Next chapter!
Thanks for the enthusiasm and the patience! I know Digimon isn't that popular among Love livers, but I feel like really writing this coz I'm such a Digimon nerd lol! So yeah, I feel so glad that some people enjoyed this as much as I do!
Thanks to LightRiver33 for the edits!
The Meat Farm—Digital world;
"Wh-whoaaaah! I never thought of this as an actual meat farm! I thought it will be like a barn or something of that sort but they really plant meat!" Honoka said as her eyes sparkled at the size of the meat she plucked from the ground.
"Hehehe—told you! Amazing isn't it?" Niko said proudly.
"Nyom-Nom-Nom—Honoka-chan! These meat are so tasty!" Agumon said as he ate the meat he picked on his own. Chibby is floating next to him.
"Wh-whoa! Why did you pick them all!?" Honoka said loudly.
"Don't worry, it's free, so pick as much as you can!" Niko said confidently.
"R-Really? These are free?" Honoka confirmed.
"Yep! Totally free!" Niko replied.
"Alright then, let's pick them all!" Honoka said cheerfully as she began to pick the meat her eyes darted to.
Meanwhile, at home;
The purplenette sat on the blonde's lap. Their faces are so close that there's no way for them to deny that they are making out. Both had their hands wrapped around each other and their lips are swollen. They might have a nearly full cyber-body right now, but their reactions were still natural.
When they finally stopped their intimate time, they turned back to the screen. They were expecting that their teleport invitation has been accepted, yet their invitation screen was left hanging and not even a sign of anyone trying to accept it showed.
"How long have we been waiting now, Nozomi?" Eli asked.
"About fifteen minutes, a pretty long time…" Nozomi replied.
Eli quickly opened the map—showing two club-marked players along with their digimon. They're not in the place they're supposed to be.
"They went off track!" Eli said with a hint of anger in her voice.
"Looks like Nikocchi won this round…huh?" Nozomi said.
"We should've paid attention…" Eli sighed heavily.
"Not your fault, Ericchi. We trusted them too much. Let's give them a call and tell them to get back to the designated place." Nozomi said.
Eli didn't respond and just kept doing what exactly she needed to do.
The call is made but she waited for a while. For some reason, a very loud static noise could be heard. She hung up her call and tried to contact the same person but...
R….
Registering Digimon….
Then a static noise started again after the robotic voice said the words.
Preparing….
Opponent Calculation….
Loading…
Penalty Data….
And as robotic voice said the words, Eli's eyes widened. She turned off her phone call and quickly ran out of the room.
"Ericchi!" Nozomi shouted, though she knows that it might be no use if she tried to catch up with her—it's better if she knows where she might be going. She tried to call the person Eli called before…
….marked for Annihilation…
Counter Type: Data….
Counter Attribute: Water….
Finishing progress….
Nozomi knew it very well, alas, she had experienced this before. She decided to run out of the room, hoping that she is fast enough to do what needed to be done.
Outside their home;
The blonde ran out of the house so quickly—though the bluenette and the scarlet girl noticed her.
"Eli-senpai…?" they whispered, taking the rest of the girl's attention.
Seeing how fast Eli was going, the two knew that something isn't right. Renamon who has been hanging out with them decided to join her before Umi and Maki decided to do the same along with their Digimon who followed them from behind.
"W-wha-wait! Everyone! Shouldn't you all just take a break?" Kotori tried to reason.
"I-It's useless Kotori-chan! Uh…I can't fly, I'm still sore!" Biyomon said as she tried to move her wings.
"Oi, Nozomi-chan, what's wrong?" Lady said as she saw Nozomi stop at the house's entrance.
Nozomi shook her head before she walked over to where the girls are.
"Everyone…" she said with a pale face.
"Listen… there's a problem…" Nozomi continued.
"What's the problem? I'll help you!" Angel replied.
"Uh…? Problem…? Does it involve any physical exercise…? Lalamon doesn't seems to be in good condition right now…" Hanayo asked.
"I'm afraid, we all have to do this. But, worry not, I'll be able to recover each of your Digimon…though, we may need to be quick …" Nozomi replied.
"Please tell us what happened…" Kotori said, her face is full of concern.
"Honoka is being targeted by the similar mysterious attacker—the one that attacked Ericchi's Kuzuhamon before…" Nozomi replied.
Lady and Angel started to worry, Kotori, Rin, and Hanayo are flustered.
"Uh…what attacker-nya?" Rin asked.
"Kuzuhamon….? Isn't that a Mega Digimon?" Hanayo asked.
"Tell us more about it…" Kotori replied.
"It's a long story, we don't have enough time but, to put it simply… back then, when I was calling Ericchi before she entered her last S-Rank with her Digimon, I heard the same noise with the one that I heard just now when calling Honoka. It may be finished with marking her right now, so… that's why, we need to get to the city and get her to the arena." Nozomi said.
"E-eh…? But why?" Kotori asked again.
"Only the officials can solve this matter and we need to get their attention. Fortunately, the Rookie Championship should be there all the time, it will be easy for us to get her there at this very minute…" Nozomi said.
"E-Eh? Will that work?" Kotori asked.
"It might not, but at least we'll get their attention if they happen to be attempting to kill her Digimon in the arena or somewhere close by." Nozomi said.
"But…. With the current state, will that work? Everyone is trying to kill each other…" Hanayo said.
"I know, it's better than nothing. We really need to try somehow." Nozomi said.
"What if we just report right away-nya? Like…to Lucemon perhaps?" Rin suggested.
"I'm very sure Lucemon is only working for the housing system. He wouldn't want to think of other matters…" Nozomi replied.
"Shouldn't safety inside our home be guaranteed too-nya?" Rin asked.
"Yes, but you wouldn't want to spend your whole life at home, right? We need to settle this." Nozomi replied.
"How are you so sure that getting to the arena will solve it?" Hanayo asked.
"Ahh… I get it! Remember one of the newest step in the Arena registration? Our Digimon will be scanned for malware. Isn't that—…..wait…." Kotori paused.
"W-wait-wait! Just a question… was the Digimon who died in the Arena before Eli-senpai's Digimon…?!" Kotori exclaimed.
Nozomi nodded.
"I've never paid attention to that detail! Ahh! She must have experienced that before! Uh…let's go help them out!" Kotori said.
"Ok-nya!"
The city of memory—meat farm;
"Ahhh! I got a lot of meat today!" Honoka said cheerfully as she patted her bag full of meat. Agumon, who stood next to her, seemed to be very happy with his full belly as well.
"Awesome, right?" Niko replied—her bag is also filled with a lot of meat and her Chibby was carrying his own bag filled with meat as well.
"Let's go home and show them our haul!" Honoka said.
"Sure, they will be thankful for our kindness." Niko said proudly. The two tamers and their Digimon walked out of the meat farm though, as they reached the entrance, a Digimon blocked their path— a strangely aquatic Digimon that is not supposed to be found in that place.
It was a digimon with the form of a white Loch Ness monster and furious eyes.
Niko and Honoka were clueless about how hostile the Aquatic Digimon is so they just kept walking and ignored it, however their Digimon were more alert…
"Niko-chan!" Chibby said as he pulled her back.
"Honoka-chan!" Agumon ran and blocked her path.
"W-what's wrong?" Honoka asked.
Within a second, the huge Aquatic Digimon screeched a terribly loud, hostile sound.
"Wh-whoaa?!" Niko and Honoka were surprised when they heard it.
Without a moment to spare, the aquatic Digimon began its attack and it specifically targeted Agumon. It cast a very quick shower of ice needles—though before it reached them, a shade of yellow swiftly snatched both Agumon and Honoka away while also kicking the little girl some distance away.
"Honoka!" Umi, who just arrived, shouted.
Maki followed right behind Umi along with Penguinmon and her Lunamon.
Honoka found herself, along with her Agumon, carried away by a very tall fox-like Digimon.
"R-Renamon! You saved our lives!" Agumon said.
"W-waah! Thank you Renamon!" Honoka said.
Renamon didn't speak but focused on the Aquatic Digimon instead as it attempted another strike—which she once again quickly dodged.
Niko got up from her fall and immediately operated her digivice to scan the Digimon that attacked her. She noticed that the Digimon is marked as a trained Digimon—which means that someone owns this Digimon, but…
Plesiomon (Lv90 / 45%)
Type : Data
Attribute: Water
Owner : Bugged
Personality: Bugged
"W-what the hell?!" Niko exclaimed.
"Oi! Move already before you get mauled too!" Maki said loudly.
"Huh?! I know! Damn it!" Niko replied before she ran to where the others are.
"Niko-senpai, Eli-senpai is registering Honoka to the Arena right now. She told me that you should help us to deal with this Digimon." Umi said.
"Is she nuts? This is probably a Mega Digimon and, even though it looks small, we won't be able to fight with it just by ourselves!" Niko said.
"She gave us these…" Maki said as she handed three cards, they all have the same picture and name— a picture of clock and rotating arrows with the printed words The Future is Here! From the looks of it, it appears to be a set of silver cards.
"R-rare cards… God Damn it. Are these really for free?" Niko said.
"Yes, but since we don't know how to use it, can you teach us?" Umi asked.
"Sure, but … do you two at least have a card machine?"
"I've got one, but I haven't really learned how to use it since we've never stumbled into anything that needed it." Maki said.
"Kotori told me that she bought one for me too but I don't know where I can find it…." Umi said.
"Sheesh, then I have no choice, huh? The option is in your digivice under the Battle Mode Setting and you need to activate your Card-machine. It will takes more from your battery so make sure to turn off the function once you are done with it, ok?" Niko explained as she demonstrated it to the two juniors. A machine appeared on Niko's wrist and….
"Wwahaaaaa! R-Renamon! Please stop moving! I'm dizzy!" Honoka said loudly as Renamon moved around with them quickly to dodge the attacks of the Bugged Digimon. Agumon seemed to be losing his consciousness— probably also because he is being carried around too much.
With sure movements, Niko tapped her card against her Card machine and Maki and Umi copied her actions. The card dissolved as a bigger version of it appeared right in front of their Digimon.
Each of the rookie Digimon digivolved into their mega forms. While Niko expected her Digimon's evolution, Umi and Maki were astonished by the form of their rookie digimon.
Chibby the Demi Devimon turned into a clown-like Digimon with a mischievous smile and swords on his back. He wore a red clown costume with a long blue ribbon on his back and a green balloon trouser with fancy yellow boots.
Maki's Lunamon turned into a majestic female-like Digimon with white and blue armor decorated with crescent moonsand complete with long pink ribbons on its back. She held a unique blue staff as a weapon.
Umi's Penguinmon transformed into a black metallic wolf-like Digimon with a pair of white blades on his back. He isn't exactly what Umi wanted, but it's so close to the form that she adored.
As the three Digimon evolved, their tamers received new data for their Digimon's personal information.
Niko's Digimon is a Piedmon, known as a mischievous Digimon that uses swords to attack. He is obviously a Virus type Digimon, which means that he will certainly have the advantage with the fight they're about to face.
Maki's Lunamon is a Dianamon, rumored to be a Digimon capable of surviving in absolute zero. Rumors also say that she is capable of causing a massive sleep status on any number of enemies. As a Digimon who stand between Light and Dark, she is a Data Type Digimon whichis neither at an advantage nor disadvantage for the battle they're about to face.
Umi has always wished for the line of the most popular Wolf-like Digimon, the keen eyes, the ability to analyze and the ability to lock onto their target. Everything is so perfect, especially when it is combined with the blue metallic body but hers is a metallic black and not the Digimon type she expected.
"A virus…." Umi said. Her voice show how burdened she suddenly felt.
"Alright—let's show them who's boss!" Niko said proudly.
"Heh—you don't need to tell me that!" Maki replied to her.
Chibby and Dianamon prepared themselves…
"Umi…" Black Metal Garurumon called her but the bluenette did not respond because she was still staring at the screen of her Digivice.
"Umi!" Black Metal Garurumon called her once again.
"A-ah! S-Sorry, Penguinmon! I… I mean—…" Umi's voice drifted away.
"Black Metal Garurumon…." She whispered.
Black Metal Garurumon nodded gently at her.
"Let's focus on the task." he said.
"Yes, let's do it…" Umi replied.
Then, as all three Digimon stood prepared, Renamon swiftly dashed towards those three Digimon and their tamers.
The Real World;
The A-Rise planned to take action again today. Erena and Anjuu are preparing their items but Tsubasa didn't seem to bother with that. Their Digimon are currently attending a briefing with the rest of S-Ranked Tamers in the real world.
The current state of Real World has not improved much from the day before. Wild Digimon were still spawning and some of the strongest terrors are making their way to the real world.
While waiting for her friends, Tsubasa was tracking Honoka's Digivice through her laptop. She knew what's going on and she wished to make her move but, at this time, she still has some doubts with her next move.
It is very unlike her but, when it is about the life of her special crush, she doesn't want to commit a single mistake.
After a while, a break-in program suddenly attempted to get into one of Honoka's status data. Tsubasa's eyes widened and she swiftly scanned the program before deciding to take action. Some of the information shown seemed familiar to her but it took a while for her to recognize the ID numbers of the Program's mastermind.
The short-haired girl quickly grabbed her digivice and searched for the person that she assumed the hacker to be. She may have never actually contacted this person but the person she assumed is the hacker has always been popular in the Digital World's hacking community.
Not that Tsubasa isn't popular— she is also one of the most popular among hackers— but this person has always been her most troublesome rival and one who is clever enough to break-in to her personal information.
She made a call with her digivice and waited for a while until it was accepted.
"Hey now, why are you checking out my Honoka?" Tsubasa asked immediately.
"Are you calling me just to ask such an unimportant question?" the gentle voice replied.
"It's important to me, why are you trying to break in her status?" Tsubasa asked again. Her voice is loud enough to grab Erena and Anjuu's attention.
"None of your business." the voice replied coldly.
"It's my business and I mind it as much as you would mind if I break in to your Nozomi's personal data." Tsubasa replied with an even colder tone as she quickly used her freezing program to stop the other's program from loading its system.
"Tsubasa! Look who you're talking to!" Erena complained as she is about to approach her, though Anjuu quickly grabbed her and gestured that it's better if they stay out of their business.
"Look, the only thing I need is to snatch a few personal information. No harm will be done. I need to register her to the Arena as soon as possible." the voice replied.
"And you think the official can help you, huh? You're naïve. The Official isn't as honest as you think. Even if it only a small part, they're still corrupt. You're gambling her life and I won't allow it."
"Then you want me to do… what? Let her Agumon suffer the same fate as my Kuzunoha? Besides, I don't get it, what do you mean by gambling her life…? I've been there so I know the official can help us."
"They can because you made it a big deal and it was an S-Ranked tournament so they didn't want their dirty side seen by the whole world. Believe me, you're not the first. There's something bigger going on that you need to see." Tsubasa said
"W-whatever you're talking about, I don't have time to argue!"
"Just drop whatever you're trying to do! I won't allow you to gamble her life!" Tsubasa said angrily.
"I'm not! I'm trying to save her Digimon, you idiot! It has nothing to do with her!" the voice replied angrily.
"I said, drop it and listen to me, you moron!"
"Fine! I'll drop this but whatever happens to her Digimon later, it will be your fault!"
The connection went off and all the program cancelled its attempt to break in.
"What the hell? I said 'listen to me' not brush me off!" Tsubasa complained as she look at her digivice.
Back in the Digital World;
Renamon has been carrying the Ginger girl along with her Digimon, jumping through places to get into the Tournament Hall. The place is supposed to be easy to go through but, with the current chaotic state, some places are inaccessible and they have to take another path.
It was not only on the land, the fight between tamers and Digimon seemed to be happening in the air and water as well. It is not easy to find the path but, for Honoka and Agumon's safety, Renamon is trying her best to reach the place her tamer told her to meet.
After a few more jumps, Renamon finally reached the entrance of the Tournament hall but she also found it impossible to enter as the crowd is thick in the place as well.
"Wawahwhaw… I'm so dizzy, please stop…" Honoka begged.
"Ah… sorry, you have to get through this…" Renamon replied gently as she finally placed the two down on the ground.
"Wwawawa….Thwoldewsewnding…." Agumon said. He couldn't even stand on his own two feet.
Renamon sighed before she looked around her. Some people in the crowd are fighting, some are crying, some are praying— then there were some who were shamelessly selling their goods. It's a real big mess but what can she do as a Digimon who is still seeking full acknowledgement from her own master? Alas, even if she is acknowledged, what can she do to solve this mess?
"Eh…Where are we now?" Honoka asked after she finally regained her focus and her head stopped spinning.
"Outside the tournament hall…." Renamon replied.
"W-whoa… for whose tournament?" Honoka asked.
"Supposedly yours but… I wonder why Eli hasn't contacted me to say which tournament terminal we should go to.…"
"M-Mine? But I didn't register any tournament… I mean…I plan to… but—…"
"There you are…" a gentle yet cold voice was heard.
A blonde walked up to them with a laptop in her arm and a digivice attached properly on her head.
"Uwoo! Eli-senpai!" Honoka said loudly and cheerfully.
"Why did you even leave the track? I told you not to and now we have to do this. It would've been easier if you obeyed us…" Eli frowned at her.
"Uhh… I'm sorry! Niko-senpai persuaded me! Right, Agumon?" Honoka said to her lizard Digimon.
"H-Hng…Yes! I was mesmerized by the offer for meat! I've not eaten meatthe whole month!" Agumon said.
"It was meant for your diet! Being overweight will make you slower and you'll digivolve into what you do not wish to!" Eli said clearly.
"Y-you're right… I'm sorry!" Honoka and Agumon said, giving the guiltiest face they can make.
"Eli, what about the tournament?" Renamon asked.
"Canceled. Someone isn't allowing me to register her…" Eli replied.
"Who?" Honoka asked.
Eli only smirked in response.
"Uh…Eli-senpai?" Honoka tried again.
"Listen, do you want to give it a shot anyway?" the blonde asked back.
"The Arena?" Honoka asked.
"Yes. If you want to, I can do that quickly and you won't even need to queue with these people." Eli said.
"I'm not sure… have I got enough practice? Agumon also doesn't seem to be in proper condition." Honoka said.
"I'm fine, Honoka-chan! I've got enough meat! I can fight again!" Agumon said.
"It's close to dusk so, if you register now, he will be finished just in time for his bed time right after the tournament." Renamon said.
"Oo! That sounds perfect. Then I guess I'm in? But… why so sudden? I don't even understand why Eli-senpai exerted so much effort to register me in the tournament?" Honoka replied.
"There's a step in the tournament registration that you need to get through. We could've gone to a Digi-lab instead but the tournament scan will be much more effective and cheap." Eli explained.
"Alright! Then let's do this!" Honoka replied cheerfully again.
The City of Memory, entrance;
The other group that consisted of Nozomi, Kotori, Rin, and Hanayo couldn't even enter the city since the riots have overwhelmed the place. Their Digimon seemed to be somewhat bewildered at how many tamers are fighting about their opinions right now.
"This is bad, we can't even enter the city…." Nozomi said.
"To begin with, why do people have to beat each other for this-nya?" Rin was saddened as she saw some injured Digimon left on the ground along with their tamers.
"To add their voice, Rin-chan. The more people support their favored world, the better it will be for them." Hanayo replied sadly.
"It doesn't make sense-nya. Wouldn't this just make both worlds weaker?"
"If those people are smart enough to think like that, then they wouldn't be doing these things, Rin-chan." Nozomi said.
"But… shouldn't we just go do something? I'm worried about Honoka-chan…" Kotori said.
"Ericchi and the others must've secured them and we may need to do something else." Nozomi said.
"Uh… but, how are you so sure that they secured them?" Hanayo asked.
Nozomi remained silent and put on her serious face. Then she suddenly took out a lot of cards—but not the Digimon cards that they know is useful for the Digimon Online.
"Oh— the fortune Goddess! Please tell us where we should go to!" she shouted before she spread all the cards in her hand. An mysterious wind blew past them and the cards flew everywhere— except for one card that hit her own face.
She carefully picked it up and revealed 'The Upward Fool' card.
"The cards have spoken… all we need to do right now is to be random!"
"Whoaah….." Hanayo, Kotori, and Rin clap their hands in awe while Lalamon, Gaomon, and Biyomon have absolutely no idea what just happened, Angel cheerfully collected the scattered cards while naming each of them, and Lady just remained silent with her palm on her face.
"So… how random-nya?" Rin asked.
"That's what I wonder too…" Kotori said.
Without warning, Nozomi picked up two pebbles from the ground then throw those to random a person. Before her crime was discovered, she quickly shouted:
"How rude! Throwing pebbles to an innocent person!"
"Yeah, who did that to me?!" the person whose head was hit by the pebble said. Though, as he turned around, he saw someone who was holding a pebble.
"You!" he pointed to the person who held the pebble.
"I-It wasn't me! I got hit on the head by this thing too!" he said.
"Boooo! Not cool! Not admitting their mistake isn't cool!" Nozomi heckled.
"Yeah! You must be a human-world supporter!" the other said.
"W-what?! But I'm one of you guys!"
"This is a declaration of war!" The other shouted before some other people began to yell. The crowd, which was already noisy, became even noisier. It's no longer just a massive Digimon duel because, now, even the tamers started to hit each other.
Quickly, Nozomi beckoned to the girls and their Digimon and gestured that they should be as stealthy as they can to get through the mess.
Meanwhile, at the City of Memory's garden;
The Bugged Digimon is close to being defeated but Piedmon and Dianamon seem to be running out of magical power and their card's effect. Umi's Digimon, Black Metal Garurumon didn't fight as hard as he usually does, not that he refuses to use his preserved stamina, he just rarely received commands from his tamer.
Umi is too bothered as she controlled her 'dark' Digimon. She didn't like his color, not even the furious eyes. Has she done anything wrong in her practices? Did the card give her a random evolution? She wished that it's not the evolution she'll be getting later.
"U-Umi! We're out of stamina!" Niko shouted.
"A-ah!" Umi snapped out of her thoughts.
"Hurry up! Finish him!" Maki said.
"G-got it!" she nodded.
"Black Metal Garurumon! Finish him!"
"Got it!" he replied before he shot a lot of missiles into the Loch Ness monster-like Digimon.
The Bugged Digimon data began to crumble, eventually turning into a small digimon that looked like a white seal. Soon after it happenned, Dianamon turned back into Lunamon, Chibby the Piedmon into Demi Devimon while Umi's Black Metal Garurumon still maintained its form because his power wasn't yet fully utilized.
"Haaaah! That was a tough fight, don't you think?" Niko stated.
"Not really, it was purely because we have someone who's not quite focused today…" Maki said as she glanced at her senior, Umi.
"S-sorry…. I just….have something on my mind…." the bluenette said.
"It's rare to see you like that, Umi… are you sick?" Black Metal Garurumon said.
"N-No…not at all…" Umi replied, faking a smile to her own Digimon.
"I have still got some power to take you back home, the teleporter nearby might be better for our use too…" Black Metal Garurumon said again.
"Yeah, if you're sick, it's better if you returning home." Lunamon agreed with him.
"No, I'm really fine!" Umi retorted.
They stayed silent for a while…
"I'm sorry…. I… should not have worried you all…" she said.
"It's fine. But for real, what's on your mind?" Niko asked.
"It's nothing, really. Please let's just move forward with our schedule. We're not supposed to go back to home yet, from what I remember." Umi said.
"Huh? Ok, I guess…" Niko smirked, still curious s cast about the bluenette's thoughts.
"Didn't Eli tell us to meet her inside the Tournament Hall?" Maki said.
"Ah, yes, exactly. Let's go to the Tournament Hall!" Umi said somewhat nervously before she walked away, followed by her Digimon who was still under the effect of the card.
Lunamon and Chibby looked somewhat flustered and were wondering what exactly is happening in the mind of that specific human. Maki and Niko shrugged when their eyes met but, knowing that there's still a task at hand, they decided to follow their Digimon.
The Tournament Hall;
Eli registered Honoka to the tournament and, according to tournament registration procedure, Agumon was listed for examination. Even though they can skip the registration queue, they still couldn't skip the examination queue. Renamon accompanied Agumon in the queue while both their tamers sat on the benches along with other tamers.
Since Eli never liked crowds, she decided to sit with Honoka on the lone bench far from the queue train. Honoka remained silent. She actually wish to have a conversation—or say anything in this case. She doesn't really know the senior she is with but she knows the girl who she is always-always-always together with.
"Say!" Honoka said all of a sudden.
The blonde senior's heart nearly jumped out of her chest. She would complain but, remembering that she needs to be nice to this person—who might just lose her Digimon if not treated properly— she decided to listen to her.
"How long have you been friends with Nozomi-senpai?" the ginger girl asked with her cheerful eyes.
"I met her in the first year of HighSchool." The blonde replied somewhat gently.
"She ran up to me and ask me to be her friend." she continued but her eyes were looking away from Honoka.
"Ok!" Honoka replied.
The conversation stopped there until Honoka decided to ask another question.
"Are you two dating? I think Kotori-chan and Niko-senpai often talked about you two dating each other!"
"What's with that question? You've got her in your contacts, right?"
"Ehehe, well, I thought that having a partner in game must have its own benefit so some are just plain partners but not actually a real couple!" Honoka replied.
"I see, that's a good thinking. But yes, you are right. It has its benefits and we started from such an idea… or excuse…" Eli replied.
"Excuse….?" Honoka wondered.
"Hmm…I don't know if you would understand, but… back then, we were just distant friends to each other. We always wished to get along with each other even though our mind have never be the same with each other. It was hard for me to accept her in my life… and… maybe she nursed so many wounds from my words…"
"Wounds…? How did your words wound her?" Honoka asked.
"I told her everything I can to make her go away and forget about trying to be my friend: from mocking physical assets to accusing her that she was faking her attitude towards me. But she just gave me that smile and…" Eli sighed,
"…instead of going away, she followed me everywhere, even to my home." she continued.
"W-whoa! She stalked you?!" Honoka asked.
"Yes… she is so persistent… I finally gave up and listened to what she truly wanted from me. Then she said she just wanted to be my friend and the words that wounded her will just be some words from the past. I gave her a chance then… we walked around the city … and the only thing that I remember is that she dragged me to random places, including the Digital World Station in our world."
"Oohh…! Did you two register that time?"
"Not quite. I have no interest to online gaming back then. She said she just wanted both of us to have a shared purpose for being together so we may want to join the game. I already told her many times that I don't want to do it–until we reached the exit and something began to happen to both of us…"
"S-something?" Honoka wondered.
"Yes. I don't really know what happened. I thought that it was just a trick pulled off by the official to make us both play but, I swear, our lives were in grave danger and there were no officials around to help us. We even saw a few others get distorted like they're made of pixels in that place…"
"W-wait there! What happened?!" Honoka tried to press for details.
"I told you, I don't really know." Eli replied.
"O-Ok… so…how did you get out of that unknown situation?" the ginger girl asked again.
"That time, we had no idea. When we went there for the first time, we talked to a few people who were there and they told us that they've been stuck there for a while. Some are already players while others are just friends of players. None of them understood why it was happening and some players told us that they can't even use their Digivice to log out like always. That was until we decided that the clue to getting out of that situation rested on how the place looked like an empty domain with many programs, and some others which formed Digital Monsters acted like a sort of Antivirus or Malware. We found out that, in order to exit that place, we needed to hack our way out."
"We found a screen with a program written in the place we came from. I swear I had no knowledge about programming or hacking at all but, since I was forced to, I had to learn about it while Nozomi searched for other clues. It turns out that we got dragged in when a television experience a digital glitch and the way to solve it is to salvage this glitch and reverse its purpose."
"Is that how you two managed to get out?" Honoka asked.
"Yes. We even managed to save some people as well, though, we made a little mistake because we accidentally took out a Digimon with us…"
"What happened to the Digimon then?" Honoka asked curiously
"We return her to the Digital world by registering as player then freed them. We didn't want to be investigated on how we found her so we had to do it quietly. Though, in the end, she wanted me to train her." Eli's word ended with a sigh.
"Perhaps I kept her a little too long back then…" she whispered.
"But, is it possible for you to keep her? I mean, I thought we are supposed to scan the data and make our digimon in the lobby?" Honoka asked.
"It's possible if you find a Digimon that is willing. You only need to register them without handing any scanned data, just like Nozomi's twin Salamon… they are both friends of the Digimon who was willing to be my Digimon."
"Ooh… I didn't know! Is that Digimon your Renamon now?" Honoka replied.
"No…" Eli replied a little coldly.
"Ah! Hehe…I thought it was her!" Honoka replied.
"She is nothing like her…" the blonde's cold voice made it obvious how much she hated the statement.
Honoka seemed concerned. She wanted say something but it will probably piss the blonde off and a senior is a senior… maybe she shouldn't say whatever was on her mind.
"Even though they both came from the same species, they're not the same and will never be." she continued.
"Uh…Ehehe… well.. surely, nothing can replace the special one." Honoka said.
"I'm glad you understand. I'm sick of everyone telling me that she is replacing her…" Eli replied with a bitter smile on her face.
"Hehe… it might feel like when you wanted a bread with a strawberry jam but, because you don't have a strawberry jam, you had to use chocolate. Both might be a good snack but your mind will never be able to say that the chocolate can replace the taste of strawberry jam." Honoka said.
Eli couldn't comment about how Honoka compared her case with bread but it made sense somehow.
"Beggars can't be choosers though, right? Because I can't have strawberry jam, I have to enjoy the chocolate on my bread or I will never be able to enjoy my life!" she continued.
The blonde responds to her with a smile. The words might almost be deep enough to touch her heart.
"Eli-senpai! Do you like Chocolate?" Honoka asked.
"Extremely so. I'm a chocolate maniac." Eli replied with a smile still left on the corner of her lips.
"Oooh! Hehe, then, maybe you can say that your favorite chocolate is like your first Digimon, then the other one is another type of chocolate that you like! Both are chocolate so you should be able to enjoy both, right?"
It doesn't make much sense to Eli but Honoka is right. What makes her hate her new Digimon if they're from the same species? Is it because she was not as good as the first one? Perhaps she has been spoiled with the feeling of training a hard working Digimon like her Kuzunoha but her current Renamon isn't that bad, right? She is a hard working one too, though she seems to give up a little too easily … Just like Eli who wish to give up on being a tamer.
"By the way, Eli-senpai! Do you have a specific nickname for your Digimon? Like… Nozomi-senpai with Lady and Angel or Niko-senpai with Chibby?" Honoka asked.
"I had one with my previous digimon... I have none for this one." Eli replied.
"Ok! Hehe! I've been thinking of getting one for Agumon, but I don't know what I should name him!" Honoka said.
"Most people name their Digimon based on their last form... I'm one of them. I named my Renamon Kuzunoha after she won her Ultimate Tournament and digivolved into a Kuzuhamon. Nozomi named them Angel and Lady before they evolved into them tough. She said she kind of already settled on it—and she was right. As for Niko, because her Digimon is small, she wanted to embrace the size by naming him Chibby. " Eli explained.
"Oohh…hmm..but it isn't fun to have a nick name from the obvious. I mean, many people will have similar names, right?" Honoka said.
"That's true…" Eli replied.
"Hehe… maybe I should name him... Ichigo? I like strawberries so much!" Honoka said.
"Well…that's not a bad name but do you think he will like it?" Eli asked.
"I'm sure he won't!" Honoka replied cheerfully.
Eli remained silent, again, because she has no idea how to respond to the statement. The two became silent again but Honoka still wanted to have some more conversation to keep herself busy. She tried to think of a topic and, when she tried to look for anything that might interest the blonde, her mind brought up the image of a specific purplenette.
"By the way, Eli-senpai… how does it feel to fall in love with Nozomi-senpai?" Honoka asked.
Eli swears she almost chocked on air but she tried her best to keep her composure. The question was direct and she didn't even hear an apology for asking about something personal. She truly is about to snap at her for asking but she realized this girl might need to be comforted in case anything bad happens to her Digimon… So she decided to stay cool and respond to the question.
"What about you? Have you ever fallen in love before?" Eli asked, clearly trying to change the topic.
"Eh? No… I guess?" Honoka replied with innocent eyes.
The blonde remembers that there's someone who values this ginger-haired girl as much as she values Nozomi but, would it be necessary to ask about it? How does she truly feel about this specific someone?
"Now, you were asking how I feel about falling in love with Nozomi, right? The answer is, I feel good. Nozomi always treats me well and, whenever she is with me, I always feel comfortable and fearless. When we talk to each other, I feel like any topic she brings up is interesting. I swear, before I realized how I felt about her, everything seemed so boring and I didn't even want to put in any effort to speak to her."
"…she changed my world and I may have changed her world, for the better or worse. I'm really glad that I met her but a small regret that I may have is that I have never felt at peace in the past. My soul is now dedicated to making her happy and I feel like I'll be worthless without her. She makes me feel like the most important girl in the world as well."
As the blonde finished her words, Honoka wondered if she can relate somehow. In her mind, she can't remember feeling that way towards anyone specific other than her best friends, Kotori and Umi.
"Are you sure you don't have anyone who makes you feel important?" Eli asked.
"Hmm… my mother perhaps? My sister isn't that fond of me and she is…uh…a little cocky. My father… well…he is a little extreme, but… hehe, guess he is one of the people who makes me feel so special." Honoka replied.
"You're right, family will surely always make you feel important… but I was asking about someone outside of your family…." Eli said.
"Uhm… Umi-chan and Kotori-chan then? Kotori always protects me from Umi-chan's wrath but, at the same time, Umi-chan really cares about me and she would sometimes act like my father…" Honoka replied.
"Best friends, huh? That's right too. Nozomi is a best friend to me and I know the feeling of this special friendship so well. Is there anyone else you might have forgotten to mention?" Eli asked again.
Honoka remained silent. She looked like she doesn't have an answer for the question.
"Someone who wanted to embrace you, someone who wanted to be with you and spend their life time with you, someone who cares about you more than they care about themselves, someone who wants to make you smile and someone who wants to protect you at all cost."
"Hnnggg…. Is there anyone as selfless like that?" Honoka asked innocently.
"Of course! That's also a description of someone who's madly in love." Eli replied.
"Madly… in love…?" Honoka tilted her head slightly.
"I have always been madly in love with Nozomi and, right now, I understand when someone's selflessness is a wish to convey their mad love towards someone … it's nothing like a fatherly or motherly love, though. Those two are on a whole different level…" Eli replied.
"Does love have to be classified like that?" Honoka asked.
Eli giggled at her innocent response.
"Of course! You can't love someone more than you love anyone. Everyone in your life is part of you. One will always have a part of your love which can't be compared to another's love. Your love to your best friends, your love to your lover, your love to your god, or your love to your family, they're all different."
"I see…" Honoka replied as she thought deeply.
"Now think again… are you sure you haven't seen anyone who shows you big love other than your family and friends?"
"Uhm…" Honoka tried to think.
"Hehe…this is just a thought… I feel like Tsubasa-chan is trying to love me…" she continued.
Eli smiled softly. She is glad that someone is being recognized. Even though she isn't fond of this person, it wouldn't be fair if she reveals what she knows. There was something in the past that made her somehow want to repay this person's team's kindness… it was something pretty personal, she'd have to say.
"But…I'm not sure about it…." Honoka continued again.
The blonde just stayed silent and listened for what she may have to say after.
"Every time I talk to Tsubasa-chan, my heart beats so fast and the world is silenced. I can't even feel anything else other than this heartbeat of mine and her voice." Honoka said it with a slight blush on her face.
"Hehe, maybe I'm just a little coward to admit that, maybe, I have become one of her fans… she is an idol after all, right?" she replied.
Honoka was very oblivious but at least now she knows what kind of person she is dealing with.
"Is love toward an idol different?" Honoka asked, her innocent eyes directed into Eli's deep eyes.
"Adoring someone as an Idol, you mean? That surely is different. A love like that…. is dense and limited. People might be cheering for you and calling you the number one but, once you're off the stage, people will barely know you, put aside being understood. They may say that they're your loyal fans, truth to be told, they will move on from you when someone better comes along." Eli replied.
"Uh…I don't know if that is what I feel … I mean, I've never been a fan of idols and music until then…" Honoka replied.
"But there is one song that stuck in my head until now and it is Tsubasa-chan's group's song… that's why I thought that I've become one of her fans… though, hehe… I only know one song."
"The word fan come from the word fanatic. Would you call yourself a fanatic if you only know one of her songs?"
"Uh… right, I don't think so." Honoka replied.
"That was a trick, you can call yourself a fanatic even if you only have known one song. It's about how you show your enthusiasm towards her. You don't have to be a fanatic of her song, you see. You can always be a fanatic of her soul, her heart, or her love towards you."
"But would a fanatic be having a love as dense as what you described?"
"It's up to you to decide. You can always be an actual, loyal fanatic or you can be like people who declare faithful love but move on from one to another as easy as picking their daily meals. When I described it before, it was only for you to think again about how you truly feel about her." Eli replied.
"I see… then I will think harder about what I truly feel towards her! Maybe I'm not her fanatic after all!"
"Sure." Eli replied with her gentle smile. Perhaps it's better to let what she just said go right now.
The City of Memory;
Nozomi, Kotori, Rin, and Hanayo have finally entered the city and were about to get themselves in the Tournament Hall, though they couldn't really do so since they're still on stealth, preventing anyone to engage them in an unnecessary fight. The city's condition may have worsened ever since they started a riot and a few people had been going around asking about one's favorite world. When one answers the opposite of their favorite, they will fight. When they answer the same, they will force them to join the group. When they say they don't favor any, they will try so hard to persuade or to threaten them to join theirs.
It's really troublesome and it's always better to stay hidden than to show up, especially knowing that Mega-ranked players are also roaming the area. It will never be safe for them to be confronted randomly.
They also know that some people used this mess as a chance to rob one's treasury, with the excuse of weakening the enemy, something that is legally done in a war.
The officials tried to stop the mess but, with the number of criminals, tragedies, and incidents, they barely able to detect each case. The guard Digimon also seemed to be overwhelmed and their threats are not heard. They can't possibly purge the city with force like how it was always done in the past—or so they think.
"T-this is a real mess, I wonder why the officials don't just use their super power to stop them?" Hanayo mumbled.
"Ehehe…maybe they tried to?" Kotori said as she watch a few official Digimon running towards a group, yet the group ran away along with their Digimon.
"We can't do anything about the city for now. Besides, this is just a start. Maybe they prepared something big to stop them… after all, they wanted peace, right?" Nozomi said.
"Where are we going again-nya?" Rin asked.
"To the Tournament Hall. I'm worried about Honoka-chan." Nozomi said.
"Do we have to do that? I mean, why don't we just wait for them?" Hanayo asked.
"Well, don't you want to watch her fighting? Rookie tournaments might be boring but I'm very sure you would want to watch her fighting." Nozomi said.
Soon after she said it, they saw Niko, Umi, and Maki with their Digimon.
"Ahh! Niko-senpaaaiii!" Rin shouted.
"Whoa! You all!" Niko stopped as she pulled Maki and Umi back. They decided to all turn around to approach them.
Kotori and Hanayo focused on the Black Wolf-like Digimon and their faces showed fear when his eyes glared at them.
"Waaaa!" The two made a distance from Black Metal Garurumon while Biyomon and Lalamon quickly hid behind their tamers. He might be oblivious about what made the two girls step back but Umi seems to be really bothered with what just happened.
"I-it's me, Penguinmon! I'm under a card effect!" he said.
"O…oh…." Kotori and Hanayo nods.
"I'm sorry about him…" Umi said with shame written boldly on her expression.
"It's fine, Umi-chan! We were just… surprised…" Kotori said.
"Y-yeah…!" Hanayo agreed to her.
"Hmm..so, who would've expected you to become a dark Digimon, huh? I totally thought you'd be a sea serpent or something of that sort since it fits your tamer's name." Nozomi said to Black Metal Garurumon.
"W-well…I…I don't know. I just got this power from the card…." Black Metal Garurumon replied.
"Card? Hmm… it must be those silver cards. Ericchi gave it to you huh?"
"We got one from her too. Now I got a Dianamon data in my digivice." Maki said.
"Yep, I looked really cool, too bad you didn't see me!" Lunamon said proudly.
"And for me, I got a Piedmon data. Told you I'll succeed on making my Digimon great." Niko said proudly.
"hehe, if you saw me you'll be mesmerized and all of your eyes will be on me!" Chibby the Demi Devimon said with his smug face.
"Really? I get the vibe that you're not that cool…" Lady said.
"Hmmph! Lady! Tsk-tsk, you're just jealous that I'll be colorful, miss-I'm-going-to-be-purple." Chibby said.
"Hey! What's wrong with purple? I think it looks great!" Angel said.
"Purple is boring!" Chibby said.
Then as he said it, all the people focused on Nozomi's hair and Nozomi's frowing face.
"I mean… In a good way…." Chibby continued. He knew that he screwed up so badly here.
"What's … boring in a good way-nya?" Rin asked.
"I knew that boxing is good… but I never knew how boring can be good." Gaomon added.
"Sh-should you add fuel to the blazing fire…?" Chibby smirked.
"You're on your own, Chibby!" Niko said.
"W-what? Wait… Why are you leaving me!?" Chibby protested.
"Huh? Of course it's because I don't want to deal with that witch!" Niko said.
"Hey, didn't you just add yourself to the shit-list by calling her a witch?" Lunamon asked the raven-haired girl.
As Niko's eyes turn into the purplenette, she realized that she just said something really terrible for her good small bust. They're going to be squished so hard and she won't even forget the pain anytime soon.
"I mean…Good witch! A witch doesn't have to be evil, right? It's not like you always look like a hellish demon or something like it!"
"Always….? So she always looked like a hellish demon but sometimes not-nya?" Rin asked.
"A-Are you doing that on purpose?!" Niko complained.
"I have to say, she is right. It really sounded like you're referring to how she always looked like a hellish demon and only seldom not …" Maki said.
"D-Do you just love seeing me tormented by a monster, huh!?" Niko complained again. Maki sighed at the statement. She swears that if she presses further, the little girl will just sink even deeper in trouble.
"E-everyone!" Hanayo tried to soothe the atmosphere.
"I-It's useless, Kayo-chan! S-Someone is going to do something really bad!" Kotori said.
Nozomi lifts both of her hands as her eyes shone bright, accompanied by her furious-mischievous smile.
"Chibby… Nikocchi..." Nozomi called them with her heaviest voice.
The Tournament Hall;
The examination is finished and Honoka and Agumon are now in the contestants' bench—just like how her friend was back before she registered for Digimon Online. It still feels funky for her that she is here as a contestant. This is her very first time and she is so excited to see how she will do with her Agumon.
Eli received the examination report but she did not seem to be satisfied with whatever result she read. Her expectation was way different with the reality and not a single result, other than the obvious information. is close to what she thinks.
Agumon is scanned and declared free from any malware— not even a mark is up on his head. She has seen a few bugged Digimon by salvaging them and everything else that she can do to their data. She swears that she saw a specific malware that could have been detected even by a non-expert hacker like her in the past.
How did the officials missed them? Are they really secretly corrupted, just like what Tsubasa said?
It's not possible, right? There must be another explanation or, perhaps, the malware isn't placed on the target but within the Digimon who are infected?
How does one Digimon become infected though? The digital world is a world with massive data transferred each second so how does one specifically get infected by those bugs?
So many question are lingering in her head but Eli decided to put those aside and pay attention to the girl to satisfy her curiosity. Renamon is faithfully sitting next to her among the empty seats, waiting to be spoken to, though it may be too much to expect since Eli never talks to anyone she doesn't like unless she is forced to. Renamon knows that she has to stay quiet as well, just so she is allowed to stick around her.
Ever since the day she gave up on her practice, Eli never talked to her about anything, not even a single personal request. All request are always things someone else needed her to do, even the one where Renamon helped Honoka and Agumon dodge the bugged Mega Digimon was not Eli's instruction her but her own decision.
The only one who talked to her all day is Angel and that's just because she can't stop talking to anyone around her, especially Lady. Renamon just kept waiting but there is still no conversation initiated between them until the horn for the battle to start sounded off.
There isn't even a single commentator working in the very boring tournament. The only people who were watching are the tamers and some small number of beginner tamers who haven't decided how to raise their baby Digimon.
A huge sign appeared on the screen near the stage saying "Honoka Kousaka versus Satoru Yamada." The ginger haired girl stood up and shouted.
"Whoa?! I'm the first to fight?!"
The blonde sighed and placed her palm on her face.
"Remember, Honoka! Stay calm and pay attention!" Renamon reminded her.
Eli doesn't look impressed, though she took notice of what Renamon just did.
"Woah! Ok! Renamon! Thank you!" Honoka replied before she and Agumon ran up the stage.
The ginger girl's eyes turned to her opponent, Satoru. He is a guy who owns a Gabumon, a Digimon who stands on two legs, has a blue striped wolf-like coat with a single yellow horn on its forehead, a yellow belly and a blue oval shape drawn on its skin. Satoru seemed to be casual and somewhat sporty and his face might be a so-so too, but everyone will see him as a decent man.
"Let's fight!" he said to Honoka with a smile.
Honoka responded with her own wide smile.
"Yep! Let's fight!" she replied.
The countdown started.
"Three...!" a robotic voice from the speaker said.
"Two…!"
"One…!"
"Fight!"
As soon as the bell to start rang, Honoka lifted her fist and shouted,
"Go! Ichigo!"
Agumon quickly turned around instead of running towards her opponent.
"Huh? Didn't we agree that my nick name will be Steak?"
"Eh? What? No way! I didn't say that I agree with that!"
"What? I swear I heard you saying that my name can be Steak or Sirloin…" Agumon complained.
"No-no! Your name is Ichigo now!"
"But I like Steak or Sirloin better!" Agumon said.
"Noooo!" Honoka made an 'X' with her arm.
"What about Giant Meat? Or… Tenderloin?" Agumon offered.
His opponent doesn't even know if it's ok to start while Agumon and his tamer argued about his nickname.
"Nope! Nope! Just go, Ichigo!"
"Aaahh! Fine! My name is Ichigo now!" Agumon said before he turned around and breathed out a small fire towards Gabumon.
He wasn't even ready.
"G-Gabumon!"
Since Gabumon stood too close to the border of the Arena Ring, he lost his balance from the small impact then fell out the Ring.
The bell is sounded off again and Honoka and Agumon's victory was declared.
"I see… so that's how you do it… I shall learn from this failure…" Satoru said with a fiery heroic face.
"W-wah! Satoru! I'm sorry!" Gabumon said.
"That's ok, Gabumon! We learned about a new trick today! We shall do better next time!"
"Ok, Satoru!" Gabumon nodded.
Then they stepped down from the Arena and walked back to the contestants' bench with their hopeful and sincere expressions.
Eli, who sat on the audience bench, swears she has never seen a fight as lame as that. She couldn't help covering her face with both palms, wishing that the fight would've been boring instead of being lame.
Honoka returned to her contestant's seat feeling somwehere between happy for the victory or confused about what just happened. Agumon, now called Ichigo, sat next to her and said innocently …
"Hng…Honoka-chan, I think you're right. I won because I agreed to be named Ichigo…" Agumon said.
"Really? I thought it was because he fell off the ring…?" Honoka asked.
"Huh? Is that so? Maybe the name itself brings that much luck? I didn't do anything other than spit out a small fire?" Ichigo the Agumon replied.
"Hehe, either way, we won. Let's see how we will do in the next one!" Honoka said.
"Ok!" he replied cheerfully.
Meanwhile, in the real world;
A-Rise is finally finished with their daily tasks and now they're about to take a nice rest for the day. It's true that they have always been S-Ranked Players and they have won many tournaments as well but, at this rate, by the time they return to their normal activities as S-Ranked players, they would see a lot of people whose Digimon are stronger than the usual S-Ranked players from back then. Also, the fact that there is no level limit in the game means everyone can grow as strong as they can.
There are so many Digimon they needed to fight in the real world and, while some are too weak, some are stronger and some are annoying to deal with.
Erena and Ryuudamon decided to read before they headed to bed. It's already dark out and the Night Soldiers have been dispatched. Anjuu and her Lalamon seem to be working around the room, mostly with the cleaning tasks, while Tsubasa and her Black Agumon….
"Is this better, Black Agumon?" Tsubasa said as she used a digi-salve on his back.
"Yep, so much better now…" Black Agumon replied as he enjoyed the soothing sensation on his damaged back.
Erena put her book down and smirked at the two.
"Sheesh. I told you, just bring those salve to battle next time." she said.
"What are you talking about, Erena? The joy in battle depends on the pain you endure to achieve victory… and the Joy of victory comes from soothing the pain you received in your struggle." Tsubasa replied.
"It's dangerous, Tsubasa. You were lucky that they didn't poison you…" Erena said.
"Poison? I'm not scared. What's the use of the pretty ladies over there?" Tsubasa gestured to Anjuu and Lalamon.
Anjuu and Lalamon giggled at the compliment, though they gave no further response.
"Hey, you can't let her do all the support work, ok? Remember that we are supposed to be able to stand on our own." Erena said.
"Sheesh, you're a spoilsport. In any case, I'll be fine on my own if I want to venture on my own. My fortune goddess will protect me." Tsubasa said.
"Since when did you become a religious person?" Erena asked with an annoyed smirk.
"It's not even an imaginary goddess, my fortune goddess is an actual girl who has become my motivation to get through life. She is my reason for becoming who I am right now." Tsubasa said.
"And I suppose that's in a bad way since she doesn't have a good personality either." Erena said.
"Pffft, you're just jealous. Besides, without me, you wouldn't even be who you are right now." Tsubasa replied with a mocking glance.
"Really, why is she a role model to you? I thought you have never met her before that day…"
"Childhood memory, my friend, Ever heard of it?" Tsubasa replied.
"Ah, childhood memory? Why have I never heard of that?" Anjuu asked as she stopped working on her cleaning.
"I like that enthusiasm, Anjuu!" Tsubasa said.
"I met her back in my childhood!" she continued.
"I remember that day when I got so upset at home. I wanted a toy car so bad! I don't like dolls or cooking fake food. I just wanted a toy car! I don't like wearing skirts, I wanted to be a boy! So I ran away from home and refused to return until I can get a Toy Car!"
Erena smirked and mumbled something nobody heard.
"…I hid from my family and, naturally, I got hungry after I spent a night away from home. I wandered off to a playground and sat near a sandbox and drew something that came to my mind. It turned out to be bread with strawberry jam! Then… she showed up all of a sudden and—Aah! I remember that voice of hers saying: 'Isn't that Strawberry Jam Bread? I love those too!'" Tsubasa continued.
"Let me guess, she had some with her and shared it with you?" Erena said.
"Exactly, Erena. Then she also asked me why I was there so early. I told her everything then she said: 'I understand! My mother often scolds me for asking too much but at least she has been taking care of me and gives me everything else I like!'"
"Uh-huh…then you were touched and you realized that you shouldn't be a nasty selfish brat. Then you went home and said sorry to your mom and dad?" Erena asked.
"Nope, we played together after that. She never asked for my name and I never asked hers. We had a lot of fun together until my mom and dad found me. They were so glad and said that I shouldn't do that again." Tsubasa continued.
"…..and …you don't feel a single ounce of guilt after making them worried?" Erena asked again.
"Of course I did feel that! I'm not that bratty! Honoka was there with me and she helped my parents understand me by telling them what I've been doing with her! If she wasn't there, I wouldn't be able to realize how I was being so bad to my parents too! She is also the reason of why I could grow up freely as whoever I want to be! She also made me realize that being a woman isn't that bad!"
"How is that kind of thing related to that depth of understanding…" Erena sighed.
"Tsk-tsk. Erena, you know I've never been a good story teller…" Tsubasa replied.
Anjuu giggled.
"Now-now, you two stop being cute. But hearing her say all that makes me think that perhaps Honoka is truly who you should go after. Have you made another call to her today?" Anjuu asked.
"Yep! But I'll call her again later. I saw that she ended up willingly joining the tournament. Lucky that I managed to remove the malware and move it somewhere else before the official scanned her Agumon." Tsubasa said.
"Say what? You moved it somewhere else?! Are you nuts?! How could you do that?!" Erena protested.
"It's better than letting it be found by the official. Just imagine how the official will abuse the malware system." Tsubasa said.
"Why do you not trust the official that much, huh? Have they done anything bad to you?" Erena asked.
"Don't pretend that you didn't know, pffftt!" Tsubasa said.
"It wasn't their fault, we need to keep a neutral view, Tsubasa. We can't possibly be hostile towards them since they always provide what we need." Erena said.
"If it's possible, I'd like to be freed of the official too. There must be a way to do that, right? Hacking perhaps…?" Anjuu said.
"A-Anjuu! Don't give her ideas!" Erena said.
Tsubasa remained silent and thought.
"I'm pretty tired of keeping my rank just so that I can purchase what I need or sell my stuff and get taxed for my hard work. It's not like they're the ones who provided the marketplaces. We were the one who looked for our market." Anjuu said.
"It's just like the concept of a country or a government, Anjuu. It's true that they suck but they are needed so that the society wouldn't turn wild. Just imagine a world without rules… you'll be living a life in which you can't even close your eyes to sleep." Erena said.
"What's the use of having them if they can't even control themselves? A corrupted government is a sign of a weak constitution. They have no right to make us pay for their horrendous work." Anjuu replied.
"You're struggling, many people are, but what about them? They can't be all corrupted… there must be some who is still struggling like you. If you decide to stop paying taxes and leave their rule, you're no different. Also, you don't have to be involved in politics in order to live your life, you know. You can always struggle to fulfill your own way of living and see their dirty play as a mere obstacle. It's that simple." Erena replied.
"If there's an empty land, why not make our own rules? If there's a way for us to unchain our IDs from the Digital World Officials, I would absolutely do that." Anjuu said, to which Erena only replied with a sigh.
"Yeah…. You're right…" Tsubasa finally spoke up.
"Here she goes…." Erena complained.
"There must be a way to do it… but… we will need more brains to make that happen." Tsubasa said.
"Fine, if you really want to do that, then I say that you need someone like Eli Ayase, the person that you pissed off a while ago…" Erena said.
"Well, why do we need someone like her if we can just ask her anyway?" Anjuu said.
"You can't be serious. Tsubasa just pissed her off… do you think she can forgive someone easily?" Erena said.
"You know why a handsome, loyal, cold, powerful and gentle person like Eli Ayase is hot? Because they love their girl too much until she becomes their fatal weakness. You may not be able to convince her directly, but you can always persuade her through Nozomi-chan." Anjuu said.
"Hmm…yes, this starting to sound like the story of Samson from the Bible…" Tsubasa said.
"… except, this time, Nozomi also truly loves her and she would trick you to your doom if you ever try to harm her lover. We need a real strategy, a mere threat or bribe won't work." she continued.
Anjuu giggled at her remark.
"There, it's not like she isn't a friend to us. All we need to do is to explain the situation to her and see what she thinks about it. If we're lucky, she will agree and we don't have to find another way." she said.
"Ah, alright, then… you should do the talking, Erena!" Tsubasa said.
"Me?! I barely—….!" Erena was about to retort but, with Anjuu's eyes begging her, she sighed and gave up.
"Fine… I'll do it." She said before she took her digivice and made a call.
Kousaka's residence, the Real World;
Two girls are sitting in the small living room with a laptop connected to one of the Digivices. A long white digimon that almost looks like a ferret resting its feet on the table as he watch the screen while a blue dragon-like digimon with a V mark on its forehead was sitting next to the girls.
The girl with reddish brown hair sulked while the pale blonde girl kept her eyes on the screen. The Blue Digimon patted her back gently.
"Yuki-chan, come on… the next battle already started. You should keep your eyes there…" he said.
"Veemon…. You don't understand, do you? Having a sibling as embarrassing as her….I should not have given you the idea of watching her fight." Yukiho said.
"Well, she texted you and told you about her competition. The only reason I can think why she did is to make you watch. Basically, you're on the right track." Veemon said.
"I knew that. I don't usually care about her, though. Really… what kind of fight is that?" Yukiho said.
"At least she won…." the white ferret-like Digimon said.
"Kudamon! You don't support her for that kind of fight, right? I mean, naming her Digimon Ichigo all of a sudden and winning so suddenly too…" Yukiho complained.
"Ichigo isn't a bad name." the blonde girl said.
"Alisa! Not you too!"
"E-eeh? But I'm just saying... It sounds interesting!" Alisa replied.
"Maybe we should consider a nickname too?" Veemon said.
"Surely, hehe.., my big sister used to have one Digimon with a nickname. She loves that name and proudly calls herself when she is alone! She's really cute!" Alisa said.
"Ah, right-right, your sister… I've heard about her a lot. The name of her Digimon is… Kuzunoha, isn't it? Kuzunoha the undefeated Kuzuhamon." Yukiho said.
"But… you said, 'used to'… does that mean she is no longer with that Digimon?" she continued as her face somewhat gloomed.
Alisa smiled wryly.
"She is dead. No trace of her data was found, not a single one. She can't be recovered and even the back up of her data in the official storage is burnt to a crisp. Only some parts of her junk files were used to create a brand new Digimon of the same type." she explained.
"W-wow….that sucks. Is she at least the same size?"
"Nope, hehe… the official apologized for the incident and gave her a really big Digimon. I don't think she likes her though… not yet…" Alisa said.
"I understand, it must be hard for her to move on from the one she loves…" Yukiho replied.
"But! I believe they will get along!" she continued.
"Yep, hehe, it will take a long time but Onee-san isn't a bad person! She is just hard to approach!" Alisa said.
"Heee—really, your sister does looks like a cool person who barely talks to anyone."
"Hehe, she just has some insecurities." Alisa replied.
"At least she is not as embarrassing as my sister…" Yukiho pouts.
"I think your sister is very friendly. She makes everyone comfortable."
"Really? Here I thought she is just being an idiot in front of everyone."
"S-She can't be that bad…hehe…" Alisa said with a sincere smile before the two turned their attention back to the laptop screen.
Outside the tournament hall—Digital world;
As Nozomi led the girls through the halls, they passed through a few riots and some people who were trying to prevent the fights. At this point, they thought there's no time to linger and get challenged to a duel since they needed to see Honoka and Eli. When Umi's Black Metal Garurumon finally lost his power after dashing through some people and turned back into Penguinmon, Lady and Angel took their turn to evolve into their Ultimate forms just so that players would think twice before throwing their challenge.
It proved to be somewhat effective since no one tried to challenge them until they reached the entrance of the audience ticket box. When they got there, they quickly purchased some almost-free-entry-tickets for themselves and for their Digimon.
As soon as they reached the audience seat rows, Nozomi's digivice started ringing. She took a moment to consider if she should accept the call immediately or to let it ring until she reached the audience seats and sat next to her girlfriend.
"A call from Erena Toudou…" Lady said.
"My, isn't that rare?" Angel said.
Nozomi stopped, along with the rest of the girls.
"Erena from A-rise?" Hanayo asked.
"Whoa, that's rare… accept her call, quick!" Niko said,
Nozomi nodded slightly before she accepted the call.
"Nozomi, are you alone right now?" Erena immediately asked as soon as she realized that her call was accepted.
"Mmm….." Nozomi hummed before she gestured to the girls to go first.
The girls nod before they continued to run—this time, Niko led them. Lady and Angel were left behind with their tamer. They can listen to the conversation since they're always connected to the call in Nozomi's digivice.
"I have a business to attend to right now but I'll at least listen until I know what you wished to talk about." Nozomi responded.
The Tournament Hall's Arena;
Honoka patiently waited for her next turn as she and Agumon snacked on the chips they just got from Kotori. The ash Brunette decided to offer to serve as Honoka's support while the rest of the girls just took the liberty to sit anywhere they wanted. After all, not many people wanted to watch it live.
"Sheesh, Rookie Tournaments are such a pain in the ass… always unpopular and boring." Niko commented as she drank the digi-coke she just got from the vending machine placed just next to the audience seats. Maki sighed at her statement.
"Since Lunamon already got through this stage, I feel your pain. But for real, why do we have to watch this? I wouldn't want to be watched if I'm her." she said.
"Because you are a shameful creature?" Niko said.
"No, idiot… It's because it makes me nervous. Also, at least I have shame, unlike you!" Maki replied.
"Being shameless is not a bad thing, you know. I'm a cute a girl so why would I be ashamed. Didn't you fall for me at first glance?" Niko replied with a snobby smile.
"You mean, did I want to punch your face at first glance? Yes." Maki smirked at her.
"Oh, Come on! You're not giving that attitude towards your seniors, right?"
"If you're like Nozomi-senpai, sure, I'll be respectful…or at least, I won't punch her face. I might tolerate you too if you're like Eli-senpai."
"Huh-what? Why would you tolerate Eli but not me?"
"Well, she has her responsibilities and I began to understand her... a bit…"
"I have responsibilities too, ok? My responsibilities is to stay as your eye candy." Niko said.
"I'd spit now if I could." Maki replied.
"Sheesh! Maki!" Niko said it with tempered anger in her voice.
"I mean…" she suddenly calmed down.
"There-there, Maki-chan, aren't you a little rude for a princess?" Niko said using her sweetest tone.
"Bweh!" Maki spat to the air.
"Bye!" she quickly stood up and headed to where Rin and Hanayo were sitting. Their Digimon decided to sit around them since they got themselves a lot of snacks to eat.
"Oii! Don't just leave like that you imbecile!" as Niko was about to catch up with her, she saw an unusual sight, the Bluenette sat alone in the back row. There's nobody else there other than her Penguinmon and her face showed gloom while her eyes revealed her broken heart.
"Hmm…" she mumbled as she thought deeply.
"Well, I guess I'd get her so that she can enjoy her friend's battle when her next turn comes."
Ok, See you next chapter!