Strong Fox

3

you blushed lightly as yusuke grabbed your hands, his eyes quickly looking over your face for any bruises or injuries. you smiled sweetly at him. "yusuke, i'm fine."

at the sound of your words the blue haired teen stopped looking over you, muttering a few words at himself before letting go of your hands. his eyes narrowed as looked over his shoulder.

"who the hell are you!?" he shouted, moving his body in front of you - trying his best to protect you. you couldn't help but lightly giggle at how fierce he looked.

a platinum haired girl with a red mask raised her hands in defense. "yusuke-kun, its just me...!"

"a-ann...?" yusuke muttered, his gray irises staring at the other people that were there. curious, you got on your tip toes to peer over your friends shoulder.

the blue haired teen straightened up, his body relaxing. "then that means you two...!"

you looked around, confused about the design of the place around you. it looked fancier than what you're used to. you didn't know exactly where this place was located either. when ann and yusuke bumped into you, you shut your eyes as you fell back.

your eyes glanced up at the sky, multiple yellow light cutting through the dark blue with ease. (e/c) snapped back down as the raven haired boy opened his mouth to speak.

"we don't have any time to waste. let's go."

🌼

the raven haired boy, now known as joker, suddenly came to a halt - causing you to bump into yusuke's back. muttering and apology your (e/c) irises looked over his shoulder, connecting with the body of a shadow figure.

"the exit is right there!" the black and white anthromorphic cat, now known as morgana, shouted with a shake of his head.

laughter could be heard behind you as you all turned around, meeting madarame face to face.

skull shook his head. "talk about bullshit clothes! first a king, now some kinda shogun!?"

madarame smiled, his gaze selfish and arrogant. "welcome to the museum of the master artist madarame..."

a look of confusion painted your face as you and yusuke exchanged glances. holding his stomach gingerly, yusuke gray eyes widened slightly. "sensei? is that you?" he questioned.

"that attire..." you started, staring at the very yellow outfit madarame was wearing with narrowed eyes.

panther glared at madarame with no hesitation. "disgusting!"

knowing madarame since you were little, your thoughts became conflicted with the thought of this being truly real. quickly shaking your head you denied it, shielding your eyes from the truth.

stop lying to yourself.

deep down you know that this is real, you can't shield your eyes from the truth.

"no... its not real!" you blurted out, shaking your head again as the voice started teasing you again.

yusuke placed a comforting hand on your shoulder in the midst of your distress, however his gaze never left his teacher. "this... this is all one big lie, isn't it...?" he inquired, voice full of denial.

madarame simply stared down at him. "my usual ragged attire is nothing but an act." he started, shrugging his shoulders. "besides, a famous person living in that shack? I have another home... under a mistress's name of course."

"some setup you got." joker scoffed.

"hahaha! don't make me laugh." madarame sneered.

gray eyes held a look of hurt. "if the 'sayuri' was stolen, why was it in the storage room? and if you had the real one, why make copies!?" he demanded.

slowly getting over your distress you raised your head, eyes shining with fresh tears.

"if it's really you, sensei... please tell me!"

a frown made its way to madarame's face as he stared at yusuke. "foolish child. you still don't see? the painting being stolen was just a false rumor I spread! it was all a perfectly calculated staging!"

"what do you mean...!?" you posed the question quickly, standing your ground as madarame's yellow eyes flicked in your direction.

the man let out a hum before replying. "let me see... how does this sound? 'i found the real painting, but it can't go public... you can have it for a special price, though...' haha! how's that for preferential treatment!? art snobs'll eat it up, and pay good cash at that!"

in denial, yusuke fell to his knees. "no...!"

you moved, catching yusuke and letting him lean on your shoulder as your (e/c) eyes sharpened into a glare.

"the worth of art is purely subjective... thus, this is a legitimate business transaction! though i doubt a brat like you would ever come up with such a brilliant scheme!"

skull growled. "you keep going on about money this, money that... no wonder you ended up with this disgusting museum!"

"you're supposed to be an artist, right!? aren't you ashamed of plagiarizing other people's work!?" ann chipped in.

madarame grinned. "art is nothing but a tool... a tool to gain money and fame! you helped me greatly as well, yusuke..."

"god... pisses me off... that's your teacher."

"but what about the people who believe in you...? who think you're a master artist!?" you shouted, greatly hurt by what you heard.

yellow eyes stared down at you. "... i'll tell you this alone, (y/n). if you wish to succeed in this world, i'd advise you don't rise against me. do you believe anyone could find success with my objects holding them down? hahahahaha!"

yusuke scoffed. "to think i was under the car of this wretched man...!"

"you thought i took you in out of the goodness in my heart?" he sneered, a teasing glint in his yellow eyes. "plucking talented, yet troubled artists allows me to find promising pupils and take their ideas... after all, it's much easier to steal the futures of children who can't fight back."

"i can't believe this..." yusuke muttered.

"livestock are killed for their hide and meat! this is no different, you fool! ...but i tired of this little chat. it's time that i..."

"you are unforgivable."

closing your eyes for just a moment, a dark aura surrounded your body. "it doesn't matter who you are... we won't forgive you!"