This fanfic is written for the Alternate Universe Challenge over on the Dangan Ronpa Amino. As such, it takes place in a simple non-Despair AU where pretty much everything bar some minor elements of Hope's Peak remains the same, except that Junko and all the other stuff was never an influence. Also, Chihiro is NOT transgender in this fic - Chiaki refers to him with female pronouns because he has only revealed his true gender to her and the 78th class at this point, and he doesn't want anyone else to know.

Additionally, I have exams coming up, so I may need to take a short break from writing in order to focus on them. I hope you all understand!

Enjoy, and feel free to let me know what you think!

The Disappearance of Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu

"Fuyuhiko?" Hajime Hinata called as he briskly strode through the busy halls of Hope's Peak Academy. "Fuyuhiko? Where've you gone this time?"

It was another one of those days - a day where a good friend of his, Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu, would suddenly disappear during the afternoon. He was often rather easy to track down - if anything, he'd usually be in the Ultimates' common room with his childhood friend Peko Pekoyama, chatting with her. Sometimes another good friend of his, Kazuichi Souda, would be with him instead. However, more often than not, Kazuichi would be with his roommate and best friend, Leon Kuwata, doing who knows what, though Hajime could imagine that stalking Sonia would be among their top priorities.

He stopped by the library and quietly opened the door, peeking inside. Just as he'd expected - Fuyuhiko wasn't there either. He sighed as he turned back to the hallway, continuing his search for the Ultimate Yakuza.

It was getting increasingly annoying now, especially since Fuyuhiko was just vanishing like this more often. And it wasn't as though he'd ever actually found him, either - by the time he'd given up on his search, Fuyuhiko would suddenly reappear as though nothing had happened. And whenever Hajime asked him where he'd been, he'd growl, snap at him and outright refuse to tell him. Ordinarily, Hajime wouldn't be so concerned about what Fuyuhiko did during these times, or where he was. In this case, however, he felt that he had a right to be concerned if Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu - the Ultimate Yakuza - was secretive about what exactly he was doing while Hajime tore through every nook and cranny of the school, and even still he was nowhere to be found.

Perhaps Hajime needed to tackle this situation as though he were a detective. The problem was, he was simply a Reserve Course student, and he doubted he had the sharp vision to identify clues, or the intelligent brains to piece them together. He did recall there being an Ultimate Detective in the 78th class, though… wasn't she the headmaster's daughter? Would she even be willing to help out a lowly Reserve Course student like him? Probably not.

Upon heading out to the courtyard, he spotted his best friend, Chiaki Nanami, engaged in a game on her Nintendo DS as she sat on one of the benches. Hajime sighed in relief at the sight of her - maybe she could help him out. She had to be one of the sweetest Ultimates he'd encountered; hell, she was the only one who'd willingly approached him on his first day of school when he was sitting alone on that very same bench.

"Hey Chiaki," he said as he sat beside her.

"Oh, Hajime." Chiaki didn't look up from her game even as she spoke. "How are you?"

"Could be better," Hajime replied. "Fuyuhiko pulled off his disappearing trick again."

"Fuyuhiko… disappearing… again?" Chiaki seemed to be rather confused - not that Hajime had confided to her about this matter before. He regretted not telling her about it earlier. "Tell me the whole story."

"Well, there's not a whole lot to tell," Hajime admitted. "It's just that he's been… vanishing at random times for the past few weeks now, without telling me what's going on or where he's going. I'd always search up and down the school for him, but I'd never find him. And when I do find him and ask him where he was, he never even wants to tell me."

Chiaki finally paused her game and pocketed her handheld, glancing up at Hajime. "That is rather suspicious," she commented. "And especially concerning given his talent."

"That's exactly what I'm worried about," said Hajime. "What the hell could he be doing?"

Chiaki placed a finger on her chin thoughtfully. "From my personal experiences and observations, I can at least confirm that he's not really like the typical gangster," she told him. "I'm not saying it's out of character for him to engage in criminal activity, but rather it's less likely for his disappearances to be connected to that."

"Someone would really have had to piss him off for him to do something so drastic," Hajime agreed. "But maybe that's exactly what happened… he's plotting some kind of revenge on someone."

"We don't know that for sure," Chiaki reminded him. "That's why we should investigate the matter."

"Investigate…?"

"Like detectives, Hajime. Look for clues and piece them together to solve the mystery."

"Since when were you the Ultimate Detective?"

Chiaki smiled. "I've beaten all the Ace Attorney games in under a week. I'm fairly sure I've got the hang of it."

I don't think those games will actually grant you detective skills or anything, Hajime thought.

Chiaki rose to her feet, outstretched her arms, and loudly yawned. She then turned towards Hajime, rubbing her fatigued eyes. "So are we going to investigate the disappearance of Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu, then?" she asked.

"I suppose we could try," Hajime replied as he stood up as well.

Chiaki nodded in approval. "Alright. So where should we look for clues first, Hajime?"

That was a tough question. Where would the clues even be? Were there even any clues at all? Hajime hoped he hadn't just signed up to go on a wild goose chase around the enormous campus.

"Maybe we should start with your classroom," he replied.

"Good idea," said Chiaki. "Let's go, then."

The two of them headed back inside the building and began to make their way towards the classroom where Miss Chisa Yukizome taught Chiaki, Fuyuhiko, and everyone else in Class 77. Hajime wished he were in that class with them, as they all seemed to be quite a lively bunch, according to the stories Chiaki recounted to him about their classroom antics. The Ultimates who resided in that classroom were a lot more interesting than Hajime and his fellow Reserve Course classmates.

"So where did you last see him?" Chiaki asked as they ascended the stairs to the Ultimates' classrooms.

"I haven't seen him since lunch," Hajime replied. "He was in class with you during that last period, was he?"

Chiaki nodded. "He was dutifully doing his work and occasionally asking Peko for help with some of the questions."

"I see." I bet he was daydreaming about pummelling whoever pissed him off during that time.

By then, they had arrived at the classroom of Class 77. They opened the door and stepped inside.

Hajime had been inside the Ultimates' classrooms before, but only during his multiple search parties for Fuyuhiko. Yet, it never ceased to amaze him how clean and well-maintained these classrooms were compared to the ones the Reserve Course students sat in all day. The baby blue curtains in this one were open, allowing the rays of sunlight to brightly beam inside the classroom and illuminate the 15 desks neatly sorted into 5 rows of 3. Small, neat calligraphy remained on the blackboard - a remnant of the previous class session. It appeared to be a note on the due date of an assignment.

"Hajime." Chiaki was tugging gently at Hajime's sleeve in order to get his attention. "I've found a clue… I think."

"Already?" Hajime responded in surprise. "Are… you sure it's a clue?"

Chiaki nodded. "Absolutely certain." She held a creased slip of paper out to him, and he slowly took it from her. His eyes narrowed in disbelief as they took in the words written on the sheet.

Meet me at the usual place. You know the one.

"That can't be Fuyuhiko who's written that, can it?" Hajime protested. "It's probably just Hiyoko asking Mahiru to meet her at their usual spot, or…"

"Hiyoko usually writes with small hearts in her punctuation," Chiaki informed him. "And Fuyuhiko usually writes unusually neatly - just the sort of handwriting you have in front of you right now."

Hajime stared at the note in his hands, palms sweating. If that note really was from Fuyuhiko, then who was it addressed to? Where was the "usual place"? Why had Fuyuhiko summoned the other student there?

"If Fuyuhiko said "the usual place", then that would imply that he and the other classmate have met at that place at least a few times before," Chiaki observed. "So Fuyuhiko would've been at the same place every time he disappeared."

"But in that case, someone else would've had to have vanished along with him all those times," Hajime pointed out. "Do you know who this other person may be?"

Chiaki absently scratched her chin. "No, I don't," she replied. "There are a few possibilities, but I can't pin down who exactly would've gone with him."

"And if he's been at the same place the entire time," Hajime continued, "then why am I never able to find him? There's no way he could've gone off school grounds, right?"

"Of course not," said Chiaki as she shook her head. "Hope's Peak Academy's security is advanced enough to detect a student leaving the campus without permission, and I doubt Fuyuhiko is crafty enough to override it - if anything, only the Ultimate Programmer would be able to do that."

"So maybe he asked the Ultimate Programmer for-"

"No, Chihiro would never do something like that unless it was for a very good reason. You know I'm close with her, Hajime. Please don't misjudge her."

Hajime sighed. "Right. Sorry."

"It's fine." Chiaki smiled. "Maybe I'll introduce her to you one day. I'm sure she can get along with you just fine."

I hope so, Hajime thought, as he pocketed the note.

Chiaki surveyed the classroom one last time. "I don't think there are any more clues here," she concluded. "But, I think what we need to do next is ask someone about Fuyuhiko's whereabouts."

"Ask someone?" Hajime repeated, as he and Chiaki tentatively exited the classroom and began walking down the hallway.

"Yes. If there is one person in this entire school who should know Fuyuhiko's whereabouts more than anyone else, it's his childhood friend - Peko Pekoyama."

They'd located Peko in the school's dojo, where she often practised her sword-wielding skills in the afternoon. Hajime had to contain himself from staring as she swiftly, seamlessly sliced her sword through a horde of training dummies. The serious, unflappable expression she bore as she moved around the dojo naturally accompanied her graceful movements. It was the first time Hajime had ever seen her swordsmanship in action, and he had not expected her to be this good - which was rather silly, really, since she, unlike him, happened to be an Ultimate.

He was disappointed when Peko stopped upon noticing his and Chiaki's presence, placing her sword back into its sheath and approaching them.

"Hello Chiaki, Hajime," she said, her expression unchanging. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Yeah," Hajime replied. "Have you seen Fuyuhiko anywhere?"

Peko pursed her lips as her eyes narrowed. "I do know Young Master's current whereabouts, yes," she said. "However, if you need him for anything specific you'd best wait until he returns. He won't be long."

"Can you tell us where he is?" Chiaki inquired.

Something momentarily flashed across Peko's eyes. "Young Master is currently attending to personal matters," she informed them firmly. "He will come out when he is ready. Please leave him be for the moment."

"What is he doing, though?" Hajime persisted. "He's been at it for weeks and I'm worried about him and-"

Peko turned to look at him, and her glasses glinted briefly under the translucent lighting in the dojo. "He is fine," she snapped. "Now, I do not wish to hear any more about this matter."

Hajime opened his mouth to protest, but Chiaki placed a hand on his shoulder, effectively trapping his words. "Let's go, Hajime," she said, and Hajime found that he had no choice but to follow her out of the dojo, feeling Peko's predatory gaze on him until the door was closed behind them.

"So she's on his side," Hajime grumbled as he knelt down on the floor, surveying the science lab for clues.

"I'm not surprised," said Chiaki, as she carefully examined every nook and cranny of science equipment she could find. "From what I've been told, she'll happily do anything for him, no questions asked."

"Seriously, anything?" Hajime repeated as he shook his head in disbelief. "That's insane."

"You're still assuming that Fuyuhiko is up to no good," Chiaki pointed out. "It's equally likely that he's simply meeting up with someone for other reasons."

Hajime sighed. Even with the clue and testimony they now had, he still had trouble seeing it any other way. Who would Fuyuhiko meet up with, anyway? He didn't really care enough about anyone but Peko to meet up with them somewhere alone, let alone on a regular basis.

As he kneeled up to glance over at a nearby collection of shelves, he blinked in confusion. On the topmost shelf sat a small vase that contained three drooping, crimson roses that had lost their beauty who knew how long ago.

Chiaki caught his gaze at the roses, and her eyes widened in recognition. "I saw these here a few days ago in my chemistry class," she said as she pointed toward the roses. "If I recall correctly, Kazuichi wanted to give them to Sonia, but then he got into a fight with Gundam and they both got detentions."

"Is that so…?"

Chiaki nodded. "I think he wanted to give them to her straight after class or something, though, because he had them on his desk, and when Gundam saw them he got jealous."

Hajime sighed. Typical Kazuichi, typical Gundam. He was almost glad to miss out on the love triangle shenanigans those two plus Sonia were often involved in.

"And now Kazuichi's just left them here, right?" he pressed on.

"From what I recall, Mr. Hirasawa confiscated them and put them on this shelf. It seems no one came back and collected them."

"That makes sense. You're not allowed to pick flowers from the gardens anyway."

"That's correct, Hajime."

Hajime stood back up and brushed the dust and dirt off of his school trousers. "Well, anyway, we haven't found any clues here, so-"

"Don't you think it's a little peculiar?"

Hajime turned towards Chiaki, whose head was tilted slightly sideways in thought, a finger pressed to her chin once again. "Yeah?"

"Don't you think these roses and that note might be connected?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" Hajime queried. "Do you think maybe Fuyuhiko wanted to seriously scold Kazuichi for fighting with Gundam?"

"...something like that."

"That makes sense. So… what should we do with these roses?"

"I'll dispose of them once we've concluded our investigation."

"Fair enough."

And with that, the two students departed from the science lab.

No more than two minutes afterwards, they'd encountered Sonia Nevermind herself near the Ultimates' common room, humming quietly as she stood beside the entrance.

"Hello Sonia," Chiaki greeted her with a smile. "Are you waiting for someone?"

"Oh, yes!" Sonia replied. "I'm just waiting for Gundam to return from his duties at the chicken coop. I was hoping to go with him, but I got caught up with news I received from Novoselic."

"Don't tell Kazuichi you've been waiting for another boy," Hajime joked.

Sonia giggled. "I don't think he'll know any time soon. I saw him go into the laundry room with Fuyuhiko earlier."

"Fuyuhiko?" Hajime repeated, his eyes lighting up hopefully. "You've seen him?"

"Of course! The last I saw him was in the laundry room! I believe he and Kazuichi needed to wash their clothes."

"Doesn't Kazuichi always wear the same jumpsuit without ever washing it, though?" Chiaki pointed out. "That's what Mahiru told me, anyway…"

How does Mahiru know about the guys' cleaning habits? Hajime wondered.

Sonia wrinkled her nose. "Is that so? Hmm… I wonder what they might be doing in there instead."

As he and Chiaki thanked her and headed off to the laundry room, Hajime had the distinct feeling that Sonia knew something that he didn't.

He was disappointed to find that the laundry room was void of other students by the time they'd arrived.

It looked as tidy and pristine as it always was - several washing machines lined the walls of one side of the room, while dryers were gathered in a row on the wall opposite them. Many of the machines were currently in operation, and their quiet hums filled the room as they did the jobs they were programmed to do. Above each of these rows of machines lived a long shelf, where various brands and types of washing powder and fabric softener sat. In one corner of the room was a large washing basket, and in another was a bin where dryer lint was to be disposed of.

"Doesn't seem to be anything unusual in here," Hajime muttered. "Maybe they just dropped their clothes off and left."

Chiaki, however, continued to examine the room, as though she knew for certain that there was a clue to be found. Her cheeks were puffed out slightly in concentration. Hajime felt rather guilty for letting her do all the work, but the fact remained that she was an Ultimate and he wasn't. He'd searched himself high and low over the years, but there wasn't a single talent to come by.

And then, he noticed it - a clue. A clue that could hopefully mean this case would finally be closed.

"Chiaki," he began, "why is there a rug all the way over there?" He pointed towards the far side of the large laundry room, away from the busy machinery that was washing and drying clothes. "Wouldn't it make more sense for it to be… no, the real question is, why is there a rug in the laundry room at all?"

"Hmm." Chiaki smiled at Hajime, who in turn was beginning to feel quite proud of himself for reaching higher up towards Chiaki's level. "Maybe it's being used to conceal something."

"Like what?"

Chiaki strode towards the far end of the room, gesturing for Hajime to follow suit. She knelt down, and slowly lifted the large circular rug away from the area it rested on.

It became immediately apparent that the rug was indeed covering something up - specifically, a trapdoor. It definitely looked out of place among the glossy baby blue tiles of the laundry room, although it was at least painted the same colour.

Chiaki smiled playfully at the dumbfounded expression on Hajime's face. "You didn't know about this secret room until now, did you?" she asked.

"How did I not notice this before…?" Hajime sighed, as he pressed his palm to his head in frustration.

"Well, I've never been in here before," Chiaki confessed. "I didn't even know about it until now either."

"So you think Fuyuhiko's in here, then?"

Chiaki nodded. "It's the only explanation."

"But how would he have been able to put the rug back…?"

"He likely had assistance," Chiaki replied. "Peko, most likely." She tossed the rug aside and knelt further down towards the trapdoor. "Are you ready?"

Hajime nodded. "If Fuyuhiko isn't in here, then I'm not going to be happy."

Chiaki unhooked the latch as she slowly, cautiously lifted the door upwards. Hajime peered inside. There was a staircase leading right down into the secret room; however, Hajime couldn't make out anything more than that.

"I hope it's not going to be too dark in there," said Chiaki. "I haven't got a flashlight or anything like that with me."

"Yeah…"

Together, they began to descend the staircase, leaving the trapdoor open in order to allow the light overhead to shine down on them. It was a long descent into the secret room itself, and the longer they travelled down, the smaller the square-shaped hole above them was becoming.

Soon enough, however, a new light source was beginning to shine upwards towards them. By then, Hajime was certain that they had to be underground. Underground, and close to their destination.

"Someone else is definitely down here," Chiaki whispered, as the yellow glow brightened the more they walked. "It has to be Fuyuhiko."

At least a minute later, they had finally reached their destination. The secret room itself wasn't really all that exciting; it appeared to be something akin to a large storage room, as boxes and containers filled the shelves and even the ground. But, they had at least found the person Hajime had been concerned about for weeks now.

Sitting in the middle of the room, a large flashlight placed nearby, were Fuyuhiko and Kazuichi, who were smiling so tenderly at each other that Hajime couldn't help but wonder if the Ultimate Imposter was somehow behind this. It appeared to be a very private moment between the two of them; Hajime had never seen Fuyuhiko smiling at all - unless smirks counted - and Kazuichi's small, closed-mouth smile was nothing like his usual excited grins that boasted his razor-sharp teeth.

Hajime wanted to stealthily go back upstairs, fearing that he would ruin the moment - but Kazuichi's warm smile faltered as he spotted Chiaki and Hajime by the staircase. His eyes widened in shock and horror, and he immediately leaped away from Fuyuhiko as though he were a hot potato.

"W-who told you about this place!?" he shrieked, his body shaking.

Fuyuhiko turned around and glared daggers at the two witnesses. "Get the fuck out or you motherfuckers will be hospitalised."

"I… think I know what's going on here…" said Hajime.

"Y-you saw nothing!" Kazuichi protested. "We're just hanging out down here! As Soul Friends, y'know?"

"I thought Leon was your Soul Friend, though," Chiaki objected, peering thoughtfully down at Kazuichi.

"W-well, yeah, he is! And Fuyuhiko is my Soul Friend too! I can have more than one Souk Friend, y'know?"

"In that case, then why do you two hide out down here on a regular basis?" Hajime asked.

"Don't just make assumptions like that, asshole," Fuyuhiko growled. "This is the first time we've been down here. We just found this secret room and decided to go down here and explore."

"Then explain this." Hajime reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out the slip of paper he and Chiaki had found in the Class 77 classroom. He unfolded it and stepped forward, holding it out toward the two boys.

Meet me at the usual place. You know the one.

Hajime didn't miss the way their eyes widened slightly in recognition as the note was presented to them. Despite this, Kazuichi clenched his fists, glaring at Hajime. "That place could be referring to anything!" he protested. "And- and that note could be addressed to anyone!"

"Kazuichi, for the past few weeks, I have been determined to find Fuyuhiko and know where he is and what he's doing every time he just disappears like this," Hajime countered. "I have looked everywhere, all around the school, and never found him. But there's one place in Hope's Peak Academy I missed entirely." He gestured to the space surrounding them. "This secret room."

"Why don't you just mind your own fucking business?" Fuyuhiko bit out. "Why are you so damn determined to know where I am and what I'm doing, all the fucking time? Are you a stalker or something, Hajime? Do I need to beat you to death for invading my privacy!?"

"No, not at all! It's just that whenever I ask you where you've been, you always get really defensive, like it's all a big secret. I got concerned that you were getting yourself into trouble."

"Yeah, right," Fuyuhiko scoffed.

"Why are you guys so defensive about all of this stuff anyway?" Hajime pressed on. "You're hiding something from us, are you? And Peko's in on it too, isn't she?"

"DON'T YOU DARE BRING PEKO INTO THIS!"

"She was involved, though," Chiaki piped up. "There is no way either of you would've been able to place the rug back over the trapdoor after going inside. So, Peko would've done that for you."

"Why would you even say it was her!?" Fuyuhiko exploded. "Are you trying to tell me that she did something wrong? That helping me and Kazu out is wrong!?"

"Kazu?" Hajime repeated. "Since when did you call Kazuichi "Kazu"?"

Fuyuhiko opened his mouth to say something, but the words didn't seem to be able to come out. His eyes were as wide as saucers, and he looked as though he'd just realised that he had made a huge mistake.

Behind him, Kazuichi was sweating profusely, staring at the ground as though hoping it would swallow him whole. It was obvious to Hajime that both boys were distressed at this point. Their feelings about the matter were laid out right there in front of him. Hajime's heart sank. He shouldn't have been so pushy. It was obvious what the truth was by now. It was a harmless truth, and yet, it was still a challenge to spit out.

"...hey," he murmured. "I'm sorry for being so harsh and pushy earlier. I… I think I understand why you don't want to tell me now. I was just really worried…" he sighed. "You don't have to tell me what's going on if you don't want to."

The two boys looked at each other for a few moments. Then Fuyuhiko turned his gaze towards Hajime, focusing directly on him.

"Kazuichi and I have been dating for awhile," he confessed. "About two weeks now, to be exact."

Kazuichi nodded in confirmation.

"I figured that was the case," said Hajime. "I just… I don't really see a problem with it at all. Sure, you're both guys, but-"

"It's more than that," Kazuichi interrupted. "I mean, yeah, us being the same gender is kind of a problem, but it's also more… we've got reputations as tough guys to uphold. Fuyuhiko's a fuckin' Yakuza heir, y'know? And I'm the resident cool kid. Do you have any idea how badly our reputations here will be tarnished if this gets out? If everyone at Hope's Peak know we're dating… we won't even be taken seriously anymore."

"Not to mention my folks back home will flip their shit if they find out," Fuyuhiko added. "Knowing them, they'll try to wed me off to some random chick."

Kazuichi nodded. "My old man's not gonna be happy if we finds out, either."

"I'm… sorry to hear that, you guys," said Hajime. "And I'm sorry for everything. I didn't mean to force you out of the closet or anything."

"Well… I have been thinking of coming out to you for awhile now, Hajime," Fuyuhiko admitted. "I mean, we do get along okay, and you don't seem much like the judgemental type. It's just… anything can happen, I s'pose."

Hajime nodded understandingly. "So do you want us to just keep this a secret, or…?"

"Yeah, that'd be great," said Kazuichi as he crawled over to sit beside Fuyuhiko. "I dunno when we'll ever make it public, or even tell anyone else - probably never. Only you guys and Peko know about this, and we want it to stay that way - right, dude?"

"Definitely," Fuyuhiko confirmed. "So until further notice, don't tell anyone about our relationship, or about this secret room here. Kazu and I escape down here because not even our dorms are safe, y'know? We're not even roommates, and anywhere else there's always a high risk of getting caught."

"I understand," said Chiaki. "Hope's Peak is a vastly populated school, so it is rather difficult to find somewhere that is guaranteed to be completely private."

"Like you wouldn't believe," Kazuichi grumbled. "I just wanna make out with Fuyuhiko in-" He was silenced by a light smack at the back of his head and a death glare that belonged to Fuyuhiko himself. Chiaki giggled quietly at the sight before her.

"So, Kazuichi," Hajime began after a short while. "Those roses we found in the science lab-"

The flashlight Fuyuhiko and Kazuichi had brought with them suddenly switched off, indicating that the batteries had run out. Kazuichi wailed in the darkness.

"-they were meant to be for Fuyuhiko, right?"

Kazuichi abruptly stopped screaming. An awkward silence filled the darkened room.

"Damnit Kazu, you forgot to give me flowers again!"