Author's Note: Far Cry 3 is property Ubisoft. Busou Chuugakusei: Basket Army is property of Enterbrain and XXolution. When the main characters are speaking amongst themselves, assume they are speaking Japanese, while Earnhardt and other island locals will be assumed to be speaking English, unless noted. As Earnhardt is a polyglot (at least in this AU), he will be able to speak Japanese. Anything spoken in Japanese spoken by or around him will be in italics.

Touko Natori woke up around 0800 hours to the sound of the people eating. She got up from the bed, to see Taro, Ann and Kazuki having breakfast. Each of them had a canteen cup of breakfast cereal. On a small table to one side was a box of cereal, a container of evaporated milk and a gallon jug of water.

"Oh, Touko-san, your up", Kazuki said, "We picked up breakfast at the general store. We got one of you too"

Kazuki passed Touko a battered old canteen cup and matching canteen- old US Army issue, as well as a small spoon. Touko poured herself a cup of water, and mixed in a couple spoonfuls of powdered milk, before adding the cereal and starting

to eat.

"Not the best, but at least we've got something to eat", Touko commented as she ate.

A few minutes later, after everyone had finished, the topic of conversation changed to their missing friends.

"How are we supposed to find out where the pirates took our friends?", Ann asked.

"We could try and take one of these pirates alive", Touko said, "Force the intel out of him."

Further planning on the subject, however, was rendered unnecessary, as the door suddenly opened. It was Dennis, the foreigner who was living with the Rakyat.

"Ann, I have found news of your friends", Dennis said, only noting Ann's name, possibly as she was their interpreter, or possibly because he had simply forgotten the names of the other three, "The pirates are holding a Japanese girl in an outpost to the east."

As he spoke, Dennis unfurled a map of the Rook Islands. "You are here." Dennis pointed out Amanaki on the map before continuing, "The outpost is circled in red. We intend to take back the outpost for the Rakyat, as a first step towards retaking this island from the pirates. I have yet to see you in action, but if you killed that squad of pirates yesterday, you are no doubt skilled. We could use your help, if you wish.

Dennis left after he finished speaking, leaving Ann to finish interpreting what he said to the others.

"Well, what do you think?", Ann asked.

"We're going with them, and were going to get which ever one of them it is back. We don't leave our friends behind.", Touko said, "Everyone arm up".

The inside of the shack became a hive of activity as a everyone collected their weapons, which were all placed against tables or propped up against the walls.

Within five minutes, everyone exited the building, armed up and ready for battle, Touko and Kazuki carrying AKs, Taro wielding his PKM and Ann armed with her Dragunov. All of them had handguns and grenades at their side. People stared as they passed by, armed to the teeth- men with guns were a common sight, but the oldest of them was only 17, and they were clearly not from the island.

"Excellent!", Dennis, who was sitting in the drivers seat of a jeep one of the two on the road, said as they walked towards the road, "You have chosen the path of the warrior".

"Uhhh… Yeah", Taro said, unsure how to respond to that as he climbed into the back of the jeep along with the other four. Dennis started the vehicle and drove off, followed by a jeep full of Rakyat warriors armed with AKs.

After a few minute of driving down narrow, unpaved dirt roads, the jeeps came to a stop near the side of a ridge.

"Why are we stopping here?", Taro asked.

"The outpost lies on the other side of this hill", Dennis replied, "You will climb the up and provide support for us from above. We will move in when we hear you fire the first shots. Good luck".

At that, Touko led Taro, Ann, and Kazuki up the hill, moving slowly and keeping a low profile so as not the be seen. When they reached the top of the hill, Touko motioned for them to stop.

"Hold here", Touko whispered, "Ann, scope out the area, but hold your fire."

"Looks like we've got about ten men in the area", Ann said as she looked through the scope. From what the others could see, that seemed about right. The outpost consisted of two small shacks made of corrugated aluminum, and what looked like a pre-fabricated trailer.

"There's a sniper on the roof", Ann said, "and a heavy machine gun nest to the left."

"I see the nest", Kazuki said, "I think I can get a grenade in there".

"Sounds like plan", Touko said, "Ann, drop that sniper as soon as the grenade explodes, Taro and I will provide fire support."

"All right, let's go", Touko said.

Kazuki Kurobe took of the M26 fragmentation grenades from his belt and crept forward several dozen meters, before pulling out the pin. He then tossed the grenade through the air, towards the machine gun next.

The unsuspecting pirate operating the machine gun heard something small hit the ground near his feet. He looked down just in time to see a green, roughly lemon-shaped object.

"GREN…. BOOM", the pirate attempts to warn his comrades about the grenade was interrupted as it detonated with a deafening roar, making a bloody mess of the machine gunner and also killing one other, who was standing nearby.

At the same time as the explosion, the sniper on top of a building collapsed with a bullet in his brain- the report from Ann's sniper rifle was masked by the exploding grenade.

Touko fired her AK at a pirate that tried to run towards what she assumed to be an alarm- a wooden pole about ten feet tall, with a loudspeaker-type device on top and a red switch on the side at about chest level. The pirate was killed before he could raise the alarm as were two more pirates, who were cut down by a hail of bullets from Taro's PKM.

The surviving pirates retreated towards the exit of the outpost, only for one to be picked off by Ann, and the other, machine gunned by Taro. The three who made it the exit were cut down by fire from the Dennis and the rest of the Rakyat, who charged in the front entrance.

The Rakyat searched the exterior of the base as Ann and Taro both yelled "Friendlies coming in, left side".

Touko and the other three others emerged from the jungle, and, not bothering to speak with Dennis or any of the Rakyat, Touko kicked down the door to the main building.

Inside were a number of crates of supplies, as a well as a table with a radio on top, and, in the back, an empty metal cage. Lying on the floor was wounded pirate, clutching his injured leg.

"Please…" he said as he produced a wad of cash, "Don't kill me… take this cash".

"There was a Japanese girl being held here", Ann said, "Where is she!?"

"The girl, she escaped, fled to the west", the pirate replied, "I'm telling the truth… take the cash too…. just don't kill me".

"This could come in useful", Taro said, picking up a suppressed MP5 submachine gun.

"It's yours, just let me go", the pirate said.

"All right then", Ann said, "Thank you for your cooperation".

At that, she exited the structure along with Touko, Kazuki, and Taro. They cared little what happened to the pirate at the hands of the Rakyat.

"So, did you find your friend?", Dennis asked.

"No", Taro said, interpreting for Toko, "Apparently she escaped ran off to the west. Do you have any idea where she might have ended up?"

"Go see Dr. Earnhardt", Dennis said.

"Who", Taro responded.

"Dr. Alec Earnhardt, a British chemist living on the east side of the island.", Dennis said, "He might know something".

Dennis then produced the map of the Rook Islands he had shown them earlier, as well as a pen from his pocket. Dennis marked a point on the east end of the island.

"Earnhardt's house should be on that point. Take the map and this cell phone", Dennis said as he handed them a phone that looked to be about ten years old, "Just in case I need to keep in contact with you".

"Thank you", Touko said in what little English she could speak, her accent making it sound more like "sankyu".

"Your welcome", Dennis said as Touko climbed into a jeep that had been "liberated" from the pirates, "But I thought you did not know how to drive."

"I haven't driven before, but it can't be too difficult", Touko responded through Ann's interpretation, as Kazuki sat at her side and Taro and Ann got in the back.

"True", Dennis said, "There is a first time for everything. Good luck, young warriors".

At that, Touko stepped on the clutch, pulled the shift into what she thought was first gear, and stepped on the gas. The jeep rolled forward, down the dirt road. About 100 meters away, the jeep's engine started to make an unusual sound, before it stalled, giving out entirely.

"I think you need switch gears when it starts to sound like that", Ann said.

Touko restarted the engine and drove off again, this time successfully managing to get the vehicle up into second, and then third gear as they drove past Amanaki.

Past Amanaki, the road left the main island, and continued along a wide sandbar connecting the main island with a smaller island. Kazuki got out the map- English was a required class in most Japanese schools, so he could read enough to understand the map, even he was not fluent like Ann or Taro.

"Keep following this road", Kazuki instructed, "The sandbar should continue past this one, and onto the next island. Keep heading west at the fork in the road"

"Got it", Touko said, as they quickly crossed the first island and drove back onto the sandbar, from which a rocky promontory, about 150 meters above the sandbar was visible.

Touko took the north fork in the road, ascending the winding path up to the summit of the rocky point, crossing a wooden bridge over a small stream, before making it to the top, on which was situated what looked like it had once been a beautifully apportioned mansion, about 100 years ago... Now the place looked like it was abandoned.

"This place is abandoned", Taro said, "That Dennis guy had better not be fucking with us".

"He's not", Ann said, "There's someone in the greenhouse."

The four of them exited the vehicle, led by Touko. All of them kept their weapons in hand, just in case. As they entered the greenhouse, which was filled with a number of different plants none of them had ever seen before, they saw an older man, seated at a table covered in test tubes, beakers, Bunsen burners, and, to one side, several bowls of differently colored pills.

"Excuse me, sir", Ann said to the man in the greenhouse, "You wouldn't happen to be Dr. Earnhardt?"

"Ahh, Yes, I am", Dr. Earnhardt said, "See anything you fancy? I quite like the red ones, and the purple one's will definitely liven up a dreary day…. But don't try the yellow ones- they're liable to kill you. I haven't got the formulation quite right on those."

"We're not here for those", Ann said, "We heard you might know something about our friend".

"Oh", Dr. Earnhardt said, "I'll be making up another batch this morning".

"I don't think this guy knows anything about where the others went", Ann said in Japanese.

"My apologies", Dr. Earnhardt suddenly broke into Japanese.

"You speak Japanese?", Touko asked.

"Hai,", Earnhardt said, "I also speak French and German. Anyway, my apologies, I assumed you to be speaking in code, but you must be the friends of that Japanese girl, Nanami I think her name was. Come with me, I have her with me."

As Earnhardt led them into the house, he said, "It was lucky I found her when I did- the girl was about to walk into a field of Antiaris Toxicaria- highly poisonous sap."

The Earnhardt led them up a set of stairs to a room that looked like the it belonged to a young girl, what with the toys on the shelves, the child-sized bed, and the pink wallpaper. However, there was no sign of a child anywhere else in the house.

The unusual décor of the room, however, was pushed to the back of their minds when they saw the girl on the bed.

"Namami!", Touko said.

"Touko… and Kazuki, Ann, and Taro too… Your OK! I was so scared….", Nanami said as she grabbed Touko and pulled her into a tight embrace. Nanami soon pulled Taro, Ann, and Kazuki into a group hug as well.

After they broke apart, Nanami continued speaking, sounding more concerned this time, "I escaped from the cage they were holding me in and ran into the jungle, that's when he found me…. I'm afraid I don't know where the others are…"

At that, Nanami said, "Dr. Earnhardt , I have some other friends who are trapped on this island, still held by the pirates. Could we bring them here?"

Abruptly, Dr. Earnhardt switched back to English, "Well, I could not refuse you, Agnes…"

Taro opened his mouth to speak, clearing about to ask what Earnhardt was talking about, but Touko gave him a look that silenced him at once

"But you can't stay in the house", Earnhardt continued, in English, as he produced a flashlight from his side and handed it to Touko, "I deal with the pirates regularly… But there's a cave out back that I use to store things… mostly junk, but I do have some old camping equipment in there, including a tent".

"Thank you", Nanami said in her best attempt at English, and followed her classmates down the stairs and out of the house, as Earnhardt said, "Your very welcome, Agnes…. Dear me, I think I'll need to take double the normal dosage."

The five of them walked out to the back of house, and quickly noticed a break in the cliffs in the back. The break in the cliffs sloped relatively gently down to the entrance of a cave.

"This has to be the place the doctor was talking about", Touko said, as she walked in and turned on the flashlight.

The inside of the cave was a large chamber, with a stack of crates filled with various supplies on one wall. Among these items were a number of flashlights, a few tents, still bagged, and a propane camp stove.

In the other corner of the room was something no one quite understood how it got there: An entire boat. Unfortunately, it did not look like it had been seaworthy for years.

"This is excellent", Taro said, "I guess he can be relied on, even if he is crazy".

"He's not so bad", Nanami replied, "He's a bit crazy, but he's not dangerous. Actually a pretty nice guy… I feel kind of sorry for him, I think he lost a child at some point."

"Well that would explain the kid's room, and the whole Agnes thing…", Kazuki commented as he got out one of the tents and unrolled it on the cave floor. It was a large four-person tent.

"I bet he started using those drugs after his daughter… Agnes died…", Ann said, as she helped Touko put up a smaller two-person tent.

No sooner had they completed the tents, then Ann received a call on the cell phone Dennis gave them.

"Hello", Ann said.

"It's Dennis", Dennis' voice spoke through the phone, "Did you find your friend?"

"Yeah", Ann replied, "Dr. Earnhardt found her."

"I'm glad to hear that", Dennis replied, "And I think I might know where you can get intel on the others. The pirates use an the communications antenna on the Medusa, a ship that ran aground on the north coast of the island years ago, but the antenna is still operating. They should keep logs of radio communications there, so there might be something about your friends, but the place is crawling with pirates, so you might want to go in stealthy. The store in Amanaki should have some suppressed weapons."

As soon as the call ended, Ann relayed the information to Touko and the others.

"Nanami", Touko said said in her commanding voice, "You can stay here and rest for now. Taro, you hold down the fort, just make sure no 'uninvited guests' show up".

"The rest of you, with me", Touko continued, "With me, we're going to find intel on our friends. But first, we're making a quick shopping trip. Also, everyone remember this: when entering the cave, the challenge is a "Kamiya", countersign is "demon". I'll fill Dr. Earnhardt in on this new system".

The countersign brought a snicker to everyone in present. Kimiko Kamiya, better known to the students of Eastern Private Defense Academy as "the demon", was a JSDF captain who worked with the academy during their field training exercises. The students only worked with her once a year, however, her strict military discipline and demanding expectations made an impression that would never leave them.

Touko Natori, Ann Matsura, and Kazuki Kurobe picked up their weapons, Kazuki taking the silenced MP5 they had found in the outpost that morning. Taro, meanwhile, positioned himself on top of the old boat, placing the bipod of his PKM on the side, aiming at the entrance to the cave.

"Good luck", Nanami said as they left, while Taro added, "Don't get yourselves shot out there!"

The three of them then walked out of the cave, up the little path up the Earnhardt mansion, taking cover in the tall grass briefly and scanning the area. Once they were sure that no pirates were currently paying Earnhardt a visit.

"Looks clear", Touko said, "Lets move".

The three of them walked over to the greenhouse, where Dr. Earnhardt was still at work on one drug concoction or another.

"Oh", he said in Japanese, Hello… Natori-san, was it?"

"Hai", Touko said, "We're heading off to see if you can find out anything about where our friends went. By the way, when going into the cave, if you hear the challenge "Kamiya", respond with "demon". That way we know your friendly."

"Good idea, coming up with a way to tell if someone is hostile. I shall remember that", Earnhardt said.

New Character Profiles:

Nanami Karino

D.O.B: May 23, 2011

Age: 17

Blood Type: O

Nanami Karino, along with her sister, had dreams of attaining celebrity status from an early age. During her childhood, she worked as a child model, and discovered a talent for dancing. However, it would be her sister, not Nanami, who would make progress on towards her dreams of stardom. Initially, Nanami was happy for her sister, but gradually, she became more and more frustrated with the amount of attention the family paid to her sister, while ignoring her.

So Nanami left home and enrolled in a boarding school- the Eastern Private Defense Academy- at an early age. There, Nanami seemed to have finally found happiness, having many friends and generally being well liked for her cheerful, upbeat personality.

But, unfortunately, a bunch of French mercs showed up at the school, attempting to steal a package of experimental weapon parts and ruined all the fun. I sympathize with you, Nanami, I hate it when that happens!

So, Nanami showed joined Touko's little group to fight against the frogs, unfortunately, she discovered that some things just aren't good for one's psychological health- and hails of bullets flying over your head happens to be one of them, which lead to Nanami going into a panic and getting a bad case of post-traumatic stress disorder. Nanami managed to survive the incident and recover from her PTSD with the support of her friends. She insisted in staying in the Eastern Private Defense Academy, in spite of the fact that it meant a career path leading to the JSDF. I suspect she aims for the safest career option in the JSDF- the commander of an LMD: A Large Mahogany Desk.