This forest is the garden that Marina is most familiar with after seeing a bunch of spider lilies covered in snow, even though there's snow through the trees.

The Garden of Remembrance…

"Still snowing, huh. Looks like mother nature hates summer." Said Ryu.

An engine noise has Serika's ears twitching, leading her to turn towards the sound.

Ryu and Marina are preparing themselves as Ryu holds out his Hero Charger and Marina raises her Hero Brella.

Finally, above the trees, a bike that is covered in a bunch of silhouettes falls through and SPLAT! Crashing down as some octarians and octolings splats out sanitised ink.

Then the bike moves forward after letting an inkling boy off and moves past near Serika as Serika has witnessed the face she's been waiting for.

"You…"

"Heh." The inkling girl with a magenta hippie haircut pulls a smug smile as she steers the bike and fires her Hero Shot 0 at the octarians that are charging.

Both dull lifeless cyan and brown eyes have met once again after a horde of octarians are splatted into nothingness.

"Yo. Seems like we promised each other. But first, did you find your sister?" The survivor of an inkling asked as her smile fades.

"Ya see… We kinda had a problem with the train earlier." Serika hesitantly answered in inkling language.

"You don't have to find her anymore. Mama Hotaru's group has her safe."

"Really? Thank goodness." Serika sighs with relief.

"It's been a while, Rei. You changed after the final Splatfest at Inkopolis Plaza." Ryu called as he smiled a little.

"Ugh… That's the problem. I'm already struggling to choose Callie or Marie. They're my mamas and I love them both." The survivor, Rei, groans.

"A heartwarmin' family bond ya have. Just like Hime and Iida." Serika sighs.

"Eh!? Your mamas are MC.Princess and DJ Hyperfresh!? Pearl and Marina from Off the Hook!?" Rei exclaimed with surprise.

"I'm more surprised you're raised by the Squid Sisters." Said Serika.

"So Houzuki Serika and Atarime Rei. That's one way to note why you and MC.Princess raised the octoling sisters." Ryu chuckles.

"W- Well, they're orphaned and we have to shelter them. It is amusing that senpai is called Papa Hime." Marina giggles.

Rei giggles after hearing what Marina just said as Serika smiles.

"Hm? Marina? Ryu!?" Neku stops as he witnesses Ryu being with the elites.

"Neku-senpai? I thought you're never coming back." Ryu's tone sounded serious after remembering what Neku did earlier.

"So that's Neku? I didn't know he worked there before you." Marina went closer to Ryu as Ryu himself sighs.

"Trust me. All that pressure had him leaving me to be in charge which I'm not a fan of."

"I heard. But hey! At least he's back, but we have to see Mama Hotaru, Mirai and Serika's little sister." Rei points out.

Then Serika points her Octo Charger 0 at Rei's head with a glare.

"Hm!?"

"Before doin' that, I'm not givin' up the promise we had two years ago. 'You' and me, ya killed my father and aunt as I killed your friends. Even if ya lost more than me, we're equal." Serika pierces a glare at Rei.

This had Rei off her bike and park it somewhere safe as she then points her Hero Shot 0 at Serika's head.

"Then we'll see who avenges our loved ones."

"Rei." Neku grunts.

"Neku. Stand aside. It's between me and this octarian." Rei orders in a very serious tone.

"Serika…" Marina whispers out of worry.

"I know. Let them be." Ryu pushes Marina.

As Neku, Ryu and Marina are stepping aside and watching, Rei and Serika are fully prepared for their moments of rivalry and a battle to the death.

This is no turf war nor any battle, but a 1v1 race battle between an inkling and an octoling which mirrors Rei's Cap'n Cuttlefish and Serika's DJ Octavio.

"Iida. Start the countdown." Serika called.

"Okay… 5."

Ryu can see through Serika's eyes as if it reminded him of the very octoling with those eyes since childhood, leading him to get the impression that he remembers Serika from a long time ago.

"4…"

Neku is fidgeting himself as he can tell that Rei is about to be outmatched by a single octoling who is very smart and has more training than her.

"3…"

Serika closes her eyes, only to remember what her fate was. She can see her own childhood with Shiki as Serika herself is trying her best to be a dutiful big sister to her.

"Shiki…" Serika mutters.

"2…"

Rei doesn't want to fight, but she has no other choice as her instincts told her to. But there's a reason why she sends Serika to her, leading her to fade her eyes from dull cyan to bright orange that slits orange line diagonally into the number 0, releasing Zero in her.

Serika did the same as her eyes went from dull brown to bright blue as it twisted into the number 8 while her irises remained circular.

"Eight? You too?" Rei gasped.

"Yeah, but unlike ya, I have to rely on Sin." Serika points out.

That means Rei is orange and Serika is blue, meaning the battle of the Great Turf War is happening again.

"1…"

Both a Hero Shot 0 and an Octo Charger 0 are clicking which means they're ready to go at each other.

"Ya never used Zero during your turf war battles, haven't ya?" Serika asked.

"Well, I only use her during emergencies. So, not really." Rei answered.

"Good. Ya don't wanna overuse her."

"Nah."

Rei can tell that Serika actually cared about her as a way to return her favour for saving Serika and her sister.

Finally, Marina raises her Hero Brella while announcing the battle of a hero and an anti-hero.

"Agent 3 vs. Octoling soldier! Begin!"

BANG!

After firing her brella, SPLAT!

Marina shrieks after witnessing blue and orange ink splashing in front of her while protecting herself.

"What the!? How fast did they!?" Neku exclaimed.

"Looks like Rei's not the only fastest inkling around here." Ryu had a feeling that this'll happen.

"You mean like you?"

"I was called fast, but you're mistaken. There's some who're quicker like Rei, Serika, Hotaru, Pearl, Goggles, Emperor and his team, and as far as I can see Shiver being one of them." Ryu explains the speed of those he knows.

"Now I get it. But what's going to happen to them?"

"Their promise is death. The one who survives wins." Ryu concluded as Neku grunted in shock.

"What!? They promised to kill each other!?"

"Inklings and octolings never get along with each other, even if the law of segregation is bein' lifted. I never knew Serika was on a hunt for Three." Marina holds her chest out of worry, realising that both girls are at each other's throats.

"But we can't stop them. The only thing we do is wait and once one of them is stunned, we take action." Ryu clicks as he's got a plan to stop this violence.

"For eel!?" Neku jumps as Marina does the same, going closer to Ryu.

"Yeah. I'd rather none of them die. We splatted more than enough octolings, so let them rest."

"Okay. Let's follow th- WOAH!"

Neku exclaims as both Ryu and Marina yanks Neku before more ink and snow are spreading which almost had him killed.

"Damn it!" Ryu grunts.

"What the shell!?" Neku crawls backwards along with Marina who was shrieking.

"Are they crazy!? We're near them!" Marina corners herself as snow sprays near her as they look like little explosions.

"They're focusing on each other. They know what they're up against." Said Ryu.

"Then let's follow them!" Neku yells.

"A- Are you sure!?" Marina asks.

"We don't have a choice. It's now or never, DJ Hyperfresh!" Ryu stands up along with Neku as both inkling boys are following the battlefield that left the trio.

"Why… Sepai, please pray for me." Marina hesitantly picks herself up and then follows both inkling boys while heading towards Rei and Serika's battlefield.

Later.

BANG! The real battle begins.

Dashing forward through the forest while being chased by a barrage of orange ink, Serika leaps on a tree and rolls over under a bunch of orange ink and then slides by pointing her charger.

Unfortunately, Rei appears behind in a split second as Serika gasps.

Then she blocks Rei's Hero Shot 0 with her arm and charges her Octo Charger 0, only for Rei to limbo from a loud bang and then kicks Serika's Octo Charger 0 to point her Hero Shot 0 again and quickly pull a trigger as Serika moves her head down leftwards and swings her left fist at Rei's abdomen as hard as she could.

Rei went down on her knees while holding her stomach and placed her head on a snowy ground while grunting and crying in pain, giving Serika the advantage to gun Rei down.

"Rei. I was expectin' someone to also take the hit. I'm actually surprised but underwhelmed that ya cower after bein' hurt. Seems like I overestimated ya." Said Serika while charging her Octo Charger 0. "Goodbye, inkling."

Little did Serika know that Rei pulled a smirk while crouching and then swung her arm by spreading some snow on Serika's eyes, causing Serika to shriek and fire her Octo Charger 0 at a tree near a spider lily.

Then Rei swings a kick on Serika's face and swaps her weapon by firing her Hero Dualies as Serika leaps behind the tree.

To Serika's surprise, the dumbest inkling is actually playing smart without any help.

"Damn it! At this rate, I'll never be able to see Shiki again… Sin… Please help me." Serika is finding a way to counter Rei's attack.

Looking to the side, Serika has an idea as she's staring at her Octo Charger 0.

As for Rei, she marches towards Serika after changing from Hero Dualies to a Hero Blaster as well as carrying a Splat Bomb.

What catches her off guard are Serika doubles that are just blue as if she's naked, leading Rei to swap back to her Hero Dualies until more arrives.

"Huh?"

"Seems like You're not the only one that plays hack. I'm one of those with an inner demon that preys on the weaklings." Serika appears as there's a circle of Serika that is all blue, leading Rei to assume that Serika created an illusion to slow her down and kill her all over.

"Don't be so lucky. I was taught by Mama Aori to notice the difference in these clones. Have you played any video games?" Rei asked with a calm smile.

"Huh? Squid, you're dumb, there's no way you'll be able to find the real me." Serika asked.

"Oh yeah? But I can hear you speak." Rei points her Hero Shot 0 at the one who opens her mouth as one Serika gasped.

Then SPLAT! A clone blocked the real deal that slowly fades back to her original colour and her clothes reappear.

"Found you."

"Why you! Get her!" Serika snaps as her other selves are charging towards Rei.

This has Rei spreading 5 Curling Bombs and then morphs into a squid by dropping tracks of Splat Bombs as other Serika clones gasps until they ended up splatting into orange ink.

Serika then morphs herself into an octopus and super jumps above the trees and lands on a clear area with no ink, but just snow.

"When we first met, you threatened Dai to fix the spawn point which is impossible for him to do." Rei calls as she's on a different tree.

"Yeah. You were stupid and I was a coward back then. Zero is right about me. But recently after my aunt died, I'll never forget that promise we had. Ya saved my sister and I'm grateful for that." Said Serika.

"I don't trust octolings, but I do have a friend and she's actually pretty shy. I was bullied for that and my real mama is mean to her. But it still doesn't stop me from being nice, even if I don't like them." Rei explained.

Serika then stands up on a branch as she and Rei are standing back to back from each other.

"How long has it been since we've known each other, Rei." Serika asks.

"Two years." Rei answers.

"Heh. Still as dumb as ever. I came across a humanoid inkling who was younger than me and I wasn't able to fully control my morphing power until I was nine."

Rei gasps as she recognises the octoling from many years ago, even though she's with an inkling boy and another octoling girl.

"Seika…" Rei whispers.

"Seika. That's the name I never forget a friend called me. It's been a while, Rei." Serika chuckles as she turns towards Rei.

"But… Why?"

"I don't know. At first, you're just another agent that's there to take the Great Zapfish away from us, but now I can see how much you've grown." Serika pulls a smile as Rei lowers her head.

"Seika. You still know your friends?" Rei asks.

"That inkling boy looks familiar. But enough talk. Let us finish this."

"Yeah."

Then both Rei and Serika leap down from the tree as Serika reveals a weapon right in front of Rei.

"That's…"

"Looks like You're not the only one with a Splattershot. Meet Octo Shot S-1. Similar to your Hero Shot 0." Serika chuckles as both Hero Shot 0 and Octo Shot S-1 are pointing at each other.

Then Serika's cloak blows away from Serika as she shows herself in a similar getup as her sister, Shiki's.

Tapping her high heels, Serika is prepared for this moment as the sun goes down with the sky being blue and yellow.

Both Rei and Serika charges towards each other again as both of them fires their Splattershots at each other as Rei and Serika caught each other in a crossfire, leading Serika's hair to get cut open by Rei's ink which makes a X mark to her left which is similar to DJ Octavio's arm, whereas Rei has cuts and burns all over her body, leading her to throw a lot of Splat Bombs and herself with her right arm covered in orange ink.

"Tch!"

SPLASH!

Rei grunts as she misses, causing her to hastily fire her Hero Shot 0 at 2 blue Serika clones.

In a split second, Serika has her face blown by a fist as she crashes onto a tree as she yells.

Before Rei dives onto Serika by super jumping on her, Serika leaps as Rei crashes onto a tree and then gets booted down.

Afterwards, both Rei and Serika are panting with exhaustion as both of them are at a disadvantage against each other.

"Ngh… Not yet." Rei grunts until she coughs out very dark blue ink that is blood.

"Looks like we're at our limit. But I'm not givin' up yet…" Serika pants while pushing herself up.

Now both their clothes are torn apart as Rei lost her cloak and coat as she's revealed to be in her sports bra and shorts, while Serika's became sleeveless and her bag is gone as well as her high heels smashed.

They're freezing, but they won't stop.

Both colours fade as Rei regains her silver hair and dull cyan eyes, whereas Serika has purple hair with a green cross scar on and her eyes become dull brown.

"So that's your true colour. Seems like octolings are different than I thought." Rei giggles.

"Of course we are. This is what Shiki and I have…" Serika lowers her head.

Before Rei raises her Hero Shot 0, the weapon drops to the ground as Rei then collapses on the snow as Serika is the only one standing and then limps towards her.

With Rei lying down out of exhaustion, Serika points her Octo Charger 0 down while glaring at Rei.

"Heh. You won… Splat me." Rei chuckles softly as Serika remembers when she's in the same position as Rei when they were kids.

Serika can see the smile of an innocent girl who lost her innocence for over 2 years, leading her to reconsider.

Finally, Serika drops her Octo Charger 0 and raises her arm.

"Seika?" Rei raises her head in confusion as tears land on the snow. "You're crying…"

"So what if I am… All this Great Turf War nonsense along with Deepsea Metro's insanity is hurting us! It's tearing everybody apart! I hate that… I don't want that!" Serika weeps as Rei picks herself up and pat Serika's head.

"I know. But we learned from their mistakes. The difference is that we're trying our best to win while looking up to our leaders. Just like you, I'm looking for someone."

"Rei…"

Rei then put her hands on Serika's shoulders while smiling towards a rival of hers.

"Dai, Saki, Sayaka and Zero told me to never give up. I never had a goal like you guys, but I want to help everyone. I just want to catch Deep Cut after what they did to our friends." Rei's tone went more serious as she realises that the world is not all sunshine and rainbows as Zero finally had her thinking for herself. "Please. Help me. I need to save Mama Aori from DJ Octavio. I wanted all of us to get out of this mess. I need to destroy the octobosses that are sanitised. I want them all to rest in peace."

Serika halts as Rei is desperate to get all this over and done with after years of trial and error, it's do or die for them.

Even Serika wanted her boss to stop what he's doing to Callie.

Finally, she embraces Rei as it surprises Rei herself.

"Seika?"

"I'll do it all. Let us destroy this cod forsaken hole that is Deepsea Metro. Let us save 'em all. Let's clean up this mess." Serika accepts as her tone is less bitter than before, leading her to accept the reality of not attacking the innocents that she hadn't done for many years.

Finally both Rei and Serika are looking at each other as the sun sets, leading Rei to grin as she giggles and Serika to chuckle while smiling back.

Thud.

"So, you lovely dovies are finally together again, huh." A voice calls.

"Ryu?" Rei turns around out of confusion.

"Looks like we finally meet again at last, Seri." Ryu chuckles.

"Seri? Rii!?" Serika exclaims, remembering that inkling boy in her childhood.

"Come over here, Ryu!" Rei cheers as Ryu walks forward.

Afterwards, Rei, Serika and Ryu became closer as they reunited as childhood friends. The only thing missing is Shiki.

As the trio (mildly) celebrate their reunion together, Marina and Neku are watching a group of childhood friends reuniting together.

"Seems like they grow up fast, huh." Neku sighs while lighting his cigarette and puffs a smoke.

"Yeah. I'm glad it's all resolved in the end." Marina sighs with relief. "Tomorrow will be a chance to visit senpai and other's and that way, we'll save Inkopolis."

"Yeah. That means we finally made it."

"So when's the snow gonna stop?" Marina asked, leading Neku to check his phone.

"August."

"Oh. Thanks." Marina laughs and then remembers that the next Splatfest is August 8th.

In the end, it's all resolved as Rei, Ryu, Neku, Marina and Serika are resting back at the village of shark tamers after a battle earlier.