Chikara is intrigued that one of her students asked her out. She's positive that she mentioned her husband before. The young man's bold, she'll give him that. While watching her mentor yell at and demean his students, she takes thorough notes. Her memos basically say to do the opposite of what Mr. Morooka is doing. She sometimes makes accidental eye-contact with Yu. He's forcing a smile but she doesn't question why. After school, the silver-haired student approaches the young woman, who is habitually leaning against the teacher's desk and taking a breather.
"Hey there, Yu! Ready for our 'date'?" Chikara asks, giggling. Yu shakes his head.
"Sorry, but I have plans."
…Why didn't you say something yesterday?
"You're turning me down? Awww…" the teacher teases. "Next time, then."
Yu nods before leaving. It appears that his friends were waiting for him just outside the classroom.
This bothers Chika. Ever since their encounter at the school gates she's been wondering what their relationship was with Kanji. They're going out in a group again and whatever they're about to do is urgent. Evidence of Kanji being in danger is piling up. Is he okay? Chikara decides to check up on him as soon as she could.
"I'm sorry dear, but Kanji stepped out quite a while ago," the elderly shop owner states. Chikara's shoulders droop. Now what?
"Oh…Okay…May I please wait here until he comes back?"
"Of course. Come right in."
Chikara enters the shop. She is once again surrounded by a variation of colors and material but is not as thrilled as she was before. Her concern for her "buddy's" well-being is too much of a distraction. Instead of window-shopping she kneels at table and waits for him to return. His mother approaches her.
"I'm so glad you're here, Chikara-chan," the shop keeper says. Chika raises an eyebrow.
"Me too, but...Why, if you don't mind me asking?"
"When he came home yesterday he was furious. I'm not sure what happened but he mentioned you before running into his room."
What is up with that kid?!
"Oh, please don't be mad at him…" Mrs. Tatsumi begs when Chikara looks frustrated. "Sometimes it's hard for him to socialize."
"I figured…" the green-eyed woman smiles weakly. "I'm not mad at him. It's just…I want him to realize that I want to be his friend. I'm not doing it for kicks and he doesn't have to prove to me that he's some tough guy." she pauses for a moment before whispering "…Oh man, he is like Aki…"
"Kanji mentioned this 'Aki' person before. Is it really true that you were mentored by the boxer?"
"Mhm…Well, I mean, I'm his wife now, so..."
"Is that right? I didn't know he was married..." the elderly woman says before hearing a knock on the door. "Hold that thought. I have a customer. I'll be right back, Chikara."
She makes her way to the store's entrance before pausing and facing her guest again.
"Oh, and…thank you for looking after my Kanji," she says before leaving.
"No problem…" Chika says. Mrs. Tatsumi probably didn't mean anything by it, but her comment about marriage stung. This is not the first time someone said they were unaware of the matrimony. Well, Akihiko is introverted, but...really? No one? Surely he gets approached by women all the time, like in high school. He turns them down and then says why...right?
"You owe me an explanation, Aki…" she mumbles. As she waits for Mrs. Tatsumi to return she listens in on the conversation. She's surprised to hear a young male's voice at a textile shop of all places but realizes it sounds familiar. She stands up and sprints to the building's entrance before nearly knocking down Yu. His eyes widen when he sees her and he tries to think of a way to escape.
"Yu?! W...Why are you here?" she wonders.
"He's looking for Kanji too. He's always wandering off so I can't help him," Mrs. Tatsumi sighs.
He's trying to follow him again? Now Chika has to know what's going on.
"Why? What do you want with him?"
"...I'm interested in biker gangs," Yu lies. "I saw Kanji on the news, so I thought..."
"But...my Kanji's not a biker," Mrs. Tatsumi says.
"Yeah!" Chikara fervently nods her head. "He was probably ticked off because of the noise they were making in the middle of the night!"
"And it's my fault he pursued them. I was the one who was having trouble sleeping and..."
"Whoa, seriously?" Chikara stares at the mother for a moment. "Huh. Good kid."
Yu looks pleadingly at Chika, who he trusts would know something's wrong. She quickly catches on and says "But if you want to hear it from the man himself, then go right ahead."
"You know...there was a small boy who came asking about him not too long ago," Mrs. Tatsumi decides to play along. "I talked to him too, but I haven't seen him around lately."
Small boy? Does she mean the person Kanji went out with yesterday?
"Okay. Thank you," Yu bows before leaving.
"H-He's not a...!" the teacher states before stopping herself. She plants her hand on her face out of frustration. "Well, anyway...He's pretty reliable for his age. I'm sure he'll find your kid."
So I can give him a good smack...
After Yu and the others failed to find the boy, they decided to get some more practice in inside Yukiko's Castle before trying again. Yosuke takes Bunny from Teddie's back and gives her a piggyback ride. Teddie is evidently saddened by this as the brunet hands his friend headphones for comfort. Bunny attempts to take them but Yosuke initially doesn't let go.
"What are you...?" the white-haired girl begins.
"Don't push him away, Bunny," Yosuke whispers. "Tell him how you feel."
"B-But..."
"So, are you guys ready?" Teddie asks. "I think you're getting close to that powerful shadow I sensed the other day."
"You don't have to support us today either," Yukiko informs him as she unfolds her fan.
"Yeah, we got Bunny with us!" Chie agrees.
"O-Oh...Okay..." the strange bear says unhappily. Bunny notices and, after heeding Yosuke's suggestion, decides to swallow her pride for once.
"Actually, I'd rather stay with him right now..." she mumbles as her ears droop. "I'm...just not used to being separated from him, y'know? You guys understand, right?"
"Of course..." Yukiko smiles. Bunny releases her friend's headphones before Teddie grabs her arm and hurls her onto her back.
"Finally, you're making sense, Bunny Rabbit! You were gonna give me a heart attack!" he lectures her.
"Shut it, bear..." she growls.
"This is probably for the best. We were kinda struggling with just three people in our team," Chie admits, chuckling. "We'll see you guys later!"
"Don't slow the guys down!" Bunny says. The girls choose to ignore her as they enter the castle. Besides the fighting and Teddie's occasional conversations with the students, the entrance to the dungeon's top floor is silent.
"...So..." the bear in clown attire says after a while, "you're not mad at me anymore?"
"I hate to say this, but...it's hard to stay angry at you," Bunny replies.
"Heh, I can't blame you. I am pretty adorable."
"No, stupid..." his companion sighs before nuzzling his fur. "It's just...you're my Teddie Bear...and...I owe you my life. I...care about you..."
"What are you trying to say?" Teddie wonders, noticing the pause.
"W-Well...um...I-I care...a lot about you...and..." the long-eared girl blushes. "I want you...to...feel the same...I guess..."
"Well, sure I do!" he smiles confusingly. Bunny's heart skips a beat. She accidentally clutches onto Teddie's fur as she tries her damnedest to calm down.
"You...You do?"
"Uh-huh! You're like a sister to me!"
You're like a sister to me!
...like a sister to me!
...sister to me!
...sister...
"Sis...ter...?" Bunny mimics feebly.
"Yup. We've known each other forever. What else would I think of you as?"
...Then...without thinking...Bunny hits Teddie on the head harder than she ever has. A large bump swells from where she made contact.
"Owww! Why did you-"
"Teddie..." Bunny states through gritted teeth, "I think I want to go with them next time..."
"Wh-Wha? You're mad at me again?"
Yu and his teammates are having great difficulty with the powerful shadow. Physical attacks are not very effective and he can send them back tenfold. No matter how many times they call for Teddie and Bunny they don't respond. They're too busy arguing again.
"I think we made a huge mistake..." Yukiko groans, guarding after realizing that the boss absorbs fire attacks.
"I said let me go with them! Let me go, let me go, LET ME GO!"
"Okay, okay, sheesh! What did I do now?"
"Yup..." Yosuke agrees after casting Dia on the hurt fire-caster. "Teddie, you idiot..."
The next day, Chikara takes over Mr. Morooka's Philosophy class while he's running his mysterious errands. As she teaches, she occasionally stops mid-sentence, leans against the desk behind her, or taps her foot. Her peculiar body language catches a student's attention so he raises his hand and asks what's wrong.
"Is it that obvious?" she smiles weakly. "I'm just a little worried about a friend of mine. I'm sure he's in good hands, though."
As she says this, she can't help but be anxious. Kanji wasn't at the textile shop all day yesterday. She suspected something was amiss ever since that television show...
A few nights ago Chika decided to try out a rumor she heard from a gas station attendant when she first moved to Inaba. If she remembered correctly, she could see her soulmate if she stared at a blank television screen alone on a rainy night. It was pouring that night so she figured, why not? So...she waited...and waited...and before she realized how stupid the rumor was she saw something.
And boy, was it something.
It was Kanji. And he was almost naked with only a towel covering his nether regions. And he was acting very...very gay.
"...I fucking knew it," was the first thing she said.
Kanji's disappearance doesn't help matters. What if that cheesy TV set is where Kanji is? If so, why? Are Yu and his friends hiding something?
She is going to find out today.
After class she initiates her own stakeout and discreetly follows her students to their destination. First they separate and, based on their interrogations, are gathering information about Kanji. She decides to tail Yu. He goes to the Junes department store and talks to the small boy Kanji was last seen with. The person says rather vague things about the platinum blond that...well...anyone who sees Kanji misbehave could tell Yu. Her student somehow finds the information sufficient and calls the others. Chika stays hidden until he takes the elevator. She takes the one next to it.
After a brief conversation the group migrates to the electronics department. Why are they going shopping after asking about a missing kid? Now Chikara must know what they're up to.
...Did Chie just hop into a flat screen TV? Chikara rubs her eyes and smacks her cheeks a few times. She even pinches her arm. Is she asleep? Is she going insane? What in the world...?
No...It's real...Yukiko goes in next...then Yosuke...Without thinking, Chika comes out of her hiding place and rushes to Yu when his body is halfway inside. She grabs his visible shoulder.
"H-Hey, wai-"
Yu looks back at her but something is sucking him inside the television and he can't stop. Chika can feel something metallic beneath his school uniform. Armor? She knew something was different about these kids. Her curiosity...Her challenging nature...Her subconscious desire to fight non-human enemies again prevents her from letting go.
Before she realizes that she's powerless without her weapon or Evoker, she falls through a black and white vortex.