A/N: Another chapter... and this time, we finally enter the Steamy Bathhouse! That actually sounds weird to say. Too bad my mind's a bit blank as I've gone and caught myself a cold and a mini-fever, but nothing a computer addict such as me can handle! Bwahahaha-

adtauthor22 - Definitely not at the Marukyu Striptease, haha. I'm kinda glad you think the pairing is interesting, heck I hardly see any fanart or fanfic about it and had to resort to fanart from pixiv (a Japanese version of deviantART, kinda?). I'll be having my fun doing this story once Kanji's in (and has a Social Link) for sure...

Mr Giraffe (Guest)
- I write chapters when I can because I have a very bad attention-changing streak, in which if I don't throw my ideas out at something, I can overthink and suddenly lose interest. I don't want that to happen to this fanfic, not when I got someone who's actually reviewing my stories and makes me all happy to read em :D
- Well, you'll see how well Yui does in this chapter, lol. Beware, a mini-conflict storm is headed for the Dojima family in this chapter! As for Yui knowing that Naoto's a girl, that might be kind of wrong... oh well, you'll see in this chapter too. I can only imagine all the cringing Yui will be doing in her mind once Rise's a part of the team, hahaha.
- I'll just read the reviews anyway, condensed or not, so write away when you feel like writing pages long! But that means my replies would be pretty long too, so... eh. As for Kanji x Yui, sorry to say, that's gonna be a long while away... I mean, if you see the AO3 version of this story, the tags would be telling of how slow the feelings would develop... nyeh. But there will be loads of pining from the both of them. I think. AhhhhIsuckwithideasandwriting =A=||
- Yui wearing a bikini is also gonna take a whileeeee... but if you're really smart, you can think of a certain time where she will wear it! Remember, it's after Naoto is saved...

With that done, on with the chapter!

Yu met up with his friends at school, but they weren't able to probably talk about Kanji's kidnapping until school ended. They all had glum faces at the single fact that now revolved in their minds – they failed to save him from the killer.

Yosuke sighed. "Given the pattern so far, Kanji's already inside the TV..."

"I wonder what the Midnight Channel really is..." Yukiko murmured, looking thoughtful.

"Hmm..."

"At first, I thought it was one of those 'paranormal' things, but when I gave it a try... it was real. Turns out it's actually connected to another world..." Chie admitted.

"If there's a rumour going around, that means a bunch of people are watching it."

"How did the rumour go...? If you stare into a turned-off TV on a rainy night..." Yukiko asked them. Yosuke began wondering about it too. "No one in their right mind would try something that ridiculous, don'tcha think? Unless someone urged them to. But if you actually try, it does work. And not just once. If this rumour spreads and everyone starts watching the Midnight Channel..."

Chie's eyes widened. "It could cause a huge panic..."

"If Teddie is right, the missing people themselves create the stuff we see. So it's not random. It's specifically related to whoever goes missing."

The brunette sighed this time. "Yukiko had a show too, but she doesn't remember doing anything like that."

Yukiko spoke up. "Um, this might be a little off subject, but... the culprit is probably watching the shows that come on... right?"

"No doubt. He's probably sitting back and enjoying- wait a sec... I bet he IS enjoying it! He's probably laughing his head off watching the 'show' that comes on after he throws people into the TV!"

Yosuke scratched his head. It was starting to make sense again. "Ahhh, I get it. Yeah, it's definitely possible. Ugh... now when I think of the killer, I get this image of a total sicko! 'I wanna see everything about you, Yuki-chan!'"

"Urgh, ugh, ugh!" Chie stomped the floor. It infuriated her to think of some pervert guy doing all this. However, she soon realised something. "Wait, so if people saw Yukiko's show, do you think people were watching what happened to me too!? Oh, that is IT! That killer is dead meat! I'm gonna leave footprints all over his face!"

With a fiery spirit, she looked at the others. "Guys! First we save Kanji! Then, we crush the killer! Finally, we crush the killer and send him to hell! Got it!?"

Everyone else nodded, their resolve strengthened to save Kanji from the TV world. Along with it, they grew stronger as a team… and Yu could feel the Fool Social Link become stronger as well. What broke the inspiring moment was Yukiko's snickering. "Heehee... Ch-Chie, those last two were the same thing..."

"Uh... I know..."

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

Later, they went into the TV world to meet up with Teddie.

"Hey Teddie, someone's here, right?" Yosuke asked him. The bear was facing away from them as he spoke. "Oh... yep. I think someone's here."

"You think...? Do you know where he is?" Chie then asked.

"I dunno."

"We think it's a boy named Kanji..." Yukiko added.

"I dunno..."

Chie frowned. Something's not right. "What's wrong? Not feeling well?"

Finally, Teddie turned around to face them. "Well, I sniff and I sniff. But I still can't tell where the smell comes from," he told them, looking troubled. Yosuke sighed. "Aren't you thinking too much about too many things? I mean last time, you were wondering about who you really are and how long you've been here. Your head's empty to begin with, dude. Don't stress out over stuff too much."

"…You're right..."

Chie blinked in surprise. "Whoa... he's seriously down about this..."

Now this brought on some new problems. Yosuke rubbed his head. "If you can't figure out where Kanji is, we're in deep trouble. We can't just wander around aimlessly in a place like this..."

Suddenly, Teddie perked up. "I know what might help! You should give me a clue about this Kanji person! It's just a feeling I have. I think I could concentrate better with it. Do you have anything that could give me a good understanding of him?"

"Something about Kanji, huh…? I can't really think of anything besides all the rumours about him."

"Yeah, it's not like we know him that well…" Chie added. They knew nothing of important about him. " I just need some sort of hint... something that tells me what he's really like," Teddie then told them. If a hint is enough, then…

"Why don't we ask around and find people who know Kanji-kun personally?" Yukiko suggested. "We can do that," Yu agreed to it. "We should split up while we're at it – we can ask around faster that way."

Everyone agreed to the idea, and so they left the TV world to start asking around.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

Yu had an idea of who to ask, heading towards the central shopping district to start off. Going towards the north section of the shopping district, he noticed that Kanji's mother was standing in front of her textile shop. "Excuse me, ma'am…"

Mrs. Tatsumi smiled at the silver-haired boy. "Ah, are you here to ask about Kanji too? Sheesh, I wonder where he's wandered off to now. He's always like this." She shook her head, looking troubled. "You know, there was a small boy who came asking about him not too long ago. I talked to him too, but I haven't seen him around lately."

"Really…?" Yu thought about that for a moment. A boy who talked to Kanji… is it that young man from the day before? Maybe… if it really was him, and he was with Kanji, he might know something. So, Yu began to look for the boy this time.

As he asked around the people in the shopping district, they had told him that they saw him around Junes. He headed there, hoping to see a familiar face.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

In the lobby of Junes, Yu asked one of the customers that gave him the answers he needed.

"Ah, you're looking for a small boy wearing a hat? Ah yes, I've seen him. He's been hanging around here lately. Even asked me all this stuff about that... incident. He was just over there a little while ago, but... maybe he'll be back tomorrow...?"

"Oh, thank you." The silver-haired boy guessed that he'll have to come back here tomorrow to see if the boy was here again. In the meantime, Daisuke had told him that there was soccer practice today… he might as well attend, seeing that there's nothing else he could do for the time being.

Though, there was something nagging him about that boy… he doubted it, but… who knows?

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

After soccer practice had finished, all members of the soccer team gathered as the physical exercise teacher called them.

"Alright, is this everyone? Good news, boys, you're getting a team manager," The teacher told them. "Now you guys won't have to take turns doing all the work anymore. You can thank me later!" He glanced at the female student next to him. "Go on, introduce yourself."

The girl looked back at the teacher before focusing back on the players. "…Ai Ebihara."

Instantaneously, she could see the looks of awe and attraction on some of the other players' faces. She could only remain silent at that. The teacher just smiled. "Great! You can take it from here. I'm going home!" He turned around to leave… and once he was a distance away, most of the members approached her except for Yu and Daisuke.

Ai frowned at the ones who did. "I'm gonna tell you guys straight up, I'm not lifting a finger for this team. I wouldn't be caught dead watching out for a bunch of sweaty guys." Her words took the players aback. "What? Then why did you—"

"I've missed too many days of school. But they'll let me move up if I manage a team. But don't expect me to put any effort into it. For the most part, I'm not even gonna be here. Well, seeya. Or not." Harsh. Ai then left them all standing there.

The players stared at her as she left. They began to talk among each other. "What was that all about…?" "Oh well. I guess Ai-san won't be doing our laundry, huh?" "Tch, why are you showing her so much respect? She's the same age as us." "Dude, just left me fantasize about her in peace, alright?" "No way! Her?!"

Yu mentally sighed at the scene. As expected of boys…

One of the soccer players then looked at Daisuke. "Hey Daisuke, think you'd go for a chick like Ai-san?" They asked him, causing everyone to look at him – including Yu. Daisuke had the same look on his face as he answered, "Not in a million years."

"Really? I mean, yeah, she's got major issues, but don't you think she's kinda hot?"

"…Girls annoy me."

Yu tried to keep a straight face at that. The soccer players just continued to ask. "They do? How 'bout guys, then?" The group laughed. "Knock it off!"

Daisuke just looked more and more frustrated.

"Weren't you dating back in middle school, bro?"

This caught the brunet by surprise. He was quiet, not knowing how to response to that.

"Ohhh, I get it. You've got higher standards now, huh?" "Must be nice to be so popular that you can get any chick you want! Us 'normal' guys couldn't possibly understand…" With that, the group left, leaving Yu and Daisuke behind.

Daisuke glanced at the silver-haired boy. "Whatever… girls are a pain in the ass, right, Yu?"

Yu could only force himself to smile. He had to support his friend, even if he was lying to him about his gender. But in a way, he could see why Daisuke thought of girls like that. Most teenage girls these days can be pretty brutal. "…Right on."

The brunet smiled, laughing. "Yeah, you see where I'm comin' from?" His smile soon fell, however. "Girls don't even talk to me, but they're always coming up and asking me out. What do they know about me?" He fell silent after that.

Just then, Kou approached them both. "You guys done over here? Same thing as last time, right? A little overtime practice, and then we'll clean up. Let's do this!"

Daisuke looked at the black-haired boy. "Hm…" He then smiled. "Haha. Sure, let's do it."

The two of them were willing to help Yu train today too, even after all that Daisuke just went through a few moments ago… in a way, Yu could feel his relationship with them both grow stronger with the Strength Social Link.

After that, they went to go and practice.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

"I'm home…" Yu announced as he returned home, tired after all that training. Setting his bag down nearby, he took a seat at the dining table to rest his legs for a moment. Daisuke and Kou were really tough while helping him train… but it'll all be worth it one day.

After a while, he noticed that Nanako was pacing back and forth restlessly. "…What's wrong?"

She had a troubled look on her face. "Dad's late again today…"

However, the house phone soon rang. She went over to answer the call. "Hello, Dojima residence." Upon hearing who the caller was, she smiled. "Dad!" Listening some more, she was starting to smile brightly. "Huh… really?! Okay… okay, I understand." The call ended and she placed the phone back in its stand. She turned to face her cousin, beaming him with a smile. "Dad's coming home now. I need to get dinner ready."

She was definitely in high spirits… Yu couldn't help but smile back. "That's good."

Nanako then ran over to the fridge to check the food. She soon realised something, closing the fridge as she looked at the silver-haired boy. "We're out of pickled radish… dad'll be disappointed," she murmured dejectedly.

"…Well, I can go buy some real quick," Yu offered, getting up from his seat.

"But… he only likes the ones from Junes." An idea crossed Nanako's mind. "…Oh, then, I'll go too!" She seemed excited at the thought of going to Junes again, giggling. "We're going shopping together!"

Yu could feel his cousin's affection for him, and that his relationship with her has grown deeper… and as a result, the Justice Social Link grew ever stronger too. Once all that ended, he chuckled and got up from his seat. "Alright, let's go then."

Nanako nodded, smiling brightly. "Let's go, big bro!"

So the two of them went to Junes together, buying what they needed…

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

After a while, they both came back home to see Dojima sitting on the sofa.

"I'm back." Nanako announced as she and Yu entered. When she saw her father, she smiled brightly. "Dad! Welcome home!"

The detective didn't look too happy, though. "Where did you go at this time of night?"

"Oh, uhh… Junes…"

"Didn't I tell you not to go outside this late?"

Nanako tried to explain herself, her smile falling. "B-but, you were coming home… so I…"

Dojima shook his head. "No matter what your reason was, rules are rules. You promised me, remember?" he told her. The little girl hung her head in silence, looking sad. Yu felt his chest tighten up at the sight. "…it's not Nanako's fault, uncle." He spoke up, staring at his uncle.

"Big bro…" Nanako glanced at him, relief visible in her small face. "…It's not my fault? Then why is Dad angry…? Why won't he listen…?" She fell silent for a few moments. Soon however, she yelled out, "Dad's stupid…! Stupid, stupid!" Then she ran off, up to her room.

Dojima got up at the exclamation, his voice stern. "Nanako! How dare you call your father stupid!"

Yu stepped forward. "Uncle, please. It's not her fault… the reason we went to Junes was because she wanted to buy some more pickled radish from Junes for you. She told me it was your favourite and thought that you'll be disappointed to find out that we're out of that."

The man's face furrowed at that. "Pickled radish… for me…?" He sighed quietly. "…Is that so."

Silence fell between the two for a small while. Dojima eventually shook his head, still remaining stern. "But I still can't allow kids to be walking around this late at night. You know how dangerous it's been lately. You shouldn't be wandering around out there at night either!"

Yu bit the inside of his lip as he lowered his head. Now he was the one being yelled at… and he didn't miss the small hint in his uncle's tone that was meant to be aimed at him. When he was a delinquent, he did go out at night without his parents' permission… and his uncle didn't want that.

After a while of silence between the two, Yu slinked off to his room.

Yu was mostly alright by the time tomorrow rolled around. What he didn't expect was for a female student to run into the classroom during lunchtime to announce that the exam results were posted.

"Huh. Already?" The silver-haired boy was surprised at the quickness of it. City schools took way longer to even do that. Yosuke looked like he was going to pass out already. "Argh... the awful moment of truth..." He glanced at his friend. "Oh well. Wanna check it out?"

Yu shrugged, getting up. "Why not."

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

There was already a small crowd trying to look at their exam results, some seemingly acting like they just lost the world while a few more were rejoicing at their high marks. Yu hung back but still tried to take a glance anyway... but he was just too far away to see the small letters.

Chie and Yosuke's reactions to his score was what made him raise an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Yu-kun! You're in the top ten!" Chie told him, eyes wide with awe. "Wow, nice! Good going, Yu! You're so smart..." Yosuke looked at his best friend admiringly. Yu blushed slightly as he sheepishly smiled. "It wasn't much…"

In some way, he felt closer to his school friends now…

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

When school ended, Yu was headed straight to Junes but paused in his steps when he saw Ai Ebihara standing in the hall where everyone's shoe boxes were. The look on her face… it somewhat reminded him of the face of a loner.

Something compelled him to approach her and ask if she would want to hang out with him sometimes.

"Huh? With you?" Ai stared at him intently before she let her gaze break, acting like a pompous girl. "…Whatever. You should skip your afternoon classes next time. We'll go somewhere far away."

"I'll… think about it." Yu nodded and went to leave the school. Skipping afternoon classes… he hasn't done that since his delinquent days. Most teachers really didn't bother to check attendance by that time so the troublemakers would always skip them when they wanted to. He was one of them, of course.

...It wouldn't hurt to do it a few more times if it meant he could find out why Ai acted like this.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

Yu hurried off to the lobby in Junes to see if the young man who met with Kanji would be around. To his luck, the young man was standing in a corner near the elevators. Approaching him, the silver-haired boy tried to think of something to say…

"…Is there something you need?" The young man looked at him. Yu's thoughts fell quiet as he found himself being talked to by the boy who was just about the same height as him, maybe a bit shorter by an inch or two.

The young man then looked out of the glass walls. "Many people from the town come and meet here. It's a very convenient location, isn't it...?"

Yu didn't have much time to waste, so he went straight to the point. "Er, I'm here to ask if there was anything strange when you talked with Kanji Tatsumi. The guy you spoke to a few days ago…?"

Silence fell between them both for a moment before the young man spoke up. "You're asking if anything seemed strange when I spoke to Kanji-kun, yes...? Hmm… very well. It seems to be an urgent matter, so I'll simply tell you. If you're asking about recent events, then yes, there was something out of the ordinary."

"What is that, then?" Yu raised an eyebrow.

"It was something I felt when I was with him... so I told him outright that he seemed to be an odd person. After I said that, his expression changed all of a sudden... I was quite surprised. On that basis, I believe his actions were somewhat forced and unnatural, throughout the time I was with him. He may have some sort of complex... though I have no proof of this. "

A complex… or something of that nature...? There was also Kanji's purported reaction to the phrase 'odd person'… hm. Yu wondered if this was enough of a clue for Teddie to go and find out where Kanji is. "Well, thank you for telling me. Excuse me, please."

Considering that it was a little too late to head into the TV today, he guessed that he should go and join band practice with Ayane for today.

As he left, the young man studied him quietly. "…He looks… surprisingly feminine…" he muttered to himself. If they met again, he may have to observe the silver-haired boy's appearance a bit more.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

Back at school, it was just Yu and Ayane left in the music room once more after practice ended.

"Oh, look at the time. They're about to lock up the school…" Ayane murmured as she glanced at the clock. She sighed quietly. "Shoot… I still can't play the part I was messing up last time…"

"Well, can you practice at home?" Yu asked her. That should help her get some more practice in… unless there was something else?

"…I wish I could, but… my house isn't very insulated. Our neighbours complain about the noise." Ayane then thought about something. "It'd be nice to be able to play outside, but I'd embarrass myself if I went alone…"

The silver-haired boy smiled at that idea. It's no trouble for him to accompany her. "Follow me, then. I know a spot where we can practice together."

Ayane's face brightened up. "Huh…? O-okay! Um, th-thank you very much!"

Without further ado, they both headed out of the school to practice at the flood plains.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

While they practiced there, Ayane kept making mistakes in her playing and was constantly playing the wrong notes… the two of them had to stop playing. The small girl sighed. "I-I'm sorry…" When she saw that Yu had stopped too, she felt troubled. "Oh… I'm distracting you from your own practice, aren't I…"

"Hey, just hang in there," Yu told her with a calming smile. "No one's perfect in what they do, but with diligence and constant practice, they get over their mistakes. You can do that too, Ayane."

"Oh… so I shouldn't give up, then…!" Ayane was inspired by her Senpai's words, now seemingly more energetic to practice. She smiled at the silver-haired boy, having gained some more self-confidence. "I really appreciate you practicing with me. It makes me happy." She blushed shyly, still not used to having someone do so much for her. "S-so, um… thank you for doing this."

"It's no trouble, really." Yu nodded, feeling the small girl's appreciation for him… in a way, he could feel his relationship with her grow deeper. Along with it, the Sun Social Link did too.

Ayane spoke quietly after that. "I… I know I don't have much talent… but even I have dreams." A small smile appeared on her lips as she looked at her Senpai. "I'd love to make music that could reach out to someone who really needed it… it'd be great if I could make people happy…" Her blush deepened at her words, but she still hasn't lost her smile. "Kind of silly, I know… w-we'd better get going, Senpai. I'll see you at school."

"Alright… see you later, Ayane."

The two of them soon parted for the day.

The next day, Yu planned on going into the TV world to tell Teddie about the hint he just got yesterday and maybe check out the place Kanji's Shadow was in. As lunchtime was about to end, he passed by the staircase to go to class when he noticed a familiar face.

"Oh, it's you…" It was Ai. "Hey, you wanna ditch class? Don't worry, we'll be back before the last bell."

The silver-haired boy didn't take too long to think about it. He's done it before – he can do it again… though not at the same frequency he did back in junior high. Shrugging, he answered her, "Sure, why not."

Ai smiled at him. "Really… alright, then meet me at the shoe lockers."

Yu nodded and went down there once it was clear for them to skip classes.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

They went to Okina City for the afternoon, or rather, Ai chose to go here and Yu just went with it.

Ai brushed her blonde hair back, smiling at the different air of the city. "Mmmm! Feels so good. Just knowing everyone else is still stuck at school studying makes it feel great to be out here," she commented.

Yu did miss the feeling of freedom back when he cut classes, but he's trying to break that habit… yet somehow, he can't really deny how Ai felt about it, though. "I guess it's okay once in a while…" he admitted. Ai had a happy look on her at the fact that he agreed with her. "You think so? I'm surprised you're so open-minded. I had you pegged for a mama's boy."

The silver-haired boy blinked in silence.

"…It's not like I do this all the time," Ai quickly told him. "Besides, since they started keeping track of my attendance and behaviour record, I've been a good girl." She shook her head after saying that. "Well, enough small talk. Let's go." She thought for a moment. "We'll start with clothes, then we'll hit jewellery and shoes, and maybe some cell phone stuff if there's enough time." Ai only seemed to be concerned about her own shopping rather than doing things around town…

At hearing all that, Yu still managed to hold back his surprise. Did this girl really have that much money? Even he wasn't allowed to spend so much despite the fact that his grandfather practically ran a successful company. Oh well… he can't do much about it, not that he liked spending around anyway. "Alright, I'll come."

The blond girl glanced at him. "Of course you will. Why else would you be here?" She looked away. "Anyway, time's a'wasting." She walked off, leaving the silver-haired boy to follow her on her shopping spree.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

After about an hour of shopping, Yu now found himself carrying four heavy bags of… he can't even recall what Ai had bought in that time period. The blond girl just giggled at the sight of him. "It's nice to have a personal servant! I can buy so much more this way."

He recalled that she paid for everything with a gold card… she must be really rich. "You got money to burn?"

"…Well, I guess you could call my family 'new money'. We may not have status or history, but we do have money. My daddy made a fortune in land speculation," Ai explained to him. Her eyes then fell on a clock that was set nearby and realised what time it was. "We'd better get going, though, or we won't make it back before class ends."

Yu raised an eyebrow. "What's the matter?" Teachers wouldn't really notice students that were missing from afternoon classes; one could just stay outside until school was over… that was his experience, anyway.

Ai sighed. "Soon as school gets out, I'm number one on the guidance counsellor's list. He has to check on my attendance and behaviour, and sometimes, he tops it off with a lecture. It's a major pain. But I'm out here having fun, and all the teachers are totally clueless. How stupid can they be?"

Those sound all too familiar to Yu, who lowered his head for a moment as he averted his eyes from the girl in front of him. His life last year was exactly like that. Trips to the counsellor, getting lectured about his time as a delinquent… that was a time he didn't like to recall.

He soon focused back on Ai and found the girl staring at him. "You know what, though? I had more fun today than usual," she told him. "You're different from the others. I like you." A smile appeared on her lips. "I think I'll keep you around… but next time, let's go after school."

"…Okay then." Yu soon began to hear whispers in his mind as he became acquaintances with Ai… and they spoke of the formation of the Moon Social Link of the Moon Arcana. While he was in his thoughts from the voices, Ai began to walk off.

She stopped when she realised that Yu wasn't following. "Are you coming?! Or maybe you'd like to be a blip on the guidance counsellor's radar yourself?" she shouted at him, snapping the silver-haired boy out of it. "S-sorry…!" He quickly tried to follow her with the bags in his hands.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

They both eventually returned to school, with Yu sneaking into class when the teacher wasn't in it yet. Funny, he hasn't lost his touch in skipping class… wait, that's supposed to be a bad thing. He hoped it wouldn't become his habit again.

Once school did end, he told the others that they would be going into the TV world again.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

Yu certainly did not expect to see the same fox from the shrine approach them when they sat at their usual table in Junes's food court. Chie nearly shrieked at the sight of it. "Whoa, something's here! A-A fox!? When did it..."

Yosuke looked at the fox and almost stood up in shock too. "Whoa, where did this guy come from!?"

"Dude, it looks scary too!"

Yukiko was surprisingly calm at the situation, even noticing the apron the fox was wearing. "Oh... this apron... I think I've seen it at the shrine before..."

"This might be because of me." Yu spoke up, looking sheepish. He told them of what happened at the shrine before finishing up with a single sentence. "So, I made a small deal with the fox, in which it will cooperate with us while we do our investigation – it can heal or cure us with leaves, in exchange for a fee."

Yukiko and Chie were confused. "Huh...? Cure us with leaves...?" "Huh...? Cooperate with us...?"

"Are you serious...? So it wants money in exchange for fixing us up...?" Yosuke asked the silver-haired boy. The fox yipped at it, answering Yosuke's question as if in affirmation. "What's with this guy...? It acts like it understands what we're talking about..." The brunet looked at it with confusion.

The fox yipped again. It probably did.

"It yipped again... maybe it really does understand what we're saying!" Yukiko saw in astonishment. "B-But when you think about it, that means the police on duty and whatnot didn't find this fox, right? If it followed after us, then it really is something..." Chie was starting to feel that way as well.

The fox gave out a confident cry this time. Yu tried not to chuckle – if only his friends knew.

Chie cocked her head to the side. "Huh...? Y'think it really understands us...? What should we do...?"

"Well... I'd feel bad if we trapped it. It doesn't look like it'll do us any harm," Yukiko admitted. She looked at the leader of them team. "...What do you think, Yu-kun?"

Yu just shrugged, smiling. "Let's let it help." From what he saw with those leaves, they were pretty damn effective. They'll be helpful in the TV world. Yukiko then nodded, accepting his choice. "...Yeah. And about what Yu-kun said happened at the shrine... don't you think this 'curing' would be a big help for us?" she asked the others.

The fact that even Yukiko agreed to it shocked Yosuke. "Huh!? Are you suggesting we take it into that other world...?" He fell silent for a while, thinking even deeper about it. "Mmm... I guess that might work. It doesn't seem like it's going to leave that easily, either... and I definitely don't want it being all sulky and getting up to mischief in the store..."

This made the fox look at them all with satisfaction. The group soon came to the conclusion to just let the fox do whatever it wanted… though it'll be tough to get it into the other world since it's a fox. But such things never stopped them anyway.

"Teddie, we're here. We got some info for you," Yu said to Teddie as they all entered the TV world. The bear approached the smaller boy, a bit expectant. "Oh, you found out more about Kanji!"

"Yeah… it seems that he has a complex or something like that."

"Hmmhmm, a complex..." Teddie waited for the silver-haired boy to say some more, but when he noticed that Yu was silent, he realised that what Yu just said was literally all they got. "Th-That's it!? That's all I have to go on? You're working me to the stuffing..." He actually looked like he was pouting. "Oh well... then I'll open my nose up real wide and sniff real hard!"

Teddie then sniffed the air… "Hrmmmm..." He perked up at a certain scent. "Oh, I think I found something! It feels like our target! Is this it!? Follow me!"

"Good bear." Yu grinned as he whispered that, beginning to follow Teddie with the others.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

As they walked through the fog, they somehow entered a hallway that looked much like a sauna… it was awfully muggy in there, and even the entrance itself was full of fog. Yu stared blankly at the sight, remembering to what he saw on the Midnight Channel. This is the place…

Chie huffed as she looked around the place. "Is it just me... or does the fog here seem kinda different?"

"My glasses are fogging up…" Yukiko murmured, having to take off her glasses to wipe them. Yosuke wiped his forehead of sweat. "Man, it's hot in here. This place is like a—" He was interrupted by a distorted voice coming from inside the sauna.

"C'mere, pussycat..."

"Oh... such well-defined pecs..."

"There's no need to be scared..."

Everyone except Yu and Teddie cringed at the voices… especially on what they said.

"Now, just relax..."

Yosuke turned around in a panic, unwilling to go inside. "W-Wait a sec! I-I don't wanna go!"

Yukiko looked at Teddie. "Is Kanji-kun really here, Teddie?" she asked him. Teddie nodded in affirmation. "The nose knows!"

This made the brunet groan. "We're... really going in here...? Urgh, I can already feel the sweat rolling down my back..." He was so not looking forward to exploring the sauna. Chie sighed. "That's becasue it's so hot..." The fact that they were still wearing their winter uniforms didn't help either.

"…Well, we've got no other choice. Let's go." Yu ordered, and everyone else followed him into the sauna.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

Just like Yukiko's castle, the sauna was full of fog with voices coming from everywhere… and Shadows lurked within the hallways, hidden by the muggy fog. Yu bit his lips as he looked around – the Shadows would be much stronger than the ones in Yukiko's castle… he could somehow sense that.

Teddie was at a safe distance from the group so he didn't end up getting into battle if the group encountered any Shadows while still being able to support them from afar. "This place is really steamy… so why do I feel a chill down my fuzzy spine? I think I caught a cold... my nose is totally useless too." He then looked around. "Kanji-kun, where are you!? Answer us!"

…There was no answer.

"Guess he's farther into this place… you guys ready?" Yu looked at his friends, who nodded with determination in their faces. While this place was quite unsettling, it won't stop them from saving Kanji from this world.

And so, they pushed on forward.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

On the second floor, Teddie began to speak again. "Hmmm… we haven't come across this Kanji-kun yet…" He was silent for a few seconds before looking at Yu. "Oh yeah, Sensei! Can I ask you something?"

Yu glanced back at the bear. "What is it, Teddie?"

"Why is it so steamy here? Does it have something to do with Kanji-kun? I don't really get it... do you know what it is, Sensei?"

The silver-haired boy fell silent this time for a good while. If anything's to be taken from his life in the city… it'd be a pretty sensitive topic. He's not going to dwell on it, other than the fact that he's actually okay with anyone who felt that way. "…I think I get the hints…" he muttered uncertainly.

Teddie had a look of amazement as he stared at the leader of the group. "Ah, that's my Sensei! Is there anything you don't know!?"

Yu wasn't going to answer that, merely focusing back on getting through the floor.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

On the third floor, Teddie alerted them to something being on the floor. As usual… he was right.

Upon entering a door, they entered a giant hall with someone standing ahead of them, bearing the same dark blue aura as Yukiko's Shadow did. "There he is!" Chie shouted, noticing a figure through the damp fog. Yosuke recognized the figure by the blond hair. "Kanji!"

…The figure then turned around, revealing that he's not the Kanji they were looking for. It was his Shadow, and that was proven true by the striking yellow colour of his eyes. "Oooooh, my my! Thank you for your undivided attention! At last, I've penetrated the facility! These images are coming to you live from inside this steamy paradise!"

Yu looked on with a slightly disturbed expression while everyone else stared in shock. That guy was definitely not Kanji, not when this Shadow's nearly naked with only a fundoshi as his clothing. This is going beyond weird…

The Shadow merely continued on, speaking in such a flirtatious way. "But I've yet to have any charming encounters. Could this hot fog be the cause? It's like steam rising from sweat! Mmmm, my body's tingling with excitement!"

After the Shadow said that, a logo that looked like it came right out of a TV appeared above him. It bore the words 'Men Only! Kanji Tatsumi in Rosy Steam Paradise', all in striking colours and hues with a strange design to boot.

Yosuke took a step back, feeling weirded out. "Crap... this is wrong in so many ways..."

"Yeah... I remember it being kinda like this on Yukiko's show, too..." Chie murmured, memories of Yukiko's Shadow coming back in waves. That one was weird too. Yukiko looked at her best friend while shaking her head. "N-No... it wasn't like this..." she said, denying the truth.

Suddenly, loud murmurs began to come from every corner of the hall.

"Those voices again... wait, are they louder this time?" Chie wondered. "These voices... I was wondering whose they could be, since it's only the victim in here... is it the people watching outside?" Yosuke realised what could be the reason for the voices.

"You mean everybody who's watching the Midnight Channel? They're reacting to the 'show'? Yikes... if people are watching Kanji-kun now, he's gonna be a legend in a way he never intended..."

"Well, it's really his Shadow, not him. But normal people won't know that..."

Teddie sensed something wrong. "The Shadows are getting really restless!"

Kanji's Shadow remained uncaring towards what the group was saying, continuing to act like a host in a TV show… except he's way too flirty. "That elusive thing I truly yearn for... will I finally find it here? Teehee! Well then, onward and deeper to reach further realms of romance!"

For a moment, his creepy smile turned into a serious frown, almost like how the real Kanji would look when shouting. "Let's get going, dammit!" Then, he ran off into the fog.

"Kanji-kun!" Yukiko called out to the Shadow, but he was already too far. "That was his other self... it's trying to reveal his hidden feelings," Teddie told her. "It seems much worse than that time with Yuki-chan's Shadow… at this rate, it might end up getting 'bear' naked."

Yu felt his eye twitch upon hearing a pun again. Goddamn it, Teddie.

Yukiko was quiet for a moment. "'Bear'… naked…?"

Chie sighed. "Oh man... here it comes..."

However, the black-haired girl merely looked at her friend. "Uh... was I supposed to laugh?"

"No, no you're not. Now come on," Yu quickly answered her before running ahead to chase the Shadow, the others quickly following him while Teddie fell onto his hands and knees in dismay.

…Serves the bear right for doing another one of his puns.