Chapter 47

Truths;

July 25, 2021; Thursday

Police Station; Visitor's Center

Nanako sighed as she walked towards the secretary's desk. In her hands, she held a bento box inside a small bag for her father.

"Can you give this to Officer Dojima? He's been getting quite forgetful lately."

The secretary nodded his head and rustled around for a clipboard.

"Sure, but first sign this waiver to identify who you are."

She nodded and took the clipboard and a pen in hand. This was a standard procedure that she was quite used to: Dojima forgot his lunch at home, Nanako would walk over to the station to deliver it, she would sign the waiver with a note scolding him and he would come back home to apologize. It used to happen around two or three times a month, but with all the new cases piling up, it had jumped up to once or twice a week. Regardless, she wasn't annoyed by it, but it made her worry about what would happen if she wasn't able to be around for him.

"Alright then, Dojima-san. We'll make sure your dad gets this on time. Have a good day!"

Nanako smiled and walked out of the station.

"So, what to do today, Nanako-nee?", Toyotama asked her.

"I was thinking of doing some reconnaissance today and gaining some more info about getting your physical form again."

"Then, should we request to go to the records room at HQ?"

One thing that most people should know about Mitsuru-san: she is ready for anything. Although the Shadow Operatives are an undercover organization, you never know when you need help. That's exactly why Mitsuru had put up multiple fronts under the Kirijo Group to have multiple impromptu hideouts for Shadow Operatives whenever needed. Places like these tended to have bunkers and weapons in case of a massive Shadow outbreak or incident that required heavy artillery, but the usual items included access to the records and direct communication to higher level officials such as Mitsuru herself.

"Good idea, Toyotama. Let's go check it out."

Kirijo Group Research Center; Records Room Level 3 Access

"Pretty smart for Mitsuru-san to cover up a records place as a research center. As the saying goes, 'To hide a tree, use a forest'."

"So, have you found anything yet?"

Nanako shook her head.

"Just some past records of Persona users and how they got their powers. Other than that, there really isn't much to go on."

She looked through all the profiles and skimmed their descriptions.

"There's big bro. Says that he got it from the beginning, but he's a special case so I can't relate to his method. Hm? That's strange."

After looking through the files that she found, Nanako stumbled over a folder she hadn't seen.

"Experimental awakening? What's that supposed to be?"

Opening the file, Nanako had to hold in a gasp.

"This is… "

The very first page of the file had showed a person horribly mutilated on the ground. Thankfully, the body was covered up by sheet, but that only made things easier for the mind to imagine what gruesome act was committed. Another turn of the page showed a man being completely dried up. Another showed a man being sent into complete shock.

"What happened to these people? And what the heck is this experimental awakening?"

*THUNK*

"HEEK!"

*CRASH*

The door swung open and a bespectacled man looked inside.

"Oh! Are you alright ma'am?"

"I'm fine! Perfectly fine!"

Nanako got back onto her feet and waved back to the man.

"Just bumped into a shelf, nothing to worry about."

The man looked worried, but decided to brush it off.

"Alright, well let me know if you need anything."

He left and Nanako let out a deep sigh.

"That was embarrassing. Hey, where'd that file go?"

"Over there, Nanako-nee!"

Nanako looked onto the ground and groaned.

"Crud. The file's all messed up now."

She picked up the papers until one of them caught her eye.

"Huh? A success case?"

In the photo, a man with a large scar on his face and a mop of red hair stared back at her.

"Huh, creepy. Sho Minazuki's your name, is it?"

She read over it, trying to make sense.

"Under the tutelage of Shuji Ikutski… no known family members… whereabouts unknown… artificial Persona?"

Now that was new. Nobody ever told her about something like this. Nevertheless, she read on.

"In circumstances involving Ikutski's untimely death, Minazuki was the last of a string of successful experiments that ended. There have been more success stories among the experiments, but he is the only one that has been able to accept his Persona. All others had been able to manifest theirs, however due to rejection of their inner emotions, their Persona had turned on them, causing a string of incidents that have been covered up… "

This was starting to get into some dark stuff. She knew that before Mitsuru took charge, the Kirijo Group was involved in some rather shady affairs, but this was beyond what she had expected.

"Nanako-nee, what's that thing?"

Nanako looked at another sheet of paper that was near the doorway.

"Huh? I don't recall dropping anything near there."

She picked it up and read it over.

"Takumi Fujinomiya. Looks like another success case based on his portrait. His Persona was a car?"

She shivered at the thought of seeing something like that. Honestly, it was like fate was messing with her head or something…

"Nanako-nee! He was stationed in Inaba!"

"What?!"

The paper seemed to weigh more heavily in her hands now. She looked down on the contents and confirmed he was indeed in Inaba at one point.

"At this year… that would have been when Mom was lost… in a car accident… "

Nanako folded the paper and placed it into her pocket before getting up and putting away the folder. She opened the door and made her way to the exit.

"Ah, all finished?", the same man asked her.

"Yes."

"Find everything you were looking for?"

"... "

Nanako left without another word as the man sighed and entered the records room. Looking on the open cabinet, he picked up the file and stuffed it onto his cart. Curiously enough, the file read 'Classified' in big red words.

"Oh, looks like she did…


Around the same time…

*knock* *knock* *knock*

"Hm? Oh! Well if it isn't young Kazuhiko!"

Kaz smiled as the old smiling face of Shura Seijimura greeted him.

"I got your call, Seijimura-san; what's the problem?"

But he was beckoned inside.

"I think it would be best to speak of it indoors. Go on in and have a seat while I get some tea brewing."

Not wanting to upset the elder man, Kaz took off his shoes and let himself be led inside. The house was small compared to most homes on the street, but Seijimura was the only one living here so it seemed to fit.

"Here you are. Now have a seat and we'll have ourselves a little chat."

Seijimura eased himself into a rocking chair and sipped his tea before laying back.

"I was informed by the principal that the old building is going to be torn down."

Kaz's eyes widened in surprise as he set his teacup down.

"Why are they doing that? The place seems very stable, and, even if it isn't, can't it be restored instead?"

Seijimura let out a sigh and rubbed his eyelids.

"No, it was something due to happen in the beginning. I always wished he would forget about it, but that's all it was; wishful thinking."

"He couldn't have taken all of this information lying down could he?", Tyr asked.

"What were your thoughts about the principal's plan to tear it down?"

"You'll hate me for this… but I decided it would be for the best for the old place to be put down."

"Is the spot like a dog to you?", Kaz thought.

"But why? It holds so many happy memories for you"

Another sad sigh from the old man brought nothing but silence for a few minutes. Then, he spoke again.

"Kazuhiko, it's not that I don't like the place, in fact, the principal made plans to build a new building from the ground up-"

"But it's not the same place that you fell in love with your wife. I know that it's very special to you and that's why I think it should be preserved."

"It's the memories of that place which makes it exactly why it needs to be closed down!" Seijimura suddenly shouted.

"I've done things that are… unbecoming of a human. I haven't been able to forgive myself for many years, and the nightmares I've had prove it all. Even now, I can't seem to face those old pictures of Yumo and myself."

The old man looked down at his shoes like a child being caught in the act of something.

"What was it that happened between you and your wife?", Kaz asked.

At the mere mention of his wife, Seijimura trembled. The heavy sighs that the old man let out turned into slight sobs as tears ran down his face. Realizing that he had pondered over a touchy subject, Kaz looked down.

"I'm sorry… I… I should have thought before I spoke."

"No no, it's alright," Shura said as he wiped his tears away.

"I heard that if something is hounding you, you should have a good cry about it every once in a while. I guess it helps a little bit."

He turned to Kaz and smiled.

"I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I felt obligated to inform you about this since you are the only other person who knows about the spot."

"I'm honored that you entrusted the secret to me, Seijimura-san. I just wished that I could have done something for you."

"You've done plenty by helping me with my work! If anything, I should do more for you!"

Kaz waved goodbye as he stepped outside.

Rank Up!

Hermit Social Link Lv 7!


July 26, 2021; Friday

Dojima Household

(Morning)

Nanako stared at the paper she placed on her desk the day before. It was already a significant issue that she had read something like this, but stealing documents from them? Besides, conspiracies like that definitely shouldn't have been Level 3 access-worthy material.

"Nanako-nee, y'know, maybe we should return it… "

Nanako made no reply, but sat down at the desk, turning up the papers to face her.

"Or maybe read it… yeah, I wanted to do that too… "

"Oh hush. Let's see what we have here… "

Takumi Fujinomiya

Age: 13 in 2008 (currently deceased)

Height: 5' 1"

Weight: 127 lbs

Hair Color: Brown

Eye Color: Black

Background:

Takumi Fujinomiya, found nameless at age 3, was a street urchin under the care of a gang of child thieves. Subject was brought back to Kirijo Labs to undergo mind-wiping and training to become a vessel for the Plume of Dusk. After 10 years, Plume of Dusk was inserted. Subject initially rejected the Persona within said Plume, but was able to integrate by using two doses of Persona Suppressors. Two days later, combat training was initiated with usage of the Persona "Vimana" and yielded positive results. The Persona had been resisting, however, and prescriptions of supressents were increased. Subject eventually broke out of containment into the streets of Inaba during the day; the fog was dense enough to cover his escape until his Persona started to fight against him. One overall casualty was the result of his breakout; Chisato Dojima was killed by his Persona, but due to the shape of said Persona, Kirijo Group Officials were able to label her death as a hit-and-run accident. Patient died 1 week later due to overdosage of suppressants.

"Mom… ?"

"Oh my… Nanako-neesan… "

A tear ran down the side of Nanako's cheek as her eyes hovered over her mother's name. For years her father had looked for her killer, believing it to have been the work of a person, but to think that it was all a lie? All those sleepless nights whenever he had the chance to come home early, everytime he came home passed out on the couch smelling like alcohol, it was the reason that kept her father living up until ten years ago and to find out that it was all for nothing?

Nanako whipped out her phone and scrolled down through her contacts.

"Minako-senpai, please pick up… "

*RING* *RING* *RING*

"Hey Nanako-san-"

"Minako-senpai! How could you hide this from m-"

"Hope you're having a good break! No funny business until I say so, okay? I'm not at the phone right now, but leave me a message and I'll call you back ASAP. Bye!"

"W- voicemail?!"

She hung up the phone and dialed again. There was no way she would leave a message like this; it had to be dealt with right at that moment, and Nanako wasn't one to take no for an answer.

"Minako-senpai!"

"Hey Nanako-san! Hope you-"

"Dammit!"

*RING* *RING* *RING*

"Hey Nanako-sa-"

"Come on!"

*RING* *RING* *RING*

"Hey Nana-"

"Answer already!"

*RING* *RING* *RING*

"He-"

She put her phone down on her desk and sulked, burying her face in her arms and letting out her sorrows.

"Nanako-nee… please stop crying… "

"No funny business okay?"

"They hid this from me when they knew I was hurting… Why did they do this?"

*CLICK*

"Sorry I missed your calls, Nanako-san. I was just in a meeting at HQ. Was there something you wanted to talk about?"

Nanako sat up and noticed that Minako had answered her call midway through the voicemail. She picked up the phone and pressed it to her ear.

"Oh, Minako-senpai. Sorry about that, I… uh, well… "

"Nanako-san, you know that you can ask me anything. Just breath."

She breathed in and calmly let her breath out.

"Alright then. Feel ready to talk now?"

"Yeah… "

"So what's up?"

Nanako stayed silent for a few moments until she finally spoke.

"Has there ever been… an artificial Persona?"

"... "

The other end of the line went silent; something to be expected of course, but still unsettling altogether.

"... Why are you asking this?"

"I stumbled across something pretty incriminating; mainly a file concerning the late Takumi Fujinomiya."

"That file… Nanako, whatever you are thinking, let me explain it to you-"

"How could you keep this from me? I thought you all trusted me… "

"Nanako… "

"Never mind. I might as well talk to the head of the snake."

"Wha-"

She hung up and dialed Mitsuru's number in a hurry. One ring… two rings… the heiress picked the phone up on the third.

"Is there something you have to report Dojima?"

"Why did you hide the information from me?"

A sharp intake of breath was heard from the other side of the line.

"That information… what did you see?"

"Enough to know that you're covering up my mother's death from my dad!"

A slight pause from Mitsuru was all that was heard, but Nanako didn't let up her assault.

"I've been training to help the Shadow Operatives for 3 years now. I looked up to you and aspired to help people from shadows, but everything you told me was a lie. Why did you do that?"

"... I'm sorry Nanako-san, but that information is classified. I cannot just tell you this over the phone-"

"Bullshit! You were the reason for all of my suffering! You were the reason that my dad always came home so late! You were the one that destroyed my family!"

"Nanako-san, you have every right to be angry at me but I cannot tell you wh-"

"I have every right to know what happened to my mother and why I had to suffer!"

She hung up on Mitsuru and powered off her phone. Standing up, she walked to her closet and grabbed her holster and gun and stuffed it into her bag.

"Nanako-nee, where are you going?"

"Where do you think?", Nanako snapped back and walked out of the room.

As she left the house, she felt a little strange, as if a part of her had left, but she didn't have time for sentiments; the rest of the day would be made for solely killing off shadows.

Kazuhiko POV

Matsuhito Hotel; Kazuhiko's Room

(Noon)

*bzt* *bzt*

"Hm?"

Kaz picked up his phone and stood up in a hurry.

"There it is. Let's go, Tyr."

"Wha-? Oh darn it!"

Tyr looked up from the desk, previously trying to make a house of cards, but the sudden announcement made him lose his focus, knocking over the progress he had made. Sighing, he floated behind his user and stretched.

"Did the tracker activate?"

Kaz nodded and pulled up the app on his phone.

"I'm glad that I bought those things a little while ago; even more since they can work in the Mirror Dimension while we're here."

Tyr leaned in close and noticed a blinking red dot near the skyscraper.

"I guess they only pinpoint the area in the real world, not in the Mirror Dimension."

"Don't worry, the actual position should be visible when we enter the other side. Let's get going."

Kaz opened his door and stepped out into the hallway.

"Not going to call the others?"

He shook his head as he pressed the button to the elevators.

"As much as I trust them, this is something that I have to be cautious about. I just want to observe, not confront them. Once I have more information about what we're dealing with, I'll call everyone to hold a battle plan."


Mirror Dimension; Niflheim; Floor 30

A tracker on the right gauntlet let out a small signal, unbeknownst to Nanako who was busy carrying out carnage on any poor life form that made its way in her crosshairs. Her face was stone-cold and emotionless while Toyotama stayed quiet the entire time.

"Why is everything hidden from me? Minako-senpai, Mitsuru-san, why did they do that?"

The entire floor was cleared out of shadows and Nanako had finished working off all of her frustration.

"Hey, Toyotama, you there?"

No response was heard. Nanako sighed and hung her head down. It hadn't been on purpose, but she still snapped at her, and that was all that mattered.

"Hey, look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get angry at you, it… I was just caught up with what was happening and I didn't realize what I did until now."

Still nothing. Nanako turned back to the ground and nodded.

"Yeah, I probably would act like that too. Whenever you feel like talking, just give me a heads up."

The expected silence arrived once again, but this time, Nanako picked up on something.

"Toyotama?"

That is, the 'something' she picked up on was nothing. Not a single soul was with her.

"Wait, are you here? Toyotama?"

Nanako searched around the floor, knowing that it was futile, but it was something. After 10 minutes, she stopped to catch her breath.

"What happened?... "

*scrtch*

Nanako turned around and saw something run around the corner.

"Toyotama? Is that you? Please stop!"

She turned the corner and chased after the sound.

"I'm sorry! Please, come back!"

She was on the verge of tears, feeling as if she had failed even herself, not just everyone else. The chase went on for quite some time until she was well above the 30th floor. Catching her breath, she stopped until she heard someone trip in the corridor ahead.

"Toyotama!"

Rushing ahead, she turned the corner to see someone on the ground. The person that she was chasing was on the ground. The woman was tall with long red hair, clothed in a white coat and black leggings. Nanako stopped in her tracks; she was about 5 meters from the person, but made no indication to get closer.

"What… why are you here?"

She pulled out her pistol and aimed it at the woman on the ground.

"Get up! Put your hands where I can see them!"

The woman calmly got herself off the ground and put her hands in the air.

Nanako stared in horror at the person.

"No… nonono, what are you doing here?"

The woman turned around to face Nanako, her expression filled with guilt.

"You probably came here looking for answers, didn't you Dojima?"

Nanako shook her head, tears streaming down her face. It was as if she wasn't sure whether she was sad or angry.

"Mitsuru-san… why did you hide everything from me?"

Mitsuru, who looked down at Nanako's gun trembling, sighed.

"I already told you about this didn't I? I can't tell you now."

Mitsuru started to shine brightly until Nanako couldn't see anything. In a flash, it was just Nanako in the corridor.

"Mitsuru-san?"

She looked around and ran towards any hallway and room she could find. She couldn't have gone far, but Nanako knew that she had lost her chance.

"DAMMIT!"

In a fit, she threw her pistol in the ground and went down on her knees, sobbing into her hands. She not only lost Toyotoma, but she also lost her chance to get revenge. She was tired of losing; tired of

"DAMN YOU! DAMN YOU TO HELL MITSURU KIRIJO! YOU GODDAMN BITCH!"


Aaaaaaand we are BACK! Hey guys! This chapter had a long way coming and was pretty sloppy work, but I just wanted to get this out of the way, especially since college just started for me on the 19th. Anyways, I wanted to tell you guys that I am now on FictionPress! There are a lot of works that I wanted to make, but aren't based on anything, so I wanted to branch out a little. Here's one of my works that I'm planning to publish soon; Take a look!


Part-time Lovers

"Hide-san! We've got customers coming in 5 minutes!"

"Yes sir! I'll get a table ready right away!"

Passing by the shelf, I grabbed a couple of menus and proceeded to pour water into three glasses.

"We've got a lot more on the way!"

"Don't worry, Boss! I can handle it!"

A couple more menus, and I was zooming off to the tables. After working here for a few months, every space in the family restaurant seemed like a part of me. Whenever utensils needed to be restocked, they were always done in a moment's notice. Whenever a customer had been waiting too long for their food, I would alert the kitchen staff and help them speed things along. I was a one man unit; a team of one.

"There's too many of them! We can't take them all with the staff we have on hand!"

"Let them in! I can take care of this!"

A few more customers was nothing to me. If anything, I could finally stretch out my wings and get to the extent of my abilities. I could see the ominous aura of the vast amount of customers pooling into the room.

"Heh, so you think that mere numbers could defeat me? Well you have never been so wrong… "

Rolling up my sleeves, I took pen and pad in hand and moved towards my target. My boss noticed this and grabbed my shoulder.

"Wait, Hide, you can't possibly be thinking of taking all of their orders, let alone catering them. Please, wait until we have more staff!"

I chuckled.

"After all this time, you still doubt my skills?"

I turned towards the restaurant with more gusto than before.

"This is the battle I have chosen. I won't stop until every last one is satisfied, because that is my duty… my duty AS A WAITER!"

"HIDEEEEEEE!"

An hour later…

"I can't believe you were able to do that!"

My boss was counting all of the tips we had received from the customers I had served. Yep, we would definitely be able to get that bar installed now.

"All in a day's work, boss! I'm always happy to help."

He laughed and then sighed.

"You know, you have always been there for me and this restaurant. Even when it wasn't your assigned days, you still came to check on us. You would always put on that uniform and help us when we needed it and never asked for overtime pay. You… you are like the son I never had… "

Now that was new. I turned away from my coffee and saw the boss shedding some tears. I was so embarrassed at the sight, I felt like crying too.

"Aw, boss, you don't mean that. I could never be your son!"

"I know, but if I ever had the chance, I would be proud to adopt you and accept you as my own!"

"Oh Boss!"

"Hide!"

"WAAAAAAHH!"

"Could you guys shut up out there? We're still on schedule!"

I turned and saw Ichiro from the kitchen glaring at us. From the restaurant, I could also see some customers staring at us as well. My cheeks felt hot and I turned back to my coffee to forget about.

"Here; you deserve this."

A wad of cash was handed my way. The boss smiled at me and beckoned me to take it.

"Wait, my paycheck isn't until next week! I can't take this!"

"This is the majority of the tip we earned today. Take it, you deserve it."

I hesitated for a little bit.

"But, the minibar-"

"I couldn't care less about that minibar! Just take the cash! Besides, you don't want to show up to your date with empty pockets, do you?"

I almost crapped myself when I heard that.

"Holy shit! What time is it?!"

"3 o'clock!", Ichirou shouted from the kitchen.

The boss chuckled.

"How could you forget something that you were looking forward to since the beginning of the month? Just take this and go change in the back!"

Not wanting to waste another minute, I ran into the locker room and changed into my street clothes. Hopefully, I didn't smell too much like the restaurant… nah, I just smell like coffee all the time. After all, I'm the one who brews the coffee anyways.

Stepping out of the locker room, I presented myself to Boss. He let out a low whistle and applauded me.

"You sure these are your regular clothes? You look like a bona fide lady-killer!"

I smiled and scratched the back of my head. Since I lived with my grandparents, I never was commended for my taste in style, so Boss was usually the one to fill in. I guess he was like a father to me as I was like a son to him.

"Thanks Boss. Any last words of wisdom before I step out into the unknown?"

He let out a hearty laugh and patted me on the back.

"Nothing other than 'go get her'! You're a trustworthy guy and she better see that in you!"

"Thanks, it means a lot to me when you say that."

"And I've got good reason to! Every boy in my neighborhood has always ogled my daughter. I practically believe that anyone who is attracted to her just wants to take advantage of her!"

"What?! You can't be serious!"

"Mark my words; if any boy ever tries to get close to her, I'll beat the life out of them!"

He accentuated his point by flexing his biceps. I could hear a tearing sound as if the fibers in his shirt were fraying.

"Well, if that ever happens, give me a call and I'll help you out! Just thinking about somebody trying to harm your daughter makes my blood boil!"

The boss stared down at me and shed another tear.

"Spoken as if you were truly my son… why must fate be so cruel that I cannot take you under my roof?!"

I was about to cry too until I heard the door to the front open.

"Oh, Aiko-chan! You're here!"

"Aiko-chan?", thought

"That sounds familiar"

The boss walked out of the staff room and hugged a girl at the front who just seemed to enter.

"Daddy!"

A wave of brown hair was all I could see of her, but something just didn't feel right.

"Aiko-chan, what are you doing here? Surprising your old man?"

"Nuh-uh. I'm here on a date"

The boss grew so stiff, I thought he had frozen up. The staff had stopped moving as well. Confused, I walked over to Ichiro.

"Hey, what's up? Why is everyone so silent?"

Ichiro looked at me with absolute shock.

"You just talked to Boss about this! His daughter is right there! And she's out on a date!"

Something clicked in my mind, and I immediately went into attack mode. Rushing over to the boss' side, I rolled up my sleeves.

"Okay, Boss, where is he? Where is the guy who's on a date with Aiko-chan?"

Funny, now that I said it myself, I remember a little more about the name.

"He isn't here yet, Hide. Thank goodness. Well, come on in and we'll wait for him, alright Aiko-"

"Hide?"

Then, my blood turned into ice. That name which sounded like the word of God, that hair that seemed so delicate it would break at the very contact with human skin, that voice that floated through the air like a sweet melody; it just couldn't be.

"I-I'm sorry?"

I turned around and faced Aiko-chan. Her face was exactly as I remembered it; smooth and round, with skin as light as coffee creamer. This had to be a dream; I was named after luck itself for crying out loud!

Boss raised an eyebrow and turned to his daughter.

"Aiko-chan, do you know him?"

She nodded innocently.

"Yeah! He's my da-"

"Oh my gosh! There he is!"

Without thinking, I pointed outside.

"There's the guy who was going out with her!"

Boss suddenly took a 180 and ran outside, distracted by my sudden outburst.

"Come on, Hide! Let's turn him into a pulp!"

He took off, and I stepped outside too, only I went in the opposite direction.

Why did I have to end up like this?

Why did it have to happen today?

Why did I have to fall in love…

WITH MY BOSS' DAUGHTER!


And that's it! Leave a review about feedback and I will get to you soon. Before I forget, we have some new people who favorited my story! Welcome MCool16, Zachgoertz, and ValuMiku! You guys are the latest and greatest of this story! Thanks for everything, and I will be back soon. See ya!