Neub was beaming after finally making it past C rank. He could participate in League battles now if he wanted, but only in Rainmaker. This wasn't good enough just yet. Knight needed him to reach at least B- in every category. Neub decided he wouldn't tell Knight until he had.

Neub wanted to finish up on the remaining two game types right away, but only Rainmaker matches were currently running. It suddenly hit Neub that since he was promoted to B rank, he'd now be fighting with players on a whole different level than before. He was tempted to find out just how much stronger they were. He crept back up to the Lobby and froze. His whole body felt like it was bound together. Somehow he couldn't find the strength to step forward. It felt like he was walking towards a den of fire, and he could already feel it burn.

He smiled and turned around. He told himself that it was best to take a break after a big win. He could always come back some other time. Maybe after he had completely cleared C rank. It made sense to do things in order. Or maybe he would just skip it altogether. He'd look pretty bad if he risked his rank over nothing. His real goal was the League anyway.

He thought of several similar excuses as he made his way home. His face was already sore, but he couldn't smile away the pit of shame welling in his stomach.

The next morning felt sluggish. Neub tried running to the Square, hoping it would light his fire. When he arrived, he learned that the current game running was Splatzones. As he scouted the designated fields, he thought to himself that if he did especially well in the time remaining until they shifted game types, he might make it to B rank that day.

His usual warm-up wasn't going well. He felt like he was missing a lot of shots even though they were imaginary targets. He was so distracted that he walked off the edge into the water all alone. As silly as the mistake was, he didn't feel embarrassed. His mind was still on the B rank match that he cowered away from. The fear was still there, like an ocean pressing on his chest. But there was also something else. Some desperate eagerness, poking through like a needle. Neub wanted the match type to change to Rainmaker again. He wanted the opportunity to redeem himself. But he knew it would be several hours until he'd have the chance. It was such a strange feeling to know you're afraid, to know you would probably fail, but having a second side to yourself calling out to challenge it anyway.

What could he do with this emotion? Neub got a very bold idea. If he could just manage to clear C rank for Splatzones he could try B rank there and wouldn't have to wait. He wasn't certain he'd have the guts to do it this time, but at least he had something to keep his focus forward.

He entered the waiting room and psyched himself up for the battle. There were a few people there before him. They were chatting it up like usual. Neub tried joining groups like them a few times before, but he always came off a little awkward and they ended up ignoring him. They didn't seem to take the matches very seriously. Most of them just came here for fun or to meet new people. Neub wondered if higher ranked players were more focused or if they spent their time doing stretches or something. He thought that'd be kinda cool. He sat quietly trying to put himself in the zone, like he imagined a serious pro might do.

As he concentrated his senses, he started to pick up on something. A voice amid the crowd caught his attention for some reason. It was like he recognized it, but it didn't seem like someone he knew. He hardly knew anyone. It wasn't Knight or any celebrities he knew of, but he had to admit it had a certain celebrity-like quality to it. Why did it seem so familiar? It was disturbing his state of mind, but Neub thought it was best to think nothing of it. Until a certain phrase he spoke triggered a memory, "Take a hint?"

Neub's eyes shot over to the boy who spoke those words and his body went cold. It was him. The same boy that convinced everyone to abandon Neub. His gaze was fixed on him in horror. The boy turned up for a moment and Neub quickly looked away, trying to hide his face in his arms. It seems he didn't realize who Neub really was, but that didn't do much to relieve Neub's tension. Ever since he took up a new identity, Neub had been afraid of what could happen if someone were to recognize him. Everything he'd have done could go to waste. The humiliation of being outed as the biggest loser Inkopolis has ever known was enough to kill him, but that boy made everyone give up on Neub completely. Would it be so hard to do it again?

It was too late to take off, and soon the match began at Starfish Mainstage. Neub felt a wave of relief as he discovered that the cool-looking boy was placed on the opposite side of the field. But he understood that they'd clash eventually if he wasn't careful. He didn't like the idea of simply abandoning the game. He remembered his own fear of being abandoned and didn't think it was fair to do the same to his team. Neub was able to catch the cool boy's name as the players got in position. He registered as "Lazer" and somehow he looked even fresher than the last time he saw him. Neub felt he had to avoid him at whatever cost and maybe he might just get through the match.

Neub was very capable of running away at the first sight of someone, and Lazer's bold clothing made him easy to spot, but Neub was making such an effort to avoid him that he wasn't doing much else. His team was basically fighting with only three members. This didn't sit well with Neub. They fought with everything, but only he held back. But what could he do? Because the objective in Splatzones is to claim the main area in the center of the field, all players were drawn to the same place. There was no way to avoid Lazer and continue fighting. Neub could see that now. The game would end in a complete KO if Neub didn't do something. Neub convinced himself that he probably barely left an impact on Lazer last time. He wouldn't even recognize him. He wasn't just being stupid, he was being selfish. He grit his teeth and launched into battle.

He took a conservative position on a walkway just above the stage. Neub's team charged from the front and Neub struck from the side. Neub broke up the enemy formation and together they took control of the zone. Neub was glad. The Rapid Blaster was great at laying down long lines of ink, so taking the zone was a breeze from a good position. But it was strange. In the chaos he lost track of Lazer. Neub didn't see him get splat. This made him uneasy. Neub thought it was best to retreat rather than linger. But as he backed up he bumped into someone.

"Why are you doing this?"

Neub's pupils dilated and his chest tightened. It was Lazer. Neub wanted to turn around and shoot him down, but instead he found him meekly avoiding eye contact and responding without a fight.

"W-What do you mean?"

Lazer had a look of confidence and condescension. He kept his weapons to his side, with no intention to attack.

"Don't play dumb. I know who you are, Neutral."

"H-How did you know?"

"I'm not an idiot. I knew it was you since I saw you in the Lobby. I can't believe you couldn't just take my friendly advice and stop getting in the way of everyone's good time."

"I-I can be here if I want to be!"

Lazer glared at him in disgust.

"Trying to be a hero now or something. I was gonna let it go that you changed your name and tried to make a fool out of everyone, because I thought you'd make this an easy win, but you had to make things difficult."

"Uh…I…"

Neub couldn't find the words. His mind was a blank. Lazer dug his fingers into Neub's arm.

"This is a warning. Quit being a pest. Stop getting in the way of my fun, or I'll tell everyone who you are and you can have them leave you behind all over again. Change your name and your look as many times as you want and I'll just keep picking you out. I bet it hurts you a lot more than it does me."

Lazer pat Neub on the back and left with a smile on his face. Neub just stood there, empty. An enemy player came by and spotted Neub. Neub was splatted without moving an inch. He returned to the Spawn but just crumbled to the floor instead of moving. His teammates came by every now and then and kicked him out of the way. One boy in particular tried to rouse Neub and get him to follow, but Neub wouldn't respond. Neub put his head in his knees and tried to think of a way out of the situation. He couldn't come up with a thing.

"Is this where it has to end? Does it have to be this pathetic?"

Neub was slowly sinking into a hole of self-pity, but as much as he tried to brood over his situation, one other thing kept rising up. Neub's fists tightened, and his face took the shape of rage.

"What does that guy have against me anyway? Why should my fun matter so much less than his?"

His sad thoughts were flooded out by images of smacking the smug smile off of Lazer's jerk face. Neub stood up and clutched his weapon.

"If this is my last match anyway, I better go enjoy it."

He took off only a moment before a figure from the audience tried to speak to him.

Neub rushed down to the center and specifically sought out Lazer. He was surprised to see Neub coming down the field, but completely stunned to see him driving towards him firing his gun. Lazer took cover.

"Are you kidding me?"

Lazer's teammates tried to get between him and Neub but they had to deal with the rest of Neub's team trying to storm the zone. At first he was afraid, but after he took a peek, Lazer realized it was one of the clumsiest assaults he had ever seen. Neub's shot flew all over the place, hardly ever in the right direction. Neub even got tripped up by enemy ink more than a few times, a mistake he very rarely made. It was clear to Lazer what was happening as he breathed a sigh of relief. Neub wasn't using sense, he was just in a frenzy. Lazer could easily deal with him in this state. He quickly met Neub head on. They were face to face before Neub even realized it. Neub fired at him immediately but Lazer dodged and rolled behind Neub, aiming his dualies at Neub's back. Neub didn't have the time to turn around and had no path to make an escape. But before Lazer could fire, a splash wall seemingly came out of nowhere and defended Neub from the attack. One of Neub's teammates, the same one that tried to rouse him before, had thrown it.

"Get him now!"

Neub didn't waste a moment and pivoted around and blew Lazer away. Unfortunately the momentary distraction cost Neub's teammate and he was splat by another enemy, but Neub speedily avenged him. His head was cooled and he felt refreshed. Not just because he had taken out his frustration on Lazer but because a teammate assisted him. With how often he was shunned, Neub had forgotten for a long time that he had a team to support him. It was a good feeling, but he hadn't forgotten about Lazer's warning.

Back at the enemy Spawn, Lazer was fuming. He had a wicked grin and his right eye was flickering like a hummingbird.

"So that's how it's gonna be, and I was being so kind too. Some people just don't deserve kindness. Heheh. Well, if I'm gonna do this, may as well make a big show of it. Should be a good memory, eh Neutral?!"

Neub's team had taken control of the zone again and were steadily catching up. The rest of the team prepared for the next raid, but Neub only waiting for Lazer to show his face again. He finally came into view with neither of his weapons drawn and both hands raised in the air. The team debated what they should do and tried to get Neub's opinion on the matter, but he said nothing.

They took a look around and realized that Lazer's team was just as confused. He had their attention. Everyone lowered their weapons and allowed him to speak. Neub didn't feel he had the right to interfere.

"Thank you. I know this is sudden but I have something I'd like to tell you. That man, right there, has been deceiving you."

He pointed directly and Neub, but Neub didn't lose his composure.

"Neub is a false name. A horrible one at that. His true identity is the infamous Neutral, the eternal loser."

The few that recognized the name, looked at Neub with confusion and disbelief. But the fact that he made no effort to deny any of this gave the claims credibility.

"I'm sure he's been giving you, his teammates, trouble all through the match. Almost like he's been sabotaging you. He's a menace that spoils the game, for his own team no less. I propose we all work together here and now to help rid the games of him permanently. I know this is asking a lot of you, but since he's already refused my request to quit himself, I'm asking that you quit the match right now. And tell everyone you know to do the same any time they find themselves on the same team as this pest."

Neub wanted to say something like, "Please don't.", "We still have a chance.", or "I've been getting better.", but he couldn't convince himself that they'd listen. But he was wrong. They looked to him, waiting for an answer. He gave nothing and so they felt they had little choice. One girl looked as if she were about to leave when a booming voice rang out.

"Interesting words for someone disrupting a perfectly good game!"

Neub's jaw dropped open, and snapped back closed into a smile.

"Knight?!"

"Hey. Just came to see your match, partner. Looks like you're in a sticky situation."

The other players whispered among themselves, discussing if this Knight was the real deal and commenting that it was amazing that these two were friends. Lazer sensed that he was losing control of the situation, and tried to do something about it.

"I'm just taking responsibility here. If someone's sabotaging matches, one of us has to take charge and take care of them."

Knight leaned against the railing.

"Hmm. It was Lazer, right? You say Neub sabotages matches, but I was watching the last time you were in a match. As I remember, you were a C rank then and Neub was a C-. The screen over here says you're still a C rank."

"Yeah, so?"

"Today, Neub is a C+. There might be something I'm missing here, but doesn't that mean he's a better player than you. Hard to picture him throwing matches unless you've been doing the same."

He actually seemed embarrassed. Neub thought Lazer would never lose his cool. He was stunned for a moment and started to nervously rattle out excuses.

"I-I don't have as many matches as that loser! A-And I haven't been fighting seriously this whole time anyway!"

Knight snickered as he leaned his face on his wrist.

"Is that so?"

Before Lazer could respond, Neub jumped from the stage and stood face to face with him.

"Then let's do it, right now. Fight me with everything you've got!"

Neub wasn't sure why he said this. Even with a higher rank, Neub still felt Lazer was stronger, but only Lazer took a step back.

"L-Like I'm gonna take some LOSER seriously."

Neub took a hard stomp forward and pressed his chest against Lazer's.

"I may still be a loser, but I won't be a wimp anymore! I'm taking you on whether you like it or not!"

Lazer's instincts kicked in and he rolled back in a flash and fired at Neub. Neub didn't expect the attack so soon and was pelted by a few shots, but was able to retreat before he was finished. The rest of the players took this moment as the signal to launch back into action.

Neub found a safe place to recover and checked the time. There wasn't even a minute left. Neub knew he had very little time to wait for an opportunity, but he wanted to settle things with Lazer no matter what. He just had to create the chance himself.

Lazer was playing it uncharacteristically safe. He hid behind his teammates and tried to stay out of sight. Suddenly Neub was standing out in the open, not taking any action. Lazer knew he was only trying to provoke him into a one on one, but Lazer wouldn't have to do a thing as long his teammates took him out instead. Neub would be an easy target without any cover. Lazer's three allies approached Neub from different angles. But as one nearly came within range, he heard a beeping from beneath him, and at the same time 2 bombs fell around Neub. They all exploded at once, blinding Lazer's team. And before they knew it, he was breaking past all three of them. They aimed at his back but he quickly evaded their attacks while barely glancing behind him. His focus was moving forward. They wanted to give chase, but they were quickly assaulted by Neub's team lying in wait. It was a synchronized attack. Neub had gathered his team in secret and asked them to aid him in his attack. He was completely honest in explaining that his goal was personal and wouldn't likely contribute to their victory. They were hesitant to accept his plan because they were currently losing, but the boy that covered Neub before said that he was only here for fun and that Neub's grudge match was the most interesting thing he'd seen all day. Plus, he thought Neub's plan would really catch their opponents off guard. It may just give them the push towards the win. He was all for it, and the other two just went along with it. Fortunately it went off without a hitch, but Neub wasn't finished yet.

Neub jumped onto the stage and dove straight at Lazer and fired, but Lazer quickly rolled out of the way. Neub hated to admit it but Lazer's reflexes were good and he used that technique well. The counterattack was swift, but poorly aimed. Neub avoided major damage. Lazer's rolls made him extremely difficult to hit, but Neub did manage to force him off the stage. The height advantage contributed a lot.. Neub nearly cornered Lazer, but he was suddenly hit from the back. He hadn't realized it but Neub managed to seize control of the zone during his bout, and this meant Lazer's teammates were desperate to take it back, with barely 15 seconds remaining. Neub had no choice but to retreat to higher ground. He nearly had Lazer. His body felt like it was burning with impatience, but there was nothing he could do at this point. Or that was merely what he believed until his helpful teammate yelled out to him.

"Aren't you gonna use it?!"

"Huh?! Use what?"

"Your Special! You've been glowing for a while now!"

"My Special…? What's that?"

Neub had never used a special before, and no one had ever explained to him what it was. He had witnessed other players pull off incredible moves, but he had always assumed they were just especially skillful players.

Taken aback by Neub's clueless expression, his teammate simply screamed at him in urgency.

"Just push the big red button on your tank!"

"Button?"

Neub turned and reached over his shoulder and pressed the shiny red button he had never bothered with before with a click. In an instant, Neub's insides felt like they were exploding and his whole body tingled down to his eyeballs and teeth. Suddenly a giant rig sprouted from his body. It was like some kind of metal track and it was loaded with… splat bombs. Neub thought to himself that he wasn't supposed to have these. Was he cheating? No. It wasn't the time for that. Neub caught an enemy in his sight and hurled a bomb at him. He missed so he hurled some more. Neub couldn't understand why it seemed like they weren't running out. Where was all this ink coming from? He just kept tossing like he had grown addicted to throwing bombs. The ground was carpeted with them. The enemy had already been hit, but Neub couldn't stop himself. He jumped down and caught sight of Lazer and one more enemy, and lobbed more bombs at them. His rolling was useless against such a relentless attack and the two were easily splat. Neub reached for more bombs with a sadistic grin but only grasped at air. The rig was gone and he was beginning to calm down. The match was already over.

Neub's legs gave out and he rested on the ground.

"That was…huff….that was cool."

Neub entered the scoring room with the rest of the players, somewhat amazed to see that he had won. Lazer was there too, but he was keeping his distance. Neub wanted to quickly leave and thank Knight, but instead he was approached by the friendly boy on his team. He introduced himself as "Half". He explained that he had spoken with Knight. He gave Half a message to pass onto Neub and left.

"Nice win. Looks like you're working hard. I'd hate to get left behind. See you when I see you."

Neub had to laugh at the idea of leaving Knight behind.

"He must be busy."

It looked like Half had some words of his own though.

"It's so nuts that you know Knight. Hey…umm."

"What is it?"

"Knight said you're gonna be on a team together."

Neub winced a little in embarrassment.

"That's the plan… I know, he's really out of my-"

"That's freaking incredible!"

Half's eyes were sparkling.

"And you're really gonna shoot for the top and everything?"

"…Uh, yup."

"Well I'll be watching you then. I hope you make it big someday."

Neub scratched his head as Half went on his way. He wondered if he counted as a fan. Seemed unlikely. Neub stared intently at his hand and gripped his arm. The Special. It was such an amazing power. He never felt like the strongest on the field before. He wondered how he would use it from now on.

Neub used the momentum from his last win to push forward through his matches. There were losses but he made to B- in Splatzones with some effort. All that was left was to raise his rank in Tower Control and he could face Knight with pride. But there was an entire hour before the games would change. Neub knew exactly how he wanted to pass the time. After a short break, he returned to the Lobby. He wasn't going to look away from a challenge this time. This was gonna be his B rank debut. Neub had a total of six Splatzones matches, and he lost every single one. He managed to active his Special a few times but here he wasn't able to splat anyone and once he was shot down before he could toss a single bomb.

Neub exited the Lobby, having been thoroughly defeated and gaining a clearer understanding of just how weak he really was. But he didn't keep his head down, because this time he wasn't afraid to be a loser.

Although he was put a little on edge once he eventually remembered another two losses would shoot him back to C rank.

"Maybe a break wouldn't be such a bad idea."