"A...curse?" Makoto asked.

"When I first arrived in this world, I thought I had traveled back in time. I thought that I had the chance to go back and make everything right. Just like starting over a playthrough." Chiaki took a breath. "And I really believed that. I tried to 100% everything. I made friends with as many people as I could. And if I couldn't make friends with them, I tried to have them make friends with each other."

"So you lived a pretty cushy lie for a while." Junko's voice was cutesy despite the seriousness of the situation. "So what changed?"

"I found it. I found a series called Danganronpa."

Kyoko looked over at Makoto who narrowed his eyes as he was listening to the SHSL Gamer.

"It wasn't like I knew what actually happened after my death. The world ended, right? And...and so many people died. Like I did."

Makoto interrupted her. "So you went through our entries, right?"

"Yeah I...I became a little obsessed with it, I think. I played through all our games, watched all the anime, read through all the novels and manga..." Chiaki sighed. "But at that point, I started to believe what happened to me must have been some weird dream or my imagination. I was alive so it felt like it wasn't real."

Kyoko kept her composure. "Another delusion."

"It kept bothering me, so I...well...there was a special showing for The End of Hope's Peak Academy for a few weeks so I went one day with Enoshima-san and Yukizome-sensei. I think it was a showing of Side: Future Episode 11. And it was during then that I just... started confessing. About how I died and how the whole world was destroyed by despair."

Hajime crossed his arms. "And what did they think of it?"

"They went...completely silent. They started to reformat and I panicked and ran...I didn't know what was happening."

Byakuya grit his teeth. "Right. And so you left them there?"

"You—you guys haven't seen what it looks like." Chiaki pouted. "I watched from outside and they seemed different. They were insulting each other... nothing like the ones I knew from this dimension."

"Then you talked to the rest of us then. I assume you were at least acquainted with all of our counterparts." Kyoko concluded.

Chiaki slowly nodded. "I...I didn't really understand it myself at that point, but I knew I would probably need help with Junko Enoshima running around."

"Yet you kept your identity from us."

"I didn't want to risk the SHSL Despair learning about what I could do."

Byakuya found himself wiping his mouth with a handkerchief as the rain and wind continued to assault them. "Fair enough. Enoshima would probably have wanted to harness that sort of power for herself."

"Awwww. Am I really that predictable? Though that does sound really fun..."

"Silence, wench."

"What about Ikusaba-san?" Makoto asked. "I don't think you'd go to her for help."

"She lured me into the abandoned school building trying to figure out why Junko wasn't acting so strangely. So she tried to, um, 'extract' the information out of me. I managed to tell her about the other world while I was barricaded on the fourth floor and managed to format her too."

"That's quite smart of you, Nanami-san." Nagito looked haughty. "You could have easily died."

"And when I started to think about it, I wanted everyone else to come back too. So I invited Komaeda-kun to meet with Hinata-kun off-campus."

"I guess I have a few ideas why you didn't entrust us with your secret." Hajime's voice was soft and distant.

Chiaki didn't look him in the eye. "It was...too early. So, I...that's what I've done. I'm just bringing everyone over to a world that wasn't scarred by despair."

Everything went silent once again. Makoto looked down for a moment, then looked back up at her.

"I'm sorry Nanami-san. I can't accept that."

Chiaki's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

"Because of what you've done, there were many deaths. Natural disasters have started happening and things are showing up where they're not supposed to."

"But..." She looked down.

Hajime fixed his eyes on Makoto.

"And there were direct victims of your actions."

"Who?"

"Those people you befriended. The versions of us from here." Makoto clenched his fist and held it near his chest. "They trusted you and you threw them away!"

"But they're not..."

"They were real, Nanami-san! They had their own dreams! Their own lives! And now they're...they're gone..."

The group slowly started to steel themselves again while the storm brewing around them started to get worse. Hajime sighed. He knew Makoto was right. And he had also decided to reveal his ace-in-the-hole.

"Nanami, you figured out that the random natural disasters weren't random, either. This storm is proof, isn't it?"

Junko frowned. "You're telling me she can control the weather, too? Got ourselves a real japanese goddess here huh?"

Hajime shook his head. "It's what she used the others for. If Soda was able to construct machines to poison the atmosphere, creating some sort of weather machine wouldn't be an impossibility."

Chiaki looked away.

"Since you probably figured out that natural disasters were tied to people crossing over, you're creating a massive one to force a big crossover. Maybe even the whole world, right?"

"I..." Chiaki sighed as she found herself surrendering at this point. "Yeah. You're right, Hinata-kun."

Byakuya clenched his fist and a vein started to pop on his forehead. "I had thought I had seen enough insanity in one lifetime. Do you know how many more people would be affected by a phenomenon like that?"

"So you showed up because everything was already put in motion." Makoto blinked a few times as he was bracing himself against the winds.

"I'm...sorry, everyone."

Kyoko looked over at Hajime. "Is there any way to stop this?"

"We'd have to shut down the machine. Though I don't know if we're too late or not."

"I...I can fix this." Chiaki's voice was shaky.

"Oh no you don't!" Junko yelled. "We haven't even gotten to punishment time!"

"I need to fix this, and then I'll take whatever punishment you'll give me."

Junko started drooling while Makoto glared at her. "Wh-what?! It's been a while since I got to think of one."

"Not the time!" He yelled. "Nanami-san—"

The SHSL Gamer was already running off from them and leaped into the air. A pair of exhaust pipes stuck out of her bag as she was thrust into the air.

Ai blinked. "A jetpack? Seems she was equipped with some late-game gear..."

Hajime narrowed his eyes as he could only watch her fly away.

"You...!" An unhinged, feminine voice called out from the shadows. Hajime immediately looked and saw Mikan jump toward Makoto with a giant syringe in her hand. "H-How dare you upset my beloved!"

"Wh-whoa!" He closed his eyes reflexively.

He could hear the sound of something shattering as he opened his eyes again. Mukuro dug her knife right into the over-sized medical device, causing whatever dangerous fluid to leak out. Makoto stepped back quickly as the needle dug into the sand.

Mikan held her head in anguish. "Y-You ruined everything!"

Kyoko had her gun drawn while Junko had just grabbed her bat. They both saw the freckled former mercenary and put away their weapons.

"I'll take care of her." Mukuro cracked her knuckles.

"Thanks, Ikusaba-san. Don't hurt her. She's a victim in this too."

"Why?! Why are you getting in her way? All she wants is a beautiful world for everyone!" Mikan screeched.

Hajime looked over at her and saw the same thing that the others were wearing – the same earpiece.

Right before Mukuro was about to land a devastating blow, Mikan fell down and landed in the damp sand.

The artificial SHSL Gamer gasped. "Tsumiki-san!"

Hajime knelt down to check on her. Kyoko also came over. He nodded at her when she approached as she looked underneath her shirt and apron. The SHSL Detective's eyes widened as she saw the scars that their world's counterpart had forming right on her skin, as if an invisible surgeon was making cuts right in front of her.

"It's a good thing that we don't look that different." Hajime observed. "I could only imagine how it was for the you, Kirigiri-san."

"I'd rather not think about it." Kyoko returned Mikan's clothes to their original position. Makoto walked over while Junko was trying to peek behind them all. He picked up the earpiece and listened to it himself.

"Makoto-kun!" Kyoko grit her teeth.

"It's just like she said. It's just her talking about The Tragedy." The recording eventually stopped. He handed it over to Hajime who began to take it apart.

"That was reckless. As usual." Byakuya spat. "That could have easily been a recording that induces brainwashing."

"I'm fine Togami-san. Besides, it'd probably be just like the Hope Video to me."

Nagito's eyes widened. "I always knew you were true Hope, Naegi-san."

Makoto gave off a wry smile. "Er... it's more like... why would I get distracted by something I've already seen in my mind? I already know what my hope is just like I know my despair."

Junko smirked. "Hm? Then do you want to watch my special video for you again?!"

Mukuro narrowed her eyes as she glared at the back of her sister's head.

"Looks like the recording was set on a timer." Hajime tossed the scraps of plastic and metal when he was complete with his analysis.

"We should get Tsumiki-san out of the rain." Ai advised.

"Allow me." Nagito sounded off. He picked her up under her shoulders and began to drag her.

"Hold for a moment, Komaeda-san." Kyoko pointed up at the sky.

The artificial Nanami narrowed her eyes and used her eyes to take a closer look, as if she was wearing binoculars. She could see dozens of Monokuma-like machines raining down from the sky, coming in all sorts of shapes and sizes – as if someone had broken open some sort of strange despair dungeon.

"More Monokumas, everyone!"

"We need to move." Kyoko ordered. "We need to take shelter from this storm, anyway."

Nagito looked over at Mukuro who lifted the unconscious SHSL Nurse with ease over her shoulder. Finding himself smiling at such talent, despite the owner, we sighed and admired it as she went on ahead.

Makoto shook his head. "Hinata-san, I'm worried about Nanami-san. I have an idea. Come with me!" The SHSL Hope started running in a different direction than everyone else. Mukuro glanced over for a few moments then glanced over to where she was originally headed to with her cargo in tow. Hajime and the android Chiaki went to follow the bold former lucky student.

"Whoa, what the hell man?!" Leon swung his bat into one of the imitation Monokuma units. "Where'd these freaks come from?"

Sakura jump-kicked one into a dozen of them, wrecking the units with ease.

"Everyone! We must focus!" Kiyotaka boomed. "We've gotten ourselves separated from Munakata-sensei and Sakakura-sensei. We need to rally and get to them, now!"

"Bro! You gotta be careful!" Mondo grabbed one of the Monokuma-like units and slammed it into one that was right behind them. "Fujisaki's right behind you, man!"

"I apologize, Fujisaki-kun! We will get through this, I promise."

"I-It's okay, Ishimaru-kun. I know we can get through this together."

"Dammit! Where's Sayaka-chan anyway?!" Leon yelled. "She wasn't with us, right?"

Sakura's voice was calm and serene. "I am sure she's fine. We must worry about ourselves."

"Such vulgarity." Celestia was standing behind Hifumi, somewhat using him as a human shield. "I've grown tired of these sights. Let's get going already."

"Y-Yes of course, Celestia Ludenberg-dono." Hifumi puffed up his chest. "Nothing will get past me! You have my word as the SHSL Doujin Artist!"

"Mmhm. GET MOVING ALREADY!"

Hifumi yelped and acquiesced to her demand, continuing on along with the others. As Class 78 started to wade through the deluge of killer robots, a much larger one landed nearby. It was large enough that everyone looked over at the large, humanlike Monokuma. Had Junko been there, she would have definitely called it Mon'Duba.

"What the fuck?!" Mondo yelled out. "This is bullshit!"

Kiyotaka was so shocked he couldn't even properly chide the SHSL Gang Leader for his potty mouth. Sakura stepped forward to challenge the monk-like Monokuma.

Mondo looked back toward a loud sound coming from behind. "What now? Wait, that bike sounds it's been through a lot of crap..."

Komaru, on the bike she took from the Towa City ruins, rode past them all as Genocider Syo leaped over them from it and started to slice the giant robot into metal ribbons with her scissors.

"Now this'll be nice for Christmas presents!"

Komaru stopped the bike with a slide, looking at the teenagers. "Everyone okay?"

Sakura nodded. "Komaru Naegi. It is good to see you."

"W-Wait, Naegi? Is she related to sensei?" Leon whistled.

"Uh, yep! I'm his younger sister. The normal ordinary girl, Komaru Naegi!"

"And I'm your neighborhood friendly serial killer, Genocider Syo! I've been a good girl lately, but seeing some cute boys gets me really fired up!"

"T-The serial killer?!" Chihiro squeaked.

"You're as cute as I remember ya, Cherry!"

"C-Cherry?"

"Yep! You know, like cherry boy?"

"Cmon, Syo." Komaru sighed. "We'll help you guys out. If anyone can call us experts on fighting these things, it's us!"

"I am thankful for your assistance, Komaru-kun!" Kiyotaka bowed deeply.

"Hey, if you guys haven't noticed, we're gonna get swarmed with these things here!" Mondo yelled. "Save the chitchat for later!"

Hifumi was in awe. "Y-Yes. Komaru Naegi-dono! We must discuss anime when this is all over!"

"E-Eh? Uh, sure I guess."

"You're about as disgustingly obvious as Kuwata-kun is." Celestia placed her hand over her mouth.

Leon frowned. "Yo! What the hell is that supposed to mean?!"

"Blah blah blah! The angry gorilla's over this way!" Syo waved as she skipped along without a care in the world. The class started to follow her hesitantly. Komaru followed from the back, keeping an eye out from behind with her trusty (un)official Sayaker hacking gun wielded.

For a moment, she stopped as she heard something strange. She could have sworn she heard some whispers on encouragement from somewhere. Looking around, she saw no one – in fact, aside from the angry killer robots falling out of the sky, she didn't see anyone else around her. She shook her head for a few moments while wondering what just happened.

"Heeeeey! Dekumaru! You're gonna be left behind!"

"R-Right. I'm coming!"

"Goooood nom nom noming!" Ibuki greeted her classmates with her usual energy.

"Hey! Pay attention, Mioda-nee!" Hiyoko scolded. "How the hell is it a good morning? It's not even morning!"

"Yeah, but the weather's nice and the acoustics are amazing in here!"

"It's storming outside! Augh! Sometimes I wonder if you got a few knocks to the head as a kid."

Akane frowned. "Damn. What can we do? I can't beat up the weather!"

"We just woke up and are in the middle of something big, Owari." Nekomaru did a few stretches. "Seems like we missed a lot. Ahahahaha! Now's the best time for a team building cheer!"

"Right! I need to get fired up! My body's feeling like jelly right now. Thanks, old man."

Kazuichi was standing right next to Sonia, who was staring out at the worsening weather.

"You alright, Sonia-san? If you get cold, let me know okay?"

"I will be fine Soda-san. But as Nidai-san stated we've just all basically arrived here with barely any context. What do you think of this storm, Tanaka-san?"

Gundham and his group of over 20 hamsters continued to stare out at the terrible weather. "Even I fear these twisted energies emanating from the abyss. It truly comes from the depths of hell."

"Indeed. If this keeps up, the entire island may be annihilated."

"Wh-whoa!" Kazuichi screamed. "We can't just die in a place like this! We barely even know what's going on!"

Ryota was sitting in the corner while hugging his knees. "Again? Why'd I mess up this badly...?"

The SHSL Impostor placed their hand on his shoulder. "You mustn't blame yourself. Nanami is also feeling as guilty as you are."

"Yeah. But I could've realized sooner and tried talking her out of it."

"If you continue to think about what you could've done, you would be blind to things that you can do now. As one who lacks an identity, I know all about living in the here and now."

"But still..."

"Mitarai." Mahiru had a hardened gaze. "Just focus on what you can do to make up for it. If you mope around like now, you'll be worse off. Aren't you supposed to be a man?"

"I..."

"You'll never forgive yourself if you sit there and cry over your mistakes."

"Yeah. You're right, Koizumi-san."

"Hey! Everyone, focus!" Fuyuhiko ordered. "Those damn Monobots are gonna be here any second. We gotta hold down the fort while Hinata does his thing. If we slack, we're fucking dead!"

Peko stood next to him as the rest of the class present gave him their attention.

"The others are out there fighting too. We gotta do our part. And I'm swearing on my honor that I'm gonna make sure they got a place to get back to. Got it? You with me?"

Agreement started to come from the mumbling among the crowd. Those who just arrived were starting to get fired up from the SHSL Yakuza's determination.

Mahiru sighed and gave a small smile. "Yeah. You're right."

Fuyuhiko couldn't help but glare at her for a little bit before softening his own look. "...we're finally on the same damn page. Heh... guess Naegi's got a point. I should probably talk more about shit."

"Everyone! Look!" Sonia gasped.

They could all see the winds and rain becoming a full blown hurricane – thunder roared while visibility became so poor that it looked like an actual wall of clouds was forming a wall between them and the outside world. The vegetation was starting to bend and break from the sheer force. Some of the Monobots were caught in the crosswinds, being torn to pieces from them.

"Shit!" Fuyuhiko yelled.

The weather was so harsh that even the car's window wipers weren't able to properly clear the windshield. Makoto's hands were grasped firmly on the steering wheel as he was driving through it.

"You still sure about this, Naegi-san?" Hajime asked as he was calmly watching in the other front seat.

"We don't have time. It'll be alright. We just need to get to Nanami-san." Makoto shifted up gears as he revved up the engine. "I can't help much, but this is what I can do for you."

Ai blinked a few times as she was firmly planted in the backseats, sitting right in the middle of them. The car was starting to shake as the storm picked up in intensity.

"You've already helped plenty."

"Doesn't mean I'm going to stop."

"Your car's not going to get through the eyewall." The former SHSL Hope took a deep breath. "But...I think I know how to get to her."

Makoto's eyes shifted toward the man formerly known as Izuru Kamakura. "Yeah?"

"It's a plan not guaranteed to succeed." Hajime smirked. "Seems like your illogical ways are contagious."

The current SHSL Hope smiled in response as he looked forward.

"Open the sunroof. Nanami and I will take care of the rest."

The artificial girl nodded with a resolute look in her eyes.

Makoto flipped the switch to have the sunroof slowly open up, the rain starting to pour inside the vehicle as he eased his step on the accelerator. Hajime stood up, gripping the sides of the opening and leaped onto the top of the moving vehicle. Ai followed him up top, activating the magnets embedded in her feet and stood on top along with him. The three could see an expanding wall of solid clouds in front of them.

The car's engine continued to roar. Hajime reached out to the android. "We have to get high enough!" He yelled.

"Okay, Hinata-kun!"

"Naegi-san! I need you to go as fast as possible. She needs enough momentum to jump off your car and into the air."

"Got it. Hold on!" Makoto slammed his foot on the accelerator.

Ai gripped onto Hajime's hand as hard as she could, keeping them both atop the fast-moving sports car. They got closer and closer to the misty wall of harsh winds and rain. The mechanical SHSL Gamer kept focus until she could hear the RPMs of the vehicle reach critical levels and took a few big steps from the moving "platform" and leaped as high as she could with Hajime in tow.

Makoto slammed on the break while downshifting, sliding into a half-complete drift. He was headed straight for the misty cloud wall, despite his efforts.

AI Chiaki felt herself lift up from both the hazardous winds and using Naegi's car as a mobile launcher. She could make out rays of sunlight from the height they were both at.

They reached what felt like an invisible apex and started to fall back down.

"Damn it! We were so close!"

"No. This is what you were planning for, right?"

"Nanami?"

She smiled despite the winds. "I'm here to help you, remember?"

Hajime's eyes widened. "Wait!"

They were caught in the updraft right before the eyewall. She started to spin around while she had some helpful levitation to use as leverage, still holding onto Hajime all the meanwhile. After a few spins, he felt the grip loosen. She threw him higher, as she got caught in the crosswinds. His arm was still reached out to her as she was taken away by the winds. He grit his teeth and found himself in the clouds. It was getting hard to breathe. He could see the actual eye of the storm below him. Adjusting his body to aim it toward the target, he thrust himself toward it.

In the midst of the storm, Chiaki was busy trying to shut down the machine. She found herself at ground level at a monolithic building reminiscent of a giant TV antenna.

"Come on, come on! Please!" The machine was refusing to obey the emergency shutdown commands. "Is it...it's too late?"

The SHSL Gamer looked toward the jetpack she laid near the ground. "If I destroy it, it'll stop. I think." Resigning herself to what she needed to do, she went to see if she could overload the backpack so it could explode and stop the storm from brewing.

Chiaki's concentration was interrupted when something crashed right next to her causing her to fall over and land on the floor. Coughing from the dust brought up from the newly-created rubble, she looked at a tattered body that had its clothes ripped apart from the winds.

"Hinata-kun?!" Chiaki ran over and looked at him.

"Chiaki." Hajime whispered as he was standing up slowly. "Almost...almost missed back there..."

Tears started forming in her eyes. "Why are you here?! I...I was going to fix my mistake..."

"I'm here to fix one of my own." Hajime replied while in bloodied, tattered clothing. He stood over her, looking down at her.

"...I couldn't let go like the rest of you did. I couldn't move forward. I was given so much and I got so greedy..." Chiaki was keeping herself flat on the ground. "I'm so sorry, Hinata-kun."

In true Kamakura fashion, he didn't respond right away. He only looked down at her just like he did right before she died.

"Chiaki."

He extended his hand to her. She looked up at him with her tear-filled eyes.

"Why? Shouldn't you just leave me? I...I have no right to be in your future. You and everyone were going to make memories and I took it away by being selfish."

Hajime shook his head. "Had I done something back then, your future wouldn't have been stolen away."

"You became Izuru Kamakura for my sake and I..."

"Don't blame yourself for that. I made that decision."

Both of them went quiet.

"...it's funny. Maybe if we had played that new game together...we could've worked something out." Chiaki sighed. "And maybe I could've finally told you how I felt."

"Yeah. But we have time now."

"Hinata-kun—no—Hajime-kun. I missed you."

"Me too."

She reached for his hand and he grabbed onto it as if it was a matter of life or death. Wincing from the pain from his cuts, he helped her up on her feet.

"Everyone's waiting for us." Hajime murmured. "I'll tear this thing down..."

Makoto heard himself cough while the waves were rolling in to the right side. Finally regaining consciousness, he slowly opened his eyes and saw a familiar smiling face above him blocking out the sun.

"Aw. Unlucky. I was about to give to mouth-to-mouth."

"...Junko?"

"Sheesh. They should've called you the SHSL Undying. Others can't kill you, you can't kill yourself, hell; even nature couldn't do it!"

"I'm glad you're okay, too."

"U-Ugh! Don't make me feel all happy and giddy inside. I might not be able to control myself..."

Makoto dug at the sand beneath his fingertips and sat up. "What...happened?"

"Oh you know. The hero saved the day. The usual." Junko boredly looked at her nails. "But who cares about any of that? Gimme that answer!"

"The answer? O-Oh, right. Wait, why ask me now?"

"Oh come on! Stop stalling. You tease..."

Makoto sighed. "I mean, this isn't exactly the best time to be asking me."

"You'll be plenty candid right now, right?"

"Well, there were some losses."

"What loss? You look all in one piece to me. Or did you become a eunuch?"

He took a look over toward the shore and found the wreckage of his car. He winced and stood up, hobbling over to it. Finally reaching the mound of scrap, he whispered and pat it. "Thanks for everything."

"Seriously?! This is mega dorky. Even for you."

"I probably wouldn't have survived if I wasn't in the car."

"Whatever."

"Anyway, I wanted to ask you something."

"Oooh. Wonder what question you could be asking me?"

"I know the Hope Video affected you a little bit. What did you see?"

"Huh. Want to know what my hope was, hmmm?"

"I'm curious."

Junko looked bashful. "Weellll if you want to know, you were in it!"

"Okay."

"Hey! You aren't impressed or anything?"

"I don't know what the context is."

"Fine, fine. It was you and me on a corn farm on the moon!"

Makoto's eyes narrowed slightly. "If it was anyone but you, I would've thought I was being messed with."

"So, time for you to answer my question." She walked over and sat right next to him as he was sitting against the wreckage of his sports car. "Or are all the people you're dragging along with you holding you back?"

"That might've been the reason." He looked back over at her. "But I think I'll be a little selfish now. Sure. I'll try it."

Junko's face went completely blank. "Are you seriously saying yes? You're either super confident or super out of it."

"It sounds super scary when you put it like that. And it honestly is. I mean... it's you."

"Aww! Makoto Naegi likes me! He likes me he likes me he likes me!"

Another tired groan came from the former SHSL Lucky Student. "People say they liked the SHSL Fashion Girl because she wasn't fake. Now I can see why that is."

"Ooh? A masochist, darling?"

"No! That's not what I meant. It's just... for all that insanity that's racked up in your head... you finally decided to be relaxed around me. Around everyone, honestly. What you see with Junko Enoshima is what you get."

A small smile formed on her face. "You'll get sick of it."

"Are you sure?"

"...no. I'm not." She moved right next to him. "So, when are we going to the moon, darling?"

"I don't even think you can grow corn on the moon."

"What?! Hey, aren't you supposed to be the SHSL Hope? Just Hope it'll grow!"

Makoto stifled a laugh.

"The despair of my dreams being laughed at! Now I'm getting in the mood."

"Hey, stop! I'm still sore!"

"Nope! Too late, once it gets going, you can't stop it Ma-ko-to!"

"Th-there! All done! P-Please tell me if I did it wrong, Hinata-san!"

Hajime looked at the job that Mikan did wrapping his body in bandages. "You did well, Tsumiki. Don't worry about it."

"Y-You're always so nice to me."

Ibuki stuck her tongue out. "Isn't she so cute when she's flustered? Man, I love being in the world of girls' love!"

"G-Girl's love?!" Mikan started to turn red as a tomato. Stumbling backward, she fell over in a compromising position while on her back.

"See? Mikan-chan is so cute! Right, Chiaki-chan?"

The SHSL Gamer snapped out of what she was thinking about and smiled. "Yeah...I guess."

"Ugh. Back to your old skanky ways, Tsumiki? Come on! You're better than that." Hiyoko scolded. "Stop it or I'll have to bring back the nicknames."

"F-Forgive me!"

Mahiru sighed. "Are you alright, Nanami-chan?"

"It's just...after what I did to you guys and your other selves from this world...you guys just accepted me back so easily..."

"Well, we're all war criminals. Just think of it like fitting in." Mahiru nervously replied. "We can't take back what we've done. Even if there were reasons for it."

Chiaki sighed and looked down. "Still. I'm sorry, everyone. And the other me..."

Hajime looked down. "She's out there. I'm sure of it."

"Sounds like you're full of hope, Hinata-kun." Nagito entered with a beaten up Ai, with her arm around his shoulders.

"Ai-chan!" Mahiru gasped as she ran over to her.

"Whoa! Two Chiaki-chans? Amazing! Double the fun, am I right?" Ibuki mused. "We get to hear her in STEREEOOOO!"

"Nanami, are you okay?" Hajime asked as he walked behind Mahiru.

"W-Well... I'm missing an arm and I think one of my eyes stopped working. But I'll be okay. I think."

"Hey! Soda!" Mahiru put her hands on her hips as she addressed the SHSL Mechanic. "Hinata's injured so you'll just have to fix her up."

"Wh-what?! Me?"

"Aren't you supposed to be a dependable man now? Come on!"

Sonia placed her hand on the artificial Chiaki's shoulder. "You poor thing."

"J-Just leave it to me! Nanami's gonna be as good as new. You'll see!"

"My teams are finishing up surveying the damage around the islands. Not to worry though, the Togami group will be glad to fund reconstruction efforts." Byakuya smirked, not hiding his underlying intentions.

"Hey! If you need a point man, I'm always willing to help." Hiro smirked.

"You're just gonna scam these poor people in need, Hiro!" Hina crossed her arms in disapproval.

"Yes, well, as Hina mentioned... I'd rather not have a representative of mine have such a seedy reputation."

"Hey!" Hiro yelled. "I wasn't up-selling emergency kits! Not at too high of a price, anyway."

Hina was not impressed. "Seriously!"

Byakuya adjusted his glasses. "I will say that your business acumen is your only redeeming quality."

"Don't encourage him, Togami!"

Makoto sneezed as he shivered a bit. Despite everyone being in the rain, he was the only one that came down with a cold.

"Awww, poor Makoto." Junko grabbed his arm and held it in the middle of her chest. "Do you need to lay down? I always want to try out some nurse play..."

"N-No! I need rest, not whatever you're offering..."

"You'll be resting well after I'm through with you."

"Don't accost him further, Enoshima." Kyoko crossed her arms like a disapproving parent. "Togami-kun, how widespread was the damage?"

"It affected the whole island like a typhoon would. It seems all the Monokuma-like units were destroyed in the weather before Hinata shut it down. There were a few casualties."

"If that is all, we should head back to the mainland soon. Staying here would pose a problem."

"About that..."

Everyone turned to the former SHSL Heir. Even Mukuro looked uneasy at his tone.

"Well. It would be best to show you the images I just received."

ANote

"Um..." Kaede looked completely perplexed. "Can anyone explain to me what this whole Hope vs Despair thing is about? Anyone?"

No one answered her. They were as lost as she was.

"If I had to guess..." Rantaro began. "It might have something to do with the first few seasons of Danganronpa. That Junko Enoshima chick looks familiar. I think I've seen people cosplay it."

"Oooh! Then Shirogane-san would probably know a thing or two about that."

Gonta placed his hand on his chin. "But... Gonta thought Oma-kun was mastermind. But that was lie?"

"Of course it was! That stupid rat is always a big fucking liar!" Miu put her thumb down. "Like he'd reveal himself if he was the actual big bad."

"Ooh! Miu is still pretty angry at Kokichi!" Angie smiled as she mused. "You know that they'll both show up soon or later."

"Yeah! And I'd have half a mind to choke him to death when I see that little shit."

"Hey! None of that." Kaede crossed her arms and glared at Miu, causing her to sweat and back off.

Tenko clenched her fist. "Momota-san was kinda cool at the end there. Even if I hate to admit it."

"Hm? Is that so? I'd say Oma-kun's plan to end the killing game – while contrived – is worthy of respect. Albeit a bit begrudgingly." Korekiyo countered.

The SHSL Akido Master only glared back at the SHSL Anthropologist.

Ryoma crossed his arms. "They both had their good and bad points about them. I know it's an uncool and morbid thing to say, but that was the most interesting trial yet."

Kirumi nodded. "Indeed. To truly appreciate and understand what we just watched, we should go into it with a more flexible mindset. Despite the fact that this is still mindless entertainment in the end."

"Gee, come on guys. You guys make it sound like we're not even involved in the first place." Kaede pointed out. "There's still five of our friends still participating, you know."

"Go Yumeno-san!" Tenko cheered.

"As the resident expert of the killing games, Amami-kun, who do you believe will survive until the very end?" Korekiyo asked.

"Saihara-kun." Kaede interrupted.

"Not a bad guess, Akamatsu-san." Rantaro replied. "I can also see Harukawa-san and Yumeno-san making it as well. But if it goes anything like my debut game, one of them might have to be sacrificed."

Kaede looked down while everyone else became somber. The silence was interrupted when the two stars of the fifth case entered in.

"They figured it out. Aw, Momota-chan! Seems like your acting is as shitty as your logic skills."

"And you can shove it, Oma." Kaito retorted. "Asking me to do all that crap basically last minute. You're one annoying gremlin, you know?"

"Momota-kun. Oma-kun. Welcome." Kaede smiled. "You two are...looking pretty lively."

"Of course! I may have lost, but I got pretty far! Not bad, huh?" Kaito gave a thumbs up to everyone.

"Sheesh. Getting excited for losing. What a weirdo!" Kokichi grinned.

Kaede sighed. "Were you always this rude, Oma-kun?"

"Rude? Yeah! Or maybe it's a lie. Who knows? Nishishishi!"

"Yeah, I don't remember him being like this. In fact, I wished he was as quiet as he was in the beginning." Kaito spat. "Me? Seems like they didn't change much for me. Guess I was pretty good as I am."

"You could probably call it Dumb Luck."

"Wanna repeat that?"

"Threatening little ol' me? Temper, temper Momota-chan! I might think you secretly like me!"

"You wish!" Kaito crossed his arms with a dismissive look.

"Um..." Kaede interrupted. "You know, the killing game is over for you two. You don't have to fight right now."

"But that would mean going back to my boring, old personality. Now this? This is pretty fun, don't you think Akamatsu-chan?"

"It's a little annoying, to tell you the truth."

"Ah! A truth!" Kokichi smirked with an evil glint in his eyes. "What a disappointing offering to the SHSL Supreme Leader."

Despite being egged on, Kaede took a deep breath and ignored it.

"Well, if that doesn't get you going, the identity of that staff member in charge of us might!"

"What? Do you know who he is?" Kaede asked. The rest of the entire room, including Kaito, looked at him.

"You better not be doing a stupid lie again." Kaito warned.

"Well, since everyone values the truth so much, I might as well give my own... you see..."

The light went on in a completely dark room. There was one occupant sitting in front of bunch of screens, working on a main computer set while the killing game was going on. The blue-haired glasses girl looked up as if she was in a daze.

"Honestly, Shirogane-san. You should stop working completely in the dark. It's bad for your eyes."

Tsumugi yawned and stood up from her chair. "It's been a while since you've been in here, Keebo Idabashi."