Chapter Text
It took two hours for the visit to finish.
At the moment Alisa said goodbye to Lev, the boy had already grown a bit tired and everyone noticed the effort he was doing at staying awake. When everyone left, the boy´s room was full of gifts the team had bought for him.
And he fell asleep with a smile on his face.
Alisa thanked them deeply and after grabbing a slept Siniy from Yaku´s lap, she entered her place.
After that, everyone decided to just go home and rest for what was left of the day.
Monday was going to be a busy day.
***
"Our teammate was attacked in school grounds, sir. And he was last seen entering the school building; I believe that is a reason valid enough to allow us to check the security footage" Kai calmly explained
It was the first hour in the morning on Monday, and after arriving at school, he had gone straight to the principal´s office.
Apparently he hadn´t known about the incident until Kai mentioned it and, under the boy´s soft words and well-known reputation of being a pacific, hard-working student, the principal had gladly provided the third year with a copy of the security footage after checking it himself.
"I know you are right, Kai" the principal agreed "But I must tell you, is not easy to see. If you really are so close to your underclassman, it will be hard to watch" he warned
Kai swallowed a bit but didn´t give in to his quiet insistence.
"I´m aware of it, sir, but I believe is for the best" he assured
The principal sighed
"I assume you and the rest of the volleyball team want to take care of this by your own hands" he inquired, curious
"We do have an issue we want to fix, sir, but any help the school can provide will be more than welcome" Kai affirmed.
"We won´t intervene against you or your team as long as you don´t break any rules, Kai" he warned "The moment you require school intervention, come ask me and we´ll deal with Hisato-kun. But don´t disappoint me. I´m trusting you with this one, so make it worth it"
Kai gave him a gentle smile
"Thank you very much, sir" he bowed, thankful
The principal smiled him back
"Have a nice day, Kai. And now go to class, it´s getting late"
Kai nodded and left the principal´s office with a determined grin. Once in the men toilet, he took out his phone and quickly texted Kuroo.
From: Kai
To: Kuroo
Subject: Mission 1
I got the copy
Mission 1: Clear! (1)
Kuroo smiled at his phone.
"By your creepy smile, I assume Kai got what he wanted" Yaku commented at his friend "What´s next, then?"
"It´s up to Inuoka and Shibayama. Their job is a bit easier, but it depends on them whether this works or not" the cat captain admitted, a bit serious
"I can go help them later" Yaku offered in concern
Kuroo nodded but the bell rang so they had to stand up to greet the teacher.
***
Shibayama was nervous.
After offering himself to "help with the coordination of the cultural festival", which would take place in three more weeks, Shibayama had managed to gather all the schedules from all the first years' classes and had copied them in paper to hand them to Inuoka.
Even if his friend wasn´t the smartest of the bucket, he could come up with some good ideas
"What if we do it during informatics?" his friend suggested, "Everyone takes classes at that time, so everyone will be able to watch the tape!"
Shibayama smiled at him, surprised
"That´s actually a great idea, Inuoka!" he felicitated "You´re a genius!"
Inuoka´s eyes sparkled and Shibayama had to look away from his beaming smile, under the risk of getting blind
"Thank you!"
But now Shibayama was in charge of coordinating the schedules for the cultural festival, so every other delegate from the other classes were coming to him and making requests, asking for very specific situations and loading him with more work. And to be honest, Shibayama was completely lost.
His partner from class 5 had left for a while so now everyone who was supposed to be asking her was asking him.
To make things worse, he had also been commissioned with coordinating with class 2 so all the time he spent talking with their delegate he felt Hisato´s gaze on his own neck, making him uncomfortable.
After being dismissed, the libero left the class and sighed in relief
"Shibayama!" someone shouted behind him
He turned around in time to see a tall, happy, known figure quickly approaching him.
"Inuoka?"
The boy stopped just in time not to collide, but Shibayama stepped back in precaution
"Guess what?" the taller aked "I offered to help with the festival to! I supposed you´d be busy with this so I wanted to help and they took me in at the moment. And I´m in charge of coordinating with class 3, so we can work together!"
Shibayama stared at him in silence and then smiled him warmly
"That helps a lot. You´re very kind, Inuoka" he praised, meaning every word
His friend´s eyes went big and shined like the sun, almost like a pup who had been offered a treat
"For you, anything!" he gleefully stated, patting Shibayama´s shoulder "We have to go to you class next, so come with me"
"Wait, I need to text Yaku-san first", he said, taking out his phone to tell Yaku about their idea
From: Shibayama
To: Yaku-san
Subject: Mission 2
We found the best time! It´s Wednesday after lunch. Every first-year is in the informatics class, so everyone will have a screen in front.
P.D: It was Inuoka´s idea!
Mission 2: Clear!
He then put his phone down and smiled back at the expecting Inuoka
"Let´s go, then" he offered, and his friend only nodded at him, happy
They both walked together to their respective class.
***
"It´s actually a good idea, but Hisato´s presence bothers me" Yaku commented, worried "I don´t want him near when it happens, so he doesn´t get the chance to speak or do anything about it"
"It´s a good precaution" Kuroo conceded "But what can we do about it? We can´t control what he does"
"Oh, I know!" Inuoka claimed, raising his hand "We could ask him to leave for a moment!"
The Volleyball team had gathered during the lunch break in the rooftop, to escape from eavesdroppers or unrequested guests, and were now discussing the schedule proposed by both first years.
Inuoka was completely oblivious to his teammates amused, worried and sarcastic stares
"What?" he asked, tilting his head to the side
<<He actually thinks it may work>> Yamamoto snorted, mocking his underclassman
"Anyone else?" Kenma asked, ignoring Inuoka´s suggestion
The boy deflated a little and bowed his head, depressed, whilst Shibayama patted his back in comfort
"What if-" Fukunaga started, surprising everyone "'-he is accidentally seen by the principal when he´s about to hit someone?"
Kai stared at him, concerned by his suggestion
"Is not a bad idea, but who would be the "someone"? " Kenma asked, frowning "I don´t think anyone would offer to that, and we can´t just involve any student that passes by"
Kuroo grinned mischievously, sending shivers down everyone´s body.
<<Ugh. I hate it when he smiles like that>> Kenma thought, walking away from his friend.
"It wouldn´t be any student", the captain remarked " We need someone fierce, who gets easily angered and also easy to provoke. Someone very loud, who refuses to obey and never steps back"
When Yamamoto lifted his head to see why his teammates had gone suddenly quiet, he met with seven pair of eyes who were staring at him like some kind of exotic bird.
It was uncomfortable
"What, is there a problem with my face?" he snarled, shifting under the intense gazes.
Kai sighed, heavily
"I´m more concerned that Yamamoto doesn´t end up in the principal´s office. I promised him we wouldn´t cause problems, and he doesn´t have the best reputation"
"Hey!"
"Well, he´s not wrong"
"I HEARD THAT!"
"I could go with him" Fukunaga offered "We always spend lunch together anyway, and I can make sure he doesn´t go overboard. Besides, I have a good meow, so words are not a problem" he laughed, amused at his own joke
"It´s decided, then" Yaku declared, concerned by Fukunaga´s sense of humour "You and Yamamoto will take care of Mission 4"
"I´ll finish with my part today, so don´t worry about it", Kenma shrugged, already tired by the sleepless night awaiting at home
Kuroo smiled at him, sympathetically
"Don´t mind"
The bell rang and they had to run to get to their classes
***
Before starting afternoon classes, Coach Nekomata had told him to skip practice because he "looked even more pale and tired than usual", and so the setter had been quickly dismissed.
After which Kenma had bowed gratefully and had gone home earlier than expected, arriving at 4.p.m
"I´m home" he greeted, closing the door behind him
"Kenma, is that you?" his mother asked, surprised at seeing him early, "I thought you had afternoon practice, what happened?"
Kenma yawned
"Coach told me to go home because he said I looked pale and tired" he mumbled, rubbing his eye
His mom frowned in concern and was quick in taking his bag and jacket.
"You are a bit warm, too" she murmured in concern, after placing her hand on his cheek "Well, go to your room and sleep until tomorrow if you have to" she ordered, kissing him on the forehead "I won't have my son getting sick because he didn´t rest enough at home"
"Actually, I have an essay I have to finish for tomorrow, so I´ll be working in my room until I finish", Kenma said
He normally didn´t like it when she fussed all over him, but in this case, it was not only heartwarming but also very convenient and could be used to his own advantage.
The fact that he didn´t complain about her made his mom even more determined
"Then go and hurry so you can finish quickly" she ordered "I´ll take you some riceballs later"
"Thanks, mom" he murmured, walking towards his room.
He knew his mom wouldn´t interrupt him at all, and he stretched a bit before sitting in front of his computer
There was a lot of work to do
***
It was dark outside when Kenma finally looked away from his screen. It had been very difficult, to say the least, and his muscles were very stiff from being so still for many hours.
After checking his screen´s clock, Kenma realized he had been working for six hours straight, with only a break to use the toilet once. He had been aware of his mom leaving a small dish with three riceballs on it, but she had quickly left after seeing him so focused on his work.
His screen had a very satisfying message in the middle
ARCHIVE DOWNLOADED SUCCESSFULLY, PLEASE REMOVE USB
Kenma smiled, proud of himself. It was the last archive he could ever download to that USB because that, plus the programs previously installed, had completely ended the memory available, and yes, it had been difficult, but Kenma felt like he had just beaten the main boss in one of his RPGs.
Rough, but worth it.
He stood from his chair and stretched while walking around the room. He grabbed one of his mom´s rice balls and after taking a bite he took his phone to send a text.
From: Kenma
To: Kuroo
Subject: Mission 3
I finished my job. I´m sending you a copy just in case
Mission 3, clear
P.D: Thx for the game
Kenma then dropped in his bed, closing his eyes for a moment. He was tired, but still had one more thing to do.
He stretched to grab his bag, and then took out the new Final Haikyuu! Quest (2) Kuroo had bought for him as payment for his work. Kenma had been aching to buy it for a while but had spent his money on the last Zelda release, so it had been a no-deal. And then Kuroo had just simply handed him the disc for the Haikyuu Quest game and the setter hadn´t felt so excited about something since the last match against Karasuno
He had known it since the morning.
Kenma wasn't going to sleep before finishing his work.
***
Tuesday went without further problems. Everything was quiet, and aside from the rumours that had gone all over the ceiling due to Lev´s sudden absence, it had been a relatively calm and peaceful day.
For the Volleyball team, it was the calm before the storm.
This is why, after classes, they decided to visit Lev, who had been discharged on Sunday.
"Hey, its good to see you all here!", Lev laughed, happy to see them "It was getting boring"
The young Russian still had a white bandage around his head, a gauze over his eye and was using crutches to walk because of his sprain, but overall looked much better than last time.
He seemed way less tired and his bruises had gotten a better colour, so apparently his recovery was going great.
"We had to come see you. Akane hasn't stopped asking about you since she found out what happened. It's getting annoying" Yamamoto huffed
"Of course she'd ask about me. I'm the ace!", Lev declared with pride
"Call yourself an ace once you've learnt how to receive, dumbass" Yamamoto growled, slapping his shoulder.
Siniy, who had been sleeping until then, meowed at Yamamoto, slightly annoyed
"I´m still wondering how did you found those crutches", Shibayama loudly wandered, signalling the crutches next to the sofa
Lev laughed at his friend´s question
"It was very difficult to find them!" he giggled "Apparently the normal size is for smaller people so we had to look around quite a lot to find some I could use"
"It´s weird, though", Alisa said, walking from the kitchen with a tray full of small brown balls "Back in Russia it wasn´t that difficult, so even dad didn´t have problems finding some of his size. But here it was impossible!"
"What is that?" Yamamoto asked, hungry
"It´s kartoshka " she answered "Our aunt made us a lot and since you´re all here, we can share them" she offered (3)
"Wait, Lev, if your father already had crutches, why didn´t you used them?" Kuroo asked, curious
Alisa laughed
"Our father is still taller than Lyovochka, so his crutches were too big to use"
<<Oh, crap, he still can grow>> they all thought in unison
"It´s still boring" Lev whined, grabbing three kartoshka balls "I can barely walk by myself and studying is boring so there isn´t much I can do"
"It´ll be fine, Lev" Yaku reassured, ruffling the Russian´s hair "We´ll be here, so don´t rush or you´ll have to wait longer"
Lev beamed at him, shining like the sun
"Is not impawsible to wait either" Fukunaga joked.
Both Lev and Alisa laughed at the pun, while the team stared at Fukunaga in concern
The evening went by fast, and soon after the sun started to set, which meant the team had to go home already.
Before leaving, Yaku turned to stare at Lev.
"You´re very brave, Lev" Yaku sated "You honour your name and I´m proud of being your teammate"
Lev´s eyes widen and they became teary, but the tears didn´t fall
"Thanks a lot, Yaku-san! I won´t disappoint you!" he thanked, bowing
Yaku smiled softly and ruffled his hair again before leaving
<<I don´t think you could even if you try>> Yaku thought, closing the Haiba´s door behind him.
It had been a nice evening, and walking along with his teammates, Yaku knew everyone had reinforced the feeling of vengeance in their hearts.
Lev had smiled a lot, but in some cases, his smile strained or his knuckles went white due to his own strength. He wasn´t complaining, but they could all see how difficult it was for him to stay at home and do as he was told.
They saw the longing in his eyes and the sadness on his expression
Tomorrow the cats were getting payback.
***
"Fukunaga"
"Hmm?"
"We need to talk about your sense of humour"
***
Wednesday started with a stiff morning practice. Even Kuroo wasn´t paying too much attention and everyone kept making very dumb mistakes, so Coach Nekomata simply dismissed them earlier than usual.
The Volleyball Club had made a temporary chat to finish polishing the final details of the whole ordeal, and during the first period, they dedicated completely to it.
CatCaptain has created Revenge Chat
CatCaptain has added Yakkun, Kai, Fukunaga, Yamamoto, Kenma, Shibayama and Inuoka
CatCaptain has changed Yakkun to Docosahexaenoic Acid
CatCaptain has changed Fukunaga to PleaseLearnSomeJokes
CatCaptain has changed Yamamoto to LoudBastard69
CatCaptain has Kai to BestVice
CatCaptain has changed Kenma to 100%Done
CatCaptain has changed Shibayama to WorriedPup
CatCaptain has changed Inuoka to HappyPup
LoudBastard69: what the fuck?
Cat Captain: Language, Tora. Kids r watching
BestVice: I thought we didn´t have to coordinate anymore. Kuroo, why did you created this chat?
100%Done: Because he´s an idiot
100%Done has left the chat
CatCaptain has added 100%Done
100%Done: Kuroo no
CatCaptain: Kuroo yes
PleaseLearnSomeJokes: I dont like my name
LoudBastarrd69: dont mind, i can teach u some gr8 jks
Docosahexaenoic Acid: That worries me more, Yamamoto stay away from Fukunaga
CatCaptain: dont stress so much or you'll get more wrinkles
Docosahexaenoic Acid: I don´t have wrinkles
WorriedPup: Aren´t we suppose to be in class?
Docosahexaenoic Acid: Kuroo you should follow your kohai example and be responsibel
CatCaptain. but this is important! We gotta aveng our little skcycraper
Docosahexaenoic Acid: That literally makes no sense
CatCaptain: is because you dont have enough docosahexaenoic acid
Docosahexaenoic Acid: How come you write that perfectly and still suck at proper grammar?
100%Done: It´s on his phone dictionary
Docosahexaenoic Acid: That explains it
BestVice: I think we should just discuss the matter this chat was created
Docosahexaenoic Acid: I agree with Kai. Kuroo, start explaing and for gods sake c h a n g m y n a m e
CatCaptain has changed DocosahexaenoicAcid to AngryMom
AngryMom: just explain
HappyPup: HeLLLO evRYN, HOWS UR CLASS!!!
CatCaptain: Inuoka, turn your caps off your 2 loud
HappyPup: i jUst did
AngryMom: Inuoka you pay attention to your class or you´ll fail your test again
HappyPup: bUt i wanna hlp
CatCaptain: Leave it Yakkun, the boy has enthusiasm
AngryMom: You don´t pass with enthusiasm
LoudBastard69: ROUGH
AngryMom: You stfu, your lower grades are on a whole new record
PleaseLearnSomeJokes: Now hes mad
CatCaptain: Hes an agry mom
AngryMom: Kuroo i swear to god if you don´t explain i´ll throw my book to your sutpid hair
CatCaptain: S T A Y A W A Y
LoudBastard69: SAVGE YAKU S THE BEAST
AngryMom: Yamamoto shut up you sound like an idiot
HappyPup: wHat did ww ha 2 do?
BestVice: Kuroo, explain
BestVice: Now
CatCaptain: Yeah yeah, I know. It´s abt who´ll go call the principal when @LoudBastard69 starts the fight
HappyPup: i cand o it í´m fast!!
AngryMom: No, you and Shibayama sit down and stay away from problems
HappyPup: bt i wanna be usful for the teamm :(
AngryMom: We´ll be less worried if we know you two are safe
WorriedPup: Don´t worry, Inuoka, I´ll stay with you.
HappyPup: Thnks a lot shiabyama yOur da besyt :-D
WorriePup: I´ll keep him out of trouble, Yaku-san, don´t worry for us
AngryMom: Thnks Shibayama, you´re a great kohai.
AngryMom: Someone should learn from you
CatCaptain: Yeah, I get it, shut up
CatCaptain has erased HappyPup and WorriedPup from Revenge chat
AngryMom: Thank you
BestVice: I don´t think Fukunaga nor Yamamoto can do it
LoudBastard69: I CN DO ANYTHNG I´m F A S T
CatCaptain: No you can´t dumbass, you have one job
CatCaptain has erased LoudBastard69 from Revenge chat
PleaseLearnSomeJokes: Someone really needs to look after Tora during the incident, so I don´t really think I can
AngryMom: Don´t worry Fukunaga, we know is a tough work
PleaseLearnSomeJokes: I´ll be leaving, then
PleaseLearnSomeJokes has left Revenge chat
100%Done: I don´t want to do it
100%Done has left Revenge chat
CatCaptaain: Well that makes three of us
AngryMom: Your completely useless so we´re only two
CatCaptain: Your hurting me
AngryMom: Great
AngryMom: I ´ll do it
BestVice: I think he may believe me more
AngryMom: I´m well known too and I have never asked for his help. If I appear "scared" and "frantic" he´ll take the situation more serious
CatCaptain: Because you are not the tipe to fuss like that
CatCaptain: Well thought Yakkun, have you been eating fish lately
BestVice: I´ll be taking my lead, then
BestVice has left Revenge chat
AngryMom: Y ou´re a great idiot, focuss on class you dumbass
AngryMom has left Revenge chat
CatCaptain: And I´m still the smartest of the two
CatCaptain has left Revenge chat
Once lunch arrived, every member of the Volleyball team asides from Kenma and Kuroo had taken their seat all across the cafeteria and expected their respective signal
When Hisato passed right next to Yamamoto, the wing spiker "accidentally" pushed him with the shoulder and Hisato dropped the food all over his shirt.
The cafeteria fell in silence.
"Watch where you´re going, kid" Yamamoto said, looking down on him
Hisato seemed to almost burst in anger
"Hey it was your own fault, idiot, watch your steps" he spat back
Yamamoto froze and Fukunaga´s nerves made him grab his friend´s shoulder.
"Who are you calling idiot, brat? I didn´t drop my fucking food" Yamamoto growled, annoyed
Fukunaga doubted his friend was acting, and from the corner of the eye he saw Yaku sneaking away to find the principal
"You pushed my tray, fucking retard. Buy me another lunch now" Hisato demanded, and his friends stepped by his side looking angry and about to attack
"Why should I use my money on you, huh? Think you´re so brave with your friends you can´t do anything by yourself, big baby"
Hisato went red with anger, but then he gave a twisted smile
"Your first-year friend also cried like a big baby. And his sister screamed like a little bitch" he laughed, and his friends smiled cruelly at him
Yamamoto tensed in rage and Fukuanaga´s grip hardened too much
"Say that again and I´ll break your damn nose" Yamamoto hissed, furious
Hisato smiled
"Like we broke you Russian bastard?"
Fukunaga saw Yamamoto´s intention and quickly stepped in front of him.
"How could you know that?" Fukunaga asked with a strained voice and narrowed eyes "Is not like you were there, after all. You´re too much of a pussy to do that" he smirked, on purpose
Hisato grabbed Fukunaga´s shirt and pulled him closer. Yamamoto seemed about to explode, but Kai quickly appeared behind him and put a hand on his arm.
The third-year also looked angry, but he had appeared to help calm the matter and Yamamoto knew Kai was not going to let things go to waste.
"Let´s all calm down", Kai said, extending the palm in from of surrender
Hisato´s friends snarled at him
"Your kohai is being disrespectful" one snapped "And now you're not so many, so don´t try to intimidate us again"
Hisato was still grabbing Fukunaga by the shirt
"I dare you to repeat that again if you have the balls"
Fukunaga smirked, when his phone buzzed
From: Yaku
To: Fukunaga
We´ll be there in fifteen secs, hurry
"What, is it your girlfriend? Or is it you Russian friend? What, is he your boyfriend and wants to fuck you?" he joked, cruelly "He´s also a faggot, is that it? I thought Russians only liked to fuck their families "
Fukunaga clenched fists, furious, but didn´t let himself show anything besides a smug smile
"I don´t think your small brain can understand a simple sentence, moron. Besides you´re too much of a pussy to do something by yourself, you big dumb weak baby"
Hisato yelled in anger and raised his fist quickly, striking Fukunaga right in the jaw.
Right in that exact moment, the principal came right through the door, followed by a panting and distressed Yaku
"HISATO!" he yelled, and the first year turned to see the principal, surprised "TO MY OFFICE, NOW! YOU AND YOUR GROUP!"
Hisato let go of Fukunaga´s shirt and growling walked towards the principal, who looked enraged.
Quickly, Yaku ran towards Fukunaga, who had fallen to the floor due to the strength of the hit
"Are you ok?" Yaku asked in concern because Fukunaga´s stare seemed a bit glazed
"I´m fine" he shrugged "But it was a strong hit. And Lev had to go through much more than that" his voice trembled at his own words
Yaku nodded sadly
"This is why we are doing this" he assured his kohai, patting his back
Yamamoto stretched a hand towards his fallen friend and Fukunaga grabbed him, standing from the floor
The principal turned to Kai, angry
"I´ll be taking this on my hands now, Kai. I´m sorry but this is inexcusable" the principal stated, before taking his leave
The cafeteria erupted in very loud whispers and all the looks were on Yaku, Kai, Fukunaga and Yamamoto
"Yamamoto, take Fukunaga to the infirmary" Kai ordered in a calm manner "We´ll take care of the rest"
Yamamoto nodded and slowly walked away, wary in case he had to support Fukunaga from falling. The students stayed away from them during their walk.
"Perfect timing" Kai praised
"It was half Fukunaga´s deed, but thanks" Yaku smiled back
***
"DUDE, THAT WAS FUCKING AWESOME!" Yamamoto beamed in admiration "You managed him like a champ, dude, and he fell RIGHT INTO IT, LIKE A FLY IN HONEY"
Despite the throbbing pain at his jaw, Fukunaga smiled at his friends praise
"Wasn´t very easy. The brat has a big mouth, that´s for sure. Wait, I need to send Kuroo-san a message"
From: Fukunaga
To: Kuroo-san
Subject: Mission 4
We did it, Hisato and the other are with the principal. Yaku´s timing was great, by the way
Mission 4, clear!
P.D: If you look for me I´ll be in the infirmary
"You´re very cool, Fukunaga. And I think your jokes are cool too, so you don´t need to learn new ones" Yamamoto admitted
Fukunaga´s face went red
"Thanks" he mumbled
It was probably because of the hit, but he felt his face weirdly warm
***
Kuroo grimaced at his phone´s text
"They did it" he announced "Now it´s all up to you"
"Why the face?" Kenma asked, curious
"Fukunaga´s at the infirmary"
"Hmm"
"Are you nervous?" Kuroo asked staring at Kenma´s face
"A bit" his friend admitted, shifting nervously
"Don´t mind it, Kenma. Happens what happens, we have your back" Kuroo reassured
Kenma breathed a few times and seemed to calm down a bit
"Thanks" he mumbled grateful
The bell rang marking the end of lunch, and Kuroo patted Kenma again
"Go and do your thing. We´re counting on you"
***
Why was a second-year like Kenma present in an informatics first-year class?
It was an easy answer
Murase Ayumu, to be more precise (4)
He was a first-year who got along with Kenma and had difficulties understanding the subject, so after asking for permission way too many times, the teacher had agreed for the setter to stay during that class.
Ayumu was very nice and cute, and his voice almost sounded like Shoyo so Kenma quite enjoyed the other´s company.
Another plus: Ayumu was easily distracted and Kenma knew exactly how to deal with it.
"Hey, Kenma, can you help me win this?" Ayumu asked, bored "I´m almost about to win but I can seem to get pass this level"
Kenma had been working on the computer next to Ayumu´s and was now about to reproduce the video.
Kenma sighed
"Try going another route. If you can´t do it ask Kaito-kun. He´s quite good at it"
Ayumu seemed to brighten and nodded like the sunshine he was
"I will!" he smiled, turning around to see Ishikawa Kaito (5), his best friend, already on the next level "Hey, help me with this level!"
Kaito frowned a bit before pausing his game but smiled purely at Ayu
"Sure!"
The boy had a similar voice to Kageyama, but his personality was easier going and relaxed. Kenma got along with Kaito, too.
Frowning, Kenma managed to access the schools' main computer and from there, he got the control of the many classrooms´ computers working at the same time (6)
A surprised and scared murmur toured the classroom and they all started looking at each others computer, unable to control them at all
"What happened?"
"Who´s doing it?"
"Is not April Fool´s yet, isn´t it?"
"No, idiot, that´s months away!"
"TO WHOEVER´S DOING THIS, STOP RIGHT NOW" the teacher ordered, unnerved
Kenma, ignoring the teachers´order, clicked the tape and on every available screen, the same video started to reproduce
Someone screeched in fear but was quickly shushed by the others, who were waiting in silence
The video, in black and white but still with perfectly audible audio, showed Hisato and his friends waiting for Lev.
And they showed him ganging upon the half-Russian
And everyone heard all the threats and words Hisato said to Lev while hitting him over and over and over again
They heard Lev screaming and crying
They saw Hisato and his gang beating the crap out of the tall boy, spitting on him and leaving hid bruised body on the floor
And they saw battered, beaten Lev crawl away from the cameras
The silence was absolute, but once the video started repeating over again, the teacher seemed to react
"Someone--" she started, but coughed in nervousness "Someone, please record the tape", she asked, forgetting for the moment everything she knew about computers
The video wasn´t very easy to watch for Kenma, but after many hours of editing, it was a bit less difficult.
"I already did" Kenma announced, grabbing the whole classes attention
"I´ll call the principal, you wait here and don´t do anything", the teacher said, quickly leaving the class
Then the murmurs erupted again, and Kenma sighed in relief
From: Kenma
To: Kuroo
Subject: Mission 5
Everyone saw it and our teacher is going for the principal.
Do what you have to
Mission 5, clear
Kuroo smiled at the message on his phone and was quick to walk towards Hisato, who had left the principal´s office last.
"Hisato-kun" he called, humming
"What do you want?" he snarled
"That´s not the way of speaking to your senpai, Hisato-kun" Kuroo teased
"I could have some lesson with Kozume-senpai, maybe" Hisato joked with a twisted smile "I heard he´s not very social, but I can manage to make him cooperate"
Kuroo tensed in anger and clenched his fists to not hit the bastard in front of him. A wrong move and all their effort would go to waste.
"If you want a proper lesson I can teach you if you want" Kuroo offered in a serious voice "But I came here because I want to settle things"
"Settle?"
"Come to the volleyball gym at 6 on Friday" Kuroo ordered, staring at Hisato "Don´t be late", he emphasised
Before the other could answer Kuroo turned back and walked away with the majesty of a panter.
Hisato gulped in fear and ran to his class.
When he arrived every single eye fell upon him, and the looks were judgemental, hateful and full of disgust.
Startled, he walked to his seat and was able to hear the whispers surrounding him
"Delinquent"
"Liar"
"Coward"
Kenma smiled and after waving at Ayu and Kaito, who were also intensely staring at the newcomer, he left the class and went to his own.
The next day everyone in the school found out the truth and the whispers and rumours spread like wildfire. The teachers were also very upset and they demanded a meeting with the principal.
As a unanimous decision, it was decided for Hisato and his group to be expelled from the Nekoma Tokyo High School, and their belongings to be removed no later than Friday
When Yaku found out he told Kuroo in a relief manner, and his smile shined brighter than it had in a long time.
Kuroo smiled too
From: Kuroo
To: Yaku, Kai, Fukunaga, Yamamoto, Kenma, Shibayama and Inuoka
Subject: Payback
MISSION COMPLETE!
Almost...
***
Kuroo had somehow managed to convince Nekomata to cancel Friday practice, under the excuse of "needing rest once in a while"
Of course, Nekomata hadn´t believed him but cancelled, either way, to go share some drinks with Coach Naoi.
He secretly told Kuroo how bad Naoi was holding his drink and how fun it was.
So after dismissing the rest of his teammates, Kuroo waited for a certain someone to come.
Hisato was meant to appear at 6, so Kuroo still had two hours left.
At five-thirty, a sudden loud group started to grow closer.
But it wasn´t only two people, it was five. He saw a tall blond boy, a shorty orange-haired and a bulky black hair. The three of them with the crow´s jacket.
As soon as he saw Kuroo, Bokuto flew towards his friend
"KUROOOO!" he hooted happily, "I TOLD AKAASHI AS YOU TOLD ME, BUT I ACCIDENTALLY TOLD HINATA AND HINATA TOLD TSUKKI AND HINATA TOLD ALL OF KARASUNO AND INSISTED ON COMING BUT SAWAMURA DIDN´T WANTED TO LEAVE THEM BUT ALSO WANTED TO HELP SO HE LEFT SUGA IN CHARGE OF THE OTHER CROWS AND TSUKKI ALSO CAME! ISN´T IT GREAT?!
Kuroo blinked a few moments trying to process what he had just heard but was now probably deaf due to all the screaming
"In summary, Bokuto-san slipped and dragged Hinata, Tsukishima and Sawamura into this mess. Good to see you, Kuroo-san" Akashi greeted in his usual deadpan manner
"Akaaaashi, that´s mean!"
"Yo, Kuroo" Daichi waved his hand "It´s been a while"
"Sawamura" Kuroo said "Nice to see you here"
"Hi, Kuroo-san!" Hinata chirped, jumping up and down
"Chibi-chan, good to see you too. Why are you here?"
"Bokuto-san told me and I wanted to come here, but Daichi-san didn´t want us to come alone so decided to come with us" he quickly said
"Us?" Kuroo inquired
"I never said I wanted to come, you just assumed" Tsukishima complained, annoyed
"Hey, hey, hey Tsukki, don´t look so down! The Third Gym Squad is together again, we should celebrate!" Bokuto hollered, passing a buff arm around Tsukishima´s shoulder
Tsukishima sighed, tired, and squeezed his way from Bokuto´s buff embrace
"Why did I agree?" he cursed, in defeat
"Because you care about your friend and wanted to do something about it" Daichi smiled at him
Kuroo smirked mischievously at Tsukishima, who now looked both confused and disgusted
"Tch. Whatever" he said and walked away to sit in the gym´s bench
"Sawamura, please explain", Kuroo asked
Daichi suddenly seemed more tired.
"Hinata told us what happened last week but yesterday he told me he was coming to Tokyo to the "Third Gym Squad Meeting", and somehow convinced Tsukishima of doing it. But Suga didn´t want them to come alone and after asking Coach Ukai for permission we made our way here and left the other kids with Suga"
"Don´t mind" Kuroo patted in sympathy, amused by Daichi´s fatherly behaviour
"I don´t mind, Kuroo-san!" Hinata announced loudly "I get to meet Bokuto-san, and that´s more than great!"
<<Uh oh. He´s going to get his head even more full>> Akaashi thought, tired, and quietly walked away towards the only other san person A.K.A Tsukishima
"¡HINATA, MY LIL´DISCIPLE, LET ME TEACH YOU SOME GREAT SPIKES!" Bokuto yelled, echited
And obviously, Hinata also screamed in excitement.
"¿REALLY? ¡BOKUTO-SAN, YOU´RE THE BEST MENTOR EVER!"
Bokuto blushed due to the compliment
"¿Right, right?"
<<Chibi-chan, you sure now hoe to flatter the emptyhead>> Kuroo thought
"By the way" Daichi suddenly said, reaching for his backpack "I bought meat buns for the trip, but Hinata was too excited to eat and Tsukishima was sleeping most of the time. Want some?" he offered
Smiling, Kuroo grabbed one from the bag and happily munched, realizing then how hungry he was,
"Thanks"
"Is no problem. HINATA, BREAK A WINDOW IN ANOTHER SCHOOL AND YOU´LL HAVE TO DEAL WITH ME. THE SAME FOR YOU, BOKUTO, THIS IS ANOTHER SCHOOL!" Daichi scolded
Hinata didn´t jumped, but pouted a bit instead
"But I´m bored, Daichi-san"
"Yeah, I´m bored too, Sawamura!" Bokuto also pouted
Daichi sighed, and Kuroo patted him sympathetically
"Listen, if you come here and behave I´ll give you these meat buns and we´ll go eat some more after this whole ordeal is over" he promised
The other two´s eyes sparkled and appeared in front of Daichi in a blink
"-aichi-sam, yer da ´est cap'n ev´r!" Hinata said, stuffing his face
"eah, Saba´ra, ya´r great!"
Daichi looked at them in concern
<<He acts as their father>> Akaashi and Kuroo thought at the same time
After eating and sitting on the bench, both Hinata and Bokuto were happily chatting and catching up.
Right at six, the whole group turned their heads to see a lonely figure approaching the gym.
After warning Tsukishima, Akaashi stood up and walked next to Kuroo, who was very tense. Daichi was also there too and Bokuto stood up.
Hinata didn´t
"What´s wrong, Hinata?" Bokuto asked, worried
The shorter didn´t answer, but Bokuto saw him shaking
"You´re scared of him?" the older asked
Hinata nodded "He beat Lev, and Lev´s tall and a bit intimidating and I´m short and small and--
"Well, don´t!" Bokuto happily advised "He won´t beat you because you´re not alone. Crows fly in flocks, remember? And even if owls are normally lonely animals, we are not! So even if not all the crows are here, there´re two owls and a cat watching your back. Besides", Bokuto´s eyes shined dangerously, "Crow´s flocks are also called a murder"
Hinata shivered under Bokuto´s gaze, but he knew everything was going to be fine
"Thanks, Bokuto-san!" Hinata thanked, before standing up and walking next to Kuroo. He was sure the face Tanaka had taught him was looking great
The other figure had gotten closer and was now a meter away from Kuroo
"So, what do you want?" Hisato spitted
"To give you a warning, brat" Kuroo replied, serious "You did what you did to Lev after he stopped you. And you have been expelled from this school, haven´t you?"
"It was Kozume-senpai´s fault, I saw him sneaking away from our class" the other answered back, "I told you I could go talk to him" he smiled
Kuroo tensed
"Stay away from Kenma" a voice said "Don´t you dare put your filthy hands on him"
Hisato blinked a bit and stared down, to where the voice coming from.
Hinata´s gaze was staring right through him, with such power behind those eyes it was impossible no to shrink under the shrimp. It felt like being stared by a murder of crows, staring at his soul and waiting to feast on his meat.
Daichi smirked proudly and Kuroo sighed in happiness, knowing Kenma had amazing friends
Hisato coughed and tried to gain his composure back
"What can a shrimpy like you do, huh? I could beat you to a bloody pulp" he threatened, raising his hand to grab Hinata´s shirt.
"I wouldn´t do that if I were you", a cold voice said.
Tsukishima stepped to the front, towering over Hisato the same exact, terrifying way Lev had done it all those weeks ago.
"This shrimpy may seem harmless, but it can fly very high", Tsukishima said, staring down at him "And I recommend you not to anger our captain. He may seem nice, but he can be more horrifying than any of us here"
The glasses only made Tsukishima´s look colder.
But being looked down wasn´t something Hisato liked.
He grabbed both boys by the shirt, trying to push them over
"If you think I´m afraid of a stupid cro--"
A big, strong hand grabbed his wrist, squeezing it until he let go of the boy´s shirts.
"Do you really think I´d let you touch my teammates?" Daichi asked, in a low whisper "You may want to reconsider your next actions, kid. I´m not one to use violence but I will not tolerate your actions, even less in front of me"
Hisato shivered and sank under Daichi´s threat. If anything, his legs felt heavier than before.
Akaashi closed the distance between him and the very scared Hisato.
"Right now, there´s no option of winning. The smartest choice you can make is to flee with your pride in pieces and the tail between your legs"
The rain has started to fall, and the sky was now dark and clouded.
For one last time, Hisato swallowed his fear and turned to Akaashi, who was simply standing there.
And for the third time, he made another huge mistake and pushed Akaashi back
"Fuck you man, I--"
Hisato then felt himself being lifted from the floor.
Bokuto had appeared in a flash and with minimal effort, had lifted him from the ground to a considerable height.
"That was a third warning, brat" Bokuto spat, angry "You keep thinking you´re so strong and mighty when in reality, alone, your nothing but a big coward who threatens those smaller and in disadvantage. But guess what, dumbass? The cat you stepped on was not by his own"
Hisato squeaked in fear, his limbs like butter and stomach like a freezing rock
"The thing is, Lev was never alone. Even when you beat him to a pulp and sent him to the hospital, even when you insulted him over and over again, even when you spread those twisted whispers, Lev always had his team´s support" Akaashi scolded ina frozen voice
"Unlike you, who fly by yourself", Hinata said, staring right into Hisato´s very soul.
"But apparently you took volleyball away from another volleyball idiot. Have you ever tried walking with a broken leg? That may help you to understand your situation" Tsukishima suggested, signalling his leg.
Hisato whimpered, terrified from the guys in front of him.
Daichi stood closer "Your friends are not here with you. They can´t help you, and they can´t beat us all. Cats may be ferocious in a group, but when crows flock they can even take down a big, white eagle"
Kuroo snarled at him "So hear our last warning, Hisato-kun. If I ever see you close to us or I hear a single whisper of your intention to return, I´ll call everyone, and owls, crows and cats will be chasing your tail. So you may try to step on another cat´s tail, but if you do, then the cat will bite"
Bokuto let go of his shirt, and the now small figure fell on his but, wetting his pants with what was probably rainwater.
A thunder resonated and the light came quickly, revealing not humans but terrifying monsters, towering over him like a beast of a fairy tail
"Run" the whisper in unison, but it might have well been a massive roar.
The effect was quick, and never had he been so terrified in his life, Hisato sprinted his way out as fast as possible.
Volleyball players were crazy, that´s for sure.
Silence fell in the camp again, until Hisato´s shape got lost and disappeared.
"Well, now that we finish, who wants to go for some ramen?" Daichi offered with a smile
Akaashi sighed, tired
"Well, if we are already wet we may as well go eat something warm" he answered, ruffling his own hair
"The same" Tskushima agreed
"FREE RAMEN!" Hinata cheered, walking next to Bokuto, who was already ahead of time
"LET´S MAKE AN "ALL YOU CAN EAT" CONTEST!" the owl captain hollered
Daichi, amused, walked beside them when he noticed Kuroo wasn´t moving.
"Kuroo?" he called
The cat captain turned and stared at him with warmness filling his feline eyes.
"Thanks for coming. You have no idea how much this means to us" he sincerely said, smiling softly
Daichi felt his chest warm
"We share the trash heap, don´t we? We crows can also defend our territory. And now let´s go, I´ll treat you ramen to"
Kuroo giggled and sprinted a bit to walk besides Daichi
It was a wet evening, and Hinata´s and Bokuto´s voices filled the air, but for both captains, they wouldn´t rather be anywhere else.
***
On Monday, when Lev returned classes, a line of students formed in front oh his seat and a few of his female classmates helped him with his bags when they saw him still using crutches to walk.
"We want to apologize properly", one of them said, and all the other nodded in agreement.
Lev smiled happily and from that they on, the whispers were, once again, amazed by his height and heritage and his beautiful sister and his skills.
Six weeks later
Returning to volleyball practice, after so long without being able to move, was proving to be more difficult than expected. He had seemed to lost a bit of stamina and his reflexes were slowed down, so receiving was worse than normal.
Still, he enjoyed the feeling of tiredness so much he asked Yaku-san to help him with receives.
Yaku almost cried in happiness and spent the next two hours gently guiding Lev to do a proper receive.
Lev felt his chest could bloom in happiness.
And after showering and grabbing his bag to leave, Yaku stopped him in the entry of the gym. Weirdly enough, the gym seemed empty and only Yaku seemed to be around.
It was a bit disconcerting.
"Come with me" Yaku ordered without giving further explanation
Lev, intrigued, followed Yaku towards the club room.
"Yaku-san, wha-"
"Open the door"
Lev, still very intrigued, carefully opened the door and saw it all very dark.
He blinked a few times and when he raised his hand to turn off the lights, he definitely wasn´t expecting what came next.
"SURPRISE!" many voices yelled at the same time, throwing small pellets and serpentine everywhere.
Kuroo was standing in the middle next to Alisa, who had Siniy in her arms. By their sides, Fukunaga stood next to Yamamoto and Shibayama next to Inuoka. Kai stood in the far left and Kenma was situated on the far right. Both coaches were sitting on the table, and they had a can of beer in their hands. Even Akane, wearing her usual smile, was standing in front of her brother.
The club room had been decorated from the floor the ceiling in Russian and Japanese flags, a few volleyball banners and a picture of Russian Blue in the ceiling. Serpentine was flying everywhere, the arranged table was filled with food and everyone, including both coaches, were wearing fake cat ears.
But what called Lev´s eyes was the huge banner hanging in the middle, a white banner with huge red letters that said "WELCOME HOME, ACE"
Kuroo stepped to the front and everyone went quiet for a bit.
"We knew how bad you wanted to return, so we wanted to make something special. Then Yakkun remembered how you once told him you loved surprised parties but never got one, and he coordinated with all of us to make this little surprise. Alisa-san and Akane-chan helped a lot, too"
Yaku flushed a bit, ane evaded Lev´s eyes.
But Lev wasn´t smiling nor grinning like his usual self.
His eyes seem teary, and a sudden sniff caught everyone´s attention.
<<This wasn´t supposed to go like this, wasn´t it?>> they thought in unison
Akane worried and tried to speak to him"He-hey, Lev-kun, don't-"
"Before--" Lev started, and the team stared at him in expectance "Before it happened, the whispers were sometimes too much to handle. I knew they were dumb and I knew I could count on you guys a lot, but sometimes I just couldn´t help but believe what I heard. It was really difficult, and it got worse after the beat up because I had to stay alone at the hospital. It was when I was alone that my mind started to wander and sometimes I asked myself if I was of any worth for the team. I hated being alone, yes, but Alisa had to work and I didn´t want to bother you guys, because I´m an ace and strong aces make girls go "kyahhh" and all that-" and they smiled because a sad Lev was still Lev, after all, "so I wasn´t complaining. Still, every single one of those weeks you all visited me as often as possible, and I can´t be more grateful to you all for that", Lev sniffed, "So thank you, everyone, for not leaving me alone!" he finished, with grateful tears rolling down his cheeks.
Yaku slapped his back hard
"Of course we´re not leaving you, dumbass. You´re going to become an ace, aren´t you? And as your team, we´ll always have your back. So stop crying, you big baby" Yaku told him
Lev sniffled and stared at Yaku.
"YAGU-SHAAAAN!" he cried before avalanching over the young libero and squeezing him with his body.
"Group hug!" Inuoka barfed happily, grabbing poor Shibayama and dragging him towards the crying Lev
"I´m glad you liked it, Haiba-kun!" Shibayama wheezed, squished by big Inuoka
"WELCOME HOME, ACE BASTARD" Yamamoto smiled, hugging them tightly
A dragged Fukunaga had to lift his head in order to breath.
"You probably shouldn´t drag, but dag, you amaze and stonish" Fukunaga smiled, and Lev laughed at his dumb joke (6)
Kai calmly walked towards them and patted him on the head
"Is good to see you so happy, Lev" he wholeheartedly said
Kuroo got close to and squeezed everyone between his arms.
"Is not the same without your stupid head around, so I´m glad to have you back. The Third Gym Squad is already coming, so try to stay a bit longer"
Lev blinked surprised by Kuroo using that cool name but beamed and nodded energetically
"We can stay as long as you want, Lyovochka, this is all for you", Alisa said, signalling the decorated room. Siniy meowed in agreement and Lev laughed at the cat´s weird meow.
"It took a few hours to set everything, so I really hope you like it" Akane smiled, standing in front of the hugging bunch
"Enjoy it while you can, Lev" Coach Naoi smiled
"Yeah, enjoy it you too because I brought a lot of beer for tonight and we're drinking it all!" Nekomata laughed, amused by Naoi's expression
The only not being smashed was Kenma, who simply stood behind the young Russian and tapped his shoulder gently.
"Is good to have you back, Lev. It really is", Kenma smiled sincerely
Yaku stared at Lev´s expression, and his heart skipped a bit when Lev finally smiled back, wider than it had been in a while and brighter than the sun itself. For Yaku, it was a beautiful smile.
For Lev, it was the best day of his life and his chest felt full at knowing he wasn´t going to be alone. Yaku-san and the team´s presence made Lev feel alive, and for the first in what felt like forever, Lev laughed as loud as he liked'
Indeed, Lev knew how cool his team was.
EXPLANATION:
(1): If you understood it I love you, if you didn´t I´ll explain: It´s a reference to Kuroo´s line when he's teaching Tsukki the kill block, during Haikyuu´s Stage Play: Summer of Evolution, or Shinka no Natsu. It covers the whole Tokyo Training Camp arc and the actors are great!
(2): Final Haikyuu! Quest started as an additional poster made by Furudate-sensei, but then an actual 3DS game was made out of it. And of course, Kenma would love to play it!
(3): Kartoshka, or картошка , it´s a traditional Russian dish made from cookies and condensed milk. I haven´t tried it but it seems delicious
(4): Murase Ayumu is the name of Hinata´s VA. He´s a cute sweetheart and I love him a lot!
(5): Ishikawa Kaito is also the name of Kageyama´s VA. He seems friendly and is best friends with Ayu, so I depicted them as such
(6): If you understood it, you´re almost to marry me, if you don´t I´ll tell you. It´s on the first lines from My Shot, from the Hamilton Musical. Fukunaga really has good taste in music, let me tell ya´.