June 11th.

It was early in the morning. Hifumi had to get ready for school. She was acting like everything was normal, but she did feel a bit rattled from the events of yesterday. Goro Akechi managed to defeat her in her first Shogi loss in…a long time. Not only that, but he posed questions about the Phantom Thieves she supported that she had no answer to. It was a bit rough, but she had to shake it off. It was time for another day of school. As she went towards the door, she overheard her mother speaking to someone on the phone. "…?"

"Yes, that's right. That's the one she'll be facing in her next match." Mitsuyo said. She noticed Hifumi walking towards the door and waved her off as if to say goodbye and good morning. "I've already sent the money."

"…" Hifumi didn't really have much to say since her mother was busy talking to someone, likely setting up her next match. When she slipped her shoes on and walked out the door, she checked her phone while walking to the train station. She was running on time, but there was something different that bothered her. "What is this…?" There was a strange app on her phone she did not recall downloading. It was orange and icon was an eyeball. "I'll simply delete it." She took her index finger, touched the app, and swiped it into the trash bin. Problem solved. "That was odd…I shouldn't be on my phone so late anymore…"

Meanwhile, Hifumi's mother was finishing up her conversation. "I expect good results. Hifumi's career is dependent on the erasure of her rivals, Kaneshiro-san. This way, you'll get your money, and I'll get her rise to stardom."

.

.

Many students of Shujin were buzzing about the interview with Akechi. He had become quite a big deal after proclaiming that the Phantom Thieves were outlaws and needed to be tried in court. Ren and Ryuji were taking lunch time in the courtyard, where Ryuji bitterly recalled the events of yesterday. "Man, that detective yesterday really pissed me off! We're some kinda threat!? Let's see him do it then!" His fist hit the nearby vending machine, but not hard enough to damage it. "If someone else could help them, we wouldn't be doing stuff as the Phantom Thieves to start with!"

Ann walked around the corner with a snack in hand and mouth, using her hand to whack Ryuji on the neck. "You're being way too loud. I can hear you from around the corner."

"Ow." Ryuji grunted. "Who cares? It's no big deal. Everyone's already talkin' about it. Wouldn't it be more suspicious if we were whisperin'?"

"That's not the point…" Ren sighed. Ryuji was just being a bit too loud in a public setting for his liking.

Ryuji stared at Ann eating her snack, appalled that she wasn't even offering one! "Hey! Are you just gonna keep eatin' and eatin and eatin' that stuff all by yourself? Gimme some!"

"Sorry, just ate the last one." Ann shrugged casually.

Morgana popped up from Ren's bag. "You guys are being way too lax…the police are getting involved, you know." He had to remind them of the growing severity of their situation.

"So you think it's true? We'll be okay if we keep doing this, right…?" Ann glanced away. She was still having some doubts about being a Phantom Thief after what Akechi said.

"We can't let the cops scare us about of bein' Phantom Thieves." Ryuji replied.

"But…what about that weird guy in Madarame's Palace? There's still a lot we don't know…" Ann trailed off, interrupted by the sudden flash of a camera.

Everyone turned around, only to see Makoto standing around the corner with a condescending smile. "The hell…?" Ryuji was a bit wide eyed.

"You all seem to be having such fun together. I'm honestly a little jealous." Makoto said.

"Are you snoopin' on us again?" Ryuji let out a scoff. This wasn't the first time Makoto approached the three of them like this and it surely felt like it wouldn't be the last. "I said before, we don't know nothin'."

"Why do you think I'm here to question you? Could it be that you're hiding something?" Makoto tilted her head just a bit. "My ears are always open to the troubles of my peers, you know."

To Ann, that was just the most textbook basic answer Makoto could have given and she wasn't going to stand for it. "You're really that hungry for a letter of recommendation? Ugh, of course you are. No one would take on your annoying job if they weren't."

Makoto's red eyes cut towards Ann after that remark. "What's that supposed to mean…?"

Ann took a step forward, gaze narrowing at Makoto. "You're student council president right? You should have known about Kamoshida, right?"

Makoto glanced away. She didn't know, but knowing the truth of the incident did pain her. Even worse knowing that even the Principle was willing to turn a blind eye to the suffering of students for…who knows why. "Of course not! He honestly was a good teacher until that day…"

Ann rolled her eyes and then glanced to the side. "Oh, but you always take the teacher's side, right?"

"Then what did you do?" Makoto asked immediately. "How did you help your friend? You were much closer to her than I was…"

"There wasn't any way to help!" Ann exclaimed. "By myself, I couldn't do anything for her!"

"…There's no need to shout…" Makoto's voice lowered just a bit.

"If those Phantom Thieves were out there helpin' people, I'd root for them, no questions asked." Ryuji responded. "They gotta be more dependable than…some people I know."

Makoto lowered her head. Somehow, Ryuji's words ended up being the thing that dissuaded her pushing this topic any further. "Just make sure you show up to your classes…" With that, she rounded the corner and walked off.

As soon as Makoto left, Ann turned to the others with a serious look. "Remember what I said earlier, about how we'd be okay? I take it back now. I'd be ashamed to let it end now."

"Hell yeah. It's about time we start looking for our next target, too." Ryuji was in agreement. Makoto's questioning only fueled their desire to continue their work as Phantom Thieves.

Makoto didn't actually leave, though. She was still around the corner with her phone in hand, chest tightening up as she found herself stuck between a rock and a hard place. All these expectations placed upon her for one reason or another, all while her hands were tied and her arm was twisted…it wasn't easy on her, but no one could ever understand how she felt. She was alone. "If only I could…"

.

.

Things at Kosei high were a bit too noisy for Hifumi's liking. While Akechi's interview had most people talking, there were many others who also knew about Hifumi's own. She didn't particularly care much for being on TV, but her mother demanded it and she hardly had a say. Plus this was her first time being back at school in two days. During lunch, she kept to herself as she always did, but today was an unfortunate day as there were a few students who just had to hear her opinion. "…Ugh…" She could see them approaching her now. A group of boys, likely some of her fans…which only made it a bit more irksome since reputation in the Shogi world gained her a lot of fanboys.

"Togo-san, we saw you on TV the other day!" A male student said.

"You believe in the Phantom Thieves?" Another male asked.

"I have no reason not to believe in them…I think they exist." Hifumi didn't make eye contact and her voice was low. She was just trying to enjoy her lunch.

"Your opinion goes directly against what Goro Akechi said…!" The first year in the group said. "There are a lot of people talking about it online already."

"Akechi…?" Hifumi did not know about that part. Thinking about Akechi made her a bit mad, since she was defeated by him in their game of Shogi only just yesterday. It was around this point that Yusuke was rounding the corner, but he stopped when overhearing the conversation.

"Ugh, does she seriously believe in the Phantom Thieves?" A second year female overheard the conversation. "There's no way they're heroes or anything like that. Akechi is totally right, they have to be brought in."

"I agree." A third year female added her opinion. . "They're just doing whatever they want and call it justice."

"You don't think they help people?" Hifumi turned her green gaze to the third year. "They stopped that teacher…and even exposed Madarame, which helped Kitagawa-san."

"Oh please…" The third year scoffed. "They probably only did it for the publicity."

"How can you say that?" Hifumi's voice rose a bit, catching everyone off guard since she was generally a soft spoken person. "All they do is help people. And that's what I'll believe until proven otherwise."

"But-!" The third year was about to speak, but that's when Yusuke came walking in.

"I think I can agree with her." Yusuke said. "They've helped even someone like me, who they had no affiliation with, simply for the sake of wanting to do so."

"Agh, he's here now…" The third year huffed and walked off. Most of people in Kosei were avoiding Yusuke after the Madarame incident, so it didn't take long for the scene to scatter shortly after his arrival.

"They left fast…" Hifumi let out a quiet sigh. That was more troublesome to deal with than she would have liked. "Thank you for your help."

"Don't mention it." Yusuke said with a slight nod. "I know the news about the Phantom Thieves has people divided right now, but I'm on the side that they exist. I wouldn't have been saved otherwise, and for that I am very grateful to them, and it's nice to know there is another who believes in them as well."

Hifumi offered a slight smile in response. "I know it's not much, but hearing about their heroic acts gives me a bit of courage." Not enough to completely stand up to her mother, but the influence was strong enough for her to rebel a little bit here and there; the interview being the strongest point of defiance so far for her. "I hope they can continue to save people who are being oppressed by the adults around them."

Yusuke had to hide his glee. He was fully aware of the growing circumstances surrounding the Thieves' reputation, but hearing that Hifumi was in their corner made their actions feel worth it to him. "I'm certain they will."

"Oh, by the way…" Hifumi glanced at Yusuke's belongings. He was missing something, which was odd considering lunch just started. "…Where's your lunch?"

"…..I spent the last of my money buying a gift." Yusuke admitted.

This caused Hifumi to sweat. Was he serious…? "…I…don't have any words."

.

.

With school over for the week, Ren and the others met up with Yusuke in Station Square. Ren did have plans to take the group to Mementos, but things weren't going to be that simple. Yusuke was reading comments on his phone regarding the Phantom Thieves. "Comments are coming in at an alarming rate. However, negative ones seem to be more prominent. A criminal group that does whatever it wants in the name of justice…huh…"

"Prolly cause of Akechi…" Ryuji grumbled. "TV's got some crazy sway…"

"He's free to think what he wants, but being cursed by his influence is another thing entirely." Yusuke replied. Akechi denouncing them really did a number on the reputation they were just starting to build.

"Just when we were getting people to believe in us too…" Ann sighed, pulling out her phone to look at comments as well. "Even with Hifumi's good word, it seems like Akechi has more people on his side…"

"Do you mean Hifumi Togo?" Yusuke turned to Ann.

"That's right." Ann said with a slight smile. "We met her during our social studies trip to the TV station. She had an interview and said she supports the Phantom Thieves! We even hung out with her too, she's a great girl."

"I see…" Yusuke gave a nod. It was quite a coincidence that they encountered someone from his school by chance. "I've noticed some comments pitting the two's opinions against one another…having two people with different opinions is turning things into a somewhat heated argument."

"Just when we were getting started too…" Ren said. There were still people who didn't believe in them

"All we gotta do is take out another hotshot, yeah?" Ryuji suggested, but that was far easier said than done.

"Do you have any ideas on who this 'hot shot' could be?" Yusuke asked.

"I got nothin'…" Ryuji grumbled. It was a pain in the ass as far as he was concerned. Speaking of being concerned, he glanced at the bags Yusuke had with him. "By the way, what's with the bags?"

"I decided to move out from the school dorms." Yusuke explained. "Not only were they messy, but far too noisy as well. No true art could be created there."

"Do you have a place to stay? You can't go back to that shack, can you?" Ryuji asked. It seemed a bit rash of Yusuke to leave the only place he could stay.

"I was planning on staying at Takamaki-sa…I mean, Ann's house." Yusuke was still getting used to the fact they were all on a first name basis here. "I even brought some sweets as a gift for her parents. I hope it's to their liking."

Ann could not believe that her house was Yusuke's backup plan. "What!? There is no way that's happening!"

Oh. No. That was Yusuke's only plan and somehow it wasn't working!? "But…I spent all my money on these Japanese sweets…"

"That is not the issue here!" Ann shouted. "Seriously, what are we gonna do about him?"

"…Did you…really think that would work?" Ren could only stare. They were still getting used to Yusuke's eccentricity, but it felt like something they'd never quite get a hold of. Every time they gathered together the artist proved to be more than they expected. This was also the second time he had no money.

Morgana popped out from the bag. "Since Yusuke is an important member of our team, I have a solution to help him out. You can come stay with us! It's dirty, but at least you'll have a place to sleep!"

"WHAT!?" Ren turned his head to Morgana. Was he serious!?

"Why are you the one callin' the shots?" Ryuji asked Morgana.

"Don't you guys live in a café…? In Yongen, right?" Ann asked. "And that's not too far from here…"

"Yup! And the café is only a minute walk from the station." Morgana was continuing to sell this idea against Ren's wishes.

"how about we go there then? We can have a party to celebrate Madrame's change of heart." Ann was liking this idea the more they discussed it.

And Ryuji was on board too. "Oh, good idea! We can make it a welcome part for Yusuke too!"

"Yeah! Let's go!" Ann and Ryuji started to walk off.

"Sorry for causing so much trouble." Yusuke said while following behind the other two. "By the way, I prefer sleeping on a futon."

As Yusuke walked off, Morgana just gave Ren a grin. "It'll be up to you to convince the Chief." And then Ren violently jostled the bag to rattle Morgana. "GAAAAH!"

"You know he won't go for that!" Ren groaned. Things between him and Sojiro were slowly improving, but this felt like a considerable jump compared to just helping out around the shop. "I can't believe you put me into this impossible situation…" They were supposed to go to Mementos today, but, well…that wasn't happening anymore.

.

.

Leblanc was their new destination. Ann led the way inside, taking in the smell of the café. "Mmm…it smells so nice."

"It's kinda old though and outdated…" Ryuji remarked while looking around. "But I don't hate it."

"People refer to that as retro." Yusuke replied.

Sojiro was looking over various blends when he heard some people talking. When he turned, he saw Ren and his friends. "Hm? Who are they?" He asked Ren, narrowing his eyes a bit.

"Hello!" Ann said with a bright smile.

"A girl too…?" Now Sojiro was really surprised. Ren really was making friends? That…was a good thing. Less for him to worry about, so long as they weren't people that would put his probation at risk.

"Ren's really helped us a lot lately." Ann's smile never faded. It was pretty hard for Sojiro to be distant with such a friendly girl in Ren's company.

"I bet you've been the ones doing all the helping." Sojiro cracked a small smile.

"No really, he's been great!" Ann insisted.

"Huh…" Sojiro was in awe. "Sit down; this round'll be on the house." He then turned to Ren. "You're helping though."

"Fair enough." Ren nodded. Perhaps this wouldn't be so bad…well, everything but asking Sojiro about letting Yusuke bunk here for who knows how long. He wasn't looking forward to having that conversation. For now, Ren put his bag down and put an apron on, helping Sojiro as he made some coffee for his friends, but had soda ready in case they weren't a fan of coffee.

"Mmm…it's so delicious." Ann was enjoying her cup of coffee; it was probably the best one she'd ever had.

"It truly is magnificent…" Yusuke could agree with Ann here.

"Really? You gotta let me try some!" Ryuji reached over to take Ann's cup, taking a sip of coffee. The exact second the bitter taste hit his tongue; he put the cup down and started gagging. "Agh! It's so bitter…!" He groaned, reaching for the cup of soda he had and downed it in a heartbeat. "That's got to be cruel and unusual punishment…!"

Sojiro just let out a quiet chuckle. "Yeah, I didn't like coffee when I was a kid either." So watching Ryuji react the same way he did when he was younger made him smile.

"Oh, you know…I think I saw Leblanc mentioned in a magazine article once." Ann said.

"That was a long time ago." Sojiro said before turning to Ren. "These are your friends, yeah? Why don't you take them up to your room?"

"Oooh, I wanna see!" Ann hummed.

"Alright, come on up." Ren washed his hands, hung up his apron, and led the others up to his room. Ryuji and Yusuke followed, but Ann stayed behind when she noticed Sojiro staring at her.

"Huh?" Ann blinked.

"You're…?" Sojiro lingered for a moment. He was still just…kind of in awe that such a nice girl was hanging around Ren.

"Ann Takamaki." Ann introduced herself.

"Ann-chan. Do you have a boyfriend?" Sojiro asked. He seriously just had to find out more about this girl that was friends with Ren.

"Nope, never have either." Ann replied.

"Whoa! Ann, you gotta come check this out!" Ryuji called from upstairs.

Ann gave Sojiro a slight smile, before noticing the bags left downstairs. "Ugh, they had to leave the Mona bag down here?" It was a café! People couldn't see the animal. So she picked up the bag and went upstairs.

"Nice girl." Sojiro said to himself. Seems like he didn't have anything to worry about concerning the company Ren had around him.

.

.

There was a girl in her room, on her computer, listening in to the conversation in Leblanc. She adjusted her headphones, wrinkling her nose at Sojiro's words. "Nice girl, huh…" Listening in on Leblanc was one of her own self-appointed duties. She'd been hearing a lot about the one on probation living in the café's attic, and now he had friends? Hm…

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After school, Hifumi and Mitsuyo were in Shibuya. Mitsuyo called a taxi to drive them to a certain building, where two of her subordinates were waiting. It was about time to continue boosting Hifumi's publicity. Even if the interview didn't exactly go the way Mitsuyo wanted, she could still use it to her advantage. "This is an important time for my daughter. So you will treat her with the utmost respect. Understand?"

"Y-Yes ma'am, Mitsuyo-san." A staff member said.

"Good." Mitsuyo gave a slight smile and turned to Hifumi. "I'll be back for you later this evening."

"Bye…" Hifumi gave a curt bow as the taxi carrying her mother drove off, only to sigh quietly after.

"So…we're supposed to spend more on publicity?" The second man asked. They wouldn't dare say it to Mitsuyo's face, but how popular did she need her daughter to be?

"I'm terribly sorry." Hifumi told the two men. "I'll try and have a talk with her later. I know this is starting to become a bit inconvenient for you…"

"Don't worry about it. If anything, Mitsuyo Togo knows how to promote you. I guess that's expected since you are her daughter." The other man said. "We got a meeting to figure out, but we'll get back to her soon."

"Right…" Hifumi gave a slight nod as the two men walked off. Once again, her mother had pretty much dropped her off in Shibuya for a business meeting that…she didn't exactly have any say in. So it just meant she had some time to kill until it was time to go home. Curiously enough, she heard her phone buzz. "Oh…is it Ann…?" Hifumi pulled her phone out, only to see that the app she deleted…came back somehow. "Huh? I swear I deleted this…" Before she went to delete it again, her index finger hovered over a certain icon. Her mother's name was written down. "How did…that happened?" She decided that standing out in the open would not be the best place to fiddle with this mysterious app, an app that was looking more like some kind of navigation app. Morbid curiosity took hold of Hifumi Togo in this very moment, preparing to figure out how this mysterious app worked…