"So… how the hell are we gonna repair all of the damage?" Natsumi asked, not entirely caring about sugarcoating her sentence for Aya—who stood with the blonde girl, clutching her hand tightly. Kiyotaka cleared his throat, as if trying to scold her for her language in front of the child, but Natsumi paid no mind to it. "Well… perhaps that is something we're going to have to figure out as we go!" he exclaimed. "But at least there isn't too much damage to repair!"
"It… could have been worse, right?" Aya asked quietly, chiming in to the conversation briefly, as Kiyotaka smiled, patting the child on the back. "Indeed! It could have been much worse—so we should be thankful that it was only this much!"
"Hmph… whatever," Natsumi groaned, looking around the city. Teien had suffered damage from this, sure—but Kiyotaka was right, it wasn't as bad as they had all imagined and feared. Most fires seemed to have been put out quickly, and the explosions had been relatively mild—before just stopping entirely. A few buildings were reduced to pure rubble, but it appeared that there were enough decent buildings and homes left to house the people in the city still.
Well—at least it was that way from what she could see at the edge of the city, anyway.
"B-Big brother…!" Aya cried out suddenly, tearing herself from Natsumi's grasp to run up to Daiki, who approached with Leon and Makoto behind him. Daiki chuckled, embracing his sister as she threw herself at him, and he carried her in his arms for a moment, whispering that he made a promise, right? Tears were beading up in both of their eyes, and Natsumi looked away, deciding the scene was too sickly sweet and sappy to pay attention to.
"We're good now!" Leon called out. "The units are gone, everyone can head back in now!"
The people of the city expressed their relief at the statement, the families slowly, cautiously making their way back into their town with the members of the resistance escorting them—though despite the lingering fear, they seemed somewhat happy. Perhaps they were glad it was over quickly? Makoto wasn't sure, but he smiled nonetheless, glad that things had been successful. Kiyotaka nodded, bowing at the waist for a moment. "Thank you very much for your help!" he called out, before turning to Natsumi, who ushered him away. The boy hesitated, but relented, heading back into the city—likely to assess the damage done to the building the four friends stayed in.
"Well, I'll admit," Natsumi said, walking up to the two boys who remained, "you guys did a much better job now than during that last attack we had."
"Yeah, yeah," Leon hissed, rubbing the back of his neck. "We fucked up last time, Natsumi… you can stop rubbing it in our faces now."
"But," Makoto cut in, "like you said, we did a better job this time, right? So… that's gotta be something towards success, right?"
"Yeah, I guess so," the blonde agreed gruffly.
"He's right, though, we kicked ass this time—did you see that huge explosion?" Leon asked with a slight grin. "That was much better than last time by itself, never mind the rest of it."
"What was that explosion, anyway? It scared the shit out of Aya, and then next thing we know everything's calm again. The hell did you guys do?"
"Trapped them all in a circle, and knocked 'em over onto the each other to blow themselves up. It was fuckin' wicked," Leon explained, smirking slightly.
"How did you trap them?" Natsumi asked, almost curiously. Leon shrugged, pointing a thumb over his shoulder at Makoto as he replied, "Had 'em chasin' this kid to lure them all together—and Kyoko, too. We got her to help out with that part."
Natsumi paused, then raised a brow, "The hell did you need two people getting chased for? That's stupid—you'd be better off only risking one person, dumbass."
"Hey, look at this kid," Leon protested, slinging an arm around Makoto's shoulders, and using his free hand to grip Makoto's chin, squishing the boy's cheeks slightly. A sheepish look found its way onto Makoto's face, as he looked away from Natsumi, not wanting to see her amused smirk. "Look at him," Leon repeated. "Does he really seem like the type that could survive a horde of Monokuma chasing him all by himself?"
"No, he really doesn't. But why Kyoko? I mean, you could have gone with him."
"Oh, c'mon, Natsumi! You know how Kyoko is—everything has to go by her first otherwise she gets all frustrated. And by that point we didn't feel like looking for someone else."
"True," Natsumi mused, a small smirk on her lips.
"… That's right, I had wanted to ask," Makoto spoke up, looking at Natsumi. "When Chihiro and I had passed by earlier, you knew her… and you said that the resistance has been here before? So… you're all familiar with each other?"
"Sort of, yeah," Natsumi murmured. "We've had a few attacks here before, and they've come in to help, so I know these jackasses by heart, unfortunately… 'cept you. I'm guessing you're new, then, huh?"
He nodded, a small smile on his lips. "Yeah… Makoto Naegi, it's nice to meet you," he introduced, extending his hand. The girl stared at it for a moment, before groaning, grasping his hand and shaking it once. "Been a while since I've seen formalities like that," she mused, "but whatever. The name's Natsumi Kuzuryuu—try not to forget it."
"Kuzuryuu…?" Makoto murmured, before his eyes widened and he looked at her with an expression of shock. "Y-you… mean like, as in the Kuzuryuu Clan?" But Natsumi just laughed lightly, almost playfully, before offering him a smirk. "Oh, please, kid. You're acting like my family's syndicate has any power anymore. Have you seen the world lately? The only force with power is Junko fuckin' Enoshima."
Makoto swallowed hard as he nodded quietly, unsure of what to say. Leon cut in a moment after, his arms behind his head as he chuckled. "Yet despite her adorable looks and current lack of lackeys, Natsumi over here would still be more than happy to chop your fingers off if you mess up, so uh… word of advice then, kid? Don't," the redhead warned, nudging Makoto slightly, and the boy just looked at Natsumi with a nervous smile. The blonde merely smirked, rolling her eyes. "I'm a yakuza by blood. Regardless of the state of the world, some things will never change, y'know? If that's how I was raised, there's no changing it."
"Y-yeah…"
"Well," Natsumi began with a shrug. "You seem hopelessly innocent like Daiki, so that shouldn't be much on an issue for you. As long as you aren't a mouthy son of a bitch like Leon over here is, I wouldn't worry about running out of fingers."
"G-Good… to know," Makoto stammered quietly, smiling unsurely. Sensing his discomfort, Leon shrugged attempting to change the topic. "'Ey, guys, speaking of Daiki, where'd he go?"
The blonde girl looked around for a moment, then pointed over to Leon's left—where Daiki was talking with the lavender haired detective about something, with Aya snuggled safely in her older brother's arms. A moment later, Daiki looked over at them, waving his hand to usher the three kids over. After sharing a glance, they walked over, to which Kyoko began to speak.
"Natsumi, would you mind if we stayed with the four of you for tonight? I want to make sure that the attack won't pick up again," the girl explained, and Natsumi shrugged, an impassive look on her face. "Sure, whatever. The place is big enough for everyone, I guess."
"Good," Kyoko said with a firm nod, before turning on her heel to walk away. "I would ask that you two gather the others and let them know we'll be staying with the former members of the resistance—and meet me there. I'm going to call everyone else back at the base and let them know what's going to happen," Kyoko called out over her shoulder. Makoto blinked, then rushed up to her, gently taking her hand to stop her from walking.
"Wait…," he murmured quietly, "Can you… tell Komaru that I kept my promise, and that I'll see her tomorrow?"
Kyoko paused, then smirked slightly, an amused hum escaping her lips. "I was planning to. There's no point in letting her worry longer than she has to, right?"
The brunette boy chuckled quietly in reply, offering Kyoko a warm smile. "Right…," he said with a nod. Kyoko gave him a hesitant smile back, before her expression went back to the calm mask she always wore, and she pulled her hand out of Makoto's grasp, walking off and out of sight, as the boy just stared at her back the entire time. Both Leon and Natsumi approached the boy, and as Leon draped an arm over Makoto's shoulders once more, he chuckled out, "Shall we go, bro? It's been a long day, and I'm lookin' forward to gettin' the rest of it over with."
"Then hurry the fuck up instead of talking to him," Natsumi hissed, rolling her eyes and starting to walk off, with the two boys in tow. As they walked, looking for the rest of the resistance, Makoto couldn't help his lingering thought, and a silly smile curled at his lips as it absentmindedly went through his head.
He wasn't sure if he imagined it, but… even with the leather glove on, Kyoko's hand felt comfortingly warm.
"Yes… I understand that the base is fine on your end, Celeste?"
"We're quite alright here, Kyoko."
"That's a relief to hear."
"And how was the mission?"
"It went fine. Some damage was done, some places worse than others, though the attack didn't last long."
"Oh?"
"The weakness was found and they were taken care of. I'll explain more when we all return."
"Very well then—though how nice to hear it went smoothly. And is everyone faring alright, I take it?"
"Yes, we're fine. She's fine. Don't worry, Celeste."
"I see. Who said I was worried?"
"… Oh, and Celeste?"
"Yes?"
"Tell Komaru her brother is alright, and he kept his promise to her."
Kyoko could hear the girl giggle on the other end, before humming quietly. "Will do, Kyoko. Take care of yourself. We'll be seeing you all tomorrow, correct?"
"Yes. Take care of yourselves as well. Goodbye."
"Goodbye."
Kyoko hung up the phone, slipping the cellphone back into her jacket pocket. As she did, she could hear the door open, and the voices of her fellow teammates sounded out as they all entered the office building that the four other teens called home. With a single glance back, Kyoko made sure everybody was there, before she walked off, going to find a place to rest.
"So…," Makoto began, looking at Kiyotaka. "Kyoko had mentioned that you were former members of the resistance?"
"Well… I'm not," Kiyotaka began, but then looked at his friends with an approving nod. "But Natsumi and Daiki were!"
"Really?"
"Yeah," Daiki confirmed. "But we both had to leave for our own reasons. I found out that my parents… escaped in a not-so-pleasant way, so I left to look after Aya." The boy looked at his sister, who was asleep in his arms, before smiling softly. "… Excuse me," he murmured, walking off, likely to put his sister to bed.
Makoto watched the boy leave, before looking over at Natsumi. "And you?"
"Eh?"
"Why did you leave the resistance?" Makoto clarified, earning a venomous glare for the blonde girl.
"None of your damn business, kid."
"Right… sorry," he apologized, nodding with a sad frown on his features. Natsumi could only stare at the boy, almost confused by his sympathy, before she scoffed. "Whatever… point is, I left, and Daiki and I have been staying in Teien ever since. We found Kiyotaka a while after we quit, and he's been staying with us as well since then."
"Got it," Makoto said with a small smile, finding a place to sit down and talk, as Daiki returned a few moments later, Aya no longer with him. "Is she asleep?" Makoto asked, and Daiki nodded silently, sitting down next to Natsumi. Makoto looked around, swinging his legs gently as he sat, looking around the building curiously. "How long has this been your home?"
"Eh… 'bout a year," Natsumi confirmed. "We've been in this place ever since the last riot that everyone came in to help. They didn't do a very good job, though… if I remember, they lost one of their teammates in the attack."
"Speaking of which…," Haku suddenly cut in, looking over at the blonde, with a look of desperation on his face. "Tomoyo… has she come back at all? Have you seen her, or…?"
"No, Haku. We haven't seen or heard from her since the attack she went missing in, remember?" Natsumi replied, her tone almost sarcastic, as if she didn't believe that the girl was missing at all.
"… I see," Haku said simply, but Makoto could almost see the boy's heart drop. "Thank you for the update…"
With that, the ginger haired boy stormed off, not another word spoken. Makoto chewed on the corner of his lip, debating over whether it was his business to ask, but finally his curiosity got the best of him as he turned to both Natsumi and Daiki. "What… exactly is the case with Tomoyo?"
"She was this tiny little girl who joined the resistance close to when it first formed," Natsumi explained. "actually, I think she's the one who got Haku to join, too. If I remember, he wanted nothing to do with any rebellion, but after his girlfriend decided she wanted to join and help, he went along with it, probably just to protect her. Then we had an attack on the city, and she was helping evacuate everyone, but… when they went to rally everyone up again, she wasn't there. Haven't seen her since, either… Haku thinks that since no one ever found her body, that she's still fine, just lost—but she's likely dead and he's just in denial."
"N-Natsumi…!" Daiki squeaked out, then frowned. "He has a right to try and believe that she's okay… right?"
"Yeah, up until he inevitably finds her dead, and then he got his hopes up for nothing. Hasn't that possibility ever occurred to you?"
"And suppose she is alive?" Daiki countered, "then what will giving up do? If she's alive and he gives up on her…"
"It's better to give up on the weak then waste your strength trying to shield them."
"Hey, that's not true," the dark haired boy protested, but Natsumi rolled her eyes. "How is it not?"
"Guys…," Makoto chimed in, trying to stop a fight before it happened, however neither Daiki nor Natsumi seemed to hear him. "Because," the sculptor explained, an almost childish pout on his features, "If someone you care about needs you, it's best not to give up on them."
"Friends, family, or lovers—it doesn't matter. It's every man for themselves. People who rely on others won't make it on their own in this kind of world—what's best is to accept their weakness and move on, otherwise you're just shortening your own life span by watching out for them."
"Again, that's not true!"
"And again, how is it not?"
Makoto shifted uncomfortably, wondering if perhaps the topic of the fight had changed. It felt like Natsumi was protesting something much more personal now, but Makoto wasn't sure what it could be. Though before he could ask, someone else called out, ending the fight before it could go any further.
"Alright, both of you, enough," Mitsuki scolded, a stern, almost motherly look on her face. "We don't need to be having this argument right now, alright?"
"Y-yeah," Touko stammered, "S-s-save y-your l-lovers quarrel f-for later…!"
"Lovers… quarrel?" Daiki mused quietly, tilting his head in confusion, before deciding it was best to ignore Touko's comment. Natsumi huffed, standing up and storming out of the room, as Daiki frowned, looking guilty. "… She doesn't mean this kind of harsh stuff she says. But… she wants people to believe she means it. I think she worries too, but she doesn't want people to think of her as weak for it."
"Why would people think of her as weak for being concerned for others?" Makoto asked, but Daiki merely shrugged. "I… I mean, it might have something to do with her business? After all… she is a yakuza. She was raised to not worry about others, or to write people off if it seemed like they couldn't survive on their own. That's why she was the one who was asked to take over the syndicate, after all, but…" Daiki trailed off, then gave Makoto a desperate look. "Don't tell her I said this. She doesn't like anyone bringing it up, anyway."
"Alright then, I won't," Makoto said with a nod, before deciding to ask, "but… that seemed to shift in topic completely. After a while, it felt like what she said stopped applying to Haku and Tomoyo… what was that all about?"
"It's… not my story to tell, Makoto," Daiki said apologetically. "Maybe if you two become close, she'll tell you, too? Don't worry, again, she's not as rude as she seems. I think she hides behind her bad attitude for protection, but… she's actually pretty kind when you get to know her. Trust me on that."
"Right…," the brunette boy agreed, and after excusing himself, he got up, walking over to the other resistance members. Leon was sitting with the remaining members of the group that hadn't left to call it a day yet, explaining what their master plan had been to dispose of all the units in a swift move. Aoi listened, an amused smile on her face, as Byakuya merely tuned him out, resting his head back and relaxing slightly—Makoto wouldn't be surprised if everyone was worn out after everything that had happened. Still, as Leon excitedly talked about how the idea had worked, the boy couldn't help but notice that everyone seemed… happier by this victory. Perhaps it helped to know that they had succeeded this time? Makoto smiled—this was what they needed. Surely now they would see that it was still a goal worth fighting for?
"'Ey, Makoto! Mind comin' over here and proving to Hotaru that my throw got 'em all in one go? I mean, c'mon, those bastards went down like dominos!"
Makoto let out an amused giggle as Hotaru puffed out her cheeks, raising a brow. "If Daiki really had put up a tall wall, how could he have seen it to prove your point? Your logic is flawed, Leon."
"He can prove my point because Makoto knows I'm just that good," Leon argued, sticking his tongue out at the blue haired girl. Hotaru rolled her eyes, and as she leaned back in her chair, her hands twitched in her lap, as if holding the doll she didn't currently have was such a natural habit now. But Makoto looked at Leon, a small smile on his lips. "I… honestly couldn't see. But I'm sure you must have—after all, it did sound like they all got knocked over…"
Well, perhaps he was exaggerating, but Leon seemed extremely pleased with the answer. "See, Hotaru? I told you I nailed it!"
"Yeah, yeah, Leon," she huffed, but a small smile was on her lips, almost amused by his enthusiasm. Chihiro spoke up a moment later, raising her hand timidly. "U-um… i-if I can ask…? H-how did you… f-figure out their w-weakness…?"
"Oh," Leon began, shrugging, "yeah, Daiki nearly blew me an' Mitsuki up by knockin' 'em over."
"I-I-It's M-Mitsuki a-and I, y-you u-uneducated pig…!"
"Same difference," the redhead said with a dismissive wave of his hand, but Touko let out an indignant squeak, glaring in frustration. "I-It m-most certainly i-is n-not…!"
"Anyway…," Mitsuki placated softly, "Leon and I had been swarmed, and Daiki knocked them over, to which they all blew up around us. We managed to get a shielding spell up in time, so we're fine, though… however, that's when we figured it out."
"I see…," Kiyotaka confirmed with a nod, before smiling. "I'm glad you two were safe! You have been doing quite well with your spells then, Mitsuki!"
"Yeah…," the burgundy haired girl murmured, before turning to Makoto, "But… from what I heard, it was your idea, right?"
"W-well…"
"It was, and you should have seen it, too! He even got Kyoko of all people to go along with it. Dude, when was the last time anyone convinced her to do anything as risky as being bait for a slim chance of success?"
"W-was it really that risky?" Chihiro squeaked, and Makoto opened his mouth, a sheepish chuckle escaping his lips. "I… think he might be exaggerating a little, but…"
"Well, honestly, I'm just glad it was taken care of so easily," Aoi cut in with a smile. "I mean… it's been so long since we had a mission where the damage was minimal, y'know?"
"Yeah, it really has been a while," Hotaru mused quietly, closing her eyes with a small smile. "… I think we did good."
"Hmph, you say that now," Byakuya scoffed, though despite his bitter comment, Makoto could see the traces of a smirk on the heir's face, as if even he was pleased with the results.
"M-M-Master Byakuya i-is right…! I-I mean, j-just because it seems g-good n-n-now…!"
"No, Touko… I think you're both wrong," Aoi protested. "It seems good now because… because it was! I mean, we did it! Nobody died! The city didn't suffer too much destruction! That's a great result… right, Makoto?"
And as he looked at the swimmer's hopeful gaze, Makoto let out a happy laugh, nodding his head. "Yeah…! You guys did great, we really succeeded this time."
"That's what I tried to tell 'em," Leon said with a triumphant grin. The brunette boy just smiled in reply, looking at Touko. "See…? Touko, we did it. We did something against Junko."
"B-But w-who's to s-s-say this'll e-even m-make a difference…!? Huh?"
"Even so, it's still something against her!" Makoto protested. "I mean… no matter how small, everything we can do to stop her matters. Anything to stop her despair will matter in the long run—don't you see that? Even if it's little by little, every victory matters. Everything we can do to stop her attacks matters. Every bit of hope we can create matters."
"Yeah, I'm with Makoto!" Aoi called out with a smile. "Just because this was one attack we stopped, it's still a victory!"
"I have to agree," Mitsuki said with a quiet hum, "… even though it feels almost insignificant now, I'm sure that down the road, it'll all add up."
"Y-yeah…," Chihiro stammered, but a sweet smile curled at her lips. "I… I think we can do it."
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, guys," Hotaru cut in, but a moment later, she sighed, a slight grin on her face. "I know it's good to get all excited about our next victory, but… let's just take it one step at a time? We don't know how the rest will play out, but we know that we succeeded this time, so…"
"I don't see an issue with becoming excited about it!" Kiyotaka argued. "In fact, I think believing the rest of your fights will be victories will be good for you! It will help you believe in yourselves, won't it?"
"Eh… I think Kiyo might be right…," Leon shrugged, "I mean, maybe we shouldn't get our hopes up, but… if we won this time, who's to say we won't again? C'mon, Hotaru, don't be such a spoil sport!"
As Hotaru let out an offended squeak, protesting Leon's claim, Makoto couldn't help but smile happily at the change of mood in the group. It… it really worked. They really were starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Somehow, that lifted Makoto's spirits as well.
It had hurt to see them all falling into their own despair, but yet, hearing them now—hearing them try to keep each other hopeful, Makoto couldn't help but feel like there was a chance of defeating Junko once more. As long as the resistance was still resisting, Junko wouldn't get her way. Makoto refused to believe that she would get her way after all of this.
Still… watching them all bounce back from their broken opinions of the world… Makoto felt like he needed to do more. Sure, he had helped to bring them out of their slump, but… he wanted this world to change. He wanted there to be a better future for them. And if that's what he really wanted—he needed to help that happen. He needed to play his part to make that happen.
With that thought, he suddenly stormed off from the group, walking down the halls until he found who he was looking for. "Kyoko…?" Makoto murmured softly, looking down gently at the sleeping girl. She looked… much more peaceful, much kinder than usual. Perhaps it was the relaxed look on her face as she slept? He wasn't sure. After what seemed like a few moments, Makoto watched the girl stir awake slightly, and she opened an eye, looking at the boy. "What is it, Makoto…?"
And despite how he knew what he wanted to say, he still had to brace himself for the words. No—no going back now. He knew what he wanted to do.
"I want to join the resistance."
/promises a chapter last Friday
/gets chapter done before last Friday
/then loses her USB drive with the story on it
/just finds USB drive today
I'm so sorry. ;w;
But, uh... yeah. At least I got the chapter up at all- I was so worried I wouldn't find the dang thing. ono I'm also having the fear that this story is slowly falling apart. Like... I feel like I'm starting to fail with this story. Hopefully I'm not doing too bad, but... if I mess up with something, please tell me. I really want to fix it before I go too far and ruin this story entirely- because I'm starting to get scared that that's what I'm doing. Oh well... we'll see.
Also, headcanon that Touko is part of the grammar police and Natsumi (or, whatever the hell everyone chooses to call Fuyu's sister) in just an asshole in a semi-lovably way. Ha. No, she's probably a serious bitch, but... meh. For the sake of this story, we'll pretend she can be decent.
Also again, Tomoyo is finally explained... yay? I don't even know, honestly.
Also again again, to Sync Ryu, as you were wondering how long the story will be- I... honestly don't know chapter wise how long it will be. I have it all planned and the plot written down, but I haven't broken it into chapters yet- however, my best guess is... likely about 20-30 chapters? I apologize if that isn't very helpful, though. I'll try to sort the plot into chapters and get back to you next time with a more exact idea!
Thanks to Sync Ryu, Luckenhaft, and TriMaplenut for the wonderful reviews, you guys are the best. Everything you have to say always helps, and I'm so glad you guys are enjoying this so far- thanks for the lovely words, they always make me smile!
Anyway, um... hmm. I believe that's all... no, I have this nagging feeling I'm forgetting something, though. If I did, please tell me. ;w; Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed this, review if you liked, hated, or had anything you wanted to see- even if you want to tell me what I did wrong, I can't fix what I don't know is broken, so all reviews are welcome! Hope this was good, and c'ya guys next time!
