Author's Note: Hello, again! This is literally the fastest I've ever published an update, like, ever, so y'all better savor it lmao.

Now, reviews:

Siramay: Glad you're liking it! As for your theory, well, you'll find out as you read on ;)

Rys-AND-Clash: I'm glad you're enjoying it so far! Thank you for reading!

Dunsparce519: Thank you! I'm glad you're liking the Akamota ship so far, it's one of my personal favorites!

Alright, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

"Last time on Total Drama Island, both teams set out on a canoe trip to Boney Island! Leon and Sayaka accidentally stumbled upon something that might change the course of the game on its heel, while Celestia developed some underhanded tactics when she came across a cursed idol and used it to frame Kokichi. Unsurprisingly, he got the boot—but not before leaving behind the cursed statue behind."

The footage cut to Chris at the dock, whom was staring into a hand-held mirror. "Will the Gophers recover from their loss? What will bestow the Bass now that the statue is in their possession? And can my teeth get any whiter? Find out here, on...

Total...

Drama...

Island!"

Episode Eight: Paintball Deer Hunter

The episode opened on a bunny hopping across the grounds of Hotel Mirai on a peaceful morning; however, thate tranquility was soon broken by a large helicopter, being piloted by none other than Chris, flew across the cottages.

Yasuhiro was the first one to panickedly run out of his cottage. "Hit the deck!" he screamed. "They found me, man!"

Inside a certain cottage, Kaede groaned as she jolted awake from her sleep, causing her to fall off her bed. "Gah!"

CONFESSIONAL - KAEDE:

"Okay, that's overdoing it!" she exclaimed, her frown deepening as she crossed her arms. "Why can't we just get a normal wake-up call for once?!"

The footage skipped ahead to show Hiyoko in the the restaurant's kitchen, holding Bunny in the collar of her kimono.

She pursed her lips as looked through cabinet after cabinet. "Where the heck are they...?" she muttered to herself, growing more and more frustrated by the second. With no luck, Hiyoko scanned the entirety of the kitchen before landing eyes on a brown door near a corner.

She made her way over to it, opening the door and letting it close behind her, unaware of the broom that had fallen over from the force and lodged itself in between the door's handle.

She flipped the light switch on and looked around; she had found the pantry, where a large assortment of ingredients was being kept. "Jackpot!" A smile grew on her face as she walked over to a bag of carrots that sat on a nearby crate. "Look, Bunny! I found you some more carrots!"

The bunny wiggled his ears in what could only be assumed to be in content.

Hiyoko giggled. "Alright, let's go cut these up, and—Huh?" Hiyoko tried to open the pantry door, but it didn't budge. She pulled harder, and still no luck. She started to bang on the door, yelling, "Help!" but to her dismay, no one came to her aid.

Then, all of the monitors across the island came to came to life. "I hope you're ready for the most challenging challenge yet! Breakfast in three minutes at the campfire pit!"

Hiyoko groaned, opting to slump helplessly against the pantry door.

All of the campers (sans Hiyoko) were now assembled at the beach.

Junko looked around the area, then scratched her head as she did a double take. "...Where's Hiyoko?" She was only met with shrugs and unsure looks from her team, however.

"Are you ready for today's extreme max impact challenge?!" Chris exclaimed excitedly.

The contestants mostly responded with enthusiastic cheers, but a few blank looks popped up here and there.

"Incoming!" Chris yelled, throwing cans at the campers. "This is breakfast."

"Beans?" Celestia questioned, examining her can. "Hardly a balanced breakfast."

"It's better than what we've been having, that's for sure," Leon shrugged, accepting his can.

"Today's challenge is about survival." Chris pulled out a lime green paintball gun from behind his back, which captured the attention of a few campers. "We're going hunting!"

Tenko pumped her fists. "Yes! A paintball war!"

CONFESSIONAL - TENKO:

"We used to have paintball wars all the time when I went to summer camp as a child, and I won nearly every time!" She crossed her arms and flashed a smug smile at the camera. "I've got this challenge in the bag!"

"That's a paintball gun, right?" Tenko continued, pointing at the item in question.

"Why yes, Tenko, it is," Chris confirmed, using the gun to shoot her the chest.

"So, we won't be killing anything?" Sayaka asked.

"Negatory," Chris replied. "This is the first ever Paintball Deer Hunt! I'll announce the teams once we get into the woods. So... finish breakkie!"

The footage skipped ahead to show the campers in the woods. They all stood before the host, who stood in front of a large rack, which held lime green and magenta-colored paintball guns.

"And now for the team breakdowns," Chris announced, pulling a lime-green gun off the rack. "The Killer Bass hunters are... Junko, Tenko, and Makoto!"

The two girls happily caught their weapons, while Makoto stared at his with uncertainty.

"Locked and loaded with Bass blue paint!" Chris continued. He then grabbed a magenta-colored paintball gun off the rack. "And using orange paint are the Gopher hunters: Maki, Rantaro, and Kaede!"

The three Gophers caught their weapons, and Chris pulled out a camouflage camo hat and a pair of orange-tinted safety glasses. "You also get these stylin' glasses and wicked camo caps!"

He then turned to the rest of the non-hunting contestants. "The rest of you are now deer. Here are your antlers, noses, and little white tails!" He held out the former two accessories with a chuckle before turning around and wiggling the small tall attached to his waist.

"Yeah, right," Leon scoffed, crossing his arms. "There's no way in hell I'm wearing that."

"Take these off, and your team is toast!" was all Chris exclaimed as he forced the accessories onto Leon, along with a pair of safety glasses.

"It doesn't matter if I have to wear these stupid things or not," Kaito spoke as he put on the gear. "My team and I are still gonna win this challenge!"

Tenko smirked, pointing her paintball gun at Kaito, pretending to shoot him. "Whatever you say, Bambi."

The footage cut to the Bass deer walking through the woods.

"Hey, at least we get a head start," Yasuhiro pointed out.

"Hey, guys, do you think we should separate?" Sayaka suddenly suggested. At her teammates' confused looks, she clarified, "You know, so it'll be harder for the other team to get us."

Everyone seemed to be on board with that idea, and they began to head off in their own separate direction.

The camera followed Leon in particular, who was beginning to trek further into the woods but was quickly stopped by a hand latching onto his arm and pulling him behind a large tree. The hand belonged to Sayaka, who briefly examined their surroundings before turning to Leon, who smirked at her.

"If you wanted to make-out with me, you could've just asked."

Sayaka rolled her eyes. "Okay, that was so not what I was going to do... But, I did want to ask you about something." She paused for a moment before speaking up again. "Don't you think...we should do something about those votes we found? You still have them, right?"

Leon gave her a look. "Yeah, they're in my cottage. But, what are we supposed to do? Like I said before, we don't have enough evidence to pin the blame on anyone."

"I know, but I think we should still do something! I feel like we're letting the culprit off."

Leon sighed, scratching his chin. "Fine, I'll try and talk to Junko next chance I get. But, I'm not doing that by myself."

Sayaka giggled and put her hand on Leon's shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll have your back, no matter what."

CONFESSIONAL - LEON:

"Yeah, I'm still not sure about the whole "running around like detectives" thing," he admitted, scratching the back of his head. "But... If Sayaka really thinks we should investigate this, I'm inclined to believe her."

Further in the woods, Yasuhiro chased after Celestia. "Hey, Celeste! We should stick together, cause we're alliance buddies, right?"

The viewpoint switched to show Celestia head-on, who stopped in her tracks and made a scowl that her alliance member couldn't see. Ultimately, she decided to turn around give him a polite smile. "Sure. We should also find Makoto as well, yes?"

"Yeah, totally!" Yasuhiro agreed, and the two set off on their search.

"Go team!"

The camera skipped ahead to show the Bass hunters standing in a clearing.

"Oh yeah!" Tenko exclaimed, slipping on her safety glasses. "We're gonna show those Gophers who's boss!"

Junko put on her camo hat on her head, then noticed Makoto staring at his paintball gun with hesitance and stepped forward, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it, Makoto! It's just paint, it's not anybody's gonna get hurt or anything." She paused. "Well, at least not badly."

Makoto stared at Junko. Then, he grew determined, and put on his gear. "Okay! Let's do this!"

Junko smirked and patted his shoulder. "Atta boy."

"Start your paintballs!" Chris excitedly announced over the monitors. "Game on!"

"Alright!" Kaede cheered, putting her hat and glasses on. "Let's go bag some deer!"

Rantaro grinned at her as he readied his paintball gun. Maki, however, began to walk away before being stopped by Kaede's voice. "Where are you going?"

Maki stopped in her tracks and looked back at Kaede. "Hunting?"

"I know, but I thought we were going to hunt together."

Maki raised an eyebrow. "What? Why would we do that?"

"Why wouldn't we? Teamwork makes the dreamwork, you know!"

Maki stared at Kaede for what seemed like eternity, then glanced over at Rantaro. "Rantaro?"

"I don't mind," Ramtaro admitted, still grinning.

Maki rolled her eyes and walked back to the other two. "Fine."

"Oh yeah," Tenko smirked to herself as she stalked through the woods by herself, paintball gun in shooting position. "I am so winning this challenge!" She struck a few poses with her gun, then rolled forward and darted behind a tree. "The Gophers won't know what hit them!"

Suddenly, a glimpse of purple hair caught her eye and she peeked over a nearby bush. There, eating berries off the bush, was Kaito. Tenko fired, and Kaito noticed and managed to dodge in time, the paint narrowly missing his leg.

"Ha!" Kaito snarked, quickly shooting up to his feet and making a bolt for it. "Missed!"

Tenko pursed her lips, flared her nostrils, and gave chase.

The camera focused on Yasuhiro and Celestia again, who were still walking through the woods, with Yasuhiro looking noticeably distressed .

"Yeah..." Yasuhiro started, stopping for a bit to lean against a nearby tree. "I don't think Makoto is anywhere around here... And those beans did not feel me up. I'm hungry."

Celestia's stopped as well, turning back to face Yasuhiro. "Now that you have mentioned it, I'm actually craving some milk tea myself. Why don't you do me a favor and head over to the restaurant and make the tea for me? And get something for yourself, of course."

"I gotcha!" Yasuhiro saluted, then made a beeline for the hotel restaurant.

CONFESSIONAL - CELESTIA:

"Okay, I will admit that I mostly wanted to get Hiro off of my back for a bit, but the opportunity to get any kind of luxury during this challenge is more than welcomed." She paused. "Although, expecting Hiro to prepare anything correctly would be setting my expectations too high."

At the main campgrounds, Yasuhiro was hiding behind a corner of the hotel building, watching carefully as Chef exited, wearing a pair of swimming trucks and a tube. Whistling happily, he walked across the common area and towards the hotel's exit.

Once he was out of sight, Yasuhiro stepped out of hiding and swiftly entered the building.

"Oh, Kaito," Tenko called out as she creeped through a different part of the forest. "Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

A rustle off to the side caught her attention, and Tenko made her shot, only to narrowly miss yet again, and she resumed her chase.

Back with Yasuhiro, a bag of chips were already tucked into his jacket pocket as he looked between a tea kettle and the stove in front of him with a perplexed expression. "How the hell do you make milk tea...?"

He put the kettle on the stove, scratching his chin as he examined the kitchen. "Maybe there's a recipe book in here somewhere..." Yasuhiro went over to one of the cabinets and opened it, only for some silverware that was being kept in a plastic holder to fall to the floor, creating a loud clatter in the process.

The camera briefly cut inside of the pantry, where Hiyoko must've heard the noise, because she immediately pulled on the doorknob and shouted, "Hey! Is someone there?!"

"Huh?"

Yasuhiro stopped mid-way into shoving the silverware back into the holder and rose to his feet. That's when he noticed the handle of the pantry jiggling, along with inaudible shouting from the other side. His breath suddenly hitched and his body began to shake. "Wh-Who's there?"

The shouts grew louder, as did Yasuhiro's anxiety. His face then paled as he came to a realization. "D-Don't tell me... A g-ghost?!"

With that notion set firmly in his mind, he didn't even bother to put the silverware back into the cabinet before he shrieked at the top of his lungs and dashed out of the kitchen, and out of the hotel building altogether.

Kaito and Tenko were at their cat-and-mouse game, as the latter chased the former across a stream, firing shots all the way.

Yasuhiro finally caught back up with Celestia in the forest, thoroughly out of breath. "I think I lost that ghost..."

"Ghost?" Celestia asked, then quickly shook her head. "Nevermind. I don't care."

"I wasn't able to make your milk tea, but I got chips, if you want some." Yasuhiro grinned, taking the bag of plain chips out of his pocket and shaking them at her.

"No, thanks," Celestia replied, pushing them away. "We really should continue searching for Makoto."

"Right." Yasuhiro opened the chips, stuffing a handful into his mouth as the pair began to set off again.

In the bushes nearby, a magenta paintball gun readied to shoot, but an arm blocked it. The would-be shooter was revealed to be Kaede, who lowered her gun and stared at Maki with a confused look. "We can't shoot them?" she whispered.

Maki shook her head before whispering back, "if we follow them long enough, they'll probably lead us to their other deer."

Kaede tapped her chin in thought. "Huh. That's smart, I guess. Okay! Lead the way, Maki!"

With that, the Gopher hunters continued to silently stalk behind the two Bass members.

Back with Kaito and Tenko, the two were running uphill; Tenko shot at Kaito multiple times in rapid succession, but missed every single one.

"Just give up and surrender! You know you won't escape me forever!"

"Never!" However, those words were spoken too soon, as he skidded to a stop; he found himself cornered at the top of the island's cliff.

"Ha! No one beats the champion paintball hunter for five years in a row!" Tenko laughed as she pointed the gun straight at his face. She pulled the trigger, but nothing came out. "Oh, come on!"

Kaito smirked and charged at Tenko, tackling her. Tenko fought back, and the two ended up in a struggle that ended up with them both falling off the cliff.

The camera followed Junko now, who readied her gun to shoot her target: Mikan; who awkwardly stood in front of a bush with an unsure look.

Just as Junko was about to shoot, a loud rustle from behind her caught her target's attention, and she ran away.

"Damn it, I almost had her!" Junko whirled around to see Yasuhiro emerging from a bush, who flinched slightly at her angry expression. "What are you doing here?!"

"Um, whoops..." Yasuhiro apologized. "We were looking for Makoto."

"We?"

Celestia popped out of the bush moments later, a disinterested look on her face.

"Oh." Junko blinked. "Wait, why are you looking for Makoto?" She then shook her head. "Wait, no! I still have a deer to catch! That girl couldn't have gone far..."

Junko sprinted off in the direction Mikan had ran off in, and Celestia followed her. Yasuhiro stood behind for a few moments in contemplation, then followed the two, unaware of the trail that he was leaving behind.

A sopping wet Tenko trudged along the shore of the beach, wringing her hair to get the water out of it.

"Okay," Tenko said to herself. "Maybe I underestimated him... And I could really use a shower right now..." She sighed. "I'm going back to the campgrounds."

"Well, I officially lost her," Junko grimaced as she skidded to a stop. "Dammit."

"We could help you find another deer, if you want," Yasuhiro offered. Celestia shot him a look that he didn't notice.

"No, I'll just double back, and—" Junko paused as she noticed something on the ground. She bent down and picked up a crumb. "What the hell is this?"

"Huh," Yasuhiro said, looking between the trail and the chip bag he held. "Looks like there's a hole." He stuck a finger through the bag to prove it.

Junko groaned. "Well, that's just great! Now the other team can find us!"

Yasuhiro scratched his head sheepishly. "My bad..."

Meanwhile, in another part of the forest, Makoto wandered aimlessly with his paintball gun at his side.

"Where is everybody?" he wondered to himself. Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of a figure—or, rather, multiple figures—standing in a clearing. "Is that...?" He stepped forward, and... "Junko?"

Junko facepalmed, letting out a exasperated sigh. "Oh my god..."

"Um..." Makoto awkwardly shifted. "Am I interrupting something?"

"Look," Junko spoke, "We need to split up. There's no telling where the Gopher hunters are, and—"

"Fire."

Before Junko, or her teammates, could properly react, Kaede, Maki, and Rantaro, popped out of the bushes in front of them and began peppering the four of them with paint.

"Hey, this is kinda fun!" Kaede commented as the Bass members shielded themselves in vain.

"Attention, human wildlife and hunters!" Chris suddenly announced over the monitors, much to the dismay of the four Bass. "Please report back to camp! It's time to show your hides and tally your scores!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk."

Chris paced before all of the Bass, a disappointed look on his face.

"Stealing from Chef. Eating chips in the woods. Do you know what I see here? I see a very undisciplined group; I see a disgraceful mess. I see a massive waste of paint product! And, I have to say... That...was awesome!" Chris burst into a fit of laughter. "When you guys got ambushed like sitting ducks? Classic! Great TV, guys!"

Yasuhiro and Leon bumped fists, but quickly retracted them upon catching Junko's glare.

"Well," Chris continued once he'd calmed down, "since there are four Bass dripping in paint, and some of them aren't even deer, I think we have our winer! Gophers, you're off on a hunting camp shindig! Bass, I'll see you the campfire ceremony tonight."

"Well, at least we know who to vote off!" Junko fumed, shooting one last glare at Yasuhiro before turning on her heel, but was immediately stopped by a certain someone blocking her path. "Oh, Hiyoko! There you are!"

Hiyoko glared at her and the rest of her teammates—not with anger, or even annoyance, but with genuine hurt in her eyes.

"Where have you been?" Leon asked.

"I got locked in the kitchen pantry, and no one even bothered to come look for me!"

The Bass were silent for a moment, unsure how to respond. Then, "Well, I mean, nobody really liked you," Yasuhiro pointed out, unaware of his faux pas.

"Huh?!"

"Shut up, Hiro," Junko snapped at him, expression softening once she turned back to Hiyoko. "Look, Hiyoko, we—"

"You know what?" Hiyoko interrupted, not even holding back her sniffles. "I get it. You all hate me, don't you?" She then burst out in crocodile tears. "You guys are so mean!"

"Hiyoko, wait..." Junko started, running after Hiyoko when she made a beeline out of the beach, leaving the rest of the Killer Bass to just stare at each other awkwardly.

Some time later, a paint-free Yasuhiro and Celestia sat in the restaurant alone, at a table.

Celestia calmly sipped on a cup of milk tea, while Yasuhiro stared at her, expression nervous. Soon, he broke the tense silence. "So, uh, what did you want to talk to me about?"

Celestia set her cup down on the table and looked at Yasuhiro. "I should have the others vote you out for being the cause of our loss today."

Yasuhiro immediately broke our into a panic, clasping his hands together tightly. "I didn't leave that trail on purpose, I swear that on Jesus, Buddha, Santa Claus—everyone!"

"And that is the reason why I am willing to give you one last chance. Don't disappoint me."

Yasuhiro let out a relieved sigh and took Celestia's hand, shaking it thankfully. "Thank you so much, Celeste! I won't let you down!" Once he let go, he gave her a perplexed look. "Uh... I think everyone else is pretty hellbent on sending me home, though..."

Celestia grinned slyly. "Don't you worry. I'll take care of that..."

CONFESSIONAL - CELESTIA:

"As annoying as Hiro is, I need to ensure numbers on my side. At least, until I can find a better alliance partner."

A moonlit night sky signaled the start of the elimination ceremony.

"When I call your name," Chris started, holding up a plate of marshmallows, "come up and claim your marshmallow. The camper—"

Junko cut him off, scowling. "Who does not get a marshmallow must immediately walk the Dock of Shame, board the Boat of Losers, and leave. Can't we just get on with it?"

Chris shot her an annoyed look. "Fine, whatever. Spoil the moment. Leon."

"Sayaka,"

"Tenko,"

"Makoto,"

"Junko,"

"Celeste."

One by one, the called campers each had a marshmallow tossed at them.

"Campers," the host announced, "this is the final marshmallow." Chris stared between the two people without a marshmallow; Hiyoko still wore a glare, while Yasuhiro bit his nails with a worried look.

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

"Hiro."

Yasuhiro grinned and hopped up to collect his marshmallow.

"What?!" Junko protested.

"Hiyoko," Chris announced, "the Dock of Shame awaits!"

Using the sleeve of her kimono to try and wipe away the onslaught of tears, Hiyoko stood up and began to walk away. However, she was stopped by a hand on her shoulder that was revealed to be Junko; she smiled at her, and the two made the trip to the dock in a comfortable silence. Once they reached the end of it, the two hugged.

"Sorry for yelling at you earlier," Hiyoko apologized. "Make sure you win this competition, okay?"

"It's fine," Junko assured, ruffling Hiyoko's hair, "and I'll try."

"Here, give Bunny a kiss." Hiyoko pulled back the collar of her kimono some to let Bunny's head poke out.

Junko raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure they're gonna let you take him home?"

Hiyoko pouted. "What are they gonna do? Tell me I can't?"

"Maybe," Junko replied teasingly.

"Just give him a kiss already."

Junko playfully rolled her eyes, but leaned down and gave the bunny a smooch on the forehead.

Satisfied, Hiyoko boarded the boat, and as it began to chug away, she gave Junko a big smile and waved. "Bye, Big Sis Junko!"

Junko returned the smile and waved back at her until the boat was completely out of sight. As she stared out into the distance, she let her smile, and hand, drop and an almost melancholic expression replaced it.

Killer Bass - Celestia, Junko, Leon, Makoto, Sayaka, Tenko, Yasuhiro

Screaming Gophers - Kaede, Kaito, Kirumi, Maki, Mikan, Rantaro, Ryoma

Eliminated - Toko, Mondo, Shuichi, Ibuki, Kazuichi, Komaru, Kokichi, Hiyoko

Author's Note: And we say goodbye to another camper. I hope you liked Hiyoko's send-off.

Oh, and thank you so much for the support this story's been getting! I appreciate each and every one of my readers!

Well, nothing much else to say here except, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Let me know your thoughts on it, and thank you for reading!