Act 5
Taking Down Kamoshidaman
"Ace, that girl…" Haru's eyes were wide as she looked to him. "She was wearing the Gekkoukan uniform. And she called you…"
Ken blew his bangs out of his face. "It's Minako-san," he said wearily.
"Wait… your senpai?" Haru then frowned, her brow furrow. "But she's…" Haru trailed off for a moment. "She's our age."
"Younger as of right now," Ken corrected. "She's a second-year."
He had no idea what Ren had been thinking. What did Minako-san even know? From her reaction when Kaito called out to him… she didn't know it was him (initially). Though speaking of Kaito… why the hell were the twins even here? And why did Ren think it was a good idea to bring them into a Shadow infested nest?! He nearly had a heart attack when Kamoshidaman's lackey grabbed them. "Ace?" Haru's tentative voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "You look… aggravated."
"I was just thinking about how I'm going to kill Joker," Ken said darkly.
Haru's mouth twisted for a moment like she wanted to say something but then she changed her mind. She then coughed lightly. "Those two children…"
"They're Yukari-san's children," Ken said. "You never got to meet them, since she brought them with her during the Feathermen fan event back in August."
"They seem darling from what I've seen." Haru smiled. "Especially with how they call you 'Uncle'."
Ken felt his face warm up. "They've always called me that…" he mumbled out.
"Though speaking of that…" Haru tilted her head. "What happened back there? When that police officer grabbed them, you… summoned without having to tear off your mask. And you used that… Evoker before, didn't you?"
"Well…" Ken said slowly. "It is possible to summon a Persona without a 'trigger', so to speak. For us, it's our masks. And the Evokers, as you mentioned. For the Investigation Team… I never understood why but they have tarot cards. They would have to break them to summon their Personas."
"I see…" Haru said. "But you can summon without a trigger?"
Ken shook his head. "Not ordinarily… Most of my senpai can but… I can't. The most I can pull off is healing in the real world. Back there… well, I suppose I was angry with how Kamoshidaman's lackey just grabbed the twins."
"Well, we are in a Shadow nest…" Haru mused. "Maybe that has to do with it."
"Maybe." Ken sighed. "…Though I'm going to have words with Joker for bringing them inside to begin with."
"You're not going to kill him, are you, Ace?" Haru's expression turned concerned. "I'm sure Joker has a good reason to…"
"Oh, he better," Ken said darkly. "Or else he's dead meat."
Ren abruptly sneezed.
"Damn that was a big one, dude," Ryuji commented.
"Ace is probably talking about me behind my back…" Ren grumbled out before he rubbed his nose.
Minako just giggled. "Come on, Joker, I'm sure you're exaggerating!"
"I'm not!" Ren protested. "He's one hundred percent killing me."
"Drama queen," Futaba coughed out.
"Hey, I heard that!" Ren fired back.
"I'm telling you, the best solution is to ask Queen to distract him," Futaba commented. "A little smooching from Queen and he'll calm down."
"ORACLE!" Makoto shrieked out, her cheeks blazing bright red.
"Okay, that's enough teasing from you, Oracle." Anne shook her head at Futaba's apparition.
"Grown-ups are so weird," Kaito whispered to his sister, who just vigorously nodded.
"Panther is right, though," Akechi remarked. "We should focus on the mission after all…"
"The two of you really should stay close to us this time," Yusuke said sternly. "No sneaking off. Especially with all of the FOEs wandering about."
"Okay…" Miyuki mumbled out before scuffing the ground with her shoe. "Sorry…"
"Aw, come on, they haven't done anything like that when we were exploring!" Ryuji quickly jumped to their defense. "I know that they gave us a scare and all… but they're not as bad as you're saying!"
"Still though, you need to stick close to us," Morgana said.
"…Okay," Kaito mumbled out. "Sorry."
Damn. They were a bit down still, weren't they? Normally they'd sass Morgana, but they were being prettyyy quiet…
Ryuji frowned, before squatting down. "So, who wants a piggyback ride?" he asked. "Let's make those frowns smiles, 'kay?"
"Don't be sad, Miyuki-chan, Kaito-kun!" Minako added with a bright smile. "We're working on a plan to cripple Kamoshidaman, so don't worry! We'll save Ken-kun and Noir, okay?" She then tilted her head. "I don't know how good my piggyback ride is but I can try!"
Miyuki climbed onto Minako's back and Kaito rode on Ryuji's back. Giggles almost immediately started to fill the area as Ryuji bounced Kaito up and down. Miyuki seemed content to snuggle up against Minako, though.
"This doesn't make it better to sneak around," Morgana grumbled.
"Mona, leave it," Ren said. "I rather them be happy for now."
Unhappy kids… that would just lead to disaster.
He then led them throughout the maze of lights. It was… complicated with them having to manipulate the lights to bait away the FOEs. But they eventually came across a policeman guarding the area.
Ryuji and Minako quickly dropped the twins to the ground, not removing their eyes from the guard.
"We can't drop our guard here," Yusuke stated.
"But… why is he there?" Miyuki asked with a frown.
"…Must be something special," Kaito muttered.
"The lights," Makoto stated, folding her arms folded. "Like Miyuki mentioned. We did find several light switches as we came here."
"Aww, what happened to our code names?" Kaito whined out.
"Head in the game, kiddo." Ryuji ruffled his hair. "But it kinda stands out here, y'know…?"
"What are you talking about, Skull?" Morgana asked.
"I mean… it looks like he's guarding nothin'" Ryuji scratched the back of his head.
"We can't overlook, though," Yusuke said. "Remember all of those times Joker pointed out a vent for us to crawl through?"
Akechi just shook his head. "I really can't believe we've had to do that… I thought it was something you did in media."
"Though…" Makoto trailed off for a moment, pressing her index finger against her lips. "Maybe this would pan out to our advantage?"
"What do you mean?" Minako tilted her head.
"Ohhh, that's a good idea, Queen." Morgana then turned to Minako. "There's gotta be cops crawling everywhere in the square. Even more so, with us trying that rescue. It'd be good to have a… mole of sorts."
Ren had to stifle a smirk as Akechi awkwardly fidgeted at the last part. Was he feeling guilty?
"Though there's the matter of choosing who," Akechi said.
Futaba then turned to Makoto with a knowing grin. "Well, I know who should-"
Two voices cut through the air. "AUNTIE MINA!"
"Huuuuh?" Minako's eyes went wide. "M-Me?!"
"It's 'cause—" Kaito jumped as Miyuki quickly jabbed him in the side. "Y-You'd look good into it?"
"Y-Yeah, you look like you would dress up well in one!" Miyuki added, nodding vigorously. "It'd be just like Halloween!"
Ren made a mental note to ask Ken what the heck they're talking about. Because obviously there was some kind of story behind this.
…If Ken doesn't murder him after all this. Maybe Ren could use Minako as a body shield. Or the twins. God, he was not looking forward to Ken giving him hell about bringing the twins.
"Well, it's not like we can change out of our outfits easily," Anne said, tilting her head.
Minako then frowned. "Though why were you looking at Queen, Oracle?"
"Ah, well…" Makoto looked down. "I actually want to pursue that as a career. Becoming a police officer."
"Whaaaat?" Miyuki gasped. "That's cool! Now we'll have an uncle and an auntie who are gonna be cops!"
Makoto just coughed, her cheeks turning pink. "W-Well, let's not get ahead of ourselves."
Ren just snickered to himself, making Makoto glower at him. Anne quickly elbowed him in the side, shooting him a look.
"But let's rush this sucker!" Ryuji cracked his knuckles.
The poor guy didn't stand a chance.
"Mwehehe… time to do a strip search," Futaba snickered out.
"But we're just taking his clothes…?" Miyuki tilted her head.
"Must be another grown-up joke…" Kaito mumbled out.
"But Mommy says kids shouldn't understand that!" Miyuki argued. "Oracle isn't that old!"
"Hey, I'm not a kid!" Futaba protested before beginning to pout.
"Are you saying that you're old, then?" Ren asked teasingly, grinning at her.
Yusuke coughed, before handing the clothes over to Minako, as Ryuji was lifting the now out cold cop, stuffing him into a trash can. "Minako-san, here you are."
They found a private spot for Minako to change into the outfit. Anne and Makoto stared at the boys, promising pain if they dared to peek. Not that he would dream of peeking… Not after what he and Anne have been doing…
"Ta-DA!" Ren turned to see that Minako had finished changing. Minako twirled in her new outfit, before striking a pose.
"Aw, you look so cute!" Anne gushed, clasping her hands together.
"Heehee, thanks." Minako scratched her cheek, smiling sheepishly. "That's a huge compliment, coming from you, Panther."
"Joker! JOKERRRRR!"
"What did I tell you about being so noisy?" Morgana griped as the twins scampered up to them.
"Bossy kitty," Miyuki huffed before sticking her tongue out at Morgana.
"Doggies are way better," Kaito stated.
Ren really had to wonder where they learned that side eye…
"They are not!" Morgana cried out. "And I am not a cat!"
"Your arguments suck," Miyuki deadpanned, her expression completely utterly unimpressed.
"That's enough, Miyuki-chan…" Anne then crouched in front of the twins. "So what did you find?"
"Come see it!" Kaito urged, grabbing onto Ren's sleeve and tugging him forward.
"A… manhole?" Akechi rubbed his chin. "Well I suppose that they could have it hidden here… We are in a movie."
Ryuji and Yusuke unscrewed the top. A putrid smell rose from the sewer, making the twins hold their noses.
"Eww!" they complained.
"Ohhh boy, this will be fun," Ren said dryly.
"Time to suck it up and take a leap of faith!" Ryuji said. "See ya on the other side!"
"Skull, wait—!" Makoto sighed as Ryuji didn't listen and just jumped in. "Isn't there usually a ladder…?"
"Hmm, it appears so," Akechi said, crouching and peering further into the manhole. "We should watch our step."
Futaba pulled a face. "I'm sooo not envying you guys right now."
"Ugh, this is so disgusting!" Morgana huffed before he started to climb down.
"I am quite thankful that I do not have the keen smell of a fox right now," Yusuke sighed out. "But… we must get this over with."
"I hope we can wrap this up as soon as possible," Anne grumbled out. "This is just… blech."
"Have you really not done anything like this before?" Minako asked.
"Thank goodness for that," Makoto sighed. "Um, Joker, do you mind carrying one of the twins? I don't want them to slip and fall…"
"Oh, let me help with that!" Minako said. "Come on, Miyuki-chan!"
They slowly descended into the sewers. Kaito clung to Ren's neck tightly. "This is gross," he grumbled out.
"Shhh…" Makoto hushed, holding a finger to her lips. "We'll try to wrap things up as soon as possible, okay?"
"I really hope so," Morgana groaned out. "I don't know how much my nose can take this…"
"This is so exciting, though!" Minako exclaimed, pumping a fist. "I've never been in a manhole before! I'm kinda jealous of you all! You must do exciting things like this all the time as phantom thieves!"
"Sheesh, someone's excited," Ryuji said in disbelief, scratching the back of his head.
"…Well, I won't stop her if she's enthusiastic," Akechi stated.
"Though I must say that this is an opportunity like no other," Yusuke stated, before sweeping the air with his arm. "I must commit this to memory!"
"…I think Uncle Ken's friends are kinda weird," Miyuki whispered.
"Almost as weird as Uncle Junpei," Kaito said solemnly.
…Damn. Poor Junpei-san. Then again, didn't Ken tell him one time that their first word was 'Stupei'?
Ren cleared his throat. "Sorry to break it to you, Fox, but we're kinda on a time crunch here. Remember? The execution?"
"Oh… that's right." Yusuke hung his head.
"Hey!" Futaba's apparition appeared in front of them. "Stop lollygagging! You gotta find that power switch!"
"Bossy, bossy," Morgana grumbled.
"Hello pot, meet kettle," Ren muttered to Anne, who just shot him a look before elbowing him in the ribs.
But they managed to settle down, creeping through the sewer. It grew darker and darker as they moved forward. Ren ended up having to activate his Third Eye.
"U-Um, why are you mumbling to yourself?" Kaito piped up.
"And why are your eyes turning red?" Miyuki asked with a frown.
"Shhh, let Joker focus," Anne said gently. "It's an, uh, another superpower he's got."
"Wow! That's so cool!" Kaito exclaimed. "You're cool, Joker! I bet nobody has that kind of power!"
"Don't inflate his head please," Akechi stated. "He already has a high sense of self esteem already."
"…Don't you always talk about how good of a detective you are, though?" Miyuki asked. "I don't think you can talk."
Akechi opened his mouth, only to close it. "W-Well…"
"Give it up, Crow." Ryuji patted his shoulder, even as he held back laughter. "You're not gonna win. Not with these two."
"You two are certainly a handful," Yusuke sighed.
Morgana suddenly let out a loud yowl, the sound echoing through the sewer.
"Mona!" Makoto whirled to look at him. "What was that for?!"
"I-I have a good reason!" he cried. "T-There was a big rat! It ran right by me! It brushed against me!"
"Just a rat?" Ryuji said in disbelief, before shaking his head. "You're unbelievable."
"And you're a cat," Minako said. "Why would you be afraid of rats?"
"I will say this…" Morgana drew in a deep breath. "One. Time. I only look like a cat! I'm a human stuck in a cat's form. I'm searching for a way to escape and gain my true form!"
"…You sure act like a cat though," Miyuki stated.
"I do not!" Morgana argued.
"Do too."
"Do not!"
"Do too."
"Do not!"
"Do—"
"Mona, stop!" Makoto scolded. "Do you hear yourself…?"
"But she—"
"I don't care," Makoto practically growled out. "You're ending it."
Ren then squinted in the darkness again, activating his Third Eye. He saw a silhouette of a person. "Hey, guys, heads up," he warned. "There's another cop."
"Here?!" Anne sputtered out. "But why…?"
"There must be something worth guarding here, then," Akechi stated. "Perhaps the light switch…?"
"And if we can kill the lights here…" Anne's face grew excited. "Then it'll make stealing the statue so much easier!"
"Minako-san, I believe this is your cue," Yusuke said, turning to her. "We're counting on you. Perhaps you can convince him that it's your shift now."
"W-Wait, we're seriously just gonna leave it all to her?!" Anne exclaimed. "T-That doesn't seem right…"
"Don't worry, Panther!" Minako quickly reassured, giving Anne a bright smile. "I may not be experienced as a Phantom Thief, but I've got experience! I've gone through some pretty rough scrapes! I'll take care of this, no prob!"
"Will she play the part though…?" Akechi said. "I must say, it looks a bit like… cosplaying."
"Auntie Mina will do a great job!" Miyuki scowled at Akechi. "Just wait and see!"
"Damn, looks like you got some guard dogs," Ren lightly teased.
"More like guard puppies," Futaba grumbled out.
"But good luck, Minako!" Anne flashed her a thumbs up. "You've got this!"
"And should things go south…" Yusuke stated, "just call for us. We'll come running."
"Don't do anything too reckless though," Ren stated. "We've had to deal with that already…"
"Joker…!" Makoto hissed at him, shooting him a death glare.
Ren just smiled innocently. "Yeah, Queen?"
"You're awful…" she grumbled out.
"Um… I'll go now…?" Minako said uncertainly before twisting to look at Miyuki. "Um, sorry, Miyuki-chan. I'll have to put you down…"
"That's okay, Auntie Mina!" Miyuki said cheerfully. "Good luck suckering the bad cop!"
"…Where did she learn such a term…?" Akechi questioned.
They let down the twins, and Minako stepped forward. They quickly hid so Minako would appear alone.
Minako seemed to psych herself up, before sharply inhaling. Then she walked up to the cop.
"Sir!" Minako chirped, before giving a salute "I've been assigned to take over this area!"
"Hmm?" The cop sounded… bored. "But I was assigned this sector just the other day?"
"Um…!" Minako said. "I-It's a relocation of personnel! I was told this by Kamoshidaman-san himself!"
"Kamoshidaman-san…?" There was an edge of suspicion in his voice now. "Why are you referring to him like that?"
"Dun dun dun, we're dead," Ren whispered. "Get ready—"
"Wait!" Makoto whispered. "Give her a chance!"
"Come on, Auntie Mina!" Kaito's voice trembled with excitement.
"Fine," the cop sighed. "Just give me the password."
"Password?!" Yusuke gasped.
"Should we have scoped the area more…?" Makoto asked.
"The password… yes…" Minako stammered out.
"Well…?"
"Shit!" Ryuji growled out. "Come on, let's whoop some a—"
"Don't jump the gun!" Futaba hissed.
"Yes, let's wait and see what Minako-san has up her sleeve," Akechi stated. "She may surprise us."
Minako blurted out some lame excuse, before she tilted her head. "Um… this is Kamoshidaman's city and we're policemen so…" she trailed off for a moment. "Kamo… Kamo… Kamoshidaman's police? Kamo Police? Police Kamo?"
"Oh dear," Akechi sighed. "Perhaps I spoke too soon."
"…Fine," the policeman sighed.
"Minako-san was correct?!" Yusuke sputtered out.
"No way…!" Anne gasped.
"I was seriously right?!" Minako gasped out.
"Of course not!" the cop snapped out. "Do I look like I have fluff for brains? I meant, 'fine, I'm through dealing with your nonsense'. There is no password! It was a trick question!"
"That jerkface…!" Kaito hissed out.
"Hey, no fair!" Minako cried out. "My disguise was perfect too!"
"Gah, what are you doing?!" Ryuji bemoaned, dragging both hands down his face.
"I'm turning you in," the cop declared. "You'll be part of the punishment exhibition—"
Damn…! Ren reached for his dagger. His friends reached for their weapons as well.
"TOO SLOW!"
…Only for Minako to karate chop him in the neck.
"That's… one way to handle it, I suppose…?" Makoto said.
"M-Minako's scary," Ryuji practically whimpered out. "She totally knocked him out cold! In one hit!"
"A one hit KO!" Futaba cried. "Don't mess with her!"
"…You know, I can understand why Ken avoids pissing off women," Ren said idly.
"Yeah, for real!" Ryuji said, wide-eyed.
"You know, it might not be a good idea to say that in the earshot of three girls," Anne stated, looking unimpressed.
"But we have more scary aunties than uncles…?" Kaito asked. "Joker's right."
"You don't have to say it so bluntly," Morgana sighed out. "Have some tact."
"Why would we have thumbtacks?" Miyuki asked. "You're so silly, Mona."
Morgana let out a frustrated growl, but was quickly cut off by Akechi. "But anyhow, we have access to the switchboard now, I assume?"
"Yep!" Minako pointed at the switchboard. "Phase one complete! Oh! One second…" She knelt down, unhooking the cuffs from his waist. She then grabbed his wrists, twisting them behind his back and handcuffed the cop. "There! Now he can't run off and warn the others!"
"Where did you even…?" Makoto shook her head. "I must say, I'm quite… shocked with that move you pulled, Minako-san."
Minako looked sheepish, as she rubbed the back of her neck. "Wellll… I always wanted to try that move."
"Do you practice kung fu?" Akechi asked.
"No, it was a move I saw in a movie."
"A movie?!" Anne sputtered out. "You can't be serious!"
There were practically stars in both twins' eyes. "Auntie Mina is soooocool!" Kaito exclaimed. "You're the best!"
"Heehee, I try my best." Minako then looked to everyone. "But let's head out. We've got to rescue Noir and Ace!"
After that, they decided to head back to the theater to work on the kinks of their plan.
So after figuring it all out, they split up. Akechi went to speak with Elizabeth. Ryuji and Anne went to talk to Theo. And Futaba went with Morgana to talk to Hikari.
"Soon…" Makoto sighed out.
"Don't worry, Auntie Makoto!" Kaito exclaimed. "We'll get the buttface. And rescue Uncle Ken and Miss Haru!"
Makoto let out a soft chuckle. "Thank you for your confidence, Kaito."
"Though…" Ren knelt down. "I want to be sure… you're going to stay in a safe spot, right? Because if not, Uncle Ken will be most definitely murdering me."
"…Even if Auntie Makoto kisses Uncle Ken?" Miyuki asked.
"REN!" Makoto then swatted at his shoulder, glaring at him. "This is all your fault!"
"I mean, don't you want to give Ken a little welcome back kiss?" Ren asked innocently. "If Shinjiro-san is right—"
"He was exaggerating!" Makoto cried out. Then she inhaled. "I really don't know how Anne puts up with you…"
"C-Can I talk with you?" Hikari then approached them, before her eyes flicked towards the twins. "E-Especially you two."
"Us…?" Kaito asked. "Um, if you wanna, Hikari-san."
"Thank you." She bowed her head. "U-Um… y-you should stay here!" she blurted out. "You'll be safe here!"
"Wha…?!" Miyuki sputtered out. "What are you talking about…?"
"I saw the way that Kamoshidaman's men grabbed you…" Hikari said. "I got scared for you. Aren't you scared?"
"…A little," Kaito admitted.
Miyuki nodded vigorously. "It was really scary. It felt like my heart was gonna burst outta my chest! But…" Her face then grew serious. "We can't."
"Mommy always said that just 'cause you're scared… it doesn't mean you should look away. Being brave is doing the right thing even if you are scared."
"The right thing…?" Hikari asked.
Wow. Ren couldn't help but be surprised. That was Yukari-san's upbringing.
"That's right," Makoto said. "Nothing will do you good by closing your eyes from the truth…"
"Makoto…" Ren said quietly. "But yeah, I agree with these guys. One hundred percent. We can't stop what we're doing because we're afraid. We're not abandoning our friends. We're going to stand up to Kamoshidaman and we're gonna beat him."
"…Futaba-chan said something similar." Hikari bowed her head. "I-I guess I'll have to pray for your success."
"We don't need any god to win," Ren said confidently. "Just you watch, Hikari!"
"Citizens of Kamo City, this is a public announcement…"
Ken gritted his teeth, as he looked up to the loudspeakers. Dammit… They were out of time. The crowd was getting so excited as well… They were really just sheep.
And Kamoshidaman was just… so full of it. Bragging about being justice… the reason Kamo City's peace was maintained. It made Ken sick, if he was being honest.
"Citizens of Kamo City!" he proclaimed. "I have arrived! And fear not… while we hit a delay before… prepare yourselves! These filthy thieves… they will be punished! Let the punishment exhibition begin!"
"Are they too late…?" Haru whispered, her eyes wide with fear.
"Come on, guys…" Ken hissed under his breath.
"WAAAAAIT!"
A familiar voice rang out.
…Yeah, he was so killing Ren for this.
Miyuki and Kaito ran forward, all decked in blue. Where had they…?
"Fanmail for you, Kamoshidaman," Miyuki said sweetly. "For everything you do for Kamo City."
"I hope you like the card," Kaito added. "My sister and I went through a lot to get it for you…"
"Why thank you, young citizens… I will read it after—"
"But there was a lot of effort put into it!" Miyuki whined out, batting her gray-blue eyes at Kamoshidaman. "You'll read it now, won't you? You… You're our hero!"
"V-Very well…" Kamoshidaman said, obviously flustered. "I will—"
"You'll open it on the count of three, right?" Kaito asked, wide-eyed.
What was going on…?
"One…" Miyuki said.
"Two…" Kaito continued, before looking to Miyuki with a small nod.
"THREE!" they hollered at the top of their lungs.
Then everything went pitch black. This sent everyone in confusion, murmurs rippling amongst the crowd.
"Activate the backup power!" Kamoshidaman shouted. "Hurry!"
A single spotlight shone onto Ren.
"You…!" Kamoshidaman growled out.
"Joker!" Haru cried out. "You made it back!"
Ren looked to Haru. "Of course we did. There was no way in hell that we'd leave you hanging."
"So… you've come to be punished!" Kamoshidaman said. "No matter, I will accept this gift-"
"Oh no, no." Ren's face broke into his trademark smirk. "You see, Kamoshidaman… we're here for one thing… We will accept nothing less." He pointed at Kamoshidaman. "Your defeat! Your complete and utter defeat!"
Ken huffed out a laugh, shaking his head. But despite himself, a smile tugged at his lips.
"You need to read the card still, don't you?" Ren asked innocently.
"Wha…?" Kamoshidaman pulled out the card from the envelope. "We will… take the Kamoshidaman statue…?"
Ren grinned wickedly. "Kiss your statue goodbye!"
Then he leapt backwards, revealing that the Kamoshidaman statue was nothing but cardboard. It flopped to the ground, eliciting screams from the crowd. Ken couldn't help but shake his head. Ren was really too dramatic for his own good.
Ken just stared down at the cardboard, a huff escaping his lips. Just what had they pulled?
"Wha…?" Kamoshidaman's jaw was practically on the ground.
Then a shadow suddenly loomed over them. Ken looked up to see that the real statue had a ton of balloons attached to it and it was now floating away.
"WHAAAAAAT?!"
"So… your strength isn't tied to your statue, huh?" Ken couldn't help but snark.
"You… you!"
Haru just turned to him, her eyes bright as her smile. "This is incredible!" she whispered. "They really have Kamoshidaman on the defense now!"
"HEY! KAMOSHIDAMAN!" Ryuji suddenly bellowed out, catching both of their attention. "Take this, you asshat!" He then tore off his mask. "CAPTAIN KIDD!"
"CARMEN!" Anne shouted.
A blast of flames incinerated Kamoshidaman and a moment later, Captain Kidd slammed into him, sending him flying backwards.
"You…!" Kamoshidaman said through gritted teeth, heaving himself to his knees. "You'll pay for this!"
"Don't be so sure!" Minako-san's voice rang out.
A moment later, Kamoshidaman was sent crashing back to the ground as Minako-san leapt onto his back. Morgana jumped off her shoulder. There were grins on both of their faces.
"This is our declaration against the superficial hero!" Morgana proclaimed.
"Prepare yourselves, Kamoshidaman!" Minako-san cried out, pointing her naginata's blade at him. "You won't get away with this! Not when you dragged one of my dear friends into this!"
"You bastards!" Kamoshidaman growled out.
"Yay, we did it!" Miyuki cheered.
"We pulled off a success… where we failed with Madarame," Yusuke declared. "Heh… and it was a perfect replica."
"Well done, Fox," Makoto commended with a smile. "Our plan went without a hitch."
"What are you going…?" Kamoshidaman asked.
"We're the Phantom Thieves…" Ren squared his shoulders, looking right at Kamoshidaman. "If we want to steal something, we'll raise hell to make sure we get it done!"
"Your so called justice…" Ryuji growled out. "It's through!"
"Yes, it's time that we teach you what justice is!" Akechi proclaimed.
"Get 'em, everyone!" Kaito exclaimed. "We're rooting for you!"
"Don't worry…" Ren's eyes gleamed with determination. "We will!"
His friends summoned their Personas, but Yusuke and Makoto broke away from the crowd.
"Stop them!" Kamoshidaman shouted. "They're going to free their friends!"
"Get out of my way!" Makoto growled out.
"Goemon!" Yusuke summoned his Persona, before pointing at the ground.
Ice formed on the ground, causing the lackeys to slip and fall. Makoto and Yusuke charged forward, Yusuke making a beeline for Haru. He was using his sword to cut through the ropes.
And then Makoto reached him. She studied the ropes for a moment, her forehead furrowed as she concentrated. She then reached for the knot, tugging at it fiercely. It didn't take long for the ropes to fall away onto the ground.
Ken then gulped at the aggravated look in his girlfriend's eye. "Um. Hi."
"Hi," Makoto echoed, before she glared at him, making him cringe. Sometimes he forgot that Makoto had a pretty scary glare. "HI?!"
"Look, Queen, I know—"
"No! You don't know!" Makoto yelled. "Do you have any idea how worried I've been?! On top of that, you were egging on Kamoshidaman! And now you're just looking at me with that stupid face of yours and—"
She cut herself off, before she punched him hard, the force strong enough to send him stumbling a few steps backward.
"I deserved that," Ken admitted, rubbing the spot where she had punched him. At least she didn't punch him in the face.
"No shit," she spat at him, before stomping back up to him.
She then grabbed him by the lapels of his jacket, dragging him down to her level and then kissing him fiercely.
"You—" Makoto paused in kissing him. "Stupid—" Another kiss. "Noble—" A third kiss. "IDIOT!" She fumed at him. "I've been so worried and you…!"
Ken wrapped his arms around her waist—damn it felt nice to actually move his arms—and pulled her closer. "I'm sorry."
"You better be," Makoto grumbled out, but she rested her head against his collarbone. "I swear you gave me some gray hairs…"
"You and Shinjiro-san can form a club then," Ken quipped.
"Um, are you planning on making out here or actually helping with kicking Kamoshidaman's butt?" Futaba suddenly interjected.
Makoto immediately jumped away from him.
"Aww, it's cute!" Minako-san giggled. "Ken-kun's all grown up!"
Ken felt his face flush. "Um, we should probably…"
"Y-Yeah…" Makoto stuttered out.
"Pffft, so shy all the sudden," Futaba scoffed. "Like you two weren't making out like, thirty seconds ago."
"Oracle!" Makoto snapped out.
"Hey, Ace, heads up!" Ren's voice suddenly rung out.
A spear came flying through the air, Ken barely managing to catch it. Ken narrowed his eyes as he caught sight of Kamoshidaman. He felt a smile curl at his lips. Yeah, it was definitely time for payback.
"Ken-kun!" Minako-san was a whirlwind, a blur of red and black. She tackled him, hugging him tightly.
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Makoto frowning. There was nothing for her to be jealous of, though considering that he had punched Niijima-san's cognition of Akechi for flirting with Makoto just yesterday, he couldn't really say anything. And knowing Makoto, she'd definitely use that against him…
"U-Um, hi, Minako-san," Ken said awkwardly. "I know that we have a lot to talk about but we do have something to take care of first."
"Yeah!" Minako-san nodded. "I have… a lot of questions, Ken-kun."
Ken winced. "I know."
And she wasn't the only one. He would have to find out just how much Minako-san knew. Though where did the twins head off to…?
"Ace!"
Ken jumped as an apparition of Futaba appeared.
"Head in the game!" she scolded, hands moving to rest on her hips. "If you're worried about the twins, they're okay. They know to stay back after last time."
Ken exhaled. "Okay. Thanks, Oracle."
He really did have to focus… Ken turned his attention on Kamoshidaman. His friends were basically shrugging off his blows, a far cry with how he had been essentially beating them up last time.
And to rub the salt in the wound, they were just attacking him with their weapons.
"You're such fools!" Kamoshidaman cried out. "I am the arbiter of justice! All you had to do is shut up and obey me!"
"We have minds of our own!" Yusuke retorted. "You can't tell us what to think!"
"You've brainwashed the people of Kamo City long enough!" Haru cried out. "We will bring you to justice, Kamoshidaman!"
"That's right!" Ren flipped through the air, slashing down with his knife. Kamoshidaman was sent crashing to the ground a moment later, as Ren planted his foot on Kamoshidaman's back. "We're the Phantom Thieves… and dealing with delusional crooks like you is our specialty!"
"Curse you, evildoers…" Kamoshidaman spat out, even as Ren ground his shoe against Kamoshidaman's back. "How could I be defeated by the likes of you?!"
"That's your problem," Ken retorted. "You've deluded yourself into believing that you're a hero, but you're nothing more than a phony. Your arrogance has given you an inflated sense of self-importance."
This caused the civilians to start talking amongst themselves, voicing their doubts about Kamoshidaman. Their statements caused Kamoshidaman to let out a frustrated howl.
"Someone's losing his fans," Anne commented, hand on her hip.
"They finally see the light!" Minako-san cheered, pumping her free fist.
"SHUT UP! Just… SHUT UP!"
"My… someone's throwing a temper tantrum," Akechi remarked.
"I punish evildoers!" Kamoshidaman spat out. "So why… why don't you get it?!"
"Oh yeah, like we're just gonna stand back and let you beat us into submission!" Ryuji practically growled out. "Your sense of justice… it's bullshit! It won't bring anyone happiness… they follow ya outta fear! Give it up! You've lost!"
"Yeah, they only listen to you because otherwise they kill you for it," Ken added. "It's kinda sad that you don't understand how messed this is."
Morgana nodded firmly. "Yes, it's time that you drop this foolishness."
"I won't! I WON'T!" Kamoshidaman then began to glow. "Justice… it always wins!"
"Are you still going on about that?" Makoto asked in disbelief.
"They say that man's worst ill is the stubborn of heart," Akechi said.
"…Who the hell says that?" Ryuji asked.
"Sophocles," Akechi answered.
"Never mind that!" Futaba yelped. "I sense a huge spike in power! Joker, get back!"
Ren didn't hesitate, jumping back. When he stood up again, Kamoshidaman had pulled himself to his feet.
"I didn't want to use this power but…" Kamoshidaman began to glow, "I have no choice! You've pushed me into this corner…"
"You're a real sore loser," Ken deadpanned. "You just don't know when to give up—"
"SHUT UP! I'LL PROVE I'M RIGHT!"
Black flames, tinged with red exploded around Kamoshidaman, completely engulfing him.
"W-What's going on?" Haru squeaked out.
Then the flames died. Kamoshidaman had… completely transformed. He was… a bunny. A muscular one, with carrot shaped weapons, but still.
"W-What on earth?" Yusuke uttered out.
"Why is he a stupid rabbit?!" Anne said incredulously.
But then Kamoshidaman opened fire. The fire based attack sent Yusuke reeling.
"FOX!" Haru cried out.
"Dammit, take cover!" Ren barked out. "Panther, I'm sorry but can you help shield Fox? Ace, I need you to heal him!"
"Understood, Joker!" he and Anne chorused together.
Carmen acted like a meat shield as Ken worked on healing Yusuke. He sat up with a groan and Ken helped him stand.
"What do we do?" Anne asked, a worried frown on her face. "He's gone crazy!"
"You can't win!" he gloated. "I'll beat you to submission!"
"LEAVE THEM ALONE!"
The twins then pushed their way forward, holding out their arms in a shielding motion.
"Kaito, Miyuki, get back!" Ken snapped out. "It's too dangerous!"
"We won't leave you!" Kaito cried, stomping his foot. "We gotta help you…!"
"That's right…" Miyuki's hands clenched into fists. "We have to find a way! We can't just stand aside!"
That was when a blue aura flared around both of them.
Ken's eyes widened. No… That was impossible!
This was like… the flashback to when Mitsuru-san had awakened to her Persona.
"Oracle, what's going on?!" Morgana demanded.
"It can't be…" Futaba breathed out. "They…"
Then there was a blinding light. Ken threw up his arm too late. He was blinded by the light, spots dancing in his vision. But he heard Kamoshidaman curse.
"Holy shit!" Ryuji yelped out. "What did they do?!"
The twins' power had knocked Kamoshidaman flat.
"That's like… Jack Bros," Minako-san said slowly.
"Never mind that!" Haru said. "Joker, at your command!"
"Right!" Ren nodded before sweeping a hand towards the downed Kamoshidaman. "Everyone, go all out on him! Show no mercy!"
The fight seemed to drag on and on. But with some clever usage of a poison attack from Ren, they were finally able to defeat Kamoshidaman.
"Nngh…" he groaned from the ground. "Why…?"
Unsurprisingly, the people watching completely changed their tune about Kamoshidaman. Ugh. How typical. Then again, they dealt with that kind of fickle attitude firsthand…
"Man, they don't care about Kamoshidaman at all…" Futaba shook her head. "It's kinda sad."
"I'm not sad!" Ryuji spat out. "It's what that asshat deserves!"
Anne grabbed him by the ear, pulling hard. "Skull! Have you forgotten about the twins?!"
"What was that even about?" Makoto asked, turning to him. "With the way they knocked down Kamoshidaman…"
Ken just shrugged. "I have a theory. Can't guarantee that I'm right though."
"My justice… the people don't need it?"
Then Kamoshidaman started to glow before he disappeared.
What the...? What just happened?
"He got sent to the shadow realm?!" Kaito asked.
"The… what?" Yusuke asked.
Ken sighed. "It's… censorship. For death in kid's shows."
"How absurd," Yusuke sniffed.
"You're so pretentious, Inari," Futaba scoffed out.
"I suppose it's due to the city and citizens not needing him anymore," Akechi remarked.
"…That's kinda sad," Anne mumbled out. "Maybe he just did what he felt was the right thing."
"Don't forget what he was doing, Panther," Ren said. "He brainwashed everyone…"
"And he was gonna kill Ace and Noir to see an example," Ryuji added. "He's nothing but shit."
"But speaking of that…" Minako-san then rushed to him and gave him another big hug. "Ken-kun! I can't believe it's really you!" Then she took a step back, letting out a giggle. "Wow. You're like a head taller than me now!" Then she tilted her head. "I think you're as tall as Shinjiro-senpai now!"
"Wait, what?" Futaba frowned. "He's taller than Ace, though."
"Shinjiro-san has a couple of centimeters to grow," Ken explained.
"I guess he's always got to be the tallest." Minako-san then looked at him up and down. "But wow. You're just adorable in my time but you grew up to be really handsome."
"Queen would agree," Ren added with a cheeky smile.
"Jokerrrr…" Makoto growled out.
Minako-san glanced towards Makoto, a familiar gleam in her eyes. "Though… would you say that Ken-kun's a ladykiller now?"
"I am not!" Ken sputtered out.
Ryuji and Ren exchanged a look, and Ken glared at that.
"Don't spread lies!"
"I mean… you totally could be one if you wanted to," Ryuji pointed out. "A lot of the girls think you're a total stud."
"Um, I don't get it," Miyuki piped up, looking at Ken with innocent eyes.
"Yeah, Uncle Ken only kills bugs…?" Kaito blinked at them. "I don't get the whole ladykiller thing."
…Could he find a hole to crawl into? He did not want to have this conversation.
"Ah, to be young and innocent," Futaba sighed out. "But yeah, Ace could totally be a ladykiller."
"I hate all of you," Ken muttered.
"Haha, we all know that you don't mean it, Ace," Akechi said.
"Or maybe a better term would be…" Ren grinned wickedly, "Ace is a queenkiller."
"HE IS NOT!" Makoto shouted, her face turning red.
"Panther," Ken said flatly. "How much would you miss Joker if I killed him? Hypothetically, of course."
"That makes no sense," Miyuki said matter-of-factly. "She's Uncle Ken's girlfriend. Why would he hurt her?"
"We're not talking about this," Ken stated.
"But Uncle Ken—" Miyuki began to protest, a slight whine in her voice, but Ken held up a hand.
"We. Are. Not," Ken ground out.
"I'm glad you two are safe," Yusuke hastily added, probably to change the subject. "I must admit that I worried about Noir especially with Kamoshida's reputation..."
"Thank you for your concern, Fox." Haru smiled. "It's sweet of you."
"Pfffft, Inari's a total sourpuss," Futaba scoffed. "He's got no sugar in him."
"Though I have to admit…" Haru continued, "that was one amazing heist! How did you pull it off?"
"Oh yeah!" Ryuji grinned. "We were actually inspired by what we pulled, to steal Madarame's Treasure—"
They went on to explain the plan. It really was insane, but… it wasn't the craziest idea Ken's seen them come up with.
"I know that Queen's our strategist and all but it was pretty cool how we were able to figure this out!" Futaba chirped out. "All of us contributed!"
"Even the twins," Ryuji said with a grin. "It was their idea to deliver the card to Kamoshidaman."
"Speaking of which…" Ken stared flatly at Ren. "Mind explaining why you brought the twins not once but twice here?!"
"U-Uh…" Ren gulped, making his Adam's apple bob. "I have a good explanation, I promise…"
Ken folded his arms over his chest. "I'm waiting."
"I… I…" Ren was obviously floundering. "…I plead the fifth?"
"Wait, Uncle Ken!" Kaito cried out, as he and Miyuki ran to stand in front of Ren.
"W-We made him take us in," Miyuki mumbled out. "W-We said if he didn't we'd sneak in after them!"
"W-We were worried," Kaito said, looking up at him with big brown eyes. "D-Don't be mad. Please."
Ken sighed. "Well… when you put it that way—ack!"
The twins then ran forward, knocking him to the ground. They then crawled onto him, giving him a big hug.
"We missed youuuu!" they chorused together, before giving him another hug.
They were really too cute for their own good… Ken felt a smile creep onto his face before he hugged them back.
"Well, at least Queen doesn't have to distract Ace now!" Futaba snickered out.
"…Wait, what?" Ken frowned in confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing!" Makoto shouted. Her red face told him something else. "It's nothing!"
"Something tells me that's not the case," Haru giggled out.
"Noir!" Makoto cried out.
"Hey, don't lie, Auntie Makoto!" Miyuki huffed as she and Kaito crawled off him.
"AUNT?!" Ken sputtered out.
"Oh yeah, they call Queen Auntie." Ryuji grinned. "They're expecting you guys to get married sometime in the future. That's not a problem, riiiight?"
"Marriage is not in the cards for a long time," Ken said flatly before he got up, dusting himself off.
"Aww…" both twins whined in unison.
Morgana sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you to stick to the codenames?!"
…Yeah, that was not a good idea.
"You're being a wet blanket again," Kaito stated, staring flatly at Morgana.
"E-EXCUSE ME?!"
"But ANYWAYS!" Miyuki started jumping up and down. "Uncle Ken, you look so cool! Just like Tuxedo Mask!" Then she grabbed onto his cape, tugging at it. "Even down to the cape!"
"But Tuxedo Mask is lame, Miyu!" Kaito huffed out. "Uncle Ken isn't lame!"
Miyuki puffed her cheeks at him. "He still looks cool!"
If he never heard the phrase "Tuxedo Mask" ever again, it would be far too soon.
"See, Ace?" Ren was grinning now. "Even two six-year-olds get it."
Ken glared at him. "Oh, shut up, Joker."
"Uncle Ken, that's mean!" Miyuki scolded.
"But Joker's teasing, isn't he?" Kaito tilted his head. But then he marched up to Ren, kicking him in the shin. "That's mean!"
"Kaito!" Ken scolded. "You shouldn't be violent!"
Kaito petulantly mumbled out, "Sorry…"
"Besides, there are other ways to get back at him…" Ken muttered under his breath.
"Huh? You say something, Uncle Ken?"
"Who, me?" Ken shook his head. "Nope." Then he stared at Ren. "Just foreseeing some hot sauce in Ren's coffee in the near future, that's all."
"Why would he put hot sauce in coffee?" Miyuki wrinkled her nose. "Coffee is gross enough but adding hot sauce would make it even worse!"
"You wouldn't dare taint coffee…" Ren gasped, clutching his chest. "You wouldn't!"
"Um, did you not hear him?" Kaito asked, taking on a no-nonsense air. "When did Uncle Ken say that he'd put hot sauce in your coffee? That'd be mean!"
"But I—" Ken just raised an eyebrow at Ren, and he started to sulk. "You're evil, Ken. Evil…"
Yusuke just laughed. "I'm sorry, Joker, but you're just asking for it."
Kaito then opened his mouth, but then the twins both began to sway. Ken was barely able to manage catching them in his arms.
"Kaito-kun! Miyuki-chan!" Anne cried out. "What's wrong?!"
Ken sighed before easing them both to the ground. He then looked up to his friends. "When was the last time they had a nap?"
This just earned him a bunch of sheepish smiles and shuffled feet. Ken sighed. Of course.
"And that's why they passed out," Ken said dryly.
"Ain't that for like… toddlers?" Ryuji scratched the back of his head.
"Yes, but running around in a Shadow nest tires us out," Ken pointed out. "I imagine it's even more tiring for children."
"And we… did let them drink several cups of soda," Akechi admitted.
"And adding that with a sugar rush." Ken stared at them. "Anything else I need to know?"
"…They think that you should change your codename to King?" Futaba offered.
"Haha, you're hilarious, Oracle," Ken deadpanned. He then sighed before picking up Kaito, holding the little boy close to his chest. "Come on. I assume that you have some sort of base, right?"
"Oh, yeah!" Ryuji grinned. "Just wait 'till you see it, Ace."
"Lead the way, then!" Haru chirped before she scooped Miyuki into her arms.
But even as they walked back, Ken could feel Minako-san looking at him. Unspoken questions burned in her eyes. Ken quietly sighed to himself. He wasn't out of the woods just yet…
Boss fights will not have the focus as they do in the original fic. You're not here to read fights, but more so the character interactions. What the twins pulled during the battle will be explained next chapter.
I did plan on Ken and Minako to have their conversation with this chapter but I think this chapter has gone on long enough. And I apologize about the nearly 2 month wait. I had some writer's block with this chapter. But I hope this chapter was enjoyable and worth the wait!
