Ultimate Danganronpa - Crossover Mania

by DeathlyJazzHands55

16 Campers... 7 different universes, all unknowing of the previous fact, all will know what true Despair feels like. Because, unlike most camps, this one only knows one true feeling, and that is of the most wonderful feeling of Despair. Welcome, to Mono-Mono Camp, where Despair thrives, and hope goes to die. Buckle up! Because you're in for one hell of a ride!

2. Karmic Justice for the Unjust - Part 1

Authors note: Hello everyone, we're back for another round of Ultimate Danganronpa. I'm sorry the wait was as long as it was. School had been starting up, and I had begun moving, so writing this had been delayed several times over. But I hope this chapter was worth it. Like I previously said in the last chapter, Prologue of The Ultimates, this chapter will be of similar length, if not more so. This chapter will contain the entirety of the DAILY LIFE portion of chapter one. I have no idea how long this chapter will be, but I would have to assume that it will be, at the very least, 15k words (That's low balling it, as the real count is at 22K)

Like I said before, these chapters are NOT going to be short. If you don't like long chapters, then, as I said previously, this fanfic will NOT be for you.

Also, just a heads up, in case nobody knew or wondered what this: "…" meant, it just means that Shigaraki is thinking.

I also want to state this and make sure that I am extremely clear about this. Do not, for any reason, spam hate comments if your favourite character kills/kicks the bucket.

Now that I have what I have to say out of the way, I hope you all Enjoy…

[Karmic Justice for The Unjust – Daily Life]

[Play: Nightmare in a Locker]

*Ding, Dong, Bing, Bong*

"A-hem, this is a Mono-Mono Camp special announcement! It is now 7:00 AM! You know what that means~! It's time to RISE AND SHINE! Stretch those legs and run around! Make sure you give it your all! Who knows? Today just might be your last!"

A groan echoed throughout Shigaraki's cabin as the man in question sat up from his bed, a headache pounding against his forehead as he looked around the room he was in, only for his hopes for whatever he experienced last night to be a dream to vanish.

"So… it wasn't a dream after all, just great…." Shigaraki thought, glancing over at the time.

It was 8 AM…

"Wait, what?" the announcement just said it was 7 AM… did that mean he slept in on accident? Then again, Kurogiri did tell him he tended to wake up for a split second for an alarm to go off, then immediately drift off to sleep seconds later.

And considering that when he slept, he had a tendency to be a heavy sleeper, with nothing short of either a fire burning underneath his nose to get him to wake up, aside from himself doing the waking up.

"Ah, shit…" The teal-haired man groaned, scratching at his neck as he glanced around his room. It looked the same as it did when he entered it for the night before. It was slightly better than his room at the bar, and twice as better than the whatever the hell that rundown apartment was… but still, he missed his league. Without them, life wasn't exactly the same.

"No use in looking back on the past. Might as well take a shower before doing whatever it is that-" as Shigaraki was walking towards the shower, he noticed something absently placed just in front of his door. It was a small slip of paper that had sloppy handwriting on it. The writing was in English, which he could thankfully understand – "thank you, Sensei, for teaching me that one…."

However, there was something… odd… about the letter.

The first thing odd about it was,… well, actually… why give him a letter in the first place? Were they expecting him to write back? If so, they were sorely mistaken. The second thing that struck him as odd was the fact that the writing was sloppy. It couldn't have been that brat… and while he hadn't seen Monokuma's handwriting before, he'd have to assume that it wasn't the best, taking into consideration that he had literal paws for hands.

Was it one of the pre-teens? God, he hoped it wasn't.

"Well, I can't just keep assuming without reading it… Here goes nothing..."

"Hey, Tomura! We're worried about you. Since you didn't answer your door when I knocked, I've decided to send you a letter. If you do end up reading this, please head to the cafeteria when you get this! Yours Truly – Deliah!"

A huff of air escaped Shigaraki's nose. She was 13, and her handwriting looked like chicken scratch? Even with his dyslexia, he could write better than that. The scruffy-haired man crumpled up the note before discarding it into the bin near his bathroom.

"Well… I might as well get this stupid meeting out of the way, not like I have much else better to do right now," Shigaraki mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of his eye.

Stumbling out of his cabin, Shigaraki looked around the area and saw no one. Was everyone really at the cafeteria? Did he miss the morning fanfare of confusion and disarray? Did everyone just accept what was going on? Maybe, and if that was the case, then that wasn't exactly a good thing.

"Better not think about it like that. It's not like I give much of a shit…." The man-child groaned, walking down from his doorstep and out of the designated cabin area, the gravel crunching under his red sneakers as he shoved his hands into his pockets. The last time he was in a forest was… actually, no, he wasn't there for that mission.

Come to think of it, while he was in Japan, the teal-haired man never went anywhere that even remotely had anything to do with nature. Sensei always said that nature had a "heroic" effect to it… whatever the hell that meant.

Once Shigaraki got to the bonfire, he took a swift right turn to the cafeteria. After a few more minutes of being alone with his thoughts, he made his way to the moderately sized building. Sure enough, he could hear voices on the inside, confirming what the letter had said.

"Well… I might as well get in there before they start a search party or something stupid like that," Shigaraki groaned, pushing open the doors to the cafeteria. The moment he stepped inside, he was met with everyone's eyes landing on him.

[Play: Beautiful Death]

"Oh, good, you made it!" The first one to speak was Monika. A smile brandished on her face as Natsuki crossed her arms.

"Took you long enough. What were you even doing?" The pink-haired woman asked, a snarkiness in her tone as Shigaraki stared blankly.

"Sleeping," The teal-haired man groaned, rubbing his left eye as Izuku huffed.

"Oh, and what makes you think anyone will believe that?" Izuku asked, a condescending look on his face as Deliah rubbed the back of her head.

"Well, I mean, he is older than us, so he might just like to sleep in more?" the brunette said, her expression being that of a mixture of relaxed and concerned.

"I've known him longer than anyone else here. He was probably planning something with that thing," Izuku spat as Deliah recoiled.

"You're seriously not saying that-"

"Yes, I am!" Izuku interrupted, pointing at Shigaraki. "When will you admit it already! You're the one behind this, so let us go!" Izuku shouted at the teal-haired man. He gave a disinterested head tilt.

"This kid… he really doesn't give it up, does he?" Shigaraki thought as he straightened out his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Look, Midoriya, how many times do I have to tell you that I did not set this up? I couldn't have possibly set this up. Just because I was a villain where we live doesn't mean I'm the guy who-"

"Shut up! Enough of your excuses! I-"

"WILL THE TWO OF YOU BE QUIET!" The booming voice of Dio Brando echoed out in the room, his expression one of anger as his eyes screamed murderous intent. After a few seconds of silence, the blond let out a calm sigh before blankly staring at the pair.

"Look, none of us care about what either of you thinks about who did what, who set up what, or who is commanding that hellspawn. For all we know, it could be just some really intelligent, mutated panda that decided it was a fun idea to make us kill each other. As far as I am concerned, we should focus on what Monika has to say since that is the reason why we're all gathered here in the first place," Dio stated matter-of-factly as Monika smiled.

"Thank you, Dio. I knew I could rely on you!" Monika said, causing Dio's cheeks to light up a little.

"Y-yeah, whatever," the blond muttered as Monika clapped her hands together.

"Well, now that everyone's here, I think it would be best if we discuss ideas on how to escape from this little camp that we find ourselves in," Monika said as Shaggy rubbed the back of his head.

"Like, are we even sure that's possible? We can't swim because of the sharks, and I'm pretty sure that bear has everything covered," Shaggy said as Nikki smiled.

"Well, we can always try, right?" the energetic child said as Harry crossed his arms.

"Well, Tomura did say that it would be impossible when Deliah and I mentioned it. He said that if Monokuma were smart, he would've probably made this place impossible to escape," Harry stated as Erina gave a shocked expression.

"He did?" The Ultimate Beauty asked as Shigaraki stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"Due to my Talent, I've been involved with Kidnappings before. Never one this large, though, but from what I've seen so far, if I had to guess, this place would most likely be like Fort Knox. No one gets in, and no one gets out," Shigaraki clarified as Izuku glared at Shigaraki.

"You guys see what I mean! He has advanced knowledge of kidnappings, he's a villain, and his talent is that of being a Criminal Mastermind! How does that not sound the "this guy is clearly pure evil" alarms!" Izuku growled as Dio scoffed.

"Yeah, well being known as a Manipulator isn't exactly a good thing either. But if we really want to start pointing fingers, what about the brown-haired girl with the mysterious title, hmm?" Dio asked as Deliah paled.

"W-What?! H-Hey! I-"

"Guys, seriously, can we please stop pointing fingers at people?" Monika interrupted Deliah as she turned to glare at Izuku. "Unless you have something to forward the conversation, then stay quiet," Monika started before glancing at Dio. "Same goes with you, unless you have something to say regarding means of escape, don't speak, capiche?" Monika stated as Dio nodded.

"My apologies, ma'am," Dio said as Monika gave a faint smile. The orange-haired girl then looked at Shigaraki and folded her arms.

"As for you, if you do have an idea about how these things work, mind enlightening us about some of it? Perhaps with your knowledge, we might be able to formulate a way out of here?" Monika asked, causing Shigaraki to rub the back of his head.

"So… she wants my help, huh? Well…" "Well, I don't know much about what Monokuma's doing, but… from what I've seen… this place is like Fort Knox. We saw that on day one with the pop-up electrical fences. If Monokuma doesn't want us to leave a certain area, he's not going to let us…." Shigaraki paused, making sure everyone heard him.

"Well… what if there was a way to bypass the fences? Like… maybe if we were somehow able to get a set of pliers and cut through the fence, maybe we could make a run for it!" Jaune said, a hint of pride in his voice.

"Uh… Jaune, was it? I hate to break it to you, but steel is an excellent conductor for electricity…." Neil said as Jaune froze with embarrassment.

"O-oh…"

"Well, do you know anything else about what Monokuma might have in store? I mean, a rag-headed hobo like you must have some sort of knowledge on this since… ya know…?" Natsuki said with a smug look on her face as Shigaraki scowled.

"No." Shigaraki spat, an annoyed tone to his voice as Natsuki recoiled.

"Natsuki, I told you. Be nice!" Monika reprimanded the pink-haired girl as she sighed. "I'm sorry, please continue," Monika asked as Shigaraki groaned.

"I meant what I said. I don't know anything else about what this guy has. From personal experience, I usually have bodyguards watching the victims, but from what I've seen, I don't think Monokuma even needs a bodyguard with all the cameras he has up. Not to mention that massive gate he has right between the Greenhouse area and someplace else," Shigaraki stated as Monika raised an eyebrow.

"Could you fill me in? I don't think I went to that area…." Monika asked as Daphne huffed.

"I can, actually. By the greenhouse, there's a completely smooth wooden wall with a massive door. On the door is a huge number 14 on it. Velma speculated that it has to do with the number of people here… if you put two and two together…." Daphne didn't finish her sentence as the message was pretty much understood right away.

"That bastard…" Max growled, his right hand balling up into a fist.

"Well… I don't see the issue, so long as nobody kills, I think we should be fine right where we are," Ruby said, a look of disconcern on her face. "Besides, nobody here has been thinking about it, right?" the redhead asked as a scoff echoed throughout the room.

[Stop OST]

"What makes you say that?"

[Play: DISTRUST]

Everyone turned to face Dio, who had a composed smirk on his face.

"Ex-fucking-cuse you? What are you implying there, you pompous prick?!" Natsuki growled as Dio shrugged.

"What I'm saying is that she doesn't know who's thinking what. Who knows, one of us in this room could be thinking about murdering someone right now, and no one would be none the wiser," Dio stated, his tone concise and matter-of-fact.

"What d-does that mean! Are you saying that…" Ruby stammered as Dio huffed.

"Oh, you don't understand, do you? Well, let me put it in a way you might understand. Not everyone has the same cookie-cutter ideals as you. If I were to take a guess, you think that everyone who isn't comically evil is a good-natured person, correct?" Dio started, sitting down on one of the wooden chairs as he crossed his right leg over the top of the other.

The way he was postured made him look like a smug elitist. His body language exuded what could only be described as malice, yet his facial expression didn't show a hint of that. Instead, he looked calm and collected. It was the first time Shigaraki was reminded of his Sensei in someone else who wasn't Sensei.

"If I'd wager a guess, at least one person here is considering murdering someone here for a chance to escape, correct? With such a wide array of people here, it's only a matter of time until someone eventually decides to push someone off the proverbial cliff," Dio finished as silence reverberated around the room.

"I think you people understand what I'm trying to say, right? No one here is trustworthy. Those who say they can be trusted are liars, and those who are upfront about their intentions are to be watched out for," The blond stated, standing up as he crossed his arms.

"That doesn't mean we shouldn't work together! If we do, then that means we can weed out that person and lessen the chance of that happening!" Daphne stated.

"Y-yeah, even if what you're saying is right, we can still try and work together!" Shaggy agreed as Dio rolled his eyes.

"Whatever, if you want to be morons, so be it. I will have no part to play in your idiocy," Dio turned towards the door. However, just before he left, he glanced behind himself and looked over at Erina. "Erina, let's go. These people are only going to get you in danger if you listen to them," Dio spat as Erina froze.

"U-Uh… yeah, bye everyone, have a lovely day!" Erina said, following Dio out of the cafeteria.

[Stop OST – Play Beautiful Death]

Once the two blondes left, the room was left in shock, and for a couple of seconds, no one dared to speak. Dio's words rung true, even if it was only slightly, which caused a wave of distrust to flow over the group.

However, after a few more seconds, someone spoke up.

"Did anyone get the feeling that he… he might be right?" Velma asked, a concerned look on her face as Monika frowned.

"Nonsense. He probably just slept poorly. Yesterday he seemed to agree with the rest of us. He might just be tired," Monika said, staring at the door for a few more seconds as the room remained silent. Shigaraki didn't know what to think. Dio did bring up a good point despite his attitude.

"Someone could be thinking of murdering one of us right now… I mean, it's not like I care, but… no, I don't need to worry about that. If push comes to shove, I can fight back against anyone pretty easily. No one here can overpower me without some sort of special ability. I should be fine," Shigaraki thought.

After another few seconds of silence, Daphne spoke up. "Okay, so if we can't escape, or at the very least, the chance of doing so is slim to none, maybe we should make some of our own custom rules that we abide by for the time being?" Daphne suggested as Harry smirked.

"Yeah, that's a good idea! So… does anyone have any ideas?" Harry asked as Deliah was the first to speak up.

"I got one! What if we make a rule where we don't leave the cabins after 10 PM! That way, we don't have to worry about the possibility of… well, you know…." Deliah stated, a small smile on her face as Monika nodded.

"Good, who else has an idea for a rule?" The orange-haired girl asked, looking around the room as Ruby raised her hand. "Oh, what do you have in mind?"

"Well… I was thinking… what if, when someone wants to go somewhere, they should at least be with three or more people. Seeing as groups of two could end in disaster," Ruby suggested, a timid look on her face as Jaune patted her on the back.

"I second that. I mean, although I don't see the issue with pairs, if we go in groups of two, then that way, we can at least guarantee that at least someone has a chance to stop a murder, right?" Jaune stated, a confident smirk on his face.

"I agree, alright, anyone else?" Monika called out as Max groaned, though his facial expression was that of a smirk.

"Well, just in case we can all avoid a repeat of what happened today, how about someone goes around and wakes everyone up at 7 AM on the dot, then we meet up in the cafeteria," Max suggested as Neil raised an eyebrow.

"Wait… you're actually helping? Wow, that's rare," Neil stated, a sarcastic tone to his voice as Max huffed with indignation.

"Don't get me wrong, I hate every single one of you, except for Neil and maybe Nikki, but I want to ensure my survival too, you know?" Max clarified as Monika let out a sigh.

"Well, while the reason is… not what I expected, it is something that we should think about. Before we end this meeting, does anyone have any more ideas to contribute to our own personal rules? Or is that all for now?" Monika asked.

"Well, I mean, this should be obvious, but if someone doesn't come to the morning meet-up, perhaps we should go looking for them? Just in case something bad did happen to them?" Velma stated, a calm expression on her face as Monika clapped her hands together, a smile on her face.

"Okay! Sounds good. So, now we have some rules that we need to abide by from here on out. Our meeting is now adjourned!" As Monika dismissed the meeting, people began to group up and head out of the room. The only ones left in the building at that point were Shigaraki, Natsuki, and Daphne.

The two girls seemed absorbed in a conversation, and if the teal-haired man had anything to say about it, he'd say nothing, seeing as whatever they were talking about didn't matter to him.

"I'm not gonna get anything done just standing around… I better find something to do," Shigaraki thought, creaking open the cafeteria doors. As soon as he stepped out, a voice called out to him.

"Excuse me, Tomura, was it?"

The teal-haired man turned his attention over to where the voice called out from, and immediately, he regretted it. Standing there, his arms folded, was Dio.

"Oh, great, it's you. What do you want?" Shigaraki snarled as Dio huffed.

"Well, I have some business to attend to, and I would much rather not have Erina follow me. I was wondering if you could stay with her for a while so that I can go off and find something… productive to do," Dio stated, his facial expression being one of reservation as Shigaraki raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? And why can't she just go off on her own? She doesn't need someone to hover over her constantly," Shigaraki stated, causing Dio to sigh.

"I… am aware of that. However, the thing with Erina is that… she tends to get into a lot of trouble if left by herself. Jonathon and her father can testify to that. When we showed up here, I made it my vow to make sure she always stayed safe, regardless of what happens. Think of this as a trust exercise. I want to make sure that she will be okay with strangers if something bad happens to me. Since you seem to be the most trustworthy so far, I ask you to look out for her while I'm off doing something. Is that okay with you?"

When Dio finished explaining, Shigaraki sighed, his face contorting into an annoyed grimace. Putting aside what he said in the Cafeteria, Dio seemed to really care about Erina. The way he talked about her made the teal-haired man think that perhaps the boy had feelings for the girl, or perhaps he felt like he owed it to her father, or whoever Jonathon was, that she would survive.

Shigaraki knew what it was like to worry about someone. He'd never admit it to his face, but due to how Twice was, he feared that the guy could get into some serious trouble if not properly watched over. The guy was a capable person, who had an interesting worldview, but at the same time, Shigaraki wanted to make sure that nothing horrible happened to the man.

So when thinking about it like that… all Shigaraki could do was curse himself. He knew what Dio was getting at. If Erina were anything like Twice, then perhaps this would be for the better…

"Fine… I'll do it," Shigaraki said as Dio nodded. To be fair to Dio, the kid most likely didn't want to look over his shoulder every other minute to make sure Erina was alright. And if Shigaraki had to guess, Dio most likely chose him because he would have a much easier time talking him into it. He may be The Ultimate Manipulator, but even he most likely knew when to pick his battles.

"Thank you, Tomura," the blond said as he glanced over his shoulder, gesturing to someone, that someone being Erina. The young female blond ran over, a smile on her face as she stood beside Dio.

"Oh, Dio, what is it now? Are we going somewhere?" Erina asked. The look in her eyes reminded Shigaraki of his long-dead sister…

"Don't think about that, Tomura… there's no point to bring up old memories again…" Shigaraki thought as Dio crossed his arms.

"You're going to be with Tomura over there for a while so that I can… go do something else. I'll go find you in about an hour, okay? Make sure that you listen to him, okay?" Dio stated as Erina glanced over at Shiagaraki.

"Are you sure? I don't mean to be rude, but… didn't Mid.. uh… no, Izuku! Didn't that guy say that Tomura was the one who put us here?" Erina asked as Dio shook his head.

"No. If Tomura was, then I'm sure he wouldn't needlessly endanger himself by putting himself here. Besides, I trust him. I'll return shortly. For now, Tomura, keep Erina company. Until then, goodbye." As Dio left, Erina looked at Shigaraki, who stared back. There was a few moments of silence, until after a while, Shigaraki spoke up.

"So… what exactly do you want to do?" Shigaraki asked as Erina hummed. The blond had a thinking look on her face before she smiled.

"I want to go to the greenhouse. I have a few things I want to grab if that's alright with you?" Erina asked as Shigaraki shrugged.

"I don't really care, if you want to go, that's fine by me. I'll be close by, okay?" Shigaraki stated dryly as Erina nodded, running ahead of Shigaraki as he groaned. Shigaraki watched as the young blond seemed carefree as the pair walked, not worried about the situation.

"I could easily kill her… it would be so easy just to snap her neck and leave her in the forest… No, I promised Dio she would be fine, that, and I shouldn't be thinking like that…." Shigaraki thought as Erina spoke up.

"You know, I don't know why Dio trusts you… did you perhaps know him already?" Erina asked, glancing over her shoulder.

"Hmm? No, I've never met Dio in my life though, if I had to guess why, it's because I wasn't one of the people who reacted negatively to what he said in the cafeteria. My guess is that he believed I was like him, or at the very least, that I was the most trustworthy," Shigaraki surmised as Erina hummed.

"That does sound like something Dio would do… although, I haven't known him for very long, and despite his… mistakes… he is a good man," Erina said as Shigaraki raised an eyebrow.

"Mistakes?" Shigaraki asked as Erina clammed up.

"I, uh… don't want to talk about it, okay?" Erina stated, a slight blush on her cheeks as an embarrassed look overtook her features.

"Hmm… so Dio did something that embarrassed her… I wonder just what that could mean… eh, actually, Nah. I probably should leave it alone… yeah… I should leave it alone for now. Maybe I can talk to her about it later…." Shigaraki thought as Erina turned back around, picking up the pace ever so slightly.

The rest of the walk was silent, neither of them spoke a word as they approached the greenhouse. Upon entering, Erina ran straight over to the flowers. As Erina bent over to pick one of the flowers, Shigaraki leaned up against one of the glass walls.

His eyes darted around the room, finally being able to take in the atmosphere. There was a bunch of flowers, all of them being unique and unrelated. There were a variety of roses, ferns, and other exotic plants. Most of them seemed innoxious, but one caught his eye.

Tucked away in a corner, ironically right beside Erina, who was admiring the roses, was a singular, lone black rose. As the teal-haired man walked over beside the girl, Erina looked over at him. A red rose in hand.

"Ah, you like roses too?" The young blond asked as Shigaraki huffed.

"Nah, not really… but that black rose over there…." Shigaraki said, reaching out to pick it from the dirt. When he did, his eyes turned melancholic, and a faint smile etched on his face. "It reminds me of my sister…."

[Play: Death Wish]

Erina looked at him, a small smile on her face as she put her hands together in a prayer motion. "Oh, that's sweet. How old is she?" Erina asked as Shigaraki's faint smile turned into a sorrowful frown.

"I… she's dead..." Shigaraki stated, his tone of voice dead sounding as Erina paled.

"O-Oh… that's awful… I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned it," Erina said, looking away with a downcast expression as Shigaraki shrugged, putting the rose in behind his ear.

"No, it's fine. You wouldn't have known unless I said so," Shigaraki said, turning to face Erina. "So… what made you want to come here? Curiosity or something else?" The teal-haired man asked as Erina looked back at the roses.

"Oh, nothing really… but," Erina cut herself off, turning over to a bright yellow sunflower. "I came here to see all of the exotic flowers. But… more importantly, I came here to look at the sunflowers."

Shigaraki hummed, looking over at the yellow giant. It loomed over most of the other plants, facing in the direction of the north. The bright yellow petals were reflective of the reason as to why it was called the sunflower. Shigaraki always hated how bright it looked when he was younger. It reminded him of that pesky annoying hero All Might. But now, now that he was more mature and less of a social outcast, he could understand why people liked the flower.

"Do they hold some sort of significance? Or do you just like them?" Shigaraki asked as Erina sighed.

"Well… now that you mention it, it does hold some significance. It reminds me of both Dio and Jonathon…." Erina said, picking the sunflower from the dirt. "The yellow petals remind me of Dio and his yellow hair and shining personality. As for how it reminds me of Jonathon, it reminds me of how it always looks towards the sun… as if it was looking towards hope."

As Erina spoke, Shigaraki raised an eyebrow. As far he thought, it was a pointless thought process. How does a sunflower remind her of both her friends? What was the point of mentioning it? Then again, he did mention how the black rose he picked reminded him of his dead sister, but that was beyond the point.

"Well… since you put it like that, I guess it makes some semblance of sense," the teal-haired man started, folding his arms across his chest. "the flower reminds you of two people you hold dear to you. One that's with us right now, and another who is most likely worrying about you right now," Shigaraki finished, glancing over at Erina.

"You really think so? You… you really think Jonathon is worried about me?" The blond questioned as Shigaraki nodded.

"He's your friend, right? If he weren't worried about you, I'd have to say that he's not a good friend." Shigaraki paused, unfolding his arms as he stuffed his right hand into his pocket. "My league… they're the closest thing to a family I have. Without them… I don't think I would be the same person. Maybe to some people, that would be a good thing… but to others… I don't think they could see me any other way than what I am now. Those people… the people who can see you for who you are, regardless of your ideals, and still see you as their friend, those people are the people you surround yourself with." Shigaraki stated, his eyes wandering up to the ceiling as a small, sly smirk dawned on his face.

"Then again, look whose talking… some sicko who murders people, kidnaps people and ransacks houses for fun. I'm not exactly the best person to hear that from." The villain said, looking back at Erina, who had a warm smile on her face.

"Thank you…" the blond said, catching the man off guard.

"For what?" Shigaraki asked, crossing his arms. "All I said was obvious, so why thank me?" Shigaraki questioned as Erina giggled.

"Well, what you said… it made me realize that I have such good people around me. For a while, I feared you… but now that I've talked to you, I understand who you are. You're not evil. You're just… misguided, that's all. I think I can start to understand why Dio trusts you," Erina said as Shigaraki hummed.

"So… she doesn't think I'm a bad guy? I guess that's a good thing, right?" Shigaraki thought, a subtle smirk on his face.

"Thanks… I guess."

Relationship with Erina increased by: 1 out of 5

[Play: Beautiful Death]

Shigaraki's monopad rumbled in his right pocket, causing him to check it. It was a notification. Erina did the same thing, raising an eyebrow.

"Huh? Relationship increased? What does that mean?" Erina questioned as a snicker echoed out into the greenhouse.

"I can tell you that!"

[Play: Mr. Monokuma's Lesson V3]

As soon as his voice echoed out, the damnable bear showed up, causing Erina to jump back.

"W-Wha-! Where did you come from!" Erina screamed, her face red with anger and concern. Monokuma laughed, his red eye gleaming as his laugh echoed throughout the room.

"Well, I showed up! That's where I came from! Plus, it was you who asked the question about what the relationship tab was for, was it not?" Monokuma asked, putting his white paw up to his chin, his head tilted in confusion as Shigaraki glared at him.

"Well then, get it over with then, what is it?" The teal-haired man spat as Monokuma lowered his head.

"Wow, you lot are pretty mean to me. And after all that I've provided you with. Such a shame…." Monokuma groaned, looking back up at the two, flashing his claws on his black paw as he glared. "You two better listen up because I'm not explaining it again!" the bear stated as Erina looked away.

"Well then, get to it, explain away, Demon," Erina said, her cheeks puffing out as Monokuma sighed.

"I'm not a Demon! But whatever. Basically, all that is a measure of how far you've gotten with a certain individual. When I feel like you've grown closer, I update the meter by 1 point. When you get to a full five on the scale, it means, at least in my eyes, that you're really close friends! For each point you get, you'll get 100 Mono-coins!" Monokuma explained, causing Shigaraki to raise an eyebrow.

"Mono-coins? What on earth is a Mono-coin?" Shigaraki questioned as Monokuma put a paw to his mouth.

"Oops! I said too much. I'll explain that later, don't worry about it. Till next time!" And with that, the bear disappeared, leaving two very confused people behind.

[Play: Beautiful Death]

"… he left behind answering one thing, and leaving us with more questions… what a horrible being!" Erina said, an annoyed look on her face as Shigaraki shrugged.

"I think it is on purpose. He wants us to feel more confused about our environment so that we don't want to stay here for much longer, eventually, driving one of us to kill," Shigaraki stated, causing Erina to pale in horror.

"Oh my… he really is a hellspawn! What a monster!" The young blond exclaimed as Shigaraki chuckled. The way Erina talked was right out of one of the RPGs he played when he was younger. She even looked like one of those classic village folk that one either slaughtered or talked to for a side quest. It was kind of amusing to him.

After that short interaction with Monokuma, the two did their own thing in the greenhouse. Where Erina watched to smell and tend to the flowers, Shigaraki simply watched her, making sure she didn't do anything stupid and or no one came in without his knowledge.

After a while, the door to the greenhouse opened as Dio walked inside, his hair a bit wet and his clothes looking a little soggy. All the while, he mumbled something about a 'stupid blue-haired wench.' As soon as he brushed a hand through his hair, he made eye contact with Shigaraki as a small smirk came across his face.

"Hello, Tomura," Dio said as Erina immediately perked up at hearing his voice.

"Dio! You're back!" The blond girl said, running over to him with a smile. "For a while, I had gotten worried something bad happened. I'm glad you're okay!"

Dio smirked, looking over at Shigaraki. "Well, I'm glad you're okay too. By the way, Tomura, thank you. She seems to be in higher spirits than she was a while ago. I don't know what you did or said to make her feel better, but thank you," Dio said as Shigaraki shrugged.

"Whatever, I did what I was told. Now, I've got to do some stuff. Keep up with you later, I guess." Shigaraki said, turning around and leaving the greenhouse. He didn't want to stay any longer, though it wasn't because of Dio or Erina. Rather, it was because the humidity of the greenhouse was starting to make him uncomfortable.

Walking back to his cabin, he was not interrupted by anyone, mostly because he came across no one. "Where is everyone? Did they all disappear?" Shigaraki thought, walking into the cabin area. His eyes scanned around the area, only seeing a few of the cabins with their lights on.

"Wow… I guess everyone is just out and about," Shigaraki muttered, walking into his cabin. When he did, he felt an aura of concern wash over him. "But what about those kids…" he murmured, shaking his head. "No… I can't think about them. They're not of any importance," Shigaraki growled as he stretched his arms out.

"I'm tired… I'm gonna-"

"HOLD ON!"

[Play: Mr. Monokuma's Lesson V3]

Before Shigaraki could finish, he was interrupted (again) by Monokuma appearing out of thin air. Instead of a shocked expression, a bit of a jump, Shigaraki simply let out an annoyed sigh. "Okay… what do you want, Monokuma," the teal-haired man said, glancing at the small animatronic bear, who… looked embarrassed.

"Jeez… I can't believe it was you who I ran into walking into their cabin at such a convenient time! Can you believe it? I totally didn't time this, not at all, nope, not even a single bit!" the bear said as Shigaraki rolled his eyes.

"Can you cut the dramatics and just get to it already? What is it that you want? I kinda want to go to sleep," Shigaraki groaned as Monokuma bared his claws on his black paw.

"Oh no you don't! You have a job to do, Mr. Shimura!" Monokuma said, causing Shigaraki to go wide-eyed.

"What did you just call me?" Shigaraki said, shock on his face as Monokuma covered his mouth with his paws.

"Oops! I said too much, uh… pretend you didn't hear that!" Monokuma said as Shigaraki balled up his hands into fists.

"HOW THE FUCK DO YOU KNOW THAT!" Shigaraki nearly shouted as Monokuma feigned ignorance.

"What~! I didn't say anything. I totally don't know what you're talking about, Shigaraki Tomura! Not at all, nope, not at all whatsoever!" the black and white bear stated as Shigaraki sighed.

"This fucking bear…." Shigaraki seethed mentally as he crossed his arms. "Fine, what do you want, Monokuma," Shigaraki huffed as Monokuma gave him an embarrassed look.

"Well… you're the last person I wanted to ask, but since it is convenient for me…." Monokuma paused for a second before lowering his head. "I lost my action figure collection, and I need someone to help me find it!" Monokuma stated solemnly as Shigaraki raised an eyebrow.

"You want me… to help you find your toys? What are you, five?" Shigaraki insulted as Monokuma growled.

"Shut up! Every grown bear has an action figure collection! Besides, you have to help me!" Monokuma said as Shigaraki stuffed his hands into his pockets.

"Why would I help you? Last time I checked, you kidnapped us and are forcing us to play this stupid Killing Game. If anything, I don't owe you squat, bear-brains," Shigaraki said, glaring at the bear as Monokuma bore his claws.

"You either help me, or I cut your throat!" Monokuma snarled as Shigaraki recoiled. The bear retracted his claws before rubbing the back of his head. "That, and you're the protagonist, you gotta help me anyway!" And with that, Monokuma disappeared, leaving the confused and slightly agitated Shigaraki to think to himself.

[Play: Becoming Friends]

"Well… I guess I don't have much of a choice now. I guess that nap will have to, unfortunately, wait." Shigaraki groaned, looking over to his cabin door. "Welp, better get going then. These toys aren't going to find themselves…."

As Shigaraki left his cabin and began searching for whatever action figure, and or figures, Monokuma owned, he found himself at the Judgement hall. "This would be the best place to search first and foremost, ya know, since it has his ugly mug written all over it," the teal-haired man spat, looking in a bush before his eyes glanced over at none other than Midoriya.

"Please don't notice me… please don't notice me… please don't-"

"YOU!" Izuku's loud voice echoed out in the small area as Shigaraki sighed, pulling his head out of the bush.

"And he noticed me…." Shigaraki cursed under his breath as he stood up, meeting the green-haired boy's agitated eyes with his own. "Hello, Brat, what do you want?" Shigaraki said, folding his arms over his chest as Izuku sighed.

"I… I wanted to apologize for my behaviour," Izuku said, bowing, causing Shigaraki to raise an eyebrow.

"Am I dreaming?" Shigaraki questioned himself mentally as he sighed, unfolding his arms as he put his hands in his pockets. "Okay, this has to be some sort of dream now. You can't be serious. After you quite literally accused me of being the one who brought us all here, you want to apologize? I'm not buying it." Shigaraki stated flatly as Izuku straightened himself.

"I… I was thinking irrationally. Don't get me wrong, I still hate you and everything you stand for, but now that I thought about it more, what you said about you not being dumb enough to put yourself in here if you yourself brought us here would be… well, stupid," Izuku stated as Shigaraki sighed.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear the insult and just nod my head and agree," Shigaraki started, moving past the green-haired boy and over to the door of the judgement hall. "But if you think I'm not the one who put us here, who do you think did?" Shigaraki questioned as Izuku sighed, cupping his chin.

"Well, if I had to guess… I think it's a toss-up between All For One, which is the least likely, or maybe someone in this camp. But who it is… I don't quite know…." Izuku said as Shigaraki stared at the door to the judgement hall. The teal-haired man had never thought about it like that. Well, no, that was a lie, he believed that someone in the camp could've probably had something to do with the Killing game, but he just didn't know who.

"Hmph, I didn't know you could use your brain. I think there is also a traitor among us," Shigaraki said as Izuku raised an eyebrow.

"Do you have an idea of who it could be?" The greenette asked as Shigaraki shook his head.

"Unfortunately, no. I don't have an idea of who it could be. If Monokuma is working with someone here, he's done a pretty good job keeping the identity of who it is a secret. But I have my suspicions," Shigaraki stated as Izuku crossed his arms.

"Maybe we could swap ideas? If you tell me your idea on who the traitor is, then I'll tell you mine," Izuku said as Shigaraki scoffed.

"What, do you think I'm an idiot?" Shigaraki asked sarcastically as Izuku now had a confused expression on his face.

"Huh? What are you…." as Izuku spoke, Shigaraki gestured his head towards one of the cameras as Izuku nodded with understanding. "Yeah, now that I think about it, maybe we should keep quiet about it. Especially if someone is listening to us," Izuku said, rubbing the back of his head as Shigaraki nodded.

"It can't be helped, I guess," Shigaraki said, cracking his neck before spotting something out of the corner of his eye. "Oh?" Shigaraki muttered, catching Izuku's attention.

"Huh? What is it?" Izuku asked as Shigaraki walked over to the thing that caught his eye. In one of the bushes was a figurine, said figurine being of All Might.

"Ah, there it is," Shigaraki said as Izuku went wide-eyed.

"HUH! Wait a second, what is THAT doing here?!" Izuku questioned as Shigaraki observed the All Might figurine. It was in tip-top condition, and on the bottom of its foot, there was the name "Monokuma" written on its foot.

"Oh, this? Yeah, Monokuma's decided that I'm going to be his errand boy and find his missing action figure collection. Guess he has an All Might figurine. Wouldn't have assumed that he liked that shmuck," Shigaraki said, stuffing the action figure in his pocket as Izuku huffed.

"That… that bastard! How dare he own such a rare figure of a hero while being a villain?! What kind of backwards nonsense is that?" Izuku spat as Shigaraki shrugged.

"Well, to be fair, he probably has it just to mock his existence. Some people hate buy toys, you know what I mean? I know I did. I would buy an entire store's worth of All Might figurines just to dust them all after I got home, really cathartic now that I look back on what was originally just baby rage," Shigaraki mused as Izuku glared at him.

"Don't make me regret trusting you, Shigaraki," Izuku growled, causing Shigaraki to roll his eyes.

"I don't do it anymore. That was when I was an immature brat…." The teal-haired man said, crossing his arms and giving Izuku an annoyed glare, only for the green-haired hero to raise an eyebrow.

"Really now? I somehow doubt that," Izuku stated as Shigaraki huffed, turning around.

"Well, I got other things I need to do. We can talk more about this later, if you want," Shigaraki stated as he began walking away, but not after a dinging sound echoed in the teal-haired man's pocket. Shigaraki took it out and groaned when he saw what it was.

Relationship with Izuku raised: 1 out of 5

"Whatever…"

And with that grunt, Shigaraki continued his walk around the campsite. It didn't take him long to find himself at the beach, where, standing all by his lonesome, underneath a tree, was Max. His eyes were darting from side-to-side, as if he was watching for something. What made things even creepier, however, was the fact that he had his hood on overtop of his head, almost as if he wanted to remain hidden.

Shigaraki just looked at him with a raised eyebrow. The teal-haired man didn't even know if the boy saw him or not.

"What is he doing here all alone?" Shigaraki thought, trying to see who or what he was looking at. He turned to the direction the boy was looking, and there, laying in the sun wearing a purple two-piece swimsuit, was Daphne, minding her own business. "Is he… perving on Daphne?" Shigaraki questioned as he shook his head. No, there was no way he was staring at her like that. The kid was only ten, so he couldn't be thinking like that, right?

The teal-haired man looked over at where Max was standing, only to find the boy glaring at him. "Seems like I've been spotted," Shigaraki thought, a bead of sweat forming on his forehead as he walked over to the boy, who seemed to take a step back.

"Hey, kid, what are you doing here all by yourself?" Shigaraki questioned as Max didn't respond, his glare only sharpening, causing Shigaraki to roll his eyes. He approached the kid, this time getting closer as the boy took another step back.

"Seriously, don't you have anything better to do than peeping at Daphne?" Shigaraki questioned, this time causing Max to scoff.

"Really, you think that I'm some kind of creep? Whatever, it's none of your fucking business," Max spat as Shigaraki crossed his arms. The teal-haired man had never once met a kid this abrasive before… well, maybe that Bakugo kid, but he had an excuse. He was a teenager, not a ten-year-old.

"Well, that's what it looks like. So mind telling me why you're here, all alone, like the rules said you weren't supposed to do?" Shigaraki questioned as Max sneered.

"Did those rules come with the added addition of being put on a pike if ya don't listen to them?" Max snarked as Shigaraki huffed.

"Touche, but still. It's unsafe, ya know. For a kid, you're pretty gutsy," Shigaraki stated as Max rolled his eyes.

"Thanks, I guess, but I don't want compliments from someone who looks like he belongs on "Catch a Predator," ya feel me?" Max spat as Shigaraki raised an eyebrow.

"What the hell is "Catch a Predator?" The teal-haired man thought, shaking his head in frustration. "Yeah, sure, whatever. Look, have you seen any figurines laying around. That stupid bear wanted me to look for them," Shigaraki stated as Max rolled his eyes, pulling out a toy of a brown dog with black spots on it.

"If I give you this, will you fuck off?" Max asked as Shigaraki snagged it from the boy, turned around, and walked away.

"That kid… he's worse than that damned brat…." Shigaraki thought, walking away from the tree and away from the beach. The less he spoke to him, the better, besides, if he wanted to be a loner, then good on him," Shigaraki grumbled, leaving the beach.

Your Relationship with Max did not improve – 0 out of 5

[Play: Beautiful Death]

Shigaraki let out an annoyed groan. He had been walking pretty much all day, not once getting a single bit of rest since he woke up this morning. He looked down at his hands and saw the two figurines. Why did Monokuma want him to collect them so badly? Was it to taunt him? To make him feel insignificant? Or was it just to waste his time?

Whatever the reason was as to why that bear wanted him to collect the pointless figurines for, he could care less. All he wanted to do now was to lay his head on his pillow and sleep. He was tired, and that was that.

Stuffing the toys into his pockets, he began his way to the cabin area. The walk was silent, as no one had come to bother him, though the difference from before was the fact that the sun was nearing its way to the edge to sky, and the big blue ocean above was turning a sultry red, orange, and pink.

The fact that it was already past noon boggled his mind. He couldn't have been talking to Izuku for that long, had he? Then again, the walks between locations were AT least 30 minutes each, and since the meeting was, at the very least, an hour-long, and his hang out session with Erina was far longer than he wanted it to be, he assumed that it made some semblance of sense that it was already as late as it was.

"To think that this is my life now… searching for toys and watching my back every few minutes to make sure no one stabs me in it… then again, that was pretty much my life beforehand, just minus the toy collecting…." Shigaraki lamented as he stepped into the Cabin area for the second time today.

Walking over to his cabin, he pushed open the door and went inside, only to notice a new shelf that had been installed just beside the bathroom door with a note being stuck on the end of one of the shelves. Closing the door behind him, he let out an annoyed groan, followed by his shoulders dropping, realizing who did this and why.

"For fuck's sake…." Shigaraki growled, walking up the shelves, grabbing the toys out of his pockets before placing them on the top shelf. Turning his attention to the letter, he snagged it off the shelf and began to read it.

Heya there, Mr. Protag! I thought I'd build you a shelf for all those figures you're gonna be collecting for me! Once this is all said and done, I'll take them back, and you can have the knowledge that you helped me get back my collectables! Thanks a bunch – Sincerely: Counsellor Monokuma!

Crumpling up the piece of paper, Shigaraki threw it in the trash bin before turning around and flopping onto his bed. He just wanted to sleep. That was all he wanted. Couldn't he just get some time to close his eyes and sleep? Just this once?

As his eyes began to drift shut from exhaustion, he felt his body melt into his bed, a peacefully warm feeling befalling over him… finally, some well-deserved rest…

[Play: Mr. Monokuma's Lesson V3]

So… this is the first-ever Monokuma theatre I've done since… which game was the last one with this stupid in-between gag in it? Bah, it doesn't matter, regardless of whichever game had this last in it, I wanted to tell you lot something!

Fun fact about this Fangan: Shigaraki was picked to be the protag because the author of this really likes My Hero Academia but can't fucking stand Izuku! So don't go asking him why Izuku wasn't the protagonist instead of Shigaraki, you jerks!

Anyways, you might be wondering, why is there a Monokuma theatre being put in-between the second day instead of the end of it? Because he thought it would help break up the SUPER long chapter ahead of him!

You also might be asking, "Mr. Monokuma, why are you breaking the fourth wall?" to which my reply is… what fourth wall, that thing was smashed years ago, plus, I'm a lot like Flumpty, I'm immune to the plot, so I can do whatever I want! (Bonus points to those who get that joke).

Now, back to your regularly scheduled Killing Game!

[Play: Despair Syndrome 1]

Shigaraki began to stir from his light sleep as he heard the faint sound of knocking. Groaning, he sat up from his bed and pulled out his Monopad to check the clock. It was 8 PM… how long had he been asleep for? Surely it hadn't been that long, had it?

"Well… I'm up now. I might as well check to see who wants to talk…." Shigaraki said groggily, getting out of bed as he walked over to his door. Turning the knob and pushing it open, he was greeted by the small figure of Deliah, who was holding her left arm up with an embarrassed look on her face.

"Huh?" Shigaraki said, a confused look on his face as Deliah looked up at him, her face still full of embarrassment. He could tell she didn't want to look at him in the eyes, but she also clearly had something to say. So, with a sigh, Shigaraki took a step back and motioned her to follow, to which the brunette did within a heartbeat.

Upon entering, Shigaraki closed the door behind him before crossing his arms. "Okay, what do you want?" The teal-haired man asked as Deliah put her arms down by her sides as she cleared her throat.

"I know it's, like… two hours before the nighttime announcement, and I kind of figured you were asleep already… but… I wanted someone to go with me to the cafeteria," Deliah said, putting a hand behind her head as Shigaraki raised an eyebrow.

It was pitch black outside, meaning that now would be the optimal time if anyone had a chance to kill. His eyes narrowed in her direction, which caused her to freeze up instantly. "And you asked someone else before me?" The teal-haired man asked as Deliah laughed nervously.

"Does knocking on their door several times count?" the brunette asked as Shigaraki looked down on her, his glare intensifying before she looked away.

"Okay, okay, he didn't answer, okay… and I don't want to go alone. I'm… I'm scared, and I don't trust anyone else here aside from you and Harry. If you don't want to go, that's fine, but…" she paused, glancing at Shigaraki as the man uncrossed his arms, closing his eyes before cursing under his breath.

If it was one thing he could give children credit for, it was their expert use of tricking people into thinking they were harmless, even though he knew otherwise.

"Fine, you got me. Let's go then," Shigaraki said, causing Deliah to look at him with a half-hearted smile.

"Thanks," the brunette said as the pair exited the cabin and made their way to the cafeteria. By the time they got there, the two were shocked to find the lights still on inside the building.

"Is someone still in there?" Deliah asked as Shigaraki shrugged.

"Only one way to find out," Shigaraki said, pushing open one of the doors, allowing Deliah to enter first as he followed in behind her. Upon entering, they were greeted with Natsuki, who had just walked out of the kitchen, a shocked look on her face.

"Oh, it's you two," the Fuschia-haired girl said, crossing her arms. "What are you doing here anyway? If you want to ask me for something, you're an hour late. I just finished cleaning up the kitchen from doing some baking, so I sure as hell ain't doing shit for anyone after that." The girl spat, causing Shigaraki to roll his eyes.

"No, it isn't that, Natsuki. I just came here to steal something from the fridge, and I didn't want to go alone, so I got Tomura to walk down with me," Deliah said, causing Natsuki to glare at the teal-haired man.

"Oh, is that right, or is he just making you say that," the pink-haired girl accused, causing Shigaraki to huff. In Shigaraki's mind, this girl and Max shared one thing in common: their ability to aggravate others is far too good for their own good.

"Well, if you must know, Natsuki, I may be a "bad guy," but I am not a bad guy. Do you get what I mean?" Shigaraki asked as Natsuki scoffed.

"Oh really? Says the guy who's literally a goddamn terrorist. Also says the guy who looks like he should be on a watch list for inappropriate behaviour around children. I don't trust you for a single fucking second around anyone who's younger than eighteen, so give me one good reason why I should trust you around Deliah or anyone else for that matter?" Natsuki stated, her tone full of arrogance but also a genuine concern.

Glancing at Deliah, whose face was dressed with an annoyed expression, before looking back at Natsuki, the teal-haired man took a deep breath before giving the pink-haired girl a tired look.

"Fair enough. If you don't want to trust, I don't expect you to," Shigaraki stated, catching the girl off guard. "But, if you want to accuse me of something, you better have some damn good evidence to back up your claim. If there is one thing I hate more than heroes, it's people pretending to be heroes. So, let me re-iterate. Don't play the hero, or else."

With that last sentence, a wave of killing intent washed over the room, causing those who were in the cafeteria with Shigaraki to pale in fear. There were a few minutes of silence. Nobody talked or even breathed loud enough for anyone else to hear. It was just plain, fear-ridden, silence. Then, finally, after another minute ticked by, Deliah was the one to speak up.

"W-Well… uh… I'm going to get my snack now, then head back to my cabin…." Deliah muttered, wandering into the kitchen behind Natsuki as the aforementioned pink-haired woman glared at Shigaraki after gathering back her courage. After a brief stare-off, the two ventured into the kitchen after Deliah.

[Play: Beautiful Death]

When they entered the kitchen, Shigaraki's jaw cracked just a little bit at how big the place was. It was easily half the size of the cafeteria alone, with a massive island in the middle of it containing far too much food for one single camp.

The center island was split up into various sections. Meats were off to the right, while vegetables were off to the left. On the north side of the island were fruits, and on the south side was where all the seafood was. However, the level of organization wasn't just like that. A thin wall separated each meat so that cross-contamination wouldn't occur. The same went for the vegetables, fruits, and seafood.

On the outer rim of the kitchen were various countertops, fridges, and cupboards. The countertops were flawlessly clean. Everything was seemingly where it all should be, so nobody could complain about it being messy, but there was just one thing that caused a bit of concern in the small group of three.

"Uh… does anyone know what that timer is for?" Deliah asked as the two turned to Natsuki, who shrugged.

"Don't look at me. I have no idea what it's for," Natsuki stated, glancing up at the timer. On the timer, there was a one in the hours' position. Shigaraki put two and two together before snapping his fingers.

"I got it, and to be honest, it's pretty obvious since it's, what, 9:00 PM right now, 1000 yen says that timer is just for when the cafeteria closes for the night," Shigaraki said as Natsuki facepalmed.

"Damnit, why didn't I think of that…." The pink-haired girl groaned as Deliah shrugged.

"Sometimes, the most obvious things can illude people. Trust me. It happens with me constantly. But that's beside the point," Deliah started, walking over to the vegetables and grabbing a carrot. "What I want to know is just how a camp this small has this much food?!" Deliah asked as, then, like he had been qued to show up….

[Play: Mr. Monokuma's Lesson V3]

"Did someone ask a very specific question that only I, the great Monokuma, can answer~?" He showed up, a paw over his mouth as if he had been waiting to show up and scare everyone in the room.

"Gahh!" And scare someone he did, that being Deliah, who had fallen down on her rear the moment he popped out of the floor like a cannonball in front of her. However, what caught Shigaraki's attention, was the fact that the tile that Deliah had stood in front of was a trapdoor… did that mean that Monokuma resided underneath them?

"I'll take that guttural scream as a bonafide, yes!" The bear said, a paw behind the back of his head as he smirked. "You see, due to our MASSIVE budget, we get food shipped in from all over the world, just for you lot! My benefactors and I met them on a separate island a hundred thousand miles away, and then we deliver right to this Camp Island Paradise!" Monokuma explained, then he put his paws on his hips before huffing. "And also, if you think for one second his camp is only what you see before you now, you're wrong! If you want to see more… well, ya know what, I'll let you figure it out later. Until the next time my services are needed, see-ya!"

[Play: Beautiful Death]

And just as fast as he appeared, he left through the trapdoor underneath him. Deliah slowly stood up from her spot on the floor, shaking her head in confusion. "Well… I guess I got my answer…." Deliah mumbled, biting into the carrot in her hand.

"That damn bear… the more he shows up, the more I want to punt him across the Camp…." Natsuki growls as Shigaraki shrugs.

"Welcome to the club, I guess," the teal-haired man said. That was when they heard a pair of footsteps behind them. Upon turning around, they saw Monika, who was smiling at them.

"Monika? What are you doing here?" Natsuki questioned as the orange-haired girl simply continued smiling.

"Oh, I was just wondering who was in here," Monika started, before her facial expression turned into one of worry, a small frown taking up where the smile once was, mixed with a distant look in her eyes. Needless to say that the group of three became concerned when she pulled off that face. "Come into the dining room quickly. I've decided to have a quick meeting before the nighttime announcement goes off and we're kicked out."

"Why? Did something happen, Monika?" Deliah asked as the Ultimate Poet glanced at her with an anxious gleam in her eyes.

"You could say that… look, just, please, okay?" Monika pleaded before stepping out of the kitchen. Shigaraki let out an annoyed sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. Just what had happened when he went to sleep for that two hours? Finally, after a few seconds, Shigaraki looked up at the entrance to the dining room, all before walking over and stepping inside, followed by Natsuki and Deliah.

When they walked inside, they took a seat at the dining table as everyone else began to trickle in, some with confused expressions, others with nervous expressions, and some with a mix of both.

"Can someone tell me why we're here? Did something bad happen?" The first to speak out of the new arrivals was Neil. "I don't mean to be rude, but… I was busy," the brunette continued, an annoyed look on his face.

"Well… I trust Monika to not interfere with my important business, so if I had to guess, it has to be something important. Otherwise, she wouldn't have called a meeting right before the nightly curfew," Dio stated with a matter-of-fact tone.

"You'd be correct, Dio. Thank you all for coming on such short notice. I promise this, hopefully, won't happen again, but I want to ask all of you to do something important tonight," Monika said, looking over everyone in the crowd.

"Uh… what would that be?" Ruby asked.

"Well, to be fair, I'm sure it's fairly obvious, but… please be sure to lock all of your doors and windows during nighttime." As Monika said this, Max let out an annoyed groan.

"Are you serious? That's a really obvious thing to say. Come on. You're wasting people's time with this stupid meeting, if that's all. For fucksake…." Max groaned out as Monika looked away, ashamed.

"You little…" Natsuki growled as Jaune raised an eyebrow.

"I don't mean to agree with the arrogant kid, but if that's all you had to say, why call a meeting?" the blond asked as Monika sighed, her smile returning, even if it was disheartened, as she looked back over the other campers.

"Well, you would be right in this being a stupid meeting with if it was just that," Monika started, getting some people's attention back.

"Wait, what else is there?" Nikki questioned.

"I'm glad you asked…." Monika said, letting out a deep sigh before pulling out a folded-up piece of paper from her pocket. "When I went to go back to my cabin to prepare for bed… my cabin looked like a tornado ran through it, meaning someone broke in."

[Play: DISTRUST]

For a full minute, everyone in the room stayed silent. Even Shigaraki had gone a little pale at this piece of information. Someone had tried to break into Monika's room, supposedly to kill her, but instead left her cabin a mess, and…

"Let me guess, that letter your holding," Harry was the first one to speak up as Monika silently nodded.

"This letter in my hand was written by the person who broke into my cabin. This is what it says, A-hem: You got lucky this time, but there won't be a next – Anonymous."

As Monika put the letter away, all eyes landed on Dio, except Monika's, which caused the blond to raise an eyebrow.

"What? Why are you lot staring at me like that?" Dio questioned as Shaggy crossed his arms.

"Did you write that letter?" Shaggy questioned as Dio looked bewildered.

"Are you asking me, Dio, if I wrote some stupid passive-aggressive note?" Dio spat before crossing his arms. "First thing's first, I was busy all day with Erina, minus the time I went to go do something, to which I had Tomura look after her," Dio stated.

"Mind telling us what that something is? Don't get me wrong. I don't want to baselessly accuse you. It would go against what I stand for, but for the sake of at least scratching someone off the list of people who attempted to attack Monika, we should know what it was you were doing in that time," Velma asked as the blond gritted his teeth.

"Tch, I suppose, if gets you all off my back," Dio said, crossing his arms. "If you must know what I was doing, I was busy trying to find a way to get into the counsellor's cabin. I figured that if I could get into the building, I could figure out how Monokuma gathered us all here," Dio said as Erina looked at him with a shocked expression.

"Why? If that was why you sent me off with Tomura, then why not just take me with you?" Erina asked as Dio looked away.

"Because, I didn't know if what I was doing counted towards an attack on Monokuma, and if I would have been killed if I was caught, so in case I was right out it being a front against him, then at least you would be spared," Dio stated as Erina looked away.

"Can anyone else confirm what he said?" Velma asked as Jaune let out a sigh.

"Yeah, I can. I saw him do this when I was walking over to the beach earlier today," Jaune said, rubbing the back of his head as Velma nodded.

"Okay, so Dio is off the table for this. That means that 14 other people could've written that letter. This means one of those people could've written it," Velma stated as Max raised an eyebrow.

"You're counting yourself in that?" Max asked as Velma smirked.

"It's better than saying I'm innocent. I'm not a biased person. I know what I know about myself. If you trust me, you'll know the truth. If you don't, then you can think whatever you will. I feel as if I should count everyone into the people who could've written that letter, aside from the people that we know didn't, in this case, Dio and Monika," Velma explained as Max rolled his eyes.

"That's a fancy way of saying that everyone else is untrustworthy, aside from twiddle-dee and twiddle-dumb," Max said, putting his hands in his pockets.

"Regardless of that, at least we know Dio is not one of a suspect," Velma said, glancing at everyone in the room. "While I'd love to probe everyone here for information regarding the letter. We should all head back to our cabins before it hits 10 PM," Velma stated as Monika nodded.

"Yes, that is true. Be sure to lock your doors, everyone, then, in the morning, let's meet up back here," Monika said as there was a collective mumble of agreement in the room. Everyone began to depart from the cafeteria and headed back for their cabins.

A few people spoke to one another, but there was only one thing on Shigaraki's mind. Who could've done this? Who could've attempted to murder Monika in her own cabin? He glanced around the people of the crowd, but out of everyone there…. He couldn't think of any one of them. The only one he could've assumed to have attempted that would've been Dio hadn't his innocence been proven earlier.

Regardless of that, it had become painfully clear that someone was interested in starting the Killing Game, and Shigaraki was opposed to that, despite his blase attitude toward it thus far. As he entered his cabin and locked his door behind him, he couldn't help but wonder…

Who was the one who attempted to start the Killing Game…

[Play: Despair Syndrome 2]

He was restless after that meeting. How could he not? Sure, he was the big bad villain from his country… but outside of that? He was nothing here. All he had was that stupid Ultimate Title, telling the world that he was the bad guy, but aside from that? Nothing else made it obvious. He was a laid-back person with anger issues and a deadly Quirk. But the moment you strip that away from him, he becomes just some guy who has anger issues and a laid-back personality.

Well, he did have his destruction fetish, but that was a side-effect of his Quirk. To be honest, he was wondering where that urge to destroy went. He theorized that it might've been linked to his Quirk, which if he hadn't assumed that it was then, it definitely was now.

His Quirk… he used it to end so many lives. So many innocent people died at his hands, for what? World peace? That was what he thought he was doing. To create the perfect world, some people had to die. That was what his Sensei told him. A world where heroes and villains are not needed. That was what his worldview was.

If a society like the one he lived in created a person like him, that society didn't need to exist. To fix that society, it needed to crumble at his hands. It needed to be destroyed. Consequences be damned.

So why did he feel as if that idea was immoral without his Quirk influencing that desire? He had believed that was the way to do things all his life, but ever since he lost his Quirk, things had been… different…

"Was… Was Sensei wrong?" Shigaraki muttered, looking at his hands. "No… Sensei was not wrong. He couldn't have been wrong…" the teal-haired man growled, slamming his hand on the wall, waiting for his Quirk to activate… but it didn't. Sure, his gloves were still on, but…

An idea popped into his head. Taking off his shirt and throwing it to the wayside, he looked at his now bare hands. He walked over to the left wall of his cabin and placed his hand on it with his pinky finger lifted. He knew this was pointless, but he had least had to try. Placing his pinky finger down, he closed his eyes and focused. He mustered as much as he could out of himself, and when he stopped and opened his eyes, they widened. Taking his hand away from the wall, there was one singular crack in the wall.

That crack wasn't there before… so…

"Do I still have my Quirk?" Shigaraki muttered, or was it just because he forced himself against the wood, causing it to crack a little? Whatever the case may be, he'd have to test it out later. Grabbing his shirt from the corner he threw it in he put it back on.

Looking back at the crack, he shook his head. No, he couldn't still have his Quirk… that'd be impossible… if Midoriya didn't have his, then he couldn't either. Cursing under his breath, he looked over at the shower room. He hadn't had a shower in at least a day, and he was starting to stink because of it.

"Maybe a shower will get my mind off things… yeah… that'd be a good idea…." Shigaraki muttered, walking over to his bathroom door. Opening it, he stepped inside and closed it behind him, turning the lock to make sure no one got in. However, as soon as he stepped inside…

Ding. Dong. Bing. Bong.

"A-Hem, this is a Mono-Mono-Camp special announcement! It is now officially nighttime, meaning that there will be some places locked up right now. Goodnight, Sleep tight, and don't let the bedbugs bite~!"

The announcement finished, causing Shigaraki to shake his head. That was the first time he ever heard the nighttime announcement. It sounded like a school announcement more than a camp announcement. Regardless of that, it was kind of weird to the teal-haired man.

Turning on the water, he started to get undressed… that was, until, he heard a shaking noise coming from his front door. Shigaraki froze as the sound continued. It sounded like a rattling noise. Like someone was trying to break into his cabin. After a while, a banging noise cropped up too, mixing with the rattling. The teal-haired man stood stock still, not wanting to catch the intruder's attention.

"What the fuck?" Shigaraki thought, slowly reaching to turn off the water. As soon as he did so, the banging and the rattling stopped, followed by someone walking away and doing so pretty quickly. Walking out of the bathroom, he ran over to the window of his cabin, trying to get a decent look outside, only to be met with pitch-black darkness.

"Damnit…" Shigaraki swore, stepping away from the window. With that kind of darkness, he wouldn't be able to see anyone, not even an outline. Walking back into his bathroom, he closed the door behind him, locking it again as he turned back on the water and finished getting undressed. Switching the water to be directed towards the showerhead, he stepped in and closed the curtain behind him.

The shower was swift, rinsing off the sweat he had accumulated while using the shampoo to fix his hair. Afterwards, he scrubbed his body before rinsing off again. Turning off the shower, he stepped out, grabbed a nearby towel, then dried himself off before exiting the bathroom. He walked over to a dresser before grabbing a clean set of clothes.

Getting changed, he ran his hands through his hair to give it a more messy look. Closing the bathroom door, he walked over to his bed before laying down. He should at least try and get some sleep. After all, he needed to be ready for tomorrow. He didn't quite know what it would bring, but he at least needed to get some sleep before the meeting in the morning. That much was for sure.

As soon as his head hit the pillow, his eyes drifted shut as he went off to the land of dreams…

[Play: Mr. Monokuma's lesson V3]

You want to know what it is I HATE about "Fanganronpa's?" It's the fact that it is far too easy to know which character will end up dead by the first chapter and which character obviously was the one to kill them! It takes away from the mystery, suspense, and overall joy of reading or watching a Fangan!

That's why I'm such a stickler when it comes to these sorts of things. You gotta do things RIGHT, building EVERY character instead of the ones you like the most. That includes fangan's that are massive crossovers!

And don't even get me started on the poorly done ones… oohhh! Those make me seeth with such rage! Listen, if you're going to do a Fangan, at least take your time and plan out things instead of just going full steam ahead, ya know? It takes time to create a good killing game! Work harder, not smarter. That's what PapaKuma always told me!

[Stop OST – Play: Despair Syndrome 1]

For the second time in the night, Shigaraki stirred, the sound of knocking at his cabin door once again waking him up. Once again, he pulled out his Monopad and saw the time. It was 4:45 AM. Sitting up, he wiped his eyes from the sleep that had built up in the corners. Putting his Monopad back on his dresser, he got up from his bed and walked over to his door.

Would it… stupid to open up the door? What if it was the person who was going around trying to break in? Shigaraki didn't know what to think. But at the same time… what if this was someone who needed help?

Shigaraki was the kind of guy that didn't like to help people. But that was before his Quirk had been taken away. Before he was separated from the league, from his Sensei.

He shook his head. Now was not the time to dwell on personal dilemmas.

Staring at the door, he placed his hand on the handle before turning it ever-so-slightly. Creaking open the door, he was met with a short person standing on the other side with blond hair being the main thing that stuck out about them. Opening the door further revealed it to be Harry.

"Harry?" Shigaraki spoke, his voice hoarse from just waking up as the young boy looked up at him.

"Oh, thank god. Someone finally answered. It's Deliah… I, um, it's hard to explain, but you should go see for yourself," Harry explained, worry on his face as Shigaraki felt his heart plummet.

"No… it couldn't be…."Shigaraki thought, stepping outside. "Come on, let's go then," the teal-haired man stated, following Harry to her cabin. The door was creaked open slightly, revealing a small bit of light pouring out.

Shigaraki's heart began to pound against his chest as he reached for the doorknob. As he put his hand on the door, he swallowed back the building fear.

"Please don't be dead… please don't be dead…."

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As soon as Shigaraki stepped inside, he saw the brunette huddled on the bed, tears running down her cheeks as she rocked back and forth. His heart stopped beating a mile a minute, relieved that she was alive. However, the condition she was in was not a very good one either. Looking back at Harry, who had stepped in behind him, the blond began to speak.

"I've been trying to talk to her for the past hour now, but I can't snap her out of whatever trance she's got herself into. I thought that someone could help me, but no one else would answer the door…." Harry explained as Shigaraki nodded.

Without saying another word, Shigaraki walked into Deliah's bathroom, walked over to her sink, and turned on the water. Harry raised an eyebrow at his but did not make a single comment about it, figuring that whatever the teal-haired man was doing was the right call. After all, he was an adult, so he could be trusted, at least for now.

Shigaraki made his way to the side of her bed and knelt, grabbing one of Deliah's hands. His face was serious, his eyes brows knitted with a slight frown visible on his face. "Deliah, It's me, Tomura…" the teal-haired man started, glancing over to Harry. "I'm with Harry right now. Can you hear the water running?" Shigaraki asked as Deliah stopped rocking back and forth, glancing at Shigaraki, which caused his frown to shift into a straight expression.

"What are you…." before Harry could finish, Shigaraki stuck up a hand, gesturing him to stop talking. Harry's shoulders sagged a bit as Shigaraki lowered his hand.

"Now, Deliah, what happened? Can you tell me?" The teal-haired man asked as Deliah glanced away from Shigaraki and towards the door. As soon as she did, her shoulders tensed. Shakily, she raised her hand towards the door, causing the man to follow where it was pointing.

"S-Someone was… shouting and screaming… I… I didn't want to go out…." Deliah muttered in a hushed tone as Shigaraki grimaced.

"And how long ago was this?" Shigaraki asked, causing her to shake her head.

"I… I don't know…" the brunette replied as the teal-haired man sighed, letting go of her hand.

"Well, whoever was there is gone now. You're safe in your cabin, meaning you don't have to fear whoever that was coming back, okay?" Shigaraki said as Deliah nodded, glancing at Harry.

"Harry… can you… can you stay with me tonight… I don't feel safe right now…." Deliah asked, causing Harry to recoil slightly before straightening himself out.

"Y-Yeah, sure, I don't see why not," Harry said, a light shade of pink dusting his cheeks as Shigaraki shook his head. It was far too obvious to see that the boy had a crush on her. Looking back at the brunette, she seemingly looked better than how he found her.

But at least she wasn't dead…

Looking back at Harry, Shigaraki got up from where he stood and walked towards the door. "Well, I'll leave this to you, Harry. I'm going to try and get some more shut-eye before that stupid bear screeches at 7 AM…."

And with his peace said, Shigaraki exited the cabin and walked back to his in the pitch black. It was cold outside, easily in the single digits, maybe the negatives. However, that didn't shake the fact that he felt odd about this place.

Sure, it was creepy to him how he just… showed up here in the middle of the day, but everything here seemed oddly specific to certain people, at least in his mind.

There was the cafeteria's massive kitchen for Natsuki. The beach with sharks for Nikki, though that was debatable. There were cabins that were meant for everyone. There was the Greenhouse for… well, maybe Ruby because of the name pun, but perhaps it was meant for Erina. Regardless of that fact, he couldn't shake the feeling that some places were meant for more people rather than others.

As he stepped onto the doorstep of his cabin, he couldn't help but feel watched. He glanced behind him, only to see nothing. Then, when he turned around and opened the door, he quickly shut and locked the door behind him.

Whoever the person was going around trying to break into the cabins was either someone playing a very, very poor prank, or someone actively trying to kill someone. As far as he was concerned, he was starting to get worried… worried that someone might kill.

But why should he care? He's the biggest threat here….

Right?

Shaking his head, he walked over to his bed, he laid back down and closed his eyes, trying desperately to get the last amount of shut-eye he could till the meeting in the morning…

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[Play: Beautiful Morning]

*Ding. Dong. Bing. Bong*

"A-hem, this is a Mono-Mono Camp special announcement! It is now 7:00 AM! You know what that means~! It's time to RISE AND SHINE! Stretch those legs and run around! Make sure you give it your all! Who knows? Today just might be your last!"

With the morning announcement ringing in his ears, Shigaraki sat up in bed, grabbing his forehead as his red eyes stared at the door. Last night was… well, it was interesting. He was worried about Deliah, but he felt as if she was fine after their visit. Maybe… he didn't know, but the fact of the matter was that she had a panic attack last night.

The ultimate criminal mastermind had a few run-ins with those in his early years, mostly due to his… less than stellar childhood. Whenever he had those moments, his mother would always turn on the water and ask him if he was alright. It worked for him because it distracted Shigaraki from… him. He was glad it also worked for Deliah, but he couldn't help but wonder what her home life was like.

Getting out of bed, he immediately exited his cabin. There was going to be a meeting this morning, and instead of being late for the third time in a row, he felt like he wanted to be on time this go around.

He watched as some people exited their cabins. However, he specifically looked towards the one in the far left corner, that one being Deliah's. He felt a wave of relief wash over him when he saw both Harry and Deliah sitting on the doorstep talking.

Feeling satisfied, he made his way directly to the cafeteria. When he got there and opened the door, he was greeted by Neil, who was sitting by his lonesome. As soon as the brown-haired boy saw him, he meekly raised his hand towards the teal-haired man in a friendly, welcoming gesture.

Shigaraki took it upon himself to walk over to the boy and sit the seat one over from him. "G-Good morning... uh... Mr. Tomura..." Neil said as Shigaraki raised an eyebrow. The kid was different from how he first met him. Though he did suppose that he caught him in a bad mood, so now that things had at least somewhat settled down, the kid could, maybe, act like himself.

"Hey," Shigaraki said as a few moments of silence passed until Neil spoke up again.

"H-Hey, I… I have a question for you… did you… did you uh, see Max yesterday?" Neil asked as Shigaraki raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, why? Is he being a bully to you or something?" Shigaraki assumed as Neil froze before shaking his head.

"Ack- I, uh… No, actually, uh… Max, Nikki, and I are friends… really close friends…." Neil said, causing Shigaraki to raise an eyebrow.

"That little shit has friends?" Shigaraki thought, blinking a few times before shaking his head. He hadn't expected that to come out of the scientist, but then again, no one would've expected Mr. Compress and his friends, so Shigaraki assumed that it was one of those love/hate relationships.

"Ah, okay. Well, I saw him at the beach yesterday, skulking under a tree trying to stay away from everyone," The teal-haired man paused for a moment, his facial expression turning into one of curiosity. "Actually, what's his deal anyway? You're his friend, right? So why is he secluding himself from everyone and acting like a douchebag?" Shigaraki questioned, causing Neil to scoff.

"Trying to deduce that is like trying to solve string theory, pretty much impossible. But if I were to guess, it's probably because he… well, he doesn't have much trust left in him, which he reserved for Nikki and me. Aside from that, the guy is a complete anomaly. However, if you wanted to know about his douchebaginess, you'd have to ask Nikki. She and Max are far closer than him and me." As Neil finished his explanation, Shigaraki nodded.

As soon as their conversation ended, Monika walked inside the cafeteria, a shocked expression on her face. "Oh, Neil, Shigaraki, I wasn't expecting you two to show up before I did!" Monika said with a practiced smile as Neil shrunk in his seat while Shigaraki waved absent-mindedly.

"Good morning, Monika. Glad to see you're okay after yesterday's meeting," Shigaraki said as Monika nodded.

"Yeah, after I announced that, I thought that I had painted a target on my back. But it turns out that I was safe!" Monika paused for a moment, her expression turning downcast. "Though someone did try to break into my cabin, thankfully though, I took Velma's advice, so they couldn't get in," Monika explained as Shigaraki folded his arms.

"Yeah, the same thing happened to me. Someone tried breaking into my cabin as well. They weren't able to, thank kami, but if they did, I knew I wasn't going to go down without a fight," Shigaraki said, his expression turning malicious as Neil and Monika felt a chill run down their spines.

"Are you saying that you'd…" Neil questioned as Shigaraki looked at him with an expression that screamed, "Are you stupid."

"Well, I have the right to defend myself. If someone comes at me with the intent to kill, don't think for a second that I wouldn't kill them in retaliation," Shigaraki stated, his tone matter-of-fact as Monika cleared her throat.

"Well… with that slightly disturbing note, I'm glad that nothing happened to you, Shigaraki," Monika stated, her expression serious as the teal-haired man nodded.

After a while of silence, people began to trickle in. By the time everyone showed up, it was around 7:55 AM. A few people grouped up to talk to one another, notably Daphne, Shaggy, and Velma, while other people kept to themselves, like Max or, for some reason, Izuku.

As soon as everyone took their spots in the cafeteria, the sound of Monika clearing her throat to get everyone's attention echoed throughout the compact room, gaining the desired result.

"Thank you, again, for everyone showing up," Monika started, earning a few mutters from everyone, as well as a few gestures of acknowledgement. "I was worried something might have happened when I spoke out about the letter, but it seems as if nothing… outwardly bad happened," Monika said, her eyes casting over to Deliah, who had a visibly shaken appearance, what with the bags under her eyes and the tear stains on her cheeks.

"I hate to interrupt, Monika, but I would like to ask something of everyone here," Velma spoke out, looking towards the Ultimate Poet as Monika hummed, gesturing her to continue. "Good, okay. How many people here had someone go up to their door, shake the doorknob, bang on the door, then run off after around a minute or so of this happening? If so, raise your hand." As soon as Velma finished, everyone raised their hand, causing the detective to hum.

"Alright… that wasn't the result I was looking for. I thought that the person responsible wouldn't raise their hand. But at least we know that one of us here is lying about encountering this. However, I don't want to go accusing people," Velma said, crossing her arms, on hand on her chin in contemplation, her expression one of thought.

"Yeah, it was freaky though, it made me feel like my life was on the line… I hated it. After they went away, I couldn't sleep at all last night," Ruby said, shivering slightly at the memory as Jaune nodded.

"Yeah. Whoever did that had some real nerve trying to spook us. Seriously, what a jackass…." Jaune expressed his face a mix of anger and stress.

"I wonder… what if it wasn't one of us, but rather, Monokuma?" Daphne suggested, rubbing the back of her neck. "I mean, think about it. He's the one who's been trying to get us to kill each other. Since we've shown no interest in doing so, do you think he's trying to get us all riled up so that we do end up doing… ya know…" Daphne said, a bead of sweat falling down her forehead at the thought as Natsuki nodded.

"I hate to agree with the fashion bimbo, but yeah, she's right. Sure, there have been some people who've been real jackasses, but no one had really expressed the idea of killing someone, at least not openly. So I think fashion girl over there is on to something," the pink-haired girl said, smirking as Daphne huffed.

"Don't need to be a prick when you agree with someone… sheesh," the fashionist complained as Dio rolled his eyes.

"Come now, ladies, I don't think bickering will solve anything about our current predicament. For now, allow me to make a suggestion," Dio asked as all eyes landed on him.

"Man, if you go on about the stuff you did yesterday, like, I'll get really annoyed. And you don't want to see me annoyed," Shaggy stated, a glint in his right eye as Dio waved him off.

"Oh no, a stoner being an arrogant idiot, how shocking. Regardless, as I was saying, I believe that we should meet every morning and every night to be sure to know that everyone is here and that everyone is alive before we call it in. Who knows, perhaps one of us will cave, perhaps not, but it's always good to do a morning and evening roll-call," Dio proposed, his tone full of arrogance as Erina nodded.

"I agree with Dio. It is a smart thing to do, wouldn't you say?" Erina said, a smile on her face as Izuku glanced up at the ceiling.

"Putting aside the fact that he spoke in such an arrogant way, yes, I agree with Dio, though only because he brought up a valid point about making sure everyone was safe," Izuku said, his eyes locking on Dio, a scowl on his face as Dio shrugged.

"This is simply the way I talk. If you don't like it, then you're free to leave," Dio snarked as Monika cleared her throat.

"I would rather not have a fight break out in the cafeteria, so please, try not to start anything right now," Monika asked as Daphne sighed.

"I don't mean to be rude, but is there anything else we need to go over? I have a few things I want to get done right now, so…?" Daphne let the question up in the air as Monika nodded.

"Yes, that is all. Meeting dismissed, you're all free to leave."

As soon as Monika dismissed the meeting and everyone began to leave the cafeteria, Shigaraki stretched out his arms and yawned. He didn't exactly get a good night's sleep, especially after his ordeal with Deliah. His eyes glanced over at the titular brunette, who was leaving with Harry and, surprisingly, Nikki. Did the two become friends? It was possible, but it was also none of his business.

For whatever reason, he had gotten attached to Deliah, which wasn't exactly a good thing. It wasn't one of those weird love things. If that were the case, he really would belong on "Catch a Predator," or whatever Max had called it.

The reason why he had gotten attached to her was that she reminded him of Hana, his long-dead sister. He had vague memories of her, but what he did remember about her was that she was a bubbly child and a caring sister when she wasn't a snitch, that was.

Letting out a sigh of frustration, he was about to get up when he felt someone tap him on the shoulder. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Daphne and Velma, which had caught him off guard.

[Play: Becoming Friends]

"Uh… hi Tomura. Could you take us to the beach area, you know, to make sure we were following the rules?" Daphne asked as Shigaraki sighed, standing up from his seat. He assumed it was just an excuse to talk to someone other than Velma, but he wouldn't say that aloud.

The teal-haired man sighed, giving the strawberry blond a tired look. "Fine, I don't see any issues with that. I do have plans, though, so let's not daddle," Shigaraki stated as Daphne smiled.

"Thanks, Tomura!" Daphne said, clasping her hands together as the group of three began to walk to the beach. Relatively speaking, they remained silent. Not much was said between the group. However, as they walked, Velma cleared their throat, causing the other two to look at her.

"I don't mean to interrupt the silence, but I was wondering, if it was possible to climb the wall that we found, perhaps there is a way to see the rest of this camp without anyone dying?" Velma questioned, causing Shigaraki to raise his eyebrow.

"Why would you want to climb the wall? We have everything we need! A cafeteria for food, a beach for entertainment, a greenhouse to grow stuff, and a place to sleep! We don't need to explore the rest of this camp!" Daphne exclaimed as Velma pinched her nose.

"Yes, for you, but for others, this might seem like torture. Think about it. Not everyone wants to lounge at a beach. That much is for sure," Velma explained as Daphne pouted.

"Well, I guess your right. But you saw that thing, right? There is no WAY anyone can climb that thing!" Daphne said as she turned to Shigaraki. "Right? That thing looks unclimbable, so there is no way anyone would try to climb it, right?" The strawberry blond questioned as Shigaraki sighed.

"Well, I can't say that it would be impossible. But seeing as it looks completely smooth, with no way of gripping anything, trying to climb it would just be suicide. That's not even mentioning the fact that Monokuma probably has some sort of defence mechanism in place to keep everyone off of the thing in the first place." Shigaraki deduced as Velma sighed.

"Well, it was worth discussing. Still, I don't doubt for a second that you guys aren't even giving it a chance. Perhaps there is a way, and we just don't know it yet," Velma said, cupping her chin as they finished walking to the beach's gate.

The pair waved Shigaraki off as they walked beyond the gate, leaving the teal-haired man by his lonesome. "Well, now that no one is bugging me…." Shigaraki muttered as he picked up his pace over to the greenhouse area. There was something he wanted to check out that had nothing to do with the actual Greenhouse.

[Play: Beautiful Death]

When he made it to the area, he set his sights on a small wooden hut adjacent to the Greenhouse. The wood looked decrepit, and one of the windows of the hut looked cracked. As Shigaraki approached it, and as he opened the door, his eyes narrowed. It was a tool shed.

Inside the tool shed off to the right were two metal rakes and one rake with a plastic green covering. On the backside of the shed was a table and a corkboard with six wooden mallets hanging up, all of them sorted from smallest to largest. Finally, on the left of the shed were two shovels, a watering can, and a bag of fertilizer.

Shigaraki frowned. With access to this, someone could easily steal one of these to kill someone. He reached out to grab one of the mallets when he heard the door open, stopping in his tracks as he turned around. Standing there was Shaggy, his eyebrow raised. "Why does my luck have to be shitty."

"Yo, Tomura dude, whatcha doing?" Shaggy asked, crossing his arms as Shigaraki sighed, lowering his arm.

"I was planning to take the mallets so that no one can use them for… ya know?" Shigaraki said as Shaggy sighed.

"Uh-huh. Okay, look, man, I'm not saying that you're planning to kill someone, trust me, I believe you, but don't you think that's a bad idea? Those are there for a reason, right? What if someone needs to use them for something else? Plus, if someone sees you walking around with six mallets, they're going to suspect you for plotting a murder. Just saying," Shaggy stated as Shigaraki cursed under his breath.

For a guy who looked like a stoner, Shaggy was a lot smarter than he looked.

"Fine…" Shigaraki groaned, walking out of the shed as Shaggy closed the door behind him.

"Well, I'll be on my way then. I just wanted to look at the shed," Shigaraki said, turning to leave as Shaggy sighed.

"Okay, man, see you later, I guess," the Snack Taster said as Shigaraki walked away. The teal-haired man had no real opinion on Shaggy, as the two hadn't really interacted. However, just from that small interaction alone, he figured that he cared for the others, a little bit too much to his own detriment.

As he left the area, he decided that he'd go back to his cabin for a bit, just to rest. As he walked, he saw something rather… peculiar. Sitting all by her lonesome by the bonfire was Velma. "That's weird. Wasn't she at the beach with Daphne?" Shigaraki thought as Velma was stirring some of the ashes with a stick, a downcast expression on her face as Shigaraki approached. "It couldn't hurt to cheer her up a bit, wouldn't it? And hey, I might as well try looking for one of those figurines while I'm at it."

[Play: Becoming Friends]

As soon as he came into her peripheral vision, Velma raised her head to look at Shigaraki, a semi-upset look on her face. "Oh, hey there, Tomura… I didn't see you there," Velma said, tossing the stick aside as Shigaraki sat beside her on one of the logs surrounding the bonfire.

"Well, I saw you all by yourself. Which is weird, considering you and Daphne were just together not even ten minutes ago. I don't mean poke and prod, but what happened?" Shigaraki asked as Velma smiled slightly, fixing her glasses.

"Truth be told, me and Daphne aren't exactly close like most friends should be. Sure, we work together to solve mysteries all the time with me, Shaggy, his Dog, and her boyfriend, but she always just seems to have her head up her ass all the time," Velma said, her tone of voice turning slightly vindictive as she spat out the last few words with an annoyed tone of voice.

"Really? You two seemed as thick as thieves last night, you, her, and Shaggy. So what happened there. Did one of you make an off-handed comment, or…" Shigaraki left the question ambiguous as Velma rubbed the back of her head.

"Well, Shaggy and I have had an off and on relationship for a while. He's not the romantic type, but he isn't a pervert either. He just likes to take things cool and calm. But ever since Monokuma showed up and this stupid game started, he's become super on edge and refuses to talk to anyone outside of me, Daphne, and a select few that he's keeping his eye on." Velma explained, pausing for a second to think.

"Don't get me wrong. Shaggy is a good guy. He's far too caring for his own good sometimes. But when he gets overly frightened, he tends to act like a caged animal. He was a coward for a while, but that changed when he went back home to Crystal Cove to help out his mom and dad. After that, when he came back with Scooby, he was a completely changed man emotionally, but he was still the same old Shaggy personality-wise," Velma continued as Shigaraki nodded.

A complete change of character after being with his family. An almost sickly want to protect people. A gated off nature to those he didn't trust. It almost sounded like Dabi if he had become a hero, just swap out the want to protect people to burning everything he didn't like to the ground, and you'd have Dabi.

It was strange. Seeing his league members in people who had no real connection to them was strange but also comforting.

"Okay, but what about you and Daphne. What happened there?" Shigaraki asked as Velma cursed under her breath.

"Well, when you left to go do whatever you were doing, Daphne and I were on the beach for a while when I brought up possible theories on who the person who was trying to break into our cabins was. However, when I brought it up, she didn't want to talk to me anymore before violently screaming at me to leave. I tried to ask her what was wrong, but she just threw sand at me and told me to leave. I guess it was a sensitive topic for her, but for her to react like that… it was disheartening."

As Velma explained, Shigaraki put a hand on her shoulder, catching her off guard. "Huh?" Velma asked, a confused look on her face.

"I get it. I have a friend who's sort of like that. His name is Dabi. Or, at least that's his code name. No one in my league knows his real name other than himself. Well… he's more of my boyfriend than a friend, but… ugh, whatever. He's really sensitive about certain things, like being snuck up on, or loud noises, long car rides, and for whatever reason, he hates martinis. I think it has to do with his family life beforehand, but he can get irrational sometimes. Perhaps it's just the pressure that's throwing her off right now. I think she doesn't want to talk about that sort of thing right now. It's been a tough day for everyone, hell, scratch that, a tough week so far for everyone. I doubt anyone wants to talk about this kind of stuff right now. My advice is to just leave her alone for a bit to cool off, then talk to her about it later."

As Shigaraki spoke, he felt an odd warmth in his chest. It felt… good. It felt good helping others, which was weird. Again, it was something he would usually hate doing. But this? This was different. For some reason, he liked the sensation of helping others.

He began to believe more and more that his Quirk was the reason why he felt such hatred for anything that breathed. Before, it was just an afterthought, but now, this interaction alone settled it.

Shigaraki let go of her shoulder as Velma smiled. Though it was half-hearted, there was some genuine feeling of glee in her eyes, so at least he knew he helped her out a bit.

"Thanks, I needed to hear that. Oh, and I found this earlier," Velma said, pulling out a Pikachu figurine. Passing it over to the teal-haired man as he stuffed it into his pocket as Velma sighed. "Monokuma told me he was having you collect them for him. I don't know why, but he muttered something about you being a protagonist. I guess that just means he's decided to pick on you about these stupid things." Velma said, her half-hearted smile turning into a full one as Shigaraki nodded.

"Thanks. And yeah, I don't know he's making me do this. I guess it's so I don't get bored? Or maybe he's just being lazy about it and getting someone else to do it for him, damn bear," Shigaraki cursed as Velma giggled.

"Yeah, that sounds about right," Velma said as Shigaraki felt his Monopad rumble. As he pulled it out, he sighed, seeing the message on the screen.

Relationship with Velma raised – 1 out of 5

"Huh… neat, I guess. I didn't know Monokuma stalked us about our relationships too. What a weirdo," Velma said as Shigaraki shrugged.

"Well, to be fair, that's the last thing we need worry about when it comes to him," Shigaraki said, standing up as Velma nodded.

"Well, thanks for the talk," Velma said as Shigaraki waved goodbye, heading back over to the cabins. He was still trying to aim for some relaxation in the confines of his cabin. However, the Criminal Mastermind had begun to notice a trend. Ever since he came to this camp, any "free time" he had was spent interacting with other people.

As someone who had been introverted all his life, cooped up in his room playing RPGs and planning out heists with rogue "party members," as he used to call business partners, before sleeping for the rest of the day.

Perhaps this place was more beneficial than it really should be, minus the so-called Killing Game that was going on. It was funny. For a "Killing Game," there wasn't much killing going on, which he assumed was a good thing for them, and a not-so-good thing for Monokuma.

When he made it back to the cabin area, he saw Ruby doing laps around the perimeter, wearing what looked to be a pair of shorts and a black tank top. As soon as she saw him, the red-head stopped dead in her tracks and smiled.

"Oh! Hey Shiggy!" Ruby called out as Shigaraki sighed. It seemed like he wasn't going to relax now that he got her attention of all things.

"Hey, Ruby. I haven't talked to you in a bit," Shigaraki said, walking over to her as the redhead wiped the sweat off of her forehead.

"Well, the only real-time we've ever talked was during the meetings. Even then, he was usually just to agree on something that someone said…." Ruby said, her expression more of a pout than anything else. "I've been so booorrrreeed. There's no Grimm to kill, no weapons to build, no activities. Just boring old nothing. So I decided to do some laps to keep my cardio up!" Ruby said, giving a general thumbs-up as Shigaraki huffed, a smirk on his visage as he folded his arms.

"You seem rather energetic for such a bleak and miserable situation we find ourselves in," Shigaraki said as Ruby rubbed the back of her head.

"Well, I guess I just don't want to let this crappy situation control me, you know? Anywho. On that note, you wanna go bake some cookies? I know Natsuki is like, the ultimate baker or whatever, but half the fun of having cookies is making them yourself, plus, she's kinda rude," Ruby said, twirling a strand of hair as Shigaraki sighed. He was pretty hungry, and even though cookies aren't exactly a meal, he hasn't had an actual homemade cookie in a long time.

He glanced over at his cabin with a relaxed expression before looking back at Ruby, stuffing his hands into his pockets before caving. "Fine, although you should get something different on and maybe have a shower. I'll wait here," Shigaraki said as Ruby squealed with a smile on her face, bouncing up and down as she dashed off to her cabin.

"Yup, she's definitely like Toga… great," Shigaraki thought, walking over to the gate to the Cabin area before leaning against it. After a short amount of time passed, Ruby walked out of her cabin wearing what appeared to be a replica of what she had been wearing on her first day at the Camp. To Shigaraki, it looked like a hero costume that heroes would wear.

"Okay! I'm ready! Let's go!" The teen said, grabbing Shigaraki by the hand, catching him off guard. The redhead dragged him to the cafeteria's kitchen at a surprising speed. The girl's physical strength and speed were something that he had not been accounting for. Then again, for her to be the Ultimate Huntress must've required immense training, so he assumed that this shouldn't have been unsurprising to him.

The pair quickly found themselves in the kitchen within a matter of seconds. The pair didn't share many conversations while making the batter, only small favours of passing things back and forth. It was a great way to relax, and Shigaraki found himself having a decent amount of fun while doing so.

"Now, remember, make sure that each 'soon-to-be cookie' is spaced enough, so they don't turn into an amorphous blob of cookie destruction!" Ruby said, a jovial smile on her as Shigaraki smirked.

"I know, this isn't my first rodeo," Shigaraki said, spacing the lumps of cookie dough on the cookie sheet. After the teal-haired man finished putting the dough on the sheets, he placed them within the oven before cranking up the heat.

As they waited, Ruby let out a sigh, wiping some flour off her cheek. "Who knew baking, especially with others, was so much fun! No wonder why Natsuki loves it so much," Ruby said, hand behind her head as Shigaraki hummed.

"Well, it wasn't easy, but it was still fun. Now, we have to await the fruits of our labour," Shigaraki said, folding his arms as a smirk dressed his expression.

Some time passed, and when their first batch of cookies came out, they accidentally burnt them, tossing them as a result. However, the second time around, they came out a fine golden brown, almost reminding him of a gold coin.

When they had finished getting them all on a plate and grabbing some milk, they sat out in the dining room to eat. Ruby had carried the tray of cookies out to the room while Shigaraki brought the milk. When they exited the kitchen, they made their way to the closest table, the one near the left window, as they enjoyed their sweet treats.

Much to Shigaraki's shock and awe, they came out just the way he had thought a normal cookie was to be. They were crispy and crunchy, yet soft and smooth all at the same time. The chocolate blended seamlessly with the shell, and mixing it with milk made it twice as good.

"Wow, I can't believe these turned out as good as they did… and I'm horrid at cooking," Shigaraki said, biting into one of the cookies he took off the tray. Ruby smiled, dipping hers in milk.

"Well, with help, things can always be better, no matter how bad the person is at the skill," Ruby said as Shigaraki nodded. He guessed that was just a fact of life. Sometimes people helping other people was just the right thing to do…

He sighed. This place was slowly but surely changing him, and he didn't know if he liked it. Taking another cookie, Shigaraki stood up from his seat as he turned to face the exit. "Well, I hate to leave so soon, but I'm tired, and I really want to get some shut-eye before anything major happens," Shigaraki said as Ruby smiled.

"Fair enough. See you around Tomura!" Ruby said, a smile on her face as the man left, his Monopad rumbling once again.

Relationship with Ruby Rose increased: 1 out of 5

[Play: Beautiful Lie]

Shigaraki paid no mind to his Monopad. He knew what it was going to say, so checking it each time would be pointless. As he walked back to his cabin, he noticed just how far the sun had progressed in the sky. It was past high noon, meaning that his baking sessions with Ruby were pretty long. Just how long, he had no clue. However, the fact remained that he spent at least an hour, maybe two, with Ruby.

Once, he made it to his cabin and closed the door behind him. He decided to open up his Monopad. Swiping to the profile section, he noticed that on the profile section, beside his name, was Tenko Shimura.

"So… he does know. Great. I thought I misheard him that time around. But it seems that he knows my real name…." Shigaraki muttered, closing his Monopad.

Shigaraki only knew of his heritage from when his Quirk awakened. Beforehand, however, it was almost like it was foggy memory. He must have wanted to forget it so badly that he quite literally forgot it. He felt… ashamed for what he had done. At least, now he did, except for what he did to his father. He deserved that and more. But the reality was that he massacred his entire family. Sure, it was an accident, but it weighed on him heavily–especially now.

"There's no point in thinking about it. Just forget it for now, and rest," Shigaraki said, lying down on his side as he closed his eyes. However, no sooner did he do that…

*Ding. Dong. Bing. Bong.*

[Stop OST]

"A-hem. Attention, Attention, everyone! I'm calling an impromptu meeting at the bonfire! Attendance is mandatory, so DON'T keep me waiting! It's about time things got… real!"

[Play: Boy's life in Despair]

Shigaraki felt the malice in Monokuma's voice as the monitor in his room shut off. "It's about time things got real? What does that mean?" Shigaraki thought questioningly as he got out of his bed. The amount of venom in his voice indicated that something bad was going to happen. Not something small, but something major. Either someone pissed him off, or…

"No… that's not possible. Not yet. I was already fooled into believing something bad happened today, so, in reality, nothing bad happened. Monokuma is probably going to throw a temper tantrum because no one's killed yet," Shigaraki cemented, walking out of his cabin.

As soon as he did, he bumped into Izuku, who looked concerned. "I'm assuming everyone heard that announcement?" Izuku asked as Shigaraki silently nodded. Whatever Monokuma was planning wasn't good. That much was for sure.

As the pair walked to the bonfire, periodically, Shigaraki glanced over to Izuku, whose expression was one of terror. Sure, while Monokuma's words hadn't phased him, it probably phased the others far more than it did for himself.

Finally, after a few minutes of walking, everyone made it to the bonfire as Monokuma stood there, arms crossed as a TV of sorts stuck out of the ashes as it sat on a stand.

"Finally, took you all long enough," Monokuma spat as Nikki grumbled.

"What do you want, you stupid demon bear. Can't you just leave us alone and go waddle back to where ever you crawled out of? Preferably back to whatever hole you came out of," Nikki said, an annoyed glare in her eyes as Monokuma scoffed.

"Oh please, I've left you all alone for far too long. Besides, I'm getting BORED! Nothing is happening. No one's kicked the bucket, though there have been some attempts, no one has actually gone through with them!" Monokuma said, his right eye glaring with malice and contempt as he turned to Max.

"Oh, and YOU! I saw what you did, don't think I didn't. You had a perfect shot, but you didn't take it. Look's like I was right. You're all bark but no bite," Monokuma said, his tone of voice almost disappointed as Max looked away.

"Tch, whatever," the ravenette scoffed as Shigaraki sweat-dropped. He knew EXACTLY what Monokuma was referencing.

"What is he talking about. What do you mean Max had "the perfect shot?" Explain yourself!" Izuku questioned as Monokuma hummed, a white paw on his chin as he scoffed.

"Nope, but he knows what I'm talking about. If he was smart, he'd keep it to himself too!" Monokuma stated as Max kept silent. "But anywho, we're not here to talk about failings. Oh no, no, no! I've been way too lenient on you people. I've let you live in relative peace for far too long. I've given you all ample time to sack someone off. But it seems as if my lack of doing anything seems to be a common trope that I need to iron out. But that doesn't matter anymore. I've prepared a special… let's say… incentive… to finally kick off our little game."

Monokuma's voice became far more menacing than it had any right to be. His eye glowed a deep red, his teeth somehow seemed sharper than before, and his so-called fur seemed to stand up on its ends. His entire demeanour had changed from a slightly aggravated man-child to a deadly weapon.

"You think, for one moment, that any of us are going to play your sick and twisted little game. You're insane!" Jaune said, his expression attempting to be serious, though there was undoubtedly some layer of fear laced within his shaky voice.

"Tutu. It's always the heroes who seem to have some sort of saviour complex. How boring. Regardless, I want you all to take a look at the screen right before your very eyes. Watch, wait, and listen!" Monokuma stated as he reached behind him to grab a remote. As soon as he clicked the button, the TV turned on to reveal nine dark boxes.

Suddenly, five of the nine boxes lit up. In the first box, two girls wearing matching uniforms were chained to the wall, one's hair a vibrant purple, and the other a similar colour to Daphnes, if not a bit lighter. The second box was blank, but the third box revealed a tall woman with long blond hair and lilac eyes. Her expression was drained, and she was covered in large bruises, cuts, and she was missing an arm. She was chained by her foot and was sat in the corner like an obedient dog.

The next two boxes were blank, but in the fifth, on separate sides of the box, were people that both Izuku and Shigaraki could recognize. For Shigaraki, it was Dabi and Toga, both beaten black and blue with untreated cuts and wounds lacing their bodies. They were both chained to the wall, with looks of annoyance but also sadness in their eyes. For Izuku, there was his mother, who was relatively unharmed, save for a black eye, but besides his mom was Eri, who had been bound and gagged, forced to sit on the floor with a chain around her neck and eyes covered.

The next box was empty, but the next two after that had what seemed to be a platypus in them, who had been forced to stay in a travellers cage, locked up by a padlock and chain with two people who looked similar to Neil and Nikki standing side by side, both chained together, one wearing a yellow flannel and brown jeans. In contrast, the other wore a crop top and red yoga pants. In the final box was nothing but a note, saying "Sorry, we got nothing," next to a picture of Max.

Everyone around the bonfire looked on in horror, especially those who had captives. Even Shigaraki was mortified but to a much lesser extent than the person beside him.

"N-No…" Ruby muttered, tears welling up in her eyes as Jaune placed a hand on her shoulder.

"MOM, MUACK/DAD!" Both Neil and Nikki cried out as Monika and Natsuki both stared forward towards the screen, horror in their eyes as Monokuma laughed uproariously.

"MWAHAHAHAHAHA! I knew that would get me some reactions!" Monokuma said, chuckling madly as Velma glared daggers at the bear.

"I may not be affected by this… whatever you call this, but I want to know, what is your game-plan, you nasty gremlin monster," Velma spat as Monokuma sighed.

"I was hoping to bask in your guy's Despair for longer, but it seems that some of us are straight to the point. You lot have till tomorrow at Highnoon before I start killing the hostages. I'm DONE waiting around for you guys to start it normally, so I'm putting my foot down. After Highnoon hits, one of them is dying, and for the rest of the day, at the end of each hour, another will die, and I'll make you all watch!" Monokuma growled, his claws bare as no one made a sound.

Shigaraki just stared. He stared at the screen until he had to blink. Dabi and Toga were captured. Where was the rest of his league? Where are they already dead? What did that bastard do to his friends? His family? His mortified gaze lingered over to Monokuma, not a peep coming out of his mouth as he glared daggers at the bear.

"Y-You… you sick fuck…." Izuku's voice was shaky, his words a stuttering mess, but it didn't matter to the vile, despair-loving monster that was Monokuma. All the bear did again was laugh, and laugh, and laugh. He was in control of this situation. Regardless of what anyone else here had begun to think, this entire show of power was to remind them all just what kind of power the bear had over them.

He kidnapped the people closest to them, or at least what he could find, and displayed them to the people he knew it would affect most. Shigaraki glanced around the area and saw Ruby crying, with Jaune trying to comfort her. Izuku, with his hands, balled up in a rage so intense that, for a split second, Izuku looked like a completely different person. Nikki and Neil were on the verge of breaking down but kept strong, while Max blankly stared at his portion of the screen.

Shigaraki couldn't tell if he was revealed or… something else. It was hard to describe Max's expression when he didn't really have much of one, other than a straight face. Though his eyes look hurt, as if… he was upset? Meanwhile, Natsuki and Monika were talking to one another about… something… he couldn't tell. Shigaraki couldn't read lips, so whatever they were talking about was unknown to him, but with their worried expressions, they must've been trying to keep themselves calm.

As Shigaraki glanced back at the screens, they were all shut off as Monokuma put his remote back behind him as he let out a sigh. "Ah, good times. I remember back during my first ever Killing game that this was the motive I went with. It's such a shame that I have to reuse it, but after… oh, I don't know, fifty-some odd of these things, you start to run out of ideas. Not that I care, it just gets rather boring, don't you think?" Monokuma asked though it was clearly a rhetorical question.

"What the hell is wrong with you? Kidnapping us is one thing, but kidnapping their families and friends? What kind of monster are you? Are you truly a Demon of some sort's?" Erina spat as Monokuma hummed.

"Well, I'm not a Demon, but I am a Monokuma, which is pretty much the same thing in most people's eyes. But, rest assured, I've done nothing to them yet. Like I said, you have till high noon tomorrow for one of you suckers to be dead, or else start rolling heads, got it?!" Monokuma snarled as the TV lowered into the ground, and as soon as it did, Monokuma left with it, apparently having nothing left to say.

[Play: Welcome to Despair]

No one said a word, not even the ones affected, though there were still some soft sobs coming from over where Ruby was with Jaune. No one else seemingly was less affected by it. The fact that Monokuma would've gone as far as to do this… it was a mortifying detail that made him sick to his very core.

Sensei wouldn't do something like this. No one in his league would've stooped to something that low. Hell, even his other friends that were villains wouldn't stoop this low. So that went to show just how vile Monokuma could become if his way wasn't gotten.

"I… I think that…. I think that I… I'm going to go now," Shigaraki said, carefully, turning around and leaving the bonfire area. He didn't want to be there any longer. He wanted to get out of there as fast as possible. When he made it back to his cabin, he closed and locked the door behind him, making sure no one followed him.

And after that…

He collapsed on his bed. Dabi and Toga, trapped in a room with injuries that had probably been untreated for days now. They were like caged animals. He needed to do something… anything. If this had been earlier into the game, he would've been willing to consider murder as a viable option, but this wasn't then.

Everyone here was a victim of that bear, including him. He couldn't take that out on others. But even so… for the sake of his friends… he knew that some action was required. However, he didn't have enough strength. He felt weak. His body didn't want to move. It was like his mind had completely shut down.

Perhaps it was because he was tired, or maybe he was too distraught to move. The fact remained that he found himself unable, or unwilling, to move.

"Dabi… Toga…" he muttered out, until finally, he passed out, his energy leaving his body as he became completely motionless…

[Play: Mr. Monokuma's Lesson V3]

Ah, the pursuit of love and hope. Such sickly and arrogant things for a person to pursue! Think about it. The world doesn't owe you anything, so, in reality, your only pursuit in life should be to only pursue the end of the rope that you find yourself on. Life is ultimately meaningless in the long run. We're all going to die, and that's just the facts. Money doesn't matter when your dead, nor to your friends, and nor do your petty excuses as to why you refuse to eat that block of cheese I know your holding right now! Live life with no regrets. Just know that by the time you die, your last thought won't be of your family, but it will be that one time I told you to eat that whole block of cheese, and you didn't.

[Play: Despair syndrome 1]

Shigaraki did not move. He didn't want to move. Although someone was trying to wake him up, he didn't care. He felt his arm move and everything. All he wanted to do was sleep. He knew he went out cold far before he was supposed to, but he didn't care. He didn't have any more energy to do anything anymore, not after what he saw.

Yet, he still felt that shoving. He grunted, his eyes opening slightly as he was greeted by a small figure standing in front of him.

"..ke…p…vesti….der…."

He couldn't make out the words of what the figure was saying. The shape of the figure was hard to make out as well. He was far too drained for this.

"Go… away…" Shigaraki murmured out, closing his eyes again. However, this time, they smacked him in the face, which really sent his brain into full motion. He sat up, hearing a falling sound off to his right before his eyes jetted open to see Monokuma, of all people, on his back trying to get up.

"Jeez, took you long enough. Now I don't know about you, but I think you should get going, Mr. Shimura," Monokuma said, his voice taunting as Shigaraki narrowed his eyes towards the freak.

"And what makes you think I'm ever going to listen to you, huh? Especially after what you pulled yesterday. I don't owe you fuck all," Shigaraki cursed the bear as Monokuma sighed.

"Oh… but this isn't for me, ya know. And here I thought what I came to say might matter to you, ya know, considering that something happened last night." Monokuma's words were cryptic, his black paw covering his mouth as Shigaraki's eyes went slightly wide.

Was he referring to…

No…

There was no way…

No way someone would've…

[Play: Tropical Despair]

"Are you saying…" Shigaraki muttered as Monokuma's devilish smirk became omnipresent.

"Well, why don't you go see for yourself, huh?" and with his little peace said, Monokuma disappeared from sight. Whatever energy Shigaraki could muster jetted through his system as he sprung out of bed and out of his cabin.

No…

He refused to believe that someone would go out of their way…

Even after that motive, no one would've killed, right? Monokuma was probably lying about killing the hostages, so why go out of their way to do something as horrific as that?

As soon as Shigaraki found himself at the bonfire, he saw Velma, Deliah, Shaggy, Max, Neil, and Nikki. All scattered about calling out someone's name. However, when Deliah looked over in his direction, she ran over instantly.

"Tomura, you gotta help us! We're trying to find Daphne, but we can't find her! Half of us went over to the cafeteria area and beach area, and we started searching here, please, Velma's really worried, so his Shaggy," Deliah stated as Shigaraki felt a lump in his throat grow.

Daphne was missing…

"Okay, uh… I can take a group of four with me to the garden house area since no one is searching there yet. I suppose you want to come with me, right?" Shigaraki asked as Deliah nodded. Velma glanced over to the pair and walked over to them.

"You're going to the garden area, right? Can I come with you?" Velma asked as Shigaraki nodded.

"Of course, does anyone else want to come with me, Deliah, and Velma to help look for Daphne?" Shigaraki asked as Max sighed, walking over to them.

"Let's get this over and done with, so I can go back to bed," Max huffed as Shigaraki nodded.

"Alright, let's go," Shigaraki stated as they ran over to the area. It didn't take them long to arrive there, and when they did… there were already some notable things that felt off. For one, the shed door was open, which it wasn't the last time he had been there.

He glanced over to the greenhouse, and a wave of Despair washed over him. He wanted to believe that nothing bad had happened, so as he walked forward towards the door, turned the handle, and pushed it open, he went with the expectation that everything was alright…

[Stop Ost]

But… he had been wrong…. Oh, so very wrong…

[Play: Dead Body Found D]

Leaning against one of the flower beds, a pool of blood around her with a mallet and rake-off to her right, and a rose on her legs. Daphne Blake was found dead.

|Karmic Justice for the Unjust – Daily Life – End| Deadly Life – Begin|15 Campers Remaining|