Shizuka's group arrives at the pachinko parlor looking for the man called Money.


In one swift move, the group made their entrance into the skeevy pachinko parlor, all three striking their best poses for the occasion. If they were to be entirely honest, they were a bit disappointed that such a place wasn't quite living up to their standards, the trio undoubtedly being the most well dressed individuals in the building even without the outfits they'd procured just for this mission.

Regardless, they headed forward, advancing on an unmanned, flashing pachinko machine amid the sea of tired salarymen, jobless gambling addicts, and all manner of tourists, cigarette smoke swirling overhead. Giorno took a seat on the stool, flourishing the plush blue cape he'd added to his wardrobe behind him. Flanking him on either side were Shizuka and Sheila E, the former in a crisp black suit and pink tie with the latter in a forest green ensemble with a black fur trim around the collar.

As they discussed beforehand, the objective now was to show off their wealth. If this place really was a front for an illegal gambling den, suitably rich patrons might have a chance of being invited into a basement or backroom where the real action took place. When that happened, they'd most likely find their target.

It was a simple matter to ensure they won quite frequently on the machine. Giorno could use Gold Experience to reach through the glass, touching ball after ball and giving it life to become some small creature instinctively finding its way into the right holes so as to escape the loud sounds and flashing lights within the parlor. From there, his luck did the rest, simple probability dictating that the massive number of balls finding their way into the holes would ensure him ample payout to continue playing in perpetuity.

Though it took them nearly an hour to accomplish it, their plan seemed to be paying off. The absurd good fortunes of the flamboyant gambler had drawn a crowd, several whooping and cheering as ball after ball was shot through the machine, identical steel pellets being ejected back out to the point the trough was nearly overflowing.

A sweaty man in an ill-fitting gray suit approached the group, rubbing his hands together with a smile. "You seem to have quite the fortunate," he said, Giorno paying him no mind as Shizuka and Sheila E shot him intimidating looks. Stuttering, the man got to the point, "It seems like you've more than mastered this machine, right? I'm not supposed to tell just anyone, but there's a certain prize you might be interested in with so many balls. If you'd like something more challenging, you might want to exchange for it."

Rather than fire more balls, Giorno paused. "You seem interested," the man said with a satisfied nod. "Just exchange your balls for the handheld console." Without another word, he handed Shizuka a plastic container and walked off.

Their plan working smoothly so far, they shoveled their winnings into the bucket and moved to the prize counter. As expected, a number of non-monetary winnings were displayed on the walls and behind glass, some valuable in their own right and others fairly cheap and worthless.

"The handheld console, please," Giorno said, placing the container on the counter with a thunk.

The woman's eyes narrowed slightly, pausing for a moment before taking the container and emptying the contents into a ball counter. The number more than exceeded the price for the prize, the console itself hidden beneath the counter and not on display. The only way he'd have known it was there and to request it would be if someone had told him, the woman concluded.

"Please enjoy your prize," the woman said, bowing as she handed the boxed game console to him. It was nothing out of the ordinary, being the same kind of system you could buy in any electronics or department store. If one were to open the box, it would no doubt work just as intended by the manufacturer. "If you exit the building and turn right, you'll find our exchange window down the alleyway."

"I see. Thank you." Exiting the parlor, they followed her directions, advancing down a dark alley until they came to a small window in the side of a building. Attempting to peak down the small opening was met with little success, shadows obscuring whoever or whatever might be across from them.

Placing the box inside and sliding it towards whatever person might be there to receive it, they waited for what might happen next. Ordinarily, a stack of money would be sent back out, though this obviously wasn't the aim here.

A clicking noise behind them caused the group to do an about face, watching as the adjacent brick wall began to open. A section of the wall pulled inward like a door, a gruff man manning it like an attendant leading into a long hallway. "This way," he commanded.

Once all three had entered, the man closed the door behind them, walking them towards a regal wooden door at the end. "Check," he said, producing a metal detector from his pocket and doing a pass over them. While both Sheila E and Giorno had items that would most certainly not pass his inspection, they were more than capable of evading someone of his caliber. They were passed without a fuss.

In stark contrast to the drab stone walls of the path leading here, the space they arrived in was the very picture of excess. A casino that could easily rival the likes of even the flashiest of Las Vegas, all manner of games from slot machines to roulette to card tables lined the floor. Despite its elicit nature, the man in charge clearly felt that branding was important to his establishment, everything decked out in a shimmering gold and blood red colors, including the casino staff and live jazz band working there.

The door shut behind the three, leaving them alone to carry out the next step of their plan. "We'll meet here again in twenty minutes," Giorno said, descending down a staircase to the lower floor to see what he could find in the thick of it. This left Shizuka and Sheila E to work the upper areas. Between the invisibility and the insider knowledge on how gambling establishments tended to be laid out, it only made sense that they'd act as something more akin to a stealth unit.

Ensuring they were out of sight, the two held hands to more easily allow Shizuka's Stand to work. Now hidden from sight, they easily navigated around anyone in their way standing around or patronizing one of the several bars on the upper area.

"Best bet would be there," Sheila E said, directing Shizuka to an unassuming door off to the side.

"Not the big ones?" she asked, more concerned with the lavish pair of twin doors. From her perspective, they seemed much more likely to lead to something valuable.

"I like the direct approach, but I doubt that's what we want." Opening the door, they entered into a much drabber area of the building, everything appearing somewhat clinical and lifeless like the back rooms of these establishments so often do. "Got to scope out the area. Take care of cameras since it wouldn't be good to let people know we were here. Maybe secure some evidence of what he's doing if we're involving the cops."

"That makes sense," Shizuka agreed, the two keeping their voices low in case someone might pass by or overhear from behind a door. "I can't believe this is all right under the city. I've been here before."

"Lots of stuff isn't like it seems," she told her. "Your favorite restaurant might serve you food that's been dropped on the floor, your next door neighbor could be a killer, your bank could be trying to rip you off at every turn. You've always got to second guess things, especially in my line of work."

Taking a few moments to think over what was said, Shizuka replied, "That sounds kind of exhausting. Being suspicious of everything like that. Isn't there anything you trust?"

"I put my trust in GioGio," she said immediately. "That's all I need."

"What if he turns out to be not what he seems?" she asked, unsure of why she suddenly felt like having a conversation of this nature.

"Not happening," she said. "He's the greatest person there is."

"What if he wasn't, though?"

"Then I'd get rid of him," she stated bluntly. "I don't make mistakes. If I somehow did, I'd take care of it myself."

"You think you could fight his Stand, though?"

"No, but I'm also the only one who knows his weakness." She hesitated for a moment. "I think so, at least. Maybe the gunman has figured it out by now, but he's not that smart."

"What kind of-"

"I'm not telling you," Sheila E said quickly, cutting her off. "Private information." Taking a small bit of pleasure at sensing the disappointment Shizuka was feeling, she changed the topic of conversation back to business. "If I know my casinos, we should be pretty close to the security room. They usually keep it somewhere in the back so no one can just wander in."

Checking a few doors, they found the room in question without much trouble. It was manned by three security guards, too busy examining screens to notice the entrance cracking open. The two reappeared out of sight, silently planning out their course of attack and executing it in a single second. Shizuka used her Hamon to knock the lone guard unconscious while Sheila E snacked the remaining two situated next to each other with Voodoo Child's tail, smashing their faces into two monitors in the process.

"How do we delete the footage they got us already?" Shizuka asked, shoving her guard to the ground and trying to find something on the computer he was manning.

"Simple," Sheila E said, smashing a server right after. Just as she said, the camera feeds on every screen froze with a message stating there was an error.

"Direct approach," Shizuka identified, wondering to herself whether or not they'd inadvertently destroyed evidence that could be used in putting together a case against their enemies.

"You're learning," she complimented. "Let's go. Probably more than just three guys handling security around here. Let's take care of as many as we can before we get the real target." That was the plan, at least, but the second the two stepped outside was when things changed.

Neither was sure what was happening, but it was clear something was off. The air was thick with tension despite the hall itself being empty, only the mechanical whir of computers in the security room making noise.

"I know you're here," a voice said from somewhere in the area, words hissed from the speaker's mouth. "I've always had a talent about knowing when someone's been somewhere they're not supposed to. Come out and I might let you go."

If nothing else, the speaker confirmed that it was currently unable to locate them, so the invisibility was working. Their best bet would be to try to sneak away before that changed. This, however, proved to be the wrong move, a single step being all it took for the enemy to reveal itself.

More accurately, it was the enemy's Stand. Taking the form of a massive yellow bulldog creature covered in eyes, maw dripping with green fluid, it lunged toward where the two were. Grabbing Shizuka in her arms, Sheila E jumped out of the way and narrowly escaped its jaws. As soon as she landed, though, the Stand immediately changed course, giving a disturbingly human-like howl as it charged them.

Its jaws met some form of resistance in thin air, Shizuka's invisibility dropping from the strain of holding it away even with Achtung Baby's four arms. "So that's what was happening," the Stand spoke despite having its mouth held open. "I could only hear a single set of footsteps there, but it turns out there's two of you."

Shizuka winced as one of the Stand's teeth managed to pierce her own, both their hands beginning to bleed. Sheila E took this as her chance to attack, Voodoo Child launching into a flurry of punches on the enemy and sending it back. Amazingly, it seemed to take no damage despite smashing into the wall hard enough to damage the door frame, the Stand's body seeming to ripple and deflect the impact. What's worse, Shizuka suddenly fell to her knees in pain, clutching her left arm as the wound on her hand started to fizzle and steam.

"That was a nice hit," the enemy said, the Stand getting to its feet as its eyes fixed on its targets. "I guess you earned an explanation. My Stand is called Summer Cannibal. It gives me the power to steal the ability of anyone I let it eat. I'll tell you up front, punches don't work against me ever since I gained the ability to deflect kinetic energy."

Preparing to charge again, it continued. "That's not all, though. That bite you just took is going to get infected. I happened to eat a pretty dangerous guy a couple years ago with the power to inject people with some kind of serum that turns their body into jelly. That stuff is going spread through you and make you even easier to gobble up."

Voodoo Child leaped out in front of Shizuka, doing its best to beat back Summer Cannibal with a barrage of punches. They might not do damage, but they could at least buy time for an escape. As Sheila E tried to collect her off the ground, she could already see the poison at work, the girl's fingers drooping over and bending into unnatural shapes as the bones and muscles became gelatinous.

"Hey, I have a question," Shizuka said through obvious pain. "Giorno...his Stand...it can heal anything, right?"

"As long as we make it out of here alive," she said.

With a sigh, Shizuka broke into a cold sweat. "Then I guess I feel a little better about doing this." Without warning, Achtung Baby appeared and delivered a swift chop to her own wrist, severing her hand before the damage could spread to any other part of her body.

Both Sheila E and the enemy were caught off guard by this, the former recovering much quicker and taking the chance to land several hits, enough to send it flying back once again. Leading Shizuka as she tried desperately not to cry out in pain while gripping at the stump on her arm, the two hid themselves in a nearby room and returned to being invisible.

They barely had time to use Shizuka's tie as a makeshift tourniquet before Summer Cannibal bashed through the door. "I saw you come in here," it said menacingly. "Pretty ballsy to chop off your own hand, though. Bet that hurts a lot. Why not come out and let me finish you off already?"

Several seconds passed, neither party making a move. Any sound would alert the Stand's incredible hearing and send it barreling towards the two, but staying still meant they couldn't be found. On the surface, it appeared they were at an impasse, though considering things any deeper revealed the women were at a distinct disadvantage.

Though the bleeding was staunched for the time being, Shizuka had taken a serious injury and could potentially go into shock or lose consciousness at any moment. When that happened, her Stand's power would deactivate and reveal them. Adrenaline could only do so much for her, especially when the two of them were forced to be so still.

"This is horrible." At the sound of those words, the Stand turned tail and stormed out of the room, going to investigate the source of the noise. To its confusion, it found what looked like the button off a coat, a tiny pair of lips formed on the front. "How am I going to explain it to her? 'Sorry, I lost my job, so I'm too poor to afford a nice suit!' What's she going to think of me then?" These were the words of a total stranger who had passed by the Sheila E's coat some time ago, her ability causing them to speak out as a distraction.

By the time Summer Cannibal realized the mistake, the two were already on the way out, having exited through another door in the staff room they'd been hidden inside and hobbling their way back to where they'd entered the staff area. The ploy wouldn't last long, though, evidenced by the sound of the Stand frantically bashing into walls as it made a mad dash to find them.

"Pretty sure we can't fight this guy alone," Sheila E said, whispering but trying to engage Shizuka to keep her from losing consciousness.

"We won't be able to get away," Shizuka said, surprising Sheila E at how lucid she sounded. "It's going to catch us."

"Give me some credit," she replied. "I'll get us out of here."

"I mean..." They briefly became visible as Shizuka wavered. "I mean we need to trap it. At least long enough to get to the exit."

"How do you think we do that?" she asked, doubtful of any trap's success against something so strong and sturdy. In response, the two became visible, Shizuka falling to one knee and catching her breath. Sheila E tried to help her up but was shook off, being directed to hide behind a corner and wait for the right moment.

Squeezing her arm, Shizuka yelped in pain, shaking it around to splatter blood across the floor. As expected, these sounds drew the attention of Summer Cannibal almost immediately, the Stand barreling towards her within seconds. "The other one left you behind?" it mused. "That's fine by me. I've always wondered what I could get away with if I was invisible."

Seconds before it had the chance to close the gap, Sheila E knew it was the moment to strike. Voodoo Child appeared, punching the ground rapidly with a chorus of, "Eri Eri Eri Eri Eri!" All across the floor, mouths big and small opened up, biting down on different parts of Summer Cannibal's body and holding it in place. How long these would hold wasn't clear, but things seemed under control for now.

"Can't believe that actually worked," Sheila E said, helping a very pleased Shizuka to her feet. "Now we need to get GioGio and find the user." Just as she said this, the enemy wriggled one of its legs free from a mouth. Though the mouth opened back up to bite down once again, the hold was clearly less secure this time. "We don't have much time."

"That's right," Shizuka agreed. "I think it's time, then."

"Time for what?" she asked, quirking a brow.

"It's a move I've been saving for a while now. It's one my dad taught me, actually. He said it's something to only use when I'm in a really bad place and nothing else is working."

Intrigued by this description, Sheila E pressed her for more information. "Yeah? And what's that? Is it going to win us this fight?"

"If we're lucky, maybe. The secret technique of my family...the Joestar's killer move..." Without another word, she invoked the strength of her ancestors as she went about using her family's most powerful skill. Sprinting away from Summer Cannibal and down the hall, she yelled, "Let's run already!"

"We were already doing that, asshole!" Sheila E yelled, trying to catch up to her and gain as much ground on the enemy as possible. Range weakened her ability and eventually caused the lips to disappear on their own, so the further they got from Summer Cannibal meant the more likely it was to break free. Their only chance was to get out into main area where the noise could hide them, though they both had the feeling there was more to this enemy than just what they knew so far.


Shizuka once again proves herself as a Joestar by using the secret technique passed down the family line for generations. Don't tell anyone, but she first learned about it after coming home upset because she kept being "it" in tag and Joseph had to help boost her confidence.

I feel like DIO would really appreciate Giorno's cape. If nothing else, they share the same fashion sense. Wish I knew how to draw so I could get all of them looking great here.

Kaiji's probably sitting there kicking himself watching Giorno clean up at pachinko after spending a whole season about to kill himself over his own. Who knew cheating was that easy?

What do you think the employee who finds a severed, jiggly hand is going to do? Do you report that shit to HR, or what? Can't exactly call the police down there.

That's all I've got for now. Thanks for reading. Share if you're enjoying. Always remember to erase the recordings for a better score.