Specimen T-04

Part 29~Family

Nagisa stared at Itona, the feeling in his gut turning. There were two possibilities that made sense to him. Either Itona was genuinely Koro-sensei's blood relative from pre-tentaclification, or this guy had tentacles.

"We are family. We don't need to resort to cheap tricks. Do we, big brother? Killing you will prove I'm the stronger one. After school, we'll fight in here. Today will be your last day teaching. You had better say goodbye to your students." Itona walked back out of the hole he had made in the wall as the students began screaming at Koro-sensei for answers.

"I have no idea what he's talking about. I was an only child! I wanted a little brother, and I was more than my parents could handle already."

That didn't stop the rumours as Shiro left.

"Nagisa," the word projected in his mind, short and sweet, filled with comforting auras, but it wasn't enough.

"I need a moment," Nagisa answered. "Can you stay out of my head?" Nagisa wasn't sure if Keiji got the end comment as he had already left, giving Nagisa a soft smile before turning his attention to the group.

Nagisa sighed, lowering his head.

He heard their voices so clearly. It was like they were still there. "Promise?"

~~~

Itona sat at the back, chewing on the various treats he had brought in.

"Look at him, chow down. He has a sweet tooth, just like Koro-sensei," Maehara muttered as Isogai nodded.

"And his expression is hard to read, too."

"This 'brother-bother' is causing everyone to compare me to him. I don't like it." Koro-sensei huffed as Karma sat on Keiji's desk.

"Do you think they're related?"

Keiji wasn't sure how to answer that. "I'm not sure. Brothers aren't always blood-related, and this kid is way too weird for that."

Karma laughed before he turned to Nagisa. "What about you? Where's your bet lying?"

Nagisa didn't respond, making Karma frown. He gently tapped Nagisa's back, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Yen for your thoughts?"

Nagisa smiled softly, shaking his head. "It's nothing." Before Karma could announce otherwise, Nagisa took his hand and leaned into his side, the same far-off expression returning.

Karma sighed worriedly as he ran his fingers through Nagisa's hair. He really wished Nagisa would talk to him. He knew Nagisa and Keiji were hiding stuff, and he had a feeling it had to do with how Itona and Koro-sensei were related, but he wasn't going to push.

He didn't want to hurt them.

~~~

The day came to an end too fast for the student's liking. Itona didn't hesitate when the bell rang. He walked into the centre of the room and threw his jacket to the side.

The students and teachers gathered around, watching and waiting.

"A ring made out of our desks?" Jelavich frowned as Karasuma nodded.

"Right. This is like a death match. I've never seen anyone try to assassinate their target like this before."

Shiro stood behind Itona, patting his shoulder. "I'm sure you're tired of ordinary assassination attempts, Koro-sensei. So why don't we set some rules? The moment one of us steps outside this ring, we accept execution. How's that sound?"

Sugino frowned. "What the? Who's gonna enforce that rule?"

"He will," Karma answered without hesitation. "The students know the rule, so if he breaks it, he'll lose their trust as a teacher. It's actually a pretty clever way to handicap Koro-sensei."