Review Time:
James Birdsong - Thank ye.
Anime Borat - As someone who started Y0 recently myself, I find myself thinking "man these guys are so cool" every other second but in reality they're not heroes. It's one of those games I wish I had played first before writing it lol. And yeah, I was thinking the same thing regarding Layton and Osaka.
Chapter 41 - Persona 5
In the teacher's lounge, Nyamo sighed. She was looking through a stack of physical education exams. The year was almost over. She would say goodbye to her graduating students. She knew it would happen at some point, but it was getting closer and closer….
"Hey Nyamo. Picked your game for today?" Yukari asked, peering over her shoulder. "Geez, look at the kids that don't know gym."
"Yukari!" But she didn't have the heart to be angry. "Soon these sessions are going to come to an end. Chiyo and all them will graduate."
"Yeah so? We give them our contact info, they keep in touch! We could make this roll on even past graduation!"
"Yukari, it's not going to be the same and you know it. High school is the last time someone their age can have fun doing whatever. After that it's all hard work and responsibility."
"Are you nuts?! We're both college graduates having the time of our lives!"
But then, it clicked for Nyamo. The exact game she wanted to show off.
She pulled up to Chiyo's manor with the set-up in mind. Unsurprisingly Yukari's car was already there, and when Chiyo let her inside she realized she was last.
"About time Nyamo! Let's play something!" Yukari exclaimed, already cozy in a beanbag chair. Interestingly enough, besides her longtime friend it was only Chiyo, Kaorin, and Chihiro.
"Huh….no Tomo or Osaka….?"
"It seems they were busy," Chiyo noted. "Were you expecting them Miss Nyamo?"
"Nah, that's okay." Nyamo finished setting up her Playstation 3. This, of course, made the game-savvy Chihiro raise her eyebrow.
"Nyamo, dontcha have current hardware?"
"I'm -huff- not like Yukari. I can't spend my money on every new game thing on the market. But it's okay, this game already came out for this system." Nyamo proudly held out her copy.
Persona 5
"Oooooh!" This would be Chiyo's first dive. Chihiro looked pleased with the choice. Yukari-
"Oh no, don't you dare! Why don't tell you the girls all the long nights you made me guide you through Persona 4!" Yukari challenged. "And in the end, you didn't even pick the right girl to romance!"
"Girl….romance….?!" Kaorin's eyes snapped to the cover, looking for the right choice here. Oh the hours she spent playing Persona 4 for Naoto! If only she didn't have to play as a male character….
"Yukari, shush!" Nyamo opened the case. "Chiyo, this game is a mix of two things. Social simulation and battle! Half the time you spend getting closer to your teammates, the other you're crawling in dungeons! But don't worry, you don't need to play the other two Persona games to get this one."
"Five."
"Five….huh?"
Chihiro nodded. "There's Persona 1, two games for Persona 2, Persona 3, Persona 4, and Persona 5. They're all spinoffs of Shin Megami Tensei, the main series by Atlus. That one is less high school antics and more fighting demons and stuff."
"Well we're in high school right now, so at least I know that!" Chiyo giggled. "Why don't we begin?"
The opening was nothing like Chiyo had seen before- it was a colorful red and black animation of what she assumed were the main characters, dancing and sliding through the city. And the music! Her ears practically danced in delight!
"The singer's voice….it's incredible! And she's speaking English?!"
"She is?!" Kaorin bumbled through her dictionary. "Oh my…." Gaaaah the blonde girl is so beautiful! But….oh no, so are those two!
"Excellent choice Nyamo! The whole game is full of that style!" Yukari said.
"You've played this Miss Yukari?"
"I platinumed it, yeah," she mentioned offhandedly. "Over the holiday break. We're playing as Joker, the black-haired kid with the glasses." She saw Nyamo's look. "Oh come on, I'm not gonna spoil anything!"
After the opening, it showed an animation of Joker zipping through a casino, not in a school uniform but his stylized disguise. That of a Phantom Thief. Police were after him. But it switched to actual gameplay.
"Waaah! What do I do?!" Chiyo asked as the shadowy faces of Joker's teammates relayed the situation. "Why are we running from the police?!"
"It's just the tutorial!" Nyamo said, pressing O to jump across the platforms. "On the field that's the action button." Joker climbed up to a platform where a monster appeared to fight him. "And here's a Shadow! Stay sharp, Chiyo!"
The options were:
Persona
O Attack
X Guard
□ Item
^ Gun
"N-No! This game has them too?!" Chiyo glanced at the box's age rating. "I can't pick this option!"
"You don't need to pick the gun, Chiyo, just whack them!" Yukari instructed. Hesitantly she tapped circle and Joker defeated the Shadow with ease. He ran into another one and the process repeated. "Easy peasy!"
"The game will teach you more as you go on," Nyamo said with a comforting hand on her shoulder. "But if you have second doubts about the age rating, we can always stop."
"Well…..it's okay. I'm with adults!"
Chiyo moved Joker through the halls of the casino, with no other battles. Soon another animation played after; Joker continued to evade the police, even going as far as jumping out of a window with style. Unforunately, he was later cornered.
"It's an ambush!"
"Joker!"
"NO! The game's starting off and already we're going to jail?!" Kaorin whimpered. "B-B-But in Persona 4 we were just staying with our uncle in Inaba!"
When it switched back to the in-game engine, Joker was bruised, in regular clothing, but restrained. One of the detectives beat him rather harshly. Chiyo covered her eyes in fear.
"Oh come on Chiyo!"
"Yukari, she's still only a child," Nyamo consoled her while passing the controller to Chihiro. "Just get past this part, please."
"Okay." Without missing a beat, Chihiro chose Normal for the difficulty setting. The charges were listed off - manslaughter, obstruction of justice, blackmail, defamation…. but when the detective forced Joker to sign a confession, she paused. "Hey, it's asking for Joker's name."
Do I do it?! Name him after me…..? Kaorin weighed her options. Would it be selfish to deny Chiyo or even Miss Yukari that right? Am I really that pathetic…..no…..wait! That's it! "Chihiro give me the controller!" And so she typed it in for the group to see, including Chiyo.
Ryu Tadakichi
"Huh?"
"I-It's after your dog, Chiyo! You can be brave, like him! And Ryu because….er…..well it means dragon….."
"Kaorin….I'm honored." Chiyo bowed. "Do you hear that, boy? You're in the game, thanks to Kaorin!" She finally smiled once the dog ran over to lick the other girl. Eventually someone else came to interrogate Joker….a grey-haired young woman. Sae Niijima, the Prosecutor.
"Hey Kaorin, maybe she's your type," Chihiro joked.
"That's not funny!" S-She's an angel….
Sae pressed "Tadakichi" for answers, but her most pressing question was "How is even possible to steal another's heart?"
"Heart?" Chiyo asked.
"It's not the literal heart," Nyamo explained. "It's the theme of the game."
A mysterious voice reached out to Joker….about his bonds, the "truth" he and his companions had found.
And from that, he began to remember….
Another animation revealed what had happened. Late at night, a man was accosting a woman, and when Joker stepped in to defend her, the man took a tumble. Of course, he was not happy with this, declaring he'd even sue. When the police showed up, it was Joker they seized.
"But….he wasn't the criminal!" Chiyo exclaimed.
It cut to the despondent Joker riding the subway to his newest destination. Now he had a record, and now he had to go somewhere else while on parole. Something caught his attention….a strange red symbol on his phone. Tapping it did nothing. And for a second, time had froze, with an array of sinister flames in the distance.
It did not last, confusing Joker.
"What's going on…." Back to the in-game engine, and he was able to be controlled again. Tadakichi headed up the subway stairs, to Yongen-Jaya.
Go to Sojiro Sakura's residence
"Our destination!"
"Yeah Sojiro's this cool guy that runs a coffee shop-"
"Yukari! No spoilers!"
Joker traveled through the back streets until hitting a roadblock with a delivery truck, right in front of Sojiro's residence. The driver explained he was usually at his shop this time of day.
"See?"
"Shush!"
But after turning the corner, Chiyo found the shop…..Leblanc, a café that specialized in both coffee and curry.
"Ewww! What a weird combination!" Kaorin grimaced. Inside, there was Sojiro - a middle-aged man with glasses. After the customers left, he and Tadakichi were able to chat.
"So, you're Ryu?"
Please take care of me.
Are you Sakura-san?
"Wait, didn't this happen during the interrogation?" Chiyo asked. "Multiple dialogue choices!"
"Yeah. Persona games always let you do this, just to spice things up. If you want to be formal, you can, but if you wanna be a bit of a clown, you can too," said Nyamo.
"I always picked the funny options," Yukari shrugged. Chiyo picked the more polite second option.
"I'm Sojiro Sakura. You'll be in my custody over the next year." Sojiro was surprised that "this" kid was the unruly type, but he showed him to Joker's quarters….the attic filled with junk. He explained the situation: the courts ordered Joker to transfer due to his new record. His parents approved, and made arrangements to stay elsewhere, for a year. "Try anything funny and I'll throw you out," Sojiro warned. But he mentioned he at least provided sheets for Joker's bed.
Chiyo even had a chance to clean in-game, with Sojiro impressed with Joker's work. Then the game told her about going to sleep - it advanced in-game time.
With nothing else to really do, Chiyo tried it. Joker laid down on his bed and reflected how it all happened.
That day…I had to go home early.
It cut to a flashback within the game engine, of that night. Tadakichi was able to walk forward, school bag in hand, until he got to the man accosting the woman.
"No…stop…! I'll call the police!"
"Call them if you want….the police are my bitches. They're not going to take you seriously!"
"WHAT?!" Chiyo was horrified. Chihiro shook her head.
"How much you wanna bet this guy's some of kind of politician, saying stuff like that?"
"Well actually-"
Nyamo covered Yukari's mouth with a pillow. Sirens rang out in the game.
"Oh, someone called them, huh…?! Get in the car! Imcomptent fools like you need to shut your mouths and follow where I steer this country!" But he had noticed Joker. "Get lost, kid, this isn't a show!"
"Oh, Yukari was right!" Kaorin gasped. "He has connections!"
Eventually, the flashback ended, but Joker had noticed the strange red symbol on his phone from earlier. Didn't he delete this app? He did it again, and drifted off to sleep….
Only to wake up in some strange prison, in a black and white jail outfit, and in chains.
"Goodness! Tadakichi keeps getting into danger!"
"Look!" Kaorin noticed his "jailors" - two blonde-haired girls with golden eyes, eyepatches, and dressed in matching blue guard outfits. "I don't think we're in regular jail, Chiyo!"
"Oh the Velvet Room," Chihiro said. "Yeah, Persona 3 and 4 had this too. The opera music? Strange golden eyed people? Look it's Igor!" she pointed to the girls' master, a long-nosed man in a suit. He looked…..dangerous.
"Now now, it seems the night is waning…it is almost time…." he warned the "inmate" Joker of things to come.
"Time for w-what?"
"Our Personas!" Kaorin said. "But we need to find our Yosuke first….y'know, the main character's best friend!"
"Goody!"
Tadakichi awoke from the "dream"…but Sojiro had returned. He informed him he would be going to school in the Aoyama district.
XXXX
Joker was brought to said school…Shujin Academy. Sojiro practically pleaded with him not to cause any trouble. Soon the two were chatting up the principal, and another woman.
"D-Doesn't anybody know we're not a criminal?" Chiyo lamented. "It's not fair! That woman knows the truth about what happened!"
"It doesn't matter," Nyamo said. "The man had enough connections to make Joker look like the bad guy. And unforunately, we're nothing more than a deliqunent to these people." Both the principal and the woman, the homeroom teacher, clearly didn't trust the new student attending.
"Yeah it's a darn shame…." But Yukari was not as sage. "But look at this! A 10/10 homeroom teacher! True to life, as they say! Why, it must be fate for all of us to be jawdroppingly beautiful!"
"O-Oh, a pleasure to meet you, Kawakami-sensei…." Chiyo bowed at the TV. Nyamo sighed at both her friend's vanity and her student's precious innocence.
Sojiro and Joker elected to go home after the ordeal but the scene was not over - it transitioned to Kawakami talking to another teacher outside the school. She was clearly worried over the school's reputation, taking in a troubled student.
"I would've thought my volleyball team has contributed more than enough to cover that." This man didn't seem half as despondent, although he didn't trust the new student either.
"Hmm is he the P.E teacher? So he's like you, Miss Nyamo!"
Yukari instantly burst out laughing. "I guess it's fate for gym teachers to pale in comparison too!" She flinched under Nyamo's deathglare. "Uhhhh actually Chiyo, he is nothing like Nyamo. I'm not even joking now."
The following scene had Joker and Sojiro going home….and things seemed fine….but then an animated scene played where a train operator suddenly blanked out and lost control, causing it to derail.
"Goodness!"
"Oh no!" Kaorin and Chiyo were both alarmed.
The news made its way to Sae, whom was watching the report with her superior.
"Site inspectors apparently reported this six months ago…the deterioration of the tracks and the ATC. There's no way they can hide. This will go all the way to the top. Everything is linked….that's what you're thinking, correct?"
Sae gave no answer. But she did excuse herself to go to another meeting. And just outside the room, down the stairs….
"Did you ask for me? Is it a case?" An eager young man with a briefcase.
"Who's this?" Chiyo wondered. Yukari scoffed.
"This dweeb? You'll see more of him."
But rather than joining with him outright, Sae merely wanted his opinion on something….and the scene faded.
Sojiro and Joker received word of the accident back at Leblanc: 80 people were injured.
But life had to continue. Chiyo was able to check around the shop when Sojiro stepped out for a spell, and school would be the priority in the morning. The strange app showed up yet again, but there was still no answer.
"Oh no, we have to board the train? W-Will we be alright?"
Poor Joker was stuffed on one on his way to Shujin.
"Well aside from that accident, looks like a regular morning in Japan to me," Chihiro said, this time playing. "I wonder when we'll get that new party member." Tadakichi changed lines and got off at Shibuya, the whispering of nervous civilians nearby. "Ah, we're almost here!"
Another animation. In the middle of the rain Joker had taken shelter under an awning, only to see the persistent app yet again. However, a hooded figure stopped next to him….and when it was removed, it was a beautiful blonde-haired girl.
"She was from the opening," Chihiro observed.
Kaorin practically had hearts in her eyes.
"Wow….."
"That's Ann," Nyamo said. Someone pulled up to give her a ride….but it was the gym teacher from before. The fact that Joker did not get a ride and Ann looked so despondent to get in was unnerving to the three students watching. "And the teacher, ugh, is Kamoshida."
Suddenly, a blonde-haired boy stopped right in front of Joker. "Damn it…screw that pervy teacher!"
"Hey he's from the opening too!"
"Ryuji!" Yukari pumped her fist. "He's the best!"
Back in the game engine, it was clear Ryuji was not happy nor did he like the teacher in the slightest. He explained who he was. "He does whatever the hell he wants….who does he think he is, the king of the castle? Don't you agree?"
"W-Why did he call him….a….?" Chiyo couldn't even finish the sentence.
"Because, Chiyo. Kamoshida is like…..Kimura times a billion!"
"WHAT?!" The horror on Kaorin's face was nothing that could be aptly described. "AND ANN JUST GOT IN THE CAR WITH HIM?!"
"She's fine!" Nyamo assured.
"She's fine, but Shi-"
"YUKARI SHUT UP!"
The two headed on for school, albeit both were complaining of a sudden headache. Flashfoward to the interrogation with Sae.
"You were still an ordinary student that day? I assume you knew the uproar over what the public calls psychotic breakdown incidents?"
All of Joker's possible answers offered a half-sure answer at best.
"Tell me what happened, truthfully…."
Back in the past, the two cut through an alleyway to get to school….but something strange was happening with the red app…..and they arrived at "Shujin", with its castle-like opening.
"That's….not a usual Japanese high school…?"
Yukari snorted. "First of all, Shujin is way better than our hovel of a school. Second, of course it's not! Now we're into some dungeon crawling!"
Joker and Ryuji were unsure of their surroundings….and things only made less sense when armored staff arrived to confront them. Only it wasn't students at all. And they were attacked. And thrown into a cell.
"Damn it, where are we?! Some kind of TV set?!"
A sound caught their attention and they raced to the cell's bars. Unforunately, the guards arrived to say a punishment had already been decided on….and their king had arrived.
"No one's allowed to do what they please in MY castle."
"Kamoshida?!" Ryuji shouted after said king came into view. It clearly looked like and sounded like the man, but his eyes were golden and his voice was warped.
"I thought it was some petty thief, but to think it'd be you, Sakamoto…." There was clear history between the two….even if it was a strange version of the teacher. Breaking into his "castle" and insulting him….the punishment would be death.
"No!"
The guards and even Kamoshida came in to beat poor Ryuji until he was bruised on and the floor.
"Hmph, where'd your energy from before go?" Kamoshida spat on him. Joker tried to get him to stop, but it only caused the guards to hit and restrain him, as well. Was it the end for Ryuji?
"NO! We have to do something!"
"Look, Chiyo!"
Time froze, and a butterfly suddenly appeared. It warned of the near zero chances to beat this unjust battle, but offered a way if Joker was willing. Then another voice spoke, eerily similar to his own.
"What's the matter? Are you simply going to watch? Death awaits him if you do nothing. Was your previous decision a mistake then?" It showed Joker defending the woman from before he got arrested. He tried in real time to save Ryuji but the guards had him. "Very well…I have heeded your resolve."
Joker suddenly gasped. Something was happening to him!
"Vow to me. I am thou, thou art I…thou who art willing to perform sacrilegious acts for thine own justice!"
"Our Persona must be coming!" Kaorin realized. "That phrase…."
"Call upon my name, and release thy rage!" Joker was screaming in pain now. "Show the strength of thy will to ascertain all on thine own, though thou be chained to Hell itself!"
"Execute him!" Kamoshida commanded. But his attention shifted away from Ryuji once Chihiro chose an outburst from Joker. "You desire to die that much? Fine!" A guard smacked Joker to the ground.
But the tables had been turned.
His form was changing….
The familiar mask from the beginning of the game had spawned on his face, and once Joker removed it (as his eyes leaked blood), he gained the power, right as a sinister figure materialized right behind him.
His Persona.
"Hey it's the outfit we were in before!" Chiyo said. "….Hey, I was wondering. Why do you all refer to him as Joker, anyway?"
"Later!" Nyamo pointed to the screen. "We're finally back in battle!" Now Joker and his Persona (Arsene) were able to learn the ropes and smack around some enemies. Little time was able to celebrate, though, and Joker and Ryuji quickly locked Kamoshida in the cell.
"Damn you!"
"W…..Why is Kamoshida in his underwear?" Chiyo asked, now seeing the model up close.
"I said Kimura times a billion!"
Ryuji was in awe of Joker's new power but the latter had transformed back so quickly. Right now the two had to escape. With Kaorin at the controls, she frantically tried to find an exit. She examined all she could, only to find dead end after dead end.
"…Hey, you there. Blondie! Frizzy hair! Over here!"
Who was that? The voice was from a strange cat-like creature, locked in a cell. He had a black bandana covering his face and a yellow one wrapped around his neck.
A cat? Kaorin picked an option to match her own confusion.
"What IS this thing?!" Ryuji exclaimed.
"If you're not soldiers from the castle, let me out!" the "cat" pleaded, claiming only he knew the way out. What choice did the two have?
"There, now show us the way, you monster cat!"
"I'm not a cat! I'm Morgana!" The not-a-cat replied.
"Ohhhhhhhhh, he's like Teddy," Chihiro said. "Y'know, the cute mascot thing?"
"Yeah, except Morgana doesn't make me wanna shut my game off," Nyamo grumbled.
"You're crazy! Teddy was the man, this CAT is just a big baby!" Yukari countered. Chiyo only blinked, not having a frame of reference. However, things had gotten worse. The scene shifted to Kawakami at school, and the clock showed how late the two really were.
"It's already fourth period….Sakura-san said Tadakichi-kun left this morning…."
"Oh no! It can't be good that we're late for school! We're on parole!"
"Bigger fish to fry, Chiyo!"
Joker and Ryuji followed Morgana's way out of the castle, but guards had blocked their way. But now they had some help.
"Zorro!" Morgana summoned a Persona of his own, and equipped a sword. He gave the player more of a tutorial on how to fight (knocking enemies at their weak spots for more effectiveness). From this, the trio traveled the field, fought a couple more battles, and finally….reached the exit.
With Joker and Ryuji returning to the real world.
XXXX
….only to be caught by officers immediately. And when they got to school proper, the counselor was not pleased. But Kamoshida was also there, albeit not in his kingly attire.
Unforunately, Ryuji's answer of "a castle" did not properly explain to them where they were.
"You seem so carefree, Sakamoto. Quite a difference from morning practice with the track team," Kamoshida slyly chided.
"Shaddap! It's your fault that-!"
The counsler had no time for this and demanded both Joker and Ryuji follow him. As the latter did, Kamoshida noticed the new transfer student.
"Have we met before?"
At a castle.
Nope.
A girl was in your car.
"I'm picking what we're all thinking," Yukari said, the controller now in her hands.
"Hm…? Oh, I saw you at the station. Well, I'll overlook this for today."
"LIAR!" Kaorin screamed. "YOU WERE WITH ANN!"
"I'm sure you heard from the principal, but screw up, and you'll be expelled, understand?" Kamoshida warned. "Enjoy your new school life," he mocked.
"What…..a jerk!"
Nyamo patted her back. "Bless your innocence, Chiyo. Kaorin over there looks like she's about to blow a fuse."
In the present, Sae was reminded of what happened to Kamoshida, that he "confessed his crimes"….but things went back to the point they were. Joker was able to walk around the school and explore, but he had to go the faculty room.
"See?! Our school doesn't have this funding!" Yukari pouted. "Look, does OUR school have a bread store right here?"
"Miss Yukari, don't make us any later than we already are!" Chiyo whimpered.
"Oh fine! LOOK! Even the faculty room here is better!"
Kawakami wanted an excuse.
"We were at a castle," Yukari said with a dumb smile. "Sensei, please excuse me!"
"Miss Yukari, you'd never believe that if you were her," Chiyo pointed out. "You're both homeroom teachers. You should have more respect for the profession!"
"…..damn it! You're right. Actually, if I WAS Kawakami, what does that make the rest of you? I mean Ryuji is obviously Kagura, Yomi is Makoto, you're Haru, Sakaki is some Ann-Joker fusion-"
The mere thought made Kaorin's heart pump.
-"And Osaka…..uhhhhhh….well, she's not artistic enough to be Yusuke, and not tech-savvy enough to be Futaba….she can be the cat."
"Yukari, just pick the reasonable answer," said Nyamo. "That we were lost." It didn't seem to please the teacher very much, but she sighed and decided not to push the matter. She offered to introduce him to the class after lunch.
But it was clear the school itself was not too pleased about someone with a record. People were whispering through the halls, and even in Kawakawi's class they were dreading who he'd sit near.
As it turns out, he sat in front of Ann.
"S-She's okay!"
"Lies," she muttered rather cryptically and bitterly. Joker reached out to her, but she wasn't in the talking mood.
As the gossip circled around the new student, Joker was finally able to convene with Ryuji on the rooftop. After realizing the castle was no dream, Ryuji was grateful he saved him from Kamoshida.
"You prolly don't know it, but there's some rumors about him." Ryuji turned angry. "No one says anything about him because he's some medalist that took the volleyball team to nationals."
Yukari really had to resist the urge to tease Nyamo for not doing that.
"The way Kamoshida was king of the castle felt crazy real because of that."
Ryuji wanted to find the castle again, but how to go about it….? He had certainly taken a shine to Joker, of course. The two parted ways for now. Naturally when Joker got home, Sojiro had already known about him being late. He warned him not to repeat the same mistake.
But it seemed like the day was over….
XXXX
Not quite. In another one of his dreams, Tadakichi woke up again as a prisoner within the Velvet Room. The two warden girls - Caroline and Justine - were still there.
"About time you've come to, inmate," Caroline sneered.
"Our master wishes to speak with you….you should take his words to heart," Justine said.
Igor grinned at his table. "I have high expectations for you." He revealed he had given the "Metaverse Navigator" to Joker as a way to travel between reality and Palaces. The art of being a thief. "It must be lonely to travel the Metaverse alone, hm?"
"Does…that mean our friends will get powers too?" Chiyo guessed. "If we have Morgana already, then Ryuji and Ann must transform too!"
"Bingo!" Nyamo smiled. "Usually we meet our party members in the overworld first before dungeon crawling with them."
"So the castle….was Kamoshida's Palace!" Chiyo looked proud of herself. "It must be a distortion of reality. He has a high opinion of himself, so he thinks he's King of the School!"
"That's it!"
"But I'm afraid I still don't understand. It seems being arrogant is his only crime. He gave Miss Ann a ride but she seemed fine….or….maybe….?"
"Well er-"
"Here!" Yukari gave the controller to Nyamo. "You explain the next scenes."
It was a rainy day. Another day of students and teachers alike being wary of the new student, but it all came to a head once Joker stepped out of class.
"Hey there, Takamaki," came Kamoshida's sly voice. He was chatting up Ann. She didn't look so enthused. "You looking for a ride home? Things have been dangerous lately with all those accidents."
"You back off, Kamoshida!" Kaorin shouted. "Or at least we'll sicc our Persona on you!"
"Sorry, I have a special photo shoot today…it's for the summer issue so I can't miss it…."
She's a m-m-m-model?!
"Nyamo I think Kaorin's heart stopped."
But Kamoshida told her not to work so hard. "You must be lonely…I feel bad keeping your best friend at practice so often." He warned her about hanging around the transfer student. She half-heartily thanked him, and the scene ended.
XXXX
After school, Ryuji and Joker tried to find the castle….to no avail. Standing just outside the school, Ryuji wondered what they could do. Nyamo suggested his phone?
"I'll already did that." But then he realized. "..Phone! Didn't you have some navigation thing on it?"
"The red app we couldn't delete!" Chiyo concluded. "It was Igor's gift!"
"Didn't it say something like 'returned to the real world'…? Lemme see your phone." Ryuji fumbled through it. "What a weird app…..hey, there's your search history!"
The mere idea of someone seeing their phone's search history made everyone but Chiyo break out into a nervous sweat.
"Kamoshida….Shujin Academy….Pervert….Castle…" said the navigator.
"That's it! Then we went in a certain direction…." Ryuji grinned.
"How did….OH!" Chiyo connected the dots. "The app heard those words…..wait…..Ryuji was the one that called Kamoshida a pervert, when he was speeding off with Ann."
"Um….yeah."
"He…..was in his underwear."
"…yeah?"
A dangerously low ticking sound was in Chiyo's head, and the others watched as more and more color drained from her body. Her eyes were hollow and her body was completely white.
"So then…..what the game is implying is…."
"Um….w-well Chiyo…..you see…." Nyamo had to think, and fast. "You're not stupid. It is what you're thinking of. It's scary to a high schooler, especially someone of your own age…..and I'd totally understand if you want us all to leave and stop playing this. I'm sorry I picked this game!"
"But…why?"
"Why?" Nyamo sighed. "Sometimes, adults don't have the answers. Sometimes they're not better than kids. Sometimes they're eviller and more insidious when we're supposed to trust them. But that's just how the real world works. You have adults like Sojiro, and adults like Kamoshida."
Suddenly all the color snapped back into Chiyo.
"C-Chiyo?"
"And we're about to bring justice to him, right? Joker and Ryuji….no….Tadakichi and Ryuji! It's scary Miss Nyamo but we can't just let Ann and any other students down!"
"Y-Yeah!"
"….but let's not play for too much longer," she quietly whispered.
The app had sent them back to the castle, and they met up with Morgana again…..he confirmed pretty much what Chiyo had concluded: the king Kamoshida was a distortion of his own view and desires. Only now the previous infiltration had angered the king. And from the moaning sounds the party heard-
"Those must be the slaves," Morgana said.
"SLAVES?!" Chiyo was outraged. "We have to stop Kamoshida!"
A model gun Ryuji had was the means for Joker to start shooting too. Although even though it was "fake", it still made Chiyo nervous. As the party explored more of the castle, Morgana gave out more tutorials. He and Joker took down any Shadow in their way.
"Damn it! This is bullshit!" Ryuji shouted when they found guards beating the slaves (students in gym attire).
"Keep your voice down! These aren't real people," Morgana explained. "They're only in Kamoshida's cognition! They're different from you two!"
"Screw you, you dumb cat!" Yukari channeled her own Ryuji. "If I see kids being beaten by a pervert's guards, I'm saving them!"
"Yukari! You've played this game already; this isn't a shock!"
"Morgana's just a brat, okay?!"
But Morgana did still have some sympathy. "If they're being treated so badly here, I can't imagine how badly he treats them in real life…."
"Real life….?"
"Most likely. This means Kamoshida views them as slaves."
"Of course!" Kaorin's own Kamoshida anger was getting hotter. "This gym teacher bullies his students into playing more and harder just so he can get the glory!"
"I heard Kamoshida's using physical punishment. They're just rumors, but…" Ryuji trailed off.
Joker, Morgana, and Ryuji traveled around the cells to not only free the slaves, but beat up more Shadows. Unfortunately, one wrong turn later they were surrounded by guards and the Shadow Kamoshida.
"To think you'd make the same mistake again! You're hopeless!" the king snarled. Ryuji argued with him for a bit, but then he taunted: "How far the star of the track team has fallen…."
Joker could only wonder what he meant.
"He betrayed his teammates and crushed their hopes, yet he still carries out as carefree as ever." He warned Joker would only follow the same fate: the king trapped him and Morgana into a fight against bigger Shadows. They could not win.
"It's scripted," Yukari said when she saw Chiyo's panicking face.
"No…." Ryuji was in no shape to help his friends.
"Though it was temporary, don't you remember my kindness in supervising the track team?" Kamoshida asked.
"Wasn't no practice, it was physical abuse! You just didn't like our team!" Ryuji fired back. But Kamoshida insisted only he could get results and fame. Their history was soon revealed - he broke Ryuji's leg to put down his defiance but he had passed it off as self-defense. But the star of the track team couldn't run, and thus they couldn't continue.
"Once I deal with these two, you're next. Look at them die because they sided with worthless trash like you."
But Ryuji had enough. He stood up. "All you think about is using people….you're the scumbag, Kamoshida! Stop looking down at me!"
And suddenly it happened. The same thing that happened to Joker: pain, a voice speaking an oath into his head…..and a mask he had to pull off….complete with a new form!
"His Persona!" Chiyo was so happy. It was a pirate-themed one. Ryuji had obtained his "Skull" alias. Now together, he, Joker, and Morgana were able to quash the Shadows in battle.
"Even if you apologize now, I ain't forgiving you…!" Ryuji threatened Kamoshida.
"I told you that this is MY castle. It seems you don't understand…."
The next sight had Nyamo rush to cover Chiyo's eyes. A version of Ann in a skimpy bikini and cat ears had walked up to Kamoshida.
"Takamaki?!" Ryuji was speechless. Chihiro had to cover Kaorin's own eyes less she died of heart failure. Morgana was enamored at first sight.
"This is my castle….and a place to do whatever I want. Everyone wishes to be loved by me." He summoned more guards. Joker and the others had no choice.
They had to retreat.
"We'll expose you, that's a promise!" Ryuji vowed.
XXXX
Morgana explained there was no way the real Kamoshida would know what was happening….but it still begged the question of how he could be exposed in real life. Joker and Ryuji quickly left despite Morgana insisting he had some kind of "master plan…."
"Those slaves, I saw their faces! Wanna help me look for them or any witnesses?" Ryuji asked once the two were back in reality. Joker agreed. "Hey so…..if you're thinking of laying low cuz you have a record, I don't think that'll help."
"What?! How did he know?" asked Chiyo, eyes now uncovered. (Kaorin was quietly lamenting what she had missed, but Chihiro told her it wasn't a big deal).
Joker wondered the same thing.
"Only a teacher could've leaked it that fast! Everyone already knows, they got you pegged for a criminal. Kamoshida opened his damn mouth!"
But Ryuji was still interested in his past. Joker told him over some food, and he was even more angry about it. Nonetheless, he vowed to have his back if Joker had his.
"Yeah he's just like Yosuke and even Junpei," Chihiro said. "Look we even got the first level of his Social Link."
"Social Link…?"
"It's how you get closer to your allies."
"It's also how you get to date them!" Yukari said with a cheeky smile. "Nyamo, I think we need to know….who did you choose for this game?"
"What?! W-Well….Y-Yukari w-we're adults….and y-you can only play as a boy…."
"C'mon, don't be so shy! I'm sure Chiyo, Chihiro, and Kaorin already have ideas."
"Oh no! They're older than me," Chiyo blushed. "That's not an element players my age should try." Chihiro shrugged. And Kaorin….gasped at the next scene: Ann sitting with a girl.
"Who is this?"
"That's-"
"Nyamo tell us!"
"Fine! It was Makoto, okay? It was by accident! I wasn't really trying to do it! Can we just look at this scene please?"
"I-I haven't been sleeping well lately," said the other girl. She looked so depressed and weak.
"Don't worry, just be confident in yourself!" Ann assured. "Your skills have been recognized! You work harder than anyone else!"
"It's true….volleyball is all I have…." said the girl, named Shiho.
"More importantly, was that injury okay? It looked swollen." Ann asked. Shiho assured her it was fine, but then another student showed up. One Chiyo and the others had seen before, albeit he looked wounded and depressed too.
"Sorry to interrupt, Suzui….but Kamoshida-sensei wanted me to get you…"
The panic on Shiho's face said it all. The moment of despair on Ann's face (followed by her hastily insisting it was for starting lineup) said even more.
Chiyo and Kaorin both lost their color this time.
"U-Um…..maybe we should stop here, Yukari. It's getting late…."
"Yeah, I gotta get home." Chihiro nudged her friend. "And this one can't be caught playing video games with her teacher. But we gotta continue this. Story's pretty addicting."
"I'll drive you!" Yukari said. But even that didn't make the two girls budge. "Geez….Kaorin! Chiyo! C'mon, we're done!"
"Chiyo…."
"Yes, Kaorin?"
Then the fire and color returned to both girls.
"WE GOTTA MAKE KAMOSHIDA PAY! I'D RATHER DEAL WITH A BILLION KIMURAS THEN HAVE HIM FOR A TEACHER!"
"HE'S AWFUL! A MONSTER! HIS POOR STUDENTS!"
"HOW DARE HE HURT RYUJI AND PERV ALL OVER MY SWEET ANN!"
"YEAH! HE…..wait, what?"
Chihiro dragged the fired-up Kaorin outside to Yukari's car.
After saying their goodbyes to Chiyo and packing up, Yukari and Nyamo headed outside themselves.
"That was a fun time, Nyamo. Sorry I kept ripping on you."
"It's okay. I'd rather be ripped on then EVER be like Kamoshida. By the way, Yukari, please don't tell me you romanced Kawakami. I can't believe that's even allowed…."
"Hey! What do you take me for?" Yukari demanded in the middle of the cold winter evening. "I'm a teacher myself, Nyamo! I have class."
"Oh. So who did you pick, then?"
"Dr. Legs," she said without missing a beat.
"Takemi?"
To be continued...
Generally I try to stay consistent to Japanese gaming (Biohazard, not Resident Evil, Mega Drive, not Genesis, and now here with the button layout for Playstation - O and X are flipped in functionality). Although it's clear I was copying lines from P5 localization because like the Pokemon names, it's just way less tedium for me to go through.
Persona 5 was and still is a HUGE success so I didn't want to half-ass it. I've never played it myself but I hope Persona 5 fans are pleased. (And we're still in the beginning of 2017, the game originally came out 2016 in Japan)
I wanted to end the series this year but obviously that's not gonna happen. Regardless I hope you enjoyed this year of Azumanga Gaming and look forward to the last few chapters we have left for next year. :)
Next Game - Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild [Yomi, Chiyo, Tomo, Osaka, Sakaki, Kagura]
