As much as Togami hated being enveloped in silence, he had to admit that it was probably better that he couldn't hear Naegi as he helped the injured boy to his feet. He could feel Naegi trembling against him, shaking like some small furry animal unexpectedly lifted into a human hand, and he knew that whatever Naegi might try to say later, this had to be agonizing. If he'd been able to hear the little gasps of pain that he knew his actions had to be causing, Togami wasn't sure he would have been able to force himself to keep going.
But as it was, deaf to the audible proof of the pain and looking down at his own hands instead of Naegi's face, at least he could pretend that he wasn't acutely aware of every instant of Naegi's suffering. Ogami could have managed to help Naegi without hurting him further — but though Togami wouldn't call himself weak, brute strength had never been one of his talents. The only way for him to get Naegi back to his feet was if Naegi bore some of the weight — no matter how unpleasant it was for the other boy. At least this allowed them both enough of an illusion to do what had to be done. Once they were away from this room and the danger of the killer returning, there would be time to worry about just how badly Naegi's injuries might have been worsened.
For now, Togami did his best not to look at the new lines creased deep into Naegi's face as he tried to hold himself steady or the clammy pallor of his hand as he took hold of the music stand pole again. He was upright for now, at least, and they had to take advantage of that fact before his injuries overcame him again.
"Let's go," Togami said, settling one arm around Naegi's waist to hold the other boy steady, taking as much of his weight as possible. It meant that he couldn't spare any strength to haul the heavy camping lantern out of the room with them — but then again, it wasn't as though they'd need it anywhere other than in here. It might as well stay behind. "I think —"
Suddenly, the ringing in Togami's ears seemed to double for a moment, cutting his words short in confusion. And at the same time, Naegi went ramrod stiff in his arms, sharply enough that Togami nearly lost his grip on the other boy. What had caused that? Had he moved too fast, or jarred Naegi's injured arm again — or was it something else entirely? Had that ringing been something more than a trick of his ears — some alarming sound Naegi had heard clearly that was still too faint to penetrate the muffling blanket of silence that still surrounded Togami? He turned to scan the rest of the room —
Just in time to see the television screen on the far wall flicker to life, with Monokuma's familiar face beaming out at them.
It looked like the same background set, the same layout as the many other times Monokuma had used the televisions to address them — but was it the same? Togami couldn't tell for sure. As well-constructed as the robot's face and jaw had been and as many expressions as they might allow the bear to make, they hadn't been enough to give the bear's mouth the same type of definition that human lips had. Whatever Monokuma was saying, Togami couldn't understand it.
He looked down at Naegi, craning his neck enough to get a clear view of Naegi's mouth. "What is he saying?"
"What?" Naegi blinked, then realization dawned. "Oh, his lips don't move. It was just the usual morning announcement, not — not anything else."
"Not a body discovery announcement," Togami said, finishing the sentence Naegi hadn't quite been able to bring himself to complete. "So that means it's seven in the morning, and the messages are still running automatically."
"They must be," Naegi said. "If Monokuma were back, I don't think he'd just leave us alone with everything that's been happening."
That was true enough — Monokuma always seemed to show up when the students wanted to see him the least. Togami gave the television another suspicious glance, but it had faded back to darkness after the message ended. It seemed as though whatever had caused Monokuma to go silent the previous day was still in effect. He shook his head and returned his attention to helping Naegi walk towards the door.
Stepping over the threshold was almost like waking from a nightmare, leaving behind the classroom's foul air and dark shadows. He wouldn't have thought that he'd ever consider the dingy, chilled hallways of the fifth floor to be welcoming — but after so long in a room heavy with reminders of blood and death, the clean and evenly lit hall seemed warm and bright.
But of course the nightmare wasn't over yet — the soundless rustling that filled his ears was more than proof of that. Even in the unsettlingly quiet halls, he still should have heard his and Naegi's footsteps echoing as they walked away from the classroom, just as clearly as when they'd approached earlier that morning. And yet no matter how much he strained, he couldn't detect so much as a hint of the sound he knew was there.
But it wasn't total silence, not really. Togami had to cling to that, reminding himself that he'd still heard a few sounds when they'd been loud enough. He'd heard something from Naegi when the other boy had raised his voice, even if it hadn't been enough to make out the actual words. And that ringing a few moments ago must have been the bell that preceded Monokuma's announcements, not a mere trick of his mind.
The sounds were there, just beyond his reach, if only he could manage to grasp them — and while it wasn't quite the rosy picture of hearing sound with his head underwater, like he'd told Naegi, it might be closer to scraps of sense making their way through the rushing of a deep and disordered river. He would come through this, he had to believe that — and until he did, there was no point in giving Naegi more to worry about with the extent of his inability to hear. If the last few minutes in the ruined classroom had proven anything, it was that Naegi did not have the strength to spare on anyone else's problems, regardless of what the soft-hearted boy might believe.
Of course, Naegi didn't really have the strength to spare on walking, either. Even relying on the music stand pole and with Togami taking as much weight as he could, Naegi still swayed and trembled alarmingly with every step they took down the hall. Togami had initially thought they could return to the dorms on the first floor, checking to see if Ogami had woken up again yet — but Togami didn't dare let Naegi near the stairs until the other boy was steadier on his feet. Horrible visions of Naegi losing his balance flashed before his eyes, and Togami knew that after hours of exhaustion, the poisoned air, and the explosion, he no longer had the strength to catch Naegi before he fell.
But staying in the hall was hardly safer than classroom 5-C had been. They had to pick another room, one where he and Naegi both could try to recover from their ordeals. But of course… there was also no reason not to pick a room that might have useful information. He might as well take the chance to gather whatever clues he could, since he doubted Naegi would be able to make it up the stairs again once they started descending.
With that in mind, Togami steered Naegi past the corner that would lead to the stairs and instead brought them both to the entrance to the dojo.
