This is sort of a sequel to my previous oneshot 'Shokan'. The title, 'Soto Ruupu no, Gakuyaochi', means 'Out of the Loop, Inside Joke'. I'm referring to the fact that during episode 30, the rest of the Goukaigers understood Joe's need to deal with things on his own because they knew about his past friendship with Cid/Barizorg. But Gai clearly had no clue at all. So here he's going to find out.

Also, I'm estimating Gai's age to be 20 years old. I know he's at the oldest 22, because he stated that the Liveman fought before he was born, which was 23 years earlier. So when he was 5, that would've been when the Carrangers were active.

This fic is set right after episode 30. I was already working on a fic where Gai learns about Joe and Barizorg, but then this episode aired, and I got an idea of a different way to go about it. So anyway, enjoy!

PS: Is Navi a male or female? I've seen different subs of the episodes referring to him/her/it as either one, so could someone clear that up for me, please?

EDIT 07/20/2016: The title was changed a couple years ago, it is now 'Shōchi', which means 'Understanding'. Also, I've changed Gai's age to that of his actor, who was born in October 1992, so he would have turned five while the Megarangers were active and would have also witnessed the Gingamen in action at that age.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of these characters or Super Sentai

WORD COUNT: 1206

Sunday, October 16th, 2011

Ikari Gai wasn't used to being the clueless one. When he wanted to know something, he searched and searched for the answer until he found it. That was how he'd gained his encyclopedic knowledge about all the Super Sentai teams. Ever since he was five years old, and he witnessed the Gingamen doing battle one time, he'd been determined to learn about them and the teams that preceded them. With every new team that appeared, Gai would set out researching their attacks, special abilities, identities (if they weren't kept secret), weapons, mechas, and enemies with a drive that his friends and family called obsessive.

Upon joining the Gokaigers, Gai quickly became accustomed to being the one they looked to for information on their predecessors whenever Navi gave them the cryptic prophecies. However, during their bout with Action Commander Zaien, he became aware that there was something was off. Joe-san had been slightly distant from them – well, more so than usual – and everyone else was okay with that, like they knew exactly why he was acting that way. When Joe-san had insisted on finishing the Zangyack scientist off himself, Gai had protested, but Marvelous-san had held him back, and they'd watched as Joe-san executed an amazing swordplay technique Gai had never seen him use before. It had seemed like the Blue Pirate had taken Zaien's plans personally.

What got to Gai the most was that nobody would explain it to him. All he could figure out was that it had something to do with the plot to mass-produce cyborgs like that Barizorg guy – hang on. If Barizorg was a cyborg, then he must have been a human at some point before his transformation. Did Joe-san's anger have anything to do with who he'd been as a human?

Frustrated, Gai went to Marvelous-san, who seemed to know Joe-san better than anyone else. The captain was in the main hall, playing darts like he often did. Ahim-san was daintily sipping her tea in the corner, Don-san was working at the computer, and Luka-san and Joe-san hadn't come back yet from their grocery run.

"Hey, can I ask you guys something?" Gai asked, sitting down on the couch.

Marvelous-san didn't turn away from his game, but Ahim-san set her teacup down and Don-san looked up from the control panel. "Sure, what is it?" The Green Pirate responded.

"What does Barizorg have to do with Joe-san?"

The captain's hand froze in mid-toss. The other two glanced at each other uneasily. Marvelous-san turned away from his darts and gave Gai a serious look. "I figured you'd ask that sooner or later," he said heavily, "But it's not our business to talk about it. You'll have to ask Joe himself, and just hope he'll give you an answer. It's not something he likes to dwell on."

Gai was about to protest, but then thought about it. Of course, he realised, it would probably be a sore subject for Joe-san. This sounded more personal than he'd thought.

Gai took Marvelous-san's advice and waited until Joe-san got back with Luka-san and the groceries. Then he approached the swordsman and asked him to talk in private. Joe-san seemed a little confused by the request, but followed him up to the crow's nest.

"What was it you wanted to talk about?" he asked as soon as they were up there.

Gai leaned with his back on the edge and looked at Joe-san seriously. "A couple days ago, when we fought Zaien, I noticed you were acting a bit… different. The others seem to know why, and when I asked them, they told me I should go directly to you about it. So I just want to know... What was it that was bothering you? Did it have anything to do with Barizorg?"

Joe-san's face darkened. He stared out at the skyline, his fists tightening on his crossed arms. It was about a minute before he spoke. "You know that I first met Marvelous when he helped me fight off a squad of Gormin."

"Yeah, what does that have to do with-"

"But what you don't know is why they were after me in the first place. They were chasing me because I'd escaped the high-security Zangyack prison – the one reserved for traitors."

It took Gai a second to understand what that meant. "You…" he mumbled, "You were with the Zangyack?"

Joe-san nodded. "I joined when I was sixteen. My father was a businessman on good standing with the Empire, so of course my brothers and I were expected to join the elite ranks. I became friends with another soldier named Cid Bamick, who looked out for me, taught me the ways of the sword. Then, one day, I was sent for the first time as part of an invasion force. My squadron came across a group of children – members of the planet's royal family. I was ordered to cut them down."

Gai gasped. "You didn't…?"

"No. I refused to. The Sugormin in charge went to do it himself, but I attacked him and gave the kids a chance to run. For that… I try not to remember it. They had me in the prison, on the floor, and they were beating me. Then Cid-sempai came in and took them down. He helped me get to the outer gate, and then we split up. He was spotted first, and they shot him down. I saw it, watched his body crumple and fall, but I kept running."

He was silent for a while again. Gai didn't press him. Marvelous-san had been right; it wasn't something Joe-san would want to even think about.

"I thought he was dead… who wouldn't? Then, during one of our battles, the Zangyack prince Walz Gil himself showed up. I went after him, but I was stopped by his bodyguard… Barizorg. I couldn't get past him. Then he used this technique, the one that Cid-sempai had created and taught to me. I couldn't bring myself to fight back, even after Marvelous took a hit for me. That night, I left on my own to try and get through to him, but I couldn't. He knocked me aside again and walked away. Then today, when Ahim and I met Ōhara Jō and learned he was a scientist, I was hoping that with those blueprints he could restore Cid-sempai back to normal. But after some analysis, we learned that… there's no turning back."

It all made sense now. Why Joe-san was so upset about the idea of more Barizorgs being created… he'd lost his friend in the creation of the original. Why he was so determined to keep it from happening again… he didn't want anyone else to lose someone they cared about.

Gai was at a loss for words, a very rare occurrence.

THE END

So, there you have it. The hardest part as remembering to add all the '-san's to everyone's names, since it's from Gai's point of view. Also, I added my own idea of how Joe may have gotten inducted into the elite Zangyack ranks. In a lot of military histories, such as the army of tsarist Russia, the high positions were given to men because of their birth rank, not skill or smarts. Joe would've been oone of the rare ones that got into a higher position because of his family, but was actually a decent fighter.