Naegi and Kirigiri squatted down to focus on the dusty concrete floor. Kyoko instinctively glanced at the hem of her skirt to see whether any of the filth from the ground was brushing it, then promptly returned to ignoring the matter. This was not the time or place to worry about the state of her outfit. It's not like she expected to be imprisoned in an abandoned building today.
No; this time was best spent strategizing.
Kyoko extended her left forefinger and used it to trace out her vision in the dust, placing it just within the beam of sunlight that extended from their cell's tiny window along the back of the small room. "We put Togami-kun here," she told Makoto as she drew a circle in the filth. "That way, he can serve as a distraction."
Makoto chuckled a little. "He won't like that," he said.
"The venue is ideal for it," Kyoko countered. "The entryway serves as a bottleneck. If we have him near the door, then align ourselves so that you and I have a direct line of sight to both his location and said door-"
"I get it," Makoto said, smiling in realization. "He can cut off any unwanted guests and prevent them from getting decent shots of us. And they'll naturally be drawn to look at him anyway, since he's… Togami-kun."
Kyoko smirked and gave a nod in response. Pleased with herself, she raised her right forefinger to her lips in thought. "Perhaps we should put Fukawa-san with him?"
"He definitely won't like that," Makoto replied with a grin. However, his face fell as a complication occurred to him. "Wait, what if she accidentally sneezes and 'changes' on us?"
Creases appeared in Kyoko's forehead as she mulled the possibility over. "I think we can prevent exposure to any of the obvious triggers," she said. "I'll just tell the florist to keep all arrangements away from their table, then ask the chef to go light on the pepper in Fukawa-san's dishes."
"There's another thing to consider," Makoto warned her. "Komaru will want to be wherever Fukawa-san is."
"Fine," Kyoko said as she drew a few more 'x' marks next to her first circle. "Then the table closest to the entry will have Togami-kun, Fukawa-san, Komaru and Pennyworth-kun.
"What if Togami-kun starts wandering, though?" Makoto asked with concern. "To get away from Fukawa-san, I mean. If he moves off, we lose our shield against the paparazzi."
Kyoko frowned slightly. "Then… hm… "
She started to wipe away three of her dusty 'x' marks when a loud noise came from the metal door. Kyoko quickly stood to regard the armed man in ill-fitting fatigues who stepped through. He was joined by a partner wearing a white tight-shirt and jeans. This one had his spiky hair dyed a bright, unnatural blond.
"It's time," one of them said roughly. Naegi stood up and took his place by Kirigiri's left side.
Kyoko placed her hands on her hips. "No last requests?" she asked indignantly.
"Boss says you don't deserve any," the blond one answered.
Makoto glanced down at Kyoko's left hand, nervously eyeing the engagement ring slipped over her gloved hand. He grabbed her hand in his and swallowed.
Even as she gripped Makoto's hand with her left, Kyoko ran her right hand through her hair, flipping it defiantly. "Your 'boss' is unfathomably rude," she informed the men.
The one in fatigues gave her a toothy grin. "I'll pass along your complaints," he snarled.
Naegi and Kirigiri were marched down a dark corridor with a rifle pointed at each of their backs. They kept their hands locked together while they walked.
As they approached the end of the tunnel that exited into blinding sunlight, Kyoko cleared her throat. "Just for the record… " she began.
"I know what you're going to say," Makoto interrupted her.
Nevertheless, she continued: "You shouldn't have come after me."
Makoto had beads of sweat forming on his forehead, but he managed to smile weakly. "I know."
"I'm perfectly capable of handling myself," she went on.
"I know," Makoto repeated.
"You could've at least wait for an official rescue operation to be mounted instead of running off half-cocked," she finished with exasperation.
Makoto looked over at his fiance with an expression containing both affection and regret. "Did you really think there was any way that I wasn't going to come racing after you?" he asked.
Kyoko smiled sadly at him. "No, I suppose I didn't," she acknowledged. She squeezed his hand a little tighter in hers as they walked out and into the light.
Once her eyes adjusted to the glare of the sun, Kyoko saw that the pair had been taken into a small, dirty parking lot with a makeshift barricade of shipping crates blocking access to or any view of the adjacent road. The other three sides of the lot were blocked in by buildings, including a large skyscraper to the far right and the mid-sized building they'd just emerged from on the left-hand side. A shorter two-story structure made up the back wall that faced the barricade. Three-quarters of the lot was surrounded by men spaced a few feet apart from one another, adding up to maybe 20 or 30 individuals by her initial estimation. More than half were openly wielding firearms.
"As I thought," Kyoko mused aloud. "We're only 10 kilometers or so from the school."
"Next time you go outside the campus walls to 'check the perimeter,'" Makoto advised, "Could you maybe take more than one bodyguard with you?"
Kyoko eyed him affectionately. "I'll consider it, Headmaster," she teased lightly.
"Shut up and move," the man in fatigues ordered them.
The two men at their backs led them over to a pair of metal poles, each mounted in a concrete-filled tire. They resembled the kind of thing one would attach a tetherball to, but their captors attached Naegi and Kirigiri to the poles instead by pulling them apart, then cuffing their hands behind their backs and around the poles. The wall of the building directly behind them was the only area of the arena not lined with members of the controlling gang. Kyoko was not at all surprised to learn that this was because she and Makoto were to be shot by weapons facing that direction, firing-squad-style.
A large, muscular man wearing dark green pants and no shirt stepped out from the crowd and slowly strolled up in front of the two, standing about five meters away from them. He was holding a Kalashnikov rifle in both hands, but his most notable feature was that his face was painted half-white and half-black. Kyoko immediately pegged him as the aforementioned "boss" of this group.
He let his rifle hang down on one side as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a cell phone. "Sorry," he said insincerely to his captives. "Our group isn't as well-funded as Enoshima-sensei was. We're gonna have to film this thing guerilla-style, but don't you worry: Everybody will still get to watch you die."
Makoto swallowed hard. Kyoko just stared blankly at the group's leader, clearly bored by his little speech. "I've been told that you don't believe in last requests," Kyoko said flatly. "Am I at least allowed some last words?"
The leader's grin revealed that he'd filed some of his teeth down to ragged, painful-looking points. "Oh? Got something to say, sweetie?" he hissed.
Kyoko let her eyes drift around the parking lot, looking each member of the group in the eyes for a fleeting moment as she announced, "I just wanted you to know that I understand. I understand that you abducted two people who work at a school because you long for discipline. And I want to assure all of you that you will get what you're after very, very soon."
The assembled group of thugs chuckled awkwardly at her words. A few of them shifted their stances uncomfortably. The leader just shook his head in disbelief. "You ain't the one in charge here, little girl," he growled with a twisted half-smile. "You got nothing on us."
Kyoko smiled at him confidently and stared him in the eyes, saying nothing. Gradually, his own smile faded into an irritated scowl.
"Whatever," he grumbled. The leader turned his back on the two and held the phone in his outstretched arms, beginning to record a "selfie" video with his two captives in the background. "A despairing day to you," he began in a rasp. "We are the Sons of Enoshima, and today we present you with a long-overdue treat: The execution of the Ultimate Hope. Along with him, we-"
Kyoko couldn't bring herself to pay attention to the rest. He continued droning on, but she turned her attention to Makoto instead. "You know how I wanted to do a Fall wedding because of the traditionally Autumnal wedding colors?" she began innocently.
Makoto was sweating heavily from his face now, but he tried to give her as much attention as he could muster while still eyeing the leader at the same time. "Y-yeah," he stammered. "Um, especially the purples."
Kyoko gave him a small smile. "Naturally. Unfortunately, it seems that both lilacs and violets will be out of season in the Fall. The florist suggested we can surround the centerpieces with New England Aster, which I'm in favor of. But for the central focus… I confess that I'm struggling to make a decision. Do you have any thoughts?"
"I will count down from five," the leader said to his phone's camera with a sickening smile. "I want you all to watch the last five seconds before I rip Hope out of this world. And when I'm finished… it's punishment tiiiiiiiime!" he screamed. Cheers erupted from the men around him, some of whom fired their guns blindly into the air.
"Uhh… Kyoko?" Makoto half-whispered.
"Don't worry about him," Kyoko said dismissively. "Focus on the task at hand."
The blond man in the t-shirt and jeans ran up to his boss and took the phone from his hand, taking over filming duties as the leader turned around and aimed his rifle at Makoto and Kyoko.
Makoto closed his eyes, attempting to concentrate on his fiancee's question.
"Five!" the leader yelled.
"What about an orchid?" Makoto suggested. "I know they're not easy to find-"
"Four!" the leader continued.
"No, that's perfect!" Kyoko said happily.
"Thr-"
The leader suddenly lurched forward in pain, cutting off his own count. Some confused chatter began to rise among the crowd of his followers.
Kyoko eyed this sight with a tight, satisfied smile, then returned her attention to Makoto. "The purple ones are gorgeous," she noted with quiet enthusiasm. "And we only need a small number of them."
Makoto wasn't paying attention to the conversation anymore. A soft whup-whup-whup noise began to escalate in volume, filling the air around the parking lot. About half of the gang looked skyward, trying to identify the source of the noise, while others were looking at their boss-
-as he threw his head backwards, exposing the pair of scissors embedded in his jugular.
The blond thug dropped the cell phone and cried out, "What the unholy fuck?!"
The painted face of the leader gurgled a bit before his body fell backwards, hitting the ground with the sound of wet meat striking a slab.
The rhythmic thumping in the air grew progressively louder.
"Ehehehehehehehehe!" cackled a feminine voice above them. Makoto watched as the body of his friend Fukawa somersaulted over him, evidently having launched herself from the roof behind them. She hit the ground in a crouch, then rose to reveal the pairs of genoscissors in her hands and her long, dangling tongue.
"Shit NO!" yelled one of the thugs.
"Thank God," Makoto mumbled, relieved.
The gang was still out of sorts, with some of them pointing their guns towards the sky and stumbling around as they searched for the source of the loud thumping while others were focused on the serial killer before them. The blond man backed away from the scissors-wielding lunatic before him and pulled out his pistol, pointing it at the woman. "Everybody aim at that psycho bitch!" he ordered the others.
Before the group could comply, a black helicopter flew over the adjoining mid-sized building. The group of men looked up in awe and horror.
Byakuya Togami's authoritative voice called out over a megaphone. "This helicopter is armed with a minigun and an M197 cannon. Your entire force is currently within our sights. Drop your weapons and get your on your knees. I give you my word as a Togami that no one who complies will be harmed. I also give my word that anyone who disobeys will be destroyed."
And with that, the entire gang obeyed. The sound of guns clattered to the pavement echoed through the lot.
"Ooohhh, I love it when he's bossy, hehehe!" Genocider cooed.
The helicopter flew lower, and ropes unfurled from it so as to drop some troops into the makeshift arena. As the security forces came in, Makoto Naegi let out a lengthy sigh.
"I'll have to talk to them about their response time," Kyoko said to no one in particular, frowning. "They should've been here four seconds sooner. Sloppy."
One of the security troops came over to the bound couple and stepped behind them. He worked quickly slice through their bonds with his combat knife. "Sorry for the delay," the man in black offered.
Kyoko's face turned stern as she whirled around to face the soldier, but Makoto cut her off. "No worries!" he told the security officer happily. "The only thing that matters is that you made it in time. We both really appreciate it. We'll be sure to thank everyone on the team."
He shot a warm smile over at Kyoko, who reluctantly added, "I… also thank you." The soldier saluted her and then scurried off.
Moments later, the helicopter had landed in the center of the lot. Most of the troops were securing the so-called Sons of Enoshima. Byakuya Togami climbed out of the helicopter and headed for Naegi and Kirigiri, accompanied by one of the soldiers.
"Oh Master Sweet Cheeeeeeks," a sing-song voice called out. Togami turned to right to see Genocider holding the now-severed head of the gang leader aloft. "Want some head? Hehehehehehe!" she cackled, clearly entertaining herself.
Byakuya looked utterly disgusted. Turning to the soldier beside him, he ordered "Get someone to gas her before I vomit." The man with him just nodded and ran off.
"Awww, come on!" Genocider cried out plaintively. She held the severed head in her outstretched arm and declared, "Lookit lookit, I'm Hamlet! That's the kind of classy shit you dig, right?!"
Byakuya ignored her as he strode over to Naegi and Kirgiri. "Are you both well?" he asked.
"Well enough," Kyoko responded curtly.
"Isn't Fukawa-san going to freak when she learns she killed somebody?" Makoto asked with concern.
"She'll be fine once she knows I ordered her to do so," Byakuya remarked coolly.
Kyoko folded her arms. "You were slow," she said simply.
Makoto rolled his eyes and shook his head. "You're too harsh," he told her with a soft laugh, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"No, she's entirely correct," Byakuya fired back. "I've already made the team aware that their performance today was unacceptable."
Kyoko was looking Makoto in the eyes and only half-listening. "I suppose… unacceptable might be a bit much," she accepted as the corners of her mouth curled upwards.
Byakuya shook his head. "You're growing soft, Kirigiri," he said — thought his tone was far less harsh than his words. "Get yourselves checked out by medical, won't you?" He turned on his heel and walked off without another word.
Once more alone with Kyoko, Makoto grinned at her. "Thanks for keeping me grounded during all of that," he said sincerely.
Her tiny, subtle smile was still there when she told him, "It wasn't just a distraction, you know. We really do need to make these decisions."
"I know," he said happily. "Um, I was thinking about our cake, actually, and… do you like Red Velvet?"
"More than I should," she said, her smile growing a little.
"Awesome!" he said excitedly. His eyes glinted with playful intent when he added, "Next question, then: Are you going to admit it?"
"Admit what?" Kyoko countered with faux ignorance.
"That my special engagement gift was a great idea, of course," he said, grinning. He put his hands around Kyoko's hips, sliding them just above the back of her skirt.
She rested her hands on his shoulders and leaned her head down slightly to look him in the eyes. "I never thought having an emergency transponder in my engagement ring was bad, you understand," she said. "Clever, certainly. Unconventional? Definitely."
He giggled a little. "Come on, you thought it was weird," he teased her as his face leaned closer to hers.
"And smart," she said softly, leaning her nose against his.
"And weird," he pressed, staring deep into her eyes.
Unable to help it any longer, Kyoko Kirigiri's mouth broke into a grin. "Yes," she acknowledged. "It was very weird."
With that admission, she finally leaned in and pressed her mouth against his. Makoto gently pulled her closer to him as he took the kiss in. He kissed her softly at first, but after what they had just been through, that wasn't what she wanted. Kyoko moved her hands around his upper back, balled them into fists, and pulled him hard against him, causing him to grunt low in his throat. His arms wrapped around her tightly in response and they pressed together so hard that she thought they might begin to grind into one another.
"Fucking hell!" shouted the dyed-blond thug. From six meters away and on his knees with his hands cuffed behind his back, he made a gagging sound of disgust as he watched Naegi and Kirigiri. "Get a fucking room, you nasty cunts!" he added.
Without stopping the kiss or even opening her eyes, Kyoko pulled her left arm away from Makoto and quietly raised her middle finger in the direction of the voice.