A/N: Here's Chapter Two Deadly Life Part Three. So, what are your predictions for who you think the blackened is? Feel free to leave your guesses in your reviews. Please read and enjoy!

Danganronpa 4: Next Generation Killing!

Chapter Two: A Thin Line Divides Heaven and Hell!

Deadly Life Part Three: Shuichi's Stubbornness!

"Shuichi? Kirumi?"

Kiki hollered, cupping her hands around her mouth as she wandered the halls of the fourth floor. Kiki sighed as she was greeted with silence. Realizing that further attempts would only be greeted with silence, she allowed her hands to fall.

"Okay, so they weren't on the main area of the fifth floor, and I haven't seen either of them in the…hm?"

Kiki came to a halt in front of the storage room, peering at the door that was left slightly ajar. Her brow furrowed in confusion.

Her walk exuding tepidness, she pondered "Could Shuichi or Kirumi be in there? But then why didn't either of them answer when I called for them? Well, I guess the only way is to check it out."

With a shaky hand, Kiki bit her lip as she pushed the door open and stepped inside. She peered around the dim room, illuminated only by the light from outside.

"Geez, I can barely see anything in here." She complained as she cautiously walked inside. "Well, I guess Shuichi's not in heeeeeeeeere!"

Kiki shrieked as she tripped, falling flat on her face. She groaned as she shakily got on her hands and knees.

"Itai…geez, what did I trip on? And who left it in the middle of the…floor…" Kiki trailed off, ignoring the pain in her newly bruised knees as she squinted at the dark floor. "What the…what's this…?"

Kiki squinted, struggling to see in the dark storage room as she grasped the mysterious item in her hand. Her brow furrowed as she held it up to her eyes, inspecting it from every angle she could.

"A…metal rod…? What's this doing here? It…kinda looks beat up, at least on this end." She noted as she managed to make out a considerable dent on one end of the rod. "Why would there be a dent on this side? And on the other end…" Kiki's eyes widened as she recognized a crimson stain on the other side of the cylindrical item. "B-Blood?!"

Kiki gasped, dropping the rod and causing it to fall to the floor with a clang. She began to breathe heavily, glancing quickly around the room before she collected herself. She stood up, rubbing her bruised knees as she stared at the rod.

"At least I'm the only one here…but why is one end dented and the other covered in blood? Could…could this weapon have been used to kill Snake? But…that contradicts the Monokuma File's cause of death. And even if it was used to kill Snake, why is one end compromised while the other has blood on it? This doesn't make any sense!"

Kiki shook her head, turning around towards the door. She sighed as she walked out the door towards the light.

"I can't think about this right now. I need to find Shuichi and Kirumi. I doubt they went for a swim, all things considered." Kiki shuddered as the memory of Snake being eaten flashed in her mind. "I didn't hear either of them when I passed the Chem Lab or the Greenhouse. So, that means the only place left is the Dorms. Maybe he went to hide in his room; I should check there first."

With that, Kiki left the Storage Room and walked towards the stairs, hoping that Shuichi was in his room and that Kirumi had managed to coax him into participating.

"So wait!" Koto exclaimed. "Is that rod thingy the murder weapon?"

"Pay attention dorkus!" Kiri shot back. "Snake died from drowning. There's no way the rod could be the murder weapon."

"But the damage and the blood are still suspicious." Mokubo commented, earning a nod from his mother.

"Indeed. It's unlikely that the rod was the murder weapon, but it was likely involved in the crime in some form." She turned her head to smirk at her husband. "It seems she's inherited your luck, to have literally tripped on an important clue."

Makoto chuckled as he scratched his cheek. "I doubt my former talent has anything to do with it."

"Even if it was your luck, it's not gonna be enough to solve this case on its own." Maki muttered. "It looks like Kiki found Kirumi."

Everyone turned their attention to the TV, watching intently as she jogged towards the professional maid.

"Kirumi!" Kiki called as she approached Shuichi's door. "Did you find Shuichi?"

Kirumi nodded, replying, "Yes, he's shut himself in his room and locked the door. I've been trying to coax him out, but he is remarkably stubborn."

So, he's still not coming out…well, I've got nothing to lose, so… "Would you mind if I tried, Kirumi?"

Kirumi cocked her head curiously at the amnesiac girl before she nodded and stepped aside. "By all means."

Kiki took a deep breath and raised her finger to press the doorbell.

*Ding Dong*

"…Go away, Kirumi. I told you, I'm not coming out!"

"Ano…it's Kiki."

"Oh…Kiki…" Kiki sighed in relief at his suddenly softer tone. "Well…what is it?"

"Can…can we just talk, please? At least let me look you in the eyes, Shuichi. Please…?"

A tense few seconds based before she heard the click of a lock. The door cracked open just enough for her to see a sliver of Shuichi's nervous face. His eye darted nervously as the boy tried to look anywhere but at her.

"Okay…what is it, Kiki?"

"Well, it's just…all of us are working so hard, and I'm doing my best to lead everyone, but I'm in over my head, Shuichi. I can't crack this case by myself. We need your help…I need your help, Shuichi. Please…can't you help us?"

Shuichi bit his lip, as though torn with indecision. Just when Kiki thought she had gotten through to him, Shuichi shook his head in denial.

"Sorry…I can't. My lousy detective work will just get people killed again. I…I can't do that again…never again."

"Shuichi, wait!" Kiki nearly cried out just as Shuichi was about to close the door. "If you're not gonna participate, can you at least answer a question for me?"

"…One question. Ask away." Shuichi sighed.

Okay, I managed to get this much cooperation, so I've gotta make this question count. Let's see… Kiki pondered as she fiddled nervously with her braid. It should be something that makes use of his talents, something that'll catch the culprit off guard… "Before I came to breakfast, did anyone there act out of the ordinary? Did anyone's behavior seem…off…?"

Shuichi's eyes lowered as he pursed his lips, deep in concentration. "Now that you mention it…there was something strange that happened while Lotus was cooking in the kitchen. Teruaki came into the dining hall, when…"

"Teruaki?!" Ace exclaimed, his eyes subtly widening in surprise as the stuttering man sat down at the table.

"Yeah? What's got you all so b-bothered?"

"Oh, nothing…I guess I was just lost in thought and spaced out for a moment. I almost didn't see you sitting down…" Ace averted his eyes as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "I guess my mind is getting slower in my old age. Perhaps a nap after the magic show will do me some good."

Shuichi eyed Ace curiously as Teruaki muttered under his breath and averted his gaze. The amateur detective frowned as Ace began to mumble unintelligibly under his breath, curious as to what the elder man was saying…and why he was so surprised by Teruaki's appearance.

"And that's everything." Shuichi finished. "Goodbye, Kiki."

Before Kiki could say another word, Shuichi closed the door.

*Click*

"Well, that didn't go as well as I hoped." Kirumi deadpanned.

Kiki sighed, her hand lingering on the doorknob for a moment before she shook her dejection away. "Still, he did answer a question for us." Kiki pointed out with a shaky smile. "That's something, at least."

"That's correct, I suppose." Kirumi concurred with a small nod of the head. "Well, I suppose all we can do is leave him alone until the Class Trial."

"Yeah…hey, Kirumi? Can I ask you something?"

"Hm?" Kirumi hummed as she was about to walk away.

"Well, I was just wondering…could you tell me where you were the morning of the magic show?"

"Ah, you want to confirm my alibi, correct?" Before Kiki could interject, Kirumi explained "I was up late doing some final preparations for the magic show. Granted, my job mainly consisted of sewing the curtains and assembling the other decorations for the stage. However, I wanted to make sure everything went off without a hitch, even though Clover never told me the trick. So, I took extra time to make sure that the ladder wouldn't break, the tank's stability was sound…"

"Wow…you're one devoted maid, Kirumi." Kiki complimented, causing Kirumi to smile with a hint of pride.

"But of course; a maid always performs their duties to the best of their ability, no matter who the client is. Anyway, when I left, I took a small walk before I fell asleep." Kirumi's eyes lowered in regret as she mused, "I must have tired myself out more than I thought, because I completely overslept. As I hurried to the gym, I ran into Ryoma who had apparently also overslept. We ran the rest of the way together and arrived at the murder scene."

"And that's everything…?" Kiki pressed, causing Kirumi to furrow her brow in confusion.

"Yes, that's everything that happened. Is there anything else you wish to ask me?"

"Oh, no, that's all I needed to know."

"Very well, in that case I'll investigate other areas of the school. Shitsureishimasu."

As Kirumi walked away, Kiki bit her lip and fiddled with her braid in contemplation. Kirumi and Ryoma's stories essentially match up…but if she's telling the truth…then why were her gloves behind the curtain? Did she leave them there by accident…? No. Kiki shook her head. There's no way someone as meticulous as Kirumi would do something as careless as leave her gloves behind. So…what does this mean?

Kiki sighed as she glanced down the hall. She shook the thought from her head as she walked down the hall, rounding the corner until she came face-to-face with Snake's door.

"I can't worry about the holes in Kirumi's account. I still have to investigate these other places. I'll start with Snake's dorm, then I'll check out the pool. It's probably the easiest place to drown someone in, and without Monokuma's piranhas, the culprit wouldn't have to worry about breaking the school regulations."

Kiki took out Snake's key and inserted it in the lock. She took a deep breath before she turned it and pushed the door open, hesitantly walking inside.

"So is Kirumi the culprit?" Koto asked.

"She has to be!" Kiri exclaimed. "Her gloves were found at the scene of the crime!"

"…It's too obvious…" Mokubo shook his head, causing his younger siblings to turn in shock.

Kyoko nodded in agreement. "He's right. No culprit worth their salt would leave a piece of evidence so obviously tying them to the crime."

"She's right." Makoto concurred. "It would be one thing if her gloves were damaged and a scrap tore off, but those gloves were completely whole, almost brand new. Leaving them behind would be exceptionally careless, especially given how meticulous Kirumi usually is."

"So…you think the gloves could be a red herring?" Maki inquired, causing Kyoko to nod.

"What I don't know is if she's still involved in some capacity. Or who would want to try and frame her for the crime. I guess we'll find out as Kiki continues her investigation."

"It's a shame Shuichi wouldn't participate, but at least he gave Kiki some information."

Kyoko nodded, pursing her lips as she mulled over Shuichi's account. I feel…like that's going to be important later on…

"Well, so much for looking at Snake's motive video." Kiki sighed as she entered the pool. "The culprit probably got rid of it by now…well, I can't let that stop me. I should check out the pool area while I still have time."

With that, she began to walk around the perimeter of the pool, her eyes glancing around for clues. Her lips tugged into a sad frown as she sighed.

"I can't believe just two days ago we were swimming and laughing and having a good time with our slumber party. Now there's a possibility that this could be the place where Snake died. I doubt anyone's gonna want to go swimming here anymore if that's the…case…"

Kiki trailed off, her eyes falling on a particular part of the pool's rim. Intrigued, she walked over and knelt in front of it, her eyebrow raised as she found what she had been looking for.

"The edge of the pool here…it's a little scratched…that makes it more likely that this is where Snake was drowned. And if that's true…that means he was carried after he died and ended up in the tank somehow. But…huh?"

A glittering from the bottom of the pool caught Kiki's attention. Squinting her eyes, she peeked curiously over the edge, trying to make out the foreign object in the water. Unfortunately, the water was too murky for her to make out the shape, causing her brow to furrow.

"I can't just leave it there. It might be a valuable clue for the class trial. But how am I going to get it out?" She glanced around and frowned. "I don't see any kind of fishing net, so I can't pull it out."

She fiddled with her braid as she sighed. She contemplated her next course of action before her eyes widened in realization.

"I'll just have to get it out by hand…I think my swimsuit should still be in the locker room…well, let's get this over with…"

With a grunt, Kiki managed to climb up the pool ladder with one hand, her other hand grasping the foreign object she had just dived after. As she stepped out onto the floor, she grabbed several locks of hair with her free hand and began wringing the water out of her auburn hair.

"…I think this might have been the first time I went swimming and I didn't have fun…" She lamented as she walked over to the nearby bleachers and sat down. "Alright, now let's see what you are…"

She squinted her eyes and held the item up to her face, inspecting it from every possible angle. Eventually, her eyes widened in shock as she gasped in realization.

"An arm! This is some kind of metal arm! Clover said that Snake had a prosthetic arm, so this must be it." Kiki bit her lip as she furrowed her brow, wondering, "Did it come loose while Snake was being drowned? It must have, otherwise it'd be with the rest of his bones in the gym. At least this proves that Snake was drowned here. And judging from the scratch marks, Snake probably struggled against his killer…"

Kiki frowned, imagining Snake struggling against his captor as they held his head in the water. Her eyes became misty as they could practically see Snake's face get bluer and bluer as he continued to lose oxygen.

"I…I can't get all emotional right now." Kiki shook her head. "I gotta get dressed and continue with the investigation. I should check with Lotus about her lead; maybe it'll help us narrow down the culprit."

Glancing down at Snake's prosthetic arm still in hand, Kiki frowned. "Still…how am I gonna carry this all the way to the trial? It's too big to fit in any of my pockets, and I don't have a backpack like Kaede did…maybe…"

"I'll take care of it!"

"Eek!"

Kiki squeaked as Monokuma snatched the arm from out of nowhere. Her shock quickly gave way to anger however.

"Hey, give that back! It's important evidence!"

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna tamper with it. If I did that, I'd be breaking my own rules! I'm just gonna hold onto it until it gets brought up in the Class Trial!"

"But-"

"Did you have a better idea for how you were gonna lug this thing to the courtroom? Unless you were just gonna hide it under your shirt and skirt…" Seeing Kiki's cheeks turn pink, Monokuma burst into laughter. "You did think of that, didn't you?! My oh my, I had no idea you were into armplay!"

That's not it! Kiki emphatically denied in her mind, though she was too embarrassed to voice her objection.

"Well, sorry, but I'm gonna have to bring this down to the courtroom for safekeeping. I'm afraid you'll have to find some other kink for now. Ahahahaha!"

Kiki's cheeks turned even redder as Monokuma waddled out with Snake's prosthetic arm. Once he was gone, Kiki slapped her cheeks, trying to force her embarrassment away.

It wasn't even like that! I just couldn't think of where else to put it… She sighed, shaking her head. Drat, now I have to trust that Monokuma will keep his word…I guess there's nothing I can do but continue the investigation…

Kiki walked to the door leading to the girls' locker room, intent on continuing her investigation. As she changed, she tried her best to banish Monokuma's embarrassing taunt from her mind.

"She was…really gonna put Snake's arm under her clothes…?!" Koto exclaimed.

"Eww, that's so gross!" Kiri wretched.

"…Like she said, there weren't a lot of options for effective transport." Kyoko sighed. "Let's just hope that Monokuma's telling the truth this time…" As sick to my stomach as that makes me feel…

"Anyway…she's narrowed down the real murder scene." Mokubo observed.

"Indeed." Kyoko nodded with a slightly proud smile. "It's all but determined that Snake died in the pool instead of in the tank in the gym."

"Still, there's a lot of questions that have yet to be answered." Makoto mused.

"Yeah, like how'd he get in the pool in the first place?" Koto commented.

"And who carried him all the way into the tank before anyone else got in the gym?" Kiri wondered.

"Those are all good questions." Kyoko replied. "We can't determine the culprit's identity from just what she found in the gym, nor the exact sequence of events that led to Snake's death."

"Well, hopefully her conversation with Lotus will uncover something to help with at least one of those." Maki gestured to the TV, watching as Kiki opened a familiar door. "It looks like she's about to enter the library."

"Hey Lotus." Kiki waved as she saw Lotus sitting at a table, her head buried in a book.

"Hm?" The woman looked up from her book and turned her head to see Kiki approaching. "Ah, Kiki. Good timing. There's something I wanted to show you."

"Okay, what is it?" She asked curiously. "What'd you find."

"Remember when Teruaki said that Snake was wearing his pajamas?" Seeing Kiki nod, Lotus continued "Something started percolating in my brain, a memory that I can't quite draw out yet. As I started to ponder what it was that I was trying to remember, one word suddenly flashed in my mind." Lotus opened the book fully and pointed to a single word at the top of the page. "This one here."

Kiki squinted her eyes as she read, "Pro-so-pag-no-sia?"

Seeing Kiki's befuddled expression, Lotus explained "Well, put simply, it means a condition where the mind can't distinguish between human faces. In other words, my face would look the same as Clover's, or even yours. So they can't remember faces, which is how most people recognize each other. That means that people with prosopagnosia have trouble recognizing even people they're close to."

"But then…" Kiki's brow furrowed as she wondered "How do people with prosopagnosia even tell others apart then?" And how is this relevant to the case?

"Usually, they can make do by associating people with other things – their voices, their clothes, their hair."

Kiki bit her lip as she pondered, "Does that mean other people's faces look…like…blanks…?"

Lotus shook her head. "No…No, I don't think so. You've seen monkeys, like in a zoo, right?"

"Well, I'm having trouble remembering a lot of things, so I can't say if I have or haven't."

Lotus facepalmed and muttered, "Right, I forgot." Shaking her head for a moment, she explained "To you and me, all the monkey faces look the same. Even though they've obviously got faces, it's almost impossible for a human to distinguish between them. The zoo staff that works with them would learn to identify different monkeys eventually, but you or I couldn't, unless one had a scar or something else to set it apart. That's how people would be to someone with prosopagnosia."

"Prosopagnosia, huh…I didn't even know that kinda thing existed…" Kiki mused. "So, how does this relate to the murder again?"

Lotus sighed and shook her head in exasperation. "Well, if we assume that Snake wore clothes that weren't his on the night that he was killed…then it's possible…that Snake wasn't the intended target."

"WHAT?!" Kiki nearly shrieked, her eyes widening in shock. "You think the culprit killed Snake by accident?"

"Well, depending on the time of death, it might have been dark enough that they couldn't make out Snake's face. In that circumstance, that would mean that they were relying on the clothes their target was wearing when they made their attack. So, it's not unreasonable to suggest that Snake was an accidental victim. Of course, this is all just speculation at this point. Whether that was the case or not depends on how the class trial goes…"

*Ding Dong Bing Bong*

A tingle of dread traveled down their spines, Kiki and Lotus barely holding back the urge to shiver. Reluctantly, they turned and looked at the screen. Plastered onto its neon screen was Monokuma, grinning at them as he held a wine goblet in a toast gesture.

"Already tired of investigating? Oh, you've been tired of it for a while now? Well, that's how it goes. Investigations aren't all that fun, you see. But it's a necessary step before we can move on to the main event…Kind alike searching the internet for that perfect porno video! In fact, some people think the search is the best part. Weird, huh? Anyway…the class trial is starting soon! Please gather at the 5th Floor Elevator! Puhuhuhuhu, see you later!"

"Speak of the devil…" Lotus sighed as she shook her head.

"What was that about?" Kiki shivered as she asked aloud, "What did that speech about porn have to do with telling us to go to the class trial?"

"Don't think about it too hard." Lotus advised. "You'll only hurt your head. Anyway, we should get going to the elevator. You coming?"

"Yeah, coming!" Kiki hurriedly jogged after Lotus, feeling her nerves tense up as the two made their way to the 5th Floor.

"Mom, Dad…what's porn…?"

Makoto and Kyoko's faces turned beet red at Koto and Kiri's question. Even Mokubo had turned his head, his brow furrowing in curiosity.

"W-well…you see…" Makoto fumbled.

"Th-that's not really…it's a little too early to…"

Maki sighed, shaking her head. "Shouldn't we be focusing on the impending trial? This is gonna be Kiki's first time leading a trial. You can ask about other stuff when this madness is over."

Makoto and Kyoko sighed in relief as the three children nodded. "So…" Mokubo muttered "The investigation's over…"

"But we don't even know who did it!" Koto complained.

"Yeah, all we know is that Snake drowned in the pool!" Kiri grumbled. "How's Kiki supposed to find out who the culprit is with just the handful of clues she managed to find?"

"…They only had a hodgepodge of clues when they went to Rantaro's trial." Makoto pointed out.

Kyoko nodded. "Indeed. The true test will be if they can piece things together during the trial itself."

"Well, let's see if she can create a miracle." Maki muttered as they watched Kiki and Lotus climb the stairs.

"…Is everyone ready?" Keebo asked grimly as the two women approached the group.

"Not like we have a choice, right?" Gonta gritted his teeth in frustrated anguish.

"So you understand that, at least." Sokyu muttered.

"We got nothin' to worry about. Right?" Clover glanced around nervously at the others. "We'll figure out the culprit, won't we?"

"Of course we don't need to worry."

Lotus smiled warmly at Clover as she wrapped a maternal arm around the girl's shoulder. Despite the warm gesture, Clover merely muttered unintelligibly and fiddled with her fingers, her eyes downcast with grief.

"We'll find the culprit and make them pay for what they did."

"E-easy for you to s-say!" Teruaki stammered, though the others chose to ignore him.

Kiki nodded and smiled at Clover. "Don't worry, Clover. I promise, we'll find out who killed Snake. As long as we work together, we can overcome the culprit!"

"Of course, that'd be easier if we were all together…" Seven lamented as he rubbed the back of his beanie.

"That reminds me…" Ace turned to the young maid. "Kirumi, you left to retrieve Shuichi, didn't you?"

"Oh, did you manage to give him a badge that boosts courage?" Tsumugi asked. "Hopefully he has enough BP to equip it."

The others sweatdropped as Kirumi reluctantly sighed. "Unfortunately, I was not able to succeed in coaxing him out of his room. Although, when I went to retrieve him a second time after the announcement, he did not show any sign of being in his room."

Clover spat. "I bet he ran away, like the coward he is."

"Clover!" Kiki admonished. "He's not a-"

"No, it's okay. I…am a coward…"

"Shuichi?!" Kiki exclaimed as she turned around to see the rookie detective.

His head was slightly bent over, obscuring his eyes underneath his hair and hat as Lotus commented, "Well, look who decided to show up. Honestly, I'm surprised you came at all."

Shuichi shrugged. "I can only hide in my room for so long."

"Still, you didn't answer when I rang your doorbell after the announcement." Kirumi pointed out, a concerned frown on her face. "Where were you, Shuichi?"

"Oh, I…just went to the dining hall. I was hungry, that's all…"

"So, we were off investigating, and you were pigging out?!" Clover nearly screeched, her eyes blazing with fury.

"Cool your jets, kid." Ryoma sighed as Kirumi nodded.

"This matter will be discussed in due time. You should save your arguments until then."

"Yeah, let's put an end to this at the class trial." Seven agreed.

"Yeah…you're right." Kiki nodded before she took a deep breath. "Well, it's now or never."

With hesitant nods, the survivors stepped onto the floor art of Monokuma's face. As soon as they were all within the boundaries, the walls formed around them. As the gears beneath their feet began to turn, the elevator rumbled to life, causing them to gradually sink along with the machine's groans. A dreadful silence pervaded their limited quarters as they waited for their destination. Kiki snuck a glance at Shuichi and frowned. The boy was biting his lip and fiddling with a strand of loose hair beneath his cap.

He seems…conflicted…but why…? He seemed pretty adamant about not helping with the investigation. He didn't even come out of his room. Did he…have a change of heart? Does he want to help, but is too afraid to? Is he fighting with his fears? If he is, I have to try and help if I can. Not just because our lives could hinge on his participation, but also because…he's my friend, and I don't want him to live in anguish! "Ne, Shuichi?"

With a slight gasp, Shuichi turned towards the girl who had called his name. She smiled softly at him, trying to convey an aura of compassion in her voice.

"I know you're scared; we all are. I'm really scared; I felt like I only knew half of what I was doing during this investigation. There are probably a billion people more qualified than me to investigate a murder."

Kiki chuckled and shook her head. Her heterochromatic eyes seemed to glow with warmth as she chose her next words.

"But I still did my best…because I made a promise that I would do my best to help everyone get out of here. And right now, that means finding out who killed Snake. But I can't do it alone. I'm going to need the help of everyone here, especially you, Shuichi."

"Especially…me...?"

Kiki nodded. "Yeah, I'm really gonna need your help with this one, Shuichi. I know you're afraid that your detective talents are just gonna get people hurt, but you have the ability to save everyone with your deductions. You shouldn't discredit yourself just because you made one bad judgment call last time. You should take pride in yourself and show the mystery who's boss."

"Kiki…"

"Just…think about what I said, alright? I think we're almost at the trial room."

Shucihi nodded, averting his eyes as the elevator came to a halt. With a single ding, the walls retracted,

"Welcome!" Monokuma greeted jubilantly from his throne as the survivors approached the podiums. "You've hopelessly arrived once again! Hm? Did you wanna come here again cuz of how wonderful it is? Isn't it wonderful? I put so much effort into building this place, it should be a monument."

"You put a lot of elaborate detail into this courtroom." Ace observed. "Almost like it's for show."

"For show, huh? That's an interesting way to put it." Monokuma mused.

"Is this just for show?" Kirumi asked. "Are you showing this to the people outside and-"

"Puhuhu!" Monokuma giggled. "Forget about the outside world; they're not important right now. Instead, show me just how you intend to bargain for your lives! Ah-hahahahaha!"

With some unintelligible grumblings from an incensed Clover, the thirteen participants made their way to their podiums. Kiki stared across and to her right at Snake's newly erected portrait.

Light Field, AKA Snake…despite the fact that he was blind, he could read any of us. He kept the peace when we got too tense, and he was a dedicated big brother to Clover, no matter how he was feeling.

Kiki turned her gaze to glance at Clover, who was gnashing her teeth in grief and fury. Kiki frowned in sympathy, realizing that she couldn't truly understand the girl's pain.

Someone robbed Clover of her big brother. And the person who killed him…is here right now… Kiki glanced around at her surviving friends, clenching her fists as she narrowed her eyes and gritted her teeth. I want to believe that's a lie. I don't want to believe it at all. But…

Kiki glanced over her shoulder at Shuichi. The cowardly detective seemed to duck under his hat, averting his eyes as though doing so would just make him disappear.

If this is where I find the truth…I won't avert my eyes anymore. She looked over to Kaede's podium, where her portrait now stood. This is…the wish she entrusted to me. Even if Shuichi won't, I will find the truth. To get out of here, with everyone. Alive. I'm going to survive. I can't die here. In order to keep my promise to her…I will fight. I will fight for my life in this trial of truth and lies!

"It's time for her true test." Kyoko muttered as she clasped Makoto's hands.

"You trained her well. I believe she'll be up to the task." Makoto assured her with an optimistic smile.

"Yeah, she can do it!" Koto agreed.

"Even without Shuichi, Kiki's gonna crack the case!" Kiri cheered.

"…I believe in Nee-chan…" Mokubo muttered.

"Well, let's see if she's up to the task." Maki suggested as they turned their attention to the TV.

Good luck, Kiki… They prayed as Monokuma slammed his gavel, starting Kiki's second trial.