Up bright and early for the day-all on the coach's orders-are Squid Academy, who found out the moment they stepped through the club room that they will spend the day together as part of a "team bonding" exercise. They found it to be a strange proposal after she gave them the weekend off just the last time they saw her. a couple days ago, and now she wanted them all to take away that precious day and spend it with everyone? Some were thrilled for what she had planned, but the majority weren't interested and would rather proceed with their day as planned. Noticing that not everyone was on board with the idea of sacrificing their Sunday, Fuchsia addressed the obvious and brought up the main reason for a group bonding day was because certain players and staff were antagonistic towards each other, namely Zaneki and the Rebels and their beef with Todd and the Sealions. If the embarrassment of being called out wasn't enough of a reason to quell the fire between them, Coach Octavio also brought up another solid reason. Team growth and the promotion of chemistry can go a long way for a team at Nationals, especially when they didn't have any experience on the grand stage to rely on-that communication can be the difference between success and failure.

"To avoid losing before we even step foot on the turf, we'll be getting well acquainted with one another and build an unbreakable bond that will propel us to the apex! There's no need for concern either since we'll be doing this again when we leave for Ravia, so don't think this is just a one time thing~!" She sings with a beam, almost carrying a devilish aura watching them squirm uncomfortably in response to there being another day in the works.

"Unbreakable...bonds?" Zaneki crossed his arms, a little confused by her intentions. "What is this? An anime? I hate everyone here! I don't wanna spend any more time with them than I already have!" he shouts in defiance throwing his arms up in the air, but no one even bothered to look at him knowing he was just putting on an act.

Fuchsia gives him a stink-eyed look and frowns, "Unbreakable bonds will matter. At Nationals, it'll take more than just individual and team skill to make a difference. Luck is important as well, but if we've seen what our captain is capable of, it's that he doesn't have a shred of that." she said, shifting her irritated gaze to him followed by a sigh; "Instead, the key to victory will be our communication. I want each and everyone to have a better insight of each other, their thoughts and emotions synchronized; we all share a common goal, so I know it's possible. I've seen it on several occasions where players on this team are able to know what the other is thinking." she said looking over to Kidvel and the Sealions, who looked a bit more convinced. She didn't elaborate on what she wanted to do for the day, but from the glimmer in her eyes, they knew she was up to something. Without a moment's hesitation, she rushes everyone to the station following the vague pitch, selling them on a spontaneous adventure they'd never forget. Aboard a bullet train, they found themselves in the city of Bala in the Shimousa prefecture once Fuchsia hopped out her seat excitedly and guided them out to the station. A place that greatly resembles Meiju thanks to their identity of retaining the historical side of Inkopolis, it still looks heavily modernized and tourist friendly compared to some of the other older cities in Inkopolis. A popular destination known for their local cuisines, arts and music that kept close to the traditional roots of the country, and overall clashing architecture of modern and classic, Bala became a hot destination and was almost on par with Inkopolis City and Giande. "Ah, home of the sharks…" Fuchsia beamed, leading them out into the main city after working their way out of the maze-like station.

The sudden whirlwind of traveling people and vendors already reminded them of home, but after looking up at the many billboards and displays on office buildings, they found Bala to be a spitting image of the capital city. All the way in the northeast of Inkopolis, many of them wondered why Fuchsia chose to go so far away from home when it was only for a day; Fuchsia's defense was that she wanted them to soak up as much time away but not do anything hasty like leaving the country, which they found rich since she took them all they to the northeastern-most major city. Several players are skeptical about how the day will play out with some joking that the only thing worth doing is visiting museums and touring the countryside since there is nothing more than business and residential districts in the immediate area and anywhere interesting might be a bit deeper on the outskirts or hidden within the city. Fuchsia assured them the surprises didn't stop here, and when they boarded the bus and arrived at their destination…

"The Shrine!?" Everybody's exasperated voices raise in disbelief and outrage alike while staring at the long ascending stairway before looking to their coach for answers.

"If you just wanted to say a prayer we could've gone to Skipper Pavilion…" Violet sighed while looking at Fuchsia tiredly already expecting something like this to happen.

"But I've never visited Shimousa and besides, Skipper Pavilion is just a tourist trap without any elegance in its history!" Fuchsia whines, pointing to the top of the stairway excitedly with starry eyes; "Here in Bala, the Toki shrine is grand and is believed to have been around far before we ever ascended to the surface." she said in an informative tone with her knack for knowledge retention knowing, clearly having desired to visit the venue for a long time based on how seamlessly she climbs the stairs.

"You're talking about the species before us? I read about them a little. I think they were pretty stupid…" Reice said, trying to flaunt his opinion.

"Ah, that's amazing Reice but I didn't ask." Fuchsia said plainly with an unimpressed stare.

"The pot calling the kettle black." Sally adds with laugh, an old knee slapper.

"Rude!" Reice scoffed.

"Ahem! Anyways, the Toki shrine is a popular destination for many events and carries historical significance, with the Toki center holding plenty of local events. I even heard an ancient card game gets played there where you have to memorize a hundred poems and slap them into a wall. It's popular in this region and gets televised all the time. And then there's the shrine…!" she said looking ahead and powering through.

Begrudgingly like a child dragged by the arm of their enthusiastic mother, they follow her up the stairway hearing the wind chimes and viewing some of the decorations of the shrine. But their attitudes vanish once they reach the top of the stairway and catch a glimpse of the shrine. From the large pavilion covered by a few rustling leaves carried by the wind to the red and gold pillars, what was reluctance to visit the shrine soon turned to an appreciation for the tranquility, feeling their uneasiness depart with the morning breeze kissing their skin, a slight howl as it smacks their head and hair. Fuchsia joked that they should have dressed for the occasion, but remembered that she was the reason they were even there to start with. All lined up at the shrine, they all closed their eyes and felt the environment caress them, their minds emptied thanks to the peaceful sounds of the tweeting birds and singing of the wind chimes. All lined up together, they follow her lead and bow their heads while proceeding to clap and give their prayer. A moment encapsulated by the environment, they all felt themselves spirited away before opening their eyes and realizing where they were, seeing Fuchsia already heading down the stairs without them. On the way down she complained that she was hungry and wanted to grab breakfast, which none could refuse a trip if it meant getting fed some of the local food as well; a stop at a local diner considered a must for anyone visiting the area, they treat themselves to some of the unique dishes of the region and slowly noticed themselves warming up to one another through the gift of food-all according to plan for Fuchsia, who watched on happily while also savoring her bites. A couple hours pass by and all their meals were devoured for the sake of improving their crabby moods-open to loosening a bit and enjoying themselves on Fuchsia's spontaneous adventure. Attempt after attempt, they failed to guess what was on her mind the entire time on their next trip; Her only hint was that the next place is a local hotspot she researched about while they were eating and thought it to be a wise idea to visit given there will be something for everyone to enjoy, but the catch still remains the same: they needed to stick together.

"Ta-da!" Fuchsia unveils while holding out her hand to reveal the massive strip before them.

In the heart of the Bala, there exists a strip known as the Bala Strip known for containing a variety of boutiques and designer stores with plenty of other popular shops, there's also several specialty cafes decorating the walkways. A giant park with a waterfall is also at the strip along with a huge arcade, a multi-story gym, and even a batting cage out on the rooftop of a restaurant that doubles as a lounge as well advertising karaoke. From the moment they caught a full view of the massive strip, everyone felt anxious to sprawl out and explore the place; Reice snickered like a devil and grabbed Azule and Jory suddenly, telling them he planned to hit the batting cages, to which Sally, Kosami, Bianca, and Aaron decided to tag along. The boys mumbled something under their breaths, against the idea of heading to the batting cages. Without a moment's hesitation, he leaves behind a dust cloud running off with the two-much to Fuchsia's dismay since she wanted everyone to hang out together. An inevitable outcome given how large their party is, she counts her losses and looks to the others to find a trio carrying the same expression, their eyes glittering as they look in the same direction reading the sign.

Todd, Evelyn, and Zaneki's jaws drop, "The Magical Misadventure of a robotic heroine!? Theatrical performance!?" they all shout in surprise at the same time, then looking at one another and rushing to the theater to get tickets, twinkling like stars with a hop and skip to admission, ignoring Fuchsia's plea to stick together.

A surprise development with those three sharing something in common, Fuchsia swiftly saw the group shrink faster than her eyes can keep up: Violet decided to hit up the lounge and get started on the newly acquired novel collection she received from Kosami, Cobalt decided to take a stroll through the park and enjoy the environment, the Rebel trio decided to check out the nearby gym, Parker and Sky decided to check out the arcade and got the interest Austin, Apollo, and Ollie. The only ones left are Fuchsia, Tangie, Cannola, Chlora, Pearl, Taylor, Nelson and Pastelle, and they had yet to decide on a venue to check out; some wanted to do some shopping, and others were going with the flow. Unsure of what to do since he plan to retain everyone failed miserably, Fuchsia scanned the area and target locked on the karaoke place with the rooftop batting cages and offered them the option to go and do some singing to pass the time and later head head out for shopping, which no one denied. Before they began however, they could see that despite the bright smile their coach was wearing, her face darkened and she's steaming mad at how quickly her plans got ruined, mumbling something under her breath that sent shivers down everyone's spine right away. A large room available for the crew, they all took seats on the nice cushions inside the pink tinted room and began their rotation with Tangie leading off. What was supposed to be a friendly session of singing soon became a competition where everyone competed to earn praise from the others, however, some of them had quite a unique (atrocious) voice that to listen to them was more of a punishment than a pleasure.

Ding!

A baseball slams against the clinging metal and soars through the cages, spinning into the fences before plopping to the ground; in quick succession several balls were flying to the fences while others were getting shot out at at varying speed. Several bodies are lined up at the cages while Kosami and Bianca watched on with their phones recording to send to social media, keeping their eyes glued to the forms of Reice, Aaron, and Sally as they easily swing at the balls and keep track of the tally. Thus far, Reice had been the leading slugger but wasn't far ahead of Aaron and Sally, who also managed to impressed the pair spectating with how well they kept up. Unfortunately for Azule and Jory, they had no presence in this home run derby as their swings either barely registered or were nothing but a swing and a miss. A chance for him to shine and inflate his ego, Reice swings with such pressure that the air around his bat breaks in response; raised by a professional baseball player, he watched plenty of games and for a time wanted to follow in their footsteps but in turn fell in love with turf wars. For Sally, she found it fun that she could do something involving physical activity after all that time in rehab, and without missing a beat in her step, she reminded Reice that though they were raised by the same parents, it was her who still had the blood advantage as the direct relative.

"W-wow! Sally caught up in no time! Hatsunika's gonna freak out when she watches this." Kosami marveled, slowly switching sides from supporting Reice.

"Marigold and Canary will be amazed to see Reice do so well only to get beat by Sally yet again." Bianca laughs, also switching sides.

Reice turns to them in agitation overhearing their comments, "Can you not choose her over me!? I'm really try-"

"-And hit!" Aaron shouts, sending another one off and catching up to the pair; Reice immediately returns to fire and drowns out the bias for Sally, deciding the best bet for him is to beat her to earn praise.

While the trio continue their battle, the girls receive a notification from Coach Octavio about meeting up for dinner before they hit the bullet train back home to cap off the trip, to which they gladly respond that they'll wrap up soon and notify the others. After finishing in grandiose fashion on a tie-breaker won by Aaron who pulled through while the two siblings were duking it out for the lead, the walk over to the meeting spot was everything but dead as the leading trio quarreled about who should've won-Azule and Jory instead talked about other things since they found the experience dreadful after failing to perform to the other's standards. Arriving at the meeting spot, they walk in to find Fuchsia is already waiting for them and guides them to their special room where everyone is already gathered together sitting at a long table. A restaurant known for its family friendly environment, they're all gathered together in an eastern style room with mats and sat on comfortable cushions at the long table. A room full of chatter and some laughter, Fuchsia went around and asked what everyone did with their free time after ditching her. A home run derby to the death between the trio of Aaron, Sally, and Reice kicked off the discussion followed by the karaoke session of the remaining group; there was also a mention of the park and stores visited as well as a brief summary by Evelyn about the play she watched with Zaneki and Todd-who looked like they set aside their differences for the moment. In almost no time, their beverages arrived, and as they continued their chats, their food also appeared. As they dove in and enjoyed the rich and savory taste of the food, they experimented with new dishes and also relied on favorites, resuming their conversations and getting to know each other by sharing their plates with one another. What was only an hour felt like multiple with how well everyone was getting along and opening up about themselves, impacted by the easy going environment that allowed them to loosen up. By the time everyone's had their fill of food and interaction, it was about time they returned home; what at first it felt like a drag, now was a success and it was all thanks to Fuchsia and her insistence on dragging them out. Thankful for her efforts, all the players admitted they viewed the spontaneous trip as a success that will likely carry over into practice now that everyone was properly acquainted with one another. Despite that however, Fuchsia still didn't forgive them for their impulsive behavior, nor did those that got dragged into karaoke, and as punishment, they set up an elaborate seating arrangement where at least a single person who was part of the karaoke sing off sat with the others, willing themselves awake so that they could uncap their markers and express their feelings…