"Master Lovro?"

The former Master Assassin, now Hitman Dealer, paused his steps. His hands rested behind his back, letting his trench coat flicker with the wind as he waited for the man— his former target for a day, Karasuma Tadaomi, to continue.

The physical education teacher walked up to the male in silence. He looked up to see what the older male was gazing at before he slid his gaze back to the only link the Japanese government had to the world of hitmen.

"I have a request," he began before pausing and reformulating his words. "Rather, I would like to ask for a favor."

Lovro's sharp eyes flickered to look at the man he failed to kill. He raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected the man to ask for a favor, and from the look of it, it wasn't a movement from the government but something the man did on his own initiative.

He lightly chuckled, momentarily giving off the illusion of an old-retired-man, and breaking the oppressive air of a hitman. "A favor?" he echoed, founding the way the word sounded particularly amusing as it rolled off his tongue. "From me?"

Karasuma's eyes thinned, and the experienced man could see that he wasn't doing it for the fun of it. After all, if Karasuma could, he would limit his contact with the Underworld to the maximum.

Nevertheless, the governmental official sighed, he straightened his back and adopted a more official demeanor.

"You can see it as me asking you a question."

Lovro refrained from raising an eyebrow. A request, a favor, now a question? Were words really so important now? His lips tugged up into an interested smirk as he hummed to usher the male to go on. He wondered what could get the male to be so guarded, yet not, it picked his interest.

Who knew, did he want him to kill someone?

"It's about a student. I wanted to know if he received assassination or any type of training prior to the moon event, and if so, who he was affiliated to," Karasuma explained as he walked down the hill with Lovro by his side.

The Hitman Dealer hummed, he reviewed the young assassin he knew in his mind, searching for any information about whether or not they were sent to Kunugigaoka or on a mission nearby.

"The student is part of the main building, and should be part of the A-class, gender is male, his name is Kannazuki Mitsukuni," he introduced. His steps slowed down as they neared the bottom of the hill, he turned to look at the older male, their eyes squarely met as they sized one another up. "I would like it if this could remain confidential," he added.

Lovro's sharp eyes narrowed. "Kannazuki Mitsukuni?" he echoed with some doubt. The name didn't ring any bell for the moment, and if Karasuma asked him, it meant that the male's researches had come to naught.

Therefore, either the target had nothing, or he hid extremely well.

"If it isn't indiscreet, why the care?" Lovro voiced, his steps came to a halt, they reached the bottom of the hill, and there was nowhere else to go.

Karasuma's brows creased into a frown. "No real reason, a simple gut feeling," he muttered before flickering his gaze to the side and looking back at the male. "His reflexes, and instincts are—" his eyes flashed, narrowed, and he paused. "sharp."

Lovro raised an eyebrow, he hummed. "I see."

No, he didn't see anything. He didn't quite understand what Karasuma meant by sharp, on what scale he based himself, and what situation he was referring to. Nonetheless, he didn't betray his skepticism and accepted the demand.

Having the raven head owe him a favor could always come in handy, and he didn't think that there was anything to lose from this transaction.

"Very well, I will reach out to you once done," he approved, a practical business smile painting his lips as he extended his hand for a handshake to seal their deal. "Happy cooperation?"

Karasuma's face turned more severe as he accepted the handshake and firmly returned it. His voice was low and steady as usual but gave off an unreachable feeling. "Yes. Happy cooperation."

::

Mitsukuni silently laid on his bed, Reiko in his arms, he quietly observed the room, his gaze wandering to the window from time to time before he retracted it to stare at the wall.

"Something bothering you, Mitsukuni?" Karma asked. The redhead was sitting on the fluffy carpet and leaned his back against the shorter's bedframe. He had a magazine in his hands and carelessly flipped through it. His mercury eyes flicked upward to look at his somewhat restless childhood friend for a second as he paused his reading.

Mitsukuni answered the question with a hum. "No, nothing," he absentmindedly said. In his mind, he wondered how low the Kannazuki security was for intruders to get into their residency unnoticed.

The redhead raised an eyebrow. "'S that so?" he murmured as he closed his magazine and set it aside on the mat. He propped himself up, and sat on the bed, making the mattress sink under his weight.

Mitsukuni merely hummed, not peeling his gaze off the window.

The pair of mercury-colored orbs followed the shorter's eyes to the window. He paused, narrowing his eyes in contemplation as he searched for the other's source of worry.

Them being childhood friends didn't mean nothing. Just like Mitsukuni knew most of his and Gakushu's secrets and habits, he knew most of Mitsukuni's and Gakushu's tells and secrets. One of Mitsukuni's traits was his sharp instinct. He didn't know if the boy was born with it or if he developed it after taking up fighting classes, but it remained that Mitsukuni's sensory ability was far above average.

Karma stared out the window with suspicion brewing in his stomach. His eyes narrowed, and he wondered. Was Mitsukuni being threatened? Followed?

Was it for money?

Fame?

Or was it because of his business with 3-E and Koro-sensei?

The ideas didn't seem far fetched to Karma, and he frowned, finding the idea more and more believable by the seconds. If Mitsukuni's problems really came from his involvement with 3-E, then it put Karma in a delicate situation. Did they suspect him of leaking information to the strawberry blond teen? Should he limit their contact in the future?

The thought didn't please him. Sure he found killing Koro-sensei interesting and fulfilling, but he didn't want it to be at the price of his friendship with the teen.

"Poke, poke," Mitsukuni sang, snapping Karma out of his musings as he felt his cheek getting poked by his childhood friend's finger. "Done thinking, Ma-chan?" Mitsukuni inquired with a grin as he pulled his hand back and waved Reiko's paws at the redhead.

"Mmm? Was I?" the E-class student rhetorically asked as he slumped down to lay next to the blond. The mattress sank further, and attracted by the slope, Mitsukuni rolled closer to the boy until they laid right next to one another, their waist practically touching.

"Whoah, you're so heavy, Ma-chan!" Mitsukuni marveled with a pout before giggling as he squeezed Reiko tighter.

Karma rolled his mercury-colored eyes. His hand roughly ruffled Mitsukuni's strawberry blond hair, disheveling his hairstyle. "Isn't it you who's too light?" he rebuked with a dubious raised eyebrow and a mischievous smirk. "Where does all this cake go, uh?" he teased, attacking the blond's stomach by repetitively poking it with his fingers.

Mitsukuni's answers were aimless kicks and giggles as he feigned the act of fighting his friend's attack back. He rolled aimlessly from side to side to evade the redhead, always keeping Reiko under one arm as he didn't put in much energy to dodge.

"Are you people children?" the disbelieving voice broke the two males out of their childish activity.

Mitsukuni's breathing was unregular, he slightly panted and his cheeks were flushed from laughter. A large grin painted his face as he glared Karma some non-threatening daggers before rolling to rest on his stomach and look the door's way.

Karma's amused grin hadn't faded, and upon noticing the look Mitsukuni gave him, he chortled and his smile deepened. He ruffled the blond's hair, his mercury-colored eyes flickered to look at the newcomer, and he smugly smirked.

"What? You jealous, daddy's boy?" he taunted, a mischievous smile painting his lips. He heard Mitsukuni snort, probably form his words and the aftereffect of laughter, and his smile widened.

Gakushu's eyebrow twitched, he rubbed his temples in a fed-up manner before closing the door. His feet led him to the low table in the middle of the room, and he sat on one of the couch before turning and looking at the two boys on the bed. His purple eyes spared the lying magazine a glance.

"I brought some cake," Mitsukuni perked up and extricated himself from Karma's grip before rolling and jumping off the bed with Reiko in his arms. "Strawberry shortcake, and an opéra," he articulated.

"Whoah, awesome, Shu-chan!" Mitsukuni beamed as he ran up to his childhood friend on the couch. He sat next to him, and Karma who was left alone on the bed picked up his mag and flipped through it, listening in their talk with one ear.

"Well, daddy's boy got some pocket money to spend," Karma jeered with a sly smirk, his eyes flickering to Gakushu to gauge his reaction before he focused back on the magazine in his hands.

"Mou, stop it Ma-chan," Mitsukuni defended. "Shu-chan bought cakes! Cakes are always a good expense!" he firmly stated, a righteous expression plastered on his face as he brought his brows into a frown. His lips tugged down into a thin line and he self righteously stared into Karma's mercury-colored eyes.

Karma snorted. "My bad, my bad," he offhandedly admitted as he sat up from the bed and walked up to the duo to seat on the chair on the other side of the table. "I'll be careful next time, Mitsukuni," he apologized with an unrepentant grin.

Mitsukuni scowled, he huffed and stood up. "I'll go ask Aunty for some tea," he said, not forgetting to take Reiko with him before he walked out of his bedroom, leaving the two rivals and childhood friends alone.

"So, how's 3-E and the prefab? Missing the main building already?" Gakushu began as he looked at the smug redhead with an inquisitive raised eyebrow.

Karma hummed, he thought back on the recent events, the new addition to their class— a weirdo with a brother complex blended with an Oedipus one, before he shrugged his shoulder and shook his head.

"Nah, everything's good, thanks, Gakushu," he evenly said, not bothering to answer the blond's taunt. Asano rolled his eyes, obviously not believing the male.

Although Karma and Gakushu rarely spent time alone these days, it didn't mean that they couldn't. On the contrary, when alone, they usually achieved better things. Their interactions also got milder, and instead of insulting or baiting one another with words, they called each other by their name and had normal civil talks.

"Mmm? Really?" the blond answered, clearly unconvinced by the redhead's claim. "Well, if you change your mind, call me, I'll see what I can do," he said before lowering his voice, ears tinted in a slightly reddish color as he cleared his throat. "I mean, I owe you this much," he whispered.

Karma's smirk turned milder and he hummed. "I'll keep that in mind," he said. The two fell into a comfortable silence, there wasn't much to say, and they didn't mind the quietness on the room as they waited for the cakes and refreshments.

"That reminds me, Gakushu," Karma called out, mercury eyes flickering to the window before he looked back at the blond. "Has someone been stalking Mitsukuni these days?"

"Ha? Is someone even stupid enough to do that now that he's the president of the Judo club?" Asano rhetorically answered. He gave the redhead a probing glance before sitting up and seriously gazing at him. "Did he tell you something, Karma?"

Karma shook his head if Mitsukuni hadn't told Gakushu a thing, and the boy hadn't noticed anything amiss, Karma wouldn't say a word. After all, he didn't know if it was his misconception or if someone was following the teen.

"No, just wondering," he said with a shrug. His lips tugged up into a smile and he chuckled. "I mean, it's been some time since the last stalker, so I was wondering if there was a next one already," he joked with a grin.

Asano grimaced, obviously not finding the redhead's claim funny before he rolled his eyes and sighed. "Sorry to disappoint you, but no, we haven't caught anyone."

"Aww, so sad~" the redhead drawled. "And here I was looking for someone to legally test my new pranks on," he lamented with a derisive grin.

The strawberry blond snorted. "That's what you said."

"Hehehe, don't worry, Gakushu, I'll send you a pic of my next victim!"

Asano rolled his eyes, a mischievous smirk mirroring Karma's on his lips. "I'll be waiting."

"Ha! Mark your words!"

BONUS CHAPTER

I am feeling extremely confused. How come some of the guesses are soo on point? Truthfully, one of your "educated guesses" left me dumbly smiling as I nodded to myself, thinking, 'So I'm not the only one who saw his potential!'

I digress. I won't divulge anything yet, to you extremely accurate reader, I offer my thanks and tears ;')

Anyway, here's the answer. Kyoya is an underground surgeon, part of Irina's organization, and her superior in terms of seniority. 

Truthfully, I thought you would take longer to find Kyoya, but, oh well.

Next target: Haruhi Fujioka

From my point of view, she's one of the easiest to guess (I'm keeping the hard ones for last :)) If I give you a hint, it will be wayyy to easy, so I won't ^^