View from the Afterlife
by Cyberchao X

Disclaimer: Don't own the characters or scenarios, etc.

Spoiler Warning: This fic spoils both games, not just the first one. It'll eventually continue on to the events of that game, too.

Chapter 4: Mi, Yo

A/N: …Looks like it's time for my confession. I haven't actually played these games myself, and my knowledge comes from various sources of spoilers. I misinterpreted something from the Danganronpa Wiki, so I made a mistake. However, not only am I going to point out the flaw, I'm going to use it to explain away an apparent plot hole that as far as I know was never explained.

As Celestia's trial wore on, Mukuro suddenly realized something. "Wait…only our own handbooks would have our real names. If you learned my name the way you said you did, Yamada-san, you would've already known who I was, because you would've had to get my handbook from my corpse!"

"Th-that's not…I didn't know where your handbook came from! I found it among Ishimaru-dono's stuff when I…sorry, Ishimaru-dono." Kiyotaka said nothing.

"Ishimaru-san? Is this true?"

"No, Ikusaba-san. I knew nothing of your existence."

"…I think I know where he got your handbook. It was probably among my belongings, which I'm sure bro would've taken after my execution. I never looked at it, but…after I lost my temper and killed Fujisaki-san, I found that he had two handbooks. The first one I tried was his own, and it didn't open the girls' changing room, but the other one did. I thought maybe he had a girl's handbook as well in order to better conceal his secret—maybe even one from either Enoshima-san or Maizono-san—but you didn't, did you?" Chihiro confirmed that he hadn't. "Monobear—Enoshima-san must've taken your book after killing you and planted it on Fujisaki-san so I could use it to help cover up my crime. I incinerated Fujisaki-san's, but I don't remember what I did with the other one."

"That's…"

"So then where is it now?" Leon asked.

"Knowing my sister, she's probably reclaimed it by now, unless it's still with Yamada-san's stuff. After all, I doubt she'd pass up an opportunity to use it again."

"Unless she thinks I read it and told someone who's still alive your name."

"No, you wouldn't have. My handbook allowing you to switch the rooms would've been extremely damning evidence against you," Mukuro pointed out.

"I thought you said Celes-san's execution would be extremely mundane," Sayaka said, drawing everyone's attention back to the recently-completed trial.

"There'll be a twist. I'm not privy to all the details, but I know that much." Sure enough, a fire truck appeared to run Celestia over. Mukuro had to restrain herself from laughing. "Yep, there it is. I'd admire her if I wasn't so angry at her."

"…I want my reincarnation."

"Well, this is awkward. Yamada-san, Ishimaru-san, please put Celes-san down. Even if she probably does deserve whatever you want to do to her," Sayaka said.

"This is where we go after we die?"

"Seems to be. We haven't seen anyone from outside of our 'class' since we got here," Sayaka replied.

"Oh? What about her?"

Mukuro couldn't help but laugh. "Every time someone new shows up…now that you've been eliminated from the game, you get to learn the truth. The mastermind behind Monobear is Junko Enoshima. The 'Junko Enoshima' that you saw executed was in fact me. My name is Mukuro Ikusaba and Enoshima is my fraternal twin. And dying for her twisted game was not something I was prepared to do."

"That's odd…if I were the mastermind, I wouldn't dispose of my inside man so quickly."

"…"

"Ikusaba-san, is there something you've been withholding from us?"

"I'm the only member of Ultimate Despair who was among the students—well, besides Junko herself, but they don't know that the 16th student was ever actually there."

"But…?"

"But she wasn't the only 'traitor'," Chihiro said.

"What makes you think that?" Mukuro asked.

"Because Monobear just said so. He, or I guess she, just said that Oogami-san was a mole, working for him. For her."

"Hmm…what's she getting at? Revealing that now…she's getting desperate, even though she probably just had her biggest success yet."

"Hardly," Sayaka disagreed. "I betrayed the trust of two boys, and I had my regrets as well. And Oowada-san didn't even intend to kill Fujisaki-san, and regretted it immediately—and, like me, Fujisaki-san felt like he was partially at fault. But Ishimaru-san was completely blindsided and Celes-san didn't seem to show any regrets. Aside from the fact that three people died instead of two, nothing about that last case was terribly despairing."

"So why'd you keep that bit from us for so long?" Leon asked.

"Because it was ultimately unimportant. Like I said, I was the only true 'mole'. Oogami-san was merely being blackmailed into helping her, and doesn't know the mastermind's true identity. Back when everyone received their first motive. If no one else bit on the motive, she was to start the mutual killing, or else her dojo would be destroyed …I disagreed with the choice of targets for the blackmail. Yes, Oogami was both extremely strong and had a strong sense of honor that would ensure she'd do what Junko asked in order to save her dojo…but she wasn't the only one who fit that description."

"Yes, but she's the more level-headed of the two by far," Celes said, immediately picking up on what Mukuro was referring to. "…Also, her code would've provided for 14 potential targets rather than 7." She thought about it for a moment. "6."

"…You! Damnit, if I weren't still honor-bound not to attack women, I'd pound you right now!"

"I imagine that your video probably had your gang in danger anyway. If anything, they'd have probably been better off if you had been the blackmailing victim; she'd have to leave them alive as long as you obeyed her demands, whereas without needing them to ensure your obedience they're far more expendable. And if they follow the same code of honor you do, Pekoyama-san could've probably taken them out singlehandedly."

"That's the first time I've heard you use an honorific when referring to a member of your sister's group," Sayaka said.

"That's because Pekoyama-san is an honorable woman. Her title is 'Ultimate Swordsman', but like me, she's largely a dutiful soldier who follows orders. Her own despair was largely caused by the belief that her beloved saw her as nothing more than a tool…a belief that Junko fostered, especially once he fell to despair."

"'He'?"

"Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu, heir to the Kuzuryuu family of yakuza. Pekoyama-san was his bodyguard, but she fell in love with him. Even if she hadn't fallen prey to despair herself, she probably would've killed for Ultimate Despair as long as Kuzuryuu was the one who gave her the orders. The thing is, before falling to the despair, he did care for her. He just didn't know how to show it."

"That's kind of sad…"

"Many of their backstories are. Junko preys on those who have lost hope and turns them into monsters. That's why, now that death has freed me from her influence, I don't exactly have respect for most of my former comrades. But while most of them started to enjoy killing as a result of her influence, Pekoyama-san never seemed to treat it as anything other than a job. I guess that's why I still hold some respect for her."

"Treating killing as nothing more than a job is not something to respect!" Leon pointed out.

"It's a comparative issue. Most of the others are psychos who revel in death. Also, I was the Ultimate Soldier. To be able to do your duty without worrying about emotion, that's very valuable for a soldier. What we do…it's horrible. The only way to get through it is to dehumanize your targets. …And in the end, I wasn't able to put emotion behind me. After all, I followed a tyrant, not necessarily because I believed in the ideals I was fighting for, but because that tyrant was my sister and I felt like it was something I should do. If my moral compass had been a bit stronger, maybe I could've influenced her instead of the other way around. After we were orphaned…"

"How were you orphaned?"

"I don't know. Given her despair fetish, Junko very well may have killed our parents herself. She doesn't discriminate, you know; her own despair is every bit as 'delicious' to her as others' is."

"…Really," Leon said.

"Yeah."

"Leon-san, what are you getting at?" Sayaka asked.

"…It's nothing."

"…Oh, I get it!"

"Why not say it, Kuwata-san?" Chihiro asked.

"Because we've all been getting along so well thus far."

"Are you worried about me?" Mukuro asked. "I'm strong. Whatever it is, I can take it."

"That's not what we're worried about," Sayaka said. "It's just…if she enjoys her own despair, too…is it possible that Enoshima really did love you?"

"…Yes, it's possible. But even if she did, she disposed of me for, what, a cheap thrill? If you're worried that the idea that my sister really did love me will restore my loyalty to her, you've got nothing to worry about. Not that it matters any longer where my loyalties lie…"

"Looks like everything we just learned is out on the table," Kiyotaka said. "They know that Oogami-san was blackmailed. But I fear it won't make a difference…Monokuma seems to have them in quite a situation."

"So much for Hagakure-san's prediction that there'd be no more murders…"

"I suppose that, technically speaking, Hagakure-san's prediction is still on the table. Even feeling honor-bound, a suicide is just the type of despair that Enoshima thrives on…correct?"

"Yeah. I have to commend you on subverting my sister's demands, Oogami-san. The letter of the demands was that you had to be killed or else kill someone…and you took care of both. If she honors her word, your dojo should be safe."

"…And who are you?"

"I'm Mukuro Ikusaba. The fake Enoshima that got killed by Monokuma during the first trial. The real one is controlling Monokuma. Though I'm surprised you don't know that already… Nevertheless, your actions should help the remaining students immensely."

"You mean breaking into the headmaster's office?"

"Indeed. If she wasn't desperate before, she will be now."

"…Desperate for what, I might ask?" Sayaka cut in. "With only six students, the game has to be almost over even if they do correctly identify Oogami-san's death as a suicide."

"Yes, but she's running out of 'victims' too quickly. 4 of the remaining 6 have no desire to kill, and thanks to Fukawa-san/Genocide Jill's infatuation with Togami-san, he might sooner target her than one of the 'obvious victims'. He'd be the obvious choice for a culprit, though…and the only one who might be willing to kill would be Hagakure-san, and he'd have to be tricked into it. And even if 'Jill' gets to killing first, Hagakure-san and Asahina-san are the easiest remaining targets. Hell, if I'm reading my sister's actions correctly, her current plan is to make sure that Asahina-san's current despair over losing Oogami-san gets her to screw up this trial in order to kill everyone."

"Again, what is the point?"

"That neither the Ultimate Detective nor the Ultimate Hope will be dying. And with the headmaster's office open, the former will be especially problematic to her."

CCX: Whoa, way to drop a bombshell, Mukuro! So now the dead students know Kirigiri's title even though the live ones still don't. Until next time, this is Cyberchao X, signing off.