Just a warning to any readers you haven't read my previous stuff: this point begins further references to my previous material, though I don't think it's an issue as far as understanding the story goes! If you're confused about a name drop, it'll be answered before the fic is done. Anyway, enjoy the Trial.

The wait was excruciating as the elevator continued to rumble upwards, but after far too long a period, it came to a rough stop. With a groan, the doors to the Courtroom opened once more. This time, the room was not completely dark: various lights blinked and flashed on the walls, no pattern apparent among the colors and blinking. Monokuma and Sonia were already present, sitting at their spots on the other side of the room nearby the door to the Execution Chamber.

The class needed no prompting to file in, reaching their usual spots, still unchanged. Uchida couldn't help but take a look at the new portraits: between Hiiragi and Shimao's portrait was Rukawa's, standing tall with its standard, bloody cross. By Furinji and Nakamura, however, was Oomichi's, two crossed bones marking her death.

Sonia noted, "There's no need to rush: I have time today! Please, engage in frivolous banter."

Polly hissed, "How many died outside these walls while our elevator descended?"

Monokuma giggled, "A bunch of people, I hope! Deep in the dregs of Despair they died~"

Kitano grumbled, "Can we get this shit started already?"

Monokuma nodded, "Fine, fine. You've got until the all-important vote to decided on the Culprit through the evidence you've gathered. If you vote a 'white' innocent guilty, then the Culprit walks off, and everyone dies. But if they vote the 'black' Culprit guilty, you get to prolong the inevitable."

Nakamura growled, "The only 'inevitable' here is that you'll be bothering us some more."

Monokuma shrugged, "Got me there. Anyway, I can bearly wait to begin! Let's go: start!"

Adjusting his glasses, Zaizen began, "So, we are all familiar with Kitano's testimony, yes?"

Kitano sighed, "Yeah, yeah, yeah. I got trapped in the booth, heard Rukawa scream before hitting hit by arrows, and there was some machine breaking before that, and the Culprit said something about how they were trying to make it quick."

Takanashi began, "There was also the matter with the blaze in the Statue Garden."

Sonia sighed, "Vandals. Wherever shall my statue go now? I would have been up, but delays meant it couldn't be done before you arrived."

Uchida grumbled, "Yeah, the world ending prooobably had a part in those delays, you think?"

Katsuragi interrupted, "I think we should let that be for now and get started with Rukawa's death. There was some weird stuff going on."

Polly began, "Her legs were damaged, and the arrows in the torso were hard to miss."

Hiiragi wondered, "The arrows...did someone shoot her?"

Nakamura suggested, "I bet you could've gotten a bow from the Armory."

Katsuragi shook his head, explaining, "Come on guys, did you see where she was? There's a cabinet there with an archery game that mimics your shots in real life."

Monokuma giggled, "I haven't seen a display of such basic ignorance in a good while!"

Sonia added, "It is somewhat endearing. But also annoying. Apply yourself!"

Hiiragi frowned, "S-sorry."

Nakamura shrugged, "Asking stupid questions can help sometimes."

"You're not wrong," Zaizen stated.

While she couldn't disagree, Uchida began, "It's pretty obvious how she died, but what we don't know is how she got there."

Zaizen noted, "The side door was open. Tell me that isn't obvious."

Katsuragi shook his head, explaining, "No, that's not it. Monokuma said that door could only be opened by him and Sonia! And that was for the investigation."

Adjusting his glasses, Zaizen huffed, "It seems I'll get nothing done unless I investigate at your side." Uchida was inclined to agree.

As Katsuragi gave an awkward laugh, Shirakawa began, "Besides, she must have broken her legs somehow."

Uchida frowned, "Well, they could have been broken by someone."

Furinji noted, "A deed which only a few here could likely do."

"Without some sort of tool," Takanashi nodded.

Thinking back, Katsuragi noted, "I didn't see anything like that..."

Kitano began, "Coulda just pushed something heavy onto her."

Uchida retorted, "If they were strong enough to do that quickly, then they could have just broken her legs on their own!"

Nakamura pointed out, "Hello, she's a basketball player! This isn't like last time where someone could have overpowered her: she's got some muscle. There's no way she'd just walk into this."

Voice a bit strained, Katsuragi insisted, "Let's just focus on the 'how' rather than the why."

Eyes focusing, Uchida nodded, "And I'm pretty sure I've got it figured out, and Kitano knows why!"

"No I don't," Kitano grumbled.

"Apply yourself!" Sonia repeated.

Uchida sighed, "Yes you do! You heard Rukawa scream, didn't you?"

Kitano nodded, "Yeah, so?"

As Uchida eye twitched in irritation, she continued, "And she screamed once, right?"

Kitano grumbled, "That's what I said!"

Furinji gasped, "Ah. Had her legs been broken by force, there likely would have been more than one scream."

Shirakawa nodded, "Almost certainly. Almost. I see no reason to deny it now in spite of Rukawa's generally odd behavior. To be honest, I've never been present when she'd been hurt, so I can't say how pain tolerant she is."

While he seemed reasonable enough, that didn't sit well with Uchida. Sure, she wasn't quite right, but...

Realizing something, Uchida began, "Well, her reaction time and such has to be good if she's a basketball player! Quick thinking and reflexes seem pretty important."

Shirakawa admitted, "True. If her senses were dull, then she wouldn't be as responsive, which means as far as injuries go, to only cause one scream, there must have been one injury while she was able too.

Katsuragi nodded, "And for her to get both of her legs broken at once, I'm thinking she fell."

More confident in her own theories, Uchida nodded, "Which would solve the issue with her getting into the cage in the first place, right? If she fell, and broke her legs, let out a scream, it would all be in place."

Nakamura wondered, "Fell from where? Is there any place high enough?"

"One of the other machines?" Hiiragi wondered.

Takanashi suggested, "She is quite tall, so climbing around would have been within her means, but..."

Uchida noted, "I don't think any were that close."

"Besides, the Culprit must have trapped her somehow," Zaizen pointed out.

Katsuragi began, "Well, getting her to the Arcade would have been easy enough. I mean, if they'd just gotten to her when she was alone, she probably could have convinced her to come along easily, especially with the promise of something fun. But the cage is a different matter."

"Was she pushed?" Hiiragi asked.

Uchida sighed, "No, it can't have been that simple. The stairs were too far away, and the cage walls were too high. The best place would have been the barred wooden barricade: if you're on top, it's the highest point in the Arcade."

Katsuragi nodded, "It's also right above the cage where Rukawa was."

Furinji noted, "It was rather tall, however, was it not?"

Zaizen nodded, "It is rather hard to believe Rukawa could easily be shoved over the side, however, I would insist we look beyond that for the time being: the fall didn't kill her, no matter which way we slice it."

Takanashi swallowed as she said, "The arrows, of course."

Zaizen nodded, "And yet, it didn't take very long for the Culprit to aim their shots properly.."

Polly began, "There was no need."

Katsuragi continued, "There's a feature where you press a button for the cabinet to accept voice commands, and it replays your last attempt at the game. I tried once yesterday, and the Culprit replayed that shot today. I kinda sucked on my first try, so that's why two of the shots were so low."

Kitano nodded, "So, since they replayed your shots, you're the Culprit?"

Polly frowned, "You were there while it was explained."

Kitano shrugged, "I go to class sometimes too. Doesn't mean I learn anything."

Takanashi admitted, "I was there as well, but it was difficult to hear every part of your conversation at a distance."

Scratching his head, Katsuragi explained, "Monokuma said that the person who triggered it would be the Culprit." Uchida frowned: where was he getting all his information!?

"Katsuragi said Monokuma said that the person who triggered it would be the Culprit," Monokuma said.

Without missing a beat, Sonia gasped, "Monokuma said Katsuragi said Monokuma-"

"Hey! The Trial!" Uchida growled, Sonia giving an amused smile as she quieted down.

Katsuragi loudly continued, "And Kitano though he heard someone say 'replay', which is how you make the machine fire again! Once you hit the button, I mean."

Nakamura noted, "'Bout to say, that shit should've been firing off like crazy."

Uchida nodded, "Well, if the peanut gallery can keep quiet for a second, I think we've got the 'how' down decently enough."

Hiiragi wondered, "What about the fire?"

Zaizen insisted, "I can't say it seems too important at the moment. Regardless of how it was done, it was merely a distraction. Will it may be worthwhile to come around to it later..." Adjusting his glasses, he took a look at Kitano as he began, "We have a much more noteworthy topic."

Kitano grumbled, "Finally."

Uchida sighed, "I guess it was to be expected really."

Picking at his ear, Kitano nodded, "Yeah, now find a way to keep everyone from thinking your future boyfriend is guilty."

Not amused in the least, Uchida's eyes narrowed as she muttered bitterly, "Not sure what crime he's being accused of committing."

Kitano clicked his tongue, before pointing out, "It sure ain't 'being a pasty faced little nerd' because Katsuragi and Polly trying to smooch earlier."

Uchida blinked, "What."

"Hwah wah wah!?" Hiiragi cried excitedly.

Monokuma giggled, "Plot twist of the century!"

Polly stated firmly, "It was forced."

Katsuragi grumbled, "Monokuma tricked us!" Uchida didn't want to admit the amount of relief she felt.

Nakamura hissed, "Doesn't make me want to kick your ass any less you harem bastard."

Kitano agreed, "That's what I said!"

Tired, Uchida spat, "I hate you all."

Takanashi frowned, "My apologies, I should have stopped them."

Polly noted, "To be fair, Monokuma threatened to make us kiss you as punishment instead, Kitano-san."

Kitano growled, "So you try to kiss him?" Looking over to the Dreamer, Kitano cringed, noting, "Actually, now I don't mind so much."

Hiiragi whined, "We should get back to the Trial!"

Katsuragi frowned, ""S-sorry, Hiiragi-chan." Shaking his head, he lightly slapped his cheeks, before beginning, "Anyway, we were on...Kitano-san!"

The Bancho shrugged, "I didn't do it."

Zaizen argued, "Oh? You would have easily been able to overpower Rukawa and toss her into the archery cage. Perhaps after an unexpected loss to her while playing the mecha game, who broke the controls in anger, but it wasn't enough to satisfy you, so you grabbed Rukawa and sent her over the barricade, before using the archery machine to finish her off, before sealing yourself away."

"Nuh-uh," Kitano insisted.

Zaizen sighed, "And why not?" Kitano said nothing, merely glancing between Katsuragi and Uchida, waiting for them to speak.

While she didn't hate being relied on...it was Kitano. Uchida shrugged, "Neither of us is going to have you as a future boyfriend."

Kitano sighed, "Now you're just being bratty."

As Uchida scoffed, Takanashi frowned, "Hardly."

Zaizen sighed, "I must admit, it is unlikely he could devise the distraction. But perhaps, given how ineffective it was, he was behind it after all."

Kitano growled, "I'm gonna hit you later and you ain't gonna see it coming."

Shirakawa noted, "Well, given that no one but him was at the crime scene, it was at least somewhat effective."

Furinji wondered, "But how did the fire occur?"

Zaizen began, "I don't know for certain what started it, but it ended with a bang: the shards of an exploded glass object were nearby."

Katsuragi nodded, "They were red."

Polly pointed out, "There is not much glass to go around."

Uchida nodded, "It has to have been from the Lounge, which means it's probably alcohol!"

Nakamura muttered, "A red bottle?"

Polly began, "Then it was likely red wine."

Takanashi wondered, "But why did it explode?"

Zaizen continued, "There was some ash about on the stone: it might have been leaves, but there weren't many in the Stature Garden as they seem to congregate in the Burial Ground. There was also a burnt tag, likely off of an article of clothing."

Takanashi frowned, "More clothing abuse. Is there a day when they will not be used for evil?"

Nakamura grinned, "Maybe when some nudist cult starts shit."

Takanashi admitted, "If you were the victim, then I might not be very concerned."

As Nakamura gave a displeased sigh, Katsuragi interrupted, "Anyway! If the bottle came from the Lounge, only Shirakawa or Polly could have done it."

Shirakawa frowned, "I was drinking today, but the only bottle I opened was there when you arrived."

Uchida sighed, "Well, I guess there's no way to be sure except by witnesses. It's not like Monokuma had alcohol consumption forms."

Monokuma slumped, "That's such a good idea, I wish I had thought of it before..."

Shirakawa frowned, "It's identical to the Armory forms."

Monokuma giggled, "Oh yeah! Man, Uchida, I should have you punished for plagiarism." Uchida merely glowered.

Katsuragi admitted, "I guess he could have had enough time to place the booze and run, but..." Thinking for a moment, he wondered, "Anyone have a pen and paper?" Uchida checked the pockets of her ankle length pants, but came short.

Uchida looked up as there was a telltale click as Zaizen withdrew one, followed by the rustling of paper. As he headed over to Katsuragi, he explained, "What kind of a Puzzler would I be if I didn't carry scrap paper?"

Hiiragi blinked, "Er, you mean 'scratch paper'?"

Plopping the tools down by Katsuragi, Zaizen muttered, "Let's not go there today."

While Zaizen returned to his podium, Uchida leaned over, watching as he began to scrawl, but his words were not Japanese. As Uchida began to sound them aloud, however, Katsuragi waved for her to stop before continuing.

Once he finished, he held up the English lettering, asking, "Can you read this and tell me what it says?"

"Unfortunately..." Shirakawa noted with a slight smile.

"No, Kitano-san!" Katsuragi grumbled.

With a proud roar, Kitano answered, "It says 'fight'!"

Setting the paper back down, Katsuragi flipped it over, writing something else before holding it up, asking, "And this one?"

"S-side?" Kitano answered with a bit less certainty.

Nodding, Katsuragi noted, "Well, he might even be better at English then me." Frowning, he began to slump, Uchida offer a comforting pat on the back.

"Ha. Ha," Kitano snorted.

Trying to remember back, Uchida was drawing blanks as Polly recalled, "You refer to the panel on the side of the mech game?"

Uchida blinked, "The one that was broken?"

Polly nodded, "If Kitano could have manipulated it, for whatever reason, then he is a potential Culprit."

Kitano snarled, "You tricked me!"

Uchida insisted, "The more things we figure out, the closer we get! What this means is that the Culprit, or whoever altered the machine, has to have known at least some English."

Katsuragi admitted, "That might get me out of it, since Polly-san saw that I couldn't read it, but now that we've brought it up, most of us could probably just lie and say they didn't know any English."

Adjusting his glasses, Uchida could have sworn she saw Zaizen narrow his eyes for moment, but the Puzzler began, "True. However, as our suspicions are still narrowed on one..."

Kitano grumbled, "Yeah, hurry and and figure this out!"

While she wasn't exactly feeling up to defending Kitano of all people, she couldn't help but grumble, "Fine, fine."

Katsuragi grinned, "But not because you told her to, or anything."

Slapping a hand on her podium, Uchida growled, "Shush! You're distracting!" While Katsuragi gave an amused giggle, Uchida tried to think: could Kitano really be innocent? Of the crime, of course, since he generally wasn't.

Uchida noted, "You know, if he had manipulated the mech game cabinet, he probably would have said 'nope, can't read that English'."

Kitano argued, "He wrote 'fight'." Tapping a fist on his chance, he explained, "I'd have to be honest based on pride alone!"

Uchida scoffed, "Why are you arguing with me when I'm trying to clear your name!?"

"You're doin' it wrong!" Kitano grumbled.

Fist clenching at her side as she seethed, Uchida hissed, "V-voting time!"

Monokuma cheered, "Voting time!?" A resounding echo of tired sighs and grunts came from much of the 79th Class.

Uchida snarled, "You do something about it then!"

Katsuragi groaned, "Here..." Taking a breath, he began, "The Culprit lured Rukawa to the Arcade under the pretense of having fun. They led her to the mech game, broke it, before Kitano threw her over the barricade, trapping her in the archery cage. Using the machine, he killed her with arrows, before making his way over to the racing game booth, sealing it from the inside."

Uchida jabbed a finger at the nearby boy, almost poking him as she gasped, "Ah!"

Pushing her hand away, Katsuragi laughed, "Don't overdo it."

Uchida growled, "You do that all the time!" Opening her mouth again, she blinked, before muttering, "I forgot what I wanted to say." Takanashi hid her face in her hands from second hand embarrassment, while Shirakawa seemed amused. Uchida insisted, "Joking! Sheesh."

Taking a calming breath, she began, "How exactly was the booth sealed? Someone used knives from some meal, stuck them between some of the ventilation holes and some of the grooves, but...could Kitano really do that from inside?"

Zaizen suggested, "If he stuck the knife through the hole, aiming at the groove, it could have been done."

Uchida snapped, "The base of the handle was just as wide as the hole, which is why it fit so well, but the knife was curved! At the widest point, it would be wider than the hole! He couldn't slip all of it through!" Confident, Uchida finished, "Let alone with the meaty fingers."

"Muscly fingers," Kitano argued.

Furinji sighed, "Well, it seems Kitano is acquitted, but now our scope must widen.

Katsuragi swallowed, before beginning, "Well...there is one other person."

Uchida gave him a quizzical look as he continued, "I don't like it, but we can't ignore the possibility. Did anyone go into Rukawa's Suite?"

Heart falling, Uchida shook her head: she'd missed it! There was too much to explore in the Arcade really. Katsuragi continued, "On the table, there was a note...a suicide note." Swallowing, Uchida looked to the portrait of the Baller as Katsuragi finished, "There's a chance that...Rukawa did this herself. All of this."

TRIAL INTERMISSION

What is love? Don't hurt me, I'm serious. It's just a chemical imbalance in your brain, don't you know? But it's kinda funny that all sorts of mental disorders are too. Don't you think it's crazy? Because I think people in love are.

What does that have to do with Monomi? Well, it turns out she wasn't entirely unlovable, as insanity is the only reason that Monobi would let that layabout stay around. The original promised few days in his apartment became a few weeks, and then a few months. Of course, his insanity continued as she kept his house clean and tried to get a part time job to help with the bills. Of course I do mean 'tried', this is Monomi we're talking about here.

But somehow, this twisted relationship between young adult and elder child continued. They liked the same things, because Monomi liked everything. Monomi thought Monobi was so nice because no one was ever nice to her. I still don't know what Monobi saw in her, let's face it, as the longer this arrangement went on, the more Monomi graduated from her brief stint of being special.

A whole year passed! Can you believe it? Just the two of them. Monomi got a bit big for her britches and asked Monobi to join her for a meal, where she took her to a stupid bench where they got stupid ramen with stupid carrots, before bringing up the past incident that brought them together. After all the sentimental bile, she went full mental and popped the question: "Would you marry me?" A bucket of crazy right there! That's going 0 to 70 kilometers per hour! She wasn't even a legal adult yet!

But Monobi proved to be even crazier when he accepted! Man, these nuts are both crazy. And the continued to be a crazy couple forever, the end.

...Wait, no hold on, a happy ending? No no no, we can't stop there, can we? This is Monomi Theater XVI, but it is not our final chapter!

TRIAL RESUMED

Uchida tensed a bit as the suggestion hung in the air. Rukawa...could that airheaded girl really have been the murder? It was hard to grasp, but the suggestion was starting to make more sense the more she considered it.

"And the note?" Zaizen requested.

Katsuragi swallowed, before beginning, "It was something like: 'Sorry, but I can't do this anymore. I try to help, but I'm no good at anything but basketball. Everyone worries about me, but I don't think it's worth it. After this, you won't have to worry about me anymore, and maybe the next area will have the answers you're looking for. Thanks for everything.'"

Flinching, Nakamura asked, "Was that really...hers?"

Katsuragi admitted, "It doesn't fully sound like her but...who knows what she's been thinking? Besides, who could get in? If it was next to the door, that's one thing, but it was on the table."

Kitano wondered aggressively, "And how did you get in?"

"The door was unlocked!" Katsuragi insisted.

Monokuma shrugged, "This isn't your first investigation you know."

Uchida mumbled, "It's still pretty hard to imagine."

Polly noted, "We don't have any of her handwriting to compare it too either."

Katsuragi began, "It's still worth considering."

Furinji wondered, "But how could she have possibly done everything on her own? And to plan for Kitano to arrive?"

Uchida suggested, "Well, she didn't necessarily need to plan for it. Maybe he showed up while she was setting up, but he didn't notice her, so she locked him up and continued."

Shirakawa suggested, "If she kept the knives for something else, like say...popping off that panel, then it's reasonable enough that she'd have them on her."

Takanashi wondered, "But if you heard her scream...then you heard someone with a voice changing mask, then...how?"

Uchida began "You heard the voice just after the scream and just before the archery machine started, right?"

Kitano answered, "It wasn't that close, nah."

Uchida suggested, "She could have gotten into the cage pretty easily by climbing the barricade above. She's got to have some willpower if she could break her legs willingly like that."

Uchida shuddered, but Furinji began, "She did not have a mask with her, did she?"

Uchida pointed out, "There was something else in there: a voice changer from one of the masks!"

Zaizen wondered, "Which one? Or should I saw, whose?"

Katsuragi noted, "Well, if they were really hidden outside of everyone's rooms, then she could have stumbled upon it and stolen it, just in case."

Uchida felt like that was too convenient, but the other possibilities weren't too appealing either. Instead, she began, "She could have used it to trigger the archery machine though, just in case someone had overheard, like Kitano.

Zaizen sighed, "But with no way to dispose of it..."

Katsuragi pointed out, "I think she tried! It's wasn't that close to the body. She might have tossed it away, but between her broken legs and the tall walls of the cage...it'd be tough even for a pro basketball player."

Polly added, "There was a time limit as well, and she had only one shot. If she were too slow after pressing the button, the machine would not have even registered her voice."

Uchida didn't like to admit it, but it was fitting scarily well right now. The girl continued, "So, we've been working backwards...she locked up Kitano, hopped off the barricade with the voice changer to trigger the archery machine... Heck, she wouldn't have needed to worry if the arrows didn't go where she wanted, since she could have moved: her arms did still work. Anyway, before that, she must have fiddled with the mecha game."

Zaizen suggested, "If she'd done it after locking up Kitano, it might have been a way to make it look like he'd taken his anger out on the game."

Kitano growled, "That game wouldn't a done nothin' to me. Mighta slapped whoever beat me if it was through some cheap shit though."

Uchida wanted to make a quip about trying to schedule a match between and Nakamura, but stopped herself, instead pointing out, "But she couldn't! I mean, she didn't have another knife or anything. She would have have to have done it beforehand." Uchida frowned, "No clue why though."

Furinji wondered, "You said the words under the panel were English? What did they say?"

Polly began, "There were a number of switches labeled things like 'Side Alpha Safety', 'Side Beta Safety', and more like that, some with words I was unable to translate into Japanese."

Sonia giggled, "You should have studied more, methinks."

Ignoring her, Polly continued, "But Katsuragi made an astute observation: about half of the aforementioned switches were lowered instead of raised."

Hiiragi wondered, "On the broken side or..."

Katsuragi admitted, "I couldn't really tell. I don't even know which position would have been the correct one."

Shirakawa suggested, "If breaking the machine was all you wanted, then any side would have done, but the question remains as to why."

Thinking about the broken side, Uchida wondered, "Well, the results screen said there wasn't much going on, so if Rukawa tried to break it while sitting in the machine...what do you think happen?"

Furinji grimaced as he replied, "She likely would have been injured. It does say 'safety', after all."

Uchida continued, "And if Rukawa was trying to injure herself, then...it's likely she was trying to kill herself, but it didn't work."

Nakamura suggested, "Maybe it broke her...nah, that's dumb. It wouldn't broken her arms if anything."

Kitano grumbled, "She wouldn't've even died."

Hiiragi gasped, "She coulda jumped out at the last moment!"

"That'd defeat the point," Uchida muttered.

Zaizen noted, "We've mentioned her reflexes before: if she realized it wasn't working then she might have left."

"True..." Katsuragi admitted.

With everything into the Arcade moving into place, Uchida began, "Let's go beyond, shall we? We should really discuss that fire right about now."

Takanashi began, "I noticed it about...a little after noon. Hiiragi-sama and Katsuragi-sama arrived a little after that."

Katsuragi added, "Then Takanashi-san and I came across the body at...well, 12:22. It said on the File."

Uchida sighed, "But it didn't say when she died. If we narrow down the timeframe, we might be able to figure it out." Thinking, she noted, "It probably wasn't burning before noon..."

Furinji wondered, "How did the Culprit cause the fire in the first place, exactly? Matches?"

Uchida muttered, "Er, well, they were outside. A lens could have worked, even if its a bit slow."

Furinji noted, "So...the Culprit had to have been outside when the fire started? Or close to it?"

Realizing the hole, Uchida mumbled, "Uhhhh..."

Zaizen began, "Not necessarily. Leading away from the fire was a line of ash."

Hiiragi nodded, "I saw it! I didn't see how far away it went though."

Zaizen further suggested, "If this was a fuse of some sort, it could have been lit some time before the fire if the material was right, slowly burning its way over."

Uchida recalled, "There was a burnt tag there too, like it was from a piece of clothing."

Polly wondered, "But how long could it have burned without being snuffed out or unnoticed?"

Zaizen muttered, "I don't know, but we may want to consider the worst case: the Culprit lit the fuse before going to the Arcade. With the amount of traffic through the Dining Hall, I doubt anything in particular was suspicious enough to be memorable, even if we saw someone pass."

Uchida admitted, "And it's not like we go there often enough. One hour without anyone going by there isn't too hard to believe."

Hiiragi added, "We've had plenty of time to see them."

Katsuragi began, "So, Rukawa set up the fuse, but how did she get the alcohol? It would have to have been Sonia, Polly, or Shirakawa."

Shirakawa sighed, "I only took the one bottle not to long ago."

Polly insisted, "I've never taken one."

Nakamura pointed out, "Sonia took some earlier!"

Hiiragi wondered, "What did Monokuma say about the bottles?"

Katsuragi recalled, "He said that once the bottle was opened, anyone could have it. I guess if a bottle was taken down, Monokuma would put it back if no one opened it."

Monokuma nodded, "Yup! And only Sonia, Shirakawa, Pollyanna, or I can open them! And I'd only do it for one of those three, of course. Stealing alcohol would definitely be cause for punishment."

Sonia nodded, "Truly, under-aged drinking is a horrible crime." As Katsuragi gawked, she correct, "Unsupervised under-aged drinking."

Polly growled, "You're hardly the best supervision." Sonia gave a cold smile, but said nothing.

Katsuragi began, "So, the only bottles that have been opened were the wine bottle and Shirakawa's, neither of which were red, so it...has to have been Shirakawa or Polly? That can't be right."

Nakamura grumbled, "Bitch Queen over here would have given a bottle to anyone I bet."

Sonia giggled, "So narrow minded. As much as I enjoy these Trials, would I have really given one away so that it might marr what was once the place of my own statue?"

Uchida tried to think, not wanting to incriminate anyone but Sonia here. However, Katsuragi gasped, "Ah! There was another bottle!" Pointing at the Spelunker, he said, "You said you wanted some harder liquor, right?"

Nakamura nodded, "Yeah, and she grabbed one, but...well, it was red."

Katsuragi continued, "And she opened it! But we left."

Uchida gasped, "Anyone could have taken it!"

Zaizen added, "And if it was a harder liquor...one of my issues from before was that wine isn't high enough in alcohol content, but the rapid expansion of burning, say-"

"Bourbon," Sonia smiled.

After thinking for a moment, Katsuragi began, "But I don't think Rukawa could have been the one. She was in the Library, then she came to the Pool with me." Thinking back though, he noted, "Well, I didn't check the Lounge until the investigation, so she might have been able too..."

As a silence passed over the Court, Uchida gulped, "Th-that's it. She could have done it... It all fits."

With a sigh, Katsuragi lazily summarized, "Rukawa stole the booze, wrote her suicide note, set the bomb, then went up to the Arcade, locked Kitano in the booth, broke the mecha game, then..."

After a moment, Nakamura grumbled, "That's not...that's not Rukawa! Call me an idiot all you want, but she can't have done it! She just...couldn't."

Zaizen huffed, "Don't get melodramatic: I concur."

Polly nodded, "There may still be a contradiction somewhere."

Hiiragi added, "Rukawa-san didn't seem the type to want to die..."

Uchida concurred, "Someone trying new things wouldn't want to die! I-I mean, not immediately. There were still tons of things she wanted to do, I bet!"

Zaizen began, "And yet...we have no way of narrowing things down any further!"

Uchida groaned, "No one said we'd stop!" Letting out a sigh, she began, "First, let's try and figure out if Rukawa would have really done it or not! I mean, for starters, that note: how concerned for us was she really? Shouldn't she have distrusted us because of Human Potency?"

Nakamura noted, "She's kinda gullible, let's be honest."

Heart falling, Uchida nearly reeled as she gasped, "Oh...oh no..."

Katsuragi blinked, "What's wrong?"

"She is gullible. Super gullible. What if...she was there? What if she took all of Leader's crap as genuine?" Uchida began.

Takanashi swallowed, "Then...Leader's views on death."

Furinji nodded, "Rukawa wouldn't have felt she'd been going to her death at all."

Zaizen noted, "Uchida: you said that none of them at the meeting were particularly tall."

Nakamura shrugged, "She wasn't Kitano's size or anything. She just needed to crouch down a bit."

Uchida admitted, "I wouldn't have been able to tell in the darkness with those cloaks." Swallowing she added, "And one of them was really soft spoken, like they'd decided to join up with Leader before they got there: Pupil."

Zaizen, a bit of sweat beading on his forehead, continued, "But there's no certainty."

Uchida growled, "But there is a possibility, so let's discuss that! I mean, Rukawa might have set up the bomb or manipulated the mech game cabinet, or someone else did that!"

While Zaizen glared, before he could speak, Katsuragi gasped, "Hey, wait...the cabinet. Rukawa might not have known the English."

"Perhaps," Zaizen muttered bitterly.

Katsuragi cried, "No! Definitely! Remember after the first Trial? She misunderstood 'Leader' for 'Reader'. Then she said so herself!"

"Long before any of this," Furinji added.

Uchida concurred, "She's not that cunning, so no way she would be thinking that far in advance! She can't have manipulated the game cabinet!"

Shirakawa noted, "But if it was simple as 'Side Alpha' and Side Beta'..."

Zaizen shook his head, "Single letters and symbols are one thing, but more obscured words?"

Polly wondered, "Then who?"

Katsuragi shrugged, "Well, it can't have been me, but..."

"One moment," Zaizen interjected. Turning his gaze on Katsuragi, he began, "Rukawa is not so cunning as to plant seeds of doubt regarding her English skills. But you are more intelligent, and your seeds were planted much earlier, no?"

Katsuragi blinked, pointing a finger at himself, before muttering, "Eh? Eh!?"

Uchida blinked, "That's...no."

Zaizen argued, "With his hobbies? He should know plenty of English. Children's cartoons use plenty of foreign languages to sound more appealing."

Katsuragi sighed, "I was with Polly in the Dining Hall before Hiiragi showed up talking about the fire."

Blinking Zaizen clicked his tongue before muttering under his breath. Uchida frowned, but even though he was wrong, she couldn't blame him.

They were out of options, weren't they?

...

No.

The Culprit must have been clever to come up with this seemingly full-proof scheme. Urabe's had been close, and Inami's even closer, but this was even worse. Diving into her thoughts, Uchida tried to think of something.

Rukawa could have been the Culprit, but if not, she couldn't have gotten over the barricade without being willing, which could only mean that she may have had an accomplice.

The one who could have triggered the archery machine was more likely to have been...

Gasping out, Uchida began, "Rukawa didn't trigger the archery cabinet!"

Katsuragi noted, "She had the voice changer."

Uchida nodded, "Right, but...Kitano, was anything weird about the voice that said 'replay'? Other than the voice itself?"

Kitano blinked, "Well...nah, I got nothing. When are you gonna learn?"

Uchida managed not to snap 'when are you?', instead continuing, "E-exactly. There was nothing weird about it. If it was Rukawa, what would it have sounded like?"

Nakamura muttered, "Uh, normal?"

Katsuragi gasped, "No! Not with her legs broken!"

Uchida nodded, "Exactly! She'd have been in pain! Her voice would've been uneven! Kitano probably would have noticed!"

Furinji pointed out, "We were mostly certain that she wasn't the Culprit."

Uchida frowned, before replying, "Well, now we're entirely certain, right?" There were no arguments, but... What next?

Back in her own thoughts, Uchida continued: if there was an accomplice, they could have lit the fuse to the bottle. They could have also taken it, even as soon as Katsuragi heading to the Pool.

Glancing around...Katsuragi, Furinji, Nakamura, Hiiragi, Takanashi, Shirakawa, Zaizen, Pollyanna, Kitano...some of them had alibis, but all of them could have potentially read the English required to alter the machine, except for one. Out of all those names...only one.

As she raised her head, her stomach lurched from guilt, and she shook her head: it was impossible! Definitely...definitely...

Jarring herself from her thoughts, Uchida took a step back, mind racing as she began to make her way around the Courtroom, the eyes of the others following her.

As she approached, Shirakawa asked, "Excuse me? Wh-"

Mid word, Uchida interrupted, "Sorry!" before lunging, making a grab for his sack of supplies.

Stepping back, Shirakawa allowed it to slide from his arm, stammering, "Wh-what is this, Uchida-san!?"

Not bothering to answer, Uchida grabbed the bottom of the sack, moving past the podiums as she dumped it in the center of the Courtroom, Shirakawa daring to get a bit closer. Eyes darting over the contents, she began to sift through them, hands moving some aside as she tried to look for anything of note. There was plenty: needles, jars salves, a bottle of water, bandages, a few strange metal implements...

Shirakawa insisted, "If I were of Human Potency, I would be a fool to bring the mask. Oomichi was miraculously lucky no one checked her." Grinning, he added, "Or perhaps it was the threat of the trap..."

Ignoring him, Uchida grabbed two particular objects that caught her eye, holding them up, demanding, "W-well, what about these? A roll of twine: perfect for a fuse. And a book of matches?"

Shirakawa shrugged, "Tools of the trade. Besides: the twine was not used as the fuse, an article of clothing was. And matches? Surely you carry something similar, Nakamura-san?"

"Nah," Nakamura shrugged. After a moment, he added, "Well, usually, but not since I've been here."

Shirakawa sighed, "Certainly not. Perhaps in your Suite? And that's excluding countless other methods of creating fire."

Thinking quickly, Uchida let her arms hang down, before beginning, "You know what would be more reliable than unfurling a piece of cloth to make a fuse? Sticking the cloth in the bottle like a molotov cocktail, then wrapping some twine around it. The fuse would burn up, then light the cloth on fire."

Shirakawa nodded, "A nice suggestion."

Focusing, Uchida continued, "You traveled the world, right? I bet you know plenty of English? You could tell the names on the tombstones..."

Shirakawa sighed, "With your help and my hands. I'm blind, my friend."

Doubting herself with every step, Uchida swallowed, before requesting, "Can...can we see?"

Shirakawa flinched, but nodded. Leaning his staff against his podium, he reached his hands up, pushing some of his dark gray mane out of the way, before going to the back of his head, untying the white headband.

The cloth dropped: his left eye was normal, but gray, and bloodshot, but the other was horribly stained around the socket, the surface of the eye somehow damaged, almost torn looking. Uchida couldn't help but cringe, and she heard a few of the others shuffle about in disgust. Hiiragi even let out a gasp, muttering, "Sh-Shirakawa-san..."

Eyes staring into space, Shirakawa began, "Have I ever told you how I was blinded? It's quite ironic, really, but it makes for a good tale if you'll spare the time." Uchida didn't argue, so he began, "Don't let my looks fool you, I was born from a well off family. However, we lived humbly, but had far too much money. My parents often gave to charity, bless them, but...they've given, or been tricked into giving, to those whom did not deserve it, or the otherwise dishonest. Noticing this, at the ripe age of ten, I decided to be a bit more direct. Why go through a potentially foul charity when I could cure the ailment myself? I began to pass out money to the homeless, but...the needy can get greedy. In one particular incident, I attempted to give, but the man I was offering too wanted more: my offering wouldn't put a dent in his debt, or so he said, so he would not see much of that money for long. We struggled, and there was an accident with some improperly disposed of chemicals." Hand reaching up to his scarred right eye, he elaborated, "Part of this eye was eaten by some form of acid or the like, which stained my skin as well. Much less got on the other eye, but...I've been blind ever since."

His eyes continued to stare as he finished, "I felt as though I was lacking in worldliness, so I left, without notice or warning. I expected to die somewhere, but I somehow survived. I mastered my disability, and found other ways to help others, making a name for myself and enrolling after experiencing much of the world, but that is neither here nor there."

Hands starting to shake, Uchida looked away, muttering, "I'm sorry." She was starting to wish she'd never accused him, as the eyes of the others pierced her, enhancing her guilt.

Shirakawa admitted, "There is nothing wrong with curiosity. It is only human, as we've been told."

Heart pulsing, Uchida dropped roll of twine, taking a sharp breath. "I'm sorry," Uchida muttered again, briefly lowering to her knees, matches falling from her hand, which then moved quickly. She didn't like what she was doing, but...

"Uchida-san..." Shirakawa frowned.

Standing back up, Uchida began to sweat, water welling up at the edge of her eyes as she held up a needle of Shirakawa's to her eye, a finger raised in front of her mouth: a cry to be silent as she sputtered once more, "I'm sorry." Pulling the needle back silently, she made to jab towards the edge of her eye, every ounce of willpower she had dedicated on keeping the target eye open.

Hiiragi gasped out, and Shirakawa moved, one of his hands grabbing Uchida's wrist. As the needle shook in Uchida's stopped hand, a mere few centimeter's from her eye, she hissed wetly, "H-how d-did you know what I was d-doing!?"

Hand starting to shake, Shirakawa croaked, "You...you're very cruel you know." An unamused expression crossing his face, Shirakawa took a step back, closing his eyes and standing still as Uchida dropped the needle.

"You...you can see!" Uchida growled, a few tears burning at the edges of her eyes.

"Funny that," Shirakawa muttered.

Zaizen growled, "But...he's the last person we should have suspected!"

Uchida whined, "I know that...I knew that! And I didn't want to suspect you, Shirakawa-san! When we explored the Mausoleum...sure, you were nice to me but... I realized that...people change. If Rukawa could become so devoted to Leader, then why couldn't you? Why couldn't you believe in something insane!?" Wiping her eyes, she cried, "You're the last person I should have expected, which is why I had to suspect you! That was the mask the Culprit relied on!" Shirakawa said nothing.

Taking a step back, Uchida asked, "K-Katsuragi-kun. D-do the thing..."

Katsuragi swallowed, before saying, "I think you should have the honors."

"Stupid waste of..." Kitano muttered.

Ignoring him, Uchida took a steadying breath...

"In the name of Human Potency, our Victim and Culprit began to work together for the planned murder. Firstly, Rukawa wrote out a fake suicide note, leaving it in her Suite. Then, the Culprit took a bottle of liquor, left out for anyone to take, and headed to the Statue Garden, but not before grabbing a spare shirt from the Clothing Emporium. Setting the bottle on an empty pedestal, they stuffed the shirt in the top, tied the fuse of twine around it, before stretching it far away and lighting it with a match. But it would be a while before the distraction would go off."

"Returning to the Adjoining Tower, the Culprit encounter Rukawa, where they planned to kill her with the mecha arcade game cabinet. However, by the time they finished making the proper adjustments, Kitano came around, holing up in the racing game booth. Using some knives they had in their bag, the Culprit snuck over, sealing him in. Returning to the upper floor, the pair entered the mecha game. With the safety disable, Rukawa was at risk, but it didn't go through: even though the game broke, Rukawa was uninjured: a definite failure."

"Seeing another opportunity, the Culprit had Rukawa get into the cage for the archery game, but there was only one way: down. Rukawa broke her legs in the fall, but that still wasn't enough. Using a voice changer, they disguised their voice to use the archery cabinet to finish the job, killing Rukawa with a pair of arrows. Kitano could only listen as it happened, before the Culprit tossed the voice changer over the cage, taking their leave, confident in their shield."

"But it wasn't enough, was it, Sh-Shirakawa Jigoro?" Uchida concluded. The Healer remained silent.

"OooOooooOoooh, how's this one gonna go? We won't know till the votes are in!" Monokuma ordered.

As Uchida returned to her podium Shirakawa made towards his, muttering, "Must I?"

Monokuma growled, "Abstaining is not allowed!" Reluctantly, Shirakawa went to the bear to share his vote, while Uchida made towards her screen, flinching as she cast her vote. After a few moments, Shirakawa moved back towards his podium as the Sonia lifted her legs, curling them under herself as the panel popped off and the reels began to spin, landing on the blindfolded face of Shirakawa. Confetti pour from the Courtrooms various orifices as Monokuma began, "The votes are in! Shirakawa was declared guilty by the 79th Class, but do I agree? ...Yup! He's our blind archer of a Culprit! Didn't see that...wait, no, too expected." Glancing around, he thought for a moment, before finishing, "Oh! To kill such an easy target, you wound me...bah."

Closing his scarred eyes, Shirakawa nodded, "Well done. You had me surprised, Uchida-san. To guess that both Rukawa and I followed the advice of Leader..."

Hiiragi swallowed, "Are you...Vert? Pupil?"

Shirakawa grinned, "I wonder?"

Uchida took a shaky breath, calming a bit as she asked, "Why...why did you stop me?"

Shirakawa only smiled lightly as he began, "You seemed so determined! To let you join me and Zaizen among the visually impaired would be a disservice. If had heard anything more than your breath however, like the clinking of a needle, I might not have moved, however..."

Uchida cried, "Hiiragi gasped out! Even though I tried to make sure everyone was quiet!"

Shirakawa shrugged as Hiiragi looked down, muttering, "I'm sorry."

Uchida continued, "You didn't have to do anything! I...I wasn't really going too..."

Turning his head aside, Shirakawa sighed, "Do you take your sight for granted? Well, I can't blame you. Besides, do you need a reason? Perhaps I simply remembered that Leader did not want you harmed? Perhaps I simply like you." Now it was Uchida's turn to become sheepish, glancing away. She hated having to distrust the others, but...

At the silence, Shirakawa finished, "After this, I would recommend you take a look in my Suite: Rukawa entrusted me with her suicide note in the event that we failed. The genuine article. The poor girl wrote the whole thing, but I insisted it would not do, so I talked her through the plain version you saw. I pray...I pray I have a chance to repent in the next revision of this tale."

Flinching, Uchida whined, "Why do you believe in Leader?"

Shirakawa sighed, "It's quite simple really..." Opening his eyes once more, he explained, "Look...look at my eyes. Even the good one is still burned beyond repair, and yet...I can see. As well as any day in my life. Ever since I boarded the Silver Lining. I prayed for answers, and when this Leader character showed up, I found a path to take." Smiling, he finished, "I am not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, so I couldn't take this miracle with anything but a barrel of salt. I am glad, however, that I got to see the World's Hope with my eyes. Please, do not waste away here. I fought for you as Leader claims to." Raising a hand, he waved, finishing, "To go against survival instinct and lay one's life on the line? That is very much...Human."

SHIRAKAWA JIGORO HAS BEEN DECLARED GUILTY OF MURDER

PREPARING EXECUTION...

From the opening Execution Chamber door, Shirakawa began to move towards it, but out lashed a pair of metal claws, one snapping up Shirakawa from under his arms, the other grabbing his head. Staff left behind, Shirakawa wasn't deposited very far, ending up on a walkway, spiraling up, ending in the center. Shining strings dangled in the air, white, ball jointed, human sized marionettes suspended in the air around the walkway, holding a variety of objects, some wearing the occasional article of clothing or a wig, their eyes dead and lifeless. As Shirakawa stood, a hand grasped at his head, a piece of headgear locking over his ears, a metal piece firmly covering his eyes, leaving him...

Able to Live, Able to Die

Blinded and deafened, Shirakawa slowly began to plod forwards. His feet found the ground just find, but as the spiral pathway began to rise and turn, he was able to follow it easily. He occasionally stumbled, but never fell, arms helping him to keep balance.

However, the higher up he got, the more the marionettes began to get closer to the path. Occasionally, he would brush against them, turning his path away from them, but closer to the edge of the steadily narrowing spiral. However, as he touched the marionettes, occasionally, they would move, raising or lowering. One bumped another off the path entirely, while some began to form a line around the edge towards the top, where the path was only as narrow as Shirakawa's foot.

Slipping along that narrow edge, Shirakawa began to wobble, but as he grabbed the marionettes for support, they did not pull away, guiding him to the end. Shirakawa stopped, toeing the edge, put the path did not continue. He had reached the end.

Bending under his weight, unable to see and unable to hear, Shirakawa could do nothing as he plummeted. Smacking into one of the lower parts of the path, it barely slowed his fall as he continued to the hard ground below, landing with a dull thump. The headgear snapped off with a clatter, but has his eyes stared above him, only blackness clouded his vision.

Tearing her eyes away as the door closed, Uchida beat back the tears that began to form. As the door shut, she heard the heeled shoes of Sonia on the ground as she made her way over. Looking up, she met eyes with the monarch, who smiled, "You all continue to impress! But if Leader is alone, will they move? I cannot wait for the conclusion!"

Polly hissed, "It will end with out freedom."

Sonia gave a proud smile as she made her way towards the elevator, boarding quietly, no one even bothering to move as it began to rumble downwards.

While the Courtroom was a mess from Shirakawa's discarded staff, sack, contents, and headband, it remained silent, be it from the weight of the sacrifices or anticipation for the information they had yet to learn.

But Uchida was fearing something else. Shirakawa had been so quick to remind her that the invitation was still open, and was feeling less confident in her reasons for denying it.

A short time later, Uchida stepped into Shirakawa's Suite, following all of the others into the now crowded room. Standing at the table, Zaizen began to look over the paper in his hand, before passing it off to Katsuragi, suggesting, "If you would?"

Uchida muttered, "I'm a girl. I'll do it." Stepping forwards, she took up the paper, bracing herself as she began to read aloud:

I'm sorry, everyone. I know I wasn't supposed to help Leader, but I just couldn't see them as bad. Nothing they said seemed bad, even if some of you guys didn't feel that way.

I guess before I die I should talk about how I was born? My dad was a weird guy. He was really old, but my mom was really young, though I dunno how old she was. She didn't survive giving birth to me, so it was only me and dad. He was used to it though, since he had a bunch of wives before he had me, but they all left him.

But then he died. I was still really little though, so I was sad for a while, but then I needed someone else to take care of me. I was at an orphanage for a little while before one of my half-siblings took me in, who was way older than me. But he had a family already, and they didn't want me, just like the orphanage. It was the same with the families of another of my two half siblings. I never knew why they never wanted me, but I never blamed them. I guess I got used to no one wanting me. I never had friends or anything since I was moving a lot. You guys always thought I was pretty weird, so maybe that's why I was.

But then, I started middle school, and I was in the gym storeroom getting something when a shelf broke. Luckily, I was too far away, but even though everything was bouncing around, I didn't get hit. I had my hands up, but the only thing I touched was a basketball that landed in my hands. It didn't even hurt. At first I thought it was kind of funny since I didn't get hurt, but then I thought it was funny the basketball came off the shelf to me. No one else ever wanted to talk to me or anything before then, but the ball came to me. I think I was happy, because I started playing basketball more often, and people liked it when I played so I got to play even more.

But then, when I was here, nothing changed, since I was no good at the Trials and there was no basketball, until Leader came for me. Whoever it was...they wanted my help. I couldn't believe it, but I wanted to help them no matter what. It was like I found another team to play for. I'm sorry if you all hate me, but I like to win, and someone else has to lose. I wish it could be Monokuma and Sonia, but not even Leader knows how to do that. Still, I had to try.

But I guess if you guys are reading this then I was the loser today. That never happened to me before with basketball, but I won't get to know how it feels. I don't know who's going to win or lose in the end, but try your hardest everyone. And you too, Leader: I'm sorry I let you down, but thank you.

Water in her eyes, Hiiragi noted, "S-she probably added that last bit when Shirakawa-san told her it wasn't any good."

Letting out a low whistle, Kitano admitted, "Whew, she had it kinda rough."

Tense, Polly bitterly muttered, "Leader..."

Adjusting his glasses, Zaizen sighed, "Their tendrils run deep. I can only pray that Shirakawa was our last member."

Katsuragi swallowed, "Which means we only have to solve one more Trial."

"Prevent," Pollyanna corrected, before turning to leave.

"Y-yeah," Katsuragi mumbled.

Sick to her stomach, Uchida turned to leave as well, muttering, "I'm going to bed."

Slipping out of Rukawa's Suite, she began to make her way off, not even hungry. As she took the stairs, she clenched her fist at her side, she was determined to meet with Leader one more time, whether it would be the last or not.

August 30th, 2013

Two and a half years after the kidnapping of the 79th Class and the advent of the Worst, Most Despair Inducing Incident in Human History

All wars must come to an end.

It was quite impressive really: the greatest, most bloody conflict in history over in less than half the time as World War II some decades ago. Half as long, twice as bright, the saying went. Such was war between those of the Super High School Level, former or otherwise.

But Future Foundation was one the winning side, Hyuga Kirin was so glad to say. Super High School Level Despair had been reduced to a ship of fools and the odd roving band of brigands, if you could call them that. Always with the loose ends. And let's not get started on the foreign situations. All in due time.

While Future Foundation had taken its losses, however, Hyuga was blessed not to have them on her name, no matter how much those under her had been responsible. No, that was the domain of the resident 'unscrupulous devil', a masochist if Hyuga ever saw one. But Hyuga fulfilled a different role as the balancing cornerstone of Future Foundation's leadership as the 'iron angel'.

Black heeled shoes clapping on the plainly colored flooring, Hyuga's pale blonde hair bounced on her shoulders as she walked through the lower halls of Chronos Base: Future Foundation's current and, after the Jabberwock Island fiasco, continual headquarters. While the dull, bland interior continued to bore her, they were well on their way to the point where they could start to look to a brighter, and more colorful, Future. There was just one nasty bump in the road, considerately colored black, white, and red.

Reaching a door at the bottom of the Base, Hyuga whipped off her sunglasses, revealing a confident stare of purple, the woman pocketing her glasses before heading in.

The moment she'd cracked open the door, an alarm clock sounding from the dimly lit room. Among its buzzing was the panicked panting of its lone occupant. Flicking on a light switch, Hyuga stepped in, giggling, "That's what I like to hear~"

She held no remorse as she looked over the victim, a bland, black haired man numerous scars on his torso and a blindfold over his eyes. They weren't the doing of Hyuga, but were likely self inflicted, the disgusting Despair mook. No, all Hyuga had was keep him awake for the past four days, the alarm clock signalling her arrival like...well, clockwork. Stopping the machine, she shifted it slight on its stool as she looked over to the man, his arms bound, suspending him to the rafters of the low room. A silver wire ran down from the ceiling as well, split and clamped on his ears, set to give him a charging shock every so often.

Stepping over, her mouth filled with bile as she imagined the horrors he'd caused with those hands. Swallowing it, she began, "So, would you like to share now? Lest your nightmares become reality?"

"F-funny," the man muttered.

"My, my, I thought you Despair types had nerves of steel when it came to the likes of torture. Ah, but you keep saying you're not, right?" Hyuga mused.

"N-not any longer," the captive insisted.

Tired, Hyuga sighed, "What silly little ideas did that Kinashi girl plant in your head?" The man was silent. Hyuga continued, "Do you think of her as your savior? She likely assumes you dead like the rest of your contingent."

"I knew what I was getting in to."

Hyuga continued, "Even if you did succeed in slowing Samidare...no, I suppose Kinashi would be more interested in Saitou, no? But they're both fine, and Samidare is the best Sailor in the world. She won't escape."

"Sh-she will," the grunt argued.

Hyuga opened her mouth to continue, but as a door opened behind her, she nearly bit her tongue. Turning on the suited man at the door, he flinched at her glare, before muttering, "Ph-phone, for you, Hyuga-san."

Not missing a beat, Hyuga wondered, "Ah, could it be? For them to interrupt me...yes, it must be your little Queen?" Turning on her heel, her smile turned to a glare as she reached the door, muttering quietly, "This better be important."

The underling insisted, "I-it's regarding the 79th Class."

Hyuga snorted. To be honest, she didn't care. Sure, they were the objective of this little rat race, but not the prime concern. That was, without a doubt, Kinashi Ririka. While that girl supposedly did not align herself with Super High School Level Despair, her actions spoke otherwise. Regardless of her intent, Hyuga wanted her brought to justice. By which of course she meant executed without trial. The world had seen far too many of those as of late.

Grabbing the receiver off of the phone, she hissed, "Quiet a second." Raising her volume, she nodded, "Yes. Yes. Uh-huh... You're saying... Wonderful!" Letting out a gasp, she closed the door, just as the captive grunted from another electric shock. She knew she could turn that unexpected interruption to her favor: she was the former Super High School Level Interrogator for a reason. Not that she liked having to resort to torture: most of the time a few honey soaked words or 'investigative journalism' were more than enough to have lips flapping. Not that she hated bringing out the thumbtacks, per say, but it was so much work...

Snarling into the phone, she demanded, "What is it!?"

From the other end, the voice responded, "Er, it's...we have someone here claiming to be a survivor from the 79th Class. A lone survivor."

Hyuga gritted her teeth for a moment: there was no way to be sure. Enoshima had snatched all the files on those brats ages ago, and they were nowhere to be found. Right now the identities of the 79th Class were largely the result of guesswork, with only a handful of them confirmed through testimony. But it was so long ago that witnesses were few. From the other end, the voice began, "He says his name is-"

Hyuga hissed into the phone, "Just get as much information you can from them and send it to me! If you can't, I'll squeeze a call into my schedule or you can send them down here!" The words spoken, Hyuga slammed the phone back down, before turning about, heading back into the room.

Hyuga began immediately, giggling, "What a shame, more young Talent lost. Do you mourn your Queen?"

The captives jaw dropped for a moment where it hung. Then, a pink blot stuck out before it shot back up. Hyuga cursed as the was a spurt of sanguine liquid. Scrambling, she ripped the door open, calling, "Get a medic!"

Stomping back over, she ripped off one of her black gloves, balling it up and stuffing it into the mans mouth, cringing as blood dripped from his chin. Looking down at the mouth's organ on the ground, she grimaced, biting the tip of her other glove in anger. Sure, it was her fault she didn't gag him back up again, but...who in the world was this damn Kinashi Ririka!?

CHAPTER 4 END

SURVIVORS: 9

Another Trial in the hole! Thank you so much for reading.

Free Times! We have one more set of two, but only three characters to choose from! strawpoll(.me)/4292205

Design Notes wheeeeee! pastebin(.com)/jy7tdac7

And that does it for Chapter 4! Still two more to go. It'll be a trip. See you next time!