"What do you mean you've failed again!?"
That loud, infuriated voice shook Hayashi to his core, "Rokkaku sir, it was just a…"
"That's it! I've given you and Onishima enough chances! You two morons have allowed yourselves to be defeated by these kids too many times!"
"Sir!? What are you…?"
Rokkaku hit his desk hard with a closed fist, "You and Onishima are fired! Since you aren't stopping those kids, I'm calling the ultimate team! If they can't do it… I'll take those delinquents down myself!" His voice volume was at maximum.
Hayashi began to tremble, "Wha… fired!? I'M FIRED!?" No… no…! This can't be! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!" He freaked out.
"Get out!" Rokakku demanded, "And if I see you around here again, I'll have you arrested!"
"Sir! I beseech you! This is a big mistake! I'll stop those kids I swear! Next time!"
"GOLDEN RHINOS!" Rokakku called.
From the door, four men in black suits entered, "Yes boss?"
"Get Hayashi out of here at once!"
"Yes sir!"
The four men surrounded Hayashi and restrained him. The fallen commander continued to protest, "Don't do this to me! I'll do anything! Chasing down punks is my life! NOOOOOOO!" His screams faded out of earshot while Goji Rokkaku continued to sit with an angry face at his desk.
Once it was quiet, he stood and looked out the tiny window in his office, "In the meantime… we'll see what those Noise Tanks can do… heheheh…"
His chuckle grew into quiet laughter before he regained his composure and stopped.
"That gang that calls themselves the GG's… By the time this night will be over, they'll regret the day they've decided to break the laws… MY laws! Every single one of them will be at my feet… begging for mercy. They'll be sorry…"
As soon as the GG's returned to the safety of their garage, Roboy approached the gang, "It's about time you guys got back!" He saw Corn, "What happened out there? I've been sensing nothing but bad vibes!"
Beat explained, "We had a serious run in with the Rokkaku Police. Hayashi went completely mad and Onishima grazed him with a bullet." He pointed at Corn.
"Ridiculous! I can't believe you guys weren't being careful enough dealing with those psychos! You guys frustrate me so much…"
"What are you going on about now?" Garam retorted.
"Seriously, we did the best we could." Combo backed him up.
Rhyth intervened, "Now, now. I think Roboy was just worried about us. Weren't you?" She smiled sweetly at him.
"What!? Worried? Me? I don't… do that!" He turned his head, "Okay… maybe a little. Just a little though! It's not a big deal!"
Corn grinned mischievously, "Heh, I knew you were capable of feeling worried Roboy. Now if you'll excuse me. I'm gonna wrap this up." He went into the warehouse.
"Be sure to wash it first!" Gum called to him, "You wouldn't want it to get infected!"
When Corn disappeared, Jazz stepped in front of Roboy, "Wow, you guys got a robot? Sweet."
Roboy looked at her, "And who might this be? Also I'm more than just a robot I consider myself to be the brains of this group."
"Hey! At least we're the ones getting our hands dirty." Beat responded all snarky.
"That's because the recklessness that you children engage in is too dangerous for my circuitry. I'd rather act as the voice of reason."
"I'll agree you've got quite a mouth on you… Such a sharp tongue for a guy who doesn't have one!"
"Heh… I don't need one!"
While Beat and Roboy continued to bicker, Boogie and Rhyth started to converse. Gum went to a different part of the garage, separating herself from everyone else.
"That was pretty crazy. It's a good thing everyone's okay." Boogie giggled, relieved.
"I know right!" Rhyth replied with her voice dropped, "I… hey listen, call me crazy but… I really honestly don't think Yoyo is… that kind of guy…" She quietly admitted.
"Rhyth, do you… really have a thing for that Yoyo kid?"
She blushed, remembering what she said earlier when she argued with Gum. She fought the itch to grin, "I… This might sound really crazy but… I really do like him a lot."
"I know he has a reputation for being a liar." Boogie mentioned.
Rhyth nodded, "He may be a compulsive liar but… I like the way he makes me laugh."
Boogie smiled and giggled. Rhyth spoke, "I know he's a good person."
Jazz approached them, "I'm sorry to interrupt but… Rhyth, he betrayed you guys. How can you say he's a good person after seeing that?"
"That wasn't him... that couldn't have been him…" Rhyth was adamantly insistent.
"Who else could it have been then?"
"Um…" Rhyth nervously pondered, she didn't have an answer. But she couldn't bring herself to believe that was Yoyo. Anxiety washed over her, "I… I don't know… I just have this feeling…"
Combo leaned against the wall of the warehouse, visibly tired, "Well, we've just escaped with our lives…"
"You're telling me Combo." Rhyth agreed, "I have a bad feeling about this… Like, it's not over."
"I bet it's not." Jazz added, "If anything the Noise Tanks are probably gonna be real pissed their game was interrupted."
"Well that's just great." Combo said.
Corn hopped from the warehouse, "Jazz is right, we need to keep watch. I doubt the Noise Tanks are the kind of gang that would just let things go."
Roboy entered the conversation, "Honestly, what fried their electric circuits this morning?"
"I wouldn't be surprised if Yoyo stuck a biscuit in all of 'em. Heh." Garam joked.
Roboy chuckled, "Yeah, he would do that." There was some sourness in his tone.
"What's this about biscuits?" Boogie inquired, confused.
Garam laughed, "I remember that! You see little lady,
At the edge of the discussion group, Beat glanced around. He skated along the side of the warehouse until he got to the other side. There he saw Gum sitting on the edge of the foundation. Quietly, he rolled to her and took a seat right by her.
She faced him, appearing surprised, "Oh, hey. What's up Beat?"
"A lot has been happening; Just wondering if you were all right."
"Um… yeah. I'm fine." She looked away, remembering what happened at the stadium, "He knows more of my past now… Geez, I've never been this embarrassed before… it sucks…"
"Hey Gum, listen. Don't let the Love Shockers get to you." He spoke tenderly, like he could read her mind, "We've all done things that we aren't proud of."
She drew her eyes to him, again she could only see her own reflection in his mirrored shades. She didn't want it to show, but she had recently began longing to see his eyes.
"You sure you're okay Gum?" He asked. She did not realize that she was staring.
"Oh my God, I just keep embarrassing myself." She snapped out of it, "Sorry, this is just too crazy. Everything has been."
"Heh, yeah I've noticed. You know, I don't know who's more insane. The Noise Tanks or the Rokakku Police."
Gum giggled before saying, "Hey Beat?"
"Hm? What's up?"
She looked around to ensure they were alone and lowered her voice, "Don't tell anyone this but… Roboy is actually a Noise Tank prototype."
Surprised, Beat replied, "You're kidding."
"I wish I was, but he is. Corn and I found him inactive near a dumpster about a mile away from Tokyo. This was back when we were headed here to start the gang. He was just there, turned off."
Beat shook his head slowly, "That's crazy, I had no idea."
"Don't tell him that though. Because if he found out his feelings would be hurt. He had no memory of his past when we woke him up."
"My lips are sealed; I gotta say his ego is way too big for a robot you picked up from the garbage." He laughed.
Gum laughed too. Feeling better, she got to her feet, "Beat?"
He also stood, "Yeah?"
She grinned, "Thanks."
"No problem Gum." He smiled back at her.
Without even thinking about it. Gum got closer to him and slowly put her arms around him. He quietly chuckled and returned the hug which kind of startled her. She felt butterflies in her stomach and her heart race.
Her face felt very warm, "Geez… this feeling is just so intense like I'm going to faint at any moment? But it's awesome! I feel like I could just drift off. His arms... they're so... warm."
It was at this moment that she became very flustered upon realizing that they were in the blue hour that she used to love and fantasize about but now hated. It was surrounding them, evident in the sky. Her heart began to pound as contradictory thoughts collided in her head.
"Beat! Gum! Where are you guys?" The two heard Corn shout.
Gum quickly jumped from the embrace, "We're over here! What's up?"
"A broadcast is about to begin on Jet Set Radio! Hurry!"
The two rushed back to the radio where everyone else was waiting and listened.
DJ Professor K sounded more energized than usual, "All right! All right! The station that will teach you all the things that your parents are too afraid to – Jet Set Radio! Now class, open your books to page 32!"
"Yoyo's gutsy plans got messed up by those idiot Rokkaku Police. Man! Has that backstabber Yoyo been trying to take down the GG's from the get go? What is he gonna be plannin' now? One thing's for sure, the Noise Tanks are pissed about their plans going down because they are rioting in the streets as we speak right now! They must have fried some circuits or somethin'."
The GG's experienced a collective sense of dread.
Professor K continued, "Whatever will we do? Is there anyone out there who can stop those rampaging machines before this goes too far!? This is absolutely crazy!"
The broadcast faded to static as quick as it arrived.
Corn was the first to speak, "Damn! They're striking back! I expected they would be back for revenge against us but not the whole city!"
"This is one hell of a way to settle the scores." Combo observed, "But I guess we should've expected it."
"Looks like it's time for a bit of a cleanup. GG style!" said Beat.
"Beat's right!" Corn affirmed, "We've got to stop them. Knowing them they won't until we do something or they take control of the whole city. Is everyone ready?"
"Yeah!" Everyone answered.
"Any questions?"
"I've got one." Rhyth spoke up, everyone faced her, "What are we going to do about Yoyo?"
Corn paused, sighed, then replied, "We'll look for him once we subdue the Noise Tanks. Then we'll deal with him."
He noticed that she appeared unsure, "I don't like this anymore than you do Rhyth, but we've got to take him down."
She nodded, "I understand." She disappointedly said.
"Any other questions?"
Nobody answered this time, so Corn announced, "GG's, move out! To Dogenzaka Hill!"
As expected, the entire area was in complete chaos. There were Noise Tanks floating all over the place, some were skating around and wreaking havoc. Civilians were panicked, running all over the place trying in a desperate attempt to escape the nightmare. Terrified screams filled the air.
"Oh my gosh! It looks a lot worse in person!" Rhyth noted.
Corn's blood boiled at the sight of this injustice, "If they had just come after us that would've been fine… but they've got to include all of these innocent people!? Hell no! These guys have gone way too far! Just like the Rokkaku Police have! Not only that but Yoyo…"
"There'll be a blizzard in hell before I let these robo-freaks have the final word here!" He took off like an infuriated bull toward one of the Noise Tanks floating.
"Corn!" Gum shouted.
When he bashed right into it, it crumbled like dust and the pieces fell to the ground. At that moment he snapped out of his angered trance and looked down upon the mess of wires and electronics.
He wasted no time, he turned to the rest of the GG's, "Guys! Just run into them like I did! Search all over and do not leave any stone unturned! Go around every corner! I want this city rid of these freaks, got it!?"
Motivated by Corn's passion, the rest of the GG's agreed and scattered.
"Well at least this won't be too hard!" Beat spoke.
Garam laughed in delight, "We're gonna be the best street cleaners in town after this is over! Waaahooo!"
Gum cautioned, "Careful, don't drop your guard. We don't know what they could be planning."
"But with all of us working together! Nothing can get the best of us!" Rhyth encouraged.
"That's right!" Boogie agreed, "As long as we stay working as a team!"
Jazz was fired up too, "Those Noise Tanks will pay for what they've done to me now!"
"Let's go!" Gum encouraged.
