Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story. The OC's belong to their respective owners.
BGM: Toad Town (Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story plus Bowser Jr's Journey)
Junko walked around town with a hum, her long hair that reached her lower back was now turned into a ponytail, courtesy of Mukuro helping her out.
"Sooo, you like the ponytail? I'm gonna be honest, I'm not that good with hair styles."
"I actually like it. It feels more natural than the twin tails I used to have."
Mukuro smiled. "Oh good! I actually looked up several Lakitube videos because I wasn't quite sure how to properly do a ponytail."
"Maybe you can do a braid next time~" Junko teased.
"H-hey! It was bad enough with the ponytail…" She blushed, playfully punching Junko in the shoulder.
Junko laughed. "Well, it's a better improvement compared to the first ponytail in that bout I did with Niji-"
She turned around but wasn't looking, ending up bumping into a man who was casually reading a book.
"Watch where you're going, red head." The man rudely said.
"Well excuse me for-" Junko paused when she saw the man in front of her. Her eyes widening in shock. "Ma-Ma-Ma-Ma…"
"The hell's wrong with you?" The man questioned.
"Hmm?" Mukuro waved her hand in front of Junko. "Hello? Anyone in there?"
Junko moved her sister's head towards the man. "Mukuro. Do you know who that is?"
Mukuro looked closely at the man. "Is he a celebrity in Remnant, because I've never seen him before. But he does look a bit like-" And that was when Mukuro's eyes widened in shock.
"You too? Great." The man said, rolling his eyes.
He was tall, had a pale complexion, and long-neck length messy black hair with an ahoge on top. His eyes are pale blue and he has long eyelashes. His attire consists of a half-tucked in, dirty white dress shirt and a sloppily worn black tie that is adorned with red decals. His lower-half consists of black trousers, a belt, and slippers.
To others, he seems like an ordinary man. But to the sisters, Junko especially, he was someone important.
"Yasuke Matsuda?"
"You heard of me or something?" The man, Yasuke, asked.
Could it be that the universal reset brought him back but we just never noticed? Mukuro thought.
"I-I mean… Hiiiiiiii!" Junko waved to him. "Remember me?"
"...Should I?"
"Yes! You know, it's me? Ryoko? Well, technically, I go by Junko now-"
"Junko…?"
"Yes!"
Matsuda stared at her with a blank expression. "Nope, don't know you. Don't care."
Oh, so that's how you're gonna be, mister play hard to get~? Junko smirked as she pushed his book down and looked him in the eyes. "You remember how we created that gas where we knocked everyone out and trapped them in that school?"
"No…?"
Ooooh, amnesia… Mukuro thought.
"Oh come on, you ought to remember that right?"
"...Wait a second…" Yasuke narrowed his eyes. "You're that girl who fought that Nijima girl in that boxing match, right?"
Junko grinned. "Yup, that's me!"
"Thought I recognized you…"
Perfect! Junko grinned.
"By the way, there's one other thing that I know."
"And that is?"
"...Your voice annoys me."
Junko's whole body turned white. "Huh?!"
"Swing and a miss…" Mukuro grimaced.
"Seriously, your voice is grating, your hands are on my book, and you keep staring at me like a bratty kid. Get lost."
"But… but but but but but…"
Mukuro grabbed her arm. "Let's go." She said, dragging Junko away.
Yasuke shook his head, continuing to read his book. "Crazy bitch…"
BGM: Team Rocket's Secret Strategy - Kanto Version (Pokemon Anime Sound Collection)
Nearby, Kyoko spied on him from a tree, binoculars over her eyes. "Look at him… walking around without a care in the world. Tch…"
"You sure you're not just overreacting?" Aoi asked, sitting on the branch with her.
"I'm not taking any chances… I don't care if this is a Remnant version of him or if he has a little brother."
"I know, I know… Yasuke turned your life upside down. He was responsible for us being trapped in Hope's Peak and knocked us out with that gas, but… I doubt this guy's worse than our version."
"One can never be too careful…"
Aoi sighed. "Kiri…" She put her hand on her binoculars, setting it down. "You've been at this for a week now. You were more focused on Eggman and the moment you hear about this guy, you… I hate to say this, but you're starting to get paranoid."
Kyoko closed her eyes, sighing. She reopened them with a hint of sadness. "I just don't want another incident like this to happen again…"
"More than likely, it won't. Sure, judging by how Junko reacted, he might be an asshole but that's all he is. An asshole who probably doesn't care about anything else aside from being a neurologist. Besides, based on what I've read, he usually resides at Mushroom City at his own hospital."
Kyoko rubbed her chin. "You think Mikan might know something about him?"
"Well, we can ask her. If he's not bad like ours was, then we can have your mind at ease."
"Even so, I still won't trust him… you never know."
"I know, but let's go."
"Alright…" Kyoko hopped off the tree with Aoi.
"C'mon. I'm sure Mikan's not too busy at the moment. Not like anyone's in the ICU, right?"
End BGM
Meanwhile, with Nagisa…
BGM: E. Gadd's Garage (Mario Party 6)
"Hmhmhm~" Nagisa hummed as he was working in the lab, building something to his heart's content. He walked away. "Alright, let's try it now." He pressed a button, as the machine came to life… and immediately short circuited and caused it to fall apart. "No no no no!" He grimaced before sighing. "Dammit, not again…"
"Don't feel too bad about it, my boy…" Pietro's words echoed in his head.
Pause BGM
"You… you sure about it?" Nagisa asked, flinching as he was expecting a harsh punishment.
"Absolutely! Mistakes happen all the time. It's called trial and error for a reason." Pietro smiled. "Your parents put too much pressure on you with high expectations with their high standards. Live your own life, set your own expectations and don't forget to take breaks in between working hours so your body won't break down. You're not expected to please everyone. You should focus on yourself first. Give yourself room to breathe."
Nagisa smiled before immediately hugging him. "Thanks, dad…"
Pietro smiled. "You're welcome, my son."
Resume BGM
Nagisa took a deep breath. "Where were you when I was struggling with those obnoxious folk…" He chuckled as he picked up his wrench. "Okay, so that didn't work out, so let's see if-"
His scroll went off.
"You've been working for nearly five hours and thirty minutes straight, Master Nagisa. Always keep in mind; a healthy body-"
Nagisa chuckled. "...Is a healthy mind. I already know, Dan." He stretched. "But I suppose it wouldn't hurt me to take a break for now…" He said, picking up his scroll and looked at the AI program that was installed in it thanks to Pietro.
Digital Advisor Notable in Expository Learning, or D.A.N.I.E.L for short.
Nagisa put his scroll away and walked out of the lab, turning off the lights and closing the door. He walked into the living room where GLaDOS was showing Miu some pictures.
"Wait wait wait wait, go back." Miu said as GLaDOS went back with a raised eyebrow. "Ah, perfect!"
"Is there something you like with Kali Belladonna?"
"She a mother?"
"Yes."
Miu's eyes sparkled as she looked at Kali. "Rrrrow~ Definitely a cat milf~" She said right as Nagisa put some water in his mouth, causing him to spit take.
"I'm sorry, what did she say?" Miku asked.
"I… think she called her milk?" Luka wondered as GLaDOS showed her Willow.
"Snow Milf~"
Raven.
"Bird milf~"
Summer.
"Ghost milf~"
Rosalina.
"Space milf~"
Byleth.
"...Is she a mother?"
"Not really, she's a sister to Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao Long, but she's very affectionate to Ruby. She's also a teacher."
"Teacher milf~! Rrrrow! Look at the size of those jugs, but still nothing to my F cups!"
Penny immediately pictured milk jugs and a cup with a letter F on it. She tilted her head. "I don't get it."
"You do realize they're all married, right?" GLaDOS pointed out. "Well, actually, Kali, Rosalina and Byleth are-"
"We can make it an orgy! I'm sure the husbands wouldn't mind joining in!"
"Byleth is married to a woman."
"Ooooh, the teacher milf's a lesbian~?!" Miu started drooling. "Even better~!"
"I'm… just gonna go see how Jataro's doing." Nagisa said as he walked off, closing the door and shuddered. "You sure aunt Miu was worse back then, dad…?"
Meanwhile…
BGM: Beneath the Mask (Persona 5)
"My word!" Oobleck exclaimed. "This coffee is extraordinary! I've heard great things about this place but never got around to experiencing this luxurious coffee!"
"I've been practicing…" Jataro shyly said.
"My boy, it shows! Why, it could rival your sibling's!"
"I doubt it." Akira said, handing a cup to a customer.
"I don't really do the whole coffee making thing. Not really my shtick." Futaba mentioned, currently reaching in her screen and pulling out some messy code that was in the shape of a spaghetti plate. "Okay, deciphering this… let me just unscramble this nonsense…"
She pressed a few buttons that appeared in midair as the code unscrambled itself. "Unscramble the numbers…"
"By the way. Miss Sakura. How's the code going along?" Oobleck asked.
"Considering I just got myself a massive upgrade last week? Great! With this, I'm actually eighty five percent done! I'm estimating that the network will be up and running… oh, perhaps next week or the week after next? I'm gonna have to run some tests to make sure it's completely stabilized."
"Splendid! I'll be looking forward to a secured network!" Oobleck said.
Jataro turned to Futaba. "Remind me why you hacked the entire world network?"
"I was bored, wanted to see what made the network tick. I was gonna add my own firewalls to it to stabilize it right after. Unfortunately, Eggman had other ideas."
"Ah, say no more."
"Yes, that Eggman is a tricky fellow…" Oobleck said. "He ousted Cinder Fall, so is he on our side or did he do it for his own amusement? Port thinks he did it to scare everyone, while I'm more on the fence."
Nagisa walked in right after. "Hey Nagisa." Futaba waved.
"Hey four eyes." He teasingly waved back, hearing a snicker from her.
"Hey Nagis-... why do you look frazzled?"
"I swear, my aunt needs to get laid like yesterday."
"Oh, I'm sure Miss Miu isn't that bad." Oobleck said.
"She was saying she wants to gather all the mothers together and have a big orgy with them, even throwing in the husbands and Byleth's wife, also calling them milfs."
Oobleck swallowed his coffee wrong, coughing a little. "Y-yes… I see! I'm glad Summer went back to the grave at the right time…"
"You know…!" A voice spoke up as they turned to see Komaru and Toko nearby. "If she wants to get to know someone, we have someone right here!" She said, referring to Toko.
"M-Me?! But my heart belongs to master!"
"You know that's a one sided thing, right? I'd say Miu's right up your alley."
"I don't swing that way! …Although, you seem to be available. What's your type?"
"Uh… type? I… don't think I have one."
"Ha… spoken like a true virgin."
"Augh, Toki…" Komaru pouted.
Futaba shook her head. "Komaru, I really gotta teach ya how to troll better."
"Aren't you teaching Chiaki that?" Akira asked.
"Trying to! I can't seem to get through to her though, girl's a total sweetheart." Futaba shook her head. "Lost cause in the troll business, that one."
"I've seen her tease a few times." Akira said.
"But troll level? Not even close!"
"She seriously can't be that bad." Toko said.
"She said, and I quote: "There's two things I'm bad at in games: Trolling and romance games"."
"Really? Of all things she sucks at… romance?" Toko raised an eyebrow as Nagisa sat down, pulling out his laptop. "I've seen her kissing game with Hajime and let me tell ya, that girl knows how to make out!"
"I'm sure she's had plenty of practice." Futaba said. Amongst OTHER things in bed… thank you for telling me that, BB-8.
"Soooo, how're you and the girlfriend holding up?" Komaru asked as the door opened to see a disheartened Junko and Mukuro.
"Oh, pretty good. She just got that sling off of her and now she's busy making something to protect her arm." Futaba said. "...Junko, you look terrible."
"That obvious?" She mumbled.
"What in the…" Nagisa wondered as he took a better look at what he was seeing on his laptop.
"What is it?" Jataro asked.
"There's something big going on in… Splatsville."
"Eh, probably just another Splatfest." Futaba said. "Chiaki and I dominated that chocolate one… unfortunately White Chocolate reigned supreme…" She grumbled. "How the hell was that even a Big Man sweep… I'll accept the Water Pokemon one but WHITE CHOCOLATE?! I get it's really big back at home but come on! Ugh…"
"What team were you?" Oobleck asked.
"Team Milk Chocolate. Chiaki was the same way. …Now that I think about it, what about the rest of the Phantom Thieves?"
"I was Dark." Akira said. "I know Yusuke and Ryuji were milk… Ann and Makoto were definitely white chocolate. Haru… definitely was milk. Akechi and Mona aren't interested in Splatoon."
"Wait, so MAKOTO was on white chocolate?! No wonder they were so aggressive… auuuugh!" Futaba groaned.
"Salmonids rampaging all over Splatsville… something's up…" Nagisa said. "I know what we're doing, Jataro. We're going to Splatsville to see what's up."
"Ooooh, I've always wanted to go! I've always wanted to meet Ink Fresh… I hear their names pop up all over town."
Junko stood up. "You know what? I'll go with you. Get my mind off things for a while."
"Perhaps I should go for a jaunt as well. Maybe I'll tag along and see what's up." Oobleck said.
"I wonder if we could get a bigger group with us…" Nagisa mused. "Do you know anyone who might help out?"
Futaba rubbed her chin. "I know a group."
End BGM
Meanwhile…
"Are you absolutely sure this is a good idea?" Grif asked.
"Oh, quit your belly achin', Grif! This is totally fine!" Sarge said as Medic hooked him up.
"I don't know if this is a good idea!"
"Commencing experiment in Drei, Zwei, Ein!" Medic pulled the lever as electricity struck Grif.
"Hgrrkgrrkgrkk!" He yelped.
"Engi! How are we doing?"
"Everything's stabilzin'! Eighty, ninety… one hundred!"
Medic flipped the switch as Grif shook it off. "Hoo! Okay… that was weird…" He said as Medic looked over his notes.
"Mhm. Everyzhing looks good… splendid!" Medic smiled. "Congratulations, herr Grif! You are officially the first non-native person of Remnant to have aura and a semblance!"
"Hoo! Okay! I feel great!" Grif punched the air. "What's my semblance!"
"According to this… apparently you can stop time." Engi said.
"Stopping time? Wait, you mean to tell me I have Dark Ruby's semblance? Holy shit, I have Dark Ruby's semblance! Ha! Awesome, I get to give Sarge the ultimate wedgie without him knowing it's me!"
"...I'm standing right here, num nut!"
"Oh, but it says here zhat zhere is a side effect…"
"What happened? Does he have elephant DNA? Can he turn into a non-existent animal like a puma? Can he turn into liquid slime? Will he shatter if I punch him?! IS HIS BLOOD JELLO?! TELL ME!" Sarge yelled.
"Jello blood… tasty! I wonder if it's grape jello…"
"Ah, it shortened his life."
"I can live with that!"
"What?! No no no, I don't like that!" Grif said.
"How much did he lose? Days? Weeks? Months? Years? Decades? I want to know how much he lost!"
"His life has been shortened by… a minute."
"A minute! You hear that, Grif? You lost a minute of your life ti-... A MINUTE?!"
"I LOST A GOD DAMN MINUTE OF MY LIFE?!"
"I got hyped for nothing! I've been cheated! I've been stabbed in the back! I've been bamboozled! Smeckledorfed, even!"
"That's not even a word, Sarge!" Simmons said.
"IT IS NOW!"
"I LOST A FUCKING MINUTE OF MY LIFE, SARGE! YOU WANNA KNOW HOW MUCH STUFF I COULD'VE DONE WITH A MINUTE?! TAKEN A NAP, EAT OREOS, WATCH TV, INSULT SIMMONS WITH HOW MUCH OF A SISSY HE IS-"
"Hey!"
"I COULD HAVE BEEN DRINKING WITH DEMOMAN! BUT I CAN'T DO ANY OF THAT NOW BECAUSE I LOST THAT GOD DAMN MINUTE! FUCK YOU, MEDIC! FUCK YOOOOOU!"
Grif stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
"...Well! He took zhat better zhan I zhought he would!" Medic smiled.
"Should we go check on him?" Engi wondered.
"It's Grif. He'll get over it when he's eating cookies." Simmons said.
"I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M SOBBING AND EATING CHIPS AHOY AT THE SAME TIME!"
"...Okay, after he's taken a nap."
Soldier received a call. "Hold that thought." He pulled out his phone. "Hello! Ah, hello Futabor! Uh-huh. Uh-huh! Okay! See you soon!"
He hung up. "Fall in men! We're going to that coffee shop!"
"Coffee? Who gives a crap about coffee?" Scout wondered, tossing a ball in the air.
"Ah, I see you're into that sissy drink they call tea!" Soldier grabbed Scout by the ankle. "Let's go! We are going to teach you the American and manliest drink known to mankind!"
"Hey! Hey! Let go of my- OOOMPH!"
Back at Sojiro's…
"Okay, I just contacted CFVY." Nagisa said. "They should be on their way."
"Oooh, you had CFVY in mind?" Futaba sweatdropped. "Well, this is awkward…"
"Who'd you have in mind?" Komaru asked as the Mercs walked in.
"...Oh no." Toko sweatdropped.
"Reporting for duty!" Soldier said with a salute, dropping Scout as he got up, giving Soldier a glare.
"I just asked our classmates if they were available." Mukuro asked. "So far, I got a response from Leon, Mondo and Chihiro and they all said yes."
At that moment, Coco walked in with her team. "Heeeey, sorry we took so long! Thought it'd be best if we brought these boys along!" She said as SSSN walked in.
"Oh hey, Sun and Neptune!" Futaba smiled. "And… two guys I never knew existed."
"...Yeah, probably because these two never invite us to anything." Sage said.
"What? I could've sworn I invited you guys!"
"Dude, you probably do that in your head." Neptune said.
"Crap!" Sun groaned. "Aaaanywho. Guys, these are Scarlet David and Sage Ayana."
"Hey."
"Yo."
Velvet turned her head. "Aren't they coming too?" She wondered.
"They should be." Coco said.
"Ahem! We're behind the tall guys." A voice said as Magnolia peeked her head behind Sage as Nick and Logue peeked behind Scarlet.
"There you are." Coco smiled, and then Leon, Mondo and Chihiro walked in, the latter immediately heading toward Futaba to see how she was holding up.
"So, what's the situation here?" Nick asked.
"Apparently there's something fishy going on in Splatsville, so I want to see what's up." Nagisa said.
"How fishy are we talking here?" Coco asked.
BGM: Professor E. Gadd (Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time)
"Apparently, there's been a lot of attacks going on in Splatsville, and not just there, but every once in a while, Inkopolis would get hit by an attack too. These attacks are getting more and more frequent in Splatsville though. There are these salmon creatures called Salmonids that are attacking everything. They barely managed to save Wahoo World before it was too late."
"Okay, so attack of the salmon? That's a new one." Coco said. "...Why don't we just sic the Belladonnas on them?"
"These Salmonids have weapons capable of mass destruction. I don't think the Belladonnas will do anything to their mass numbers."
"Eh, worth a try."
"Not only that, but there have been some reports that some of these Salmonids are running around with green eyes and turning on their own kind."
"Green eyes?" Velvet immediately looked nervous. "Oh no…"
"And there have been some sights of some weird… fuzzy goo." Nagisa mentioned. "Could that be in correlation to the green eyed Salmonids? I dunno… but all of this is raising red flags."
"Well… let's go see what this is all about then!" Komaru said. "The sooner we get rid of this problem, the better!"
"Yeah." Nagisa nodded. "I don't know about you, but I want to get to the bottom of this."
"Soooooo… we're going to Inkopolis then?" Coco asked.
"Yes."
Coco chuckled. "How about we get someone else to join us?"
"Who do you have in mind?" Sun asked.
She smirked. "I know a girl."
End BGM
Later, at the Smash Mansion…
"Funny that you asked me to come with you, I was actually getting ready to head on over there." Namine said, rolling her shoulders.
"What do you do there anyway?" Mukuro asked.
"Oh, ya know, I tend to hang out, do some Rainmaker and Tower Control battles… clobbering this one squid who's nothing more than a crybaby. I think he goes by… Klutz Twelve or something? I participated in that Splatfest representing white chocolate. I could just hear him scream when he went back to his spawn point. He even tried to chase after me but I kept knocking him down."
"What's with the twelve?" Coco wondered.
"Beats me. Probably represents his actual mental age?" Namine shrugged.
"Wait!" Magnolia spoke up. "Before we actually go in… there's someone else we're waiting for."
"Oh?" Nagisa wondered as they saw a black limo pulling up. The driver got out and opened up the door as Becky hopped out of the limo.
"Have a wonderful and safe trip, m'lady."
"Thank you, sir." Becky smiled as the driver went back into the limo and drove off.
"What the hell?! You invited some rich girl?" Mondo wondered.
"Not just any rich girl. Becky Blackbell!" Magnolia smiled.
"Ah! The Blackbells… I thought I recognized you." Oobleck mused. "Your family has been quite the influence in Vale!"
"Indeed." Becky nodded.
"That's odd… I thought Kaito was coming too." Nick said.
"Oh, he got caught up with something."
Meanwhile…
"Is this even necessary?" Kaito asked.
"My client is running late, so I thought I could take this time to take the appropriate measurements for them. Apologies for asking you to be my guinea pig." Tsumugi said.
"No no no, I don't mind… it's just… WHY DO I HAVE TO WEAR A BALLERINA SKIRT?!"
"Oooh, but you look so fabulous in the skirt~!"
"I don't WANT to look fabulous!"
Back with them…
"Come on, let's go!" Becky said as they walked off.
"I wonder… does the Smash Mansion have an armory? I might need to get a weapon for me on the road ahead." Nagisa said.
"I wouldn't mind if I got something for myself…" Jataro admitted.
"Actually, they do." Coco nodded.
"Sweet." Nagisa nodded as they walked into the Smash Mansion where Nagisa and Jataro walked off.
"Maggie?" Laura spoke up, catching the fox faunus's attention.
"Laura?" Magnolia said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"Waiting for Masaru and Kotoko to come back. We're heading to Hyrule."
"Oh cool! We're heading to Inkopolis!"
Laura's eyes sparkled. "Oh, that sounds pretty fun!"
Inside the Armory…
BGM: Malo Mart (The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess)
"Let's see… what would be appropriate for me…" He wondered to himself as he spotted the Breath of the Wild section, but not only that, he saw Masaru checking some weapons out.
Masaru? Nagisa wondered.
Masaru's eyes sparkled at the Flameblade and the Meteor Rod. "Oh yeah, this fits me to a T!"
"It does suit you."
Masaru turned to see Nagisa. "Nagisa? What are you doing here?"
"Something caught my attention earlier so I had gathered up a team myself. Apparently something's going down in Splatsville."
"Huh! Okay then… have fun with that." He walked off with the weapons in hand as Nagisa looked around before spotting a weapon.
"Hmm? Oh, this looks pretty neat." He said, pulling out an Ancient Spear. "Yeah, this'll do." He nodded, strapping it to his back. "...Wait, where in the world is Masaru going? …Eh, I'll find that out later."
He walked off while Jataro peeked his head to see Kotoko walking off.
"She definitely has the spirit of a warrior within her." Palutena said with a smile.
Athena nodded in agreement. "Yes, she does." She said as she noticed Jataro. "Oh, hello young one."
"Ah, hello Jataro." Palutena greeted.
"Um… would it be too much trouble to ask if… I could get a blessing from one of the gods as well?" He asked, where nearby, Kokoro's ocelot ears twitched as she turned her head to him.
"Huh?" Kokoro wondered as she approached Jataro.
End BGM
BGM: Just Wondering (Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories)
"Hmm? You want a blessing from the gods as well?" Palutena asked in surprise.
"This is a bold one…" Athena mused with a chuckle.
"Yes." Jataro nodded. "None of these weapons suit an artist like me… and then I saw Kotoko receiving a godly blessing so… I thought I could get one myself. If that's okay…"
Palutena smiled. "Oh, I'm sure that could be arranged!" She said as she rubbed her chin. "Let's see, what would suit you best…"
"If you're looking for artistry, perhaps Dyntos could provide assistance." Athena mentioned.
"Dyntos? Hmm… actually, I got a better idea." Palutena closed her eyes. "Hephaestus, I could use your assistance!"
"Hephaestus?!" Athena said in surprise. "Why on earth would you ask his brother?"
"The same way I called up my sister." Palutena winked, causing Athena to sweatdrop.
"Paulie, you are an odd one…" Athena shook her head with a chuckle.
"Palutena, can't you see I'm busy with something?"
"Oh, I just thought you could give me something for this young boy."
"What, are you teaching him to cook? You better not give him any of your secret ingredients, considering the last time that happened."
"Hey! I've gotten better."
"Tell that to Aphrodite…"
Athena grimaced. "That was… an experience…"
"Wait, some of them got away? I thought they were all in…" Palutena sighed. "No wonder Zeus was giving me the stink eye…"
"There there…" Athena patted her on the back.
"Alright, alright… what does the kid need?"
"He's looking for something that would fit his artistry."
"Artistry, you say? I have just the thing!"
Immediately, a heavenly light appeared in Jataro's hands, as it was a steel hammer decorated with a black colored anvil symbol and a bundle of iron nails.
"I call it… Hephaistos!"
"Real original…" Athena rolled her eyes.
"Don't worry about running out of nails, you can always materialize new ones! You can hammer these nails to send them flying into your enemies. And with a snap of the fingers, they can explode!"
"Ex-explode?!" Jataro said in surprise.
"Indeed! I take pride in my craft! You should ask Dyntos, he'll vouch for me!"
Jataro smiled through his mask. "Thank you, Hephaestus."
"Anytime, young one! Now, if you'll excuse me…"
End BGM
"So… basically, I guess that I now have the smith god's powers on my hands, right?"
"Yup!" Palutena nodded.
"...So… how are there two Greek smith gods and two goddesses of wisdom?" Jataro spoke up.
Palutena looked at Athena, then they both looked at Jataro. "Genetics." They both said.
Jataro sweatdropped. "Ooookay then."
"The truth is more complicated than that. It's not one for human minds to fully grasp." Athena said. "...Or Pit's for that matter."
"Hmm…" Kokoro rubbed her chin. "I guess that now makes four people with godly possessions…" She said to herself, recalling how she has Helios's Recurve for herself and how Sayo got Selene's Bane.
Jataro frowned a bit. "This is great and all, but… how are you so sure if Hephaestus knows that I'm worthy of-"
"I wouldn't count on that, Jataro." Kokoro said.
"Huh?"
"The Warriors of Hope think you're worthy. Palutena and maybe even Hephaestus thinks so too!" Kokoro gently put her hand on his shoulder. "Come on, if you really weren't worthy to receive such special relics from a god, then you wouldn't be wielding them right now."
"Y-you think so?"
"Mhm!" Kokoro gave him a reassuring smile. "Listen to me, Jataro. I want you to take what I'm saying to you as advice from someone who speaks from experience." She took her hand off of his shoulder while giving him a more serious expression. "Back when I first got Helios' Recurve, I initially thought I wouldn't be worthy to wield such a godly weapon. Well… mostly because of my quiet and timid personality. But thanks to Ruby and Ibuki's help, I was able to realize that deep down… I knew that I was always worthy of wielding it because they recognized me for my courage… and my ability to voluntarily put my own life on the line to protect my friends when they're in danger."
She truly is speaking from experience… Palutena mused while smiling in pride at the ocelot faunus. Kokoron… no words can describe how proud I am right now to see how much you've grown since the Phazon War.
"Hey Kokoron, you coming?" Chelsea called out to her.
"Coming!" Kokoro said, giving Jataro a hug and running off.
Jataro stared at his hand and then nodded. "She's right." Jataro said, nodding his head in determination. "Alright, here we go." He said as he took off. "See ya!"
"See ya!" Palutena said before turning to Athena. "Really? You had to take a pot shot at Pit?"
"You know it's true!"
"Look, I won't judge on how you raise your kids, so I expect you to do the same."
Jataro walked to the others. "Alright, I'm ready."
"Good. I was wondering what was taking so long." Nagisa said as they walked off.
"So where'd Kokoron go?"
"Apparently, according to Laura, they're going to Hyrule." Magnolia said.
"To Hyrule's past. I had a chat with Weiss about it." Coco said. "Can't believe she's time traveling again after we just went through Hisui a week and a half ago."
"She probably has an addiction to time travel at this point." Sun chuckled.
Coco laughed. "That'd be something!" She chuckled.
"Odd thing to get addicted to…" Oobleck mused as they walked through the portal, finding themselves at Inkopolis Square.
BGM: Inkopolis Square (Splatoon 2)
"Is this Splatsville?" Leon asked.
"No, this is Inkopolis Square." Namine responded. "The train to Splatsville should be… somewhere."
"Ah, here it is!" Junko spoke up as they walked over toward the train. "...Unfortunately, I can't speak Inklingese."
"I can!" Namine spoke up. "I've been here so much, I kinda just learned the language just like that." She giggled.
"Show off…" Coco teased.
"Okay… if we go to the east, we'll hit the Plaza… but if we go to the west… we'll hit Splatsville."
"Then that's where we'll be going." Nagisa said as they boarded the train. "Alright… let's go see what's going on in Splatsville."
"Excuse us!" A voice said as they saw a group of five entering the train.
"Hey, it's Ink Fre-... holy shit, she actually went through the surgery." Junko said.
Mukuro jawdropped. "I almost didn't recognize her…"
"Hmm?" Komaru looked at Ink Fresh's lead singer. "She looks familiar…"
"Huh? Oh hey there!" The Inkling smiled, having black tentacle bangs over her cheeks, yellow eyes and fangs, while also still having the proportions of a human adult. "I'm Sayaka, nice to meet ya!"
"Suh-suh-suh-SAYAKA?!" Komaru yelled.
Oooooh crap… Leon grimaced, immediately hiding behind Mondo.
"Next stop: Splatsville!" The conductor said as the train took off for Splatsville.
End BGM
Meanwhile…
BGM: Dr Toadley's Theme (Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story plus Bowser Jr's Journey)
Mikan approached Kyoko and Aoi. "Apologies, Kyoko-san and Hina-san. I was so caught up in the ICU, I lost track of time."
"No no, it's okay." Kyoko said. "We just want to ask a question. Do you know someone named Yasuke Matsuda?"
"Yasuke Matsuda… oh! He's a well known neurologist in Mushroom City. He's a bit… rough around the edges, but he means well. Sometimes he comes over to Toad Town and we both share some medical advice to each other."
"I see…"
"I'm honestly surprised though. I never thought he would be known as the Ultimate Neurologist, but it's great to meet a fellow doctor."
Aoi smiled. "See, Kiri? Definitely different than our guy!"
"...Even so, I can't help but feel he might be up to something."
"Long story." Aoi mouthed to Mikan, who nodded in understanding.
"Never mind. Thank you for your time, Mikan."
"Wait!" Aoi spoke up. "I'm just curious about something… but who's in the ICU this time?"
"Would you believe me if I said… the Hero of Time?"
"Ah, the Hero of Time…" Aoi nodded before her eyes widened. "Wait… THE HERO OF TIME?!"
End BGM
Meanwhile, with Futaba…
"I'm honestly surprised you didn't go with them." Akira said.
"Eh, I'm still feeling kinda fatigued from the New World… I'll visit Splatsville some other time." Futaba said. "Besides, I'm actually hyped that there's a light at the end of this neverending tunnel! I can feel the weight lifting from my shoulders!"
Akira smiled. "That's good to hear."
"Yup." Futaba nodded as she kept typing.
"Hey." A message popped up.
"Huh?" Futaba wondered as she clicked on the message, seeing the user came from someone named "EeveeLover".
Futaba tilted her head, immediately checking her friend list and not seeing them on there. Huh…
Futaba immediately typed back, "Uh… hi?"
"I've heard a lot about you."
"How do you know about me?"
"Simple. I learned there are other worlds out there ever since I've watched the Galarian Star Tournament. You can't tell me those cat ears on that one girl aren't fake. I took a closer look… they're natural."
"Okay… so you decided to stalk Blake?"
"No. I did some digging. I've heard of no such human and Liepard transfusions so I decided to dig deeper. Ever since that unnatural blue goo showed up, I took a sample of it and discovered that it was Phazon, a mysterious blue substance known for corrupting. I was about to do some experiments on how to cure it when this star thing showed up and destroyed the Phazon… right as I was about to uncover a breakthrough too."
"...Uh-huh. What's this gotta do with me?"
"That's the thing. I did more digging after that, and discovered that my world is connected to a world known as Remnant. As I did more research, I heard about the network being compromised and how this… Eggman revealed everything. I dug up his chats and I found your name. You're the one who's responsible for destroying Remnant's network."
"Yeah, well, I'm almost done repairing it too. What the hell do you want with me?"
"I figured we could work together to restore the code. It should be simple."
"Oh HELL no! After that bullshit with Eggman, I don't trust talking to anyone on the internet who I don't even know!"
"You can trust me, though. I'm not malevolent…"
"Bullshit!"
"Trust me, Futaba. I come in peace."
"Who are you then?"
"I'm not one to give my name out to anyone just like that…"
Futaba rolled her eyes. "Great…"
"But, I do go by a different name where no one suspects a thing."
Futaba raised an eyebrow. "Okay, enlighten me."
"You can call me… Cassiopeia."
Ibuki: Oooh, the plot thickens with Futaba-chan~!
Yup! Shout out to DarkRebellion for helping out in this chapter!
Deadpool: I wonder if orange head could trust the one known as Cassiopeia... one way to find out!