Never Say Never
Disclaimer: I do not own Danganronpa or the characters associated with it.
Chapter 2
Act 4
"Okay, so you need me to what now?" Leon questioned, unsure of how or why he'd ended up unable to leave the cafeteria.
"We need you to preside over our battle, as a witness!" Taka proclaimed, aiming his finger at Leon as if he was the only one capable of such a task.
An audible scoff from Mondo drew their attention, the biker folding his arms as he said, "Don't worry, it'll be over quick. There's no way I'm losing to a pansy-ass like him."
"How dare you!" Taka immediately countered, "At least I have the dignity to respect you as an opponent, regardless of how unruly and disrespectful you are!"
Narrowing his gaze, Mondo seethed through gritted teeth, "You think you can look down on me, you piece of shit?!"
Leon groaned and hung his head as the two continued to bicker. He'd only gone to the cafeteria to get a bit of food before bed, he hadn't expected to find the biker and the moral compass arguing about which of them was the better man. And apparently, they couldn't settle their differences unless someone else was present to verify who the victor was.
"So that's the situation! Your cooperation would be most appreciated!" Taka shouted, again pointing at Leon.
"Uhg…I just wanted a sandwich, dammit…" the ballplayer mumbled as the two of them turned to him. "Fine…whatever. So, are you gonna throw down here or should we go to the gym or something?"
At that, the two combatants fell silent and Leon realized that neither of them had thought this through. Not that he really expected them to but at the very least he'd figured they had some idea of where and how they were going to settle their differences. However, much to his surprise, Mondo suddenly grinned and pounded his fist into his palm.
"I got it! There's a bathhouse across the hall, right? With a sauna?"
"Aha! So a simple test of endurance, is it?" Taka immediately understood, ready to depart at a moment's notice. "We're going to see who can stay in there the longest, am I right?!"
"Goddamn straight!" Mondo instantly confirmed, pounding his fists together.
"Alright then, let's be off!" Taka announced, striding toward the door.
Walking right next to him, Mondo excitedly replied, "Yeah, let's do this!"
As Leon watched them heading off toward the bathhouse, an audible sigh escaped him. "How the hell can they go from arguing to agreeing in less than ten seconds?"
It was strange indeed. Despite their fierce bickering, they decided on the endurance contest without hardly saying a word to each other. What's more, they seemed almost…happy to be competing against each other. Then again, they were both guys and guys had to prove who had the bigger dick to justify themselves.
Even so, Leon couldn't shake this strange feeling of déjà vu that overtook him. Well, it wasn't really déjà vu, but this whole thing definitely felt nostalgic for some reason. As if he'd seen something like this happen before—
"Hey! Hurry the hell up! We don't got all night!" the voice of Mondo called from the hall, startling him and making him lose his train of thought
"Alright, alright, I'm coming!" he shouted back, putting his hands in his pockets and heading for the sauna, regretting not picking up an apple or something before they noticed he was falling behind.
As the three of them pushed aside the curtains and entered the bathhouse, none of them noticed the towering figure that watched them from the shadows.
Junko tapped her foot as she waited, a beyond bored expression obscuring her beautiful features.
"Where the hell is she?" she grumbled as she sat in the Monokuma control room. In front of her, the camera in Monokuma's red eye watched the staircase connecting the first and second floor. "Seriously…I know that I wrote for her to meet Monokuma on the second floor just after the nighttime announcement. What's the deal?"
She was about to abandon her post and move back to the surveillance room to check the cameras when, almost immediately after her complaint, she saw the hulking figure of Sakura ascending the staircase up to the second floor.
"About time…" Junko muttered as she readjusted her seat and took control of the half and half bear.
"Tardy! Late! Unpunctual! Overdue! Not here on time!" Monokuma screeched, waving its arms furiously as Sakura reached the top of the stairway. The Ultimate Martial Artist's face was as still as stone, without even a hint of expression visible.
"I apologize. It will not happen again," she replied stoically, not making any such excuses. However, that only seemed to further infuriate the already fuming Monokuma because the bear grunted and turned its back to her.
"Since this is your first offense, I'm willing to let it slide…" Monokuma retorted, turning only its head back to glare at her. "But be sure this doesn't become a habit. I'd hate to have to renege on our arrangement because you couldn't get your ass in gear."
"I understand…" Sakura acknowledged, still not showing a hint of emotion. On the inside, however, the tiniest feeling of relief washed over her as the bear didn't seem keen on insisting about why she had been tardy.
The truth was that she had seen three of her classmates: Leon, Mondo, and Taka, heading for the bathhouse just before the Nighttime Announcement was set to play. And despite wanting to believe that no foul-play could be involved, she couldn't stop herself from shadowing them. However, upon overhearing of the contest the men had forced upon themselves, she allowed herself to be at ease, if only slightly.
She would have preferred to stay and keep watch over the preceding, just in case the situation turned grim. However, she knew that their captor demanded her presence and when the Nighttime Announcement sounded, she realized that she had almost forgotten about meeting with the Mastermind. As such, she tore herself away from the spectacle.
Her only reassurance came at the sight of Leon being the one to preside over the event. Having witnessed his transformation after discovering that Sayaka had not been slain by his hand, Sakura felt that she could put her faith in him. After all, she had trusted him enough to vote to allow him to return to the group. And even if there was a gnawing feeling of uncertainty because of the whole affair, she had forced it aside as she begrudgingly went to report to Monokuma.
"My betrayal…is far more wretched than Leon's ever was…"
She had feared that Monokuma would have seen her on the cameras and questioned why she'd decided to leave them be but, for reasons she couldn't make sense of, it seemed that the Mastermind hadn't seen her shadowing them. Or, possibly it could be that the mastermind had seen her but didn't think much of the event. In either case, she was pleased that the bear had neglected to bring up the matter. And although it was clear that Monokuma was displeased with her simple responses, the bear also seemed aware that time was of the essence.
"Follow me," it said before waddling down the hallway.
"Where are we going?" Sakura dared to ask, maintaining her composure despite how disgusted she felt with herself.
"You'll see…" the bear gleefully answered as they made their way toward the staircase leading up to the third floor.
"You sure you guys wanna do this right now? It's already Nighttime..." Leon tried to reason with them, despite knowing how pointless it was.
"So? What's your fucking point? It doesn't matter what time we do this!" Mondo menacingly replied, glaring at the ballplayer for his insinuation. "It's not like you were doing anything else anyway."
"Yeah because feeding myself is pointless compared to your dick measuring contest!" Leon thought silently, doing his best to keep from losing his cool. Which wasn't easy now that he had to contend with the extreme heat of the bathhouse.
"All you gotta do is just shut up and judge us, nothing else!" Mondo tried to reassure him, failing miserably.
"Oh don't worry; I'm definitely judging you…" Leon seethed.
With an appreciative grin and a thumbs up, Mondo happily replied, "That's the spirit!"
At this, Leon found his palm slapping into his face, rubbing his temples to try and keep sane. Just then, a hand landed on his shoulder and the ballplayer looked over to see Taka giving him a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry. This won't take long." The Ultimate Moral Compass almost seemed to smirk as he glared at Mondo. "He'll be done in a matter of minutes. People like him are, without exception, all talk!"
Clearly overhearing that overconfident comment, Mondo slowly turned and fixated his vengeful gaze on Taka. "If that's how you're gonna be, let's make this interesting!" the biker abruptly shouted, cracking his knuckles simultaneously.
"Please don't…" Leon pleaded, only to be outright ignored by both of them.
"We're gonna do this…with all of our clothes on!" Mondo shouted so loud that, if the student's rooms hadn't been soundproof, it would have awoken everyone.
Shocked by both his volume and his overwhelming stupidity, Leon's jaw dropped as he tried to comprehend how someone like Mondo could be the leader of any kind of group, much less a biker gang.
"How does his gang survive being led by such a freaking idiot?!"
As if having the exact same thought, Taka stammered as he said, "T-That's ridiculous! Suicidal even! You can't wear your clothes in—!"
"Oh, pussin' out before we even get started! I shoulda known you wouldn't be able to handle it!" Mondo bellowed boisterously as Taka gritted his teeth, his face reddening with anger.
"Don't…don't underestimate me!"
Faster than either Leon or Mondo could have predicted, Taka flung his shirt off, kicked away his pants and already had his towel wrapped around his waist. Standing there, in his half-naked glory, the Ultimate Moral Compass clenched both hands into fists as he shouted, "You're going to regret not taking me seriously!"
Unenthused by Taka's sudden manly display, Mondo angrily replied, "Shut up and let's do this thing!"
With a manly, and possibly crazy, shout from the two of them, the combatants dashed toward the sauna at blinding speed, leaving Leon standing there awkwardly.
"Okay, so…what the hell am I supposed to do now?"
The gentle hum of the laptop fan could very well have been a symphony to Chihiro's ears as she smiled to herself and she wiped a hint of sweat from her forehead.
"Huh…that was a lot easier than I thought," she said, astounded by how smoothing things seemed to be going.
It had taken the better part of the evening but she finally had a way of powering the dusty laptop she'd recovered from the library. Using the cord from her desk lamp, she had managed to convert it into a source of power for the laptop's battery. She had to practically jury rig it, but with the tools in her toolkit, it proved to be a much easier task than she'd expected.
"Good thing Dad always watched that 'Mac Gaiver' show or whatever it was called," she mused to herself, thinking that she probably wouldn't have considered using the lamp cord if not for the creative thinking that had rubbed off on her because of her father's love for that show.
Her dad liked watching a number of American innovational shows and he considered Mr. Gaiver to be one of the most creative minds to ever come out of America. She remembered her father telling her that, even if there didn't seem like there was a way to build something, there was always a way! The determination her father displayed is what ultimately inspired Chihiro to become the computing expert she was today.
Unfortunately, the memory of her father only dampened her mood, her mind wandering back to her DVD. The bright flames engulfing her home…her father rushing into the inferno…
"No…I can't think about that right now!"
Pushing aside all distracting thoughts, she opened up the laptop, a fragile smiled forming as it began to boot up.
"My cock's bigger than your cock…my cock's twice the size as your cock…" Leon sang to himself as he leaned against the wall adjacent to the sauna. "Seriously, how much longer is this thing going to take…?"
It had been quite some time since Mondo and Taka had gone in and, apart from the occasional gripe, neither of them seemed to be close to giving up yet. Every so often, Leon would walk over and peek through the window in the door; just to be sure the two of them were still conscious. A part of him hoped they'd both pass out and he could just drag them back to their rooms.
He would need to get up early and get to the cafeteria before anyone else and staying up half the night because of the dick measuring contest would make that harder. Yeah, he could survive not eating for tonight and just getting something tomorrow but he also had to be sure and check on Sayaka in the morning…even if she didn't appreciate having him around.
"That's an emotional mine field all on its own…" Leon muttered as a heavy sigh escaped him. Glancing up at the wall clock, and discovering that two whole hours had passed since the dude-bro contest had commenced, the weary baseball player knew he might end up being here all night.
Taking a risk, he pushed off the wall and walked over to the sauna door. "C'mon guys! It's already past midnight. Can't you just call it a tie—?"
"SHUT UP!" they shouted in unison from within, startling him.
"In a…true competition…there's no such thing as…as a tie!" he heard Taka protest, sounding quite winded by the experience.
"Look at you…trying to talk…big…dumbass…" he overheard Mondo grumbling, which sparked more testosterone filled arguing from both of them.
Leon face palmed as he realized he'd inadvertently reignited their passions for the contest. "Whatever! Do what you want…I'm outta here," he whined, unsure if they even heard him over their cocky banter.
Throwing his arms up in a gesture of giving up, he suddenly flinched as a dull ache in his abdomen tore through him. Tenderly placing a hand over the spot where he'd been struck by the baseball, Leon winced, the pain bringing him back to his senses. Each time this happened, whenever he felt the stinging sensation from yellowish-blue bruises on his stomach, he couldn't stop the images from the previous day from flooding his mind.
Tied to a metal pole, unable to protect himself as the baseballs smashed into him, the looks of pity and terror on his classmates' faces as they watched what would have been his execution…it felt so far away and yet somehow closer than he'd ever imagined possible. And with that horrifying imagery, a single thought repeated over and over in his mind:
"It was an accident…I never meant for it to happen..."
Lifting his gaze up and staring at the sauna door, Leon couldn't shake the feeling that another 'accident' might occur if he abandoned his classmates now. He also considered what might happen if both of them were too stubborn to leave and both of them ended up frying in there overnight. It was selfish, he knew it was, but a part of him feared that, if they died of heat exhaustion due to him not being there to pull them out…would Monokuma see that as murder?
"I mean, even though it was an accident…I was still the one blamed and punished for Sayaka's 'death'."
He knew that this was a very different situation compared to what had happened between him and Sayaka, but the fear of Monokuma's silver tongue and penchant for punishments was keeping him from leaving his two classmates to die from stupidity.
Just then, as if fate decided to prove him right, he heard the tired voice of Taka mumble something from within the sauna. It was barely above a whisper and he didn't catch all of it, but what he did hear was:
"…plenty…to go…eat…hot boiling soup…"
Taken aback by the sudden change in the moral compass' attitude, Leon stepped closer to the door, only to be assaulted with another barely inaudible phrase, this time from Mondo.
"…hot spring…monkey… gates…of hell…"
Leon's eyes widened as shock coursed through him. Both of them seemed to be muttering incoherent phrases to each other and since they were speaking so quietly, it was hard to know if he was even hearing them correctly. However, what they were saying didn't really matter anymore.
"Dammit, their stupid brains must be boiling! But if I tell them to get out, it'll just make them want to stay longer because they're stupid!"
Groaning and resting his head against the door, Leon knew he was running out of time. Even so, he hesitated. If he rushed in there and tried to force them to leave, would things somehow end up the way they had with Sayaka? He didn't want to believe it, but then again, he'd thought something similar when he'd busted in the bathroom door.
Only this time, if he waited too long, both of them would die regardless…which actually left him with little choice in the matter.
"Fuck it…"
"Step into my office," Monokuma said as it held the door for Sakura. The martial artist did as instructed and was greeted by a surprising sight.
A well-furnished REC room; complete with a pool table, dart board and fully stocked magazine rack stood before her. And that wasn't the biggest shock. No, that came in the form of a tray of tea and cookies sitting on the coffee table in the center of the room.
"Bringing me up to the third floor, showing me a room none of the others know exists, and providing tea and snacks for both of us…the Mastermind certainly is a bold one."
Although these discoveries might seem rather ordinary for most, Sakura could discern a great deal about the Mastermind from this small gesture.
Firstly; by taking her up to a higher floor, it also meant they had privacy, since Monokuma had relocked the metal gate on the stairway after they had passed through. She had expected to report to Monokuma in the gym or somewhere on the first or second floor. Being led up to the third showed that the Mastermind wasn't concerned with her knowing what might be on this floor.
Secondly; if they had a tea set, then they had to have the resources to clean and maintain them. Sakura had thought that the reason the cafeteria was closed each evening was to allow the Mastermind the ability to obtain food for themselves. And if that was the case, then it would be easy to get the tea at this time of night.
Third and finally; Sakura painfully surmised that the Mastermind didn't consider her much of a threat if they were willing to show her all these things. Regardless of her status as the bear's mole, both of them knew it was an uneasy alliance to say the least, and that, given the chance, Sakura would use anything and everything to turn the tables on the Mastermind. It showed that the Mastermind was completely confident that nothing they showed her would be of any use in discovering their identity.
"What are you waiting for, a written invitation?" Monokuma abruptly shouted, snapping her back to reality as she noticed that the bear had already taken its place opposite her.
As the demented bear somehow picked up the teapot and poured them both a cup of lukewarm tea, Sakura took her seat, staring ahead stoically. Once both cups were filled to the brim, Monokuma leaned back in its chair, saucer and cup in paw.
"So…no one's dead yet," the bear politely said, grasping the tea cup with one claw. "So, uh…how the fuck did that happen?"
Opting not to trust the tea or cookies provided, Sakura remained motionless as she answered, "I believe you already heard of Junko's miraculous rescue—".
A loud crash ceased her words as she watched Monokuma slam its cup down so hard it shattered.
"Don't take that kind of tone with me, missy!" the bear seethed, obviously still very sore about that subject. However, it only took a quick inhale for Monokuma to return to its Zen state of calmness, inexplicably pulling a replacement teacup from behind its back. "I wasn't referring to that. What I meant was; why haven't you made a move yet?"
Sakura could feel a pit forming in her stomach at those words but knew she had to answer them. "I didn't realize I was supposed to. After all, you merely instructed me to observe for the time being—".
"But I distinctly remember instructing you to 'be a pal and kill someone with 24 hours', did I not?" the bear interjected, taking a sip of tea. "It seems you forgot about that little request, now didn't you?"
No matter how hard she tried, this time, Sakura could not stop herself from flinching. As Monokuma had said, she'd completely forgotten about that arrangement after the ordeal she and her classmate had endured yesterday. But now it seemed that Monokuma wanted to cash in on their agreement. The martial artist had naïvely believed that just because Sayaka and Leon had been spared, so too had she.
"How could I be so blind?! Why did I think that my classmates' survival would change anything?!"
Her massive hands balled into fists and her entire body shook with suppressed anger. She was suddenly overcome with the desire to rip that demented bear in two, and if she was executed for it, then it would be her penance. However, before she could be given the chance to act upon that rash whim, the bear gently set its teacup down and sighed.
"Anyway, for now, you can just forget about crushing anyone's head between your thighs or whatever you muscle-ly people do to murder someone."
All of Sakura's anger abruptly faded as the bear's words reverberated in her ears. "Are you certain?" she couldn't stop from asking, only afterward realizing she sounded entirely too eager.
"Oooh, such a tempting reply…but sadly I am certain." Monokuma picked up a cookie and shoved the baked good into its mouth, chomping down almost violently. "It's for the best, at least right now. I guess I expected too much from you. Plus, I can't have you spoiling the next motive by killing someone before they see what I've got in store."
Quickly catching the bear's meaning, Sakura immediately asked, "And what exactly do you have planned?"
Sakura watched as Monokuma's menacing grin widened as the bear answered, "Oh, let's not talk about me. Let's talk about you! After all, you promised to tell me all about your little sleepover with Aoi Asahina…or is it just Hina now? You all gave yourselves the stupidest nicknames, I swear."
Cursing the fact that she had fallen into another of the Mastermind's traps, and knowing there was no way out of it, Sakura begrudgingly swallowed her pride, and conflicting emotions, as she began to tell Monokuma everything she'd learned thus far.
Mondo glanced over at Taka, seeing how red and exhausted the Moral Compass was. And even though the biker knew he must look even more disheveled, due to being fully clothed, he couldn't stop from feeling confident of his victory.
"Gotta say…you look like you're at your limit…with a face like that," he sneered, adjusting the towel atop his pompadour. Little did he know that Taka was feeling equally confident, huffing in mock amusement.
"I could say the same of you…" the Moral Compass fired back, sending a heated glare at his opponent. However, Mondo simply shrugged and reclined back in his seat, desperate to prove that the heat wasn't affecting him as much as it was the honor student. Seeing this, Taka folded his arms and did his best to pretend the extreme heat wasn't bothering him either.
Regardless of their manly façades, however, both of them could feel the stinging sensation of sweat leaking into their eyes, and the painful tingling the steam forced upon their bodies. Even so, their pride demanded that they endure this harsh contest, no matter the cost.
Perhaps due to that, Mondo smirked to himself before glancing at Taka out of the corner of his eye to say, "I woulda thought someone like you would know your limits…it's like you think you actually got guts or something—"
Before he could finish, Taka shot to his feet and marched over to the coals on the other side of the sauna. Grasping the small water pail and dunking it into the water, he seethed, "Don't say such foolish things!"
With a flick of his wrist, he splattered the water onto the coals, fresh steam billowing up instantaneously.
"It's far too cold in here!" he was barely able to shout before the temperature spiked, washing over both him and Mondo in a brutal torrent of heat. Both of them abruptly gasped, not realizing the air had just become more difficult to breath, their lungs burning as they inhaled more steam than oxygen.
However, neither of them could admit defeat and, as confidently as he could manage, Taka marched back to his seat beside Mondo and sat, staring forward as if nothing was wrong. Just as he felt a new layer of sweat pour from his pores, the Moral Compass heard a mocking chuckling from beside him.
"Ain't you the thoughtful one? I was just thinkin' it was getting too cold—" the biker tried to say but found himself cut off.
"Why don't you drop the tough guy act and just admit your defeat?" Taka brazenly countered, not even bothering to look at his opponent. "Or does your good-for-nothing personality stop you from seeing how outclassed you are?"
"What the hell did you just say?!" Mondo unsurprisingly exploded, staring dangerously at Taka. "You got a death wish or something?!"
Feeling more confident now that the biker was getting rattled, Taka scoffed, stood from his seat and pointed accusatorily at his classmate.
"You dress sloppy and you're in a bike gang that can only use violence to solve its problems! It should be me asking if you're the one who has any real guts! People like you who make excuses from the start are nothing short of losers! I find that inexcusable!"
Taka was certain that he was in for another bout of relentless arguing from his opponent, and was prepared to back up his own accusations. Wiping the sweat from his brow, the Moral Compass turned and glared at Mondo, ready and willing to prove how tough he was.
That's when something strange happened.
Instead of arguing or even refuting him, Mondo simply stared forward, completely still. Taken back by his sudden lack of passion, Taka wasn't quite sure what he should be doing. Just as he considered continuing to lecture his classmate, he heard a heavy sigh.
"I'm not in a biker gang. I'm the leader of a biker gang. And I got my own responsibilities and goals as leader." Mondo spoke clearly but angrily, emphasizing his position as concretely as possible. "It's my responsibility to lead everyone in the Crazy Diamonds. It has been ever since my brother…died."
If the air hadn't been so thick with steam, Taka would have gasped at hearing that. Instead, he simply returned to his seat and remained quiet as the biker continued.
"I never had a good home life…even so, my brother did his best for both of us. He's the reason the gang came together…and I wanted to be just like him."
"I see…your brother…" was all Taka could manage to say, nothing more than a simple acknowledgement. His words earned a pitiful chuckle from Mondo, who leaned his head back and slapped his hand to his face.
"And Chuck…he probably thinks I'm a loser for actin' like this…" the biker said quietly but audible enough for Taka to become confused.
"Uh…Chuck?"
Without warning, Mondo's head snapped over and he shouted, "He's a Maltese! And he's really smart! He used to bring me the paper every day and I'd give him a walk for it!"
For the first time since they'd met, Taka felt a tiny smile form on his lips, accompanied by a light chuckle. "I never expected someone like you to love animals…"
"Fuck you, asshole…" the biker retorted, angrily averting his gaze, embarrassed that he'd shouted so abruptly.
Realizing that his comment sounded far too sarcastic, Taka cleared his throat and reiterated, "He sounds really clever…your dog, I mean."
Hearing that, Mondo tensed and lowered his gaze down to glare at the floor.
"Yeah, he was," he answered solemnly, never lifting his gaze. "But…Chuck's not here anymore either…"
All desire to argue suddenly evaporated as Taka silently listened to his classmate. And somewhere deep inside, a part of him felt guilty for forcing Mondo to bring up such difficult memories. That realization came crashing down on Taka as if he'd been hit by a freight train and he habitually replied, "Oh…sorry—"
His words were cut short when Mondo abruptly shot up from his seat, shouting up at the ceiling "My gang…Crazy Diamonds…they're all I got left! The survival of the gang is all on me!" Turning his gaze down to glare at Taka, the biker narrowed his eyes and finished, "I'm not an honor student who has all the brains! I gotta work hard at everything I do, unlike a genius like you—!"
"Don't you dare say that to me! Don't confuse me for someone like that! I'm not a genius at all!"
Now it was Mondo's turn to be stunned into silence, perplexed as Taka raised his voice even higher than his own. Even so, the biker couldn't stop his curiosity and it didn't take long for him to ask, "But…if you aren't a genius…why are you so smart?"
With a heavy sigh, Taka rubbed his temples and explained, "Just because someone gets perfect grades does not mean they're a genius…"
As expected, Mondo's reply came in the form of a raised eyebrow and a simple sentence, "…I don't get what you mean."
Trying to take a cleansing breath despite the intense heat, Taka resolved to educate his classmate, despite the extreme situation they were in.
"You've heard about Former Prime Minister Toranosuke Ishimaru, haven't you?"
Mondo took a second to think before replying, "Uh…ain't he the guy who embezzled money or something?"
"…He's my grandfather."
The biker's gaze snapped up and he stared wide-eyed at Taka, watching as the Moral Compass silently lowered his head. Unable to comprehend how he should react to finding this out, Mondo decided it was best just to keep quiet for the moment. But he didn't have to wait long before Taka quietly began murmuring.
"My Grandfather…he was considered a genius. He never had to work hard for his accomplishment, they all came naturally to him," Taka paused for a brief moment before "And because of that, he failed to see how others around him despised him. They suspected corruption and eventually, everything he built fell to ruin. Along with the failure of his business, he fell into great debt…which still affects my family to this day."
Only now lifting his head, Taka angrily stared forward, as if confronting an invisible demon.
"Do you understand? An intelligent but lazy person who doesn't know how to put effort into their work will always fail! I am not one of those people!" Rising to his feet once more, he clenched his fists and continued, "I'm certain that, with hard work and a clear conscience, I can change this country—!"
Abruptly, a hand slapped down on his shoulder, startling him into silence. Turning to follow the hand back to its owner, Taka was shocked to see a tearful Mondo staring directly into his eyes.
"You…you've had a lot of hardships too, haven't ya?!" the biker bellowed, hot tears streaming down his cheeks.
Shocked, Taka felt moisture building up in his own eyes as he was barely able to utter, "...Y-You're crying…for my sake?!"
As the two manly men felt that they had finally come to some form of understanding, a loud and sudden slam snapped both of them back to reality. Their heads snapped over to look at the now opened sauna door, and both were shocked as a red haired figure, clothed only in a towel, brazenly stepped into the steam filled room.
"…I'm glad we had this chat! And I think we've made great progress with you this evening! I'll see you again for another therapy session very soon!" Monokuma chided Sakura as it opened the shutter leading back to the second floor.
Sakura was pleased that her conversation with the bear had come to a close. She'd divulged absolutely everything she could remember about her classmates to the demented bear. Everything from personal habits to possible weakness, Sakura even had to tell Monokuma exactly how her sleepover with Hina had gone, in excruciating detail.
All the while, Monokuma acted as a psychiatrist, occasionally asking the martial artist 'And how does that make you feel?'. It made Sakura's blood boil and it seemed that the bear enjoyed watching her squirm from all the verbal abuse. Not to mention the guilt that threatened to overtake her for betraying her friends.
"At least it's over…for now."
She knew that Monokuma would call upon her again soon and the martial artist questioned how long she'd be able to live with her guilt before she did something foolish…like confessing the truth to her classmates. Forcing such thoughts away for the time being, she marched through the open stairway and heard the heavy clatter of the shutter being forced down.
Glancing over her shoulder, she saw the bear had kept itself on the opposite side and began waddling its way back upstairs before abruptly stopping.
"Oh, and I did forget to mention something…" Monokuma called out, not letting her leave just yet. "Do me a favor and keep an extra special eye focused on Junko Enoshima. She's been acting a bit out of character and it's got me a bit worried."
Although Sakura could completely understand why the bear would want her to keep an eye on the person who thwarted the first execution, something about the way the bear said her classmate's name sent a chill down her spine. She wanted to ask the reason for such suspicion but opted to simply nod and be done with the bear for now.
"That's a good little mole," Monokuma said, as if congratulating a puppy on bringing them the newspaper. "Alrighty then! See you later!"
Without another word, the bear bounded up the stairs and around the corner out of sight. Sakura couldn't help but feel relieved but distraught at the same time.
"…Junko Enoshima. What could she be hiding?"
"Alright, enough of this shit!" Leon Kuwata shouted at his sweaty classmates, letting the sauna door close behind him before taking another step toward them. "You two are gonna get the hell out of here or I'm gonna drag…the…both…of…Mondo, are you crying?!"
Suddenly aware of the situation, Mondo shook his head and furiously wiped away the moisture from his face.
"H-Hell no! It's just sweat, asshole!" he defended, regaining his manly façade. "What the hell are you doing in here anyway? You ruined our moment!"
"Well have your moment outside! It's time to get out!" Leon fired back, pointing furiously at the door.
It was at this time that Leon sadly remembered that Mondo, in addition to having a short temper, did not like being ordered around. He'd wanted to be stern with them and try to convince them both that their dick measuring contest could be settled tomorrow, but unfortunately, it seemed that he'd done the exact opposite.
"You son of a bitch…You think you can come in here and order us around like you own the place?!" Mondo seethed, turning to face the water pail before dunking it and splashing more water onto the coals. "We're not even close to finishing this yet!"
Feeling the intensity of the heat for himself, Leon tried to play it cool, pun intended, and folded his arms before saying, "Do you guys know how long you've been in here?"
Puzzled by the sudden question, Mondo looked around aimlessly as he tried to come up with an answer. "Uh…about 20 minutes or so?"
"Try three hours!" Leon shouted, instantly regretting raising his voice.
"Really, you sure the heat's not getting to you or something?" Taka questioned, completely oblivious to his classmate's concern. In response, Leon face palmed with both hands and groaned.
"No! That's not the issue right now anyway!" the baseball star insisted, wiping away the newly formed sweat.
Even though he was acting like it wasn't affecting him, in truth, the extreme heat was quickly wearing down his already exhausted body. Not to mention that, without his shirt to cover it, the bruises on his abdomen were almost completely exposed. Not that Mondo or Taka seemed to notice, though.
Not wanting to stay in the sauna any longer than need be, the baseball player motioned for the door and reasoned, "If you guys stay in here any longer, you're gonna put your lives at risk!"
At the mention of that, it seemed that reason had begun to return to Taka, because he lowered his gaze a bit before turning to Mondo and saying, "He does have a point. Perhaps we should—".
"Don't go soft on me, man!" the biker interrupted, slapping a hand on his shoulder. "We resolved ourselves to finish this, and that's what we gotta do! As men, we can't back down from a challenge! Only a lazy person would give up after coming so far!"
A light gasp escaped Taka as he registered Mondo's words. Staring at the biker's determined visage, the Moral Compass suddenly felt his passion returning and he hardened his features in resolve.
"Yes…yes, you're right! Absolutely right! It would be lazy of us to give up now! And neither of us are the lazy type!" Taka affirmed, placing his hand on Mondo's shoulder as well.
Smiling confidently, Mondo let out a roar of laughter and said, "That's the spirit! Let's give it everything we got!"
As one, the two of them erupted into harmoniously overconfident laughter, leaving Leon both stunned and feeling rather confused. How had his plan backfired so much after he'd only been in the sauna for one minute!
"Oh, come on, guys! You can't be serious! What if you both pass out because of your dick measuring contest?!" Leon protested, finally giving voice to what their competition truly was.
"Don't worry," Taka tried to reassure him, smiling as confidently as the biker. "We'll be sure to leave before that happens—".
"And if you don't?! What happens then?!" the ballplayer insisted.
Groaning loudly, Mondo waved his arm dismissively before turning his back to Leon as he said, "If you want to leave, then leave. We don't need you here anymore, anyway. Go back to your room or something."
For reason's Leon couldn't quite place, the biker's dismissive attitude sparked something deep within him and he felt the flames of anger rising up and consuming his reason entirely.
"Listen up, you stupid morons! I'm not gonna be held responsible for the two of you getting heat stroke. So stop being so stupid and get the fuck out of the sauna!"
A long pause accompanied that statement and for a moment, Leon thought he may have finally gotten through to them. However, the instant Mondo turned around and glared at him, he realized he had made a fatal error in judgment.
"And just what the hell is that suppose to mean, huh?" the biker seethed, taking a few steps toward Leon. "And why the hell would you be responsible if it did happen?"
His blood still boiling, Leon couldn't stop himself from answering, "I don't know, maybe because of the fact that I was held responsible for what happened to Sayaka, even though it wasn't my fault!"
Taken back by his sudden outburst, Mondo let a look of confusion warp his features. "W-Wha…what the hell is that suppose to mean? What does that have to do with any of this?"
"Because it's the same bullshit that almost got me executed before!" Leon practically screamed, heaving heavy breaths due to the heat. "Who do you think will get punished if no one drags your stupid asses out of the sauna, huh? Me! That's who! And I am not going through that again!"
As he finished his tirade, Leon noticed that he was not only short of breath, but that his legs were slightly wobbly. Having not eaten for most of the day, combined with the intense heat of the sauna, his strength was fading fast and he needed to get the morons out ASAP. However, instead of his classmates understanding his plight, an enraged Mondo suddenly grabbed him by the shoulders.
"Is that the only reason you came in here, huh?! Because you're worried about yourself! Is that it?!"
Flinching due to the biker's firm grasp, Leon bravely smacked his arms away and retorted, "No! T-That's not…that wasn't the only—".
"Shut the hell up! I don't wanna hear any more excuses! A pussy like you doesn't deserve to preside over our battle! Get the fuck outta here before I have to throw you out!" the biker threatened.
Before Leon could retort, Mondo shoved him away and turned his back to him. Feeling desperate, and wanting to at least try and explain himself, the ballplayer reached out and grabbed the sleeve of Mondo's jacket.
"Just listen! I'm not trying to—".
"I thought I told you to GET THE FUCK OUTTA HERE!"
Before Leon knew what was happening, Mondo's elbow flew back and struck him square in the abdomen. Even worse, he hit the ballplayer in the center of the largest bruise on his torso.
"Khhggh!"
Leon's entire body convulsed as the pain from the hit consumed him. He sputtered and desperately tried to pull air into his lungs, but the combination of pain, the force of the strike, and the limited air of the sauna made that impossible. His body lost what little strength it had and he crumpled to the floor.
A moment later, he was surprised to hear the voice of Mondo abruptly calling out.
"Oh shit! Leon! Leon!"
The baseball player felt them grabbing onto him and shaking him, sending another jolt of pain through his already grief stricken body.
"Come on, man! Don't do this to me! Get the fuck up, you stupid son of a bitch!"
That was the last thing Leon heard before the darkness consumed him.
"Okay, just a little bit more…there!"
Chihiro finished typing in the last of the core programming code she'd spent all night working on. Her tired eyes were half-open and bloodshot but still she forced herself to read over the code she'd just finished calculating.
"Everything should be…in order…" she said quietly, a yawn escaping her as she slowly moved her hand over to the 'enter' key. "And now…the final…test…"
Clicking her finger down on the button, the now fully charged laptop's screen abruptly went black. A look of shock overtook Chihiro's features and her tired mind desperately tried to understand how or why her program had failed.
"Perhaps its…the power out…put…or maybe…the code…has…error…need…to…"
Before she was aware of it, she'd rested her head into her arms and slowly drifted off into peaceful slumber, her brain still trying to confirm why her program hadn't responded as instructed. However, less than a moment after she lost consciousness, the laptop screen abruptly flashed and a green backdrop appeared.
And then, slowly appearing in the center, the face of a certain Ultimate Programmer suddenly appeared.
"…Nice to finally meet you, Master."
To Be Continued…
Greetings, my beautiful readers! This chapter was long awaited by my wonderful beta, who has been fangirl squealing about this ever since I first showed it to her. So, I hope that all you fangirls enjoyed it as well.
Anyway, what's gonna happen now?! Is Leon gonna be okay? Will he make it out of the sauna alive? Will he ever get his sandwich? You'll have to read on to find out next time!
Please leave a comment or review to give me your impression of this chapter and the story in general. Any kind of comment is better than none at all, so please leave your thoughts or ideas. As always, have a wonderful day, my beautiful readers!