Kyoko Kirigri strode up to the ID scanner by the reinforced steel door that blocked entry to the testing range. Next to the scanner was a numeric pad. She swiftly dialed in a seven-digit code. On a small green screen above both the scanner and the pad, a readout displayed "Kazuo Tengan override recognized. Access denied."

"Been delving into the former chairman's secure files, have we?"

Kyoko turned to see Byakuya Togami looking over her shoulder with a satisfied smirk on his face. "Yes," she admitted before muttering, "For all the good it does me."

"Kirigiri-chi!" called a familiar voice from behind them both. The two of them turned to see Yasuhiro Hagakure standing near the front of the crowd of onlookers. He pointed at Kanon Nakajima next to him. "Nakajima-chi always carries that fancy new hacking gun that fritzes out all kinds of electronic stuff, right?" Hagakure said. "Just have her blast the door controls!"

"Shitty idea," Kanon said to Hagakure, placing her hands on her hips. "Haven't you seen Star Wars?! Shoot the controls, and the door has no way to open!"

"Thanks anyway," Kyoko said as she reached inside of her jacket. She withdrew what looked like a dry-erase marker and pulled off the cap. "I've already got a backup plan, however." She turned to Byakuya and said, "Get everyone that's not part of security away from the door."

He understood her point and interrupted her with a curt nod. Pivoting to address the crowd, Byakuya yelled, "EVERYONE BACK AWAY FROM THE DOOR IMMEDIATELY!"

With the faux-marker she'd obtained from Fuhito in her hand, Kyoko felt under the card scanner for a port. Once her finger identified it, she took the "marker" device and pushed the tip up into the port. The scanner sat silent for a few seconds that felt eternal to Kyoko, until at last the readout said "Opening" and the door began to slowly raise.

"KIRIGIRI-SAN!" Kanon yelled to her. When Kyoko turned to look at her, she saw the girl had broken free of the crowd and was running towards her. She was quickly grabbed by the five members of the security team that were standing behind Kyoko, but by that point Kanon had already unhooked the hacking gun from her waist. She tossed it over to Kyoko, who caught it deftly and gave her a nod as the younger girl was led back to the rest of the group.

Five members of the security team lined up behind her, each pulling an automatic rifle from behind their backs. The bulky chief of security stepped up directly behind Kyoko. "Chairwoman," he said, "You should join the others at a safe distance."

"That won't be necessary," she said back. She checked the ammunition in Kanon's hacking gun, satisfied to see that 'Break' bullets were loaded and ready.

The door was halfway open when Kyoko clocked the four robot targets wandering the room. Two seemed to be circling each other tightly in the far right corner, while two were instead pressed up against the left-hand wall. They looked rather pathetic and aimless in this situation, but the fact that half of their faces had been painted black sent up a red flag in Kyoko's mind. Even more worrisome: She saw no sign of Fukawa or the Naegis.

She scanned the four pillars that stood in the corners of the room, but quickly determined that - based on the fact that the robots weren't advancing on them or attacking - there was no chance that the missing trio was shielded behind one of them. Kyoko held her weapon at the ready, pointing it towards the two circling test-bots on the right side of the room and stepped into the testing range carefully. One of the two robots in her line of sight was circling just the right way that it finally noticed her. Its eyes flashed with recognition of a target, and it rapidly began to advance.

"HOSTILE CONFIRMED!" the security chief yelled gruffly.

"HOLD FIRE!" Kyoko shouted back. She aimed her weapon carefully, firing once.

The shot hit the test-bot dead in the eye of its head's blackened half. The explosion that expanded out from the robot engulfed its circling partner with a BWA-OO-BWA-OOOM sound that felt deafening to her. Kyoko put down her free hand and braced herself on the floor as the shockwave from the explosion hit, knocking down a pair of the security troops behind her.

The sound elicited screams from the crowd far behind her, but Kyoko's ears were ringing too loudly for her to hear them. Luckily, her eyes were fully aware that the two robots on the far left wall were now turning their attentions towards the explosion... and noticed the new human targets as they pivoted.

"Wait for them to reach the center of the room!" Kyoko yelled as loudly as she could. She wanted to make sure that everyone was away from the far walls, just in case the others — Makoto... — were pressed up against the side of the room somewhere.

Despite her efforts, her voice sounded small and tinny after the explosion... but the security chief heard her. He ordered everyone to "Fall back!" with an accompanying gesture that got the other four's attentions on him. The chief slowly backed up, moving slightly outside of the room, with Kyoko and the other troops keeping pace. However, the two test-bots had set their sights on their new enemies. They approached more slowly than the first one had, both of them charging up their arm-based weapons as they advanced.

"Hold position and prepare for incoming fire," the security chief ordered from behind her. She absently noticed that her ears were acclimating back to normal when she heard him. Despite her position in the lead, Kyoko followed his suggestion and froze.

The advancing opponents had almost charged their weapons to full. Because they were approaching at an angle, they wouldn't cross the dead center of the room; they'd be a couple of meters in front of it once they aligned with the exact middle.

"When they're close to aligning-" Kyoko began.

"I know," the security chief said, cutting her off.

Kyoko glanced behind her, checking to make sure that the far wall of the gym was absent of onlookers. She briefly caught a glimpse of the crowd herded into the corner when she heard the fzzt of electrical discharges back in front of her. Whipping her head back, she saw the test-bots had both fired.

"SCATTER!" the security chief yelled.

Kyoko dropped to the ground, pressing herself flat as one of the shots flew over her. The other went wide of her, but both traveled past the roll-up door and into the gym.

She heard a lone yelp behind her, and she looked back to see one of the troops on the ground, gritting his teeth as electricity crackled over his leg. The rest of that shot had hit the wall directly behind him, leaving dark scoring on the brick. Unfortunately, that shot put the security officer in question into an immobile state; his leg was effectively paralyzed for the time being, and it appeared quite painful. Thankfully, everyone had avoided the second shot, which left another scorch two meters to the right of the first.

Kyoko appraised this damage in two seconds, then turned her attention back to her enemies. She brought the hacking gun in front of her, aiming it from a prone position. The two robots were charging up for another volley, and they were only steps from aligned with the center of the room.

Gunfire echoed around her. Before she was able to fire the hacking gun, the security team had let loose with their standard ammunition. The first few shots plink-ed off of the metal exterior of the robots' torsos, but in another second, both exploded simultaneously with an ear-shattering BWAAA-OOOOM.

This shockwave was so powerful that Kyoko had to shut her eyes to keep herself from tearing up. It felt like the longest ten seconds she could remember, but she finally opened her eyes to see that the leftmost column near the entrance to the range had been damaged, and plenty of fiery wreckage was strewn about the place.

"Security?" she called weakly. She saw the chief step up beside and extend a hand down. The muscular man hoisted her up, and she hoarsely ordered, "Shut down the center console." She gestured towards the far end of the range as she said it. "If you can't turn it off, I'll hack it with this," she explained, lifting her hacking gun weakly.

The chief nodded but said nothing. He gestured for the troops to follow them as they made their way into the testing range.

That was when the low, knee-high door on the left side of the room opened up, sending in the torso-width maintenance robots. Two members of the security team cautiously pointed their rifles at the new arrivals.

"Helloooo?" called a muffled voice from within the walls.

The sound granted Kyoko a new surge of adrenaline. "MAKOTO?!" she answered.

"KYOKO!" Makoto yelled back. At this point, she realized his voice was carrying from the recently opened access hatch for the maintenance robots. She headed to the far left wall at a light jog.

"We're all clear out here!" she said loudly. As she reached the hatch she crouched and leaned her head inside.

"Thank goodness you came," Makoto said, laughing nervously. There was little to no lighting within the hatch aside from the ambient light streaming through the hatch; Kyoko could make out a chute directly in front of her, some small metal platforms to her right and left, and then - faintly - a silhouette of someone on her upper right.

"Is everyone okay?" she asked urgently.

"Toko's hurt!" Komaru responded.

"Understood," Kyoko answered. "Climb-oof!"

She looked back to see that one of the maintenance robots was trying to shove some garbage into the hatch and down the chute in front of her. The thing had pushed its pile of scrap metal directly into her feet. She scowled at it as she swiftly lifted the hacking gun and shot it, causing it the robot to cease its movement. She then repeated the same action on the approaching secondary maintenance robot, leaving both frozen in their tracks.

"W-wait, Kiri!" Makoto interjected. "Unless you can stop the machinery in here, it's just going to keep on pumping out more robots!"

She considered this for a second. "You're exposed to the machinery from where you are?" she asked.

"Yeah," Komaru confirmed. "It's loud, obnoxious, and-"

"Then climb out," she replied curtly. "I'll take care of it."

After hopping down into the light, Makoto paused to smile at Kyoko. She was unable to resist smiling back as Komaru came down to join him. She hoisted the unconscious body of Toko Fukawa with her, putting the woman's legs over Makoto's shoulders and holding Fukawa's arms on top of her own. Kyoko withdrew from the hatch, and the others crouch-walked out of the opening with Fukawa's limp form on top of them.

As soon as they'd withdrawn, Kyoko called for a medic to join them in the testing range. She then leaned back into the hatch and fired in multiple directions with her hacking gun. She was working blind, but after about six shots in various directions and at numerous angles, she heard all of the machinery inside the walls grinding to a screeching halt.

Crawling back out of the hatch, she stood upright and watched Toko being loaded onto a stretcher as Komaru watched her nervously. "Is she gonna be okay?" she asked the nearest of the two medics.

"She still has a pulse," Makoto answered.

"We won't know anything for sure until we get her to the infirmary," the lead medic said.

"She's breathing," the other one added as she checked Toko over.

"Probably a concussion," the lead noted to Kyoko. "Still, nothing's for sure just yet."

"Please, be good to her," Komaru told the two medics. "She's a hero!"

Hiroko Hagakure walked up beside the younger Naegi, having just entered the range. "I'll take care of her myself," she assured Komaru. "Any friend of yours and my son's gets the rock-star treatment, far as I'm concerned."

"Th-thank you," Komaru told the older woman, sounding relieved.

Komaru followed the stretcher as the medics wheeled Toko away and Hiroko began speaking with them about Toko's condition.

Makoto took his place at Kyoko's side. "Another nightmare survived," he said with a half-smile.

Kyoko unexpectedly embraced him, hugging him tightly against herself. Makoto returned the gesture by putting his arms around her back in turn.

"Heh, it's okay, Kiri-uh, Kyoko!" he assured her. "I'm fine!"

At his remark, Kyoko pushed back to regard his face. Her own expression was torn between relief and pain. She took her arms away from him and grabbed his hand in hers, looking as though she might smile.

Yet in the blink of an eye, that possibility vanished. Her face fell again into anger. Her brow lowered and a scowl emerged. Makoto's own face was fraught with anxiety us when he saw her attitude turn dark.

"Come with me," she ordered him. Roughly, she pulled him behind her as she headed out, into the gym and over towards its exit.

From the crowd in the far corner, there were scattered cheers of joy and relief when Makoto emerged intact. Aoi Asahina and Yasuhiro Hagakure were among those who celebrated the sight.

Hina's expression soon fell into concern, however, when she saw the fury on Kyoko's face.


From the hall outside of the gym, Kyoko pulled Makoto into a nearby vacant room. Whatever it was intended for, it was never finished: There was no card lock on the door, the floor was just bare concrete spattered with masonry dust, and there were no lights save for the pair of egress windows on the far side of the room.

She jerked her hand away from Makoto as they entered, then headed over to the far wall. As she moved, her shoes made heavy clomp noises on the concrete. Kyoko reached the far wall before the door to the room swung shut, and she stopped there beneath one of the egress windows. With her arms folded and sunlight streaming down onto her hair, she stood silently facing the wall.

Makoto could tell from the way her shoulders were rising and falling that she was breathing heavily. "So you're, um... mad?" he asked carefully.

Kyoko's shoulders heaved, but she gave no response. Makoto dragged his foot along the ground, drawing a circle in the masonry dust. "Uhhh... thank you for getting us all out of there, by the way." He smiled nervously. "Just as I thought, you're amaz-"

"To be clear," Kyoko interrupted, "I'm trying to communicate."

She hadn't turned to face him as she spoke, but the tone of her words was hostile. Makoto's expression shifted to a worried one. "I'm... sorry?" he not-quite-asked.

"Over the past couple of years, I've been working to... to open up more," she said quietly. "By doing so, I've hoped to engender more trust in my subordinates... and my friends."

Hearing this, Makoto nodded slightly. He slowly took a step towards her as he said, "I know you have, and I'm sure that's not easy. But... you know that you don't have to prove anything to anybody here, right? I mean, you've earned everyone's respect. You don't need to do anything you're not comfortable with just to... just to advance further in the foundation or something. Asahina-san, Togami-kun and the others all trust you completely. The whole Future Foundation is impressed by you, too."

For a few seconds, Kyoko only sighed a long, weary sigh. Makoto started to walk towards her again-

-but Kyoko quickly spun around, whipping her hair through the air. Once she faced him, Makoto could see that she was gritting her teeth in anger — a sight that made him stumble back a couple of steps instinctively.

"Answer me this," she demanded coldly. "How skilled are you with our hacking guns? Or any firearm, really?"

He averted her eyes as he admitted, "Uhhh, n-not great."

"You're a novice at best," she corrected. "And yet you walked into the test range — an environment you're completely unfamiliar with — and initiated a session, locking yourself in with a relentless stream of hostiles-"

"-was only supposed to be twelve-" Makoto attempted to interject.

"-outputting electrical charges of brutal intensity, leaving yourself entirely vulnerable," she continued, unphased. A sneer was on her lips as she shook her head vigorously in disappointment.

"First off: When we set up the session, we set the robots' shots to be barely above the very lowest level of strength," Makoto explained. "And secondly: I was there with Komaru and Genocide Jack, two of the most experienced fighters we know. They've destroyed hundreds of robots!"

"The robots in the room don't care what your experience level is or whether you're adequately armed to fight them," Kyoko countered. "They attack indiscriminately. You were just as likely to be a target of their attacks as Komaru was. Yet somehow, I can easily imagine your thought process," she suggested. Her voice adjusted into a higher pitch as she mocked him: "'I'm too lucky to be targeted by those killer robots!'"

"I-I never thought that!" Makoto protested. "My luck has never worked that way anyway," he grumbled further. Shifting his feet uncomfortably, he looked down to the floor. "And I don't sound like that," he added quietly, though the slight blush on his face suggested otherwise. "Besides, I had to be there!"

She folded her arms before responding, "Interesting presumption. How do you figure that?"

"The entire point of the session was to let Genocide Jack get out her... her pent-up aggression, I suppose, on some safe targets," Makoto explained. "Then I'd be free to ask her some questions about what she remembers... y'know, about the stuff we found in the yearbook."

"Couldn't you have done that just as easily by waiting outside the test range and asking her after she was done destroying the targets?" Kyoko asked.

His face twisted into a slight grimace. "Only if we wanted an actual serial killer to get access to the whole HQ," Makoto told her. "The doors to the gym only lock from the outside, remember?"

Kyoko raised her eyebrows at him. "We essentially gave a serial killer access to the HQ the first time Fukawa-san entered the building," she said. "That ship has long sailed." Then she closed her eyes. "Nevertheless... I suppose I can see your point," she finished.

Makoto was still leaning away from her as though to protect himself, but his face went from a mild grimace to an expression of confusion. "Um, okay then!" he said over-eagerly.

"And how did your conversation with Fukawa-san's psychotic alter ego go?" she followed up, speaking in a deadpan tone.

"Ah... right," Makoto said, his spirits clearly fallen. "Not great, unfortunately. We were only able to discuss her relationship to Ludenberg-san before the attacks became our primary concern."

"And?" Kyoko pressed.

"She confirmed it, but only with her other personality," Makoto told her. "And... well, I should've taken my own advice about it not being smart to try and force someone to come to terms with their sexuality, I guess. When Genocide Jack kept angrily insisting she couldn't have any leanings in that direction, I kept arguing the point... we just went in frustrating circles."

"To your credit, she's good at getting on people's nerves, and her claim doesn't make sense," Kyoko said in muted agreement. "But I imagine that arguing it didn't go well."

"Not really," he admitted with a sigh. "Plus it sort of made me feel like a jerk."

"It's... difficult to hold a conversation with that half of Fukawa-san on any topic," Kyoko assured him. "Try not to blame yourself."

Makoto half-smiled. "Thanks for the support," he said quietly. "Does this mean... we're, um, good now?"

She stared blankly at first, unresponsive. Her eyelids drifted to half-closed. Makoto wasn't sure whether she was freshly irritated or just tired.

Softly, Kyoko inquired, "How much longer should I be expecting this kind of thing?"

The question deepened his confusion. "What kind of thing?" Makoto pressed.

"Random experiences of life-threatening danger," Kyoko clarified. "Specifically, the kind that occur in locations that are supposed to be safe and secure."

He felt dumbfounded by the question. "You know full well how it is out there," Makoto responded. "We may be going for the pin on Despair, but safety and stability? They're still a ways off."

"I guess I thought it wouldn't be that way in here anymore," she said back. "I'm not often accused of being naive, but maybe I have been. I've been focused on so many other things since we escaped the Monokuma Hunter game that I let myself get complacent. I genuinely thought that threats from our own supposed allies were a thing of the past."

"And you think that's what this was?" Makoto asked. He raised one hand to his chin in thought. "You figure this was another inside job?"

Kyoko placed her hands on her hips and looked at him expectantly. "Don't you?"

It took a couple seconds of reflection, but he nodded his agreement. "Yeah," he accepted. "I know it wasn't a malfunction — the Monokuma-style paint on those robot heads made it clear this was an intentional attack. I also can't see this being caused by any external Despair loyalists."

"Nor could it have been something that our former chairman set in motion," Kyoko declared. She began to pace back and forth on one side of the room, looking slightly down as she thought through the situation. "The upgrade to the range to install the robotic mobile opponents only just happened. The Ninth branch arrived ahead of the others who came in for the memorial and the meeting, then got it in place over the past week."

"So Ninth branch seems immediately suspicious," Makoto said. "But is that too easy? I mean, is it really going to be that obvious?"

"It's a big operation," Kyoko told him. "Even if it is them, that doesn't immediately narrow it down."

"But Nakajima-san is the obvious suspect," Makoto said matter-of-factly.

"She is," Kyoko agreed. "I'm not confident she could pull this off, though."

"Not without help, you mean," Makoto suggested. "She could've been just part of the plan."

"What would she have even provided to such an alliance?" Kyoko posited. "Yes, she used to hate the Future Foundation and wanted to see it destroyed. But even if she could successfully fake being cured of her murderous rage to the doctors in Osaka, she'd then have to locate allies who hated the Foundation who were also part of the Foundation... because of course, those are the only people she's been exposed to. In addition, if she hated the entire Foundation, why would she wait to spring this trap until it was you, Fukawa-san and your sister at risk? The range has been used plenty of times since its upgrade. This wasn't even its first use today."

"Maybe she was cured of her hatred for the Foundation as a whole," Makoto offered, "But she retained hate for... specific individuals?"

"None of whom she'd even met when the range was installed," Kyoko reminded him. "She didn't know your sister or Fukawa-san before arriving here. And given the scope of what we're talking about - overriding the program, sneaking in explosives, causing custom paint jobs or head variations to trigger under certain circumstances - what skills would Kanon Nakajima have contributed to such a plan? She has proven reasonably handy with explosives, sure. But that's true for most of the Ninth branch, given that they're focused on weapons R&D."

"So you think she's clean on this?" Makoto asked.

Kyoko nodded. "It's too soon to be certain, but I believe that's likely. Given all that I've just said and the fact that she was even instrumental in rescuing you, she seems like an easy scapegoat for someone else. Someone who probably worked closely enough with her to recognize both her baggage and how to manipulate it."

"So we're back at this being launched by 'someone in the Ninth branch," Makoto said, frustrated. "I don't mean to sound all self-important, but... I mean, I have to guess I was the main target? Because of being the Ultimate Hope or whatever? They set up the new robotic targets and the machine that recycles them into new opponents in such a way so that the system would try and kill me as soon as I entered the range, right?"

Kyoko's eyes lit up. "Actually, no," she said, suddenly pleased. "No one would do that."

"And why not?" Makoto said. "I mean, I don't really get why people think I'm a big deal, but they sure seem to-"

"It's not about whether you're a big deal," Kyoko corrected him, smirking. "It's about the fact that our training levels with various forms of weapons and combat styles are all detailed in our personal profiles on the Foundation server. No one within the Foundation would try to kill you at the testing range, because it could've been months before you set foot in there. Your profile makes it clear that you have almost no training on or proficiency with firearms."

"I'm... gonna try not to feel a little insulted," Makoto mumbled.

"Komaru wouldn't even be in the system," Kyoko went on. "Though she is, admittedly, well-known to many in the Foundation as a highly proficient user of the hacking gun. Fukawa-san is the only one of the three of you, though, who is both in the system and a frequent visitor to various training grounds... or at least she was prior to her taking up residency in Towa City. She's the most logical target."

Makoto Naegi's mouth curled into a skeptical smile, and his eyes bulged in disbelief. "So who is there within the Foundation that'd want to target Fukawa-san?" he asked incredulously.

"I can think of a few possibilities," Kyoko answered. "Perhaps someone here is a relative of someone Genocide Jack killed? That's one easy path to explore; it would represent clear motive. On the other hand... you know the Ninth Branch's reputation when it comes to personnel, right?"

Makoto nodded awkwardly. "Of course," he confirmed. "They're the 'redemption branch.'"

Kyoko smiled confidently. "Then I think I need to have a talk with interim department head Tarō Ueshita," she announced. "I have to wonder who's come under his wing lately."

"Do you think Ueshita-kun is directly involved in the attack?" Makoto asked. He was speaking too quickly when he said it; he was obviously worried.

"We won't know for sure until we get there," Kyoko said back, sounding relaxed in comparison. "But if he is, it's going to make the meeting coming up fairly awkward. I wish I had some way of proving it before then... "

Her back straightened as she finished that thought. Then and there, she pulled her cell phone from her jacket pocket and began to type something in.

"What're you doing?" Makoto asked.

"Texting Togami-kun," Kyoko told him. "I need someone to cross-reference all of the members of Ninth that have, ah, questionable pasts with anyone that knows robotics or computer programming. Then we'll organize the list to descend from the most recent additions to the roster on down to the oldest. That should at least narrow our focus somewhat, and it might even raise the most obvious red flags right away."

"I understand," Makoto said simply. "And... look... when you're done?"

"-which is now," she said as she lowered the phone, smirking over at him.

"You're fast," Makoto chuckled. "But um... I have something I'd like you to look at. Something I think you might want to bring up in your meeting."

"Oh?" Kyoko said. She slipped the phone back into her pocket as Makoto approached her and withdrew the notebook she had lent to him. He had it already flipped open to the page where he first started taking notes regarding the "New" Hope's Peak. He handed it to Kyoko, then quickly backed away again, returning nervously to his previous position.

"I've been taking some notes on an idea I had while I was looking through the yearbook," he said. "Something your father wrote inspired me, actually... but p-please, try not to be mad about this. I realize it's not a totally safe idea, and I know you're upset about me putting myself in danger. But I think this could be worth any risk."

Kyoko stared at the notebook, attempting to focus. The irritation showed in her furrowed brow as she read silently for a minute. Makoto put his hands in his pockets, trying not to watch her as she examined his notes.

She flipped the page.

"I uh, I know the drawing there is pretty rough. It's kind of like a layout idea?" Makoto offered. "I mean, it's a suggestion for how we might re-purpose the existing-"

"Naegi," she began sharply, cutting him off. "This is... " Kyoko's voice trailed off as she shook her head slowly. "This is insane," she finished.

In an instant, his mouth had turned into a deep frown. He tried to speak gently when he replied, "I-is that what you really think?"

Kyoko finally looked up from the notebook, still frowning. "Hundreds of people died there," she reminded him. "You can't just pave over that level of tragedy. And even if you could somehow distract people from it, there's the fact that a significant minority of people blame Hope's Peak for the tragedy in the first place."

Makoto was already shaking his head vigorously by the time she wrapped up her statement. "I don't want to 'pave over' those losses," he insisted. "I want the site of the new building turned into a memorial to all of them - with both Reserve Course and Main Course students listed on equal footing, surrounded by a field of green." He held out his hands in a half-hearted shrug as he tried to explain. "We could even gut the old building, or at least the parts where the worst parts of Enoshima's games happened." He swallowed hard, and looked at her with pleading eyes. "Kyoko... I don't want to resurrect Hope's Peak the way it was. I want to make it something better."

The creases in her brow had reduced at this point, but concern was still evident on her face. "I understand the appeal of the site — it's already heavily fortified with Enoshima's defenses, plus it has a central location. But that means high visibility — you're putting a giant target on it."

"A target that already has gatling guns and anti-aircraft turrets," Makoto chuckled. "There's a reason nobody ever managed to rescue us during Enoshima's game, right? Now we can make that level of defense work for us. And high visibility also makes it a stronger symbol. If we want to stand for hope, we shouldn't be hiding — we should be in the open. We need to face the world as though we're not afraid of it, but... well, not without maintaining precautions."

Kyoko inhaled deeply and let out a long sigh. One corner of her mouth had even started to curl up a bit, giving her a mild smirk. "Well," she continued slowly, "Despite the baggage it carries, I can see the budgetary appeal of using the existing campus and buildings. If you were assuming that the foundation doesn't have the budget to back up an brand-new operation of this type, you'd were correct to do so."

He slipped his hands into his pockets and smiled contentedly, well aware that the woman who was angry at him mere moments ago had just given him a mild compliment. "Thanks," he said simply.

"However," Kyoko went on, "There's no way the Foundation is going to acquiesce to staying where we are right now. Certainly not after we've once again had this facility compromised just moments ago. We're going to need a new headquarters, and that's going to take precedence over any other proposed construction. It's not like large buildings capable of hosting this large of an organization are easy to come by, either. I doubt we could repurpose-"

She cut herself off suddenly, then looked down at Makoto's sketch again. After a few seconds of examination, she spoke at half-volume: "Your proposal leaves many of the old buildings unused."

Makoto nodded, still smiling. "I figure that if we do this, we need to start small, using a handful of faculty and maybe 60 or so students. I can't imagine we'll need to use all of the dorms, and we sure as heck don't need all those buildings dedicated to specific subjects. There's more than enough space to-"

Kyoko smiled with satisfaction as she interjected, "-to use the remaining buildings for the Future Foundation." She lifted her eyes away from the notebook and gazed over at Makoto in disbelief. She sounded almost irritated when she added, "You may have just identified the only fortified structure left in all of Japan that isn't currently in use."

Nevously, Makoto reached his right hand up and rubbed the back of his head. "I mean... it's not like I was thinking of including the Future Foundation in this... that was just-"

"Luck?" Kyoko interrupted. She raised an eyebrow at him. He shrugged yet again. Kyoko sighed, returning back to the notebook. As she turned the page, she remarked, "You know, considering how many ridiculous conspiracy theories there are about the Foundation's supposed intentions, moving to a public center would be... " She held her breath for a second before quietly acknowledging, "...it would be a stroke of genius, honestly."

Makoto taking two steps closer to her, holding his hands behind his back. A flirtatious grin played across his face as he teased, "So what you're saying is: I'm a genius?"

She raised her eyes to meet his as her lips tightly smiled. "I wouldn't go that far," she said, her voice struggling to mask her amusement. "After all, you never considered the Foundation's use for the property. It's an accidental discovery."

Makoto raised both arms in the air triumphantly with his fists clenched. "I... am an accidental genius!" he announced, forcing a grin. He was quite clearly embarrassed, bu he still gamely attempted to force a veneer of pride.

When she saw how beet red his face had become, Kyoko had to bite her lower lip to keep from laughing. "Naegi-kun," she managed to cough out, chuckling a little. "You can't even successfully pretend to have an ego."

With his arms still up in the air but the truth clearly out, Makoto's cheesy grin took on an air of sheepishness. "Is... is that a good thing?" he asked tentatively, stepping closer yet again.

Kyoko's hands dropped to their sides, and she finally let her eyes lock with his. "Yes," she admitted quietly. "It's one of your... many... good qualities."

Makoto stepped forward again, putting him now less than half a meter away from her. His arms fell to his own sides, matching her movement from a moment ago. "Thank you," he whispered, smiling awkwardly. He still sounded nervous as he followed up, "Sooo... ah, what now?"

She still hadn't pulled her eyes away from his. "You're deceptively talented," she told him.

It didn't sound like a criticism, but Makoto was thrown by it. He cocked his head and grunted "Huh?" quizzically.

"Your self-professed ability to look on the positive side of things," Kyoko explained. "It's more than just a desirable mindset. It allows you to see things in a way that most of us can't or won't. Where most of us see points of pain, you can see legitimate opportunities. Where we see regret, you see potential."

He smiled broadly at her and found himself blushing as he did so. "Thank you again," he said softly.

She returned the smile, albeit tinged with sadness. She spoke gently as she said, "Honestly... once we fell into a certain daily rhythm in our work here... I got to thinking that we had time to take things at our own pace. But then we came across the Remnants, and pretty soon everything was dangerous again. Time flew and every moment became precious when we were defying the council, risking our lives in the Neo World Program... " She paused and pushed her hair behind her right ear, taking a breath as she did so. "Once things get dangerous, I'm focused on the task at hand. And yet, when things are calm again, I let myself avoid dealing with difficult choices. I've allowed myself to develop a false sense of security - to believe that I have time to think about those choices, because the danger seems distant when we're just living our lives. But it's never actually distant. And I know that, intellectually. I'm not a fool. But somehow, I use it as this subconscious excuse to put my emotions on the backburner and dodge those decisions. "

Makoto reached out with his right hand, taking her left hand in his. "What kind of decisions do you mean?" he asked. He appeared genuinely curious.

"Decisions like this," she stated plainly.

He shook his head in confusion. "This?" he inquired further. "What's this?"

"This thing," she not-explained. "Specifically, how I should deal with it."

Now Makoto chuckled and shrugged. "What thing?" he said, sounding increasingly desperate. "You've gotta throw me a line, here."

Kyoko's voice was barely above a whisper when she clarified, "The thing between us."

Makoto's smile vanished and his cheeks turned red with realization. He'd finally caught on.

The innocence that his surprise and embarrassment illustrated only drew Kyoko closer. She slid her feet slightly forward, moving her face near his as she whispered, "You know, for the 'Ultimate Hope'... sometimes, you're downright hopeless."

He started to smile again. "I-"

The notebook fell from Kyoko's hand, hitting the ground with a soft fwap, and immediately the rest of Makoto's words were lost into her mouth as Kyoko pulled him into her, surprising him. He didn't expect it when she pulled him into her and kissed him, but he quickly slid his hands around her waist and pulled her back just as firmly. Before he even understand what was happening, her tongue was inside of his mouth, gentle yet demanding as it moved along his. Kyoko felt her heart pounding up against his, and she grew light-headed in a way she'd only felt once before.

One time. A very recent time.

On the morning of this same exact day, in Makoto Naegi's room.

She spun and actually managed to hoist him for a moment, bringing him with her as she twisted 180 degrees. Then she pushed Makoto forward, pressing him gently against the wall. Their mouths parted when he reached it and she giggled — feeling momentarily embarrassed by the sound — before she dove back into him, pulling him back towards her. Kyoko lifted her knee so that she could wrap her leg around him and pull him against her body tightly at waist, then her gloved hands moved down to his, and she grabbed both of his hands insistently. A groan emerged from her throat, but at this point she was too involved in their kiss to even notice her own sounds.

Makoto noticed. He pulled away for a second, half-smiling and looking flush with surprise. And the next instant, he used the break to begin kissing down her neck, sucking gently on it as Kyoko leaned her head back.

"We..." she managed to gasp.

"Mm?" Makoto half-heartedly inquired. He was still kissing down her neck but once he reached the bottom, he pulled her collar aside to travel onto her shoulder.

"We shouldn't," she managed to say, hoarsely.

Makoto pulled back, still holding her hands in his. He was gasping for air. "Wha... but you... " he blurted.

"I know," Kyoko said, accepting the blame. "I started it. I apologize."

Makoto swallowed hard and frowned a bit. "If you didn't want to, then why-"

"I did," she asserted. "I do. But I also... don't?" she uttered. She knew it sounded lame as soon as it came out.

"Is... is this because you're 'emotionally compromised'?" Makoto said. "Not that you owe me an explanation... I just... "

"That's part of it," Kyoko said. "Plus we just... we have more to talk about. More to work out."

Makoto nodded.

"I'm getting ahead of myself," she told him at last, half-smiling. "I'm not quite ready to... cement what it is we're doing here. I have other things I need to focus on today, after all."

Makoto nodded. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed," he remarked with a laugh. "But it's okay, of course."

She stared into his eyes as she said, "It's my turn to thank you this time. For understanding, that is."

"Sure," Makoto said back. "Y'know, with the way you were angry at me, and then... this? You're kind of a tsundere."

"Ugh," she said. "I'd prefer not to be whittled down to a single trope."

"Trust me," Makoto said lovingly, "You're a lot more than that." She couldn't help but crack a rare grin for a second when she heard the tone in his voice.

At last, they stepped apart... but she kept his hands held firmly in hers.

"Probably gonna need those back," he joked.

"That's a shame," Kyoko fired back. She let go and turned towards the door, heaving a sigh as she attempted to focus herself. "I guess I need to look into the root of this attack, and I've got barely an hour until the meeting. Not a lot of time to make headway."

"You'll do fine," Makoto said affectionately, gazing into her eyes.

Kyoko scooped her notebook up from the floor and the two of them headed for the door, shooting lingering glances at each other along the way.


As they emerged into the hallway, they found Hagakure and Asahina nervously watching the room from a few meters away.

Kyoko's face instantly contorted into irritation. "What are you two-"

"Please, don't go too hard on him!" Hina pleaded.

"Oh, man!" Yasuiro cried in shock. "Kirigiri-chi up and dragged Naegi-chi around the floor like a dang mop!"

Makoto looked aghast and confused. "Wha-what?!" he shouted. "No she didn't!"

"You don't gotta defend her, Naegi-chi!" Hiro demanded. "I don't care if she is the boss: Nobody has the right to get so rough with you!"

"I'm serious!" Makoto insisted.

Kyoko looked over at Makoto, seeking some kind of explanation. She was surprised to find his hair, shoulders and back covered in grey masonry dust. No doubt it got all over him while he was pushed against the wall.

A sincere smile emerged on her face in spite of everything they'd endured today. She had to raise a gloved hand to her mouth to suppress her giggles.

Makoto's confusion deepened when he saw her giggling, but he still smiled instinctively when he saw the joy on her face.

Hina saw their expressions and smiled with relief at how happy they appeared, letting out a tiny chuckle.

Hiro looked at Hina, then back to the couple in front of them. "Have you guys gone nuts?!"


Sorry for the lengthy break between updates. Real life stuff like having a job keeps getting in the way. At least we're in the wind-down period on this story now. I'm estimating that I have about five chapters to go as it's currently outlined; here's hoping I can put them out faster than one chapter a month, but I guess we'll see.

The dry-erase marker that can unlock doors by shoving it into the top of a lock? It first appeared in Chapter 8, of course. But I wanted to mention that it's a real card-lock workaround someone discovered/built a few years ago that opens a lot of hotel room doors. Feel free to google it. I thought it was too cool/crazy to not include in a fictional story somewhere.

Next time: A lot of check-ins with Togami, Toko, Komaru, Kanon and more.