't do it; using their words as fuel to the fire in his soul. No one could make him quit. It didn't matter what they said or did. He was truly, purely, relentless.

His name was Hinata Shoyo.

Hinata Shoyo, the small boy who seemed to take flight right before your eyes. Hinata Shoyo, the energetic boy who might stumble and fall down, but would never quit. The small boy who idolized a former legendary member of their family. The boy who no one knew before, but now was known by name. Hinata Shoyo, the boy who slipped between the cracks in even the sturdiest of walls. Even Kageyama's own walls had helplessly fallen to him.

Hinata Shoyo, Kageyama's partner, and the Orange Hope of Karasuno.

The Orange Hope. A play on the boy's obnoxiously bright orange colored hair. It was an accurate name. Hope was what Karasuno needed, and hope is what he provided. He proved that Karasuno had not yet fallen.

Standing right beside him was Kageyama Tobio. The Kageyama Tobio. The talented boy who seemed to accomplish godly feats. The one who did the impossible. It didn't matter what is was, the sharp eyes of Kageyama would catch even the smallest of details. The same Kageyama Tobio who didn't play well with others, quickly became a strong leader. Maybe a little reckless at times, but powerful all the same. Inexperienced, perhaps, but always evolving. Molding his body into the perfect form to complete his mission, regardless of what it was. It might have taken a couple of missions, but he seamlessly synched with Hinata to create one of the most formidable teams of Karasuno.

He was, Kageyama Tobio, the Genius of Karasuno.

The Genius of Karasuno. A tribute to the young man's intellect. Another accurate name for a much needed player. Karasuno needed a new approach to old methods, and Kageyama provided just that. He gave new life to the wilting Karasuno.

Karasuno. The once powerful family now only known as the Fallen Crows was clawing at the cliff their enemies had tried to shove them off. Before, they had been holding on. Now, with new additions to their small family, they started to climb higher and higher. They could see the top of the cliff once again, and they were determined to reach it. Karasuno might have been the Fallen Crows, but, even the most injured of crows could learn to fly again. Crows did not fear the fall from high places. They climbed as much as they could to give their wings the lift their souls craved. They soared when others laughed at them. They "Fly High" just as their family motto compelled them to. Crows didn't fear the ground when they lived in the sky.

There was only one man who could provide the stability the stumbling Karasuno needed. That man was Sugawara Koshi.

Sugawara Koshi, the Silver Head of Karasuno. The equally beloved and feared boss of Karasuno gave stability and leadership to anyone who came to him. He was the reason Karasuno had survived. He had fought, and fought, and kept Karasuno hungry for more. They had only known defeat for a long time, but that never stopped the silver haired man. His name might have made him sound sickeningly sweet, but he has a very different side. A side very few saw. The side of him that would stop at nothing to protect his family and ensure their survival.

Sugawara Koshi, Boss of Karasuno.

Kageyama had spotted him, his guard only a step away as well, before he saw Hinata lying on a nearby bed. Their Hope had been injured. It was a terrible blow to the family that the Silver Head was just now finding out about.

"Kageyama, what did you do?" His boss demanded.

They were Karasuno- the Fallen Crows, fighting for survival, now facing another devastating blow due to a reckless mistake.

We finally got to introduce another family! What did you guys think? I feel like my style changed when I started writing Karasuno. I didn't mean for that to happen, but it did. I don't know how exactly to feel about that lol.

Thank you for your continued support! Chapter 10 is coming up! See you next time!

~Kiera540