The sun shined mightily in the azure-blue sky of the Ice Cap Zone region, yet the frosted mountains and cliffs alongside the glowing ice lake refused to melt away. The temperature was roughly minus five degrees, which would prove to be on the warmer side of the region's daily climate. Between three distinctively tall mountains lay a massive patch of somewhat flat land coated in a thick layer of snow. Adjacent to it was a large, frozen lake that stretched from the base of one of the three mountains to the other two. In the midst of this section of the Ice Cap region were a small camera crew, staff who filled out a number of different roles, and an antsy host.

Alexa placed his hands on his hips and slowly breathed in the air, bitter-cold but refreshing. It was the type of place you'd enjoy staying in to catch a break from the typical climate of your warm country, but it was also the type of place that made you wish you were back in your cozy, warm house within a handful of days if not miserly hours.

With a swig of his bottled water, infected with cold and beginning to freeze up, Alexa prepped himself before looking to the camera crew and giving a beam.

"Welcome to all of you watching from home! As you can see, this is no set, this is a real-deal icy locale we're in. It may look like a stunning place to visit, but trust me, you would not want to live in a place like this for any longer than a day. Unfortunately for twenty-one survivors that are due to arrive, that's exactly the case for them. Not only will they stay for up to over a month, trapped in a place with an unbearable lack of warmth, but they won't have much capable of keeping them warm. At most, a bit of shelter, and a fire that will always be on the brink of fizzling into a thin wisp of smoke will be their, and I quote, "saviors" from the freezing, sub-zero temperatures. At least, that's how they'll start their stay."

Alexa then had one of his cameramen pan the camera around the area, paying the most attention to the three mountains surrounding the area he was in. "As you might know, the survivors will be divided into three tribes. Each tribe will be placed in a designated mountain, where a carefully carved footpath will lead them from its base and up to their tribe. It may not be at the peak, but it's high enough to make anyone with a fear of heights shudder at the thought of looking down. Now that you know as much as they do, I think my explanations should resume once they arrive. Oh, and what do you know, they've just arrived!"

He pointed high into the sky, tracking a swarm of five helicopters that came hovering between the distant mountains. Inside of them contained four survivors, with the exception of the one that appeared to be leading the way, which contained five.

"Yep, that's them!" He grinned. "I'm sure they're drinking in the location they'll be living in, either excited to accept the Ice Cap's obstacles... or regretting their choice to sign up."

After a few minutes of impatiently waiting, Alexa walked over to the five helicopters as they landed side-by-side, directly in front of the large lake.

To his dismay, more waiting ensued as he slowly watched the helicopter blades slow to a halt. Eventually, the doors were unlocked, and they smoothly slid open to reveal the cast everyone had been waiting for...


Ice Cap Zone (Lake): Day 1

Survivors: Dante - Scout - Knuckles - Phoenix Wright - Jean Pierre Polnareff - Kazuma Kiryu - Tails - Mr. Krabs - Princess Daisy - Tracer - Rodin - Miles Edgeworth - Goro Majima - Waluigi - Falco Lombardi - Nero - Sniper - Joseph Joestar - King Dedede - Glass Joe - Wii Fit Trainer.

The survivors stood out from the hard floor of the helicopter and onto the puffy snow of the Ice Cap Zone. Immediately, the chilling air hit them like a truck, enveloping them and constricting them with an icy sting, regardless of how warm their clothing made them.

After taking in the freezing atmosphere, the survivors glanced at their competition, the majority of them shocked to see people they knew and recognized alongside them. For starters, the six veterans: Phoenix, Tails, Mr. Krabs, Waluigi, King Dedede and Wii Fit Trainer, were all universally recognized for their performances from the first two seasons. But it was quickly apparent that those six weren't the only bunch that people recognized.

"I'll be damned... Kiryu-chan is stuck in this icy hellscape with me! I half-expected this to be a boring waste of time, but if there's one thing Kamurocho has, it's some damn reliable journalism when it comes to knowin' what the Dragon himself is up to. Seein' Kiryu-chan leave that helicopter filled me with enough adrenaline to keep me warm for a good few months!" - Goro Majima.

"What the hell is Nero doing here? I didn't expect the kid to follow me onto this show and steal my glory when I told him and the others that I was signing up for this show... but now that I think about it, I should have seen it coming. Oh well, that's an extra person that won't target me... probably." - Dante.

"Edgeworth wasn't kidding when he said he wanted to make a better example of how things are done. Knowing him, he's going to somehow befriend everyone here and vote me off at a twenty-to-one vote, if that's even possible... but I came here to get further than third, so I can't let that happen!" - Phoenix Wright.

"Mr. Joestar's here with me? I'd call myself advantaged, but judging by the faces of everyone here, I have a hunch that I'm not the only one who's starting with an ally." - Jean Pierre Polnareff.

Their stares, glares, and gawks were quickly cut off by a boisterous yell from Alexa. "Welcome to Ice Cap, survivors!"

As they turned their heads to face the spunky host, they slowly drew their attention back to the landscape they were placed into.

"I could see you all scrunch up the second you left the warmth of the helicopters. I gotta say, this is probably the coldest place I've been to in my life," he admitted. "But unlike you guys, I'll have my own cozy abode to rest in. Meanwhile, you guys will have to make do with your minimal, ineffective solutions to countering the chilly air!"

"Rubbing it in as usual I see," said Wii Fit Trainer under her breath. "I wonder how immoral and cruel he's going to get this time around."

Alexa continued. "First of all, look around! The Ice Cap region may look like a samey series of low-lying snowy land and mountains at first glance, but this place is surprisingly generous. Right next to us is the Ice Cap Lake: a deep, frozen-over source of fish and water with a few holes scattered across. That's right, for the first time in Survivor Crossover history, your diet will not be exclusively made up of rice and beans. Instead, you may hunt for fish, which would give you a plentiful source of protein and energy if you manage to catch one."

"HUNT... F-FOR FISH?!" Mr. Krabs shrieked, horrified. "GREAT NEPTUNE! I didn't know things got THIS barbaric since the first season!"

"Relax. These fish are nothing like the ones you know of," he reassured.

"Similar or foreign, I ain't puttin' a single one near me!" He said, folding his claws and shivering with fright.

Rodin, looking at him from head to toe, lifted one of his eyebrows. "Last I checked, crabs eat fish."

"Well, this one doesn't fit your stereotype, pal. My customers are ninety-percent fish, and if they found out I ate fish on live TV, I'd lose 'em in a flash!" He explained.

"So it's less moral and more about your wallet?"

"Duh!"

The gunsmith peered back to Alexa, no longer interested in anything else the crustacean had to say.

"Moving on..." He said. "Now that you're familiar with what the lake brings to the table, look at the three mountains to the North, East, and West of where we stand. On the East is the tallest of the three: Mt Denalo, which is ironically the easiest to climb due to its gentler sloping towards the peak. Meanwhile, on the West is the shortest: Mt Elbrass, which makes up for its height by being the widest of the three. And finally, the Northern mountain: Mt Manjari, is both the most jagged mountain and the mountain closest to the Ice Cap Lake."

While some were interested, others such as Nero weren't. "What does this have to do with anything?"

"Well, I was just giving a little bit of background on the three tribe locations. I know I'd be more comfortable living somewhere after learning trivia about it," Alexa huffed. "But now that you survivors are aware. Yes, the three starting tribes will be living up in the mountains! Don't worry, you won't be placed at the peak, but you will have to travel moderately high before you reach your tribe area."

"I'm used to camping high up in the cold. What this yobbo celebrity's describin' to me sounds nothing new. So far, this gameshow sounds like a bloody cakewalk." - Sniper.

Dedede wrung his hands, snickering. "If that's where you're gonna make us live, then I call dibs on the tall one! What's it called again? Mt Domino?"

"Denalo," replied Alexa. "And hold up! Not only have you not been assigned a tribe, but you can't just pick and choose which mountain you get. Luckily, the anticipation of finding out who you'll be forced to work with is about to end. Now, unlike previous seasons of Survivor Crossover, the assortment isn't going to be one-hundred percent random. Far from it, in fact."

He raised his finger to Kiryu. "Kiryu. Is there anybody here that you know personally?"

"Yeah," he said bluntly.

"What about you, Scout?"

The mercenary glanced to Sniper and rolled his eyes. "We're both wearin' red uniform. It's frickin' obvious that I know someone here."

"And you, Tails?"

"Yeah," the fox nodded, turning to Knuckles and waving.

Alexa looked to the rest of the survivors. "As you can see, there's a trend. Out of the twenty-one survivors here, fourteen of you have another person in this show that you're very familiar with. Hence, that makes seven pairs, and with three mountains that house a tribe each... I think you know where this is going."

"So what you're implying is that none of the pairs are going to be on the same tribe?" Falco assumed. "What about the rest of us? Where do we fit in?"

Too busy planning his next line, Alexa ended up ignoring him. After all, his question would be answered shortly anyway.

After counting up the survivors in front of him, he began forming the tribes. "The first tribe will be located on the Western mountain: Mt Elbrass. This tribe contains Dante, Scout, Knuckles, Phoenix, Polnareff, Kazuma Kiryu, and Princess Daisy. The next tribe will be located on the Eastern mountain: Mt Denalo, and consists of Nero, Sniper, Tails, Edgeworth, Joseph, Majima and Waluigi. If you failed to put two and two together, I've taken the pairs that know one another and I've transformed them into rivals that live on separate tribes. As for the other seven survivors, they will live on Mt Manjari. This final tribe contains Mr. Krabs, Tracer, Rodin, Falco, King Dedede, Glass Joe and Wii Fit Trainer."

"So we're the misfits that didn't apply to the other two tribes, eh?" Mr. Krabs huffed. "That's good to know. If only Mr. Squidward could sign up for a third time..."

"Hey, Alexa!" Daisy waved, both of her arms violently swinging from left to right. "We can make our own tribe names, right?"

Before anyone else got excited, she was quickly shut down. "Sadly not. The names of your tribe actually correspond to the mountain you'll spend a lot of your time on. Therefore, the three tribe names are: Elbrass, Denalo and Manjari, and their colors are green, purple and orange respectively."

"Oh well, Elbrass sounds sweet," she grinned.

With everyone satisfied, Alexa sent the newly-built tribes on their way. "All right! This is the part where you guys spend your first day living in the Ice Cap Zone! For one last recap, here are the tribes as they stand:


Elbrass Tribe (Green)

- Dante

- Scout

- Knuckles

- Phoenix Wright

- Jean Pierre Polnareff

- Kazuma Kiryu

- Princess Daisy

Denalo Tribe (Purple)

- Nero

- Sniper

- Miles "Tails" Prower

- Miles Edgeworth

- Joseph Joestar

- Goro Majima

- Waluigi

Manjari Tribe (Orange)

- Mr. Krabs

- Tracer

- Rodin

- Falco

- King Dedede

- Glass Joe

- Wii Fit Trainer


Remember, unless you want a target on your back, then you shouldn't form enemies so soon. The first tribe challenge will begin tomorrow, so make sure you prepare yourselves for that," he warned. "You all seem pretty eager to head off to your tribes now, so feel free to do so! Good luck, and let's see how far you can last in the Ice Cap Zone!"

With excitement, the survivors broke off into three groups and made their way to their designated mountain...


Elbrass Tribe: Day 1

Survivors: Dante - Scout - Knuckles - Phoenix Wright - Jean Pierre Polnareff - Kazuma Kiryu - Princess Daisy.

The survivors climbed Mt. Elbrass with relative ease, making their way up the snowy dirt path and taking several sharp turns to make it to what they assumed to be the location of the Elbrass Tribe. The survivors hoped it would have some leeway for warmth, but only a couple were optimistic over that actually happening. As for the rest, they expected a cold, brutal start to the show.

Knuckles led the way as Kiryu and Dante closely followed. At the back of the traveling group was Scout, Phoenix, Polnareff, and Daisy, all of which already shivering from the cold.

"The higher we go up this mountain, the windier it gets," Phoenix said to himself. "If I wasn't getting exhausted from this walk, I would be a frozen statue by now."

After another five minutes of slow and painstaking walking, the survivors arrived at their tribe. To their surprise, or lack thereof, it was as desolate as they expected.

The tribe area was located on a broad cliff about a third of the way up Mt. Elbrass. A protective and sturdy wooden railing was put in place around the cliffside's steep edges to prevent anyone from slipping or tripping off, and a proud green flag stuck out like a sore thumb against the drab white, pale-blue, and grey colors that littered the scenery.

In the middle of the tribe was a large cloth shelter with a pointed roof. Though there wasn't much to it, beneath it lay two four-man benches, several bags of rice and beans, a large steel pot, and a few bottles of freshly bottled water. Not only could they use these plentiful sources of food and water, but they also had the option of going down to the lake to get more water and, potentially, fish.

At the back of the tribe lay a large, wooden billboard. The billboard contained a map of the entire Ice Cap region, from the mountains, to the Lake, to even a few locations that went unmentioned by Alexa.

Finally, a medium-sized cave entrance was placed adjacent to the billboard. Within the dimly lit cave were seven small tents, one for each of the Elbrass Tribe members.

Overall, the tribe was rather empty save the shelter and its contents, but that was no different from the tribes of the previous two seasons.

After some exploration alongside a few comments here and there from the observing survivors, they all met back up under the shelter and gave their thoughts on their tribe.

"Well, it's just what I expected," Dante shrugged. "A place you can just about live in. Didn't expect the luxury treatment of living indoors, though."

"It's about as luxurious as it gets. Trust me," said Phoenix, reminding the others of his experience in the show.

Knuckles folded his arms and smirked. "Hey, I've slept in far worse."

"Where the hell have you been sleepin'?" Scout interrogated. "I can already feel myself freezing, and the last thing I want to do in a show about kickin' ass is dying before I can do any of that."

Polnareff chortled at his whining. "Look where we are. I think everyone here is just as cold as you are... minus the porcupine."

"Porcupine?!" Knuckles clenched his fists, offended.

After being rubbed the wrong way over the snarky laughter, Scout fought back. "Well yeah, I know that much. I saw you shiverin' like a psycho whilst I was keepin' it together."

"You're saying I was the one shivering like a psycho?! I was barely shaking. In fact, YOU were the one shivering more than anyone!"

"Lyin' ain't gonna make you look any cooler, tough guy. Oh, and FYI, get a haircut."

As the argument began to turn petty, Daisy began snickering under her breath.

"Don't bring my hair into this, slim!"

In an attempt to break up the argument, Phoenix weakly interjected. "Uhh, guys?"

Unfortunately, his words went straight over them.

"It ain't my fault your hair is just as stuck-up as you are, pal."

"Well-"

"Hey!" Kiryu bellowed, his voice cutting the immature argument in two. Since the show began, he had barely spoken, but the words he did speak were beyond stern. At least, they were stern enough to do what Phoenix couldn't: shut down the argument.

The two went blank and turned their head to Kiryu. Even Polnareff, someone with a stand capable of slashing through iron at blinding speeds, was intimidated.

"A petty argument shouldn't be your first interaction with a teammate," he continued.

"I agree," added Knuckles. "That's only gonna get you voted out early."

If Kiryu's scolding didn't fully convince them to stop bickering, the threat of elimination certainly did. The color from their faces instantly drained upon hearing those words, and Polnareff was quick to apologize. "Sorry about that," he said, eyeing Scout.

"Great. Thanks to him, one of my first impressions of the tribe is being troublesome, even though all I did was stand my ground and call him out on his lying. I'm not going to get along well with this "Scout" guy, but if it's to save my own skin, then I should just ignore him. After all, he'll be eliminated in the first few days, so I won't have to deal with him long." - Jean Pierre Polnareff.

"Frickin' unbelievable. I did absolutely nothin' wrong, then this big tough guy has the audacity to act like we're both the problem when it's clearly just the Frenchie! I ain't gonna get along with this knucklehead, but I won't have to wait long before he gets eliminated and improves our tribe." - Scout.

"You can't have a new tribe without trouble, from the looks of things. If I had to guess, I don't think Scout's going to survive our tribe's first round of Tribal Council." - Phoenix Wright.

With the argument over, Dante moved things along. "Moving on, that map looks pretty nifty."

"Oh yeaaah, there's a map!" Said Daisy. "I was too interested by that big cave to remember to check the map. What was on it again?"

Using little to no effort, the devil hunter recalled what he saw to her. "Well we had the three mountains, the lake, and at the south, there's a place called Tribal Fortress."

"That must be where Tribal Council is held," Kiryu stated.

With a nod, he moved on. "Then, on the top left of the map, there's a forest. And on the top right there's the "Ring of Igloos". I got no clue what those two places are for, but I'm gonna assume it's nothing to worry about right now."

"Well, there were several different areas back in the Dry Dry Desert season," explained Phoenix. "Each area contained one idol, so maybe the same goes for this season."

"That's the best guess going so far," Dante yawned. "But right now, I think I'd rather stay here than test your theory."

From seemingly nowhere, Daisy piped up. "Wait, idols? Aren't those the things that make winning much easier?" She asked. "C'mon, let's go look for one!"

"Woah, hold your horses there lady. We just got here, and besides, those places might be empty until we're told about them. You're best getting your energy up for the first challenge, whatever that will be," he explained.

Disgruntled, she pursed her lips and fell silent, already bored.

"Everyone seems so eager to spend their day doing mostly nothing! There may be challenges, but if we're going to spend all of our time outside of that lounging around, then that's just not my style!" - Princess Daisy.

In an attempt to prevent any awkward silence, Phoenix decided to get a discussion going between the tribe. "Well... since we all just met and have to work together, I think it'd be a good idea to get to know each other a little more. I'm Phoenix Wright, and I'm a defense attorney. You might know me from my performance in the second season."

"Phoenix Wright, huh?" Dante queried. "That's not a name I'll be forgetting any time soon."

"What about you?" The lawyer asked.

The devil hunter smiled as he pointed both thumbs to himself. "No fancy last name here; it's just Dante. I usually take on contracts and missions to kill demons that terrorize the world."

"You kill what now?" Scout gawked. "You bein' serious?"

"As serious as one proud devil hunter can be," he grinned.

"So you save the world for a living?!" Said Daisy. "That's amazing! You must be world-famous!"

Dante's face suddenly lowered as he glossed over her remark about fame. "Heh... yeah..."

"Great, I already stick out like a sore thumb. I'm just a basic lawyer who brings justice to my city, and then you have a devil hunter that saves lives for a living. This is like the last season all over again, but maybe that'll allow me to sneak by again..." - Phoenix Wright.

"Enough about me. What about you?" He pointed to Daisy. "You're a pretty energetic gal. What's your story?"

As soon as she was handed the opportunity to properly greet her tribemates, she sprung up from her bench with gusto. "Okay so... I'm Daisy, and I'm the princess of Sarasaland! I like sports, parties, and anything fun, which is why I decided to join this show!"

"So it's less about the money and more about the experience?" Knuckles asked. "That's certainly not why I'm here."

"Lemme guess, the money!"

"Nope."

"The resort?"

"...Not that either," the echidna chuckled. "I mainly came here to show Sonic and Tails how it's done. Both of them have competed in this show, and neither of them did too hot. In fact, Sonic was one of the first eliminated, but he got brought back out of pure luck. I'll get further than he did without any of that luck."

Scout tilted his head to one side. "Wait just a sec. Ain't Tails that little yellow mouse? Pretty sure I saw him earlier."

"That surprised me too. Unlike Sonic, the kid has brains, so he's almost a better-suited rival to me than Sonic is," Knuckles gave a cheeky grin as he continued. "Oh, and FYI, he's not a mouse."

"A cat?"

He looked at Scout as if he were crazy, raising an eyebrow. "He's a fox."

"Don't look at me like I'm some sorta freak for not knowin' that!" He spat. "I ain't an expert with walking, talking animals."

"The hell is with all of the animals?! I've seen a giant penguin, a bird, a "fox", a frickin' crab, and whatever the hell this red guy is in my tribe." - Scout.

Knuckles sighed. "You know what? Forget it. Let's get back on track. Tell us about yourself."

The young mercenary twiddled with his thumbs as he explained himself. "I'm the Scout, I'm here for the easy money, and somethin' tells me I'll start regrettin' it pretty damn soon. You can count on me for any challenges that involve speed and good looks, but if need be, I can lift like there's no tomorrow. I'm the whole package, and you ain't losin' a single challenge with me on your side."

"Sure..." Said Phoenix.

"That's a pretty bold claim," Dante smirked. "You sure about that?"

"Well unless there's a weakness competition, there's nothin' to worry about," Scout assured. "Anyway, is someone gonna make us a bite to eat? I'm starving."

Offended over his ignorance, Polnareff cleared his throat. "Ahem. If we should get to know each other better, then what's the good in leaving me out? Oh, and him too." He patted Kiryu's shoulder.

"Whatever, just make it quick."

With a tut, the Stand User briskly introduced himself. "I am Jean Pierre Polnareff! I hail from France and I've had plenty of experience traveling and living in some pretty harsh conditions. I've not experienced the cold much, so living here should be interesting. Oh, and I was inspired to join the show after seeing Jotaro perform in the second season."

"Isn't he the guy that demolished every challenge?" Said Knuckles. "Do you know him?"

Polnareff suddenly froze, realizing his error. "Well... after seeing such a strong, unstoppable performance, I wanted to do the same! I haven't met Jotaro, nor do I have a Stand like him."

"Nobody asked if you had a Stand," Kiryu said, studying his nerve-wracked face. "Whatever that is..."

"Just making sure everyone knew that," he said, pulling an awkward smile.

"After seeing how difficult it was for Jotaro to get by once everyone was aware of his stand, I can't let anyone here know that I have a Stand so early. I can already see that Phoenix is suspicious, but as long as I don't bring it up again, he should hopefully forget about it." - Jean Pierre Polnareff.

After an uncomfortable pause, Scout patted his stomach. "Aight, is that your intro done with? Can somebody make us somethin' to eat?"

Once again, his pleas for food were denied by Polnareff. "Hey, you're still leaving somebody out."

He gave an unenthused groan as all attention was focused on Kiryu. He hadn't spoken much at all outside of breaking up the tension between Polnareff and Scout, but he was still eager to introduce himself.

"I'm Kiryu. Kazuma Kiryu," he said. "I reside in Kamurocho, a district set in Tokyo."

"Tokyo eh?" Dante grinned. "A flashy home for a flashy guy. So, what do you do?"

The ex-Yakuza simply shook his head. "It's pretty complicated. One second I'm a real estate agent, then I'm a foreman in a construction site, and then I'm solving a feud between two clans in the Yakuza."

"Y-Yakuza?! I don't know much about them, but from what I've gathered, people involved in organized crime don't get along with people like me..." - Phoenix Wright.

"Sounds like you live a busy life," Knuckles admitted.

Kiryu smiled. "Yeah. I never really seek it out, it just happens to come to me."

With everyone now familiar with their tribemates, the rest of the tribe decided to deliver on Scout's cries for food.

"Well, who's making lunch then?" Asked Polnareff. "Anything to shut him up..." He added under his breath, just quiet enough for Scout not to notice.

Phoenix raised his arm, deciding to take that responsibility. "I suppose I've had some experience in it."

As he stood up to grab the bags of rice and beans, Scout sighed with relief. "Finally. Now, when's it gonna be done? Ten minutes?"

"Depends..." The lawyer turned to everyone else. "This sounds like a stupid question, but is anyone here capable of heating this water up better than the fire?"

Daisy rubbed her chin. "Maybe if I had a fire flower, but I don't see any of those lying around."

The others simply shook their heads, causing Phoenix to tighten his lips. "Then I hate to say it, but it's going to take a lot longer than ten minutes."

Scout raised an eyebrow. "What the hell?!"

"A weak fire like this took up to nearly two hours on days where we had nobody that was capable of starting a good fire," said Phoenix. "And that was in a place as hot as a desert! For a place like here, I'd say about two full hours. And... that's if it doesn't extinguish itself out of nowhere."

The starving soldier shot up from his bench and began walking off. "Nuh-uh. I ain't waitin' that long."

"Where are you going?" Asked Polnareff.

"To get some fish."

Daisy also stood up from her bench, supporting Scout's decision. "Oooh. I'm coming too!"

"Knock yourself out," Scout said. "The more hands we have to wrangle one outta that lake, the quicker I can eat a meal."

Kiryu also stood up from his bench. "I might as well try and help. Without a fishing rod or some bait, it won't be easy."

"Who gives a crap about a fishing rod? Hands are good enough."

As the three of them departed from the rest of the tribe, the other four were hopeful that they would be able to catch a decently sized fish to eat, but they doubted they'd be able to do so without a rod. Instead, they continued to talk to one another, reserving their energy for tomorrow's challenge...


Denalo Tribe: Day 1

Survivors: Nero - Sniper - Miles "Tails" Prower - Miles Edgeworth - Joseph Joestar - Goro Majima - Waluigi.

Similar to the Elbrass Tribe, the survivors climbed the daunting path up Mt. Denalo before eventually reaching their tribe's location. It was almost identical to Elbrass in size and layout, from the cliffs it was placed on facing the other mountains, to the very caves that they quickly found out they were sleeping in. The main difference was the color of the tents and tribe flag, which were purple as opposed to the green representing Elbrass.

The tribe took in their surroundings much faster than Elbrass Tribe barring Waluigi, who was too busy shivering to fully explore the tribe.

Once everyone had seen everything there was to see, two groups were formed. The first group consisted of Joseph, who took it upon himself to make the tribe's first-ever meal, alongside Waluigi and Edgeworth who stayed close to the fire for the sole purpose of keeping warm. The other group rested by the fenced cliff edge and consisted of Majima, Tails, Sniper, and Nero.

Majima peered throughout the mountainous region, grinning giddily to himself. "This really is the real deal, huh?"

"Huh?" Tails turned to his right, facing the intimidating, almost psychotic-looking Yakuza.

"Look at this place! We really are in the middle of nowhere. This is my type of vacation," he cackled. "Though I wish it wasn't so damn bitter."

The fox awkwardly stared at him from head to toe, noticing that his outfit consisted of nothing more than black pants and an exotic jacket. Majima wasn't even wearing an undershirt, meaning his torso was exposed to the harsh, cold winds that would be prevalent throughout the competition.

"Well, with clothes like that, I don't think you can complain about the cold," said Nero, beating Tails to the punch. "Do you want to freeze to death or something?"

Majima turned to him, confused. "Eh? I can handle the cold just fine."

"Then what do you mean by bitter?"

"It's bitter that I ain't gonna have a proper meal for a while! I like rice, but somethin' tells me that it ain't gonna be in good shape no matter how ragin' that fire is. Cookin' it like a caveman's gonna make it borderline inedible."

Tails sighed. "That makes two of us. I'm going to miss having a nice warm meal..."

"After enough rations of tasteless rubbish, you get used to it," Sniper added from afar, stepping closer. "My diet consists of coffee and bread on the battlefield, and I am not a fan of it."

"Sounds more nutritious than what we're going to be eating," Nero said. "Good thing it looks like that old man knows how to start a good fire. We should have our food in no time."

"I wouldn't say so, mate," admitted Sniper.

"What makes you say that?"

"From experience. A big fire like that is gonna get it cooked in a couple of hours at minimum."

The devil hunter groaned. "Great... well, what are we gonna do in the meantime?"

"Well, why not group up with the others and get to know them better?" Questioned Tails. "That will kill us some time. Maybe even enough time for the rice to finish cooking."

While Majima didn't seem to care too much, the other two weren't too keen on the idea.

"There's a reason I'm here and not over there, mate," Sniper scoffed. "I've heard nothing but bad about that Waluigi fella. He's loud, stupid, and looks useless. I'd rather avoid him."

"I was thinking the same thing," Nero said. "That and, he freaks me out a little bit."

Majima chuckled at the comment, staring at Waluigi. "A two-bit goon like him is bound to go out first; we won't have to deal with his antics for too long."

Though Tails knew where the three were coming from, he had faith in Waluigi's potency as a team member. "Hey, it's been a while since the desert. I think we should all give him a chance before planning to avoid him. Besides, that's only going to tear our team apart, and we barely know each other yet!"

Sniper was still disinterested in the prospect of learning more about the others, but decided to give in to Tails. "Ah bugger. We've got nothing better to do. I'll meet you lot under the shelter."

He swiftly turned around and walked off to the shelter, meeting up with Joseph, Edgeworth, and, reluctantly, Waluigi.

"My gameplan here isn't that much different than what I'd do on the battlefield. As long as I stay hidden and under the radar, nobody will think about votin' me off. All I need to do is impress my tribe and get on with them a little bit, and that should be good enough for now." - Sniper.

Majima gazed over to the Elbrass mountain one last time before spinning around and strolling behind Sniper, leaving Nero and Tails.

"You know..." Said Nero. "I've never seen a walking, talking fox before."

"And I've never seen anyone with an arm like that..." Analyzed Tails. "What's it for?"

"This? Just a nifty little prosthetic built by a friend," he replied, brushing it off. "I would have preferred having my old arm back, but it's definitely better than nothing."

The fox was in pure awe of its design. Though he made it out to sound like nothing important, it was essentially brimming with interesting details and parts that Tails didn't recognize.

"I wish I had something to take notes on," Tails thought to himself. "That arm looks incredible! No way is it just a regular prosthetic."

After gawking at its design for a few more moments, he was brought back to reality and proceeded to join the others under the purple cloth shelter.

"Welcome," said Joseph. "The food's cooking, but I doubt it'll be ready anytime soon. So if that's the reason why you all came to this tent, I'm sorry to disappoint."

Majima rolled his eyes, annoyed over the reminder. "Yeah yeah, we know that we ain't gonna be eatin' for a while, and we also know that we ain't gonna be eatin' shit that tastes good for as long as we're here, either."

"Then what's with the sudden entrance?"

Tails then took over, answering the question. "I thought it'd be best if we got to know each other as a tribe, so I got everyone to join up with you guys."

"Hmm... it was a little strange how we immediately split up into two groups," said Joseph. "I'm fine with having people learn more about me. With that in mind, I suppose I'll start."

He shuffled himself into a more comfortable position on the bench before charismatically raising his hand.

"I'm Joseph Joestar, I do real estate work and a lot of traveling around the world," he explained. "I've managed to make a decent living for myself, but the two prizes I could get from winning this show convinced me enough to sign up. I may be close to seventy, but I promise you all that I'm nowhere near the weakest among these three mountains."

"I've seen my fair share of beefy elders to trust him on that claim. Hell, I'm in my forties and I've never felt better!" - Goro Majima.

While they were visibly surprised to hear that Joseph was nearing such an old age, Waluigi was especially shocked by it. "W-W-WAAAAH?! You're-a nearly seventy?!"

"You sure don't look seventy," added Tails.

"I don't move like I'm seventy either," Joseph explained. "Maybe it's because of past training I did when it was younger, or I'm just lucky, but either way, you'll quickly see just how useful I am."

"Making a good first impression is crucial. The last thing I want from my tribe is them believing I'm some sort of weakling because of my age, so I'll be trying extra hard to impress them in tomorrow's challenge." - Joseph Joestar.

In response to his enthusiasm, Majima smirked. "Excited to see what you still got in you, gramps. Anywaaaay, unless anyone objects, I'll be next to introduce myself."

With no hesitation, he sprung from his seat as a sadistic grin spread across his face. "I'm Goro Majima! Patriarch of the Majima Family and President of Majima Construction. I came here for one thing, and one thing only: Kiryu-chan."

"Kiryu... chan?" Nero repeated. "What's so special about him to you?"

"It ain't hard to guess, mate. Recall what Alexa told us," Sniper said. "Each of us has a bloke on that Elbrass tribe that we know. I bet Goro and that Kazuma bogan are on good terms."

Majima cackled. "We're more than on good terms! Me and Kiryu-chan have been through thick and thin together, but I suppose I'm responsible for a lot of that thick," he added.

"Looks like Majima's not being subtle about his motive: once he manages to stay on that Kiryu's tribe, they'll undoubtedly form an alliance, and that's bad news for the rest of us. But, I suppose it makes sense for most of the people in my tribe to take that approach. Heck, I'm planning on teaming up with Polnareff myself when I get the chance." - Joseph Joestar.

All of a sudden, Waluigi stood up and pointed at him with malice in his eyes. No longer quietly studying the six that he didn't trust around him and now yelling at the confused Majima. "Psssh, cheaters like-a you always gotta ruin things!"

Sniper couldn't help but blurt out his confusion. "You what?"

Meanwhile, Edgeworth raised an eyebrow. "Cheater?"

"Yeah, he's obviously a cheater!"

"And where's your evidence?"

"Don't play-a stupid!" He barked, shifting his finger over to the skeptical prosecutor. "He clearly wants to-a team up with that Kiryu weirdo. This game is about every man for himself, and yet people just-a can't help themselves but work together when they're supposed to-a be against one another! It's what got me out in the first season, but I-a won't let it-a happen again."

By this point, he was close to frothing at the mouth from recalling the past events of the second season: Waluigi and Little Mac had screwed up a challenge for the tribe, and after the latter had been exiled and was unable to be voted for that night, the rest of the tribe was quick to single out and eliminate Waluigi. He might have found some happiness in how far he had gotten, but since that fateful night, he had developed a hatred for both Little Mac and the tribe that had booted him off the show.

"What are you talking about?" Tails said. "You were eliminated because you cost us that entire challenge. It was Little Mac's fault too, but we couldn't have voted him off even if we wanted to."

"Pssh, liar!" He yelled. "Even if he hadn't been exiled that-a night, you still would have-a voted for me because you were clearly in-a cahoots with-a him!"

His outlandish theory simply made Tails speechless, but his annoyed stare did the talking for him. It was clear that his faith in Waluigi maturing since his last performance had already depleted.

"Are you sure it's not because of your attitude?" Theorized Edgeworth.

"Wah?!"

"I've not competed in that desert myself, but I've done my research to know what you were like. You were aggressive, constantly getting on the nerves of others, and not that good at challenges. You were, in fact, eliminated that night because you screwed up and wouldn't take accountability for it."

Before the villain in purple could fight back, Majima joined in with the others.

"Who the hell cares how unjustified your damn elimination was? Your whinin' is bringin' me to damn tears!" He hissed. "You somehow got back here, so spend your second chance tryna damn win instead of bitchin' about how mean a couple of randoms were to ya."

As expected, Waluigi was not even close to thinking that he was in the wrong, but the increasing number of people getting on his case eventually caused him to quiet down, much to the liking of the whole tribe.

"Looks like our first loss isn't going to be a suspenseful night. We've just found an obvious candidate for elimination." - Nero.

Majima yawned. "Anyhow, you all now know what there is to know about me... and on that note, bye-bye!"

"W-wait, you're leaving?" Tails queried, surprised over his casual departure.

"If you're concerned about me not stayin' for this weird team exercise that you've put together, don't be. I gotta see people function in action to get my own idea of what they're about, not just what they say they are," he responded. "Maybe that's just because of the life I've lived, but either way, I'm gonna go make myself comfortable around these mountains."

With no objections from anyone else, Majima proudly left the tribe.

"We sure do have an oddball tribe," admitted Joseph.

Nero agreed. "You can say that again."

"I don't think the normality of our tribe was ever in doubt. One quick glance at some people here would tell anyone that this is no ordinary group of people," Edgeworth stated. "Hopefully, we can use that to our advantage. After all, our two rival tribes surely will."

With low expectations of his foes, the young devil hunter leaned back on his seat. "I'm sure we'll be fine as long as we try and work together. Our rival tribe seems a little tough, but as long as that other weaker tribe is in the mix, I can't see us losing often."

"I was thinkin' something similar. Aside from a couple, they just look like a group of clumsy meatheads and cowards," Sniper thought. "If I'm totally honest, if we end up losing to them, something must be seriously bloody wrong with us."

"At this point, I'm a little too scared to underestimate people, but I know we can pull off our first victory tomorrow! Let's aim for first place!" Tails chimed, his tails spinning with excitement.

Though he appreciated his optimism, the mercenary was more laidback towards their achievements. "As long as the job's done and we're all safe from being voted off, I'm not fussed one bit."

"Didn't wanna say it to his face, but with that Waluigi fella on our team, I think first place is a little too optimistic. He is definitely going to be trouble for us, and the "cheater" shlock he tried to pull makes that more than obvious... what an idiot." - Sniper.

Edgeworth aligned himself to Tails's hopes for tomorrow. "Getting first place will clearly prove our strength as a tribe. So whether second place is safe or not, I'd prefer to stay at the top."

"I'll already be giving these challenges my all, but if we ever have the opportunity to win fishing rods, I'll be going above and beyond!" Declared Joseph. "Otherwise, we'll never be able to catch fish."

"Were we not given fishing rods?" Nero asked.

"I scanned this area multiple times. All we have are tents, this shelter, and essentials for living," Edgeworth stated, brushing down his clothes.

With more bad news adding to his day, he gritted his teeth. "Why the hell did he say that was an option then? What does he want us to do? Dive into a freezing cold lake and somehow grab one?!"

Sniper shook his head. "Let's hope he just wasn't being evil. Surely we'll have some way to catch us a good meal."

Now filled with bitterness and pessimism, Waluigi scoffed at his hope. "Alexa IS evil! There's-a probably not even any fish in-a that stupid lake!"

"Now that would be bloody cruel," he said.

As the tribe continued to ponder over their foe tribes alongside the suspicious lack of fishing equipment, Majima continued to make his way down the mountain. Contrary to what he had said, exploring the Ice Cap Zone was not his primary motive for leaving the tribe. Instead, he was hoping that he would be able to find a certain someone in the vast, frozen-over lake.


Manjari Tribe: Day 1

Survivors: Mr. Krabs - Tracer - Rodin - Falco Lombardi - King Dedede - Glass Joe - Wii Fit Trainer.

Right off the bat, the Manjari tribe felt like the sore thumb compared to the other two tribes. Not only had Alexa purposefully organized Elbrass and Denalo's tribes so that they were linked together as true rivals, but the fact that every member from either tribe was linked to a member from the other tribe potentially put the third wheel tribe at a disadvantage. While some felt it was unfair, they were not going to let that stop them on their journeys.

Upon entering and exploring the tribe, the layout more or less matched the two other tribes. The primary difference was predictably the main color of the flag, tents, and shelter: orange.

As they attempted to make themselves comfortable in their respective mountain, they quite literally caught wind of another disadvantage: the cold winds were directly hitting their cliffside, meaning that their tribe would be the most exposed to the harsh climate. Whether it would last a day or for as long as they stay in that mountain, it made things ever so slightly more annoying.

To combat this, they decided to meet up in their tribe's cave after everyone had explored what the tribe had to offer. That way, the winds wouldn't affect them as much.

Rodin was the last to enter the cave, carrying everything he needed to start a fire so he could cook the rations that they were given.

"Are you sure it's safe to cook in here?" The Wii Fit Trainer challenged.

The gunsmith locked eye contact with her and nodded, returning to setting up the fireplace. "It's about as dangerous cooking in here as it is out there. As long as this fire doesn't go near any tent, we're fine."

"Even if it was more dangerous, that food takes eons to cook!" Dedede grunted. "If we cooked it outside, then I guarantee you that wind would have made it impossible to light!"

The topic of lighting made Glass Joe raise an eyebrow. "Hang on... how are we supposed to light a fire without a lighter?"

Upon uttering the honest question, Rodin slid two pieces of firewood together, causing a great spark and starting a slowly growing fire.

"Might as well save the fact I can use pyrokinesis for later; I don't wanna stand out too much. I'll be going easy on these people anyway, so I don't think I'll be using much of my powers." - Rodin.

"O-oh..." The boxer scratched the back of his neck, abashed.

Falco tutted at Joe as he moved closer to the fire, attempting to counter the cold.

"There's no way I can match up to these people... one wrong move in the next challenge and they'll be at my necks without a second thought.. wait, no, I can't be putting myself down already! I came here to show the other boxers that have gone on this show that, although I'm on the bottom of boxing, I'm more than capable of surviving a place like this!" - Glass Joe.

As the food was left to cook and soak in the clay pot, Rodin rested against a wall, barely feeling the effects of the cold.

"Wish I could have bought a thick jacket," sighed Tracer. "Who knew he'd be so strict about the dress code."

"I guess he wanted it to be challenging," Wii Fit Trainer replied. "In case you're not aware... Alexa is... quite barbaric with how he treats the people here."

Shivering at past memories, Mr. Krabs couldn't help but agree. "You can say that again, lass. I've learned that, if ya want to get that succulent bounty, you gotta be on the lookout for his unfair tricks."

"After seeing that the prize money's gone up, I realized that me losing from sheer bad luck was nothing but good luck! Now I got the chance to win me'self even more money, and I'll grab onto that opportunity with both claws!" - Mr. Krabs.

Falco cockily smirked. "Don't bother saying that. I can handle whatever's thrown at me."

The attempt to not show any weakness only made the sea creature burst out with laughter.

"ARKARKARKARK! Ye say that, and look at ya! Your feathers are already frozen-stiff," he said. "Ya better hope that doesn't affect your performance in these treacherous challenges."

A piercing gaze was immediately sent his way. Falco was not a fan of being patronized, as Krabs had noticed. "Don't go acting like you're going to be outplaying me in those challenges. You'll be sitting at the bottom while the rest of us do the work, which is what you did before you got kicked out back in the Tropics. But feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, crusty."

Krabs groaned, deciding not to bite back at the bird's growing anger.

"I got a feeling that both of you will have as much use in this team as the rest of us," Tracer said. "After all, I can't imagine a man-sized talking crab or a bird in a pilot's outfit being the weakest link. But oh well, all I know for sure is that I'm definitely not going to be the weakest link."

Falco sarcastically turned to her. "Oh really? What do you bring to the team?"

"Nothing but speed and strength!" She casually remarked. "But you'll have to see me in action before you believe me. What about you?"

Before the bird could begin boasting about his own attributes, Glass Joe chimed in with words he did not want to hear.

"Well, he's a bird, so he can fly, right?" He said. "That could be very useful."

The bird gritted his teeth. "...I'm not a flying bird."

"A bird that can't fly, huh?" Tracer queried. "Well... that explains the pilot's license."

The cheeky remark caused Falco to turn even more flustered. "Hey! Just because I can't fly doesn't mean I'm not useful. I'm still incredibly acrobatic, I have years of experience under my belt, and I have the brains to lead a team, even if it's full of strangers."

"If you were brainy you'd know how to fly, lad," Krabs snickered under his breath, the comment going under Falco's radar.

Dedede then stood up straight, arrogantly pointing to himself. "Well, if we're going to be talkin' about what to bring to the table, one glance at me will tell you everything you need to know about what I can do!"

"Eat?" Tracer teased sarcastically.

"Stay warm?" Glass Joe guessed.

"NO!" He roared. "I mean, er, YES, of course I can stay warm and eat, but any old penguin can do that. If this team ever needs brawn in a challenge, then I'm your most important member, that's for darn sure!"

Also having pride in his strength, Krabs was quick to advertise his own worth. "Hey, I'm sure these claws can put your strength to shame, so don't go underestimating me."

Dedede roared once more, this time with laughter. "Keep dreamin'!"

"I barely remember havin' that seafood in my tribe, and for good reason. He did terrible, so when he acts like him and his brittle claws can outdo my strength, I can't help but laugh!" - King Dedede.

All of a sudden, Rodin pulled a cigar from seemingly nowhere, lighting it on the now-roaring fire and sticking it in his mouth. "If there's one thing this team definitely doesn't have, it's some damn harmony. Everyone here's at eachother's throats, trying to prove their worth with hollow promises and words, and I couldn't care less about any of those. My advice is to shut up and let your actions do the talking."

Though his words made those guilty of gloating about their ability think twice, those that weren't were more concerned over the cigar.

"Where'd you get the cigar from?" Glass Joe questioned.

"I have my methods," he smirked, pulling it from his mouth and blowing out a large cloud of smoke.

Wii Fit Trainer eyed him cautiously, trying to think of how he managed to sneak something like cigars into the region. Moreover, she was not a fan of breathing in smoke.

"Can you do that outside, please?" She nervously asked, attempting to not be too forceful.

Rodin looked to her and nodded. "No problem. That fire's probably fillin' this cave with enough smoke."

He stood up onto his feet and stomped out of the cave, proceeding to take his smoke break into the harsh, cold cliffside of the Manjari mountain.

"Didn't expect him to take that so well," Wii Fit Trainer admitted. "And I didn't expect him to be the voice of reason, either."

"Voice of reason?" Dedede folded his arms. "You really think that clown was onto somethin' when he said that we should let our actions do the talking? Of course we should, but it's also obvious that some people here are gonna perform worse than others just by lookin' at them. And I'm specifically referrin' to fresh meat next to ya."

Turning to her right revealed that the bashful penguin was on about Glass Joe, who nervously locked eyes with Dedede. "F-fresh meat?!"

"C'mon, I've seen more muscle on a flower!" He cackled. "And what, you're supposed to be some sort of boxer?"

In an attempt to make himself seem less weak, he nodded firmly. "Y-yes! It's my best sport, and I believe I can use my training for boxing to help us win some challenges."

His confidence and optimism phased right through Dedede, who was more concerned about facts. "Oh really? What's your record. One win to a hundred losses?! BWAHAHAHAHA!"

"Come on. If his record was that bad then he definitely wouldn't be calling boxing his best sport." Tracer rolled her eyes. "Have a bit of faith!"

Glass Joe was silent as he was pestered more and more.

"Spit it out! What are you waitin' for?"

After a large sigh, he thought that lying would get him nowhere, and so he decided to tell the tribe the absolute truth. "...My record is one win to a hundred-and-one losses."

Silence... until...

"PFFFFT... you know what, I like your sense of humor!" Roared Dedede. "But seriously, give us the darn record."

After staring into his beaten soul for a few extra seconds, he alongside the others quickly began to suspect that he wasn't lying in the slightest.

"Surely you're jestin' us all, right?"

"It's true."

"We're doomed..." Krabs said bluntly. "Not even one day in and we're a man down!"

Seeing that Glass Joe was completely distraught, Wii Fit Trainer decided to step in. "Well, these challenges are far different to boxing, or any sports for that matter! Maybe he's a better team player, or good at strategizing and planning, which we need for a lot of the challenges that will be coming up. I don't think we should be writing him off so soon. As Rodin said, we have to see their performance for ourselves."

"The only plannin' he's gonna be doing is his final will." Krabs shook his head.

"Look, missy," Falco scoffed. "I don't think you get the situation. This guy told us upfront just how useless he is at his "best sport", so even if he ends up becoming one of our best team players, you can't blame us for expecting him to be terrible. And besides, why defend him? Him being the worst on our team ensures your safety for a few extra days."

"It's not just about that!" She argued. "Sure, he might suck at boxing, but putting him down like this isn't going to make him perform any better in the challenges."

Seeing her point, Tracer joined in on the argument. "She's right. As long as he has what it takes to be good in a team, then he will offer just as much as everyone here."

The bird simply shrugged. "Whatever you say. But if he screws us out of a challenge once, then he's out."

"I promise you all that I'll try my best!" Bellowed Glass Joe. "Please give me a chance!"

"We got no other choice than to give ya one. It's not like we're going to be voting anyone out tonight," Mr. Krabs said. "I'll give ya a chance, kid, but don't go makin' us understand why your record is the way it is."

"You have my word!" He nodded frantically.

Dedede and Falco continued to glare towards him, but Joe was far more focused on those around him that defended him in spite of his abysmal performance in his so-called "best sport".

"I don't know what they see in that puny weakling. He looks like he struggles to lift a fork up from how heavy it is, let alone someone fit for the inevitable liftin' and haulin' we'll be doing." - King Dedede.

As Rodin re-entered the cave, the Manjari tribe dropped the serious talk for the day, instead focusing on getting their energy up for tomorrow. As a result, not a single one of them left the mountain for the remainder of the day...


Ice Cap Zone (Lake): Day 1

Survivors: Scout - Kazuma Kiryu - Princess Daisy.

Though moments of important and lively conversation were up on the mountains, things were far quieter and focused down at the Ice Cap's lake. It was mostly frozen over, save for a few pockets of chilly water that the survivors were able to hunt fish from.

"C'mon... I coulda sworn I felt a fish!" Scout commented. "Any second now and it'll be back..."

Daisy folded her arms. "Fish aren't dumb you know. There's no way that they'll just swim into an open hand."

"You should take your hand out of the water anyway. You'll hurt yourself," advised Kiryu.

The cocky mercenary shrugged off their concerns. "I don't need your advice! Fish are the dumbest species on the planet, so all it takes is a lil' patience and skill..."

Ironically, not even five more seconds passed before the Scout began to yank his numb arm from the pool of water. "Screw this. There's no way we can get a fish without a rod!"

"So much for patience..." Kiryu thought, quickly before intervening. "Maybe you should take a break. You've had that arm in ice-cold water for nearly five minutes now. Any longer and you'll probably need it chopped off."

As he swapped places with the ex-Yakuza, he pointed to his arm, drained of color. "No way is that true. I can't feel any pain in my arm... in fact, I can't feel a thing!" His smirk then dropped. "Wait a sec, is it supposed to be this white?"

"You should be fine," Daisy reassured. "...I hope," she added under her breath.

Assuming that Scout would be fine, Kiryu brought his attention to the supposed fish that would be lurking in the lake. He stared down into the water and decided to go for a different method.

"Uhh, so are you gonna stick your hand in, or are you gonna sing 'em a song or somethin'?" Scout interrogated.

"Without a rod, a fish isn't going to come to where you want it to," he explained. "That's why I'm waiting until I can see one in the water, then I'll quickly grab ahold of it. Not only that, but my arm won't end up as white as yours."

Daisy nodded slowly. "Ooooh... I see."

"Nice method... we're gonna be here for hours," Scout complained once more. "And I bet we aren't gonna get anyth-"

"THERE!" Kiryu roared, plunging his hand into the water, tensing up from the cold but continuing to dive deeper.

Miraculously, whatever he had seen below was now firmly in his hand, but its texture reminded him less of fish scales. Oddly enough, he felt as if he had a handful of hair in his hand.

The next step was to yank his bizarre catch out of the water, and as he went to did so, the resistance and weight was incredibly high. Kiryu pondered if whatever he was holding was even a fish.

Eventually, the mysterious creature emerged thanks to Kiryu's raw strength.

As it rose from the depths more and more, his confusion was quickly replaced with shock. Kiryu knew exactly what he had caught, and considering past events, he should have known better from the beginning.

"KIRYU-CHAAAAN!" Goro Majima cried, springing from the pocket and onto the ice with pure majesty. Despite being in the water for seemingly so long, he hardly look phased.

"W-WHAT THE HELL?!" Scout shrieked, falling backward with fear as Daisy's jaw dropped.

"Majima..." Kiryu said, still startled from the events that had just transpired.

"Just when I thought I had run out of ideas on how to surprise ya, I used my stealth and swimmin' to catch ya off guard! Oh, and as a bonus, I managed to surprise two of your tribe buddies as well," he cackled, adjusting his soaked clothes. "But damn, did ya have to yank my hair so hard, Kiryu-chan?"

He smiled, getting off of his knees and back onto his feet. "If I knew you were going to prank me, I would have yanked harder."

"Why is he acting so calm about this?!" Scout whispered to Daisy. "Some guy from our enemy tribe swam under all of that frozen ice and jumped out of that hole, and he's actin' like it's not even close to the weirdest thing he's seen."

"I don't know what just happened either, but it was awesome!" She exclaimed. "I wish we had him on our team."

"What? A psycho like him?!"

"He may be a psycho, but he's an athletic psycho!"

As the two chatted amongst themselves, Kiryu knew that Majima was here for a reason.

"So, considering we're against each other... what's your goal?" He asked suspiciously.

He snickered to himself before letting him in on his motive. "Well Kiryu-chan, I've simply come to make one thing straight..."

Majima leaned forward and locked eyes with Kazuma, his expression growing more serious.

"I'm gonna push you to ya limits!" He announced. "If the Dragon of Dojima can defeat some of the best fighters in Japan, sometimes with nothing more than a damn scratch, then you better believe that I ain't gonna let this fun gameshow be a breeze for ya."

"So you're going to get in my way?"

"You already have your work cut out for ya, livin' in a place like this, but even then, I gotta make sure you earn that victory. And if ya don't, then I'll take the money n' glory n' fame for myself!"

Annoyed over his cockiness, Scout got to his feet and walked towards Majima. "Hey, pal. You're acting like this is some sorta one-on-one between you and Kir-yoo or whatever he's called, but you forget that you got guys like me to give you a run for your money too!"

"Oh really? Guess we'll have to see how things will pan out tomorrow. But just know that I'll be givin' my one-hundred percent as always." Majima resumed his crazy smile. "But before we go back to being rivals, just like old times, I'm gonna give ya and your friends a little somethin'."

Upon realizing that his left hand was mainly hidden behind his back the whole time, Goro pulled out a medium-sized trout and handed it to Kiryu.

"You sure? What about your own tribe?" He asked.

"I'll probably wrangle another one on my way back," he shrugged. "Besides, it's always satisfying to defeat someone who has an advantage over you. See ya tomorrow, Kiryu-Chan~!"

He gave a quick wave as he began strolling off across the frozen lake, eventually disappearing from sight.

"The hell is up with that guy?" Scout asked.

"That's Majima... Goro Majima," he stated. "And he's going to be a problem if you can't already tell."

Daisy nodded. "Don't worry, we have your back. We're all on the same team, and even though he looks tough, our team is tougher!"

Her confidence caused Kiryu to smile. "Yeah. Let's head back to the tribe."

"Looks like my gut was right. I knew Majima would end up being another obstacle between me and winning. I guess I'll have to look out for him more too, because something tells me that him appearing out of seemingly nowhere won't be a one-time thing." - Kazuma Kiryu.

With an undeserved fish in their hands, the three returned to the mountain with not only more food, but with an interesting story to tell alongside it...

*TO BE CONTINUED*


Hello, author's note here! I am incredibly sorry about the long wait between the introduction chapter and the first chapter. This is because of me deciding to take a break before I actually began the story, meaning that I wouldn't leave any of my viewers hanging midway through this third season. I hope you enjoy this setup, and you can expect the next episode to come (much) shorter. I am not going to be able to write much next week since I'll be visiting family for most of the week, but I decided on posting the episode now and not after because... I really think this is a good time to receive thoughts before I get into the proper meat of the story. Any predictions you have, feel free to go into detail. I'll definitely be reading them, though I may not be able to reply until the 16th. With all of this in mind, I'll see you in Episode 1B!