Digimon World Tour Chapter 16: Back in Japan, 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 16: Back in Japan

T.K.

After being so long in Australia, where it was so warm, it was kind of nice being able to feel the cold for once. We decided not to use a private jet because we wanted to be normal for once. Well, as normal as we could get, considering who we were. We were lucky because few people on the plane recognized who we were, and the ones that did didn't care that much.

We reunited with our families back at the airport, equipped with DVDs of our experiences. We showed them footage from our "Home and Away" and "Neighbours" episodes. Mom and Dad seemed to like it. Kazuki made it perfectly clear that we were only going to be in Odaiba for a short time, because we had gigs in Osaka and Yokohama. Lucky for us, we could take the bullet train.

I had just gotten home and finished unpacking. I checked my e-mail. "Hmm... 'Last Minute Travel Deals', Groupon, Groupon, ... Izzy?" I opened up the message and read it. "'To All Members of DATS Japanese Division. Report to headquarters at 5:30 tonight. Commander Sampson and I have made a breakthrough and may have found the key to reaching Ultimate. Should be most enlightening, and refreshments will be served. Izzy.' Sounds awesome."

Greg

When we arrived at the DATS War Room, sure enough, a table was laid out with cookies, Mello Yello, and other snacks. I helped myself along with the others, and got a good seat. Commander Sampson and Izzy walked out with their Digimon. Sampson pounded a gavel on the desk and got everything underway.

"Good evening. It's good to see that you've all returned to Japan safely and victoriously. We've been monitoring your progress, and I'm proud of each one of you. So far, you've managed to deflect Tactimon's troops in Australia, but don't think that you're finished for a second. We've only begun to fight. Our enemies will only grow stronger, so we must match them in strength. Now, Koushiro has some exciting news that may interest you, but first, the status report. Hikari, you'll be happy to learn that Taichi has been doing a good job defending Japan. He's been a key factor in all our attacks, as were Yolei and Cody. Sora and Ken haven't been slacking off, either. Takeru, I'd like to see you and Hikari after the meeting to discuss these strange powers you've been exhibiting."

I raised my hand. "Um, Commander, sir, why do you use our full first names?" "Because I can." "Oh."

"As I was saying... Marcus, I understand you've had a brief run-in with the law. Kyle Sandilands is controversial and something of a bully, but he is a celebrity and a somewhat respected member of the public at large. Don't even think about laying your fist on someone unless absolutely necessary. Are we clear?" "Yeah, yeah." Sampson's voice became sterner as he leaned in. "What was that?" "Yes sir!" Thomas elbowed him.

"Gregory, I understand you've been posting details about the band that weren't necessary to post. If you hadn't committed that faux pas, Kyle and Jackie O might not have come in as soon as they had, and some of this would have been avoided. However, I did find your Carlton Dance very amusing." "Thank you, sir," I said. "You're welcome. In addition, I read your e-mail concerning Major Rădulescu, of the F-S-B. I'd like to bring her in now. Anya?"

The doors opened, and Anya strutted in wearing a one-piece DATS aerobic bodysuit in marbled lavender and pink, closely followed by Lalamon. She made eyes at me, then approached the front with Sampson and Izzy. "Hello. I am Major Anya Rădulescu, Digital Division of the Federal'naya sluzhba bezopasnosti Rossiyskoy Federatsii. It is nice to meet all of you, and I hope we can cooperate." "Thank you, Anya. She'll be joining your band as the new saxophone player," Sampson informed us. "She can play my horn any day," Marcus said. He let out a wolf whistle as Rika snapped him back to reality with a slap to the back of his head.

"As for Kazuki, well, you'll be seeing less of him. He has proven himself to be untrustworthy, and frankly, he gets on my nerves." We loudly cheered at that. Sampson went on. "He'll still be your manager, but you will be seeing less of him. I will be supervising him. And now for the big news you have all been waiting for. Mr. Izumi, you may take the floor." Sampson sat down as Izzy approached the center.

"Thank you, Commander. Fellow members of DATS, Commander Sampson and I have done it! We've cracked the code on reaching Ultimate-level without a Crest!" We cheered at that, and Izzy put his hands up. "The secret? The DigiSoul Full Charge!" "Huh?" we asked in unison. "I shall explain. Commander Sampson has put me through several excruciating tests. In layman's terms, I have been a guinea pig. Together, we've discovered that although it is fairly easy to control DigiSoul for basic Digivolution to Champion, it seems one must overcome a major mental obstacle in order to accumulate enough DigiSoul to evolve their partner to the Ultimate level by using the Full Charge. For example, coming to terms with the fact that my real parents died in a car crash and accepting my adopted parents might be considered an acceptable obstacle. Regaining my curiosity and love of learning in Vademon's lair might be considered an acceptable obstacle. Unfortunately for me, I've already overcome those, so I couldn't draw upon those experiences again." "Then what'd you use?" Marcus asked.

Izzy gave his answer. "Well, as I mentioned before, some of us have more of an advantage than others. I decided to put my curiosity to work and spent some time in a Zen Buddhist monastery. I wanted to challenge myself, so I started meditating while sitting in the seiza posture using the dhyāna mudrā. There I was, suspending all judgmental thinking and letting words, ideas, images and thoughts pass by without getting involved in them. I also began developing a cramp in my legs." "No pain, no gain," I whispered to Thomas, who just nodded.

Tentomon chimed in, "That scared me at first because I thought it was Vademon's big space of nothingness all over again. But Izzy reassured me that it wasn't, so... I believed him. He then asked me, 'What is the sound of one hand clapping?' I thought long and hard about that. Soon, I could sense Izzy and myself gaining kensho, which is initial insight into one's true nature." "Get on with it!" Marcus shouted. We all gave him a dirty look.

Izzy sighed. "All right, here's the Reader's Digest condensed version. Through my intense meditation, I realized that my Crest's power came not from the amount of knowledge I had, but the desire I had to gain it, to continue learning. And then I pondered why I wanted to learn so much. The answer became crystal clear: I wanted to help my friends. I wanted to learn how to reach the Full Charge for myself so I could share it with all of you. I allowed that righteous desire to tap into my heart, and faster than you can say 'satori'..." Izzy struck a meditative pose, and his body became covered in purple DigiSoul. "Voila!"

Thomas raised his hand. "That's fascinating, Izzy, but some of us can't go that far. What should we do?" Izzy extinguished his DigiSoul. "Hmm... I'm afraid even I don't have the exact answer to that question. I would think that each experience would be different for each person. This is a battle you'll each have to fight on your own. But what I can say is this. The power to reach Ultimate is generated from the heart, which engulfs the body. If you try to force it, you may regret it."

Izzy gave Sampson back his spot. "Most enlightening, Koushiro. Most enlightening. Now, pay attention. I'm going to give you the details of this European leg." The data pulled up on the screen. "Note that these details could very well change at any time. We still have the Australasian leg to complete, including filming a music video for 'To the Moon and Back' at the Umeda Sky Building. You'll also be participating in a music video shoot for PurityxSpirited at Osaka Castle. That leads up to a performance at Osaka-jō Hall on the 1st of March, followed by a show at Yokohama Stadium the next night. Both of which are sold out. You'll get two days off, and then fly into Paris, France on the 5th for a performance at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy. On the 8th, you'll play at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany. That'll be followed by the Letzigrund in Zürich, Switzerland; and then the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Stuttgart on the 14th. You'll be staying in Paris from March 15th to April 4th. I'm guessing that'll give you plenty of time to do whatever you'd like. On April 5th, you'll leave for London, where you'll be playing the world-famous Royal Albert Hall on the 6th, and from the 10th to the 14th. On the 17th, we move to Birmingham at the National Indoor Arena. Then, back to Germany for a concert at the Mitsubishi Electric Halle, followed by Forest National in Brussels, Ahoy in Rotterdam, and concluding on April 27th at Friends Arena in Stockholm."

Thomas raised his hand again. "Commander, I've noticed that we've neglected Spain and Portugal. Why is that?" Kudamon answered this question. "Very good question, Thomas. We realize that all of you are young, and we don't want to overwork you. If, during your stay in Paris, you wish to visit these two countries on your own, more power to you. Now, while you're in Europe, we want you to have a good time. So, we've arranged for you to get tickets to Disneyland Paris, a tour of the BMW Welt, a waterpark and spa experience in Tyrol, Austria; and more." We cheered at each of those ideas.

Sampson continued. "Now, your opening act has been briefed and is fully aware of the Digimon. In fact, he's willing to become an ally of ours. Agents, I'd like to introduce you to trance DJ, record producer, and composer Paul Oakenfold." The doors opened, and this man wearing a graphic tee and blue jeans walked in casually. He had slicked-back brown hair. "Hallo, hallo, hallo," he greeted us. He seemed like an alright guy.

The meeting went on for another half an hour. After that, Izzy wheeled out some DJ equipment. "Now, I just heard you got into a little rumble at the Australian Big Brother House, so here's something I think you'll like. It's from the British version." He uploaded the song and then started mixing it live. The data pulled up on the screen. "Paul Oakenfold, Big Brother Theme, Universal International, 2000." The great thing about the song was that it had a good beat and you could dance to it.

Kari

While the others were enjoying their dance party, Commander Sampson called T.K. and me into his private office. We each sat down in chairs while the commander sat behind his desk. Izzy soon joined us, without Tentomon. "You wanted to see us, sir?" I asked. "Yes. While I've been monitoring your progress, I've been noticing something... peculiar about you and Takeru. It seems both of you have a special gift. For example, on the flight to Sydney, you ran into a squadron of Pteramon, and Pegasusmon was critically hit." He pulled up video footage on the screen of our fight with the Pteramon, and T.K. taking a spin dive aboard Pegasusmon. I knew I saw it faintly, but I didn't realize it was that close.

"How'd you get footage of that?" I wondered in slight shock. Kudamon answered, "The DATS uniforms and Digivices have nanotechnology that taps into satellites around the world. That way, we can track your location and get full audiovisual footage." He paused slightly, then added, "Don't look so surprised, Kari. You're part of the team, we have to keep track of you somehow."

"And then there was St. Peter's Cathedral in Melbourne," Sampson continued. He used his remote to select another clip, this time of me using the Hikari Wave attack and fainting. "That was quite a remarkable attack, Hikari. You slayed a Champion-level demon using your own energy. Remarkable. Who knew you had it in you?" "I certainly didn't, s-sir," I nervously said. He could smell it. "What's wrong?" he asked.

I sighed and confessed. "OK, I'll tell you. Early Christmas morning, T.K. and I each had a dream. We met up with our younger selves and were given back the Crests of Light and Hope, the two strongest Crests in the Digital World. I remember that night because that's when I had my first period." T.K. started, "And I had a wet-" "Ahem. Too much information," Kudamon cut us off.

We explained the whole thing to them, with Izzy listening carefully. "T.K., this may be a stretch, or me just geeking out, but this sounds remarkably similar to the Blue Lantern's powers," he finally said. T.K. laughed at that, but Izzy cleared his throat. "Hear me out for a second. Azulongmon claimed that Light and Hope are the strongest elements in the battle against darkness. That seems to parallel with the Blue Lantern Corps. According to that comic book series, the blue energy of hope has an infallible connection to the universe. Hope is the most powerful of light, and thus the universe speaks through it. And yet, it cannot reach its full potential without willpower to enact it."

That opened T.K.'s eyes a little. "Wait just a minute here, Izzy. Are you saying I don't have any willpower? Because, I'm sure I don't need to remind you of some of the things I've done on my own." "T.K., I-" But the boy stood up, slightly enraged. "In case everyone's forgotten, I saved Kari from the Dark Ocean. I punched out Ken when he was the Digimon Emperor. I destroyed Puppetmon's playroom and saved you and the others from his little voodoo spell, all by myself!" I rushed in. "He never said that!" I assured him. T.K. had to calm himself down and then sat down.

"Takeru, control yourself," Commander Sampson scolded, "No one ever claimed you lacked willpower, but you must keep your emotions in check and stop jumping to conclusions. If it's any consolation to you, I've seen you fight. Your personality tests claimed you were a pacifist, so this sudden display of aggression confuses me." "I'm sorry, Commander. It's just that tensions have been running high. I guess I do need to calm down." "Exactly. Now, we'll be continuing to monitor you and Hikari. It will be interesting to see how all this shapes out. You two are dismissed." We got up and left his office.

Greg

That night, we packed and prepared to ride the Nozomi on the Tōkaidō Shinkansen line. That would get us from Tokyo to Osaka in two hours and 25 minutes, which was very nice. Once again, SME Japan had booked us rooms at a Westin location. This time, it was The Westin Miyako. I just had to wonder why we were getting such special treatment. I mean, sure we were a good band, and we were doing something important, but this was a bit much. I struggled not to let it go to my head.

On this particular trip, Sora wanted to join us, so we brought her and Biyomon along. We reserved a private car so the Digimon could look out the window. Most of them were blown away by what they were seeing. The only one not catching the view was T.K. He looked like he was brooding about something. So, I sat down beside him. "Hey, man. What's up?" I asked. "Nothing." "Oh come on, don't give me that. I know that face. You look like something's on your mind." "I don't want to talk about it." He turned away. "Izzy said something to him yesterday that made him upset. Something about hope not reaching its full potential without willpower to enact it," Kari explained. "Oh... eh, why do you bother worrying about something like that anyway? I mean, hope's great and all, but there's more to life than that." "I know that," the boy with the bucket hat snapped. "Geez, you're edgy today. Just like your brother. I better back off. Sorry to bother you." I got up and left.

T.K.

I waited for Greg to leave before I opened up again. "Izzy saying what he did just bothered me. I understand completely what he's saying, but doesn't he know that I haven't just been hoping to defeat these Digimon? I've been doing something, too! At least... I think I have. It's hard to tell when you're always just sitting on the sidelines cheering your partner on." "But you haven't," Kari countered as she reached out and gently took my hand. "Hmmm?" "When we were in the cathedral in Melbourne, you splashed that holy water on Devimon's leg. You actually did something, and it was one of the bravest things I've ever seen you do. And that was just recently. Remember when Piedmon was chasing us? We climbed that rope ladder and you helped me get to safety. T.K., you may not have the Crest of Courage like my brother does, but no one can ever say you lack willpower." I looked into her eyes. Those big, chocolate brown eyes. "You always know just the right thing to say, Kari," I softly answered. She didn't say a word, but I knew what she was thinking.

Marcus

Agumon and I stared out at the scene from a distance. There T.K. and Kari were, staring miserably into each other's eyes. The two were lovesick for each other, and it was making me sick to my stomach. "I think I'm coming down with indigestion," I whispered to my employee. "You wish you had something like that, Boss?" "Eh, not really. Too mushy. I mean, why don't they just break down and..." They leaned in closer, and that's when I really considered losing my breakfast. "Never mind, they are kissing. Now I know I'm gonna be sick."

Thomas

All things considered, being on a train going at 186 mph to Osaka was not a bad place at all for a first kiss between these two. Especially when you consider that it may have been written in the stars. We were aboard the Nozomi train, and Nozomi translated into English means "hope" or "wish". We could have taken the Hikari or "light" train, or even the Kodama, which means "echo". I watched this romance unfold with contentment.

Rika

Renamon pointed it out to me. "Pay close attention to that, Rika. Notice how pure it is. It beats the makeout session you had with Greg by what you humans refer to as 'a landslide'." "Oh please. He broke up with me, we're friends, period." Renamon's eyebrows went up. "Rika. I never said anything about your relationship." "But that's what you were thinking about, right?" "Well... no." "...In that case, this is really awkward." "Yeah."

Greg

I'd like to quote William Goldman for a second. "Since the invention of the kiss, there have been five kisses that were rated the most passionate, the most pure. This one left them all behind." I had called this from a mile away, and here it was. I went from seat to seat in our car (all except Kari and T.K.'s) and quietly but enthusiastically said, "Called it."

Matt

Greg was going around nearly the whole car, claiming he'd called Kari and T.K. falling in love. He finally came to where Sora and I were seated. "Called it!" he quietly but enthusiastically said. "Uh, Greg, that's not exactly a military secret," I answered. "It's not?" "Those two have been good friends for at least five years. When you've gone through as much as they have, it's the next logical step. Don't ya think?" "Besides, what you're doing isn't nice," Sora added. "Oh. I'm sorry." I just smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "At least you're happy for them," I said. He walked away. I looked around to make sure nobody else was watching. Sora giggled, and then the two of us "pashed" (as they say in Australia).

T.K.

I'd always said I cared for Kari, but I didn't know that I would take it this far. We would've enjoyed it so much more if Agumon and Veemon hadn't sneaked up on us and started taunting us. "T.K. and Kari sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g. First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Patamon in a baby carriage!" "Hey!" Patamon shouted. Then, he flew off and attacked the two with his Boom Bubble attack.

We finally broke out of liplock, and Kari realized what we'd done. "Oh my gosh... did we actually?" I just nodded, a bit shocked myself. "That was incredible," I said.

We finally arrived in Osaka and checked into this beautiful Japanese hotel, The Westin Miyako. After we unpacked, we took a bus to the Umeda Sky Building and met up with Mark Romanek, the director for this video. Commander Sampson had picked him out personally because he'd won numerous awards for his music videos. He'd worked with artists such as ABC, Madonna, Michael Jackson, and Jay-Z. I wasn't convinced, but it was all Matt needed to know.

One of the things you learn quickly in the rock business is that the hours are long, you repeat things over and over until you get them right, and you can never take more than five. It's "take five" or nothing. Mark worked us like dogs, even with the Japanese child labor laws. We worked long and into the early hours of the next morning, but we still found some time to fool around. Mark was an alright guy, but he worked us like dogs.

We were running on empty by the time we made it back to the hotel. I'm sure there are clips of us posted somewhere on YouTube, looking like zombies. The Shakespeare (at least I think it was) started flowing from Thomas' mouth, slurring a few words while mixing in lyrics from his favorite band. It started a little bit of a commotion inside the lobby, as Greg started doing the wolf dance from "Thriller" while waiting for the elevator.

[And here is the completed product, released about a month after the footage was shot.]

["To the Moon and Back"

Written by Darren Hayes and Daniel Jones

Music Video Directed by Mark Romanek

Performed by The Teenage Wolves

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

The video starts at night outside the Umeda Sky Building. A sad-looking misfit teenage girl is walking by herself through the streets of Osaka, approaching the building. She looks around to see so many couples entering the building together. This story is intercut with scenes of the band performing at the floating garden observatory, with T.K. as lead vocalist and electric guitarist.

T.K.:

She's taking her time making up the reasons
To justify all the hurt inside
Guess she knows from the smiles and the look in their eyes
Everyone's got a theory about the bitter one
They're saying, "Mama never loved her much"
And, "Daddy never keeps in touch
That's why she shies away from human affection"
But somewhere in a private place
She packs her bag for outer space
And now she's waiting for the right kind of pilot to come

Matt:
And she'll say to him

During the chorus, T.K. plays his unplugged electric guitar with amplifier in the see-through elevator.

T.K:

She's sayin'

Well, I would fly you to the moon and back if you'll be...
If you'll be my baby
I've got a ticket for a world where we belong
So would you be my baby?

The girl pays her fare then rides the escalator up to the 40th floor.

T.K.:
She can't remember a time when she felt needed
If love was red then she was color blind
All her friends, well they've been trialed for treason
In crimes that were never defined

She sits down at a Fuwapica bench, one that changes colors when people sit on it.

T.K.:
She's saying, "Love is like a barren place,
And reaching out for human faith is,
It's like a journey I just don't have a map for"

She continues to look at the other couples, sighing and longing for love of her own. Then, she looks up to the stars.

T.K.:
So baby gonna take a dive and
Push the shift to overdrive
And send a signal that she's hanging
All her hopes on the stars

Matt:
What a pleasant dream

We move back to the band.

T.K.:

She's saying

Well, I would fly you to the moon and back if you'll be...
If you'll be my baby
I've got a ticket for a world where we belong
So would you be my baby?

Hold on, hold on …

Soon, the band members come up to the 40th floor in couples. Matt's paired up with Sora, T.K. has Kari, and Marcus and Rika are together. Anya makes her first appearance with the band as she is Greg's "date". In fact, the only one not paired up is Thomas. They each take their turns looking out at the stars, with Greg attempting to point out the various constellations in the sky. The girl takes note of the heart-shaped padlocks that are on the wall. We get an open-air view of Osaka, which is particularly impressive on a clear night as we cut back to the band performing.

T.K.:
Mama never loved her much
And, Daddy never keeps in touch
That's why she shies away from human affection
But somewhere in a private place
She packs her bag for outer space
And now she's waiting for the right kind of pilot to come

Finally, Thomas notices the girl and befriends her. He offers to have them sit on the lover's seat.

Matt:
And she'll say to him

What's particularly notable about this seat is that if you hold your partner's hand, and you each hold a metal button on the seat, the ground around you lights up into a heart. That's just what Thomas and the girl do, and they are both filled with emotion.

T.K.:
She's saying

Well, I would fly you to the moon and back if you'll be...
If you'll be my baby
I've got a ticket for a world where we belong
So would you be my baby?

Well, I would fly you to the moon and back if you'll be...
If you'll be my baby
I've got a ticket for a world where we belong
So would you be my baby?
Yeaaaah ...

The two embrace and kiss each other, then stand up and walk together for a cup of coffee at SKY40. Romance is in the air tonight as the various couples show their affection. The camera zooms out showing the Osaka skyline.

T.K.

After about five hours of sleep, we took another bus to Osaka Castle. It's there that we met PurityxSpirited and our director, Jake Nava. Apparently, SME Japan wanted to go in a different direction, because this director worked with Beyonce. We'd play prominent roles in this video, but we wouldn't sing in it. That was good, because we needed to save our voices for the concert that night. The concert was at 8:30 that night, with a soundcheck at 7:30.

Matt read over the treatment for the video and made a suggestion. "Uh, Mr. Nava, you know what might be easier? Doing some of the specific timed scenes in front of a blue screen. It might save time, which is a lot of what we don't have right now." Mr. Nava agreed, and soon we went to work. We had to be extra careful not to damage any of the ancient artifacts or the castle itself. It took us all afternoon, but we finished it with just enough time to eat, do the soundcheck, and the concert.

["Be With You"

Written by Debbi Peterson and Walter Iglehart

Music Video Directed by Jake Nava

Performed by: PurityxSpirited

Lead Vocals: Charisse Matthews (Gina Bowes)

Backing/Lead Vocals: Lily Livingston (Sandy Fox), Sadie Shimazaki (Shelby Lindley), Naomi Honda (Christine Marie Cabanos)]

We go inside a generic movie theater as the curtain rises. A generic title card is seen. It reads:

Jacob Nava Presents:

"あなたと一緒に"

["Be With You"]

Adapted from the Japanese Epic

"六番館のライバル"

["The Rivals of Rokuban Hall"]

Suzuki Eiga Haikyū

As the song starts, the film begins in black and white. As we zoom inside, it becomes colorized as Charisse (who is dressed in Oriental clothing) acts as the lead singer/protagonist. It's a dark and stormy night as Charisse looks out the window. She sees Marcus, who is supposedly the villain of this story and who is dressed as a samurai, tirelessly train to win his lady fair. She later sees reflections of him in the mirror. Could this possibly be a warning?

Charisse:

Out my window
The rain starts to fall
And the wind blows
Through an empty hall
In the mirror
Ooh, reflections of you

In the distance I hear a sound
Is that you coming around?

The scene shifts to the next day, where the band performs with their instruments while wearing Oriental garb. Meanwhile, we meet the man Empress Charrise is in love with: a young samurai, portrayed here by Thomas,. When Thomas isn't doing his training exercises, he's fooling around with the African-American-Japanese empress.

Charisse:

(Naomi/Sadie: What you gonna do) Oh, what you gonna do
(Lily: I think I should) I think I should be with you
(Naomi/Sadie: A love that's overdue) A love that's overdue
Oh, I think I should be with you

This frustrates Marcus to no end as he trains harder and harder, trying to show up his rival every chance he gets. This includes a game of hide-and-seek, with three other samurai (T.K., Greg, and Matt). Marcus uses a stolen rickshaw to kidnap an oblivious Charisse and hide her in the castle. The four samurai realize what has just happened and vow to rescue her.

Charisse:

Thought I saw you
In a stranger's face
Should I call you
Or should I walk away
Around the corner
Is around the world

Is that you looking at me
Or am I living a dream?

Whoa

(Naomi/Sadie: What you gonna do) Oh, what you gonna do
(Lily: I think I should) I think I should be with you
(Naomi/Sadie: A love that's overdue) Oh, a love that's overdue
Oh, I think I should be with you

In the castle, Marcus tries to have his way with Empress Charisse. He appears to be more and more intimidating. However, our plucky young heroine soon drops the scared act as a knowing grin comes over her face.

Charisse:

And when I'm lost in a dream
You are all I can see
All alone in the night I'm waiting for you
In a moment I'd die
Just to look in your eyes
The dream is alive, I'm waiting

Marcus soon discovers that despite appearances, Charisse is anything but dainty; she proceeds to administer a sound thrashing to the villain, all the while acting the damsel in distress—crying for help and pounding on the door and on Marcus—until he is himself crying out for help from the four samurai. These scenes are interspersed with scenes of PurityxSpirited performing in Oriental garb.

Charisse:
Oh, my (Naomi: Oh, my)
How I try
To make you see that
I should be with you

In the distance I hear a sound
Is that you coming around?

When T.K., Greg, and Matt arrive, they lay a few kicks on the by-now barely conscious Marcus before managing to kick each other out in unison as Marcus collapses to the floor safely beneath their swinging fists. Thomas comes in at the last minute and takes Charisse away into the sunset.

Charisse:

(Naomi/Sadie/Lily: Oh-I-I-I-I-I) I think I should be with you
(Naomi/Sadie/Lily: I-I-I-I-I) Oh, I think I should be with you
(Naomi/Sadie/Lily: I-I-I-I-I) Yeah, I think I should be with you

The end title card reads: "終了" [The End]. Fade to black.

T.K.

I slept really well that night.

Author's Notes:

Paul Oakenfold is a real person, as are the two music video directors.

The plot for the "Be With You" music video is based on the 1942 Warner Bros. cartoon "The Dover Boys at Pimento University" or "The Rivals of Roquefort Hall".

As far as relationships go, it's about time T.K. and Kari realized they're serious about each other. It was written in the stars. Don't expect them to get past first base, though.

Next chapter will take the gang to Yokohama, and perhaps to Midoriyama.