Hifumi was very tired. Being in the Palace all afternoon while she was still struggling with her new powers took a toll on her. It hit her all at once the moment she got home, trudging inside with a heavy sigh. "I'm home…"

"Not at the church tonight?" Mitsuyo seemed like she was waiting for Hifumi to come back. It was rare for Hifumi to not spend her time at the church. "Let me guess," she began before Hifumi could even answer. "You were with that Ann girl weren't you?"

Not even five seconds home and her mother was already doing this. "Yes…"

"And you look tired. What is it exactly that you were doing?" Mitsuyo stared at her daughter.

Well, this wasn't a question she had an excuse for yet. "Shogi." Hifumi lied and went right to her room before Mitsuyo could reply. The moment she was in her room, she dropped her bag and just collapsed onto her bed, letting out a tired sigh. "It's far more exhausting than I initially expected…but at least I'm getting used to it…" Buzz buzz. Her phone was vibrating. "Hm…?" It was the group chat, so she opened it up to see what was going on.

Ryuji: When are we gonna send the calling card? We should hurry it up.

Ann: I have to agree. The earlier the better in my book.

Hifumi: Yes, I'd like to tear his heart out as soon as possible.

Ryuji: when she says it, it feels more threatening

Yusuke: There is no guarantee he will uphold is promise, after all. What are your thoughts on the matter, Makoto? Hifumi?

Ren: I think we know how Hifumi feels about it already.

Makoto: Honestly, I can't wait to send it. I want to put an end to his nasty crimes as soon as possible.

Ren: I agree. But let's not get too hasty.

Yusuke: As calm as ever.

Ann: We'll leave the timing up to you!

The conversation for the night was over. Hifumi could put her phone down and lie on her stomach, already prepared to turn in early. But she then remembered she had schoolwork to do, and then it hit her. School was tomorrow. She was a diligent student since she didn't do much before; simply upholding her Shogi career along with school. But now that she was a Phantom Thief, it threw a wrench into her routine. Something she was going to have to figure out soon to avoid her performance in her usual life aspects going down. "I should do my homework…but…eh…" She was too tired for that. She'd take the hit this one time and fall asleep…she could probably rush it on the train tomorrow if she was careful…

.

.

In Leblanc, Ren was taking the rest of the night to make some more Thieves' Tools. It never hurt to have more. "I guess we really did get pretty lucky." He spoke to Morgana, who was resting on the couch. "Makoto and Hifumi are something else."

"Huh? How?" Morgana was in his own thoughts, but hearing the names of the two new recruits snapped his attention in a way he didn't like.

"Makoto is good at reading enemies, Hifumi is great at reading the flow of battle and suggesting tactics accordingly…we've been doing better than we were before." Ren said, fishing a Lockpick. "Hifumi just needs a little more experience than Makoto, it seems…"

"…Yeah…" Morgana replied dismissively. When they were first starting out, he was the one that handled the navigation…reading enemies, supplying battle support. In a way, it felt like he had been doing all the heavy lifting in terms of teaching everyone the ropes. But as soon as Makoto and Hifumi joined the team, he immediately felt that purpose be ripped away from him by two people who just…did it better than he could. "They're pretty good, but they've still got a long way to go before they're at my level. You guys aren't even there yet." He said overconfidently, mostly to make his ego feel better. Being outdone by two newbies didn't sit well with him. Not to mention…he was jealous at how well Ann and Hifumi got along.

Ren recognized that Morgana's tone was off, so he took the time to dig a little deeper. "Is everything okay?"

"Just fine." Morgana replied dismissively. "We got a big day to prepare for, so we should get ready for that."

"Hm…" Ren wasn't sure what kind of response he was expecting. This was Morgana after all…so even if something was bugging him, his pride was unlikely to allow him to admit it. Ren would just have to wait until he was willing to talk. "Yeah, you're right. I wanna get this done as soon as possible…"

.

.

June 25th.

The last day of school before the Sunday break. The morning was going by slowly, Ren and Ann lazily listening in on Ms. Chuno's lecture. That's when their phones buzzed silently, causing them both to sneak a peek at the group chat.

Hifumi: I am so very tired…and anxious. How do you all focus when you have a calling card on the horizon?

Ryuji: I know, right? Every time we get this close, I totally zone out in school!

Ann: You do that anyway.

Makoto: Don't stand out in school too much. Texting in class is risky.

Yusuke: She says, texting in class.

Makoto: I'm just saying…!

Hifumi: I've never texted in class so frequently before…it's so thrilling.

Ren: If everyone's that anxious, we can talk about it later today after school.

Ryuji: Hell yeah!

Hifumi: That is a wonderful idea. Oh. Wait.

Ann: What's wrong?

Hifumi: Ttthe teahcer is lookinf ths wa

There was a moment of silence in the chat.

Ryuji: Uh, she good?

Ann: Hifumi?

Yusuke: I'll see if she's alive after school.

Ann: Don't talk like she's dead!

Ren: Don't you have lunch together?

Yusuke: …I do not have lunch.

…

That was a good time to end the conversation. They'd see each other later.

.

.

Once they all gathered afterschool, they had to discuss how to send the calling card. This one was going to be a bigger challenge than the previous two, considering the status of their enemy. "All that's left is the calling card, right?" Makoto asked. "We should send it."

"I would agree, but it would not be an easy task this time." Yusuke said.

"Yeah…nobody actually knows him…" Ann said.

"That does pose an issue…" Hifumi mumbled. "We can't simply hand deliver it to him…"

"Gah…there's so god damn much I wanna write on that card, too." Ryuji groaned. "I guess we should send it, but man…"

"How are we going to get it to him?" Hifumi asked.

"Yeah, we don't know where he lives…" Ann sighed.

Makoto was confused that everyone seemed so stuck. "Hm? Why not use the same method as before?"

"The same method?" Hifumi tilted her head.

"Ryuji, come with me." Makoto said without delay, already walking off.

"Wh…?" Ryuji blinked, but found himself following behind Makoto. He didn't want to keep her waiting.

Morgana popped his head out from the bag, tilting his head curiously. "…I wonder what she's dragging him along for. It can't be for anything that involves a brain."

"I heard that you dumb cat!" Ryuji turned to look over his shoulder, shouting at Morgana. Of course the fact he was shouting at no one in the eyes of people passing by made them look at him strangely.

"Be quiet…!" Makoto demanded and Ryuji shut right up. "We'll meet again tomorrow."

"Er…okay." Ren rubbed the back of his neck. Seemed like they were done for the day already…

Before they could fully disperse, Hifumi reached out for Ann. "Hey, Ann…can we talk?"

"Sure." Ann replied with her bright smile, not even missing a beat.

.

.

Ann and Hifumi went to the diner, sitting at a table in the back away from prying eyes. Of course they had some food too, but that was mostly just to not be bothered by anyone while they walked. Ann took a sip of some soda and glanced at Hifumi. "So, what's up?"

"I'm very nervous." Hifumi admitted, playing with the end of her skirt. "Since we finished finding the Treasure, I haven't been able to think about anything other than stopping Kaneshiro. I was also very tired when we came back…likely due to my inexperience."

"Are you still worried about holding us back?" Ann asked.

"I think so." Hifumi admitted. "But also…I may have underestimated how much fatigue I would experience. I…didn't do my homework for the first time in a long time yesterday. I was too tired."

Ann blinked. That wasn't something unfamiliar to her, but she could see how it was a big deal to Hifumi. "If you need to take it easy when we start…"

"I'll be fine." Hifumi shook her head. "That's something I'll have to figure out so I don't stand out as much, right? But that aside, I'm nervous because I don't know what to expect when we go in to steal the Treasure. Did you ever feel like this?"

"Mhm…" Ann nodded slowly. "When we went to steal Kamoshida's Treasure, I was pretty nervous. We only get one chance, you know? Once they see the card, we have one day to take it. When I learned that, I started to wonder if I'd screw up, if we'd miss the chance to make him pay for his crimes."

"How did you get over it?" Hifumi asked, her green eyes staring up slowly at Ann.

"Well, to tell you the truth, even now, I still get a little nervous." Ann admitted. "But what I did back then…I turned my nervousness into determination. Instead of thinking about what could go wrong, I thought about what I had to do right. No matter what, I couldn't let Kamoshida get away with what he did to Shiho. I was determined to make him pay, no matter what."

"…I see…" Hifumi nodded. "I feel that way. I want to make Kaneshiro pay in spades for what he's done to the people of the city and my peers. Although I worry I may take it too far again. I cannot help but get angry whenever I see him…I've never felt that emotion so strongly before."

Since Hifumi was such a quiet, well-mannered girl, Ann had a feeling that was the case. "You can scare him.

"Huh?" Hifumi blinked. "Scare him…?"

"We may have to fight his Shadow while in there. If—no, when we beat him, you can scare him." Ann said. "I did to Kamoshida's Shadow…I wanted him to feel the weight of his actions. So, if you have the chance to scare him, you can. It reminds them that they're human, too. And if it looks like you're going too far, I'll stop you myself. I know that rage can overtake sometimes…" She knew full well, but she had the ability to hold herself back, whereas Hifumi was still trying to restraint that violent urge.

"But I don't think I'm that scary." Hifumi pouted.

"Huh?" Ann's mind flashbacked to when she tried playing Shogi with Hifumi, just to try and get into her interests. Shadows be damned, Ann was never more intimidated than when Hifumi backed her into a corner and started spouting about the Togo Kingdom and the Dragon governing the skies that was about to destroy her. "Does she not see it!?" As far as Ann was concerned, Hifumi could be plenty scary when she wanted to be. "…By the way, are you gonna finish that?" She pointed to a slice of cake Hifumi had gotten.

Hifumi, with a slight, knowing smile, simply slid the cake over to Ann across the table. "I got that for you."

"Ahhh…" Ann's eyes sparkled. "You're the best, Hifumi! Thank you!"

"Hehe…you're welcome, Ann." Hifumi said with a soft smile and gaze.

.

.

Later in the evening, Akechi was making his rounds. He was going to the train station, on his way to the Jazzz Club in Kichijoji, but stopped when he heard people mumbling. "Hm?"

"Is this from the Phantom Thieves?"

"Is this some mass advertisement stunt?"

"Who's Junya Kaneshiro?"

"…." Now this was interesting. Akechi glanced around, noticing several calling cards plastered around. Curiously, he took one and started to read through it. There was nothing to compare to since the calling card Madarame received supposedly went missing, so this was his first time witnessing the kind of message the Phantom Thieves sent. "Well now…this is quite a turn…"

.

.

June 26th: WE'LL TAKE YOUR HEART!

Kaneshiro was in his usual place with his woman right next to him While he was relaxing, one of his men cautiously approached with a calling card in hand. ""Um…s-sir…I-I found this…on the car,,,,t-there's something written on it…"

"Read it." Kaneshiro demanded.

"B-But…" The man hesitated.

Kaneshiro leaned forward, scowling. "I said, read it!"

The man gulped. "Sir Junyra Kaneshiro, the money devouring sinner of gluttony. Y-You indulge in scamming others with h-horrendous methods that target minors exclusively. W-We have decided to make you confess all y-your crimes with your own mouth. We will take your distorted desires without fail…from…The Phantom Thieves." The man then looked towards his boss. "Isn't this bad?"

"What of it?" Kaneshiro replied dismissively. But internally…

"B-But if something happens to you…! I-If the higher ups found out about this…!"

"Don't waste your time worrying about such useless shit." Kaneshiro replied. "Just keep quiet for now."

"B-But it's all over the city…people are talking about it online too…" The man said apprehensively.

"…Grr…." Kaneshiro then stood up. "All of you, bring me your earnings! If you don't surpass your quota, I'll kill you!"

"Yes sir!" The man nodded and ran off.

Shadow Kaneshiro scowled at the prospect of the Thieves coming to steal his Treasure. "Phantom Thieves…don't make me laugh…"

"Hey, we're leaving." Kaneshiro told his lady. She was extremely confused at the turn of events. "They'll pay for this…"

.

.

"The calling card is posted all over the city…" Morgana was in awe.

"A good idea, no? Given the theatrical nature of this one, surely Kaneshiro would have been contacted about it by now."

"You truly are the brains of this Phantom Thieves operation!" Morgana said, impressed. "Ryuji, you should follow her example.

Of course, Ryuji took offense to this. "Uhhh, I'm the one who posted it everywhere!? I even had to get all dressed up so they wouldn't notice me!"

"Come now, this isn't the time for idle chatter." Makoto chided. "Let us get moving!"

"Makoto is right, we must make haste!" Hifumi was just as anxious as the others to steal Kaneshiro's heart.

"We're going up a truly horrible criminal this time…" Ann said.

"That dick ain't gonna stop us now that we got our awesome new members!" Ryuji said proudly.

"Do you two recall how it works?" Yusuke asked Makoto and Hifumi.

"Once we steal Treasure, the Palace will crumble." Hifumi replied.

"And after we do that, the Palace, and his heart will change." Makoto ended.

"Wow, you two got the hang of this pretty quick. I think Ryuji is still struggling to understand it all." Again, Morgana took a shot at Ryuji, feeling like he was the easiest target like always.

"Really?!" Ryuji growled.

"The old me is dead. Makoto the sycophant is gone, and the adults that controlled her are next." Makoto said firmly.

"I won't allow anyone's value to be decided on what they can give to another person…not anymore." Hifumi gave a firm nod.

"Sounds like you two are ready for this. Joker, give us the signal!" Morgana said.

Ren was already activating the app. "It's show time!"

.

.

The Thieves knew exactly where to go. The lowest, most secure vault in the bank. They already broke through security and knew the best path to reach their destination. However, when they got to the Treasure Room, they were met with a wall that didn't exist the other day: a gigantic, spinning safe that barred them access from the Treasure. "What the hell!?" Skull exclaimed.

"A safe?! This wasn't here the last time we came here!?" Mona gasped. "He changed the entire room so quickly…tch, I guess this Palace isn't a bank for nothing."

"Greetings," Shadow Kaneshiro stepped forward, two goons at his side. "Welcome to my private city bank. I'm surprised you made it here alive…you must be quite lucky."

"Lucky?" Queen spat. "Don't be ridiculous."

"We came here with the sole intention of ending your little game." Dragon narrowed her eyes, venom spewing with each word.

"We're gonna change your heart and make you confess everything you've done! That'll save all the people who're sufferin' cuz of your shitty actions! Even the police are havin' trouble with you, so this make the public believe in us too!" Skull grinned.

"Those in power work the ones below them to the bone for money." Shadow Kaneshiro began. "Such is the hierarchy of the world. Just accept your fate as a source of my wealth!"

"We'll never agree to that!" Fox scoffed.

"People are more than just sources of money to you!" Dragon shouted, gripping her staff tightly. It was as she thought, the more she heard from Kaneshiro's own mouth just enraged her even further.

"And hierarchy? You have to be out of your mind!" Panther shouted.

"All of that was forced me too, you know!" Shadow Kaneshiro shot back. "I went through shit until I crawled my way out of the dregs! Now it's MY turn to profit on EVERYONE ELSE!"

"Still, don't you think you're getting back at the wrong people!?" Panther asked.

"What a pitiful man…" Queen rolled her eyes.

"…." Dragon was just angered into silence.

"It doesn't matter whether you're clean or dirty! Only the clever come out on top! The strong and smart devour the weak! That is the natural order of things!" Shadow Kaneshiro pointed at them, yelling. "You damned brats who think you know the world from the shit you read online make perfect prey! It's always the fools who have to pay for their foolishness ends! And if they don't learn from their mistakes, have to suck it up and stay poor, stupid fools!"

"Will you shut up already!?" Those words were about to come from Skull, but they came from Dragon instead.

"I guess there's not much point saying anything to you fools!" Shadow Kaneshiro scoffed. "This is where my gracious lecture ends. I hope you're prepared to work as slaves here for the rest of your lives!"

"That's outrageous!" Fox yelled. No way in hell would they agree to that.

Shadow Kaneshiro snickered, his voice changing as his body started to convulse. "I'm gonna swarm all over you…and squeeze out every last penny!" His back began to bulge, black blood spewing from his mouth.

"Ahhh!?"

"Holy shit!?"

"What the hell!?"

Shadow Kaneshiro's men fled in a panic at his transformation. "What do you know, it is a fly on the wall…" Joker remarked and it was such an accurate statement. Why? Because Shadow Kaneshiro quiet literally turned into a fly, buzzing heinously, aggressively, and offensively.

"I can take care of this myself." Shadow Kaneshiro said. "Wassup yo? Come get some!"

Queen was now aggressively revving Johanna. "You filthy fly on dirty money…GET THE HELL OUT OF MY FACE!"

Dragon was in the same boat, Belle Star summoned with as much aggression as she could muster. "You disgusting insect…I'll crush you under my boot!"

Oh, this was going to be good. Shadow Kaneshiro didn't realize how long he'd been waiting for this moment! Now he could properly finish what he started! "Gyahahaha! Aight! Here we go yeh pieces of shit!"