Episode 21: Combining Forces

"Aw man! There's just no end to this!" Spin yelps as he and the remaining occupants in the base, save Morris and Derek, crowd around the large monitor in the Command Room. A large, stick-figure like mess of machines was all that remained of the mayor/prisoner/would-be Agent. And it seems that, the more he continues to wander around the city, the bigger he became thanks to the cars being torn and sucked into its exterior.

"This' bad!" Missy moans, "If we don't do something to stop him, the entire city'll be reduced to a barren wasteland!"

"That's if the people don't mistake him as a member of EBA and reject our aide," Chieftain grumbles, "After all, why would anyone want to call on an organization that caused something like this?"

"We gotta do something!" Starr complains, "If nothing else, we should just run out there and stop J-Yama without having to wait for someone to call on us!"

"But Morris and Derek aren't back yet!" Missy mutters, "And we can't get a lock on them to rendezvous!"

"Then we'll just have to look for them the old school way!" J protests as he heads out of the room. Everyone watches as Kahn sighs and stares at the monitor some more.

"To think he could outsmart us like this," he mutters, "Trick us into siding with him despite the protests of those who saw more to his misdeeds than mere insanity."

"It is not your fault, Commander," Kai said, "That rock J-Yama carries has managed to befuddle both our organizations, confusing us and toying with our method of trust. Not even the Ouendan would've brought themselves to do more than just claim what they believe to be true."

"But what is true is the thoughts floating around his head," Hajime mutters, "After what happened two years ago when we were called to help his opponent win the election, while hoping to stall him until the police caught on and arrested him just before it ended. Even if he knew the laws and broke them out of greed, the aftermath of his arrest left a taste in his mouth so bad, he would do close to anything to wash it out."

"Well, that's a pretty big mouthwash he's used to wash that taste out," Spin mutters as they continue to watch the disaster on the monitor.

"I still feel bad about leaving our kids at home without much of a warning," mutters a woman as she walks down the sidewalk. She had brown, wavy hair, and wore a white sweater over a t-shirt, light-pink, knee-high shorts, and gray shoes. Next to her walked a man a few inches taller than her. He had black, short hair, and wore glasses, almost matching Hajime's, a brown coat over a black vest and white shirt, brown pants, and black shoes.

"This is our time off, dear," he said, "Time away from kids and other common activities. You should loosen up a bit and enjoy the vacation while you can."

The woman sighs, "Yeah, I suppose you're..."

They were cut off by the ground shaking and people running around them, screaming hysterically. Looking to the source of the flooding escapees, they see a giant stick figure made of various machines stomping towards them, a maniacal laughter filling the air.

"WAI! Look! There's danger coming this way!" the woman laughs excitedly.

"You know what that means, dear!" the man asks as the two exchange looks of excitement.

"You have no idea how much I wanted to do this!" the woman laughs some more, "And since our son or his friends aren't here, we won't have to worry about them feeling left out!"

"Well, what're we waiting for! Let's do it!" the man yells before the two cuffed their hands and scream at the top of their lungs.

HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAALLLLLLP!

"I'm gonna shoot a guess that that dumbstruck, annoyed look on your face means you know those two?" Spin asks as he stares at the said dumbstruck, annoyed look on Hajime's face after catching a glimpse of the couple's screaming mug on the monitor.

"Your parents are very...helpful," Kai mutters with a sweatdrop sliding down the left side of his otherwise expressionless face. Hajime groans and drops his head and shoulders.

"Define helpful!" he complains.

"Well, they're the only chance we have of wiping the dirt off both our good names," Kahn sighs, "A lucky thing J has already left. It would most likely cut the time we need to prepare for our next mission."

"But that's if he can find Morris and Derek before things get worse," Foxx said, "And with those electromagnets surrounding J-Yama's body, the entire radar's mucked up, giving us little clue as to where the disaster is or if everything's taken care of."

"You're forgettin'!" Spin pipes up, "J doesn't hafta use radars to find what he needs to get started! He's got somethin' else to help him!"

Kahn remains silent before sighing, "Then let's hope he can put that 'something' to good use. It's the only thing that's going to save us from this disaster now."

J-Yama continues to laugh maniacally as he trudges through the streets, watching as people ran in fear for their lives.

"Yes! Fear! Fear your new God!" he yells, "Once you realize no one can help you, you will soon bow down before me and treat me with the respect I deserve!"

Just as he had finished his demands, the car speakers surrounding him came to life, busting out a song that blew a hole where he hung. The other speakers surrounding the exterior also sprang to life, but didn't cause as much damage to the mechanical figure as what occurred inside. J-Yama grits his teeth as he looks around to figure out what was going on.

Meanwhile, the couple that screamed for help beamed with excitement as a black convertible drives through the area seconds before three figures jumped out and landed on the sidewalk adjacent to where they were. Morris and Derek stood on either side of J as he pulls out his license and presents it to the two.

"Help has finally arrived!" he calls out.

"And not a moment too soon, I might add," Morris chuckles.

"Yeah, so let's get down and boogie!" Derek calls out.

The three began to dance and sing to the beat of 3 Doors Down's "Kryptonite" as the couple began running from J-Yama letting the Agent's energy flow into them and give them fuel to contemplate a strategy.

I took a walk around the world to ease my troubled mind
I left my body laying somewhere In the sands of time
I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon
I feel there is nothing I can do
Yeah

The couples ran down the path as J-Yama tramples after them, seeing them as a thorn on his side. They soon ducked into an ally, causing the crazed Agent to turn and follow. The collision with both corners of the building shaved several machines off his legs, causing the rest of the body to crumble to the floor in a massive heap on the other side of the ally way.

I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon
After all I knew it had to be something to do with you
I really don't mind what happens now and then
As long as you'll be my friend at the end

J-Yama struggles to untangle himself from the mess of wires that had now bound him to the pile, yelling out Japanese profanities. The couple watched a few seconds before another thunderous shake grabs their attention. Behind them is the giant blue rat and his little brother, Daai-Rat, stampeding towards them in a rage.

"I'm gonna find those blasted Ouendan and make them pay for humiliating me three times in a row!" the giant rat snarls.

"You said it, Nii-chan!" shouts Daai-Rat, "And then we're gonna find Nyaragon and challenge him to a monster brawl to prove just how tough you are!"

The Agents heard the couples cry in shock and looked up to find the head of the Giant Rat stomping through the streets on the other side of the ally. The buildings obscured any chance of them getting to the couples to continue their performance, leaving the Agents momentarily hung-up as they ran back to the convertible to drive around the city.

The couples, meanwhile, scramble from the path of the rampaging Rat, panicked and worried about their chances of escape. The Agents were taking too long catching up to them and they fret being trampled if nothing was done to give them more encouragement. As the chase wore on, it was almost certain that this mission would be a complete failure, until...

OSU!

The instant the word hits their ears, an ambiguous, burning feeling fills their hearts as they come to a stop and turned to face the two monster rats. The Agents' convertible pulls up to the scene in time to see the couples tear apart the machines that was once J-Yama's transformed body. They blink in confusion before J senses confidence and looks towards the other side of the street to see Saito, Ryuta, and Suzuki taking up most of the sidewalk, pulling off their moderately skilled Ouendan moves to the next verse of the song.

If I go crazy then will you still call me Superman
If I'm alive and well, will you be there holding my hand
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite

The couple managed to construct a crude, sumo-shaped war machine out of the parts taken from the crumpled pile in the ally. Using the front seat of a car as their control panel, the man turned the ignition, causing the machine to jostle before stumbling to its feet and turn its attention to the giant rat, who stares at them in intimidation.

"RAAAAAH!" he roars, "Those Ouendan are gonna pay for this when I find them!" he tries to attack the machine only to have his fist caught by a crane used as the arm. The arm then twists and sends the giant rat spinning into the air before crashing into some trees in a nearby park, sending several of them tumbling to the grassy dirt.

You called me strong, you called me weak, but still your secrets I will keep
You took for granted all the times I never let you down
You stumbled in and bumped your head, if not for me then you would be dead
I picked you up and put you back on solid ground

J-Yama snarls in overbearing rage as he springs to his feet, the wires wrapped around him stretching as he increases his grip on the glowing rock in his hand.

"I will not be deprived of my ambitions!" he yells, "I will destroy anyone who opposes me! ANYONE!"

His entire body glows as what little parts were left over from the pile crowd around him, bring him back to his monstrous appearance. Though three feet smaller than before, it was still a menace to be reckoned with. Both Agents and Ouendan watch the insane man charge towards the couples still operating the large, human-like machine, with the giant blue rat scrambling to his feet and making the same pursuit.

The Ouendan ran across the street to join their American counterparts.

"Let's put an end to this nightmare!" Ryuta said.

"Yeah!" J agrees as the two cross arms in alignment, "Time to show everyone what true motivation is!"

If I go crazy then will you still call me Superman
If I'm alive and well, will you be there holding my hand
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite

Using the combined force of the Agents' dancing and the Ouendan's cheerleading moves, they continue to fuel the couple's burning desires and fighting spirit. Believing they could handle two monsters at a time, they began driving their own machine around, locking fists with the giant, blue rat and the munchkin-like remains of J-Yama's super monster.

After struggling for a few seconds, the heroic monster threw both fists down, sending the two opposing monsters crashing into each other. J-Yama's messed up contraption spills all over the giant blue rat, causing him to get tangled up in the wires wrapped around him.

"Let go, you stupid piece of junk!" the rat snarls.

"You let go first!" J-Yama complains.

The rat growls in anger before glaring at the couple and their giant fighting machine, "RAAAAAAAAAAAAH! I'M GONNA KILL YOU FOR THIS!" he charges towards the couple, throwing his claws into the air. J-Yama continues to pull at the wires around the rat, trying to free himself from this disaster waiting to happen.

"This is it!" the woman exclaims excitedly.

"Time to end this!" the man yells as he drives the machine towards the tangled up monsters.

If I go crazy then will you still call me Superman
If I'm alive and well, will you be there holding my hand
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite

YEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

If I go crazy then will you still call me Superman
If I'm alive and well, will you be there holding my hand
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite

The heroic monster withdrew its fist and flings it at the rat, slamming square into its snout and sending it, and J-Yama, flying into the air until they vanished into the horizon. The citizens below yelled and cheered while the couples chuckled and rubbed the back of their heads in bashful shyness.

The Agents and Ouendan, meanwhile, stood in the far back of the quickly forming crowd, watching as their combined efforts saved themselves from an early retirement.

Meanwhile, in Japan, two police officers were driving along the early morning streets of Evening City when something crashed into some trees in a nearby park. The two nearly drove their car into a lamppost out of shock as they leapt out and ran to the falling leaves, seeing a pile of machines dangling on a branch. They then heard yelling and screaming and looked up to see J-Yama thrashing about, his body glowing every time he swung the hand holding the meteor piece.

"Hey! Isn't that the guy we arrested two years ago?" the chubby police officer asked.

"Yeah...I think he is..." the tall, skinny officer mumbles, "Last I heard, he was still locked up in the penitentiary for destroying half of the prison cells trying to escape."

J-Yama screams again before glaring at the two police officers, "You will not put me back in that hellhole! As soon as I get out of this mess, you will all bow to me!"

The officers looked at each other befuddled.

"That's it," the chubby officer said, "He's definitely lost his mind."

"Yeah, we should send him to a psyche ward for his problem." The tall officer said.

J-Yama's anger increases, "You will do no such thing!" he brings up the meteor piece as it glows brightly in his grip, "As long as I have this gift that Lady Luck has given to me, you won't even look at me like I was crazy!"

The split second he finished his sentence, a giant, blue blur lands on top of him, crushing him to the floor and making him drop the meteor piece. The two officers stumble back, seeing the giant blue rat tangled up in a gigantic ball of wires, his eyes turned to swirls.

"Mama, I don't wanna go to school today!" he whines dizzily, "I wanna stay home and steal cheese with you!"

J-Yama grunts as he wiggles his upper body out of the blue rat's rump, seeing the meteor piece laying a few feet from him. He grunts, trying to reach for it only to have Daai-Rat fall, rump first, on top of the glowing rock, crushing it to tiny pebbles, the glow vanishing after a few seconds. The former Agent screams in more agony as the human-size rat stumbles to his feet, swaying around in a daze.

"Look, Nii-chan!" he slurs, seeing small blocks of cheese circling his head, "We just landed in a cheese factory!" he began running around in circles, trying to chase the cheese while J-Yama drops his head and cries in agony.

The two cops just stood in their places, completely dumbfounded by the entire scene.

"What just happened, Joe?" the chubby cop asked the tall cop.

"I dunno, Dan," replied the tall cop, "But we'd better do our job if we don't want to get fired!" he runs ahead of Dan, who continues to stand in his place and look around him, focusing on the bawling J-Yama as Joe threw the cuffs on him, then Daai-Rat, who's still running around in circles trying to catch the swirling blocks of cheese, and finally the giant blue rat.

"I think we're going to need bigger cuffs for that guy..." Dan mutters nervously.

"You're letting them go!" Chieftain nearly exclaims late that afternoon in the command room of EBA Central, "I thought you were going to shut them down for getting in our way!"

"You saw what they did, Agent Chieftain," Kahn said as he watches the combined effort of Ouendan and EBA encourage Hajime's parents to fight off J-Yama and the rat brothers, "Granted what the Ouendan do is visually cruel and unacceptable. But after what they displayed earlier when they saved us from an early retirement, I began to understand why Japan didn't stop calling for their aide."

Chieftain muffles a growl as he crosses his arms and looks away, "I still don't trust them! There's no telling what they could be doing that would get us into trouble!"

Kahn sighs and turns his head to Chieftain, "I understand they shattered your pride thrice before. But you shouldn't let those humiliations keep you from dishonoring their trust and responsibilities. There will be a time where even you will have to rely on them to get you out of a jam; and I'm worried they might go to great lengths to do so."

Chieftain snorts and sharply turns to the door, "I don't need some amateurs saving me from anything that could trip up my steps! And I DEFINITELY do NOT need a gang of Japanese school boys going out of their way to muck up my duties!" He then storms out of the door, leaving Kahn to sigh again and rest his elbows on his desk, placing his lips upon it.

"You say that now..." he mutters, "But when that time comes, will you finally understand just how serious they are in connecting the puzzle of our organizations?"

"So what's gonna happen now?" Spin asks as he and J wandered down Manhattan the next morning. The two were wearing their usual outfits; Spin his unbuttoned Ouendan outfit while J wore his leather jacket, jeans and turtleneck sweater, "I doubt the Commander would still believe the Ouendan would be as serious about using their methods to lift people's spirits as EBA is."

"He may not be quick to jump on the whole spirit thing as we are," J said, "But at least now he won't think all organizations have to work like EBA, and allow us to learn whatever methods we find interesting." He places his hands in his pocket and looks at the moving pavement, "I'm worried about that Doumeki guy, though. When the Commander released him, he just stormed out of Central without looking back."

"Well, wouldn't you do the same if you was snatched off the streets and spent nearly two days bein' interrogated by someone who think you was lyin'?" Spin rhetorically asked, "I'd pretty much up and leave myself if I was in his elevated sandals. And since he got the worst of the outcome, I have a feelin' he'd be as hard to gain forgiveness from as Chieftain."

"I guess J-Yama really got what he wanted for the most part," J mutters in frustration, "To send us at each others throats no matter how many of us have come to trust one another."

"It ain't entirely our fault, J," Spin retorts, "J-Yama had the Commander's complete trust, and was usin' him to barricade us from gettin' to Kai. I'm sure, if anythin', he won't try and hold us to that incident."

"Still," J sighs, "We should've done something to stop this from getting worse. And now that the damage's been done, I'm not sure if he'll ever be able to understand why we couldn't do anything to save him."

Spin sighs and rubs his chin in thought before snapping his fingers, "I got it! K-san's plannin' to build a dojo deep in the Adirondack Mountains. Maybe if we help him set up, he won't look at us like the worst enemies on the planet!"

"Where?" J asked, "Adirondack Mountain is a huge landscape. Even with our range of senses, it could take us days to find him."

"Already taken care of, J!" Spin laughs, "Ryu and the others wanted to hook up with us for a little bit of hang time. I'm sure they won't mind bein' our human radar in seekin' K-san out and takin' us to him!"

J looks towards Spin, nervous still, but then loosens up in more thought, "Well...if you think it'll help... So, where're we meetin' them?"

"I told 'em they could lounge in my crib 'til we get there."

J immediately stops and gave Spin a glare so hysterical, he didn't need to take his shades off to show it.

"You what?" he exclaimed, "That's like telling them to go jump in a river of lava!"

"Take a breather, J!" Spin yelps, throwing his hands up in defense, "I already told them how bad my apartment is!" He then scratches the back of his head, "Though...maybe I should tell them to watch out for Bertha. She don't like strangers messin' with her fridge."

"Bertha...?" J gulps.

"You...don't wanna know. She does make a great rattrap, though I'd have to put up with the rodents screaming for mer...uh J? Y' still with me?"

At this point, the once calm and collected BA-2 Agent had gone completely pale and was drenched in his own sweat.

"I am NEVER taking my dogs near your apartment again..." he mutters in fright.

"Room 666?" asked a dull-looking, old woman wearing white apron over a flower dress, "Are you friends of that kid with the large headphones."

"Yes, we are," Ryuta said as he, Hajime, Saito and Suzuki stood at the entrance of the apartment complex. Ryuta had his arms crossed with the other three kept their fists behind their back, "He said we can stay in his apartment until he and another friend arrives."

"Right," the woman said flatly as she turns around, "Excuse me while I get the Mystical Spear of Wetness."

The four look at each other in confusion as the woman comes back a second later and sticks a wet mop in Ryuta's hands. The Ouendan leader stares at it with a dumbfounded frown.

"It's a mop..." he said just as flatly.

"Fine, ruin the dramatic moment," the woman said, "But unless you want to be eaten by that thing in the fridge, I suggest you take it."

"Thing in fridge...?" Suzuki mutters nervously.

"Trust me, its best that you don't know." The woman slams the door to her apartment, leaving the four Ouendan staring at it in dumbstruck silence.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea," Suzuki mutters after a while. Ryuta snorts and swings the head of the mop onto his shoulder, sending water flying everywhere.

"Come on, let's go!" he said, walking down the hall. The rest look towards each other, wearily, before following after their superior compatriot.

After going up six flights of stairs and walking down a half block hallway, the four Ouendan finally reach Room 666. They stood in front of the door for a very long while, unsure of what could be lurking inside the apartment.

"I still think we should've waited outside," Suzuki stutters, scrunching his head between his shoulders while holding his fingers in his mouth.

"Oh, c'mon!" Ryuta spat, grabbing the doorknob, "Whatever's inside that apartment couldn't be any worse than the stuff we've been called to fight against."

He turns the knob and pushes the door open, sending it colliding into a stack of CDs and knocking them over. Their first glance into the pigsty of Spin's apartment was met with saucer eyes and dropped shoulders.

"What'd he do! Rent out a junkyard!" Hajime nearly yelps.

"He wasn't kidding about how messy his apartment is," Suzuki muttered.

The quad wad into the room, making sure not to step on the CDs piling the floor. Halfway into the room, Suzuki suddenly screams in fright. Hajime and Ryuta turn to find him clinging to an equally terrified Saito's arms, hugging him to the point of his face turning blue from the lack of air.

"Something tried to attack me!" he wails. The two lead cheerleaders stare at him, then the pile he jumped out of. Hajime dug his hand into the pile and pulls out a mutilated rat.

"Relax," he groans in frustration, "It's just a rat...what's left of it."

"That explains the rank smell," Ryuta grumbled, stabbing the back end of the mop onto another small pile of CDs, "His Uncle must have him on a 24hr errand run if he can't find time to clean this place up."

"Not to mention the time he spends over at Central," Hajime said as he began stacking CDs into one corner of the room. Ryuta eventually helped out, stacking more CDs in another area of the room.

An hour into the cleaning process the two heard their cohorts screaming in fright and turn to see them scramble behind Hajime.

"There's a monster in the fridge!" Suzuki cries as both he and Saito nearly squeeze the life out of the rookie Ouendan, "Big, ugly sludge thing with a million tentacles and fangs made of chopsticks!"

Ryuta gave the two a stupefied look before barging over to the fridge adjacent to the mess they walked into and throwing the door open. He stares into the fridge a second before dropping his head in annoyance.

"Soku ikuji nonai..." he growled before jabbing his hand into the fridge and turning to face the rest of the Ouendan, holding out a white, Chinese take-out box, "You're afraid of a seven month old box of sha che fen!" The two cohorts increase their hold on Hajime, yelling in fright over the sight of the oozing, noodle hanging box.

"It tried to eat us!" Suzuki cries, "Kill it with the Mystical Spear of Wetness!"

"Oh, for crying out loud!" Ryuta holds the box away from him, his glare increasing, "A squad that faces the might of a meteor, and you're afraid of cleaning out a fridge that hasn't been touched for nearly nine months!"

"And I can see why..." Hajime mutters, starting to show the exact, terrified face as the squad's two followers.

"What is your...!" Ryuta was about to complain when he heard something splatter on the floor. He looks back towards the box to find a slimy, hideous creature with peas for eyes and sha che fen for tentacles wavering behind him, its chopstick fangs dripping unsanitary soy sauce all over the floor.

It stares at Ryuta before bellowing in an inhumane voice.

FOOOOOOOD!

Ryuta screams in hysteria as he drops the box and scrambles towards his subordinates, turning to see the monster hop towards them. He grabs the mop and thrusts it in front of him like a spear, but no water came out.

"It's dry!" Hajime panics.

"The Mystical Spear of Wetness has lost its power!" Suzuki cries as he and Saito hug each other out of fright.

"Now's not the time to panic!" Ryuta exclaims, chucking the mop to one side, "We've got one attack up our sleeves, and the only way to drive this thing back is to not show it your fears!"

The three followers stare to Ryuta before separating and taking formation; Hajime standing next to him while Saito and Suzuki stood behind them. They stare at the foul looking leftover in unnerving determination before thrusting their fists out and shouting "osu" as loud as they could.

The monster froze in place, blinking a few seconds before shrieking at a volume that shattered the windows of the apartment.

FOOOOOOOOOOOD!

The four lean back in fright over the failure of their shout.

"Of course...it'd help if it had ears, a heart and a brain," Hajime mutters shakily.

Suzuki shoots a horrified glance to Ryuta, "Ippongi-sama!" Ryuta straightens, clears his throat and sticks his fists behind his back, holding his head up high as he closes his eyes.

"Well, in situations like this, I believe now would be the perfect time to PANIC!" he screams as he scrambles away from the leering slop before them. The three whip their glances from him to the monster before following his lead and scrambling off after him.

End Notes:

1. "Soku ikuji nonai" means "bunch of spineless/cowards".