Far, far to the east of the desert area that currently was Shibuya, a small rift appeared by the ground, which someone leapt out of before it closed itself. Though he was cloaked, one could tell that he wasn't one you'd want to associate yourself with, given the large, golden scythe protruding from where his right arm was supposed to be. "…this is supposed to be the place he was sent to?" this stranger uttered, as he glanced around him, a pair of red jewels scanning the wasteland from underneath the hood covering his face.

"…feh… figures that he'd skimp out on our business the first chance he got…" the stranger scoffed, as he folded his arms. "And that new partner of mine is impossible to work with, too… if I have to drag him back to the Digital World, I swear…" Then, he glanced at the scythe-blade, before sighing. "…well, might as well have fun while doing it." Then, leaping high into the air, the stranger slashed the scythe at the air, creating a massive rift in thin air. "Come out, Deltamon!"

As he said that, a loud roar rung through the air, as a massive monster stepped out from the rift, towering over the cloaked person. This creature, whose head sort of resembled that of a shark, was dark-blue, with his stomach and the tip of his nose colored white. Its most distinguishing features were its arms; more specifically, the two massive heads that made up its arms, as its right hand was a massive, mechanical head, while its left hand was a skeletal head. It also had two tails, the tip of each of them representing the monster's hands, with the left tail's tip being skeletal, and the right tail's tip being mechanical.

"Ooh, yes! You're a good boy, aren't you, Deltamon?" the stranger laughed, as Deltamon let out yet another thundering roar, actually coming from all three of its heads, as if the heads on its hands were sentient as well. "But you can be a lot stronger, too! You know how? By absorbing data! So go out, and nail any Digimon you see, and grow much stronger, my pet! Except… for that one!"

As it heard its master's command, Deltamon roared again, before turning towards the city, which it began approaching, each step it took shaking the ground under it. "Heh… this is gonna be spectacular…" the stranger chuckled, as he folded his arms. "Soon enough, you'll be where you belong…"

"Hn?" Blinking, Rah looked around her, as her ears were perking up. "…did you guys hear something?" she inquired, as she glanced towards her traveling companions, who looked around them with clueless looks.

"…I can't hear anything…" Chi admitted, before looking down at the ground with a sad look. "…I hope my hearing isn't going bad…"

"Of course it isn't, Chi!" Hime shot in, as she quickly picked up and hugged Chi. "Your hearing is as good as ever! Though… I have to say, I couldn't hear anything, either."

"Neither could I." Eddy nodded, as he looked back at his Digivice screen. After defeating Harpymon and clearing up the misunderstanding, Eddy and Hime had gotten permission from the Armor Digimon to scan her, adding another set of data to their imprinting arsenal. "…I wonder if Sayoko and Kata have more variation in their data collection."

"Knowing Sayoko, I'd say she has more than me." Hime mused. "As for Kata… well, he's a thinker, so he'd think of some way he could use the imprinting feature strategically."

"Speaking of, where do you think we'll find them?" Eddy asked, as he glanced at Hime. "I hope that we can find Sayoko at her place, but where Kata could be, I'm not sure of."

"You shouldn't ask me about that." Hime replied with a mild shrug. "Still, I'm sure we'll find them, regardless. It's bound to happen, right?"

"…yeah… I guess…" Chi uttered, as she looked ahead of them. Just then, her eyes widened. "…Hime! Something's coming!"

"Yes…" Rah uttered, as she snarled. "...get ready!"

In that instant, rocketing out of the sand was a dolphin-like creature, who had a scar running across his face. "There's a few tasty morsels!" he said, as he grinned wickedly.

"Dolphmon!" Rah called, as she glanced at Eddy and Hime. "Prepare the Digi-Imprints; a Champion-level is going to need a little extra firepower from both of us!"

"I still can't believe that we're going with that name…" Eddy muttered, before looking at Dolphmon. "…and isn't anyone going to comment on the fact that a dolphin just leapt right out of the sand?"

"It's not the weirdest thing I've seen, to be honest." Hime said with a shrug. "I've seen a marionette with a hammer fight against a metal monkey. That tops desert dolphins any day."

"I don't recall which series that was from…" Eddy grumbled, before rubbing his temples. "…but really, that doesn't exactly matter, when a dolphin just jumped out of the sand, when it needs water to survive."

"Technically, seeing as it's a Digimon, would it need water at all?" Hime noted, as she tilted her head.

"Still, when I see a dolphin, I don't expect to see it popping out from a desert." Eddy began, as he looked at Hime with a look of disdain. "If it had been a scorpion, sure, it can pop out of a desert. But that is so obviously a dolphin, not a scorpion."

"But I read someplace that Dolphmon can Digivolve into Scorpiomon, which is a Digimon who usually spends time in deserts." Hime continued. "Maybe it's just training for becoming a Scorpiomon, instead of a Divermon."

"But why would a dolphin turn into a scorpion?" Eddy said, before he realized something. "Wait, I forgot… this is a franchise where a koala can turn into a wolf, if you train it properly enough. My mistake." he muttered.

"AREN'T YOU TWO PAYING ANY ATTENTION?" both Rah and the Dolphmon snapped, as they glared at Eddy and Hime with gritted teeth.

"Ah… don't yell, please…" Chi uttered, as she looked fearfully at Rah.

"Tsch… makin' fun of me, are ya?" the Dolphmon growled, as he reeled his head back. "Shaking Pulse!" he shouted, before firing a sonic wave at the group.

"Sh- RetriBark!" Quickly, Rah let out a loud roar, which unleashed another sonic wave that instantly collided with Dolphmon's sonic wave, causing both of them to explode against each other, creating a cloud of dust that clouded everyone's field of vision.

"Kah… a sonic attack of your own, eh?" Dolphmon uttered, before grinning. "Well, a Rookie can't hold up against a Champion! Time to-" Before he could finish his sentence, however, something slammed right into the side of his face, sending him rocketing away from the scene, right into a building close to them.

"What was that?" Hime uttered once she heard the sound of a wall being torn down, just as the dust began fading. "…hn?"

As it turned out, who stood where Dolphmon once had been, was a tall, muscular man with short, messy black hair, who wore a pink Hawaii-shirt and black jeans, and wrapped around both of his hands were a pair of brass knuckles. Perched on the man's left shoulder was a small, pig-like creature (only without the snout), with a purple upper half, which included a pair of wings. Once the dust fully faded away, the man glanced at the group. "…are you all safe?" he uttered.

"…did…" Rah uttered in an astounded tone, as she looked at the man and the Digimon on his shoulder. "…did he just punch a Champion-level into a building?"

"…he has a Tsukaimon for a partner…" Chi uttered nervously. "…is he a bad man?"

"Oh, he's anything but bad." Eddy said in a relieved tone, as he grinned. "It's nice to see you again, Kata."

"…and then, the Dolphmon popped out of the sand, and you knocked it into a building." At the moment, the group had taken a break, with the three Digimon eating some chips and crackers that Kata had brought along, while Eddy and Hime had been informing Kata of what they had gone through before they met up with him.

"…I see…" Kata muttered, as he leant against a building, whilst looking at Hime and Eddy. "Well, today hasn't been too eventful on my line. Uta and I have for the most part been looking for other humans, but found nothing but other Digimon."

"Really?" Eddy noted, as he tilted his head. "Because back when we met Hime, there was this guy who showed up… he called himself Kizoku."

"Said that he was from Adachi, and that he was looking for his sister…" Hime added, as she folded her arms. "Though… after he showed up, that Harpymon attacked…"

"…hm." Kata hummed, before he folded his arms. "Well, I can't say for sure what triggered her to fight you… but if it was this Kizoku, we should all be careful." Then, he looked at the Tsukaimon. "Isn't that right, Uta?"

"Y'know what I think?" Uta said, as he swallowed what he currently had in his mouth, before flying up to Kata, landing on his shoulders. "I say we just go find that guy and pound him for info! If he knows something, we gotta figure out what it is!"

"But we can't just beat him up, now, can we?" Kata noted, as he looked up at the sky. "Besides, he could be anywhere, and if we're going to find Sayoko, we can't waste much time." Then, he recalled something, before looking down at Eddy. "Oh, yeah, I just remembered… is Lira at home by herself?"

"…I think so…" Eddy muttered, as he tilted his head. "She shouldn't be in too much trouble, though; she's a smart girl, so she won't open the door for strangers. I just hope that she found the wares that Boss brought over to her…"

"I do wonder where Boss went after completing that mission you sent him on…" Rah muttered, as she looked at Eddy.

"Well, we can focus on finding that out after we find Sayoko." Eddy noted, as he yawned. "After that, we'll head back to my place; that can be our headquarters until we can figure out how to solve this mess."

"…oh, yeah! Kata, I got to ask you something!" Hime suddenly said, as she looked up at Kata. "You have your Digivice with you, right?"

"Of course." Kata nodded, as he took out a dark-green Digivice from his pocket, before handing it to Hime. "You're thinking about data exchange, right?"

"Right." Hime nodded, as she took out her own Digivice, holding the two against each other. "Eddy, take out your own; it couldn't hurt to have extra data on your hands." As she said that, two beams shot from the Digivices, transferring data to and from each device.

Once she was done, she handed Kata's Digivice over to Eddy, who repeated the process with his own Digivice. When the process was done, he saw what new data he had acquired for his Digivice; along with Uta, there were pixilated versions of Biyomon, Palmon and Gomamon on his screen. "…that's it?" he inquired.

"…yep." Kata nodded. "Though… why would you ask something like that? I thought that you-"

"Once again, I've just grown out of it." Eddy quickly replied, as he handed Kata back his Digivice; he knew fully well what the question was going to be. "Well, our main priority at the moment is finding Sayoko. After that, we need to find out how this happened to Shibuya, and how we're going to reverse this."

"'ey, since when did you get to be in charge?" Uta suddenly said, as he glanced at Eddy. "Kata's the smartest of us, so he should be the one in charge!"

"Not necessarily." Kata said matter-of-factly, as he glanced at Uta. "In all of the Digimon series, the smartest of the group never was the leader; in fact, for the most part, even the biggest idiot of the group was in charge."

"Yeah, it's probably best not to toy with tradition." Hime noted, before glancing at Eddy. "He can be the leader, for now; we get to crash at his place, after all."

"…did you just call me an idiot?" Eddy uttered dryly, as he looked at Kata and Hime with a flat expression. "Well… at least we won't have to quarrel about who the leader is going to be…"

"KYAAAAAHHH!" In that instant, they heard a woman scream, which made everyone glance to their left. As it turned out, a woman with long, silvery hair and a black dress was being chased down by a round, armored Digimon who wore a thick, leather vest, and was wielding two foil swords. "Get away from me, you monster!" the woman shrieked.

"A Gladimon!" Rah uttered, as she observed the Digimon. "Tsch… we need to help that woman!"

"Right!" Eddy said, as he pulled out his Digivice. "Everyone, get ready to-" Just then, Kata ran right towards the Gladimon, passing right by the woman. "…fight?"

Before the Gladimon could respond to this, Kata slipped on his brass knuckles, before fiercely slamming his right fist into the Gladimon's face, cracking the Digimon's helmet, while also sending him skidding back. "…ma'am." Kata uttered, as he didn't take his eyes off the Gladimon. "You're alright?"

"…ah… yes…" the woman uttered, as she looked at the Gladimon, who was just recovering. "…thank you for saving me. I'm Heimin. What is your name?"

"…Katatsu Hashikoi." Kata replied simply. "Please take cover, ma'am; we'll handle this Digimon."

"…y-yes…" Heimin uttered, as she bowed down to Kata. "Thank you so much!" she said, before she continued to run away.

"…did…" Rah uttered, as she looked at Kata in awe. "…did he cause a Gladimon's armor to crack in a single punch?"

"That's Kata for you; the smartest strongman in Shibuya that I know." Eddy noted, as he brought out his club. "Kata, we'll cover you!"

"So don't fret!" Hime shot in, as she took out her microphone, ready to release the cord from it.

"…do you realize what you've done, my good man?" Gladimon uttered, as he pointed one of his swords at Kata. "That woman is dangerous, and you let her go!"

"I beg to differ." Kata replied in a cool tone, just as Uta landed on his shoulder. "As a Digimon, and a Champion-level to boot, you are much more dangerous than that woman could ever hope to be." Then, he cracked his neck. "Now… do you intend to make this difficult for yourself?"

"…you shouldn't take of making things difficult." Gladimon uttered, as he cracked his neck. "Now, prepare yourselves! Gladimon, Digivolve to…" As he said those words, his body began glowing, before his entire body changed. When the glow vanished, there stood a massive, armored Digimon towering above Kata, as he weighed a massive Zweihänder on his left shoulder. On his back, a large, golden shield hung, and placed against his hips were two smaller claymores. "…Knightmon!"

"Aah! He Digivolved!" Hime uttered, as she looked at the Ultimate Digimon in astonishment. "And on his own accord, too!"

"Tsch… this is going to be tough…" Eddy muttered, as he glanced at Kata. "We'll help you-"

"No…" Kata muttered, as he slammed his fists against each other, just as Uta took off, flying up towards a building behind Knightmon. "…if I'm not mistaken… I'll win this battle."

"…you're confident." the Knightmon uttered, before he slammed the massive Zweihänder down point-first into the ground. "Very well; I'll accept your challenge, sir! I shall give you three minutes to try and harm me, and I will not retaliate! But can you break through my Chrome Digizoid armor?"

"…I can try." Saying that, Kata rushed right at Knightmon, before throwing a punch aimed directly at the knight's torso. However, as expected, the armor didn't even budge. "…hm."

"What's wrong?" Eddy uttered, as he glanced down at Rah. "Why didn't that punch cause Knightmon's armor to crack?"

"While a Gladimon's armor is made from iron or steel…" Rah began, as she closed her eyes. "…a Knightmon's armor is made from Chrome Digizoid; the toughest metal one can find in the Digital World. It is said to be impossible to pierce through."

"There are different variants of that metal, of course…" Hime began, as she folded her arms. "…some variants can boost the user's strength, or even speed during battle. However, he's just got the standard suit of Chrome Digizoid armor."

"…then let me ask a question…" Eddy uttered, before inhaling. "WHY ARE WE LETTING KATA FIGHT AGAINST A MONSTER WHO WEARS A SUIT OF ARMOR THAT KATA CAN'T PIERCE THROUGH?" he suddenly yelled.

"Don't yell." Kata said calmly, as he retracted his fist, while looking up at Knightmon. "I'm trying to think." Then, he quickly stepped around Knightmon, before throwing a punch at his side, but like before, it yielded no result.

"I don't see what you're hoping to accomplish." Knightmon uttered, before sighing. "Your punches are strong, but against this armor, they are rendered powerless!"

"There is no armor without a weak spot." Kata replied, as he kept punching at different spots on Knightmon's armor. "Once I find it, the battle is mine."

"Try as you might, but you will not succeed!" Knightmon scoffed, before he closed his eyes, ignoring the numerous punches Kata threw at his body. "No one has broken through this armor yet!"

"Tsch…" Eddy uttered, as he glanced at Rah. "Is there nothing that can break through that kind of metal?"

"Well… if you deal a strong enough attack, you might be able to break through the armor." Rah noted, before she closed her eyes. "But I have a feeling that Kata is just going to break his fingers before he can break through it…"

"…actually, if you attack Chrome Digizoid with something else made out of Chrome Digizoid…" Hime uttered, as she rubbed her chin. "…let's see what Kata thinks of."

Still, Kata kept attacking Knightmon relentlessly, throwing punches at the Digimon without the slightest bit of delay. In spite of that, however, Knightmon remained undaunted, as the attacks still left no impact on the Ultimate-level. "…three minutes have passed. Are you done, now?"

"Not yet." In that instant, Kata threw a punch at Knightmon's back, but the blow was absorbed by the shield hanging on the Digimon's back. Surprisingly enough, however, the punch managed to dent the shield. "…interesting… your shield is not made from Chrome Digizoid, is it?"

"…it is not." Knightmon conceded, before quickly turning to face Kata, his Zweihänder raised high above his head. "But now, the fight ends! Berserk Sword!" he yelled, before furiously swinging the sword down on Kata, who just managed to roll away from it; the moment the sword struck the ground, however, it caused a tremor to rock the ground around them.

"Aah!" Chi cried, as she quickly latched onto Hime, looking at Kata and Knightmon. "That was a heavy blow…"

"No kidding." Hime uttered. "That Berserk Sword probably weighs more than a ton… and even with the Chrome Digizoid armor, Knightmon can wield it one-handed, without breaking a sweat."

"Now that's an Ultimate Digimon…" Eddy uttered. "…but why isn't Uta helping Kata out?"

"…do you see the power that I possess?" Knightmon uttered, as he lifted his sword off the ground, before looking towards Kata, who had gotten back on his feet. "As tenacious as you are, you cannot pass my defense…" As he spoke, he removed his shield from his back, still holding the Berserk Sword in his right hand, while wielding the shield in his left. "…and if you can't even do that, you have no hope of victory!"

"…true…" Kata uttered, as he cracked his neck. "…the problem is your armor. Even with your shield out of the way, I need Chrome Digizoid to smash the armor." Then, he raised his own Digivice into the air, just as it gave out a glow. "But first, I'll need some reinforcements. Uta, come on down!"

"'bout time, Kata!" Uta chimed in from high up above the group, as his body began glowing and changing. "Tsukaimon, Digivolve to…" Once the glow changed, the pig-like critter no longer flew in the air; he had been replaced by a four-winged, black demon of a dragon, its four, red eyes gleaming with bloodlust, which was somehow reflected off its long, red claws. "…Devidramon!"

"A Devidramon!" Rah uttered in surprise. "A monster of that caliber could match even an Ultimate in a battle!"

"But not even its claws can penetrate Chrome Digizoid…" Hime uttered, as she looked up at the black dragon Uta had turned into. "…hold the phone… don't tell me that he's…"

"Now, Uta, get ready for a heavy lift!" Kata called, as he quickly aimed his Digivice at Uta. "Digi-Imprint! Data: Zudomon!" As he called that, a beam shot out at the dragon, hitting it in a manner of seconds. No sooner had he done that, when a large spark of electricity began forming within Uta's right hand, eventually forming into a large hammer.

"…so that's what he was planning…" Hime uttered. "Zudomon's hammer is made from Chrome Digizoid! How long did he plan for that?"

"…so you plan to strike me with that?" Knightmon scoffed, before he raised his shield, glaring at Uta. "Even if my shield won't survive the attack, it'll give me plenty of time to counter your strategy, sir!"

"Who said that Uta was going to attack you first?" The moment Knightmon raised his shield, Kata immediately ran towards Knightmon, before leaping up into the air, raising one of his fists. "I was waiting for you to raise your shield all along!" Then, before Knightmon could hope to realize what Kata had planned, he slammed his fist down onto the golden shield, making it split directly in two pieces, both of them falling to the ground.

"…my shield!" Knightmon uttered in shock, just as Kata landed on the ground. "…oh, no… Master Oda isn't going to be pleased when he sees this!"

"You've got worse things to worry about, bucko!" Uta laughed, as he swooped down towards Knightmon, raising the hammer in his right hand. "Hammer Boomerang!" he yelled, before hurling the hammer down towards Knightmon.

Still in shock over the fact that his shield had been snapped in half, Knightmon didn't get an opportunity to evade the hammer, as it struck his abdomen directly, creating a massive crack in his armor. "AGH!" he cried out, as the blow sent him skidding several feet back.

"Now, to finish it." Kata uttered, as he reeled his fist back, before rushing right at Knightmon, who was still trying to recover. "Good fight… but ultimately, I won."

"Muramasa!" Hearing that female voice, Kata suddenly stopped, as the group looked up in the air, where they could see Harpymon fly over them. "Stay away from him!" she called, before she quickly landed next to Knightmon, placing one of her wings on his shoulder. "Are you alright, Muramasa?"

"…Karura?" Muramasa uttered, as he looked at Harpymon with a bewildered look. "…you're here, as well? I thought you were with Master Oda…"

"That's where I thought you were…" Karura muttered, before she noticed Eddy, Hime and their Digimon. "…so, we meet again."

"…Harpymon…" Eddy uttered, before he suddenly realized that the Knightmon probably was a close friend of hers. "Eh- it was a misunderstanding, I swear! Rah, go fix him up, on the double?"

"Am I being relegated to the doctor around here…?" Rah uttered, before she quickly approached Muramasa, placing a paw on him. "Cure Liquor!" she said, as a glow surrounded her paw, eliminating the wounds that Knightmon could have suffered; his armor, however, remained cracked. "…too bad that it only works for injuries…"

"…it's nothing; I can rebuild it." Muramasa uttered, before he stood up, looking at Eddy. "You're acquaintances of Karura? Why didn't you say so?"

"…well, to be honest, she never gave us a name…" Chi uttered sheepishly.

"…but I suppose you could call us acquaintances… even though we didn't meet under the friendliest circumstances." Eddy continued, as he rubbed the back of his neck, with a sheepish grin on his face.

"…I see…" Muramasa mused, before he glanced at Karura. "…but if you're here… does that mean that Master Oda is here, too?"

"I'm not sure…" Karura uttered, before she folded her wings. "He did tell me to search for you after you went missing… but while I looked for you, I sensed an evil presence in a different part of this place."

"…are you serious?" Muramasa said, as he got on his feet. "I felt something like that, too! It came from a woman wearing black!"

"…woman wearing black?" Kata uttered in a surprised tone. "…you don't mean Heimin, do you? The woman you chased?"

"Exactly." Muramasa nodded, before he looked at Kata. "And thanks to you, I lost her."

"Well…" Hime began, as she folded her arms. "…to be fair, it did seem like you were just chasing her around for no good reason."

"Yeah! Kata wouldn't have attacked ya, if ya just told us that the woman could've been evil!" Uta chimed in, as he landed close to Kata, looking down at Kurara and Muramasa.

"…so, both Heimin and Kizoku…" Rah uttered, as she looked up at the sky. "…just who are they…?"

A good distance from that scene, Heimin stopped running, as she entered an alley, whilst looking utterly flustered. "Ugh… I hate putting on a show like that… that Gladimon nearly blew my cover!"

"Having some trouble, dear sister?" a male voice chuckled, which made Heimin look up. As it turned out, Kizoku stood before her, grinning viciously. "You must have some bad luck." At that point, a swarm of bats surrounded him, before eventually flying away from him, showing a few changes; his skin had paled considerably, and a pair of fangs jutted out from his teeth. His nobleman's clothes had gotten puffy shoulders with red bats sown onto the cloth, big boots with a tin skull and a tin bat on them, a massively large cloak with a ridiculously large collar, and a gold bat which he used as a brooch. This was Kizoku's true form; Myotismon.

"…and you didn't?" In that instant, a swarm of bats engulfed Heimin as well, and when they flew away, she had changed as well. Like Kizoku, her skin had become extremely pale, though she now wore a skin-tight leather outfit that also covered her head (with the sole exception of the mouth), with stitches and demonic faces scattered all over the outfit. Chains wrapped around her body, and while part of her leather outfit had become a pair of wing-like appendages, from her neck, the outfit stretched out to a small, ghostly creature, which waved to Kizoku. This was Heimin's true form; LadyDevimon.

"I seemed to have more luck than you; I didn't get chased by any Champions while in disguise." Kizoku said with a sneer, before he looked up at the sky; still concealed by the large, white dome, giving the illusion of sunlight. "…this is wonderful… with the accursed sun blocked out, my power is always at its peak."

"So, will it take long before we move to full-scale, my dear brother?" Heimin uttered, as she slowly approached Kizoku, who glanced in her direction.

"We will require more data…" Kizoku said, as he folded his arms. "…and I know just where we can claim that data. All we need is to wait until the right moment…"

"Pah… damn human…" Floating alone in a deserted street was Dolphmon; the same one who Kata launched into a building earlier. "If he hadn't shown up, I could've gotten me some food… oh, well; might as well see if there's any weaklings wandering about."

At that point, he heard a growl from behind him. "…hn? The hell is-" he began, as he glanced behind him, only to widen his eyes in shock; looming over him was a massive monster, with two additional heads on each arm.

"…fooooood…" the monster uttered from all three of its heads, as the metallic head on its right arm began baring its teeth, looking hungrily at the Dolphmon.

"…a… Deltamon?" Dolphmon uttered in complete and utter fear, as he quickly dove down into the sand. I gotta get away… I can't let 'im-

Sadly, his efforts went to complete waste, as Deltamon shot its right head down into the sand, its mouth wide open, as it bit down, taking a good chunk of the earth within its mouth. However, it had no regard for taste; what it wanted was within the earth, namely the Dolphmon which the monster slowly, but surely, crushed into nothing but pure data, which was absorbed by the monster, before it continued on its way, looking for more data to consume…