Chapter 21: First Motive

7:57 A.M Day Three

First Floor

Nurse's Office

"Makoto you can't go alone! It's a trap and you know it." Nanami gritted her teeth, as she grabbed at the bottom of Naegi's hoodie.

"As your upperclassman and the representative of Class 77-B, I can't allow you do this alone. You know it's most likely a suicide mission." her voice trembled as she stared at the boy's back.

Naegi bowed his head low. "Chiaki I know how bad it all seems, but there so many of our precious people who're counting on us. We can't let them be turned to Despair."

"Which is exactly why I can't let you walk into that alone. Don't you understand? It's just the two of us now. We should save all our friends together." The girl said as her brow furrowed in frustration.

Naegi let himself relax a moment, before he turned, and pulled the girl into a tight hug. "Heh you know you're like a big sister to me right? You've looked out for me since I've been here. We will save everyone. We're gonna rescue Hajime too, but there's somewhere else you have to be. If I can't reach them in time you have to use Ryota's last video. It might be the only thing that can break the spell."

The Gamer bit her lower lip. "Naegi we don't get another life if we get a game over. So you better get a highscore!" she exclaimed as she curled her arms around the boy.

Naegi suddenly sat up out of bed, before wincing as a result.

He glanced around the empty room. 'What in the world was that? It was a dream, but it felt so real.'

A soft sigh escaped him as he rubbed at his forehead a moment, before eying the clock. 'Guess everyone must be in the A.V Room. I just hope they're alright.' he frowned slightly as he leaned back against the bed.

"Good luck everyone." he murmured to no one in particular. He watched the second hand on the clock, as it ticked ever closer to the next minute.

8:00 A.M Day Three

First Floor

A.V Room

The A.V. room looked much as it had when the students had examined it a a couple of days prior, however there was a distinct difference. Every computer screen and movie player were turned on. There was a slightly ominous feel by the way everything was turned on and awaiting all of them. It didn't take long for the large group to notice their surprise, as they shuffled into the room. There was a large cardboard box that was settled on the end of the desk, nearest the door.

Suddenly the video screen on the far wall flickered on.

"OH HO so punctual! I'm so proud of you all. As a way of giving back to you kids, I'm gonna give you all a little something from home. Because I have such a beary big heart. There's one for all of you, so knock yourselves out!" he laughed, before the feed and audio suddenly was cut.

All of the students began to examine the box, one by one. Inside they saw numerous CDs laid messily on top of each other. Each disc had one of their names on it.

"Well at least he actually labeled them." Kaito mused quietly, before pulling out his own CD.

"I-I'm not so sure I want to see what's on this." Fujisaki frowned as she stared wordlessly down at the copy in her hand.

"Eh what the hell. I say we just get it over with." Akane mused as she fished out her copy, before collapsing into a nearby computer chair.

A look of curiosity flitted to Ryoma's face as he picked up his own copy, before wordlessly making his way towards one of the many computers.

"Certainly nothing good can come from openly defying our captor. I suggest we get this over with." Kyoko mused as she picked up her CD.

Following her comments most of the student body began to follow suit. Each of them collecting their copy, before finding a respective seat. Few of them knew what to expect, considering it was from Monokuma of all places.

Shuichi took a small breath as he was about to insert his CD. He felt a hand seize his. The Ultimate Detective slowly glanced to the seat next to him. "Kaede?" he questioned as he regarded the Pianist.

"Maybe you shouldn't Shuichi. I don't think anything good will come from watching it." she murmured quietly as she bowed her head.

Saihara nodded. "You're probably right, but Kaede if I'm ever going to be able to become a real detective I have to face the truth head on. No matter how ugly it may be."

The Pianist's eyes widened slightly. "Hard to believe this is the same boy who two days ago couldn't even look me in the eyes. I'm here if you need me." she offered as she gently squeezed his hand.

The boy offered her a weak smile. "I know and it makes all the difference." he responded as he picked his headphones up, before inserting the CD.

"Shuichi Saihara, The Ultimate Detective. The son of a famous actor and a screenwriter, who abandoned poor Saihara with his Uncle and Aunt. This was how our boy wonder first became part of a Detective Agency for his Uncle. He was scouted after solving a case even the police couldn't solve. He had a promising future ahead of him, but now it's hard to say what lies ahead." Monokuma chuckled as the screen suddenly showed a ruined office. On the floor lay the motionless forms of his Uncle and Aunt.

"If he wants to learn the truth, discover it after graduation!"

Shuichi felt his arms trembling, before feeling a soft pressure against his hand. He numbly stared up at the Pianist. "Kaede I don't know if I can do this." his voice was shaky.

The blonde tried to offer him a reassuring smile. "Hey none of that talk, you're not alone."

The Detective could verbalize anything further, though he numbly nodded his head.

Kaede's purple eyes trailed across the room from where she sat, and saw Nagito looking at her. He offered her a thin smile, though it didn't quite reach his eyes.

The Ultimate Solider clenched her eyes shut as she refused to look at the screen.

"Poor Mukuro Ikusuba. You a wolf among all the sheep, but your despair is even worse. If anyone learns your secret you will become the sheep, and they will turn on you in a heartbeat. No matter how this ends, despair is your only reward." Monokuma's voice chuckled, before the video went silent.

Mukuro wordlessly removed the disc from the computer as she glanced around momentarily, before she raked her fingernail across the disc ruining it, before setting it back on the desk.

Hajime had noticed some of the others reactions. Despite that it still hadn't prepared him for what lay ahead. He sat down and pulled his headphones on, before inserting the disc.

One moment the video was rather motivational and cheerful as it displayed not only his parents, but also his former classmates in middle school. They all gave motivational speeches about how proud they were that he'd finally achieved his dreaming of making it into Hope's Peak. Yet the following video suddenly cut to something that could only be described as something straight out of a horror movie.

His former homeroom was demolished completely as everything was either torn apart, scattered into pieces, or even burn marks on various items and furniture. Desks which were once orderly and neatly aligned into perfect rows now were scattered and broken onto the equally demolished floor. Yet what was more terrifying and disturbing than all of that was the mass of limp bodies piled onto one another in the center of the room. Most of his old friends and former classmates had ghastly pale skin and their eyes were utterly lifeless.

"Hajime Hinata, The Reserve Course student who always wanted to be special was finally accepted into his dream school, Hope's Peak Academy." Monokuma's haunting voice said over the terrifying footage.

"His family and his former classmates all supported this dutiful and determined young boy…. But it would appear that something bad has happened to his friends and family. He may never know the truth that." Just as it would appear that Monokuma was about to explain, the video cut to a picture that read in a stylized writing, "Graduation is all that stands between you and the truth!"

Hajime clutched at his chest as he felt his heart beating rapidly against his chest. 'Can this all really be true? Are they all really gone? Am I actually just a reserve student? Someone with no real talent?'

Try as he might, he couldn't find his voice. He wanted nothing more than to deny this video was real. However after everything that has happened to him since he woke up in Hope's Peak, there was a small sliver of his mind that believed that that video was very much the truth. Shuddering in fear and frustration, Hajime tried to take deep breaths to calm himself down, but his body refused to settle down.

"Damn it! What the hell is going on!?" He yelled out finally finding his voice as his mind tried desperately to offer some reasonable explanation. Yet his cry was met by other yells of shock, anger, and horror as his classmates one by one started to watch their own videos.

"Hajime?" A concerned voice suddenly said from behind him. The boy's green gaze settled on Kirigiri, before he found his voice again. "Y-Yeah?" his voice was more strained than he'd expected.

"You need to be strong. This is all a part of the game I suspect." she offered quietly as her gaze flickered between the rest of the group.

'I know she's right, but it still doesn't change this awful feeling in my chest.' Hajime thought as he tried to calm himself down as his gaze flickered throughout the room.

One by one each of the other students were in the process of watching their own videos. Their faces varied from disbelief, anger, frustration, and pure fear as they couldn't even begin to describe what they'd just seen. Most of them looked sick and some of them even ran over to nearby trash cans before emptying their stomachs. There were a few however who had kept a calm demeanor as they tried to rationalize what they'd seen. Yet without a doubt the one constant feeling in the room was utter despair.

Kaede felt her hand trembling a bit, as she snuck a glance over at where Nagito sat. She bit the inside of cheek a moment, before closing her eyes as she wordlessly rested her CD on the desk in front of her. The initial reactions around her, only further confirmed Nagito's comments. No good could come from watching these videos.

"What the fuck?" Mondo said in disbelief as he dropped his headphones, causing them to clatter to the floor.

"This is some sort of fucked up joke. I'm not buying the goddamn punch line you fucking cum stain!" Miu scowled as she pulled her CD out, before hurling it against the far wall, causing it to shatter.

Asahina stared in disbelief as her video continued to play. Her body started to shudder violently at the sudden sight of her father laying motionless on the floor and along with her brother Yuta.

Monokuma's voice continued to play through her headphones as she felt her heart hammering against her chest. "Poor little Asahina. This role model who was on the verge of becoming an Olympic Swimmer, now has a very uncertain future. Even if she manages to escape Hope's Peak, the question remains if there's anything or anyone left waiting for her outside these walls."

Suddenly the video flickered to a text once more that read. "Want to know the truth? Find out after graduation!"

"No way. No fucking way. NO FUCKING WAY THIS IS REAL!" Fuyuhiko screamed in rage as he slammed his fist into the computer screen, that played his own video and nearly cracking it in the process. "I'll fucking kill whoever made these god damn videos, I am not laughing at this sick fucking joke."

Peko's red eyes settled on Fuyuhiko, before silently appraising each of the other students around them.

"Yeah, no way this is real. Haha, no freaking way." Leon muttered reassuringly to himself yet his face was starting to sweat and his expression started to become grim as he tilted his gaze to regard Ibuki who sat a few rows away, her entire body close to convulsing as murmurs of terror escaped her lips. "Ibuki wants to wake up now. Please let Ibuki wake up now." she shivered.

"GYAAAAH! This isn't real man! It just can't be!" Kazuichi screamed out loud as he seemed to be on the verge of tears, as he finished his own video.

"M-Mama" Hanamura stammered pitifully. He clutched as he pressed his hands against the computer screen, as a look of horror crossed his face.

Maizono felt herself shaking as she inserted her CD. She'd seen Aoi's and Junko's reactions, neither of which had done much to calm her nerves. She slowly pulled her headphones over her ears as the video began to play.

"Teen Idol Sayaka Maizono seen here in her element, singing like an angel was the toast of her generation!" The video suddenly abruptly switched, as slowly the image of her former group could be seen laying motionless on the ground, as Monokuma's voice continued to narrate.

"Sadly for reasons still unclear her chart-topping girl band dissolved right as they hit their stride. These velvety-voiced beauties neither basked in the limelight, nor so much as warbled a note in the shower, ever again."

Sayaka felt her entire body shaking as her face paled, as she clutched at her head with both of her hands.

"Meaning of course, that even if she breaks free of Hope's Peak, poor Maizono is essentially all dressed up with no place to go. Here's a puzzler for you, why on earth would this phenomenally successful group disband?"

Suddenly a text popped up on the screen below Monokuma's face. "Want the answer? Find out after Graduation!"

"N-No! I can't do this. I-I have to get out of here before it's too late!" Sayaka cried as she slowly curled her arms around her body, before she suddenly stood up and bolted towards the door.

"Sayaka hold on!" Aoi cried as she watched the blue haired beauty wrench the door open, before darting out into the hall. She began to stand up only to feel a hand on her shoulder. Her blue eyes widened slightly, as she saw Junko standing there. "Take a deep breath and relax Hina. You're a lot better at being positive then I am. See if you can't help here. I'll find her."

The Swimmer numbly nodded her head. "You can count on me."

"I know I can." She offered a knowing smile. She playfully flicked the girl's between her eyes, before she followed Maizono out the door.

"Miss Asahina I will do everything I can to help as well. " She heard a voice as she saw Keebo take a seat beside her.

"We both will dear."Oogami offered lowly from a few seats away.

The swimmer offered a soft nod of her head. "Thank you guys."

Ryoma had a resigned expression on his face as he stared at the blank screen. Wordlessly he flipped the screen off, before dropping the headphones back upon the desk.

"I can't t-take it anymore." Toko started to mutter out quietly before violently shaking as she became more distraught by what she saw. "I c-can't take it anymore! Let me out of h-here!"

A calm voice started speak loudly, which snapped everyone briefly out of their anxiety attacks. "I see. So this is what he meant by motive." Kyoko said calmly as she placed a thoughtful finger to her chin. "He wants to fuel our desire to leave so that we're more likely to start killing each other."

"That freaking bastard!" Akane roared out in fury even though she still looked likely sick from what she just saw on her own DVD. "I am going to rip his stuffing out the next time I see him!"

"YOU WILL NOT DO ANYTHING SO STUPID AKANE." Nekomaru's voice boomed slightly causing those around him to flinch from it's volume.

"This is a classic mind game our captor is playing." Celeste said thoughtfully and calmly as her expression was a pure emotionless mask as she hid any of her own possible anxiety.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Hifumi said a bit sickly and in confusion from his spot, near the trash can he'd just vomited into.

"It quite simply darling. We are given a clear path to escape, however it requires us to do something against our typical morals. Thus we all begin to suspect one another of foul play and treachery till our own insecurities and fears leads one of us to act. "

"T-that sounds exactly like w-what's h-happening." Toko said fearfully as she eyed each other fellow classmates with suspicion. "E-Everyone says they'll work together, b-but I see it in y-your faces." she shook slightly as she pushed her chair against the wall to keep her eyes on all of them.

"Ah man! Now we all have to be looking around for the knife that might end up in our own backs." Kazuichi said in a panicked voice. He began shooting glances around the room, as if he was already trying to figure out who might be the death of him.

Korekiyo's gold gaze flickered around the packed room. "It is quite an extraordinary social experiment, that we're being forced to endure. The kind of division that could topple a civilization."

"Jeez outlook not so good." Hiro said with a panicked expression, as he scratched the back of his head frantically. 'Drat could this be part of my predictions? Gah I hope I'm wrong.'

"Don't let such dark thoughts consume you." Ishimaru reprimanded. However his expression showed that to some degree he believed their words. "That's exactly what they want us to do!"

"You can say that all you want man, but maybe you're thinking that once everyone drops their guard, you can just take advantage of it." Leon said as he glared at the Ultimate Moral Compass with suspicion.

"What!?" Taka exclaimed in shock at what Leon was implying before his expression turned angry.

"I'll have you know that as the Ultimate Moral Compass I would never betray my fellow classmates for anything! Even if costs me my life!"

"I believe that is exactly what Monokuma, or whoever's behind this, wants." Sakura said calmly as she stepped in between the two boys, before they came to blows with each other.

"Yeah, you're right. W-we are only d-doing what they want." Chihiro nervously agreed.

Angie sat with her chin propped against her hand. "No need to despair. Yah so long as we remain faithful we have nothing to fear."

Gundham frowned. "Your god does not offer any solace to us in this situation. Save your breath."

The Artist offered him a pointed look, but said nothing further.

Himiko sat at her desk with her face buried in her hands. "I-I just want to go home."

Gonta frowned as he folded his massive arms across his chest. "Gonta thinks we should try to be calm. Gonta no wants anyone to get hurt."

"E-Easier said than done." Mikan said dejectedly with tears brimming in her eyes. "After w-what I- what we all have seen. I don't think my heart can take much more m-more. I-I don't want to die here!" She then started to sob loudly. Thankfully Hajime stood up, before moving to her side, before he began to gently pat the girl's back in an attempt to calm her.

Hiyoko rolled her eyes, before making a gagging sound at the display. "If I wasn't sick already." she huffed.

"Miss Saionji please be more respectful. That is uncalled for." Kirumi lightly chastised as she folded her hands into her lap.

The Dancer huffed slightly as she tilted her head. However she offered no further response.

"I-I don't know if I can go on. All of this is too much, say Kirumi will you be mom?" Kokichi flitted his gaze over to the Maid. Fake tears were stilled welled up in his eyes.

"I will serve in what manner I can, but that is beyond my capabilities." Kirumi offered quietly.

"Well dang you're no fun!" Kokichi's apparent sadness shifted to amusement, as he leaned back in his chair.

"Freaking asshole is enjoying this shit." Owada gritted his teeth as he shot a dark glance at the boy.

Kaede glanced around worriedly a moment, before finding her voice.

"I know it's not easy, but maybe everyone should talk about what they saw. If we can do that, we can get through this without anything happening." she suggested.

"I would be lying to say I wasn't curious about everyone else's videos Miss Kaede. I just don't know if I really want to go first." Hifumi said in his childish tone as he slowly moved away from the trashcan he'd vomited in.

Tsumugi who sat beside the fanzine artist offered the boy a sympathetic smile, before gently patting his back. "I can't say I blame you Yamada. I'm just glad I didn't eat before this." she frowned.

"Look I know it's hard, but if we can just be honest with each other we can shut all of this down." The Ultimate Pianist said as she peered around the room.

"You say that but I couldn't help but notice you didn't even watch your video Kaede. Why should any of us indulge you or anyone else? This is a waste of time." Maki sighed as she stood up and wordlessly walked towards the door.

"Maki come on don't be like that. Shit hold up!" Kaito groaned as he followed after the girl.

Shuichi frowned as he watched pair leave, before he shot a glance over at Kaede. He cleared his throat. "I think Kaede is right, we can't hope to beat this if we let this get the best of us."

"I think they're right. I don't want to believe what I saw was real, but maybe it'll help us all?" Asahina suggested.

"I whole heartedly agree with Miss Akamatsu and Miss Asahina. We can take away our captor's power, by being honest with one another." Keebo suggested.

"Heh can a robot really whole heartedly agree? You don't have a heart or probably a dick for that matter." Kokichi snickered.

Shuichi scowled slightly as he cleared his throat. "You're only making this worse. They're right though we can't topple this house of cards, if we don't trust one another."

Hajime who was still silently comforting Mikan, offered a pained expression as he spoke up. "I get where you're coming from guys, but some of us need time to process what we saw."

"It was most distressing, what I witnessed." Sonia offered soft manner as he kept her hands folded within her lap.

"Indeed even with the Underworld as my ally, I find this development disturbing. I require time for reflection." Gundham mused.

"I for one have no intentions with sharing my life with any of you fools." Togami said as he suddenly stood up, and began to stalk towards the door.

Kirumi offered an audible sigh as she stared at the untouched CD on her desk, before watching Togami slip out into the hallway. "Though I agree cooperation is the wiser course, it would seem that is not possible at the moment."

"If you don't mind, I would also very much like to keep personal life to myself" Celeste offered as she slowly rose from her seat, before heading for the door. "I have other things to attend to Byakuya. I will not be present today. " she offered simply, before the Ultimate Gambler left her fellow classmates to their own devises.

The heavy set Byakuya scowled slightly, as the gambler disappeared from sight. "Your attempts at cooperation were noble, however it would seem that it has fallen apart for the moment."

"Since it seems as if everyone is still shaken up from our own videos, and no one seem to want to talk about them, why don't we all agree to some alone time by ourselves?" Chiaki suggested calmly as she pulled out her handheld videogame before starting to play it. "That way we can talk to each other if we feel up for it later."

One by one each of the students had begun to excuse themselves until only a handful remained.

"Unfortunately it would seem Monokuma got exactly what he wanted with his surprise." Hajime mused as he continued to comfort Mikan. The shy nurse was still sniffling slightly as she pressed her face against the boy's shoulder.

"I-I'll go too. I-It's my job to m-make him feel better." Mikan offered softly. She slowly pried her tear streaked face away from Hajime.

Hajime smiled faintly. "You sure you'll be alright Mimi?" he asked softly.

The purple haired girl numbly nodded her head. "I-I'll be ok. I think I just go back to my room, after I'm done checking on Makoto." she offered quietly to which Hajime, wordlessly nodded in understanding.

"Well then Tenko and I'll go get some breakfast. After all I promised Makoto I'd bring him something this morning." Aoi said as she offered a weak smile, though it didn't quite reach her eyes as she stared at Sakura for a moment.

"Y-You gonna be alright?" She asked as she felt her lip tremble slightly.

The Martial Artist managed a weary smile. "I'll be fine dear. You two should go get something to eat and try to relax."

"Sensei if you need anything, you need not hesitate." Tenko said as she smiled at the larger woman.

"I know dear, but really I'll be fine. You two needn't worry." She forced a smile for their sake.

8:31 A.M Day Three

First Floor

Nurse's Office

Makoto's lids fluttered open as the small video screen on the wall suddenly flickered on as Monokuma appeared there. He immediately tensed at the sight of the dual toned bear.

"W-what do you want?" he snapped at the bear.

"Morning my favorite pin cushion! Wouldn't want to exclude you from the festivities just because you can't hobble down the A.V room. So with that in mind I've prepared your video, specially for you from the comfort of your bed." he snickered as the video flickered to life.

Makoto stared at the screen in utter horror. It had started out rather nice and made him feel at peace to see as his family's faces, but without warning it had transformed into a horror show. Suddenly it showed his family room destroyed entirely and his family nowhere to be seen. He couldn't believe what he was seeing, as he continued to listen to Monokuma's monologue playing in the background.

"Makoto Naegi, accepted into Hope's Peak Academy. And his family, who supported such a lucky and hopeful boy." Monokuma voice mocked almost gleefully as the footage continued to play which made the young boy feel anger rising deep within his stomach.

"But it seems like something might have happened to his family? One has to wonder if there's anything left for him?" As it seemed like the sadistically evil teddy bear was about to continue his thought he question, the video cut to a picture that simply read, "Look for the answer after graduation!"

"Wh-What is this?" Makoto muttered out in horror as his mind tried to process what just happened. It was like he just watched a nightmare. No, more an awful reality that he desperately wished wasn't real. The image of his destroyed home replayed over and over again in his mind.

"How could I think of anything else? I need to get out of here." Naegi started to mutter out quietly, before his expression became one of desperation. "I have to get out, right now! I need to make sure everyone is safe!" he exclaimed, before his head suddenly snapped to the door as it burst open.

There in the doorway stood Sayaka Maizono, tears were streaming down her porcelain cheeks.

"Maizono! What's wrong?" Makoto exclaimed as he saw the teen idol, shaking horribly.

"Why? Why did this happen Naegi? I didn't deserve this. A kid shouldn't have to make this choice!" She sobbed as a haunted expression lingered on her face.

"Sayaka." The Ultimate Luck breathed as he stared at her in shock. "You can talk to me you know? You can tell me anything." he felt the words tumbling out of his mouth.

"I shouldn't have come here. I just wanted to see you, but I have to get out of here." her voice was quivering as she began to take a step back.

Makoto gritted his teeth as promptly threw his legs over the bed, before he weakly staggered towards her. "Please just calm down. I won't let anything happen to you. Just talk to me."

The Ultimate Idol's eyes widened in horror. "N-Naegi what are you doing?! You're in no shape. Just get back in bed please." she said in a pained voice.

"Like hell I'm going to do that. I won't let you suffer alone. " he grounded out as he stumbled forward, before wrapping his arms around her waist.

"N-No! Let go!" Maizono cried as she began to thrash wildly.

"We're in this together Maizono. Please just calm down. I don't like seeing you in pain." The boy breathed sharply.

"S-stop it." Maizono whimpered as her voice cracked.

"We can do this if we work together." Makoto breathed as he gently ran a hand through the idol's long blue hair.

"No one's coming! We're all going to die!" she yelled till her lungs ached.

"I promise I'm not going to let that happen. I won't let anyone hurt you! Whatever it takes, you hear me? I promise you!"

The teen idol felt another sob catch in her throat, as suddenly pressed herself forward. She buried her face into Makoto's chest. Painful cries continued to escape her lips, as tears streamed down her face.

Mukuro wordlessly lingered at the door, before sighing softly to herself. This was only the beginning, things were about to become far more complicated.

8:33 A.M Day Three

First Floor

Hallway

Tenko left the A.V. room alongside Asahina, before entering the eerily lit hallway once more.

"Aoi are you alright? I know that everyone else was pretty shaken up. I can't say I'm not as well." Tenko admitted as she stared at the tanned swimmer in concern.

"I-I don't really know Tenko. That video was pretty convincing. It seemed so real… But it's fake, right? It's gotta be!" she exclaimed, before she lowered her head as she felt a pit forming in her stomach.

"I'd like to believe that to, but it mig-" The girl couldn't even finish the sentence as the swimmer spoke up.

"It might actually be real." Asahina trailed off as she stopped in the middle of the hallway.

"Hina." she said quietly as she gently settled a hand on her shoulder.

"If it's real, then no one is coming for us. We're on our own." Aoi said her voice wilting as she turned to face the girl, with tears forming in her eyes.

The Ultimate Aikido Master, pushed the feeling of despair she felt away. She grasped both of the girl's shoulders, before gently squeezing. "No you're wrong. You have many people here that care about you. We'll stick together until we get a chance to kick some major ass and get out of here!" She exclaimed loudly.

The swimmer's eyes flooded with tears as she sniffed, before numbly nodding her head. "Yeah I'm not gonna give up. My dad would never do that and I won't give up on my friends either." she said gaining a bit more of an edge to her voice, as she forced a weak smile. "T-thank you Tenko. " she murmured softly as she hugged her friend tightly.

"You have nothing to fear Hina. I won't let Sensei or you down. I'll protect you with all my might." The girl said confidently.

Asahina wiped at her eyes as she pulled back. "Yeah you're right. Come on I'm starving and I want to check on Naegi. He's probably hungry too."

*AN*

Guest

Hey glad to see you here! Yeah part of the sad part of Daganronpa is the executions, even if the person does "Deserve it" by the end most of the time you really feel sympathy for them. It's suppose to cut deep and make you feel something otherwise what's the point? :P

13TheAce

Oh Nagito. You never know what he's really up to.

Enjoy thy can of worms ;)

Oh you're going to get the reason why Makoto was so out of it, very soon. Our lovable swimmer may have given him a bit too much.

Gatekeeper JPG

Makoto receives bonus points! As for Kokichi and Nagito I think you'll see that they both have very different intentions in mind. I also wanted to include the reference to Kiyo's murders early on.

Trygve11

Hey no worries man! I really appreciate the review. Glad some of those scenes cracked you up and you won't have to wait much longer to see who bites it ;)

Dinodude8000

Makoto is secretly the Ultimate Herbivore. He is oblivious when it comes to girls.

Invisible Prince

Glad some of those scenes cracked you up. And I completely made up Aoi's dad. I decided I'd start taking liberties with adding more to character's backgrounds. I thought it would be a neat way of establishing that investigation into the serial killers a bit more.

1995hzq

Casting that vote early huh? Well can't blame you hehe.

Wrookie01

Yup surprise! And I really do like the idea of having a hidden motive at some point, so expect that to show up at some time.

heroicdragon584

I just need everyone to coordinate and change their names to some form a dragon :p

dougcupcake

Well I do what Komaeda a character you're constantly trying to decide if you love or hate. Glad you're enjoy the interactions with team Naegi. As for your final question? I really don't know, but I do know that I'm not going to go the way of some Harem situations and overbake it. As ridiculous as harems are I do want the ones here to at least make sense somewhat in character or otherwise what's the point.

BlackDragoon35

Yeah I really wanted Nagito to be more complex this time around. So you're questioning his intent throughout the story. I'm trying develop the ongoing romance subplots without beating you over the head every second. So I'm glad it doesn't feel forced.

Zephyrius29

Yup you nailed it =D

Look I'm not gonna stand on a soapbox and defend every choice. I will say this though looking at Sayaka and Asahina. I see Makoto as treating Maizono as if she's above him, almost unobtainable. I mean we know that even before the events of the first game that he's had a crush on her. Though as he says when they really first talk, that he's surprised she even knows who he is. I just think his obliviousness would be possible because he has created this ideal of Maizono in his head. She's a super star after all, and by comparison Hina is a lot more grounded. The idea of Maizono liking someone like him, it just seems like something he'd write of initially as his over imagination.

Archound

My sort explanation for why Makoto is more oblivious with Maizono and more receptive to Sayaka at the moment is pretty simple. Let's be honest Makoto sort has Maizono on a pedestal, he's had a crush on her for so long, but as he says in the game/anime he feels so inferior to how popular it is. Poor boy doesn't realize she's sending him major signals.

I really got a crack out of the idea of a doped up Makoto imagining threats from a chibi Tenko/Sakura.

Luckenhaft

I really wanted to capture a more complex Komaeda this time around. Is he still up to no good? Sure, but I want people to question his motivations throughout the fic. Also I want him to seem more ambiguous in regards to his alignment. In the previous fic he was much more of straight forward antagonist. I don't want anything with Nagito to be that simple.

I thought you'd appreciate the inner dialogue last chapter haha.

SkylightsBLADE

First of all I just wanted to say thank you for being so objective. Most people when they have a different preference in something, just bash things in an overly critical manner. I'm sorry if some of the pairings aren't to your liking, though I am curious which ones you do enjoy? Anyways I hope you enjoy what's to come!

Hong Cong

There was definitely a lot of foreshadowing in this chapter. What I love to is sometimes it's a deliberate hint and sometimes I do like to insert red herrings for fun.

ronin warriors fanatic

Well as you know in my original fic at first I strayed away from notion of any kind of harem, but after a while I came around to the idea. Essentially that's where I'm at this time around. It's not something that's going to be resolved or forced in a single chapter. I do want there to be a gradual shift over the course of time.

doomqwer

Well I joked before that Naegi may be a good guy and the Ultimate Luck, but he's still a teenage boy. There was quite a lot of foreshadowing last chapter and references that you could infer things from.