Chapter 12: Sporting a Disguise; To Leanbox!

The day was gloomy, for a change. Dense fog filled the city, which combined with the sunlight, created a very eerie, dimly lit atmosphere. A lone shadow stood on one of the roofs, brooding heroically as their scarf flew dramatically in the nonexistent wind. The figure gazed around down upon the streets below, not really being able to see anything through the fog.

The door to the roof flew open. "What the hell are you doing? Get down from there before you fall off!", IF called out.

Nisa glanced behind herself to acknowledge IF. "Ah, good morning, IF! I was just doing my morning brood over the city!"

"Morning brood? The sun's barely up yet. This is nowhere near dramatic", IF shrugged.

"That's where you're wrong! Look around you. A dense fog suffocates Planeptune! But my burning passion for Justice will not be squandered by this force of nature! My red heart shall be the beacon to which everyone flocks to for safety! I shall guide them to the absolute truth that flat! Is! JUSTICE!", Nisa proclaimed.

"Sure, as long as this 'passion' of yours is that booming voice of yours", IF smirked.

Nisa skipped off of the ledge and started walking towards the brunette. "Point taken", she said. She looked around for a moment. "Where's RED? I'm surprised she's not clinging onto your arm right now."

"When we woke up, she was in a hurry to find more wives", IF looked away, "I don't really care what she does as long as she doesn't cause any trouble. Anyway, Compa's making breakfast, so I came to get you."

"Ah yes, the most important meal of the day. You mustn't fight crime on an empty belly!", Nisa said with a thumbs up. At that instant, Nisa's phone began to ring. She look it out and answered it with a loud "HELLO!"

An "Ow" could be heard on the other side of the line. "I should've braced myself for that", B-Sha's voice said.

IF sighed. "I swear, someone's gonna sue you for hearing loss one of these days…"

"How're you, B-Sha?", Nisa asked.

"My ears are still ringing, but I'm alright. The guild finished interrogating everyone, so it's time to head over there", B-Sha responded.

"Understood! We'll be there after breakfast!", Nisa nodded before closing her phone. She looked up towards IF and nodded. The two girls disappeared into the stairwell, leaving the rooftop alone.

B-Sha and CC2 arrived first. As they were walking inside the guild, CC2 was eating a steamed bun when she spotted a really out of place box that she swore wasn't there before. She was surprised to find Lid emerge from it as if it were a complete normality.

"Whoa! You were hiding under there this whole time?", CC2 asked.

Lid cleared her throat. "...Maybe."

Suddenly, IF pulled up in front of the guild on her bike, with Compa in toe. B-Sha eyed the two up and down before asking, "Where's Nisa?"

IF pointed behind herself with her thumb, signaling B-Sha to an exhausted Nisa jogging her way over.

"F-fear not! Justice has… huff… arrived!", Nisa announced. B-Sha gave IF a questioning glance, to which IF replied with a shrug.

"Hey, she insisted", IF said. She got off of her bike and placed a hand on her hip. She used her other hand to motion towards Compa. "By the way, this is my friend, Compa. She's a nurse who can hold her own in a fight."

Compa smiled and greeted everyone with a gentle wave. "Pleasure to meet you! I may not be very strong, but I'll do my best!", she said cheerfully.

"Fighting? We're not even sure what we're dealing with here!", B-Sha responded.

"Agreed. Let's meet up with everyone inside so we can get a better grasp on the situation", Lid said.

Everyone nodded and went inside. Nisa huffed and puffed as she followed in the back. Even further behind and out of sight was RED, who of course, sensed the gathering of all the potential wifeys.

It was very early, so only the early birds were up and about within the guild, trying to get a head start on all the juicier quests before everyone else. At one of the benches, the small party noticed their three companions who had finally gotten out of questioning and moved over to greet them.

"You all look wide awake. Aren't you tired?", B-Sha asked.

C-Sha shook her head. "Nah, no big deal. It looks like we're all used to all-nighters."

"Just like the simulations. Piece of cake", K-Sha smiled.

IF crossed her arms. "Yeah, yeah. Now, tell us everything you know about this kidnapping group."

Before anyone could answer, a person in a black suit, black shades, short black hair and a white tie stepped forth. "I'll take it from here."

"And who might you be, sir?", Nisa asked.

"That's ma'am to you, Ms. Nisa", the woman said in a stern tone. "My name is E, and I'm one of the officials in charge of the Planeptune guild."

"O-oh. I knew that! Haha! Of course I knew that! How could I not?", Nisa said in an awkward tone.

"Gee, you're a really terrible liar…", CC2 commented.

E cleared her throat. "I questioned the three of them and had agents check out the facility where Persona was being held. I know everything there is to know about this situation. However, this information is reserved for whoever decides to take the quest to look into these links."

"An intel gathering mission? ...Eh, as much as I want to do something about all this, I'll have to pass", CC2 said, "That's totally not my forte!"

"In that case, I guess I have to pass too...", B-Sha said.

"Hey, that sounds like something I could do", IF said. She turned towards Lid. "Hey, you'd be a big help for something like this. You're coming too, right?"

Lid crossed her arms. "... I work alone. You do have my support, though."

IF sighed. "Figures."

"I'm sure she'll help in her own way", Nisa assured.

IF turned towards the bench where C-Sha, K-Sha and Persona were sitting. "What about you three?"

"They are subjects in this investigation", E interjected, "Therefore they cannot take this quest."

IF sighed. Of course. At this point, her party was now back down to herself and Nisa. Well, Compa was there now too. And perhaps RED, if she ever decided to come out of her hiding place. Say, RED has actually been a bit too quiet throughout all of this. What is she waiting for?

"Wifey, get!", she cried as she leaped forth, ready to claim her rightful wifeys. She was but mere feet from tackle hugging her next victim before she was swatted out of the air like a fly, right into the floor. She hit the ground with so much force that a small crater was created around the impact.

E adjusted her shades, and a lens flare shined off of one of the corners. "Attacking people within the guild is prohibited."

RED warily pushed herself up from the ground. "Ow! A super strong tomboy, huh… Fufufu! A fine addition to my collection." She got onto her feet and wobbled back and forth.

"I see many women in her future…", Persona muttered.

IF crossed her arms. "I had a feeling she'd show up sooner or later."

"Did you want to come on our quest too, RED?", Compa asked.

"A quest? Well, it does seem like a chance to find even more wifeys, so yeah!", RED replied gleefully.

"Great. So that's Nisa, Compa, RED and I. We'll accept that quest now, E", IF nodded.

E eyed them all up. "Very well. Since you're all involved, I'll let you listen in. Several weeks ago, Persona was kidnapped and brought to an unknown facility. From there, K-Sha was ordered to bring her to the facility that was being guarded by the mind-controlled C-Sha. According to C-Sha, the last thing she remembers before being under control was putting on some new wristbands she had bought", E explained, "If it weren't for our findings within the facility, we would be at a loss as to the significance of the wristbands."

"Mind controlling wristbands… how vile!", Nisa commented.

"Would you pipe down so she can finish?", IF sighed.

E continued, ignoring Nisa's comment. "The report from our agents describes sports equipment also being stored within the facility where Persona was being held. We discovered that they were indeed, the same brand of merchandise as the wristbands C-Sha wore. However, this was not enough to prove any wrongdoing from the manufacturer."

"Can you really just rule it out as a coincidence, though?", CC2 asked.

"To be fair, AE's the biggest sports brand, so I just bought one of theirs", C-Sha clarified.

"Which leads us to our final discovery", E nodded. "Our agents found a person of interest within the facility by the name of Generia G. She claims that Athletic Enterprises is indeed responsible for this and that they're planning something mischievous. When pressed further, she could not divulge any more info." E turned to face IF and her shrunken party. "This is where you come in. Your mission is to verify whether or not there's truth to Generia's claims. It is only after we gain any sort of substantial evidence that we can bring this up with the Oracle's for a formal investigation."

"Whoa. That sounds like a really big deal!", CC2 said.

"I wish you luck on this big quest!", K-Sha smiled.

IF felt a little nervous about taking such a task. She looked away from E to hide it. She was startled when she felt someone place their hand on her shoulder. When she turned to see who it was, she saw Nisa.

"We've got this! We'll have your proof in no time!", Nisa declared.

"This sounds dangerous, but I'll help in any way I can. Who knows how reckless you two could get?", Compa added.

RED looked around, confused. "Huh? Who cares about all that! I'll just beat up whoever and add more wifeys onto my list!"

"Wait, who's she again?", B-Sha said, looking at RED.

C-Sha shrugged. "Guess she's another one of IF's friends."

E nodded at everyone's acceptance of the mission. "Good. Then pack your things. You'll be headed out on the next boat to Leanbox. Once there, you'll head to their guild and seek out my sist- I mean, my counterpart for your briefing."

"Leanbox?", IF repeated.

"Ah, Leanbox! The land of Lady Green Heart! A foreign place, for most people. A nation of big cities and athletes!", Nisa explained.

RED's eyes beamed with excitement. "FOREIGN wifeys?! This is a dream come true!"

"Oh, this is a good chance to go shopping!", Compa cheered.

"Stay focused! This isn't a vacation!", IF scolded.

"Come on, Iffy, give them some slack. It's not everyday you get to travel overseas", C-Sha chuckled.

IF sighed. She knew C-Sha had a point. She just really wanted to do this mission right. That way, she'd surely be one step closer to being an exemplary guild member.

Without further ado, they all said their goodbyes to each other for now, and IF's party split up and agreed to meet up at the dock for the ferry to Leanbox. Naturally, IF arrived first on her motorbike. As she went to bring her bike into the loading bay, a certain Underling caught sight of the ship employees checking everyone who was boarding the ferry.

"Aw, damn it! If those broads ratted me out, I'd be practically turning myself in!", Underling grumbled. She looked around frantically, searching for another way onto the ferry. Her attention drifted back to IF, and a smirk spread across her face…

Not too long later, Nisa, Compa and RED finally showed up at the appointed location. They all looked around.

"Iffy isn't here yet?", Compa asked.

"Strange. She should've been the first one here with that bike of hers", Nisa said.

"Oh hey, there she is!", RED said cheerfully.

The group turned to see IF walking towards them. "Hey, there you are! I've been looking all over for you three!", IF said while jogging over and waving at them.

"Ah, so you did arrive first! Just as I expected!", Nisa smiled.

"Yeah, hahaha! I sure did!", IF said, "Well, we better get on board before the ship leaves!"

"Wait a minute", Compa interrupted. IF froze in place and turned her head nervously. "Iffy… you look taller than when I last saw you."

"W-well I… er… you know… I'm just wearing some new boots!", IF replied.

Compa smiled at IF with her eyes closed, grilling the brunette with her deceptive smile until she finally said "Okay then!"

IF turned around and wiped some sweat off of her forehead. "Well then, let's get to that ship. Wouldn't wanna miss out!"

"Agreed! Leanbox, ho!", Nisa said, pointing towards the ferry dramatically. RED ran off ahead, eager to find any potential wifeys on board. IF speed-walked behind her, and Compa and Nisa followed suit.

"Hey, Nisa?", Compa said.

"Hm? What is it?", Nisa responded.

"Did anything seem off about Iffy to you?", Compa asked.

Nisa paused for a moment. "No, nothing in particular. Why?"

"I guess I was just caught off guard by her height. Oh well!", Compa shrugged.

Nisa nodded. "I'll keep my eyes peeled for anything suspicious, then. The watchful eye of Justice is omnipresent!"

Nisa and Compa followed IF and Compa onto the ferry, until they ran into IF again at the docking area.

"There you are! I thought you got lost for a moment there", IF said.

"Huh? Why would we get lost? The ship's right here", Nisa commented.

"That's not what I meant. I've been waiting here for a while now", IF sighed.

"But we just met you a few seconds ago!", Compa said. IF looked at Compa in confusion.''

Nisa stepped forth. "It seems something odd if afoot! It looks like we have a case of a doppelganger upon us!"

IF crossed her arms. "What's this about a doppelganger now?"

"We ran into someone who looked just like you, Iffy. They just boarded the ship!", Compa explained.

"Don't you mean 'imposter' then? If this person's pretending to be me, then it's not as simple as just looking like me", IF said.

"Good point. Looks like there's a faker on the loose! We better find out who this person is and figure out why they're pretending to be IF", Nisa nodded.

"Maybe I'll be able to test some of my experimental medicine on them", Compa smiled.

"Easy now. We're not trying to get thrown overboard", IF said.

A bell began to ring, and somebody began shouting "All aboard!" in front of the ferry. IF, Compa and Nisa finally made their way onto the ferry, and to their luck, didn't run into any problems while boarding. The ship left the dock, and they were now well on their way to the land of Leanbox.

"Alright, here's the plan! We find RED and let her know there's an imposter on board! In the meantime, IF stays with one of us at all times so we can know for sure who isn't the imposter!", Nisa announced.

IF and Compa nodded. Nisa ran off as fast as she was allowed to on the boat, in search for the fake IF. IF and Compa were now alone.

"Since we're together, let's search for the fake Iffy!", Compa suggested.

IF nodded in agreement. "Makes sense to me. If this imposter's as good as you say, Nisa would probably have trouble telling us apart."

"RED would probably be glad there are two of you, teehee!", Compa chuckled.

IF smiled. "Heh, yeah. Well, let's get going!"

Compa nodded, and they ran off in the opposite direction Nisa went. The two (or three, if you count RED) groups wandered around the ferry, trying to look for the imposter.

The first one to find the "imposter", was RED.

"Iffy!", RED sang as she tackled the brunette.

IF glanced towards RED. "Huh? RED? What are you-"

RED let go of IF and took a step back. "I was just checking up on my #1 wifey, of course."

"I thought you guys missed the ship!", IF blurted out.

"Huh? But we all met up and went inside!", RED replied in confusion.

IF crossed her arms. "That's ridiculous! I didn't see any of you at all, so I just went ahead and boarded the ship to look for you guys."

"I know what I saw!", RED protested.

IF sighed. "Tell you what. Let's look for everyone else so we can sort this out."

"Fine! I'll prove that what I saw was real!", RED said, now full of determination.

The pair began to search the area for any one of the other two parties. Nisa got a few scoldings for running too fast, and IF and Compa were doing their own search. With two IF's in play, who knows what could happen. It was only a matter of time before they ran into each other.

Compa gasped. "It's the imposter!"

"Holy moly!", RED commented with joy, "Two Iffy's!"

Both IF's were shocked to see each other.

"Hold it right there, faker!", the IF next to Compa said.

"Faker? Look who's calling who a fake!", said the IF next to RED.

Compa and RED looked at each other, then at the IF's, then back at each other, in utter confusion.

"Compa, don't listen to her. I'm obviously the real one", said the IF next to Compa.

"Good grief. I can't believe this is happening", said the IF next to RED.

"I… I can't tell the difference!", Compa exclaimed.

"Heeeey. I don't want a bootleg wifey! Which one of you's the REAL IF?!" RED asked.

"I am!", they both said.

"Grrr! I can't tell either!", RED said.

The two IF's began to go back and forth, arguing with the other about who the real IF was. Compa and RED's attention switched between whoever was talking, without a clue as to which IF was real. Suddenly, a light bulb appeared above Compa's head.

"Wait, I've got it!", she said. She took out her cellphone and began dialing a number. A moment later, one of the IF's phone's started ringing. Both IF's paused instantly. The IF next to Compa looked on nervously as the IF next to RED reached for one of her pouches and pulled out her ringing phone. Everyone's attention turned towards the IF next to Compa.

"Uh… I-I…", she stuttered nervously before suddenly bolting off.

IF quickly glanced towards Compa and RED. "Don't just stand there! Come on!", she said before running off behind the imposter. IF didn't bother looking behind herself to see if her two confused companions were following her or not. Her biggest priority at this point was to catch her imposter and find out why they were pretending to be her.

The imposter, on the other hand, was doing everything in her power to get away from the brunette. She pushed people aside and leapt over obstacles, making sharp and sudden turns when she could to try to lose her pursuer.

"Crap! I have to create enough distance between us so I can get a chance to change out of this disguise!", the imposter thought. She turned a corner and saw nothing but stars as she ran right into someone who also happened to be running.

"Agh! Watch where you're going!", the imposter grumbled.

"Likewise!", the other person said. As the imposter's vision cleared, she saw Nisa sitting on the ground before her.

Nisa rubbed her head and got onto her feet. "Oh, IF! Any luck with the imposter?", she asked.

"She's… she's right behind me!", the imposter said. At this point, IF had just arrived.

"Halt, evil doppelganger!", Nisa said, pointing towards IF.

"Oh for pete's sake- Nisa, I'm the real one!", IF said in a frustrated tone.

Nisa looked at both IF and the imposter a few times. "I can't tell the difference."

IF took her phone out of her pouch again. "Just call my phone! That will prove it."

"D-dammit!", the imposter said out loud. After realizing her mistake, she covered her mouth.

"Looks like the cat is finally out of the bag!", IF said. Compa and RED arrived, stopping to observe the scene before them.

"Now, let's see who the imposter really is!", Nisa said. After pulling off the disguise, they were finally met with the true face of the imposter.

"You… you're that underling!", IF commented.

"Underling?", Nisa said. "Wait, you were the one selling stolen weapons!"

"Yeah. She was also kidnapped with me in that pig incident. She agreed to be that Elsa girl's underling while we were there", IF explained.

"Elsa was there too? Wow. Small world!", Nisa replied.

"What's her real name?", RED asked.

"Good question- wait a minute. You're not thinking of declaring her one of your wives, are you?", IF said.

"You bet! A cute punk wifey would be a great addition to my harem!", RED winked.

"Ms. Underling, would you tell us your name?", Compa asked.

Underling looked towards Compa. "Hell, it's about time somebody asked! It's Li-"

"Who cares what the villain's name is! She must face Justice, regardless of who she is!", Nisa interrupted.

"Yeah, I guess 'Underling' works anyway. She kind of already comes across as one already", IF shrugged.

"Oh, give me a freaking break…", Underling grumbled.

"Anyway!", Nisa said, "Why were you posing as IF, Underling?"

Underling wiped her mouth and looked away. "I needed to get on this ship. Since you broads probably snitched on me over that weapon incident, there's a price on my head!"

"Ah yes, that. That hit really hurt, you know…", Nisa said, rubbing her forehead.

"Listen, I'm just trying to turn over a new leaf, okay? Starting over, in Leanbox. Just let me go and I promise I won't cause any trouble!", Underling begged.

"I believe her", Compa said.

"Don't be so gullible, Compa. This rat cosplayer would do anything for cash", IF said.

"As members of the Planeptune guild, it is our duty to bring you in to face justice", Nisa said, "But since we're in international waters, we can't really do anything to you."

"T-that's right! International waters! You can't arrest me!", Underling said excitedly.

IF crossed her arms. "Fine then. You better not do anything stupid while you're there!"

"I already promised I wouldn't, didn't I?! I won't get into any trouble, honest!", Underling said.

"If you do, we'll let Compa use you as a test subject", IF grinned.

Underling's face was filled with confusion. "Huh?"

Compa's eyes glew with fiery intent as she held up her syringe. "I have lots and lots of medicine to test out on you..." Underling gulped.

The rest of their trip went on without a hitch. IF's party took some seats on the ferry, and even had Underling sit with them. Over the length of their trip, RED was trying to convince the green-haired girl to be another one of her wifeys. Underling looked towards the rest of them for some sort of clue as to what RED's deal was, but she was mostly just ignored, save for IF shrugging at her nonchalantly.

"Damn it, I already told you! I don't wanna be your freakin' wife!", Underling snapped.

"Why not?", RED said, confused.

"I don't think it's even legal for me to hook up with a kid like you!", Underling replied.

"Hey! Who you calling a kid?!", RED said.

Underling eyed the redhead up, her eyes fixated at her chest a little longer than the rest of her body. She hugged her hands over her own chest. "Freakin' hell…", she muttered to herself.

The ship's horn went off, alerting everyone that it was ready to dock for shore. It wasn't long until the ship was docked. Everyone was able to get off without a hitch. After warning Underling one final time, they went their separate ways. IF's party took a bus to Leanbox city, leaving Underling to take a bus towards her own destination.

She got off at her stop, and was beholden to a building with the words "Athletic Enterprises" on it. As she walked towards it, Elsa was watching her arrive from within. She watched quietly and unmoving as her father placed his hand on her shoulder and clenched it tightly…

CHAPTER 12… SPORTING A DISGUISE; TO LEANBOX!... END.