The Underground

Assigment: Information Retrieval

The driveway was curved and extremely long. You were getting a little restless, so you crossed your arms and propped your feet onto the armrest in between Coach and Takeda. You blew locks of your hair away from your eyes and waited to for the car to finally come to a stop. Once it did, you were in what resembled a car showroom, there were many impressive vehicles ranging from motorcycles, minivans, sports cars, and much more.

Coach and Takeda got out and you followed suit. As you hopped off the car, you dusted off your jeans and cropped pink shirt. Your father hated when you dressed like that, so did your mother. When you weren't around them, you took pleasure in dressing however the hell you wanted. It would get frustrating always dressing in preppy clothes and looking all prim and proper. Not that you didn't like it, you just wanted to dress according to your mood, not your parents'.

You followed the executives down to the end of the showroom where there was an elevator to take you up to the pit, the three of you walked down the ramp to where Kenma was with Hinata and Kageyama.

"Where's Suga?" you asked.

"He's working a case with Asahi, Noya, and Tanaka in Fukuoka," Kageyama replied. "They left this morning. They won't be back until another week."

You released a sigh. In all honesty, you were hoping to see Sugawara. Over the past two weeks, you began to develop a bond with most of the Karasuno boys, especially the captain. He and the rest of the team had been so helpful with you, helping you with training and hanging out at HQ here and there. It was only natural for you to want to see your friend . . . right?

"Hi," Hinata piped jovially.

"Hey," you patted his back, painting a smile on your face. You turned to Kenma, "How's everything looking?"

Kenma fiddled with his thumbs as he softly said, "All our evidence so far is leading to a specific gang that does paid hit missions. They're called the Nohebi tribe, they're led by Suguru Daishou. They own a restaurant in Shibuya where we think they handle meetings."

A picture of a dark-haired man appeared on the screen, labeled Suguru Daishou. The malicious glint in his eye being reinforced by his predatory grin. Looking into his eyes sent chills down your arms. Cold and poisonous.

"Oh, great," you looked at all five men. "So why don't we send a swat team to arrest them and bring them in for questioning?"

"That's risky," Kenma said. "Strategically, it's not the best option. It would make sense if we handled this with a discreet approach."

You hummed in agreement, "Yeah, you're right. But how would we even confirm that it's them if we can't bring them in?"

"We send an agent to the restaurant and get information off their devices. See who they do business with," Kageyama mapped out.

"Alright, great," you nodded. "Who are we sending in?"

Takeda seemed all but panicky, Coach cleared his throat and said, "You, kid."

Your eyes dilated, "Me? I haven't even been on a mission before. Shouldn't you send someone who has more experience than I do?"

"If we always send in agents with more experience, how will you get any?" Coach pointed. "Besides, we primarily need someone with hacking experience and Kenma isn't a tactical agent. You've been training for almost a month now and you're more than capable."

You nervously gulped.

Kageyama placed his hand on your shoulder, "Don't worry, I'll be your partner on the mission."

He gave you a comforting smile, which you returned as well.

"Okay," you straightened your back. "I want to tell Iwa, he is my commanding officer, after all. I'll need his help to prepare."

"Yeah, sure. He's in the cafeteria," Coach said, sending you off. "Don't change, just grab Iwaizumi and come back."

You gave a thumbs up as you headed in the direction of the cafeteria. The cafeteria and med bay were one of only few places that didn't have dim lighting. Since the canteen was significantly large, there were over a hundred round tables with built-in benches, so looking for your commanding officer was a bit hard. You scanned the lunchroom for Iwaizumi, Oikawa, Hanamaki, and Matsukawa, soon enough you spot them at a table in the middle of the room.

You walked over to them and cheerfully called, "Iwa, I need you."

Over the past several weeks, you also became close to your team, especially the highest-ranking agents—and Kindaichi. You and Iwaizumi had become pretty close, which Oikawa couldn't help but be a bit jealous about. He stared at you as you sat down next to his friend, not even sparing him a glance.

Iwaizumi was chewing on his sandwich which he set on his tray when you plopped down next to him. "What's up?"

"I got assigned a mission, and I need my favorite commanding officer to send me off," you said.

"A mission?" Oikawa buzzed.

"Iwaizumi is your favorite? That's not fair, I thought I was your favorite," Hanamaki piped.

You tilted your chin up defiantly, "No, because you guys are having lunch without me. Besides, Iwa spends the most time training me."

"I can arrange for us to have one-on-one time," Matsukawa suggested in a perverted manner.

You rolled your eyes and without your knowledge, Oikawa kicked his foot under the table.

"Let's go, Coach and the others are waiting," you pulled Iwaizumi's arm and he got up.

As you both walked into the hall leading out the cafeteria, you felt someone grab your shoulder from behind.

"Iwa, you go. She'll be there in a few," Oikawa informed his friend.

Iwaizumi nodded and walked away, leaving you alone in the corridor in the arms of the brunette. You ripped yourself out of his hold and folded your arms, not looking him in the eye.

"You got assigned to a mission?" Oikawa asked.

You didn't move or say anything, keeping your eyes transfixed on the ground.

"Answer me when I'm speaking to you," he said venomously. "I'm still your superior."

You whipped your head around, glaring at him as you did. "Yeah," you hissed back with an equal amount of poison. "I'm going on a mission. Happy?"

You began walking away and he grabbed your wrist again, "Stop acting like I'm your enemy, okay! I'm trying to look out for you."

You looked him in the eye and said, "I don't need your protection. I've spent the past year on my own, I don't need anyone to look out for me."

You walked away and he stood there for a moment. He couldn't tell you, but he was hurt that he had been watching over you and keeping you out of trouble for a year without being able to even come twenty feet near you. He couldn't explain to you how he truly felt because he would be screwing over his dead friend.