Author's Note: This chapter contains instances of violence. Said violence was initially going to be significantly more graphic but was toned down for the sake of comfort. This chapter was also initially going to be two or three separate chapters, but I thought it easier to condense them into one.

Enjoy!

Hope's Peak Academy was a very different place than what it had once been.

Corridors once filled with hope were saturated in whispers of revolution. Reserve Students who once lingered quietly in the shadows now stormed around with pride. Main Course students who had previously felt safe were now blanketed in a deep sense of unease and fear. Headmaster Jin Kirigiri rarely left his office in fear of being spotted by the students who so openly bayed for retribution.

Sure, the protests had died down for now. Yet the atmosphere was thick with tension, poisoned with the possibility of another protest-verging-on-riot at any minute.

Amongst it all was the Ultimate Moral Compass himself, acting just as panicked and concerned as his classmates out in the open, then screaming with laughter behind sound-proofed dorm doors. Was it really possible things were going so smoothly? Had it really been so easy to throw the school into chaos? Were the coveted geniuses of the school really so foolish to allow it to happen so quickly?

Wait, thought Kiyotaka, of course they were. They were geniuses, after all. With talent came stupidity.

It was raining today. Kiyotaka had discovered that he rather liked rain. Even when he was sequestered in the furthest corner of the campus, hidden away from prying eyes, preaching to his new followers. The only people who knew of his true identity as the sender of last month's video. The only people who, despite that knowledge, would never dare betray it.

A crowd of the angriest of Reserve Course students.

They listened to the words of their saviour with eager ears. Just as they did every day now, clinging to the ideology of the prefect who had gained their eternal respect. They trusted him, and why wouldn't they? He hated the talented. He wished to see Hope's Peak crumble. He had aided them in exposing the truth with that video last month, ultimately giving them a voice and letting them vent their long-suppressed resentment.

Kiyotaka Ishimaru was loved by the Reserve Course students and he loved them back. For so long he had felt sympathy for them and now, at long last, he knew how to help them.

"When I revealed the truth last month," he said to the rather sizeable crowd, "it was to help you. To bring down the corruption in this school. To bring HOPE back to Hope's Peak Academy. Since then, you've shaken the administration. You've struck fear into the hearts of the people who used to mock you. You're taking back the power that you should have always had!"

Several cheers were raised from the wide-eyed listeners, who clung to his every syllable.

"Thank you!" Cheered one of them.

"You're a hero!" Applauded another.

The prefect let out a heartened laugh. "You're too kind," he replied, patting the air to silence them. They couldn't be too loud. They didn't want to attract attention, after all. Even if their meeting was being held far from the school building in the furthest corner of the tree-filled campus.

"You've done so well," he said, "but this is only the first step of our plan to restore hope. What good is the fear we've created if we're not able to use it to our advantage? What's the point in protests if it doesn't change anything? That's why it's time to move onto the next stage."

Whispers and murmurs from the crowd. Looks of excitement and slight apprehension mixed together.

"You all remember Hajime Hinata, don't you?" He said. "The poor boy who was taken from you and turned into a monster?"

"Damn right we do!" Came a voice from the back of the crowd.

Kiyotaka nodded. "Have you ever wondered how he was scouted as a candidate for the program? How those twisted scientists decided that he should have been the one to be sacrificed?" He paused for the sake of dramatic effect, making sure he had them all reeled in. "Well let me tell you. There was a spy amongst you."

Gasps. Shakes of the head. Looks from one comrade to another. The crowd was shocked.

It was, of course, a complete lie. Kiyotaka had resolved to always tell them the truth, and would never have considered misleading them. Yet sometimes white lies were beneficial, he thought, and today was the time to use one. It was a plan he had meticulously devised over the past several weeks. A lie that would prove if his followers truly did believe in changing the world and if they were as loyal to him as they claimed to be.

He had only told them one lie previously: that the other students in his class regularly mocked and berated the lowly Reserve Coursers. That every Main Course class devoted entire time slots of the day to laugh at them. Another white lie. One that had stirred up the hornet's nest and strengthened their will to change the school. One that had made them warm up to the prefect even quicker. After all, he had explained, he was the only Main Courser who cared for them. The only one who recognised their potential and didn't take sadistic enjoyment out of kicking them down.

"A spy?"

"Yes," he said. "A spy. Someone who grew close to Mister Hinata to see if he was a suitable candidate. When this spy decided he was ripe, they stole him away and turned him into a monster."

"Who is it? Who the hell is it?"

"The girl," the prefect explained, "is a Main Course student. You may have noticed her chatting with Mister Hinata often."

"The one with the games?"

"Yes," he confirmed. "Don't you think it was strange that she made a point of talking to someone she obviously hated?"

Nods. Murmurs of agreement.

"The girl is a spy for the scientists who took your friend and turned him savage. Who mutilated his humanity and turned it against you. She's just as guilty as the headmaster is."

"Well we need to do something about her!" Came another voice.

"And you will!" Said the prefect. "It's about time you show the school that your words aren't empty. It's about time to get justice for poor Hajime Hinata, don't you think?"

Cheers. Applause. Shouts of passionate agreement.

"I think it's about time you show Headmaster Jin that the protests last month weren't for nothing. I think it's high time you get justice for your classmate! If they take down one of yours, then you should take down one of theirs!"

"Yeah! Revenge! Revenge for Hajime!"

It was funny, he thought. He knew damn well that the boy's peers had never much cared for him. Yet here they were, crying for justice in his name. It was funny how quickly things changed depending on how well they suited someone's argument.

"I think it's about time," he said, "that you storm the school and enforce justice on this spy!"

"Yeah!"

"It's time to take down the traitor who killed Hajime Hinata!"

"YEAH!"

"The spy, the traitor, the snake in our midst, who must be destroyed for the sake of hope! The twisted killer whose name is Chiaki Nanami!"

Screams.

Shouting.

Hurrying footsteps and... more screaming.

Kiyotaka adjusted the ruler on the desk in front of him, perfectly aligning it with his textbook and pencil. Class had been going on the past hour and, to his satisfaction, not one of his fellow classmates had considered rebelling or complaining. Everyone had set quietly to work. Even the teacher was doing his job for once. It was funny, he thought, how it had taken the very disorder and chaos his class had so recently craved to scare them into order.

Of course, the screams quickly disturbed that perfect atmosphere.

The sounds were echoing from the corridor outside the classroom, and confusion and panic had already begun to spread in the little room. What was going on out there?

The classroom door slid open. A student from Class 77-A appeared. Kiyotaka didn't know her name. It was Class 77-B which had attracted his attention. He cared little for the boring shadows of the A Group.

Her face pale, body heaving with breathlessness, and she let out a scream.

"THE RESERVE STUDENTS ARE ATTACKING SOMEONE OUTSIDE!"

So soon? Kiyotaka had to resist smiling. It had only been a few hours since he had rallied his followers to make their next move. They had worked fast. For that he was proud. Of course, he acted just as shocked and horrified as his classmates for the sake of blending in.

"What are you talking about?" Cried the teacher of the class.

"They managed to get past security and into the building! They got to 77-B's class and dragged one of their classmates out. There were so many of them. They tried to stop them but... but... they just kept coming and...!"

"Calm down," said the teacher, "are you-"

"LOOK OUTSIDE!" Came the voice of Asahina from the back of the room.

Kiyotaka turned, and there she was, pressed up against the window, staring out with a look of horror. The others soon followed, the prefect included, and the scene outside made itself known.

He knew the figures instantly. Some of them were the very same Reserve Coursers he had preached to not too long ago. Some of them were security, and some of them were the students and the teacher of 77-B, currently being held in place by the non-talented mob.

The Reservers had formed a circle of sorts, and were seemingly forcing their captives to watch. In the middle of said circle was a girl. Her backpack was that of a pink kitten, her hair a similarly pale shade of the same colour. She was being pushed around by the mob. She was kicked. She was punched. She was beaten.

Her attackers cheered and laughed and applauded the scene, while the girls' classmates screamed for it to stop. The Ultimate Team Manager, aside the Ultimate Gymnast, were both trying to break free of the weak little people holding them in place. Had there not been so many of them, they might have succeeded, but they were instead forced to keep watching.

"W-we need to get out there and stop this! This is fuckin' crazy!" Cried Leon.

"Agreed," said Sakura, already making her way to the door, despite a protest from Asahina that it was 'too dangerous'.

"That chick's gonna get killed at this rate," said Mondo, "so c'mon! Any dude that stays behind doesn't have the right to call himself a man!"

"No!" Said Kyoko, just as half the class were mid-dash for the door. "You're only going to get yourselves killed. There's too many of them. Even for you, Sakura."

"Then what are we supposed to do? Just sit here and watch? They're killing her! One of us could be next!" Said Leon, but it did nothing to convince the Ultimate Detective.

"She's right," said Byakuya, trying to maintain his composure despite the look of deep fear he shared with the rest of the room. "It would be suicide to step in."

Kiyotaka stayed quiet. He was surrounded by entertainment. The scene outside was one of trauma and despair, only furthered by the rain that continued to fall. The scene inside was one of panic and confliction, and the back-and-forth between his classmates was unbelievably enjoyable to watch. Not a single one of them appeared completely calm. Not even Kyoko.

A sharp punch to the Ultimate Gamer's face spilt the first drops of blood, and Touko went limp, only to completely collapse at the sight of it.

The attack continued, as did the debate or whether or not to interfere, both gaining in intensity as the seconds ticked by. Kiyotaka continued watching both sides, still quiet, acting as if he was too petrified for words.

It wasn't long before time ran out.

To the harrowing wails and screams of the girls' classmates, the crowd closed in on her one last time, completely obscuring her from view for a moment. Arms moved. Legs kicked. A tense minute later, the crowd drew back.

The girl lay in a pool of blood. She didn't move. Nor would she ever move again.

As quickly as they had descended, the Reserve Course students made their escape, setting their captives free, leaving the comrades of their victim to try and rouse her. They shook her. They screamed at her. They wept over her. It was no use. So distraught were they that they didn't even seem to consider chasing after the gamer's killers. All that mattered was that she was that she had been taken from them.

All that mattered was that she didn't move, and that she was coated in neon pink.

All that mattered was that she was dead.

The screams of Class 77-B lit up the afternoon sky as rain poured down without relent.

Their cries were of agony and confusion.

Their tears were saturated in anger and revulsion.

Their faces were aflood with despair.

Kiyotaka smiled internally.

Mission accomplished!

If Hope's Peak Academy hadn't been depressing before, then it certainly was now.

The funeral of Chiaki Nanami had been held. Her killers had not been apprehended. The administration was far too afraid to touch them. After all, a single annoyance to the Reserve Course students might have provoked something even more disastrous.

Headmaster Jin had not left his office in weeks. His own daughter had barely seen him at all.

Class 77-B had disappeared, leaving only a note in their wake, simply reading 'Despair' as the explanation for their leaving.

The school was silent. No one knew what to say. What was there to talk about, when such a tragedy had so freshly unfolded?

Even now, two weeks later during lunch, meals were eaten silently. Some students didn't bother turning up to eat at all. Some had lost dangerous amounts of weight. None of them had smiled since the incident at all.

Well, none of them apart from Kiyotaka, at least.

The prefect had just sat down to eat in the mostly abandoned cafeteria. Had the walls always looked so grey, he wondered? Had it ever stopped raining in the last two weeks? Had the atmosphere always been so painfully dim and fragile?

He didn't care. Students were going to class. Teachers were actually teaching lessons. Disorder had died. Authority reigned supreme.

Just how he liked it.

"Ishimaru."

Kiyotaka blinked. He recognised that voice. It had come from behind him.

"Ishimaru."

He turned.

Kyoko Kirigiri stood, arms folded, eyes cast down on him in silence.

"Ah, Kirigiri," he replied. "Can I help you?"

"I saw you."

The prefect blinked again.

"I'm sorry? I didn't quite hear that."

"I saw you," she said again. "The day the girl from Class 77-B was killed. I saw you talking with Reserve Course students. Some of whom were involved in the incident."

Oh.

"Are you sure?" He replied, expression one of sincerity and innocence. "I might have given out some detention slips that day but-"

"You were holding daily meetings with them for weeks," she said suddenly. "I saw you."

"Were you following me?" He asked.

"I was testing a theory," she replied, "but I saw what I saw."

"You must be mistaken," the slightly flustered Ultimate Moral Compass retorted, "I don't know what you're talking about. Honestly, Kirigiri, I have no idea."

She stared him down in silence, brows slightly lowered. Her eyes narrowed, as if scanning him.

"If you say so," she shrugged, her voice monotone. "It must have been my imagination. Enjoy your lunch."

With that said, she left as quickly and as silently as she had arrived.

Kiyotaka wasn't hungry anymore.

As a matter of fact, he was filled with concern.

He knew things had been going too smoothly. It was only a matter of time before fate came along and threw a spanner in the works. A spanner named Kyoko Kirigiri.

She was onto him. That much was clear. His entire plan, master-crafted for maximum despair, was now under immediate threat. She was the Ultimate Detective. She was clever. It was only a matter of time before she ruined him.

He had to do something!

But what? Damn it, he had to think!

Perhaps he could...

No.

No, that went against everything he believed in.

Yet what if it was necessary?

The Reserve Course students had been loyal to him. They had quite literally killed in his name and for the sake of the beliefs they shared. Their shared hatred of geniuses had united them. An unbreakable bond. A bond and mutual respect like he had never felt before. Like he had never imagined could be possible.

It was a bond that threatened to destroy him.

They were allies, yes, but with the interference of a certain detective, they had just become a liability he couldn't afford.

Perhaps, for the sake of order and for the sake of despair, they needed to be taken care of.

Kiyotaka cracked a little smile. The conclusion he had come to pained him. It flooded him with sadness and overwhelmed him with despair. Despair which felt awful in the sweetest way possible.

It had been decided, albeit with immense regret. His mind was made up. For the sake of the 'hope' he promised them, they would surely understand.

The Reserve Course had outlived their purpose.

And now it was time to deal with them.

Author's Note: I don't endorse or condone any of the acts, actions or beliefs being carried out by Ishimaru or his followers, and no one should. Now that this work is starting to head into darker territory, I really feel it's necessary to point that out. He's the villain of this story. He's not the good guy. Please keep that in mind.

Additionally, you'll have probably noticed by now that the story is starting to take serious differences from the original canon. This is intentional. Junko and Ishimaru are both very different people and therefore use very different actions to get what they want, even if their end goal of a killing game is roughly the same. So it's only natural that, while certain events will be similar, there will be differences!

Next chapter could come as early as tomorrow, or as late as next month. This fic isn't anywhere near over, though, so stay tuned!