Digimon World Tour Chapter 4: Focus, a digimon fanfic

Digimon World Tour

Digimon Adventure 02, Digimon Adventure, Digimon Data Squad, etc. 1999-2014 Toei Animation, Akiyoshi Hongo, Studiopolis, Saban Brands, etc.

Chapter 4: Focus

Rika

We finally got this album on the road. If you ask me, it was about time. I understand about being prepared, professional, and organized, but this was ridiculous. We finally finished it in August, and released it for CD and Digital Download in September. It's mostly about being a teenager and dealing with the feelings that came with that. Out of fourteen tracks, three songs were original. Pathetic. One of those was Matt's "autobiographical" song "I Turn Around". The other two were "Run Around", which Matt wrote, and "Kick it Up", which T.K. wrote the lyrics to. Personally, I thought the first was OK, but the second sounded like something you'd put in a kids' anime. Matt also put in most of our audition songs, with the exception of "Ammonia Avenue". I told him to suck it up, because my Kelly Clarkson song wasn't used either. However, I did get to do a cover of a Sophie B. Hawkins number.

We also got a new manager named Kazuki. That's all he told us to refer to him as, Kazuki. That was fine enough for me. Guy looked like your average 60s beatnik, with the goatee, the shades, and the ugly purple sweater. And yeah, he had a set of bongos. Weird. Anyway, one of the awesome things he did for us was land us a gig on Music Station, the hottest music show in Japan. If you want to stay hip to the music scene, you watch this show. I'm serious. If you want to go live under a rock or something, that's fine. If not, watch Music Station.

"So, guys, we are what's known as the Young Guns, so like, we gotta do a video presentation. Yeah, crazy. Then, we're gonna have an interview followed by one song, followed by a later one. So, what do you guys wanna do?" he asked at a meeting. I was the first to volunteer. "It's gotta be something on the album. How about 'Damn! I Wish I Was Your Lover'?" Thomas shook his head like he always did. "Really, Rika? One of the crudest songs on the album? Please. 'Prime Time'," he calmly suggested. Marcus butted in. "Nobody wants to listen to that progressive crap, Nerdstein. These people wanna rock. 'It's My Life' is the obvious way to go." "How about 'Kick it Up'? It is one of our original songs," T.K. suggested. Marcus looked outraged. "Are you serious?" "Actually, one of the terms and conditions of appearing as a Young Gun is that one of the songs has to be original," Kazuki said. "Then why not 'I Turn Around' or something decent?" the ponytailed hothead sneered. "You wouldn't know anything decent if it hit you in the face," Thomas shot back. The two got in each other's face. "Yeah?!" "Yeah!" Matt rushed in and punched both of them in the face. "Enough! Now we've got to do this as a team. I'm making an executive decision. Our first song will be 'Kick It Up', followed by 'The Middle'. No Project, no Foreigner. OK?" They both agreed, and Kari just lowered her head and sighed.

Thomas

Later, at DATS HQ, Izzy gave us a review session on DigiSoul outside in the courtyard. "Now, you've heard a lot about DigiSoul when Commander Sampson and I first introduced these new Digivices to you. I promised I would explain how you could use it to enhance your own strength. Well, this is that explanation. Observe closely, please." He cracked his knuckles, then brought his fist up, grasping an imaginary facemask. His fist gained a purple aura around it. "This purple aura around my hand? That's DigiSoul. A visible aura created by a human's soul, a physical manifestation of a human partner's emotions that they can send to their Digimon to prompt Digivolution. Check this out." He extinguished the purple flame, then held his Digivice-mounted arm up and pressed a button on the side. "Tentomon, realize!" he commanded. Within seconds, Tentomon appeared from the Digivice and started buzzing away gleefully. "Oh boy, a demonstration. No need to ask me if I'm ready, Izzy. You should be asking them!" Izzy then looked to the others. "Prepare to have your lives changed... forever," he warned. Then, he pressed another button on the side of his Digivice, and a little scanner popped out of the top. Then, he reignited his DigiSoul. "DigiSoul..." He released his fist and then held his open hand close to the scanner, bringing it down along the outside of the device in one motion until the aura was gone. "...charge!" Then, he posed with his arm, allowing Tentomon to absorb a light that fired from the Digivice.

"Tentomon Digivolve to..." The red shell on his wingcase melted away as his wings expanded. Two pairs of large wings extended from between his shoulder blades, out further and higher than the rest of his body. His entire body became blue and much larger. The finishing touch was the skull helmet that covered his eyes. "Kabuterimon!"

"Prodigious," I quietly exclaimed. "Oh man..." Greg gasped. Marcus couldn't be subtle about it. "Oh man! That is the coolest thing I have ever seen! I mean that's just... .mmm, awesome! How'd you do that?" "That's amazing," Kari said. "Really? I'm glad you like it. Now, I'll tell you how I generated it. With just a bit of focus, it's possible. Actually, I would think some of us have an advantage over others of you. Right, Kari? T.K.? Matt?" All three looked quizzically at Izzy. "Huh? What are you talking about, Izzy?" Kari asked. Matt heavily contemplated it. "Hmmm... I got it! Remember when we were in the Digital World, just after Apocalymon stripped us of our Crests and Tags? We realized that the power of our Crests was inside of us the whole time, and that we never needed the actual items in the first place. So what if we could use some of that power inside of us as a focusing point to charge our DigiSoul." "Bingo," Izzy approved. "But we gave up our Crest power to free the Digimon Sovereigns," Kari countered. "Guys, we might not have the power anymore, but we can still use it to focus. The concept's the same," Matt attempted to reason. T.K. clenched his fist. "All right. We'll try it. I mean, what have we got to lose?" "My thoughts exactly," Izzy replied.

Kabuterimon was dispatched to fly a few laps around Tokyo until he got tired, making sure not to be seen. "All right, everyone. First, press the red button on the side of the Digivice. That pops open the scanner," Izzy instructed. We did as we were told, and a little scanner flipped open. "Now it's going to be difficult this first time, but you've got to break through any mental boundaries you have. It may be easier if you close your eyes and take a few cleansing breaths." Again, almost all of us did as we were told. "This is ridiculous," Marcus grumbled, but Izzy shushed him up. "I'll tell you what's ridiculous, Marcus. Being the only person here not able to ignite your DigiSoul. Now, find a focusing point and concentrate on it. A single concept." "Friendship," Matt quietly said. "Hope," T.K. reflected. "Light," Kari quietly added. "Very good. Now, focus all your energy into your hand opposite the wrist you've equipped the Digivice to. Search deep inside your very being for that energy, then allow it to surface in your open hand."

I held my opposite arm out to my side and patiently waited for a spark. I set my mental jukebox of sorts to "Where's the Walrus" from the "Stereotomy" album (track six for anyone interested). It started building for the first eight seconds, then sparked at the ninth. Right on that beat, I snapped my fingers and opened my eyes. My hand was covered in a blue aura of binary code (mostly zeroes). I looked around, and almost everyone else had an aura of their own. Matt's was blue and silver, Kari's was pink. In fact, most of the DigiSoul auras matched the color of our Digivices. Everyone's except Marcus', of course. He didn't have one.

Izzy shook his head sadly, then addressed us. "All right. Marcus, you need to work on developing yours. You'll get there eventually if you apply yourself. As for the rest of you, well done. You've accomplished a lot in these past few minutes. You should each now be able to get your Digimon to their Champion level. I'm still doing research on how to reach Ultimate and Mega, but this should be fine for now." He started to walk away, but then stopped. "Oh, and one other thing. Always keep your emotions in check. The DigiSoul thrives off of positive emotions. If you let any negativity consume you, it could be a complete disaster for your Digimon, and yourself. So long." Then, he walked off.

In an effort to teach Marcus some discipline, I allowed him to join me for my usual boxing workout. "Look, I don't need your training. I've got my own routine, thanks," he initially declined. "Which consists of?" "Walking down a street corner, getting myself into an ambush, and then knocking the suckers out. Ha ha!" I raised my eyebrow. "How many black eyes have you gotten in the last week?" I asked. "None. Only got belted in the chest once," he proudly answered. "You need the training, I insist." "I don't think so. In fact, I think I can knock you out in one round," Marcus boasted. I smiled. Proving him wrong was going to be fun.

So, we suited up and went into the ring. Gaomon acted as official and rang the bell. Marcus' form was absolutely scrappy at best, sloppy at worst. It seemed to me that he thrived on rabbit punches and luck, especially with his poor bone alignment. I managed to get in quite a number of blows on him. His defense was completely lacking, but he made up for it with a fiery offense. The match seemed to go nowhere until Marcus tried to distract me. "What's that over there?" he asked, pointing somewhere. I didn't fall for it, but I did punch him in the face while he was distracting himself. He fell to the floor, and Gaomon started counting. "One... two... three..." Marcus got up and went back to his brash style. "You think you got me good there, huh? Well it ain't working!" "No, but this will!" I countered, as I delivered my signature move towards his abs, a dynamite combination of right uppercut, right cross, and left hook. Marcus hit the floor again, and this time, he didn't get up until Gaomon counted to ten.

Kari

Yoshie Takeuchi dropped in on one of our practice sessions so she could give us an interview for the show. She wanted to talk to everyone, so Matt insisted I go first. All I said was that we got a lot of influence from American bands so most of our vocals were in English, which isn't that unusual for Japanese bands. "We're aiming for markets outside of Japan, but we have to start somewhere," I told her. It was an okay interview, but kind of awkward. We had to hide the fact this band was a cover operation.

Not much happened after that for the next week or so until the Thursday night before our appearance on Music Station. I just didn't know what was happening with my body. It became harder for me to concentrate, and I became antsy and stressed. My muscles started having spasms, and my ankles and wrists ached. On top of all that, the nightmares just kept coming. Sometimes, I'd wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat and my fist glowing with DigiSoul. I didn't know whether it was PMS or just plain fear.

That night, I was at home rehearsing the tambourine parts for "Let's Kick it Up", but I kept missing the beat every so often. Gatomon was busy giving herself a bath, but she stopped to notice. "You're going off beat again, Kari. Are you OK?" she asked. "...Yeah, I think so. But I just don't know anymore," I answered. "Why's that?" "Because, I've just got this feeling that something's coming. Something dark and terrible wants me." "The Dark Ocean?" I sadly nodded. "I know that you have my back, Gatomon, and so does T.K. and everyone else." Gatomon put her paw on my back. "That's right, Kari. I'm your partner, remember? We're gonna get through this together, I promise." "Pinky swear?" "Pinky swear." We sealed the pinky swear. "But there's still one thing that bothers me about this DigiSoul. If what Gennai says is right, then you can't Digivolve to Angewomon without my Crest." Gatomon painted a devious smile on her face. "Want to test that theory?" she asked. "Hmm. Sure." So, I strapped my Digivice on (my wrist was slightly bigger than usual) and we went outside to a local empty field.

I stood back about 10 or 20 feet just to give Gatomon some room. "All right. Are you ready for this, Gatomon?" I asked, trying to boost my own confidence. Gatomon raised her paw in a thumbs up, then put it back down. I switched my Digivice to its regular mode, then pressed the button on the side for the sensor. I gracefully brought my other hand up and held it as if I was playing an imaginary tambourine. Then, I shook the "tambourine" a little until my hand charged up. "DigiSoul..." Then, I brought my equipped arm up and scanned my hand across the device, quickly allowing the sensor to draw in the light. "...Charge!" After pulling what I thought was an appropriate pose, a light shot out from the Digivice and hit Gatomon.

"Gatomon Digivolve to..." Gatomon's body became longer, and more like a human's. Her claws fell off her hands like gloves as she gained a new longer glove. New shoes were placed on her feet and a helmet covered her eyes. It was the same Digivolution I'd always known, except it looked much more beautiful. "Angewomon!"

I just stared in amazement. She was more beautiful than I remembered. I just had to look her up on my Digimon Analyzer again. It was a good thing I read the instruction manual so I could find it. "Oh... Angewomon, you've been reclassified as a Champion," I noted in surprise. "I have?" she asked. "Uh huh. It says right here. 'Angewomon, Champion level.' But it doesn't matter. I can finally Digivolve you on my own!" I started laughing in joy, then I grabbed my cell phone and called T.K.

T.K.

Greg and I were practicing our guitars at home when the phone rang. Greg stopped. "I'll get it," he volunteered as he answered it. "Hello? Oh, hi, Kari... No, this is Greg, but I can get T.K. for you. …. Oh. Well, sorry. He and I were practicing. I'll get him, just hold on for a minute." He covered the mouthpiece. "T.K., it's Kari!" he called. I put my guitar down and walked to the phone, where Greg gave it to me. "Hello?" I answered. "T.K.?" "Kari. What's up?" "I've got great news! Gatomon can Digivolve to Angewomon!" "Really? That's great!" We spent the better part of an hour talking about it. She was so excited about finally being able to Digivolve Gatomon.

Greg

We arrived at the TV Asahi studios at around five the next night for last-minute rehearsals. Minutes before the show started, we were given in-ear monitors to help block out some of the noise and keep us focused on our vocals. One of the hosts is Tamori, a comedian who hosts "the familiar wandering program, Tamori Club". It turns out he's a pretty competent guy. Backstage, Matt gave us a pep talk. "All right, guys. This is it. Our first ticket into the big time. We've worked really hard to get where we are tonight. I'm proud of all of you. So just go out there and have a good time." We agreed on that. "Wolf howl on three! One-two-three!" All of us joined in the official band cheer, a wolf howl.

While our three-minute interview played, we were brought out on stage. The instruments were already set up, and everything was ready to go. We had to move quickly, but we were ready. The lights came up.

["Let's Kick It Up"

Music and Lyrics by Yamato "Matt" Ishida and Takeru "T.K." Takaishi (actually Paul Gordon, Shuki Levy, and Haim Saban)

Performed by The Teenage Wolves

Lead Vocal: Takeru "T.K." Takaishi (Michael Cunio)]

Matt starts by playing the bass part while T.K. comes in on the mic. Surrounding them are dancers dressed as skaters and hip hop dancers. The others eventually join in.

T.K.:

If we take our time,
and we stick together,
everything we do,
will go our way.

And if we try,
now and forever,
no matter what comes next,
we'll be okay.

Let's kick it up and show them all the things,
that we can do!
Let's kick it up!
Another notch tomorrow!
Let's kick it up,
cause they ain't seen the last of me and you!
Let's kick it up!
Together!

I realize,
what's on the surface,
ain't picture perfect,
but that don't mean a thing.

One thing I know,
is there's a purpose,
and like the circus,
we're hanging from the rings.

Band:

Nananana Nananana

(T.K.: Yeah!)

Nananana Nananana

(T.K.: Yeah! Yeah!)

Nananana

One, Two, Three! Four!

The band enjoys an instrumental break as they each get their solos in.

T.K./Matt:

If we take our time,
and we stick together,
everything we do,
will go our way.

I have no doubt,
in this situation,
and then we'll enjoy,
another day.

Together!

Let's kick it up, and show them all the things,

that we can do!

Let's kick it up!
Another notch tomorrow!
Let's kick it up,
cause they ain't seen the last of me and you!
Let's kick it up!
Together!
Together!

At the end of the performance, there's major applause and screams from girls.

Greg

There's something about being in a TV studio filled with screaming people and cheering fans that does something to you. It's hard to believe that all that applause is for you and your band. It's almost as if you pick up some adrenaline. I spent the next 30 seconds just bowing and thanking the audience. Matt sharply told me to knock it off, in so many words.

Then, we had an interview with Tamori. He asked us the basic questions of how we met, what our band's sound is like, and so on. He seemed fascinated by T.K., and Matt was taking notice. I feel the same way when my brainiac little brother Gary gets a gold medal at a science fair. In fact, that's why I joined this band, to get away from that insufferable genius. Believe me, he can be a downright insufferable genius at times.

After the interview, we went to a commercial so we could set up for the next number. "All right, it's my turn to sing lead," Matt insisted. T.K. put his hands up meekly. "Hey, go ahead, bro. It's just like we planned," he said.

["The Middle"

Written by Jim Adkins, Tom Linton, Rick Burch, and Zach Lind

Performed by The Teenage Wolves

Lead Vocal: Yamato "Matt" Ishida (Michael Reisz)]

Matt:

Hey, don't write yourself off yet
It's only in your head you feel left out or looked down on.
Just try your best, try everything you can.
And don't you worry what they tell themselves when you're away.

It just takes some time, little girl you're in the middle of the ride.
Everything (everything) will be just fine, everything (everything) will be alright (alright).

Hey, you know they're all the same.
You know you're doing better on your own (Kari: on your own), so don't buy in.

Live right now.
Yeah, just be yourself.
It doesn't matter if it's good enough (Kari: good enough) for someone else.

It just takes some time, little girl you're in the middle of the ride.
Everything (everything) will be just fine, everything (everything) will be alright (alright).
It just takes some time, little girl you're in the middle of the ride.
Everything (everything) will be just fine, everything (everything) will be alright (alright).

The band enjoys another instrumental break, and the joint is jumping as Greg lays out an awesome guitar solo. He ends up getting on his knees, then jumping back up. At times like these, it makes you wonder whether Matt's song is a reminder for himself.

Matt:
Hey, don't write yourself off yet.
It's only in your head you feel left out (Kari: feel left out) or looked down on.
Just do your best (Kari: just do your best) , do everything you can. (Kari: everything you can)
And don't you worry what the bitter hearts (Kari: bitter hearts) are gonna say.

More cheers, applause, and screaming.

Rika

Instead of us going clubbing that night, Matt and T.K.'s dad Hiroaki picked us up in his van and dropped each of us off at home. "I watched the whole thing from the lobby. You guys owned it!" he congratulated. "Thanks," we answered together. "So this is it? We're not going clubbing or anything like that?" Marcus asked. "Clubbing? No... I promised your parents I'd have you guys back home by ten. You can have your own private celebrations at home. Besides, I know Commander Sampson wouldn't want you doing anything you'd regret later." "Huh? How'd you know about him?!" Marcus panicked. "Relax, Matt and T.K. have been trusting me for years," Hiroaki assured us.

We drove all the way down to Shinjuku singing along to our album, convinced we were gonna top the Oricon charts soon.

Author's Notes:

Yes, I did demote Angewomon to a Champion. After all, Angemon is a Champion. Just think of it this way. Without the Holy Ring, Angewomon only has the strength of a Champion (much like Gatomon only has the strength of a Rookie).

I've never seen an episode of Music Station, but it is a real show in Japan. It is also broadcast in the United States and Canada through the NHK-owned TV Japan, in Hong Kong via TVB J2, in Singapore through Hello Japan! and in the People's Republic of China through CCTV-15. The show has also been host to many artists from around the world, which included O-Zone, The Cardigans, Scatman John, Babyface, Me & My, Mr. Big, Green Day, Fishbone, The Blow Monkeys, Deborah Gibson, Tiffany, Swing Out Sister, Kiss, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Boyz II Men, Lenny Kravitz, Meja, Charlotte Church, Alanis Morissette, Enya, Destiny's Child, Michelle Branch, Shakira, Alicia Keys, Busta Rhymes, Beyoncé, Holly Valance, Mariah Carey, Avril Lavigne, Hilary Duff, The Offspring, Ana Johnsson, Backstreet Boys, Stevie Wonder, James Blunt, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Daniel Powter, Fergie, Sarah Brightman, Delta Goodrem, U2, John Legend, Kanye West, My Chemical Romance, Maroon 5, Leona Lewis, Flo Rida, Lady Gaga, The Black Eyed Peas, Oasis, Christina Aguilera, Norah Jones, Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Linkin Park, Ne-Yo, Bruno Mars and Katy Perry.

Tamori and Yoshie Takeuchi are real people.

Marcus is going to figure out how to ignite his DigiSoul without punching a Digimon. I'm not going through that again.

Izzy is taking on a role similar to that of Billy from Power Rangers Zeo. At least, I like to think so. I mean, he's still partnered with Tentomon, but he's not making that world tour.

I've been doing research, trying to discover new "poses" for our DigiDestined. It leads from Pretty Cure to Powerpuff Girls Z. I'll admit, Kari's isn't the most interesting, but she hasn't had experience with henshin sequences. All she's ever done is hold up her Digivice and call "DigiArmor Energize".

Speaking of Kari, her hormones are all a flutter. Is she growing up? You be the judge. I'll admit, I'm a guy. I can do my research, but I'm glad I'm not experiencing these things first hand. Most of my research on Kari's "symptoms" comes from a site owned by Proctor and Gamble (who themselves own a number of feminine hygiene brands).