Disclaimer: I own neither My Hero Academia or the Persona series
Chapter 26
Yusuke Kitagawa wasn't someone Izuku expected to possess a Persona. Yusuke, while somewhat hostile at times, had always been loyal to a fault even in the face of the worst truths about Madarame. He never seemed the rebellious type, nor one who would stand up in the face of his mentor's Shadow. People have their breaking point of course, but normally they would crumble like Madarame's previous victims, especially after hearing the truth from the horse's mouth.
So when Yusuke summoned Goemon, Izuku was genuinely shocked
Speaking of the Persona, Goemon was an entirely different beast itself. His skin was as pale as Carter's and his hair was shaped into a pompadour that jutted from the top of his head. He was dressed in a flowing blue haori emblazoned with dragons, clouds, the number "5" and "Ixicava". The pink, leopard-spotted inner lining stood out against the diamond-patterned shirt underneath. Purple and white braided ropes wrapped around his shoulders while a similar, bell-adorned rope circled his waist. The geta he wore were absurdly tall and a locked choker bound his neck.
In his hands was an absurdly long smoking pipe as long as he was tall, decorated with a golden sakura pattern and a razor-edged axe beneath the bowl.
"Imitations they may be, but together they make a fine spectacle," Yusuke said, his eyes leering across the guards protecting Madarame. "Though the flowers of evil blossom, be it known… abominations are fated to perish!"
With a wave of his hand, a frigid wind burst forth from Yusuke's position, flash freezing and shattering all of the Shadows surrounding him. Madarame held up his arm as he withstood the wave, gritting his teeth before looking around to see that his guards had been destroyed.
"Hmph! Who do you think you are?!" Madarame glared at Yusuke venomously. "The punishment for such insolence is death! Guards! Get back here and finish them off!"
Several black pools formed around Madarame again, sprouting new guards to life.
"The children who adored you as 'father'. The prospect of your pupils. How many did you trample upon?" Yusuke asked as he leveled a heated glare at his former Sensei. "How many dreams did you exchange for riches?! No matter what it takes, I will bring you to justice!"
"And so will we!" Izuku declared, stepping up next to Yusuke with his staff in hand. "We'll back you up, Kitagawa-san!"
Yusuke's gaze trailed to Izuku, watching as Makoto stepped up next to him while Morgana, Ryuji and Ann took up his right side. Yusuke gave a determined grin and nodded, shifting his gaze back forward. "Thank you. Now, let us begin! Bring it on!"
Madarame huffed, taking several steps back as his guards' bodies melted apart, the black ooze quickly forming several familiar Shadows of Toppa Tengu and one unfamiliar and large beast. Its hulking body was covered in striped yellow fur save for its white mane. Its shadowed face was featureless save for two beady red eyes and a fang-filled maw. It marked the floor with large pointed claws, letting out a low growl as it glared down at Yusuke and the Thieves.
"You intruders will pay for insulting Lord Madarame! Get on your knees and beg!" It said, taking a step toward the group with a hiss.
"I learned much from you, Madarame. In order to see authenticity, then one must be dispassionately realistic," said Yusuke, his eyes hovering back to his former master before going back to the Shadow. He put a hand over his face and an arm over his stomach, assuming a more dramatic pose. "With Goemon by my side, I can now ascertain your true self without any reservations!"
"Silence!" The large shadow growled, raising a clawed hand and attempting to slam it down on Yusuke.
The artist quickly dodged to the side, avoiding any damage as he pointed forward. "Strike, Goemon!"
The Persona raised its pipe up and swung it around like a blade, slicing into the Shadow's hide. The large beast groaned and stumbled backward.
"What power! Yusuke's certainly no pushover!" said Morgana. "Well, come on, gang! We can't let him show us up, can we?"
"Heh, you're right about that!" Ryuji grinned, shifting his gaze to Izuku. "What're the orders, leader?"
"Back up Kitagawa-san! That Shadow seems strong, so it'll take all of us to take it down! I'll take out the smaller Shadows so we can focus on that one alone," Izuku ordered, earning nods from the others. He reached up for his mask, preparing to switch to Jack Frost with the knowledge of Koppa Tengu's weakness to ice.
"There is no need. Allow me," Yusuke said, causing the five to look at him in surprise. Narrowing his eyes at the crowd of Shadows now flying at them, Yusuke stomped his foot down.
"Feel the rage that was once frozen within my heart!"
Goemon mimicked his master, stamping the ground with all the theatrics of a kabuki actor. Pillars of ice erupted from its feet, engulfing each of the Koppa Tengu. Izuku and the others gawked in awe, amazed at the natural power that Yusuke and his Persona possessed.
"Don't give them a moment to recover! Let's finish them off!" Makoto said, gripping the knuckle dusters in her palms before rushing forward.
"Right! Everyone, together!" Izuku quickly followed suit with Ann and Ryuji doing the same. Jumping in the air, the Thieves slammed their weapons into the partially frozen Shadows, quickly destroying them before they could recover.
"You brats won't get away with that!" The lone but largest Shadow roared, lunging at the four from behind. Before it could get close, a gust of wind and ice smashed into its side, knocking it off balance though it remained on all fours.
"Nice try! You're not going to be blindsiding us so easily!" Morgana scoffed, pointing his scimitar at the Shadow mockingly.
"I won't allow you to hurt those who have shown me my error in judgement. Come at me!" Yusuke exclaimed, a katana now formed at his side.
"It won't matter either way! You'll all die here for insulting Lord Madarame!" the Shadow hissed, slamming a fist into the ground. Black energy rippled towards them in a wave, tearing up the carpet and shaking the nearby exhibits..
"Watch out, everyone!" Izuku warned, raising his staff and arms up as the wave hit him. A visage of Carter's upper body formed around him, reducing the damage to an insignificant level to Izuku. While the others had blocked in time, the struggle with the damage they took was move apparent.
"Tch. This guy ain't a joke," Ryuji huffed, rubbing his forearms in minor pain.
"With all six of us though, I'm sure we'll take him down quick," Ann said confidently, placing a fist over her chest.
"Don't let your guard down. It's obvious that this opponent's tougher than most," Makoto reminded her, assuming a fighting stance.
"We just need to exploit its weakness and strike once its been knocked down," Izuku suggested, reaching up to his mask. "Anything, Mona?"
"It resisted ice easily enough and the wind only seemed to deal moderate damage," Morgana said as the Thieves cautiously circled their opponent.
"Let's test everything out. Skull, Panther! Your turn!" said Izuku, who rushed at the Shadow with his staff in hand.
"Allow me to assist!" Yusuke quickly rushed to the opposite side of the Shadow. Their enemy whirled around as it struggled to pick a target. With a small grunt, it raised both arms, hoping to slam them down on both thieves at the same time.
"Don't even think about it!"
A bolt of lightning course through the Shadow, briefly stunning it, though it didn't seem to be super effective.
"Lightning's out! Your turn, Panther!" Makoto said, summoning Johanna and revving her up as she prepared to move.
"Got it! Dance, Carmen!" Ann threw off her mask, her red-skinned Persona taking shape and lashing out with several balls of flame. This time, the response was immediate. The Shadow roared in pain, falling on its back as the flames seared its fur.
"Nice, Panther! Now let's do it!" Izuku called out, he and Yusuke jumping up and bringing their weapons down upon their prone foe. To Izuku's surprise, the Shadow didn't disappear. It was weakened, but attempted to bat them away, rolling on its stomach and forcing the two to fall back out of its range.
"You little brats!" It snarled, pushing off the ground and clubbing a fist down at Izuku, who narrowly avoided it and rolled across the ground.
"Darn it! Looks like we need a bit more to finish it off!" Morgana cursed.
"That's not an issue. Let's finish this!" Makoto revved up her Persona again before speeding down the room past Izuku. Johanna's front tire crackled with orange energy as she accelerated toward the shadow
"Now! Vajra Blast!" Makoto exclaimed, lifting the front of her 'bike' up before slamming the tire directly into the Shadow's chest. A burst of power exploded, causing Makoto and her Persona to bounce back in the air while the Shadow was sent tumbling back.
"I'll end it!" Yusuke declared, drawing his mask again and summoning his Persona. "Rend him, Goemon!"
His Persona flew forward, rearing its pipe back again and this time slicing right through the Shadow. The monster roared one last time, thrashing about as it melted into black ooze and evaporated into nothingness.
Goemon faded away as the mask rematerialized across Yusuke's face. With the Shadows gone, Madarame was the only one left. HYusuke took several steps toward his former master, Madarame's Shadow recoiling at the murderous expression in his pupil's eyes. But that fear vanished as Yusuke's knee gave out beneath him.
The Palace ruler rediscovered his courage at the sight, glaring down at Yusuke heatedly. "Yusuke, you've just thrown your bright future down the drain. I'll destroy any chance you had of becoming an artist!"
"Madarame!" Yusuke growled, stumbling another step forward.
"You'll forever rue the day you dared to defy me!" Madarame huffed, putting his hands inside of his kimono's sleeves and turning away from the group.
"W-Wait! Get back here!" Yusuke growled, attempting to move forward again but all of his muscles locked up at once. "D-Damn it, my body won't move…"
"Be careful, Kitagawa-kun! You're way too drained after all that fighting and summoning your Persona," Ann said, putting a hand on his shoulder as she knelt next to him.
"Following him won't fix anything either," Izuku said, kneeling at his other side and offering a shoulder. "Come on, Kitagawa-san. We'll get you out of here."
Yusuke looked between the others, biting his bottom lip as his eyes trailed to the ground. "What a disgrace I am."
"C'mon, man. They're right. Let's get outta here," said Ryuji. Yusuke was silent for a moment before nodding, accepting Izuku's help to move around. They took him to the front lobby, seating him on one of the lounging couches to give him a moment to rest.
"Keep a lookout, guys. We'll rest for a bit, but we're still not safe here," Morgana said, his eyes darting around cautiously.
"I just… need a moment, and I'll be ready to move," Yusuke sighed, his eyes staring down at his hands.
"You've… known the whole time, haven't you?" Ann asked, sharing the thought on everyone's mind.
"I'm no fool… strange people have been coming by the house for years. And the plagiarism is a daily occurance," Yusuke admitted, his head dipping further with his words. "But… who would want to admit that the person they owed their life to was doing such terrible things?"
"Why didn't you leave, Kitagawa-kun?" Ann asked in minor confusion.
"Well… he was the one who created Sayuri. On top of that, I still owed him a great debt," Yusuke explained. "I never knew my father… and my mother passed away in an accident when I was three. That's when Sensei took me in. Apparently, he helped my mother while she was still alive. At least, that's what I heard."
"Heard?" Ann asked, sounding doubtful.
"To be honest, I don't know much about my mother either. I have very little memory of her. Madarame was like a father to me, but… he changed." Yusuke's face contorted in disgust. "To think he would treat the Sayuri, the very foundation of his art, like that…"
"You've been through a lot, huh?" Ryuji said with some sympathy.
"I thought things might have been difficult for you, but I hadn't realized how deep it ran…" Makoto admitted, looking at Yusuke with a small frown.
"When you had mentioned the plagiarism… deep down, I knew you were right. That's why I so vehemently denied you… for that, I'm sorry. I was simply running from the truth." Yusuke's eyes trailed up to Izuku. Izuku gave a sad smile but nodded.
"It's okay. I can't imagine how tough it must have been for you." He walked in front of Yusuke, getting on one knee in front of him so that they were eye level. "We're going to change his heart and make him confess to his crimes so he never hurts anyone else again. And I think… we could use you as a member of this team."
"Huh?!" The others blurted, looking at Izuku in shock. Even Yusuke's eyes lit up in confusion, but Izuku remained firm. Before more could be said though, batches of black ooze sprouted from the ground behind the couch, several guards materializing in front of them.
"Crap! We gotta go!" Ryuji said as he and the others stood up in alert.
"Hm? When did my clothes change?" Yusuke distractedly remarked, feeling the mask on his face.
"N-Now's not the time for that! Come on, Kitagawa-san!" Izuku said, grabbing his arm as he and the others bolted for the exit.
"I see… so it's because of that your P.E. teacher had a change of heart. I heard the rumors about the Phantom Thieves who steal hearts, but I imagined it was just a vengeful student with a powerful Quirk." Yusuke said. After escaping Madarame's Palace and putting distance between them and the shack, the Thieves were resting at the diner Ann and Ryuji visited the other day in Shibuya.
"Yeah... strangely enough, it's a lot more complicated than one person with a Quirk," Izuku admitted with a shy laugh.
"I'm sure it seems hard to believe, but it's all true. The Palace, its ruler and the relation it has to Madarame," Makoto said.
"Yes, I see very little room for doubt, honestly. After everything I've seen, it would be foolish to let common sense convince me otherwise." Yusuke leaned on his elbows. "So, your plan with Madarame-sensei-I mean, Madarame, is to make him go through a change of heart, correct?"
"That's right. We're planning to go back into the Palace the next chance we get," said Izuku. "This might seem sudden but after seeing you summon a Persona, I thought it would only be fair to give you the chance to join us in putting a stop to Madarame."
"You took us totally off guard when you asked him that," Ryuji said, raising a brow at Yusuke. "But I'm fine with it if you guys are. We're gonna take him down either way."
"Yeah… I can't imagine taking that from you would be fair. I'm okay with it," Ann nodded.
"Are you sure you're up for that, though? It's going to be dangerous," Makoto asked thoughtfully.
"Yes. If you'll have me, I would like to join you in the fight as a Phantom Thief as well," Yusuke answered without hesitation. "Had I faced reality sooner, this could have been avoided. I must put a stop to this for the sakes of the artists whose future were ruined by him. That… is the most civil thing I can do for the man who, in some manner, was my father."
"Civil, huh?" Ann muttered, understanding his intent.
"Just know that there's still a huge risk of causing a mental shutdown if we screw up," Morgana said, popping his head out of Izuku's bag. "We have ways to prevent that, but it isn't foolproof. Are you okay with that?"
"Madarame is a man who has the art world under his thumb. He has connections to many organizations. If someone like me raises my voice, it will only be snuffed out… And… I doubt that this is a case that Heroes can do anything within their power to put a stop to either. We have no other option." Yusuke rationalized.
"Kitagawa-kun…" Ann began, sparing a look at the others. With a quick nod in agreement from the others, Morgana spoke up first.
"It's a deal, then. Welcome to the team."
"Looks like we've got a new member of the Phantom Thieves!" Ann smiled. "I hope we get along! First Makoto, and now Kitagawa-kun. Who knew we'd get two more members so quickly?"
"Yes, this turn of events has been strangely fortunate," said Makoto, offering Yusuke a smile. "I only gained my Persona yesterday as well, to be honest. I suppose we'll be the rookies in this situation."
"Just try not to slow us down, kay new guy?" Ryuji chuckled as he gave a thumbs up.
"I'll do my utmost to keep up," Yusuke replied.
"I look forward to working with you, Kitagawa-san!" Izuku said kindly until another thought sprang up in his mind. He nervously ran a hand through his hair. "O-Oh, and… sorry about tricking you. That was the only way to get where we needed…"
"I understand. Though for Takamaki-san to go so far as posing nude…" Yusuke's eyes trailed over to Ann. "I must say, I'm impressed by your commitment… how daring."
"H-Hey, don't look at me like that! It wasn't my idea! It was theirs." Ann bore into Ryuji from across the table.
Ryuji raised his hands defensively."That's not my fault! He was the one goin' on and on about paintin' you nude!"
"W-Well, regardless of what happened, we're past all that now, right?" Makoto suggested with an awkward chuckle, looking at Yusuke. "You're not planning to keep that up?"
"Oh, no. I still haven't given up on that," Yusuke casually replied.
"Give it up!" Ann snapped when she saw the smug grin on his face. "Oh, but that reminds me. I wonder what's going on with the real Madarame right now. Especially after we left like that."
"Actually, I contacted him before coming here. He believes I'm still pursuing Takamaki-san and Niijima-san. And as you all said, he knows nothing about his Shadow," Yusuke explained for them.
"What did he say?" asked Ann.
"He was complaining how his security company couldn't even catch two girls. However, he's still furious about what happened. He said he would take legal action against everyone."
The Thieves all winced at the implications.
"Th-That's not good…" Izuku muttered.
Ryuji sighed. "Talk about completely on guard."
Makoto chewed on the skin of her thumb. "I'm guessing he would try and charge us with unlawful entry and defamation of character…".
"Still, this seems like a really desperate move! Do you think he's hiding anything else?" Ann asked.
"I'm not sure. But what I do know is that any action he might take won't be until after the exhibit is over. He can't afford to have a scandal like this coming to light right now," Yusuke suggested.
"Right when I think the talk about being a nude model is over, this happens?!" Ann groans, dipping her head down in exasperation.
"We'll just have to force the change of heart before the exhibit ends to avoid this 'legal action' thing." said Morgana. "Now we know our time limit, at least. Let's make sure not to waste our chance!"
Yusuke turned his attention to Morgana, tilting his head. "I've been meaning to ask, but… what exactly is this?"
"Morgana? He's a cat," Ryuji said, raising a brow at the obvious question.
"But it can talk," Yusuke pointed out.
"You have a problem with that?!" Morgana asked.
"No, not really." Yusuke dismissed rather easily, prompting wide-eyed looks from the others.
"Why not?!" Ryuji blurted in surprise.
Ann laughed sheepishly. "He's just on a different wavelength than everyone else."
"Were you thinking of drawing me? If so, you better bring out my best side!" Morgana said with a feline smirk on his face.
"Hm…" Yusuke suddenly pushed off the table and leaned toward Morgana with his hand outstretched...
"Hey, don't touch me like-"
Before pressing the server buzzer and sitting back down.
"I was thinking of ordering some black bean jelly," Yusuke said randomly.
"He probably got that thought from the black cat," Ryuji deadpanned.
"Wait…" Yusuke gasped, looking around at the others. "I didn't bring any money…"
"Nevermind, he's just weird," Ann blanched, earning nods from the rest of the team.
"We certainly seem to have quite the character in our newest member," Makoto said with a awkward smile.
"Ah, you're back. Pretty late, too," Sojiro greeted with a small smirk, cleaning the counter with a rag. "Walk another lady friend home?"
"N-No, Sakura-san. I-I told you it's not like that," Izuku said, a blush dusted his cheeks.
"You know, it looks more suspicious when you react like that." Sojiro chuckled when he saw Izuku flinch. "Maybe that nice guy act is paying off. You're smoother than I thought."
"I seriously doubt it…" Izuku mumbled, eyes trailing to the side. His attention was roused when he heard his phone ring in his pocket, pulling it out to open the group chat.
Ryuji: Legal action… that ain't good.
Izuku: I know. That could mean a lot of trouble for everyone involved. If that happens, I'd get sent to juvenile hall even in the best case scenario.
Despite his honest reply, Izuku wasn't afraid. There was a bit of concern for whether or not he might press charges earlier than expected, but that was had full confidence in the team stopping him long before the end of the exhibit.
Ann: Forget being expelled. We'd all end up arrested.
Koto-san: We won't let that happen. We have plenty of time until the exhibit ends. We'll finish this long before then. I have full confidence in all of us.
Izuku: Koto-san is right. Let's keep our heads up and focus on the mission. Madarame won't press any charges after we've changed his heart.
Ryuji: Yeah, you guys are right. Thanks, I needed to hear that. I ain't gonna worry with you guys havin' my back!
Ann: Same here! And with Kitagawa-kun joining us, there's no way we can fail!
"Heh. Nice to see you wielding the title of leader so well," Morgana smirked. "But even with our increased number, let's not get careless. We still have quite a bit left in the Palace to go before we reach the Treasure, I think."
"Don't worry, I won't drop my guard. I want to make this go as well as possible. We won't let Madarame suffer a mental breakdown, either," Izuku nodded with confidence, heading for the stairs and going straight to bed.
They had a long day ahead of them.
"Oh, yeah. We haven't decided on the new recruit's code name yet," said Morgana. The group didn't waste a moment after school was over, immediately convening at the train station before heading into the Palace.
"It has to be 'Kitsune'! You know, with the kitsune mask and everything?" Ann immediately suggested.
Ryuji grinned. "Hell yeah, that really leaves an impression!"
"Seems fitting to me," Makoto nodded, tilting her head to the side as she held her chin in thought.
"Are you referring to me?" Yusuke asked, turning around to look at the others.
"Yeah. When we're infiltrating Palaces, we go by code names so that we don't affect the cognition in some way by constantly saying our names," Izuku explained. "Do you have any ideas for a code name?"
Yusuke hummed in thought, eyes closing as he held his jaw in hand. "If I were to pick… I'd like to be called 'Da Vinci'."
"Nope," Ryuji immediately dismissed. Yusuke winced at how quickly he was shut down. "Well, you got the mask like Ann said… not to mention the tail… Okay, I got it! From now on, you'll be called Abura-age!"
"Not happening," Makoto and Ann muttered, lame smiles on their lips as they let out small chuckles.
"Yeah, what was that about?" Morgana laughed, shaking his head.
"Well, if you don't mind my input, how about Fox?" Izuku suggested.
"Not bad," Ryuji nodded.
"What do you say, Fox?" Morgana asked.
"It's acceptable," Yusuke agreed easily enough.
"Great, let's go then! We got some ground to cover!" Ryuji said, earning nods from the rest.
"Thankfully not too much," Izuku said, pulling out his phone. "Okay, I'm going to take us to the safe room by the door. Is everyone ready?"
"Safe room?" Yusuke tilted his head in question.
"You'll see in a moment. Go ahead and take us in, Hero," Makoto said. Izuku nodded, tapping the marked locations on his phone's map.
"Beginning navigation."
The world around them began to warp again similar to their arrival, their surroundings closing in and taking the shape of a more confined room. Yusuke looked around in awe, stroking his chin curiously.
"Fascinating… so you're able to travel through the Palace at will?"
"Not just anywhere, though. It usually only works with safe rooms and the front entrance, and we have to be in one of those locations to use it," Izuku explained, stuffing his phone away. "Okay, let's go. We've still got a lot of ground to cover."
The Thieves moved out, running through the golden hall again and heading for the door they had previously opened.
"Hell yeah, looks like it's still open!" Ryuji said, looking at Ann and Makoto. "See? It was all worth it in the end, right?"
"Yeah, I guess... " Ann mumbled somewhat bitterly.
"It's good to know that we won't have to worry about it closing again," Makoto said.
"What are you all talking about?" Yusuke asked in wonder.
"N-Nothing to worry about. We can tell you later. Come on, let's go!" Izuku led the way again, getting ahead of the others. As they entered the next hall, Izuku soon spotted another Shadow guarding the entrance. Instead of hide and wait, Izuku picked up his pace the moment its back was facing them, giving it little time to react as he closed in. Leaping on its back, Izuku ripped its mask away, causing a black puddle to form and sprout two of the same Shadow, Koropokguru.
"Panther, hit them with fire!" Izuku ordered.
"On it! Dance, Carmen!" Ann drew her mask away, her busty Persona taking shape above her and unleashing a blaze that hit both Shadows, causing both to writhe in pain.
"Alright, finish them off! We'll save hold ups for when we're in new areas!" Izuku said, earning nods of agreement from his team.
"We'll end it!" Makoto and Yusuke were the first to leap forward, Makoto's arm hardening into metal as she reared her arm back. With single, swift strikes, the Shadows were disposed of, black ooze draining into the ground.
"Man. Even though the big Shadows get tough, the small ones get easier and easier to deal with," Ryuji said, rolling his arm as he was able to relax in that fight.
"Don't drop your guard. Even the smaller ones can still deal bad damage if they hit you with the element your Persona can't handle," Morgana warned. Makoto and Yusuke straightened out, putting their weapons away and looking to one another in thanks.
"I must say, your Quirk does draw my interest. Are you able to shift your body into another form?" Yusuke asked
"In a way, yeah. Though my primary power is to absorb matter and energy and use it at will," Makoto explained, holding up her right arm to demonstrate her point.
"Fascinating. It seems that your Quirk is quite useful for combat. Sadly, mine isn't something so capable for battle," Yusuke said, crossing his arms in thought.
"What's your Quirk, Fox?" Izuku asked, turning his head back to him in interest as they started to walk forward, though remaining cautious.
"I can produce ink from the pores in my hand. Namely my finger tips," Yusuke explained, pulling off his glove and demonstrating by letting ink slowly drip down from his fingers.
"Oh, wow. I suppose that's the perfect Quirk for an aspiring artist, huh?" Morgana chuckled.
Yusuke frowned as he put his glove back on."I suppose, but… Madarame forbade me from using it when painting."
"Huh? Why would he go and do somethin' like that?" Ryuji asked.
"He said that it was to 'keep me from feeling entitled as an artist and to remain at level with others'. But after all this… it makes me question the true intent behind it," Yusuke sighed. The others remained silent, sharing looks at one another as they couldn't help but agree.
Why would Madarame go and do something like that? Izuku wondered, his eyes drifting around as they entered the next hall. His eyes landed on a pamphlet station against the wall, coming to a stop before walking up to it. "Hey, look! I think we can get a map from this!"
"Ah, good eye. Let's take a look at what we're working with," Morgana said, he and the others huddling up behind Izuku as he opened a pamphlet up for all of them to see.
"Looks like we've still got some ways to go," Makoto tilted her head, looking over the layout closely.
"At least we can pinpoint where the Treasure is being kept!" Ann said positively.
"Quite right. And considering it would likely be in the innermost depths of the Palace…" Morgana scanned through the map before touching his paw in a secluded area on it. "This place looks suspicious. Definitely like something that's been cut off from the rest for a purpose."
"To get there, we'll have to go through the lounge and the gallery," Yusuke pointed out the paths linked to it.
"Just remember, rookies. The deeper in we go, the tighter security will be. That means more guards and stronger ones," Morgana reminded them.
"Alright, everyone. Stay close and approach enemies with caution. We're going to set up our infiltration route today!" Izuku declared with a tightened fist in front of his chest.
"Right!" The others agreed, falling in line next to him as he started to jog forward.
As they reached the next room, they found the gallery to be blocked off by a security gate. Izuku quickly took a detour, going down the right hall to take the long way in. Passing into another room, Izuku saw two paths before them, but quickly picked up on one being blocked off by lasers on his right. Going left, Izuku slowed the group down as he saw another Shadow patrolling the next room. Though Izuku noted the fact that it was in the shape of a female secretary rather than a guard.
"On my go," Izuku whispered back, putting up three fingers and counting down. The moment he finished, he rushed forward, jumping at the Shadow from behind and ripping off its mask. Izuku watched two pairs of the Water Nymph and Hua Po rise from the ooze.
"Skull!" Izuku called out, reaching for his mask and summoning Jack Frost.
"Already on it!" Ryuji answered, whipping his mask aside as Captain Kidd formed above him. "Get wrecked!" Ice and lightning shot out around Izuku and Ryuji, blasting the Hua Po and Water Nymphs respectively. Each Shadow was knocked on its ass with its weakness exploited.
"Alright, we got 'em down! Take 'em out, Hero?" Ryuji asked as he and the others quickly surrounded their targets with their guns raised. Makoto and Yusuke's own firearms had taken the shape of a single-action revolver and an assault rifle respectively.
"Wait. Let me try negotiating this time," Izuku said, walking up to the Water Nymph. He lowered his gun and stared it directly in the eyes. "If you become my mask, we'll spare you."
"Okay, done!" Water Nymph immediately agreed. "What? I know when I'm beat. Better to work with someone strong like you guys than get destroyed here, right?"
"O-Oh, okay then. Welcome to the team," Izuku nodded, watching as the Shadow rose up.
"I am Asparas. I look forward to being by your side!" The Shadow declared, its body turning into a mask before being absorbed into the one on Izuku's face. With that, the other Shadows disappeared, escaping with their 'lives'.
"Well, that was easy," Ryuji said with a chuckle as he and the others moved to join Izuku again.
"It seems I still have a great deal to learn," Yusuke said with interest, tilting his head to the side. "Can we all possess multiple Personas?"
"Nope, that's just our leader. But let's not dwell on that, we should keep moving," Morgana suggested, causing the others to silently agree and move forward. Entering the next room and avoiding another Shadow, the group finally entered the main gallery. Shadows patrolled deeper in the gallery, but Izuku could see ways around them. But he could also see several standing laser alarms scattered through the hall as well.
"There are so many… I'm kinda afraid of bumping into one just by accident," Ann admitted, eyes scanning the hall nervously.
"It's okay. Stick close behind me and I'll make sure to guide us past the lasers," Izuku said, activating his Third Eye to take a look at the active lasers. He could understand Ann's concern, seeing so many covering the hall. As he looked around, he made a mental note of the the giant pictures adorning the far wall lit up.
We'll have to check those out if we come back around.
"We'll leave it up to you, Hero," Morgana encouraged.
"Don't rush. We don't want to make any dumb mistakes," Makoto said to everyone.
"Okay, let's go," Izuku started to move, pointing out which lasers had gaps they could slip through. As they continued, they were forced into battle with more Shadows. They were mostly painless and allowed Izuku to claim two more Personas in the form of Makami and Inugami. He was just about out of room to claim any more.
Once they reached the other side of the gallery, Izuku sighed when he found the exit blocked off there as well. "Looks like we need to find another way around here, too,"
"How inconvenient. There's even a security room on the other side as well," Yusuke pointed out for the others.
"I'm sure that if we can reach it, we'll be able to shut off the security in here like before," Morgana said.
"Yeah, but gettin' there's gonna be a pain by itself," Ryuji sighed, tapping his foot impatiently.
"Hm… well, let's go back around this way. There's something I wanted to check out," Izuku told them, rousing their interest. Izuku led them to the gallery's main wall, standing in front of the giant paintings to observe them again.
"They're so huge…" Ann mumbled in awe.
"Indeed. It bears such a bizarre texture, as well. It's almost like I could just slip inside…" Yusuke began as he reached out to touch it. He jumped when he felt his hand pass through the canvas with little resistance. "Wh-What?!"
"Are you alright?!" Makoto asked, looking between him and the painting.
"Y-Yes, I'm fine, it's just… I actually passed through the painting…" Yusuke explained, staring up at it in shock.
"I thought these paintings were strange… let's go inside. Maybe we can use this to our advantage," Izuku suggested to the others.
"It does seem like our only option at the moment. Lead the way!" Morgana agreed. Izuku entered the painting first, finding that they were able to walk among the details of the painting.
"How dare you trample upon my bamboo garden with those grimy feet?! You won't leave here alive!"
The group jumped when they heard Madarame's voice, eyes darting around as they expected to be attacked at a moment's notice.
"Wh-Where's that comin' from?!" Ryuji asked in panic, looking around.
"Calm down. I think it's just Madarame's thoughts. It's probably just a subconscious reaction to us entering here," said Morgana suggested, allowing the others to relax somewhat. Yusuke could only lower his head in disappointment.
"Hey, look… the painting goes past the edge of the frame," Izuku pointed out, beginning to walk toward the opposite end they entered. As he and the others walked through it, they soon found themselves within another frame, welcomed by a different scenery.
"Oh, we're in the picture that was above it," Ann pointed out, looking outside of the picture over the gallery.
"Hm, so this space is not only one, but multiple paintings," Yusuke guessed with interest.
"You're tellin' me they're all connected? But which one goes where?" Ryuji asked, scratching his head.
"I'll see if I can pinpoint where we can connect with other paintings if we need to. Come on," Izuku said, leading them toward the edge of the painting. He hopped out, landing safely on the edge of the wall that stuck out with the others following close behind.
"The nerve of that man to become angry because he thinks we are the ones dirtying his heart! The one who has sullied the very nature of art itself has no right to say such things!" Yusuke finally vented the moment he was out of the picture, earning concerned looks from the rest of the team as he trembled with anger.
"Save the emotions for later. We have to keep moving," Morgana advised, not wanting Yusuke to dwell too much on what happened. Yusuke took a deep breath and slowly nodded, silently falling in with the others as they started to move.
"There's a vent here!" Izuku announced, getting down to his knees and crawling inside with the others close behind. Morgana quickly hopped in after him.
"Hey, don't go starin' at my butt," Ryuji said, sparing a look back at Yusuke directly as before beginning to crawl.
"What are you talking about?" Yusuke raised a brow in question, soon following in behind him.
"At least I don't have to worry about getting stared at with them ahead of us," Ann sighed, leaning down to go in.
"I can see how that might worry you in that outfit. Though I have found myself to be a bit self-conscious in my own considering how… tight it is," Makoto coughed into her hand before she followed Ann in.
Izuku crawled out the other side, stepping to the edge of the balcony so the others had room to come out. His eyes scanned across the room, noting a Treasure chest at one end and a large Shadow at the other, standing guard in front of the security office they needed to get in to.
"Oh, a Treasure che-" Izuku clamped a hand overMorgana's mouth, placing a finger to his lips and and motioning to the guard. "O-Oh, sorry…" Morgana mumbled in embarrassment.
"Looks like we gotta go through that guy to get to the office, huh?" Ryuji asked, crouching next to Izuku on the platform. "He looks really tough, though…"
"We should be fine. We've dealt with guards like that before," Makoto suggested, gripping her knuckle dusters tightly. "We can't fight recklessly."
"Yeah… we can still catch him by surprise, too. I have an idea," Izuku said, smiling at the others.
The stationary Shadow stood vigilant in place. It wouldn't leave its post for anything so long as the intruders were inside the museum. It would stop at nothing until they were-
"U-Um! Excuse me!" The Shadow's head swiveled forward as he spotted a head of green poke its head out from inside the lounge room. "D-Do you think you could h-help me find the security office?"
"One of the intruders! Get over here!" The Shadow demanded, stomping forward. Izuku answered that with a small yelp before ducking back behind the wall. "Get back here!"
The Shadow finally left its station in pursuit of Izuku, stomping into lounge area and pointing its baton at Izuku. "Surrender yourself, intruder! You're not making it any farther than here!"
"You'll have to make me!" Izuku declared, reaching a hand up to his mask.
"With pleasure!" The guard's body fell into black ooze, immediately reforming as the same Shadow that had taken Makoto hostage and had tried to stop him and Ryuji at the door a few days ago. "Lord Madarame will have your head!"
"Now!" Izuku called out, causing the Shadow to hesitate. It looked up to see the rest of the Phantom Thieves descending upon it from the terrace.
"You're done now!" Makoto roared, summoning Johanna and searing its face with nuclear energy. The Shadow ate the attack before it could stop her, flying back into the wall and falling to its knees.
"Alright, everyone! Let's do it!" Izuku called out, pulling his mask off and summoning Succubus. "Marin Karin!" Rather than attempting to inflict damage, Succubus blew a kiss at the Shadow, a small wave blasting forth and washing over it.
"Wh-What-What is-where am-" The Shadow stumbled, its mind thrown into chaos from the brainwashing.
"Nice job, Hero! Our turn!" Morgana said, he and the others quickly summoning their Personas all at once and dishing out their respective elemental attacks. The Shadow didn't stand a chance, immediately being overwhelmed by the wave of elements that crashed into it. Its body blew up into a brilliant ball of energy, evaporating into thin air before their eyes.
As the dust cleared and the Shadow faded away, a moment passed before the Thieves relaxed, each one smiling at each other in accomplishment.
"Good job, everyone! That went really well," Izuku said as he moved to join the others.
"I must say, that was quite an effective plan. Simple, but effective," Yusuke praised.
"Man, we are just plowin' through these guys now!" Ryuji grinned ear to ear.
"Even I have to admit, it really does feel like we're unstoppable right now," Makoto said with a small smirk.
"I would say don't get cocky, but I'd say we're in a really good place right now when it comes to dealing with threats," Morgana said with a nod. "You've all learned well. It's good to see that our newest members are able to keep up with us, too."
"Yeah! We rock!" Ann cheered, pointing a finger at the security office. "Come on, let's not stop here! Let's blow through this Palace! Nothing can stop us now!"
"Sonuva-I'm gettin' sick of seein' this DAMN camel over and over again!" Ryuji fumed with irritation.
Having pushed deeper into the Palace and getting past both Shadow and blockades, the Thieves soon found themselves at a small roadblock. One in the shape of multiple gigantic paintings and a strange cycle of paths that kept taking them back to the start of the whole thing.
"Oh, shut up. Complaining about it's not going to make it go faster," Ann groaned, no less annoyed than her teammate at being put back at the start for the fourth time. Listening to Madarame's constant excuses from each painting didn't do anything but piss the majority of the team off.
"Alright, everyone relax. After this, we should be done with the last of it… hopefully." Makoto tried to reason, earning small grumbles from both blondes.
"I suppose dealing with Shadows is not the only obstacle that we must face as Phantom Thieves. The Palace itself serves as an adversary," Yusuke said with an impressed tone as he held his chin in thought.
"You have no idea how true that can be sometimes," Morgana groaned.
"C-Come on, guys. Almost done. Once we get through here, we won't be too far from the Treasure, okay?" Izuku encouraged, trying to remain positive for the others. As he hopped from painting to painting, having noted each path and where they led, Izuku passed through each scenery and avoided each wrong path. He made it to the greenery of the third frame, climbing up the short, rocky background and went through the final passage at the top. With a shared breath of relief, the group welcomed the sight of the final portrait.
"Beauty is nothing but a mirage…"
"Here we go again…" Ryuji grumbled, he and the others waiting for him to finish speaking one last time.
"Transforming that into money is true happiness. My mansion, my lavish lifestyle… my place among the chosen 'few'. Those things are the true 'art'!"
"So running your atelier out of a rundown shack was simply an act afterall…" Yusuke said in a weak voice. "How foolish I was to be fooled for so long…"
"Fox…" Ann muttered, unsure what to say.
"This world has deemed Quirks and Heroes to be the greatest 'beauty' of this world…"
The Thieves blinked, raising their heads when they realized that Madarame's voice wasn't done.
"But what 'Heroes' can claim to be my equal in notoriety?! I, who was cursed with a worthless Quirk, have risen above all of them! Quirk cannot bring the happiness I have attained! Damn them all!"
Madarame's voice finally died out, the Thieves now looking at each other in surprise.
"Damn… wasn't expectin' that. So now he's got a gripe against Quirks, too?" Ryuji tapped his foot in thought.
"This is sort of like Kamoshida was, remember? Except I guess Kamoshida's hate was directed more at U.A. rather than Quirks and Heroes in general," Ann pointed out.
"It's no surprise that people like Kamoshida or Madarame would hold grudges like that with the way the world treats Quirks and Heroes, I suppose," Makoto reasoned, holding her chin in thought. "Not that it's any sort of excuse for what they've done."
"Yeah. They would rather climb over others just to get their way. All because they felt… cursed with what they got," Izuku huffed, the idea disgusting him more and more.
"So that's why he forbid me from using my Quirk… out of his own jealousy?!" Yusuke snapped furiously, hands gripping the material of his pants. "All of his works, simply created for fortune and spite! Not once did he even mention his supposed love of art! These… these are no paintings! They're just meaningless self-assertions placed into picture frames!"
"What… is Madarame's Quirk?" Izuku asked shyly, unsure if this was the appropriate time to ask, though.
"It's… something rather unbecoming. He can sprout eyes on other parts of his body, though it makes him unable to see through his main eyes when doing so," Yusuke huffed, rubbing a hand against his face.
"Ew," Ann wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"Yeah, I can see how that's kinda useless…" Ryuji mumbled in understanding.
"Well… in certain cases, I'm sure a Quirk like that could be used for espionage… The ability to have different fields of vision might help when you're worried about getting side-blinded…" Izuku couldn't stop himself from thinking up its possibilities.
"Even so, not many would see it as useful," said Makoto.
"Still. I'm definitely interested in seeing how the change of heart will alter his personality," Morgana commented, though silence was his only answer to the thought.
The group proceeded to the next hall, another small gallery mirroring one of the earlier areas of the exhibit. After quickly dealing with several more Shadows and cracking open several awkwardly placed chests (Ann and Makoto were somewhat annoyed to let the boys enter the ladies room and nervous to enter the guys room), Izuku led them into the next big area on the map. Though as they entered a new, dazzling gold path, the team couldn't help but gawk as they took in their surroundings.
"Wh-What the shit?! What the hell is up with this place?!" Ryuji blurted out. Setting aside the blinding amount of gold, the landscape around them had completely opened up into a mess of inverted and winding staircases, similar in appearance to the lithograph print Relativity by M.C. Escher.
"There's… so much gold that it's hurting my eyes…" Ann's eyes squinted, trying to adjust to the gaudy room's flair.
"The distortion is really bad here. It doesn't even match up with what's on our map," Morgana said, looking around in concern. "This place is barely holding up."
"So we must ascertain the truth with our eyes alone," Yusuke said, scanning around the staircases curiously.
"There must be a trick to how this place works. Let's take a closer look around," Makoto said, earning nods from the others before they moved forward. They descended the distorted paths and were forced to jump down from one staircase to the next. They followed the stairs as far as they could go before having to jump over a ledge to the next path. A Shadow was patrolling, but it was quickly dealt with.
As they continued on, they found a large blue door at the end of the staircase. Quickly going inside, the group ground to a halt as they found that they were in a completely different part of the room.
"Holy crap! Did we just warp or somethin'?!" Ryuji asked, looking around in panic.
"It would seem that the paths beyond these apertures are distorted in the same way as the rest of the room," said Yusuke.
"And here I thought we were done going through weird room puzzles after the paintings…" Ann sighed tiredly, feeling a migraine coming on.
Despite the minor complaints, the group pushed forward, going through another blue passageway that warped them to another part of the room as well. As they continued onto a fork at the center of the room, they came to a stop when they spotted two paintings of the Sayuri sitting at there.
"Huh? What are these doing here?" Ann asked, tilting her head in question.
"They're just an illusion of the Palace," Morgana said, looking at them with little interest.
"But they're just counterfeits, right? Why would he have them here?" Ann looked at Morgana.
"They also seem to have some differences between them. The most notable thing being the color of their shirts," Makoto pointed out, the others taking another look to confirm her words. One of the Sayuri's had a blue shirt while the other a red shirt.
"So… one's fake and one isn't? The hell?" Ryuji mumbled in confusion.
"Maybe it… has something to do with this room?" Izuku suggested thoughtfully. "Maybe if we can determine which one's real, we'll open something up? You know, right Fox?"
"Ah, of course. The difference is obvious," Yusuke nodded, giving a small smile.
.
.
.
"So… which one is real?" Izuku finally asked, raising a brow.
"Come now, if you look closely enough, you should be able to tell, right?" Yusuke asked, smiling expectantly at Izuku.
"Oh, come on, dude. You're the only one who would remember every detail of that painting!" Ryuji complained.
"It shouldn't be too difficult. You've all seen examples of it before, have you not?" Yusuke pushed, looking at Izuku again. "Take a closer look and tell me which is real. I'll confirm it for you."
I feel like Kitagawa-san wants us to be able identify it the same way he does… Izuku internally blanched, forgetting just how important this single painting was to the artist. Swallowing a lump in his throat, Izuku's eyes darted back to the paintings, trying to recall the details of Sayuri from memory. Looking at the one with the blue shirt, part of Izuku felt it was off-color. With only half an idea, Izuku pointed at the red shirted Sayuri.
"Th-This one..?"
"Ah, it seems you do have a good eye for detail, Hero. Yes, that is correct," Yusuke confirmed, causing Izuku to sigh in relief.
"Ferreal? That's amazin', dude…" Ryuji mumbled in awe.
Izuku laughed sheepishly, rubbing his arm. "N-No, it really wasn't…"
"Nice guess," Makoto whispered into his ear, giving him a small smirk.
"Yes, just look at her vibrant crimson clothes, the beautiful hair, the sublime balance between subject and background…" Yusuke went on, taking a moment to truly admire the painting. "This may be an illusion, but it is the spitting image of the Sayuri, no doubt."
The moment he said that, the painting suddenly transformed into a hovering golden light, causing them to recoil. They watched as it floated through the air before flying over head, merging with one of the corridors and shifting it from blue to gold.
"Whoa, that did somethin'!" Ryuji said, each Thief turning around to look at the door.
"Did… identifying the painting give us the right route to take?" Makoto wondered aloud.
"Only one way to find out. Come on!" Izuku moved forward with his teammates close behind. Going through the golden door, they soon found themselves on a new platform, all present blinking in shock when they found four paintings of Sayuri along the path this time.
"You've gotta be kidding me! How many times do we have to find the real Sayuri?!" Morgana wondered aloud.
"Come now, it should be quite quick. Hero did figure it out once before, did he not?" Yusuke reasoned, looking at their leader expectantly.
"M-Me?! B-But Fox, I really think you should-"
"It'll be fine. I'm sure you'll do well on your own," Yusuke, motioning with his hands toward the portraits.
Izuku sighed, seeing Yusuke's thinly veiled excitement at the prospect of him choosing. Kitagawa-san really is a bit… strange. But, not wanting to let him down and seeing little other choice, Izuku moved forward to look at the paintings. Looking across all four, Izuku felt sweat trail down his face. These ones all looked alike to him. He could see small differences, sure, but none of them made it easier to pin the real Sayuri in Izuku's eyes. His Third Eye didn't reveal the answer either, much to his disappointment.
"Um… uh…" Izuku walked up to the one on the platform they currently stood on. Inspecting it, it honestly looked a lot like the one they just saw previously. "Th-This one?"
*SPLAT*
The painting immediately turned into a Shadow.
"WRONG!"
"AHHHH~!"
After a nerve-wracking battle in close-quarters,, the Shadow was destroyed. Each Thief leaned on their knees to catch their breath save for Yusuke, who stared at the other paintings quizzically.
"O-Okay… now we know… what happens when we guess wrong," Makoto breathed out, standing up straight.
"Talk about a friggin' heart attack. Just him poppin' up was way scarier than the fight itself," Ryuji huffed, shaking his head.
"Yeah… sorry, Fox, but I don't know this painting like you do. Would you please pick it out for us from now on?" Izuku asked, looking at Yusuke pleadingly.
"Yes, I suppose that would make sense... Though I feel like if you just take a closer study of it-"
"Just do it."
"Everyone… I believe we've arrived."
After Yusuke was able to guide them out with his proper identifications of the painting, the team had soon found their way to their destination: the final area of the Palace. If they needed any more confirmation, the presence of Madarame's Shadow at the end of the hall was it. The Thieves quickly hid at the corner walls of the main entrance, remaining out of sight from the Palace ruler.
"That looks like the Treasure behind him!" Ann pointed out in a loud whisper, all eyes trailing up to the transparent cloud floating behind a wall of lasers.
"That's it? I was expecting something… more, I guess," Makoto mumbled, holding her chin in wonder.
"That's just how it looks for now. Once we send the calling card, it'll materialize like 'yoo-hoo'!" Morgana explained, earning a nod of understanding from Makoto.
"I wonder what form it will take…" Yusuke mused. "The source of Madarame's distortion…"
"Who knows? Maybe somethin' like a self-portrait," Ryuji spat, expecting as much from Madarame at this point.
"Well, we know where the Treasure is now. Think our infiltration route is set?" Ann asked.
"Well, we know where it is obviously, but I wouldn't say our infiltration route is secure…" Morgana surmised, looking to the side in doubt.
"You're right. There's a lot more security around the Treasure here in comparison to Kamoshida's," Izuku agreed, eyes scanning around the room. "We should look around and see if the security console in control of all this is close by."
"Good idea. Whatever we can do to weaken the defenses around it would be a major improvement of charging in head first," Makoto nodded in agreement.
"There's a safe room nearby, so at least we'll be able to come here when the time is right and leave soon as we're done. Let's finish this!" Ann said. The group proceeded onward, taking a right hall that winded around the room around the Treasure's gallery. Some Shadows patrolled the path, but Izuku and the others made sure to hide, avoiding any confrontation lest they draw Madarame's ire. As they pushed further in, they finally arrived at a single security room.
Izuku slowly entered first, but breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that there were no guards inside. He quickly jogged up to the front security console, beginning to type through the menus.
"How much can we shut off from here?" Makoto asked, peering through the security window overlooking Madarame's Shadow and the Treasure.
"Let's see… it looks like I can open the doors…" Izuku pressed enter, and the group soon heard the security shutters throughout the hall suddenly open up. "And maybe… turn off the lasers?"
"ERROR: ONLY MADARAME HAS ACCESS TO INFRARED LASER CONTROLS!"
"Damn it, so much for that idea. Now what?" Ryuji grumbled, looking at the others in frustration.
"Hm… even though we can't turn off the lasers, we can turn off the power if this is right…" Izuku mumbled, pressing enter on the input. The power to the main room shut off, though the infrared lasers were clearly still active despite everything else going out.
"Hey, what just happened?!" They heard Madarame's voice from the gallery.
"W-We don't know! But don't worry, sir. The backup generators will bring us back up in no time!" A guard answered for him. Only a moment later did the power return back to normal.
"Tch. The power came back on pretty damn fast," Ryuji huffed again.
"Not to mention the lasers remained active even during the blackout," Yusuke pointed out.
"So we'll only have a few seconds before the power turns back on, huh?" Morgana mused, putting a paw to his chin.
"Come on, back into the hall!" Izuku said, quickly leading them back to the door. "I doubt that they won't send a guard to check here after that!"
The group swiftly ran outside, hiding behind the furniture in the lounge area. As Izuku expected, a guard passed by and headed for the security office.
"Nice call, Hero. Looks like we were able to avoid being detected for now," Morgana said, hopping out of his cover.
"Yeah, but we still didn't get too much done from that. All we did was open those shutters," Ryuji pointed out.
"And we'll only be able to shut off the lights briefly without being able to shut down the lasers," Yusuke added.
"We'll have to keep looking around and see what those shutters opened up to us as far as options go," Makoto suggested this time.
They didn't waste another moment, quickly running off to where they last passed the shutters. Seeing the new path, they realized that an entire hall had been opened to them. Avoiding another Shadow that patrolled the hall and letting it pass, Izuku climbed the new path until they reached the top. Much to their surprise, they found another safe room available for use right before another door leading to their left.
"Alright, I've marked this safe room on the Metanav. What's in the next room?" Izuku asked, leaving the safe room after going in alone and allowing the others to check out the next door.
"It's a room used for controlling the mechanisms surrounding the Treasure's exhibit," Yusuke explained, looking at Izuku as he entered the room. "Given the number of hanging works, it makes sense to have a room dedicated to controlling them."
"The observational skills of an artist are out of this world…" Ann mumbled in awe.
"So they can… control the items in the exhibit?" Izuku's eyes widened. "Does that include the Treasure?!"
"That's a good question, Hero. Let's take a look around and figure that out," Morgana said, waving for the others to follow him as he hopped on top of a ledge that seemed to connect to the rest of the gallery. The others quickly followed him up, jumping on the ledge and going out. They found a large scaffolding area big enough for them to walk on. Izuku walked forward first, moving toward the center and looking down.
"Looks like we're right above the Treasure… and there's nothing guarding it from the top!" Izuku said in surprise.
"This is a rather large hole in their security… but how do we retrieve it? Jumping down?" Yusuke asked thoughtfully.
"No, no… the controls in the room. If there's a lever that is connected to a wire for the Treasure, to that hook and wire," Makoto motioned to just above them, a large hook hanging overhead, "we'll be able to lower down into that area without problem!" Makoto explained, turning back around and heading for the room. "Wait here and tell me if we're right!"
"Okay!" Izuku and the others waited for a moment, watching the hook. Soon after, it started to lower down before quickly coming back up. "It worked! Okay, back to the room!"
The others filed out, jumping back down into the control room where Makoto waited for them.
"Sorry, I didn't want to lower it too much in case they'd notice. It worked though, right?" Makoto asked hopefully.
"It did. Which means we have our way of getting down there and to the Treasure!" Izuku nodded in excitement, grinning at his team.
"Yeah, but how're we gonna get in there and grab it without bein' noticed? They'll attack us soon as they see us comin' down," Ryuji pointed out.
"We won't have long, but we can use the darkness to grab the Treasure," Izuku suggested.
"Good idea, Hero!" said Morgana. "All we have to do is turn off the power as we're lowering down to grab the Treasure, right?"
"But that would only give us a few seconds. How would we make it here in time to steal it?" Yusuke asked.
"We'll have to split up," Makoto said this time, following Izuku's line of thought. "One team will take down the power and another team will take the Treasure.
"Won't they realize what's goin' on real quick, though?" Ryuji asked nervously.
"They probably will, but that's why we have to execute this perfectly. We can't waste a moment here," Izuku nodded, his brow furrowing seriously. "We just need to steal the Treasure and get it to safety before they figure it out."
"This does seem pretty dangerous, but… do you guys really think it'll work?" Ann asked, looking at Izuku and Makoto hopefully.
"It's our best plan of action. I'll try and think of an alternative just in case, but this is what we have to work with in the meantime," Izuku admitted, holding his chin in thought. "The team who shuts off the power will immediately have to make a run for it and meet back up with the team stealing the Treasure. It's risky, but it can work."
"Risky moves can have the biggest payoff," Morgana reasoned before looking up at the others. "Well, I would say our infiltration route has been secured. Let's get back to the safe room and head back, for now."
"Man, I can't believe we got this done so quick, though. We're gettin' good!" Ryuji smiled at Izuku as the team started to move out. "So, we gonna send the calling card out tomorrow?"
"Hm… no, not just yet. I want to prepare as much as possible before jumping after the Treasure," Izuku shook his head, causing the others to look back at him. "Kamoshida's Shadow showed us that anything can happen and even with our current strength, the Palace ruler might still be insanely strong. Let's make sure we've got everything we need."
"Yeah, you've got a point there. We weren't expecting Kamoshida to be as crazy strong as he was when we took his Treasure," Ann agreed, grimacing at the memory.
"Then it really is best to take this slow. We have plenty of time before the exhibit ends, so rushing in doesn't do us any favors," Makoto nodded.
"Sounds good to me. I'll leave it up to you to decide when we're ready to go, Hero!" Ryuji gave a thumbs up.
"I'll be ready and waiting for the call," said Yusuke.
"Alright, everyone. We've got our plan and time to rest. Be ready for anything!"
"Right!"
To be continued…
Thanks as always goes to my beta reppuzan for his hard work during his busy times.
Man, talk about a chapter jam packed. It's even bigger than the last haha. Though looking back, maybe it just feels that way, seeing their total word limits lol. But I wanted to get this one done and over with so that all of our dungeon crawling had been settled. As I said before, this arc was going to close up much faster than Kamoshida's had. So look forward to the last push to the Treasure!
Also, something I thought I'd make clear in this chapter, I'm definitely not planning to write out every little Shadow fight even when they're forced into battle. That's just tedious and serves no purpose save padding up the amount of words and would definitely exhaust me. So while I'll work in some small fights here and there, I don't want to spend too much time on inconsequential fights that you would blaze through in game in a matter of seconds.
Anyways, that aside, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! I got this done a bit sooner on my schedule since I felt last chapter had quite a bit of repetitive use of lines throughout that were unavoidable, and thought I'd give some more original moments here to help make the dungeon crawling less of an eyesore.
Well, that's all I've got for you guys, I hope you liked it! Please be sure to give a follow, a favorite and a review if you'd be so kind. Peace :)