Sorry for the wait! It wasn't two weeks, but then, I wasn't expecting to write over 11,500 words either. At any rate, enjoy!
Tracing the Truth
Friday, May 6, 20XX
Lunchtime, Shujin Academy
The group gathered in a corner of the hallway. "So, you guys noticed the new posting on the Phantom Aficionado Website?" Ryuji said eagerly. "Some people are actually posting their own stories on it!" Akira opened the site on his phone. After scanning through the posts, he frowned a bit.
"Yeah, but none of them seem like something we should be taking on. They're mostly pretty petty requests." He showed the others the site. Naruto peered at one of the postings.
"'Please make my friend apologize for ditching me yesterday to hang out with a girl.' Jeez, what do these people think we are?" Ann nodded.
"Doesn't exactly scream changing society," she agreed. "And people aren't exactly believing in us yet, so they aren't going to so ready to share what's happening."
"Hey, no worries!" Ryuji said. "Once we take down a big name target or two, I'm sure the requests are going to flood in!" Morgana stuck his head out of Akira's bag.
"Right, and do we have any leads on such a target?" the feline asked. Ryuji looked away.
"Hey, we'll totally find one…" he said weakly. Akira folded his arms.
"It's probably best for us to lay low for now. The police are still around asking questions about Kamoshida today, and those rumors are still about that we had something to do with it." Naruto nodded.
"Good call Akira. We can't exactly be good phantom thieves if we tip off the cops." The school bell rung, signaling the end of lunch period. The whiskered blond sighed. "Alright. Back to the grind."
After School
Naruto quickly got up from his seat. "Hey guys, I've gotta jet. My boss needs me to run another errand for him." He grabbed his bag. "I'll see if I can find any leads on my end of things." Akira nodded.
"Alright, see you tomorrow then." Morgana's furry head poked out of Akira's bag.
"Yeah, see you later, Naruto." Naruto watched his whiskers droop a bit.
"Wonder what's on Morgana's mind lately?" he thought to himself. He shook his head. He'd have to follow up on it later. Naruto strode out of the classroom. The halls were still buzzing with the rumors surrounding Kamoshida and the calling card. Not that Naruto was surprised, he'd seen this play out before. "The world may be different, but people still react to the 'impossible' in the same way," he thought to himself.
When he got to the first floor, he found himself almost running into a distracted Makoto, as he turned the corner. He managed to avoid colliding with her by swerving his frame to the side, stumbling into the wall. The movement, however, did catch her attention. She looked over, realizing what had happened.
"Oh, Uzumaki-san," she said. "My apologies, I wasn't paying much attention just now." Naruto waved her off his unbandaged hand.
"It's not a big deal, Mako- I mean, Niijima-san," he said. Makoto gave a half-smirk.
"It's fine if you call me Makoto, Naruto-san," she said. "Was your Golden Week enjoyable?" Naruto nodded.
"It was fine. I had to spend most of it working, but I got to hang out with friends for a bit. How about you?" Makoto looked away.
"Unfortunately, my work with the student council pre-occupied most of my time. Kamoshida-sensei's…confession, has admittedly brought more than a bit of turmoil." She sighed deeply and looked down. Naruto gazed at Makoto and saw that her eyes were furrowed in deep concentration. Her hands were unconsciously clenched in a fist.
"Alright, something's definitely up," he thought to himself. "She seems to be concerned over something, and it's probably related to the Kamoshida fallout." He glanced down the hallway Makoto had just come from. "Isn't Kobayakawa's office down there?" he thought. "Did he have something to do with why she's so tense?" His curiosity was now peaked. He glanced at a clock on the hallway wall. "I think I've got some time before I'd be late for that errand." He returned his attention to Makoto, who had also apparently been in thought. "Hey Makoto," he said. "Is there something I could maybe help you with?" The brunette's head jerked up.
"Huh? Um, no Naruto-san; it's fine. I can handle things myself." Naruto gave her a flat look.
"Really? Because it seems to me you're stressing hard over whatever big task Principal Kobayakawa asked you to take care of as the student council president." Makoto's amber eyes widened considerably.
"What? How could you possibly know?" Naruto smirked.
"I didn't exactly. You just confirmed my educated guess." Seeing her expectant expression, the blond explained. "Your body and expression seemed unusually tense after you mentioned Kamoshida's confession. I realized that the principal's office is down the hallway you came from and just put two and two together." Makoto sighed.
"Again, you amaze me with how perceptive you are, Naruto-san," she said. "You are correct; Principal Kobayakawa did in fact request that I investigate the source of this calling card rumor. He seems to think those Phantom Thieves mentioned on the card may have had something to do with Kamoshida-sensei's drastic change of heart." Naruto schooled his expression to be mildly surprised. Inside his mind, his thoughts were racing.
"I shouldn't be surprised. Despite how ludicrous it sounds it is the only solid piece of evidence linked to Kamoshida's sudden confession." He looked at Makoto with mild amusement. "I find it rather odd that he'd take any stock in those stupid rumors," he said. "What are your thoughts on the matter?" Makoto nodded.
"I'd have to agree with you that it does seem rather illogical, but it is the most solid connection to Kamoshida-sensei confession. And unfortunately I'm unable to turn this down; the school's reputation is at stake after all, and it's my job to ensure our standing is not sullied." From the almost bitter inflection in her voice, Naruto was sure that there was much more to this.
"It almost sounds a bit personal to her," he mused. For a moment, a brief glimpse of a raven-haired boy, stalking through the streets of Konoha.
I can't afford to let this thief continue to escape. The pride of the Uchiha is at stake!
Naruto shook his head of the memory. "Say, prez," he found himself asking. "You still wanted to learn more about my observation, right?" Makoto peered at Naruto in curiosity.
"Yes?" she replied. "What are you thinking?" The blond shrugged.
"I was thinking after the exam coming up, I can show you a bit more of how it works. Does that sound good to you?" Makoto folded her arms.
"That sounds fine Naruto-san." She pulled up her phone. "If you don't mind giving me your number, I'll let you know when a good time come up."
"Sounds good to me." Naruto provided her with his number before checking the clock again. It was time for him to move. "Anyway Makoto, I've got to run. I'll catch you later!" Naruto quickly ran out the door, leaving Makoto behind.
? ? ?
Naruto found himself once more at the base of the tree in the mist-laden world. "Seriously, what the hell is this place?" he muttered to himself. He hopped up the massive leaves of the tree. He chuckled to himself. "Wonder if Saiken has driven Kurama crazy yet?" However, he arrived at the clearing to find the fox Biju was nowhere to be seen. The area where his cage normally existed was completely obscured by the mist.
"Naruto! I, Saiken, am always happy to greet my ally!" The giant slug rose up and thrust out its chest.
"Uh, hey Saiken," Naruto replied. "You don't happen to know why Kurama isn't here, do you?" The biju blinked several times.
"Kurama?" he repeated. His eye stalks swiveled around to look around the clearing. "Where is my esteemed big brother? He's always there when the cell opens up to see you." Naruto sighed deeply.
"So you didn't even notice Kurama wasn't here?" he muttered. He did his best to suppress the rising well of terror and tried to feel his connection to Kurama through their chakra. To his immense relief, the link still existed. However, it felt like there was a plug preventing any significant amount of chakra from flowing either way. "What's going on?" Naruto wondered. "Damn it, this place is so much more confusing than the stupid sewer area." He sighed. Ultimately, there wasn't much he could do about it at this time. Saiken saw Naruto's downtrodden face and blew some bubbles towards the blond.
"Never fear Naruto! Even if my elder brother is not here, I will be sure to have your back as your ally with my peerless abilities." Naruto turned back to Saiken. He couldn't help but grin as the biju tried to make himself seem as tall as possible.
"Thanks, buddy," he said. His eyes narrowed a bit as he studied the biju more closely. "Hey Saiken, did another chain break around you?" The biju's mouth spread wide in a grin.
"As expected, my ally has noticed! Yes, a chain just recently-" Saiken's words were drowned out as suddenly, the mist swarmed around Naruto, plunging him into darkness.
Saturday, May 7, 20XX
Nighttime, Untouchable
Naruto woke up in his futon. "Damn it, and I was in the middle of things just now!" He checked his phone and found it was just a little after midnight. A series of thumps coming from the front of the store alerted Naruto. "Alright, who's the asshole who decided to wake me up?" He sprang to his feet, grabbing a small army knife Iwai had given him. "Is some drunk asshole trying to break into the store again?" he wondered. "Or are Iwai's old buddies making another late night visit?" The Uzumaki silently crept towards the storefront. As his eyes refocused in the darkness, Naruto melded into the shadows of the store without thought. He looked out of the glass door into the street looking for the perpetrator. However, there were no human figures in sight. The door rattled again as something banged on it. Naruto noticed the vibrations arrived from the bottom. His eyes moved down to see blue cat-like eyes gleaming back at him. "Wait...Morgana?!" he exclaimed. The feline scowled.
"About time you heard me," he said. Naruto sighed and unlocked the door, allowing Morgana to come inside.
"Do you even know what time it is?" the blond asked tiredly. "What's bringing you here at this hour? Alone I might add." Morgana looked down.
"I wanted to talk to you in private," he replied. "So I told Akira I was going out for the night and sneaked aboard the subway." The feline ducked his head a bit. "Sorry for coming here so late." Naruto looked at the downcast mammal.
"If it was worth Morgana coming here alone, I should probably hear him out," he thought to himself. He sighed again. "Alright, head on back to the storage room." Morgana let out a soft purr.
"Thanks Naruto." He scampered off to the storage room while Naruto locked the door again. He found the feline perched on one of the shelves when he returned. Naruto plopped down on his futon and crossed his legs.
"So why'd you come all the way here?" he asked. "Is something going on between you and Akira or something?" Morgana shook his head.
"No, it's not that. I'm honestly not entirely sure why I came here. I just…felt that you might be able to help me." He folded his paws and slouched. "I really thought that defeating Kamoshida and shutting down his Palace would let me become human again, but it didn't. I'm still trapped in this form." Morgana looked down at his white paws and scowled a bit. "To the rest of the world, and most of the team, I'm just a…cat." He spat the last word in a hiss. "It's been tough, seeing the others get to enjoy human life. But I'm out of ideas on what to do next. I just don't know why I even exist." Naruto watched him sigh and slump down. He found it was far too easy to relate to Morgana.
" It's not like I know much of what's going on with Kurama and the others either," he thought to himself. He crossed his arms and stared at the feline. "So are you just going to give up then?" Morgana looked up at him and scowled.
"Never! I'm going to prove that I'm not just a cat. I'm human and I'm here for a reason!" he replied fervently. Naruto nodded.
"Then you're not going to find your answers by moping around. I know it sucks not having much to go on, but you've just got to keep moving forward with what you do have. If you think you're human, then don't let anyone tell you differently. Eventually you will prove them wrong. No matter what you look like, you're a Phantom Thief too, just like the rest of us. So just remember to keep looking up, alright?" He held out a fist to Morgana. "And I'll have your back on this too!" The feline looked at the outstretched fist for a few moments. His whiskers twitched as a smirk appeared on his face. He extended his paw and bumped Naruto's hand.
"Yeah! You're right! I can't quit here! One day, I will become human. Then I can get to enjoy my time with Lady Ann." He sighed wistfully. Naruto couldn't help but chuckle.
"Alright, alright. Don't get too riled up now," the blond said. "If I remember correctly, you thought Kamoshida's Palace was causing a distortion in you, right? But you weren't born there, right?" Morgana shook his head.
"No, I definitely remember another place before the Palace called 'Mementos.' However, I can't remember how I got from there to Kamoshida's Palace. My memory's a bit fuzzy regarding that." Naruto crossed his arms.
"Hmm, 'Mementos'… I think you mentioned that was where you learned you could turn into that bus form, right?" he asked. Morgana nodded.
"Yes. It's essentially the place connected to any Shadow who hasn't fully formed a Palace," he replied. The feline tilted his head. "I don't remember a whole lot about that place, but I do remember a lot of long tunnels with railroad tracks of some kind connecting them. The whole place felt like an underground cave." Naruto narrowed his eyes as he pondered the mystery.
"Underground, railroad tracks…I wonder…" A flash of inspiration struck him. Naruto jumped to his feet and started rummaging through his clothes. Morgana looked at him quizzically.
"What's going on, Naruto?" he asked. The Uzumaki pulled on a pair of jeans.
"Just a hunch I came up with," he replied. "But I think I might know where your Mementos place is." He slipped into his shoes and threw on a jacket. "Now that I'm all woken up, we might as well go check it out. You with me?" Morgana nodded and hopped onto Naruto's shoulder.
"Lead the way!" he said with a determined gaze. Naruto grinned and grabbed the knife and his key to Iwai's shop. After locking up the shop, he quietly stepped into the darkened streets. Even in the middle of the night, Shibuya was popular enough that there were a couple people still about. However, they paid no mind to the odd sight of a black cat riding a tall blond. Naruto naturally melded into the shadows cast by the lights on the road as he headed down the central street towards the plaza. Morgana observed his movement.
"Hmm, you sorta move like you do in the Metaverse," he commented idly. Naruto shrugged a bit.
"Just a habit of mine," he replied. "I learned a long time ago how to stick to the shadows." Morgana nodded but didn't comment further. Eventually, Naruto arrived at the central plaza. He moved to the shadows near one of the entrances to the subway station and looked to Morgana.
"You're able to cross between here and the Metaverse, right?" he asked. Morgana nodded. "Alright, based on how you described Mementos, it sounded a lot like the subway," he explained. "Call it a hunch, but they just might be connected." Morgana thought it for a moment.
"You might be right about that," he agreed. "Alright, let's give it a try." The feline closed his eyes in concentration. After a few seconds, they snapped open. Morgana's pupils shined with an eerie yellow glow as the red and black rippled emanated from his body, engulfing both him and Naruto.
Metaverse
Naruto and Morgana found themselves in the same place as before. In the central plaza Morgana looked around. "Did it not work?" he wondered. Naruto narrowed his eyes as he looked around.
"No, you definitely did something. The few people that were in the plaza are now gone. And something about the ground doesn't feel…solid anymore." He glanced down. "It's like I'm walking on water again…" he muttered to himself. The blond looked to the subway entrance. "Well, time to see if my hunch is right." The blond started to descend the stairway into the darkness of the station. When he emerged from the shadows and passed through the turnstile, he found himself in his Metaverse outfit again. "Well, there are definitely Shadows here," he said. "So that's a start at least." He gazed around at the distorted landing. Dark red veins seemed to sprout from the walls as an eerie red glow illuminated the area. The screens on the walls which normally shows meaningless ads were all displaying static. Before them, the escalators to take them to the actual subway platform had been stopped. He looked to Morgana, who had also reverted to his bipedal state. "Any of this seem familiar to you?" The feline nodded his head.
"I think so," he replied. "There's definitely a sense that I've been here before. It's starting to come back to me. By the way, I see you're wearing that new mask of yours, the one that appeared on you during the fight with Kamoshida's Shadow." Naruto's eyes widened as his hands went to his face, feeling the outline of the slug-shaped mask.
"Hey, Saiken? Can you hear me?" he called out mentally. After a few moments of silence, the Rokubi's reedy voice spoke.
"Naruto! How dare you desert your esteemed ally so abruptly!" Saiken's angry voice was frothing with bubbles.
"Sorry pal. I got woken up, so I was knocked out of whatever place that was," Naruto replied. He tried again to reach out to Kurama, but whatever was jamming his connection with the fox had yet to stop.
"Hmph. I shall forgive you then. Are we to dive into battle once more?"
"Not yet. I'll let you know if I do."
"Very well then! I will await your call, my ally!" Naruto sighed a bit. It was strange hearing a different voice in his head. He turned his attention back to Morgana, who'd been looking around.
"If we're in this outfit, doesn't that mean the Shadows know about us?" he asked. Morgana nodded.
He looked to Naruto. "Shall we go down? I'm pretty sure the Shadows aren't going to come up here." Naruto nodded.
"Let's not try and get in any fights though; we're just here to recon." The two descended down the stopped escalators towards where the subway platform would be. When they arrived, Naruto looked around. The tracks for a train were laid out, leading into a dark tunnel. There were bits of debris flying around from an unknown breeze. Naruto quickly moved to the sides of the platform. "Jeez, this place makes the actual subway look tidy and cheerful by comparison." He turned to Morgana. "So, what is Mementos anyway?" Morgana hopped on his shoulder.
"Mementos is essentially the Palace of the general public," the feline explained. "Extravagant Palaces like Kamoshida's only happen when the person has extremely distorted desires. So, everyone else just shares one big Palace."
Naruto folded his arms. "That…makes sense. I mean, I doubt all the petty crooks and stuff have elaborate Palaces. So all the regular people just connected to this place?" Morgana nodded.
"That's correct. Think of it as just a massive internetwork of everyone's Shadows." Naruto brows furrowed as he pondered this information. Morgana peered at the blond.
"Something on your mind, Shinobi?" he asked.
"I was just thinking…if everyone's connected to this place, then if we tracked down someone's Shadow here, then maybe we could change their hearts as well." Morgana's eyebrow notched up.
"That's an interesting idea. From what I recall, there were dead-ends that lead to an individual's personal section of Mementos, but this place covers a lot of ground. Without pinpointing at least a relative location, it'll be next to impossible to find them." The Uzumaki frowned.
"Maybe we can track down their Shadows using that weird navigation app the others have? It did give us the way to Kamoshida's Palace after all." Morgana thought about it for a moment before grinning.
"That just might work out! We'll have to try it with the others tomorrow." Suddenly a low rumble like a growl echoed in the distance. Naruto looked down the tunnel and could make out a large, bipedal mass slowly trudging in their direction.
"We should probably jet Mona. I don't feel like testing my luck right now." The feline nodded firmly.
"Alright, let's head back. You need to get some sleep for school tomorrow anyway." Naruto sighed.
"Don't remind me." The two turned and moved up the stairs. As they left, Naruto couldn't help but take another look around the place. "Those veins almost seems like this place is…alive or something," he thought to himself.
Afternoon
Shujin Academy
Naruto yawned in his seat. "Jeez," he thought to himself. "We spent a lot longer in the Metaverse than I thought." He was only mildly paying attention to Ms. Kawakami's lecture.
"…Some call it the oldest science fiction story in the world. Personally, I think it's just the oldest story about terrible woman. I mean Princess Kaguya treats her suitors terribly and then just runs to the moon." Naruto's eyes widened impossibly. Whatever tiredness was banished from his body. Naruto stumbled in his seat, narrowly avoiding falling out of his seat. Unfortunately, Ms. Kawakami noticed. "Yes, Uzumaki-kun?" she said. "What is the answer?" Naruto looked down sheepishly.
"I'm sorry Ms. Kawakami, could you repeat the question?" The Japanese teacher sighed.
"What do you call woman like Princess Kaguya who often lead men to their downfall with their wiles?" she asked. Naruto blanched.
"I'm not sure," he said. Ms. Kawakami just shook her head.
"You would if you had been paying any attention just now." She looked around. "Kurusu-kun, maybe you can provide the answer?" Akira thought for a moment.
"I believe they are called 'femme fatales,' Kawakami-sensei," he replied. Ms. Kawakami clapped her hands.
"That's correct!" she replied. The class murmured impressed remarks. "There are many examples of femme fatales in both history and in literature. "Such as Carmen, the beautiful dancer." She looked at Naruto. "Uzumaki-kun, I'd like to see you in the teacher's lounge after school to discuss your lack of attention." Naruto resisted to urge to sigh as he sat down. He simply nodded at the sympathetic looks from Akira and Ann, and ignored the snickers of his other classmates. He'd heard them too much before to be phased by them now. He looked down at Morgana, who was sitting in his desk, looking at him in curiosity.
"What was that about?" the feline whispered.
"It's nothing," Naruto replied quickly. "Go ahead and meet the others on the roof and tell them that you found a place to investigate. I'll be along as soon as I can to help you explain." Morgana looked at him for a couple moments before nodding. Naruto settled down in his seat, his thoughts still on what Ms. Kawakami had said. "She mentioned a Princess Kaguya that went to the moon. That has to be a massive coincidence, right? There's no way she was here in this world as well." Somehow it felt like he was trying to reassure himself.
After School
Naruto trudged towards the teacher's lounge, ready to get chewed out. He found Ms. Kawakami at her desk, working on a ledger of some sorts. "Damn it," she muttered quietly. "Looks like I'll have to take that offer after all." Naruto shrugged; it didn't deal with him right now. He cleared his throat.
"I'm here, Kawakami-sensei," he said. Ms. Kawakami's head jerked up, her hand reflexively covering the ledger.
"Ah, Uzumaki-kun," she said. "Have a seat, please." Naruto nodded and sat down in an available seat. She turned toward him, a stern gaze in her eyes. "Your concentration has been slipping recently, Uzumaki-san," she said. "That's not the first time I've noticed you paying little attention in class." She sighed a bit, softening her expression. "I know things have been…difficult, especially with what's happened with Suzui-san and Kamoshida, but you can't let it affect your studies. I don't want you losing out on your future." Naruto nodded.
"I apologize, Kawakami-sensei," he replied. "I appreciate your concern. I'll pay more attention in class from now on." He'd heard this same song and dance before. Ms. Kawakami looked at him for a moment before nodding.
"Alright. I'll let you off without detention for now." She seemed to be debating something. After a couple moments, she continued. "Say, Uzumaki-san? I know exams are coming up next week. If you don't think you're prepared for them, I'd be willing to tutor you tomorrow to help you catch up." Naruto was a bit taken aback.
"Wow, who knew a teacher could care about me here?" he thought to himself. However, he already knew what he was going to do for the upcoming exam. The blond shook his head.
"I appreciate the kind offer Kawakami-sensei, but I'm sure I'll be fine! I'm usually pretty good when crunch time comes." He flashed his foxy mask. The teacher nodded, though she still looked a bit concerned.
"If you say so, Uzumaki-kun, then I'll trust you. I'll expect good results from you then during the exams!"
"Alright, Kawakami-sensei!" he replied. "Did you need me for anything else?" She shook her head.
"No, you can run along Uzumaki-kun. Enjoy your weekend!" Naruto nodded and got up.
"You too, Kawakami-sensei," he replied. Naruto left the student council lounge, only to find Akira and the others coming down the stairs. "What's up guys?" the Uzumaki asked. "I thought we were meeting on the roof?" Ryuji scowled deeply.
"Well not any more, thanks to that stupid student council president," he replied. Naruto's eyes widened.
"You guys ran into prez?" Akira's eyebrows rose.
"You're familiar enough with Niijima-buchou to refer to her so casually?" he noticed. Naruto sighed.
"It's…complicated," he replied. "But never mind that. So she showed up on the roof?"
"Yeah," Ann agreed. "She told us the roof was being closed down due to what happened before. She was acting very suspicious about the three of us meeting. She was especially curious of Akira's feeling towards Kamoshida." She looked around at the others. "You think she might be on to us?" Naruto frowned a bit.
"She said she'd been tasked with an investigation, but I didn't think she'd already have us pegged. Then again, it's not like there are any other likely suspects, what with the rumors about." Ryuji waved Ann's worry off.
"Don't worry about it Ann. Even if she suspects us, how's she gonna prove it?" He turned to Naruto. "Anyway, Morgana was telling us about a way we might be able to change other people's hearts." Naruto pretended to be surprised.
"Really? That sounds awesome! Well, let's go and see then." Ryuji nodded and headed off towards the stairs, with the others following behind. As they descended, Naruto saw Morgana poke his head out of Akira's bag and give him a questioning glance. Naruto just mouthed "You can take this," hoping he would pick up the hint. It was better for everyone if they thought Morgana had discovered this. He didn't need more attention on him.
Shibuya, Central Plaza
"So…what are we supposed to be doing here? Don't we need to have a location to go into someone's Palace?" Ryuji asked. The group was standing just outside of one of the subway entrances. A parade of people streamed in and out of the stairs to the station.
"Just hold on a second, Ryuji, you'll see," Morgana said. "Now, can one of you search that Phan-site thing, and look for a request giving the full name of the target?" Akira pulled out his phone and started searching.
"Hmm…here's one. 'My ex-boyfriend has been stalking me ever since we broke up. He's a teller at City Hall. I don't know what to do anymore. His name is Nakanohara Natsuhiko.'" Ann grimaced.
"Ew, what a creep," Morgana grinned.
"That sounds like a target to me. Now, open up the Meta-Nav and input that name."
"Alright, time for another target!" Ryuji said with a smirk.
"Hey! Didn't we agree to do things by unanimous decision?" Ann called out. Naruto raised an eyebrow.
"So…you don't want to do this then?" Ann sighed.
"I didn't say that," she muttered. "Fine, let's do this." Akira nodded and opened up the app.
"Alright, we have to have a name and location to find the Palace, right?" Morgana shook his head.
"Not this time. Instead of a location, enter the keyword 'Mementos.'" Ryuji scratched his head.
"What are you trying to pull, cat?" Morgana bristled.
"I'm not a cat! Just trust me; this should work…I think." Ryuji rolled his eyes.
"Not that again. Are you sure of anything?" Naruto decided to step in.
"Hey Ryuji, cut him a break. It's not like any of us know anything better." Morgana shot the Uzumaki a grateful look. Ryuji shrugged.
"Fine, fine." Suddenly, the feminine voice spoke from Akira's phone.
"Candidate found, beginning navigation." Ryuji perked up.
"Whoa, it actually worked?!" he exclaimed. Naruto couldn't help but smirk and glanced back at the feline as the red and black ripples began to emanate from the phone, who was wearing a similar grin.
Metaverse
The group found themselves standing in the same location as before. Akira looked around.
"The people are gone," he said. "And the ground feels significantly different." Ann nodded.
"It almost feels like we're walking on air…What is this place?" Morgana hopped out of his bag.
"Come on, I'll explain inside." Morgana descended into the subway entrance. Naruto began to follow the feline before turning to the others, who were still looking confused.
"Well, what are you waiting for? He's definitely on to something here." Akira, Ann, and Ryuji glanced at each other before nodding and following the blond inside.
"So, any questions about Mementos?" Morgana said. Upon the group's arrival on the first level of Mementos, Morgana had proceeded to explain what he and Naruto had found earlier. Naruto pretended to be intrigued and surprised like the others at the discovery, although more than once, he caught Akira glancing in his direction.
"So, essentially, this place is the collective Palace of the general public, and we can possibly change the hearts of the people connected to here, even if they don't have a Palace?" Ann asked. Morgana nodded and gave her a giant grin.
"Precisely, Panther! You're quick on the uptake as always."
"Whatever! It sounds like this will be a great place to train in between big targets as well," Ryuji said. He pounded his fist into his hand. "Alright, let's get this party started!"
"Wait a second." Akira spoke up. The others looked in his direction. "If this place really is like the subway, then it's bound to be massive. It's going to be difficult if we're supposed to just walk for several kilometers." Naruto turned to Morgana.
"He's got a point," he agreed. He frowned as he thought of any possible solutions. "Hey Mona, what about that bus thing you did when we first met?" Morgana smirked.
"Good call, Shinobi!" He moved to the side. "Alright, everyone, stand back." He started moving into sentai poses. "Morgana…transform!" After leaping into the air, a cloud of smoke surrounded his body as he became the black bus he'd transformed into back in front of Kamoshida's Palace. He blinked his headlights. "Alright, climb aboard!" Akira, Ann, and Ryuji just stared in blank shock. Ryuji was the first to recover.
"What the hell? Since when could you do that?" he exclaimed.
"Since always," Morgana replied a bit smugly. "I just never saw a good moment in Kamoshida's dungeon to use this form. I mean, do you really think I could have taken all the stairs and stuff like this? Also, I probably would have given away our position." Akira turned to Naruto with a raised eyebrow.
"I take it you've seen Mona do this before?" Naruto shrugged and nodded.
"It was back when you and Ryuji had ditched us in the Metaverse. We used it to get out of there." Akira looked down.
"I still feel pretty bad about that," he replied. Naruto clapped him on the back.
"It's no biggie Joker. You couldn't have known." The Uzumaki pulled himself into the driver's seat. "It's still really weird that you can do this, Mona."
"Like you have much room to talk on weird, Shinobi," the bus replied. "Besides, it's not my fault." For some reason, the public just thinks cats transforming into buses isn't that out of the ordinary." Naruto just sighed and looked to the others.
"So what, you guys aren't going to jump in?" Ann looked at the others for a moment before climbing into the back.
"If you both say it's alright, then I don't see why not." Akira nodded and got into the passenger seat next to Naruto. Ryuji quickly scrambled in behind him.
"Hey, wait for me!" He looked to Naruto. "So, you know how to drive then?" Naruto grinned.
"Relax, my boss made sure I knew how just in case something happened. He reached under the dashboard and pressed the button to start the engine. Morgana's engine let out a soft purr.
"That feels so good," the bus said. "Alright, ready to roll everyone?"
"We're all set!" Naruto strapped on the seat-belt. "You all might want to buckle up," he said with a foxy smile. He stepped on the gas pedal. "Here we go!" With a lurch, the bus of thieves launched forward and descended into the depths.
Mementos, Path of Qimranut
Morgana's bus form and its passengers barreled through the numerous tunnels, racing over the train tracks. The group quickly learned that Naruto's driving skills, while solid, didn't necessarily make for a casual ride. Ann winced as Naruto took another sharp turn down a different tunnel, the wheels skidding a bit. "Uh, Shinobi," Ann said. She gripped the seat in front of her. "Are you sure you're good to drive? You do have your license, right?"
"License? Huh, that's news to me," Naruto replied. "The boss never told me I'd need one of those," Ann sighed.
"That figures," she muttered. Ryuji grinned beside her.
"Aw, don't worry about it, Panther. Shinobi's seems to have it down." Unbeknownst to the delinquent, Saiken chimed up in agreement.
"Agreed, my esteemed ally's skills are unparalleled. I've never been able to travel this fast before!" Naruto smirked.
"That's because you're not exactly built for speed, Saiken." He looked outside the window at the dark passages lined with grotesque veins of black matter. "Man, this place definitely feels like a Palace to me."
"Indeed," Akira agreed. He kept his gaze focused on the road ahead. "It's kind of disturbing that the Palace of the general public would be so…dreary. The fact that we're in our thief outfits means that the Shadows at least know we're here as well." As Naruto turned a corner to another tunnel, he sighed.
"You just had to say it, didn't you, Joker," he said. Akira and the others saw the bipedal mass of dark miasmic sinew slinking through the tunnel. Naruto could spot a large ceramic mask where its face would be, as well as several smaller masks on its body. "Looks like we've got company, guys," he said. "Hey Mona, think we could strike first by hitting the guy while you're like this?" The bus's engine revved a little in response.
"I'm game if you are. It's time to throw my weight around!" Ann's eyes widened.
"Wait, are you two serious?" she exclaimed. Naruto nodded and increased the pressure on the gas.
"Here we go. Better hold on!" The bus's speed increased as they rocketed towards the Shadow. Just as they were about to collide, Naruto slammed his foot on the brakes and swerved the steering wheel. The vehicle's frame swung around, smacking the Shadow away with its momentum. The creature was blown off its feet and landed on its back a few meters away. Naruto saw the Shadow's main mask shatter as its body melted into the dark puddle. "Alright, score one for us!" he said with a smirk. "Time to get out and fight!" The others quickly piled out of Morgana and drew their weapons. Once everyone was out, Morgana transformed back into his feline form. The dark puddle soon exploded, revealing three dark green masses of oozing rotten sludge, with red eyes and a black gaping mouth.
"Eww, they look so gross," Ann said with a shudder. The slimy masses glared at her in unison.
"How dare you look down on us!" One of them gurgled. They all lurched towards her. Ryuji stepped in between them.
"Not so fast!" Ryuji rushed towards the nearest sludge monster, swinging his pipe. However, he found himself flung backward, as the ooze just stretched under the force before rebounding. The oozing masses seemed to burble with mirth at Ryuji's attempt. The delinquent landed on his butt. "Damn, that didn't do much," he muttered. Akira helped him to his feet.
"Looks like physical attacks aren't going to do much against them," he noticed.
"Then how about an elemental skill then!" Ann said. "Carmen, Agi!" The cigar-smoking femme fatale appeared behind her, launching a red ball of flames at the slime mass Ryuji had attacked. This time, the green slime reeled back, a painful gurgle escaping its maw.
Morgana smirked. "Alright, now that's more like it!" the feline s Naruto nodded.
"Good call Mona! Saiken, let's use Frei!" The six-tailed slug appeared behind him.
"With pleasure, my esteemed ally! We shall blow these fools away!" A large bubble filled with glowing energy appeared in Naruto's hand. He hurled it at a different slime and watched with satisfaction as the explosion took a small chunk of its mass. The group began peppering the monsters with their different techniques. Ann and Carmen tossed fireballs, while Ryuji and Captain Kidd blasted them with lightning bolts. Akira summoned a Succubus Persona and sent dark miasma bursts at the creatures. The monsters however, did not hold back, lunging towards them with any opening possible. Eventually, the one of the creatures let out a pitiful wail and dispersed into the black flecks. The eyes of one of the remaining sludge monsters narrowed.
"You'll pay for eliminating our comrade!" one of them shouted. "Prepare yourselves; you'll soon be joining him, even if it costs me my life!" Its body began to glow with energy. Naruto's eyes widened behind his mask.
"That doesn't sound good," he said. He glanced towards Akira. "Joker, your bird-man Persona has that ice move, right? Try to freeze the guy before he can burst!" The curly-haired teen nodded and held his hand to his mask, which begins to glow with ethereal flames. The Succubus Persona disappeared, and was replaced with the owl-headed figure.
"Andras, Bufu!" With a flap of its wings, it sent a barrage of ice shards at the viscous figure. Fortunately, the attack did the trick, as a film of frost coated the sludge monster, freezing him in place. Ryuji grinned.
"Alright, now we're talking! Alright Captain Kidd, let's let them have it!" The skeletal pirate appeared behind him with a menacing grin. Ryuji lowered his head and charged towards the frozen monster. The monster's body shattered upon impact, the fragments dispersing into nothing. The group surrounded the last creature.
"Nowhere for you to run now!" Morgana said. The remaining sludge creature cowed, its body shrinking in on itself.
"Can't we talk about this?" it whined piteously. "I'll give you anything you like!" Akira raised his eyebrow.
"Well then, I want you to join me," he replied. The creature looked at him curiously, its red eyes blinking a couple times.
"You want me to join you? Well, I don't know. Let's talk business." The oozing monster relaxed a bit. You know, I've never really felt complete before. Do you consider yourself complete?"
Akira chuckled. "Complete? I wouldn't say that, but I'm sure I'm getting there." The Shadow grinned.
"Well, I like your honesty." Naruto watched as Akira continued to effortlessly smooth-talk the Shadow.
"Damn, Joker sure makes a mean negotiator," he thought to himself. He'd seen Akira do this a few times before during Kamoshida's Palace infiltration, but he was still amazed by his ability. "That's not something you can just come up with on the spot. He's always had to have that kind of skill."
"Indeed, you have some skillful subordinates!" Saiken replied."That's to be expected though." After a bit of discussion, the slime monster rose up.
"I-I remember now! I'm not just some nameless Shadow. I'm known as Slime." A ghastly grin appeared on his face as he started glowing. "I am thou, thou art I. Pleasure to work with you!" The Shadow disappeared into the form of a mask which merged with Akira's own. Akira turned to the others.
"I guess that takes care of the Shadows. Shall we continue?" Morgana nodded and transformed back into the bus.
"I can feel the distortion from the target. They're close. Let's go!" The others nodded and piled into the vehicle. After a couple more turns, they arrived at a dead end. A swirling vortex of red and black streams spiraled in place, as the tracks beneath them abruptly stopped. The group piled out of Morgana.
"Well, this certainly seems like the place," Naruto commented. Akira couldn't help but smirk a little.
"Gee, I wonder what gave it away?" he said sarcastically. His smile fell as he adopted a more serious look and turned to Morgana. "So, you have any idea what we can inspect in there, Mona?" The little feline shook his head.
"Unfortunately not. I don't recall ever entering one before. As these are the beginnings of Palaces though, it shouldn't be necessarily too huge a space."
"So we're going in blind, huh?" Naruto said. "Then we'll just have to stay on the alert then. Is everyone one ready?" Ryuji grinned.
"Let's just get this show on the road already!" He rushed inside the vortex before anyone else could speak. Naruto sighed.
"Damn it, Skull," he muttered. He ran into the vortex after him, followed by the others.
Nakanohara's Memento
When the rest of the group emerged from the vortex, they found themselves on the steps of a large office building which descended into a large plaza with a central fountain. The area almost seemed normal, except for the eerie green tint of the overcast sky. Streams of office workers strolled in and out of the building behind them and throughout the plaza, however none of them gave the odd group a second glance. They found Ryuji looking around wildly.
"Next time Skull, don't go rushing in here without us," Naruto said. "It would have sucked if you'd had to face that guy's Shadow solo." Ryuji had the decency to look a little sheepish.
"Sorry about that," he said. "Still, what the hell is this place?"
"I'm…not sure," Morgana admitted. He looked around at the area. "I expected things would be a little different, but I wasn't expecting this!" Ann frowned.
"It feels kinda like Kamoshida's Palace, but not quite," she noted. Akira nodded.
"Almost as it is isn't quite finished yet," he agreed.
"That's because it isn't," Morgana explained. "Palaces don't just happen out of thin air. It first grows within Mementos before eventually breaking loose when their complete."
"I see," Akira replied. He peered closer at the features of the office workers. "These guys don't have faces," he realized. "Maybe they're just Nakanohara's cognitions."
"I wouldn't worry too much about them," Naruto said. "Our main goal is to find that Nakanohara guy's Shadow," he told the others. "Any ideas on that?" Ann folded her arms.
"His ex wrote in her request that he was stalking her, right? Maybe we just need to catch him in the act?" Morgana purred a bit.
"Excellent idea, Panther!" he said. Ryuji scoffed.
"And how exactly are we supposed to catch him among all these people?" he asked. "It's not like he's going to make it obvious."
"Maybe he will," Akira said. The others looked at him in surprise. "Cognitions are portrayed based on how the person views them. It's unlikely Nakanohara's cognition of his ex is going to look like everyone else here. We just need to find a cognition that stands out from the others." Naruto thought about it for a moment.
"That actually makes a lot of sense," he said. "Ann's cognition definitely stood out from the other girls in Kamoshida's Palace. Stands to reason the same would apply here." He looked around at the others. "Alright guys, let's spread out and look through all of these cognitions. One of them should be the ex's. However, don't stray too far from the others, and don't do something stupid that might spook the Shadow instead." He shot a glance at Ryuji, who could only chuckle sheepishly and look away. The rest of the group nodded and spread out. After several minutes of fruitless searching, Naruto was starting to get frustrated.
"This isn't as easy as I thought it would be," he muttered.
"Nothing about the Metaverse ever seems easy," Akira replied.
…Just then, Naruto's ears picked up a soft sniffle. He turned to see a small woman shorter than most of the other passerby, sitting at the edge of the fountain, with her back to the water. Unlike the other cognitions, he could clearly make out the despair on his face.
"I'll never escape him. He'll just keep toying with me," she mumbled.
"Looks like I found our target then," he thought to himself. He watched her stand up and begin walking towards an archway leading out of the plaza. As he examined her closer, he noticed her limbs seemed to move almost mechanically. Her skin also glistened with an unnatural sheen. "Wait a second, she's…a doll?!" he realized.
"A doll?" Saiken repeated in bewilderment. "I recall my former esteemed container, Utakata, gave one of those to his charge, Hotaru. But why does this person resemble such a thing?" Naruto narrowed his eyes.
"It's how our target sees her Saiken. To him, she's nothing more than a plaything," he replied. The Rokubi gurgled angrily.
"The fiend! We must stop him at once, my ally!" Naruto nodded. He quickly rounded up the others.
"I found the ex. It looks like Nakanohara sees her as nothing more than a doll." He pointed towards the cognition he'd noticed. The others spotted the lifeless looking woman.
"Are you for real!" Ann said indignantly. "What a douchebag!" Ryuji pounded his fist in his hand.
"Then let's go ahead and smash this guy!" He made to move after the doll cognition. However, Naruto grabbed the collar of his jacket.
"Not so fast Skull; we may have found Nakanohara's ex, but we haven't found him yet. He should be gearing up to stalk her to her home. Look around for someone following her." Akira focused his gaze on the multitude of people passing through. After a few moments he pointed to a man dressed in a black suit with a bowl cut who was also walking towards the archway.
"That's our target," he said firmly. "There's something…off about his presence." Naruto took a closer look.
"He's also the only other person I've seen with a face here," he added. Morgana grinned.
"Alright, we've got our target. Now, let's stick to the shadows and trail him." The group nodded and stealthily followed the bowl-cut man. After crossing through the archway, they found themselves in front of a tall apartment complex next to a small street lined with various cars. Naruto saw the doll woman enter into the apartment building, being closely followed by the bowl-haired man. Naruto whipped out a shuriken and threw it so it would just nick the person's cheek. The man whipped around, almost snarling.
"Who dares interfere with my game!" he shouted. Glowing yellow eyes flashed behind his square spectacles. The others drew their weapons.
"You scumbag!" Ann shouted angrily. "You think you can just stalk you ex all you want? You don't even know how she feels?"
"So what? She's my toy! I can play with her however I want," the Shadow shot back. "It's not like she didn't play with my feelings either."
"Just because someone treats you like shit, doesn't mean you can turn around and do it to them!" Ryuji said. "It's bastards like you that need a change of heart, and we're the ones who are gonna do it!" Nakanohara's Shadow narrowed his eyes.
"You guys... You're those Phantom Thieves people are talking about! Why are you wasting your time on me when there are others ten times worse!" He grit his teeth. "Are you just going to let scumbags like Madarame get away scot free? That bastard stole everything from me!"
"Who the hell is Madarame?" Naruto asked before shaking his head. "Whatever, that still doesn't give you the right to be an asshole. So get ready to get your ass handed to you." Nakanohara's Shadow began shaking with rage.
"I won't let anybody ruin my playtime!" The Shadow exploded into the black pool of darkness. From it arose a child-sized imp creature, standing barely half Naruto's height. Its purple hair was still cut in a bowl cut, with tiny horns poking out. The imp constantly pranced from one foot to another, swinging its oversized hands from side to side. Its mouth was open in a perpetual grin, showing nothing but a couple of small fangs. "Looks like you need a lesson in how this dog-eat-dog world really works!" Nakanohara's Shadow sneered. He raised his hands as a red aura burst around him. Ann unfurled her whip and tried to smack him.
"You're the one who needs a lesson in manners!" she retorted. However, the red-skinned imp leaped high into the air and landed over ten feet back.
"You'll have to do much better than that!" Morgana narrowed his eyes.
"I've got your back, Panther. Zorro! Garu!" The feline shot a blade of wind at the target. Once again, Nakanohara bounced away. He landed on top of a car, crushing the hood beneath his weight. Morgana scowled. "This guy's too fast. We need to pin him down." Naruto nodded.
"On it! Saiken, let's use Masukunda!" The ethereal form of the massive slug appeared behind him.
"Of course, my esteemed ally!" The Rokubi inhaled deeply and spat a large green smog which drifted towards the Shadow. However, the cloud moved far too slow to ensnare the imp, who just hopped away and landed on the sidewalk. He cackled loudly.
"Still too slow! Now it's my turn." The Shadow burst forward. He landed in the middle of the group and started swinging his large fists wildly, hitting everyone. The entire group was blown away by the force of the punches. Naruto managed to right himself and land on his feet, skidding back a few feet before stopping. However, he could still feel the intense throbbing pain where the imp had struck his chest and leg.
"Damn it, that hurts! It's like I'm facing Rock Lee again!" he thought to himself. He looked at the others and saw their bodies scattered around. His eyes widened.
"Guys!" He threw a couple shuriken, forcing the imp to jump away again. He rushed over to his fallen comrades. Morgana was the first to stumble to his feet, having only been grazed by one of the punches. "Mona! We need healing, and fast!" Naruto called out. The feline shook his head and looked around.
"Yikes! Zorro, Media!" The black garbed fencer appeared and raised his sword into the air. A burst of shimmering light bloomed from the tip and fell upon each of them. Naruto could feel the pain subside a bit, however, it was not fully healed. The others began to recover and get back on their feet.
"Damn, that guy packs a mean punch," Ryuji said.
"It's that aura of his," Naruto said. "I'm pretty sure it's boosting his strength. He's also using it to turn his increased strength into speed. We're not going to catch him with attacks unless we can pin him down." The imp giggled as he continued hopping from one foot to another.
"Looks like you guys haven't had enough. Then let me-" A screech suddenly erupted from his mouth as a gunshot rang out. Akira was holding out his gun.
"While regular attacks and skills might not be fast enough, a bullet should be enough to do the trick," he said. "We'll have to take the fight to long range." Ann and Ryuji nodded and pulled out their guns, while Morgana pulled out his sling shot. They began firing at the imp, who quickly started jumping all over the area to avoid the shots, trying his own hits where he could. Naruto frowned.
"This is only going to work until we run out of ammo," he thought to himself. "We have to slow him down somehow, but the only thing I know that can do that is Saiken's Masukunda, which isn't going to him in an open space like this. I need some way to make it connect."
"Perhaps my new bubble skill will come to fruition?" Saiken asked. Naruto stopped and did a double take.
"Wait, you got a new skill?" He asked. "Since when did that happen?"
"I told you last night; another chain imprisoning me has been broken. It imparted me with knowledge of a new skill, 'Haze Bubble!'" The biju replied. "I was about to tell you last night before we were rudely interrupted." Naruto sighed.
"Next time, let me know a bit earlier," he replied. "Do have any idea how it works?"
"Alas, that information was not imparted, but I am sure as my esteemed ally, you will be able to figure it out." Naruto just shook his head.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence at least." Naruto noticed the green cloud from the Masukunda hadn't dissipated yet. "Maybe it has to do with that fog?" he wondered. "It's a good a guess as any." He looked at the others. "I've got an idea. Keep him covered!" The others nodded. The Uzumaki rushed towards the emerald cloud. "Saiken, use the Haze Bubble!" he called out. The biju appeared behind him.
"At once, friend Naruto!" he gurgled happily. He spat out a large bubble about the size of Naruto's chest. When the bubble made contact with the smog, it seemed to suck up the haze like a vacuum. Soon the entire cloud had disappeared inside the bubble, giving it a green glow. Naruto held the sphere in his hands and smirked.
"Alright, now this is more like it! I can definitely hit the little bastard with this." Nakanohara's Shadow jumped up onto the fire escape on the side of the apartment building.
"You think you can hit me all the way up here with that thing? Be my guest!" he sneered from his perch. Naruto just grinned.
"Well, if you're inviting me…" He ran towards the wall of the apartment complex and up the side towards him. The imp's mouth dropped even wider.
"W-what?!?" he screamed. Naruto ignored his cry and slammed the haze-filled bubble into the Shadow's chest. The bubble exploded, splashing a film of green gunk over the imp's body. Naruto followed up by using the rails of the fire escape and swinging around behind the Shadow. He planted his feet into its back knocking it from the fire escape. The creature slammed onto the ground. It stumbled to its feet. "You may have surprised me, but you haven't won yet!" he screeched. However, when he tried to jump, he found his movements felt as if he was walking through molasses. "What did you do to me!" the Shadow screeched. Naruto just grinned.
"I made you a sitting duck. Alright guys, let's let him have it!" The others surrounded Nakanohara's Shadow. Ryuji flashed a vicious smirk.
"Alright, it's time for some payback! Captain Kidd, Zio!"
"Carmen, Agi!"
"Zorro, Garu!"
"Succubus, Eiha!" Their Personas' attacks all collided in the center. A series of blasts and bangs echoed throughout the area as lightning, fire, wind and darkness swirled together in a lethal kaleidoscope. When the dust settled, the imp was standing in a small crater, teetering dangerously.
"And now for the finisher!" Naruto leaped off of the fire escape, kicking off the wall of the opposite building into the open area. Naruto landed in the awning above the apartment entrance, using it as a spring to propel him back into the air. "Saiken, Frei!" The biju appeared and released a shining bubble filled with energy from his mouth into Naruto's hand. Naruto slammed the attack as he landed, causing one final explosion. He walked back toward the others. Ryuji clapped him on the back.
"That was pretty sweet, Shinobi!" he said. "Since when could you put that haze into a bubble?"
"Since just now apparently," the Uzumaki replied shrugging. "I didn't actually know I could do that." The others looked at Naruto with a deadpanned expression. Suddenly the world briefly flickered, before the space around them began to shatter.
"What's going on?" Ann asked.
"I'm guessing it's like when we took out Kamoshida, his Mementos space is returning to normal," Morgana replied. The group watched as the street and the buildings around dissolved into a black platform. Nakanohara's Shadow was kneeling on the floor.
"I get it. I shouldn't have done what I did. I guess I didn't want to be abandoned again and began to fixate on her after that bastard teacher threw me aside like garbage." Ryuji scratched his head.
"You mean that Madarame guy?" he asked. Nakanohara nodded his head. Naruto narrowed his eyes.
"It might be good if I see what I can dig up about this guy," he thought to himself. Ann folded his arms.
"Still that doesn't give you the right to treat her wrong, just because of your problems," she said.
"I know. I'll make sure to completely end things with her this time," the Shadow replied. Nakanohara looked up at the group. Lights began to blink around him as his form started to fade. "Hey, if you guys really are changing people's hearts, then please take down that monster, before he makes another victim." Nakanohara's Shadow quickly disappeared, leaving nothing but a sphere of floating light.
"What's that?" Ryuji asked.
"It should be the bud of a Treasure," Morgana explained. "If left unchecked, it would have become complete, and Nakanohara would have developed his own Palace at that point. As it stands, I guess you can consider it the spoils of victory." Akira nodded walked up and grabbed the sphere before pocketing it. He turned to the others.
"So, do you guys think we were able to change Nakanohara's heart?" Naruto frowned.
"Honestly there's no way to tell at this point," Naruto replied. "It took us a little bit of time before we saw the results from Kamoshida."
"Not to fear, my comrade! I'm sure with my incredible skills at your disposal, the task was completed handily!" Saiken squeaked proudly. Naruto resisted the urge to smile.
"Maybe the ex-girlfriend will post again if he does change," Ann said.
"We'll just have to wait and see," Ryuji agreed. "But damn, that was intense." He grinned. "This Mementos place sure makes for a good place to train between our big shot targets." Ann nodded.
"Plus it'll give people the courage to post more requests like this." She looked around. "So, what do you guys want to do now? Should we head back?"
"Actually, I remembered there's something interesting a little further down that I want to check out," Morgana said. "It shouldn't be that far." Akira shrugged.
"I'm down for that," The others nodded their heads. Morgana smiled.
"I appreciate it, everyone." He transformed back into his bus form. "Alright, let's get a move on!" The rest of the group quickly piled in. They left the empty space through the swirling portal. As they emerged, Naruto mentally scanned the paths before him.
"Wait a sec; this isn't how the tunnels were laid out when we went in," he said.
"Due to the shifting consciousness of the public, the paths never stay the same," the bus advised. "Every time you go into the main portion of Mementos, the layout changes." Naruto sighed.
"That makes sense. It's going to screw with my sense of direction though."
"Anyway, I can feel the exit to the next floor. It shouldn't be too far away…I think." Ryuji rolled his eyes.
"Here we go with that again," he muttered. Fortunately, the feline-bus's instincts were correct, as after a couple of turns, they managed to find the subway platform, with a stalled escalator descending to the next floor. The group climbed out of Morgana, allowing him to transform back.
"So this leads to the next floor?" Ann asked. "How deep does this place go?" Morgana shrugged.
"I don't know, I haven't been able to explore anything past the next floor." The others looked at him questioningly. "You'll see why in a moment. Now let's go down already." The group proceeded down the stairway to the next floor, arriving at another large subway platform which stretched to make a pseudo-hallway. Grooves inlaid into the floor crisscrossed in a complex pattern, which glowed with an eerie crimson hue. Rows of tracks lined both sides of the platform, with multiple trains flying by. At the end of the hall stood a large dark metallic wall with similar glowing lines in a concentric patterns. At the bottom of the wall, the lines seemed to focus into two thick weaves on each side, almost giving the impression it was leering back at you. The group approached the structure.
"What, is this a dead end?" Ryuji asked.
"I hardly think the shared Palace of the general public would only have the one floor, Skull," Ann replied dryly. Morgana nodded.
"From what I recall from my previous explorations, I was never able to make it past this barrier." The feline frowned deeply. "I just know there's something down here though; this can't be a normal wall." He walked up and touched the barrier. Suddenly, the ground began to shake beneath their feet. They watched as the wall separated into sections and folded away, revealing a stairway descending further into the depths of Mementos. The feminine navigation voice chimed from Akira's phone.
"A new area has been confirmed in the depths. Updating guidance information." Morgana grinned victoriously.
"I knew there had to be more to Mementos! This place never budged when I came here before."
"But now another section has been revealed," Akira said. "I wonder why it's opening now though." Morgana turned to look at the others. His tail twitched as he tilted his head.
"Hmm, it's probably because of what we've done. Now that we've taken out Kamoshida and people are starting to talk about us, we've entered the public's cognition, revealing more of Mementos."
"Sweet! Do we wanna keep going then?" Ryuji asked. Naruto shook his head.
"We don't know what kind of Shadows are down there, not to mention we just finished a big battle. We'll get our asses handed to us if we're not prepared for it. I say we call it a day and go back."
"I agree." Akira nodded. "We've done what we came here to do. Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Ryuji looked between the two of them and sighed.
"Alright, let's go then."
Shibuya Central Plaza
The group re-emerged from the Metaverse back on the surface. "Well that was certainly a trip, wasn't it?" Ann said with a sigh. "It's still kind of weird to think that the public shares a massive Palace."
"I still don't get why that weird wall was there," Ryuji said. "What was that about?" Morgana stretched on the ledge he was perched on.
"I'm still not entirely sure about that. However, that wall prevented me from going past a certain depth. Since Mementos is the Palace of the general public, it may depend on the public's overall belief in us." Akira leaned back against the wall.
"That sounds like as good a theory as any," he agreed. "Still, why do you know so much about Mementos, Morgana?" The feline looked down.
"I…I don't know. My memories are still a little foggy. However, I'm absolutely certain I need to find out what's at the heart of Mementos. No matter what." He glanced around at the others, a resolute gaze in his blue eyes. "Mementos isn't just the general public's Palace; it's also the birthplace of all individual Palaces, like Kamoshida's. Normally, single-ruler Palaces like his didn't exist. Their appearance themselves is most likely due to some anomaly within Memento's depths. That's why, if we can fix that, I'm sure I'll be able to become human again." The feline ducked his head down.
"So, you were looking for someone to save you as well?" Ann said.
"No wonder you wanted to poke around with us," Ryuji said. Morgana looked up in horror.
"No, i-it's nothing like that. I just needed some minions, that's all!" he said. Ann grinned and walked over.
"Don't worry Morgana; I'll help you out. I'll make sure you can get back what you lost," she said softly. She began scratching behind Morgana's ears, causing him to purr and rub against her hand.
"Same here. I promise I've got your back, pal!" Naruto agreed. Morgana looked away bashfully.
"I…appreciate it. I'll count you guys from now on," he said. He managed to get a hold of himself. "A-anyway, now that we know we can perform minor changes of hearts, it'll be good if we occasionally take those requests and get some combat training between big targets." Akira pulled out his phone and began scrolling through the Phantom Aficionado Website.
"Unfortunately, I'm not seeing any other notable requests as of yet. Since not too many people believe in us, they aren't willing to post their requests."
"Yeah, but that's all going to change once we take down another big name target!" Ryuji said. "I bet everyone will be itching to make their posts then!" Morgana smirked.
"Maybe you should worry more about passing your exams first, Ryuji," he said smugly. The blond delinquent hung his head.
"Ugh, I'd rather face Kamoshida's Shadow again then study for that crap," he grumbled. He looked up at the others. "By the way, have any of you guys heard of that ghost rumor at school?"
"You mean the one about the kid who failed an exam and died?" Ann asked. Akira looked between the two of them.
"You mind filling me in on this?" he asked. Naruto had to suppress an involuntary shutter. Ann turned to him.
"It's been going round for a few months," she said. "They say there was a kid during the final exams before winter break that completely bombed his exam. He became so depressed that he went out into a blizzard one day and was never seen again. Now his ghost appears at night and haunts the school, whenever exams roll around, looking for the chance he'll never get to redeem himself."
"That sounds…remarkably mundane," Akira said.
"More like lame. You guys need a better ghost story," Morgana replied. "Regardless, you're the ones taking the test, not some ghost, so make sure you're prepared for it!" He glanced at the delinquent. "Looking at you, Ryuji."
"Hey, why are you singling me out, you stupid cat!"
Naruto's Shadow Guide Entry #14
Name: Oozing Literal Scumbags (Slime)
Description: These things are literally putrid-green piles of assorted crap with eyes and a mouth the size of a large log. Despite being more liquid than solid, their stretchy form lets them bounce physical attacks away. Not I'd ever want to touch them, even if I had a ten-foot pole.
Attacks: So they don't have any real attacks besides grossing people out. When they feel like they've been backed into a corner though, they'll try a kamikaze move and blow themselves up, trying to take you with them.
How to beat: So yeah, since these guys are both extremely disgusting and physically resistant, the best move is to throw an elemental skill their way. Wind and Fire skills work especially well. Just be sure to finish them quickly if they start glowing, or else you'll be in a world of hurt.
Skill Reference
Haze Bubble: Used in conjunction with Saiken's mass debuff skills. Allows for debuff skill to be contained within bubble, which can then be launched at single target. Targets hit with bubble will feel debuff for increased duration and effectiveness.
Magician Arcana (Morgana): Rank 1 - 2
Whew, that was a massive chapter. While it takes me longer to put out, I kinda like this method of longer chapters. I'd love to hear your feedback and whether you like it. I'm hoping you guys like what I'm doing with Mementos missions. All of them will be featuring their own mini-Palaces, each with their own unique gimmicks. They won't be super frequent, but you'll see at least one between arcs. Tell me what you think.
Speaking of which, for those of you who might be getting impatient, (don't worry, I am too) Madarame's arc will be happening within one or two more chapters of this length. Like Kamoshida's dungeon, I plan on mixing up the progression of things, so look forward to that. I just have to play through the arc in order to plan everything out.
As always, read and review, and PMs are welcome!