Chapter 8: All All Apologies

Marinette and Shadow are witnesses to a fight between Sakura and Monokuma. They stood at the door peering inside so they won't be spotted.

"What's with the sudden attitude?" Monokuma asked. "Are you forgetting I call the shots here? We had ourselves a deal, chica!"

"I've made my decision... This is over..." Sakura declared. "I'm sick of it... And I'm sick of you... That's why you're going down."

"Fair enough... "Bear" in mind though, if anything happens to me, my hostages get turned into skirt steak." Monokuma reminded her. Sakura growled in frustration.

"Wait... hostages...?" Marinette asked. "And what does he mean by deal?"

"Togami was right. Sakura Ogami... is the mole." Shadow said.

Later, the stairway to the fourth floor has opened. Everyone met up, but among the group, two students are absent.

"Jeez, would it have killed Togami and Fukawa to join us while we look around up here?" Asahina asked.

"If that happened, we'd be in another trial now." Twilight sighed. Marinette glanced at Sakura.

"Is there a problem, Marinette?" Sakura asked her.

"No! I'm alright. Everything's just fine!" Marinette responded. She then looked a bit nervous.

As they explored, they found a teachers' lounge, chemistry lab with shelves of proteins and poisons, a music room with a large piano on the stage, a computer lab, and the principal's office, but the doors to the last two rooms are locked.

"Naegi, Marinette..." Kyoko spoke up.

"Oh, hey, Kiri." Naegi greeted.

"Do you two have a moment?" Kyoko asked. "I trust you found... what I told you about?"

"What does she mean?" Marinette asked.

"You see, after Celestia's trial, Kiri asked me to search in a hidden room on the second floor. But as soon as I started searching, I got knocked out. When I woke up, everything in there was gone." Naegi explained. "The only thing I found before I was attacked was a really weird note."

"I think we best save that for another time." Marinette spoke before glancing at the camera. Naegi noticed the camera.

"Tell me the truth." Kyoko said. "Are either of you... keeping secrets from me?"

"Uh, why do you ask?" Naegi asked.

"(As much as I want to tell her about Ogami being the mole, Shadow and I agreed that we can't spread that around until we know it's true...)" Marinette thought. "Sorry. I am."

"You and Naegi agreed that we should pool our knowledge!" Kyoko said. "What happened to doing this as friends?"

Marinette looked puzzled at Kyoko's upset look. "Never mind..."

"Sorry..." Marinette sighed.

Everyone met in the cafeteria. Naegi glanced towards Kyoko. Marinette looked towards her as well.

"Man... That floor gave us a whole lotta nothing." Hagakure said.

"Patience. There may still be some leads in the principal's office. Or perhaps lurking in the computer lab." Kyoko said.

"If only we could get in." Asahina said.

"Hey yo, Hercu-Lady!" Hagakure spoke to Sakura. "You wanna do us a solid and break down those doors, maybe?"

"I don't think that's a good idea, Hagakure." Applejack interjected.

"Huh? Why not?" Hagakure asked.

"If I know Monokuma, there must be something in either of those rooms he doesn't want us to see. Otherwise, why bother locking the doors?" Applejack said.

"Applejack is right. If I were the bear and I heard something like that, I'd put up a new rule to protect whatever secret I might be hiding in one of those rooms." Sunset agreed. Then, right on cue, they hear a chime from the students' digital notebooks. Once they checked, they saw a new rule added.

"Rule 12: You are prohibited from breaking down locked doors."

"See what I mean?" Sunset asked. "He just tacked that new rule for us right when I mentioned it."

Monokuma laughed as he appeared on the monitor. "Y'know, I oughta thank ya! Kids today are so gosh darn violent these days! If I hadn't heard that, my sanctum sanctorum would be in disarray! I'll be able to sleep easier knowing that. Ta-ta!" The monitor then shuts off.

"He sure added that in a hurry. Like Sunset said, one of those rooms must be hiding something, or why would he even bother?" Naegi asked.

"Wait! Of course!" Asahina remembered. "We're not dead in the water yet, you guys!"

"We're not?" Hagakure asked.

"Oh yeah! Our friend in the cyber world!" Max realized who the Ultimate Swimming Pro was referring to.

They meet with Alter Ego in the co-ed locker room. Togami and Toko eventually joined them. "You came to see me! Great! I just bypassed the File Security Protocol!" Alter Ego informed them.

"Awesome!" Alya cheered.

"Bitchin'! Nice going!" Hagakure said.

"What were you able to discern from the files?" Sonic typed.

"Well... it seems as though the school was in the process of enacting a certain plan when it shut down." Alter Ego explained. "It involved the isolation of students within the Hope's Peak Academy campus who are then never allowed off school grounds." Everyone gasped at the idea. "That's not even the most shocking aspect of the plan. In some cases, they'd be forced to live out their entire loves here."

"Wait... That sounds like..." Asahina began.

"...The very scenario we're being subjected to." Kagami finished.

"And this wasn't some idea dictated to them from outside... The school itself came up with it." Alter Ego continued explaining.

"But to what end?" Naegi asked.

"The plan was created because of something that happened one year ago: The most despair-inducing incident in the history of mankind." Alter Ego told them.

"The most despair-inducing incident in the history of mankind?" Naegi repeated.

"Because of what happened... Hope's Peak Academy was forced to shut its doors forever. The isolation plan was put into effect." Alter Ego said. "The architect of the plan was none other than... the principal." Everyone gasped at the idea that the principal would shut the doors of one of the greatest schools in Japan because of a heinous incident. "I've learned... that he's a man in his late 30s... And the odds of him still being on-campus are rather high."

"That must mean he has to be the brains behind the bear!" Luka said.

"I say we track him down and give him a piece of our minds!" Rainbow said.

"Hold on, Rainbow. I'll be the one to find the principal... I have to be the one." Kyoko said. "And then... I'll make him answer for this... I swear it!"

"What was that about?" Marinette asked Shadow.

"Honestly, I have no clue..." Shadow said.

"Oh, one more thing!" Alter Ego spoke up. "While looking through the new data, I discovered an image file." He reveals the image he found, showing Celestia grabbing Hifumi's head. Sayaka was seen behind them laughing. Everyone gasped when they saw the image.

"More impossible photos?" Togami asked.

"It's gotta mean something, but what?" Asahina asked.

"Testing, testing... one, two, three..." They hear Monokuma over the P.A. system. "Hey, kiddos! How 'bout you hoss your freight over to the gym!"

"What's he want this time?" Naegi asked.

"I'm sure we'll find out when we get there." Adrien said.

"Spring in your steps and all that!" Monokuma finished.

In the gym, they see Monokuma on the podium prepping a grilled squid. He continuously flips the squid with his paw while fanning the flames so it gets hot.

"Does he know it's dangerous to be cooking indoors?" Applejack whispered to Tails. Once the squid curls up, Monokuma picks it up, but it was too hot.

"Ow! So hot, I can't hold it!" Monokuma yelped as he tried to eat it, but the squid was too hot for him to hold and he ends up dropping it.

"Party foul." Hagakure said.

"I have something sad to tell you! And no, it's not about the squid... One of you's working for me." Monokuma announced.

"What?!" Asahina gasped. "So there's a mole?!"

"No one listens to me..." Togami said. "Keeping tabs on us all would require a henchman."

"Let me guess... The mole who's working with you, is their name... Sakura Ogami?" Shadow asked. Everyone, including Monokuma, gasped in shock.

"You're kidding! The Amazon is the traitor?!" Hagakure asked.

"I don't believe it..." Toko said.

"Hey! Don't say that! You know it can't be true!" Asahina defended her. "Tell 'em, Sakura."

Monokuma laughs. "Spoiler bomb: your friend is being honest! And delicate orchid that she is, I don't think Ogami's going down without a fight!" He laughs as he left quickly.

"Sakura..." Asahina was at a loss for words at this revelation. "Why...?"

"Keeping it from you... was the hardest part." Sakura said.

"Holy crap! You really are working for the bear!" Hagakure gasped.

"You've been lying from the start!" Toko accused.

"Believe me, Fukawa, it's not like she chose to work with him." Marinette said. "Shadow and I saw them earlier... Ogami was attacking Monokuma, and not pulling any punches. As soon as he mentioned something about having hostages, she stood down."

"You witnessed all of that?" Sakura asked.

"It was kinda hard not to." Marinette admitted.

"The only reason Ogami obeyed was because hostages were being threatened." Shadow said.

"But we shouldn't worry about it now that she's back on our side..." Marinette said before Togami cut her off.

"Oh, give it a rest. Do you believe this nonsense that tumbles out of your mouth?" Togami asked. He then turned to Sakura. "Hey... If you've really switched allegiances, then tell me something: The name of our jailor."

"Alas... I was never entrusted with that detail." Sakura told them

"It's just like Monokuma to keep something so important to himself." Rainbow said.

"In that case... To what end did your master plan your little charade?" Togami asked.

"If we ever reached the point to where no murders were occurring... either at first or later on... I was to kill someone." Sakura informed them. Everyone gasped.

"There you have it. She's been waiting this whole time for an opportune moment in which to pounce." Togami confirmed.

"Dammit, she isn't like that!" Asahina defended.

"Wait!" Sakura halted. "Enough of this... There is no need for you to be at odds over me. The time has come... to reap what I've sown. Asahina, Kagami... I am so very sorry."

"There was no need to apologize. I understand your reasons." Kagami said.

"Why didn't you...?" Asahina was speechless.

"There were so many times when I nearly broke down and told you the truth." Sakura said. "But I couldn't... I was afraid... Afraid that you, my only two friends here, would despise me."

"But we wouldn't have...!" Asahina said to her.

Sakura turned her back towards the group. "I don't deserve forgiveness. But I will make this up to you – even if it kills me." She walks away,

"Huh? Even if it kills you...?" Asahina asked.

"Empty words from a treacherous brute better off avoided." Togami interjected. "We don't know what she might do."

"You're not helping things, Togami!" Naegi said.

"Hold up! As much as I disagree with Togami, he has a fair point." Luka said.

"She... She admitted she was his lackey!" Toko said.

"What the hell?! Do you really not know Sakura any better than that?!" Asahina asked.

"We don't know the first thing about her and neither do you." Togami told her. "You were as shocked by this as the rest of us."

"Yeah... I was..." Asahina said dejected.

"If she goes all "Hulk smash!" on the dude in charge, I'll trust her again!" Hagakure said.

"Shut up!" Asahina yelled. "What if something horrible happened to her?!"

"Feh. If it did... so what?" Togami asked. "It's one less person in the enemy's ranks. Let her die." Asahina retaliated by angrily slapping Togami in the face. The blow knocks his glasses off.

"Bastard..." Asahina growled. "How dare you...? Shut your mouth... or I'll kill you myself!"

"Asahina, control your temper!" Kagami assured her.

"Best listen to her." Togami chuckled. "Besides, if you want me dead... do your worst... Are you going to slap me to death?"

"Maybe I will. You deserve it!" Asahina yelled.

"You... You filthy cow! Shut your whore mouth!" Toko yelled. "Nobody threatens my beloved Togami!"

"That's enough!" Shadow shouted. "When we fight amongst ourselves, we're just playing right into their hands."

"Whatever. I'm outta here." Asahina said and then left.

Togami picked up his glasses and put them back on. "Togami..." Kyoko said to him. "Am I correct in saying you don't place much value in emotions?"

"You are correct, yes." Togami confirmed.

"I'm warning you... They do carry weight." Kyoko said. "And you disregard them at your own peril."

"You'll forgive me if I'm not quaking in my boots." Togami smirked. Then the curfew bell chimed.

"Hey, it's 10:00 and the night hours are about to begin!" Monokuma announced. "Good night, sleep tight, do your bestest to live through the night!"

The next day...

Naegi wakes up and leaves his room. He eyes Sakura's room at the end of the hall. Sonic and Marinette meet with him as he sighs.

"Still thinking about yesterday?" Sonic asked.

"Sort of." Naegi said. "I'm still a bit surprised that our friend is a traitor."

"I know how you feel. When I met Knuckles, he was tricked into working with Eggman." Sonic said. "When he found out, he didn't take the betrayal lightly."

"Who's Dr. Eggman?" Naegi asked.

"I'll tell you all about him when we get out of here, okay?" Sonic said. They suddenly hear Hagakure scream. They rush over to the cafeteria, where they see Genocider Sho and a pained Asahina. Hagakure was hiding under one of the tables.

"What's going on here?!" Sonic asked.

"T-They started to argue, and then... out came the crazier one!" Hagakure explained. Asahina scowled as she clutched her shoulder.

"How nice of you three to join us!" Sho said, creepily turning her head towards him. "Now tell Tits McGee here to take a powder. 'Cause if she doesn't... I'm liable to snip those sweater-puppies clean off her torso, and that'll just be foreplay!" Sho laughs.

"Asahina!" Naegi approached her.

"We better get you to the nurse's office." Sonic said. "Hagakure! Help us out here!"

"Huh?! Uh... sure...!" Hagakure said. Asahina growls upset.

Later in the first floor nurse's office, Naegi is bandaging Asahina's injury. "You lucked out. It's just a scratch." Naegi told her.

"Yeah... Thank you." Asahina thanked the lucky student.

"Honestly, what kind of friend freaks out when another is attacked by a murderer?" Sonic glared at Hagakure.

"Don't blame me, Mr. Needlemouse! If I hadn't yelled from under that table, she'd be dead meat!" Hagakure argued. "If anything, I saved the day!"

"Gee, there was a coward around when I needed one. My hero." Asahina roasted.

"Hold up, Asahina..." Marinette said.

"Your grateful face needs improvement." Hagakure mumbled.

"Tell us one thing: Why were you fighting?" Naegi asked.

"Is this about Ogami?" Marinette asked.

"Of course it was. Sho was saying... such despicable things... Things about my best friend!" Asahina seethed.

"Asahina!" Sakura bursted in. "Are you all right?" She noticed the bandage on her arm. "Who- Who did that to you?! Tell me!"

"Nah. It's really not a big deal." Asahina told her. Sakura glanced towards Hagakure and Sonic.

"What're ya looking at us for?!" Hagakure yelped. "That crazy chick's the one who cut her! The psycho killer living in Fukawa's head!"

Sakura began to growl angrily as a fierce aura emanated from her. "To think Asahina... was hurt because of my treacherous deeds... This degree of villainy... is unacceptable!"

Hagakure freaks out and runs off. "Innocent bystander! Innocent bystander!"

Sakura growls. "No longer! I will not allow this to continue!"

"Ogami! You need to calm down!" Sonic said.

"Sakura!" Asahina called out.

"What happened?" They hear Shadow's voice. They see him and Kyoko.

"Kiri! Shadow! Help us!" Naegi requested. "We have to hold her back!" Sakura then calmed down.

"That won't be necessary." Sakura told them. "I'm not going to hurt them." Sakura then walks away, passing them. "I'll tell them to just leave Asahina out of this."

"No, wait! Come back!" Asahina follows Sakura out. Naegi notices Kyoko sigh.

"I take it you're still angry, huh?" Marinette guessed. "Guess that's a yes. I kinda deserved it anyway."

"I'm not." Kyoko corrected. "That thing you were keeping from me... it was the truth about Ogami, wasn't it? You and Shadow didn't want to drop that bombshell on us without proof, so you waited." Marinette sighs. "I see your logic. But your discretion is still insulting."

"Huh?" Marinette asked.

"At heart, doesn't it just goes to show you're not entirely sure I can be trusted?" Kyoko asked.

"Well... I... guess it does... Sorry..." Marinette apologized.

"No need... Water under the bridge at this point." Kyoko brushed her off. "Besides... There's a chance I might've... "overreacted" a bit."

"(Is she... blushing...?)" Marinette thought.

"Well, yes. Enough about that. We're here because Fujisaki's avatar would like a word with us." Kyoko said. In the locker room, they meet with Alter Ego.

"You came to visit me, great!" Alter Ego greeted.

"Hard to imagine he'd ask us down here unless it was something big." Naegi noted.

"Is there something you want?" Sonic typed.

"Well... I'd like you to take this laptop somewhere that I can interface with the school's network." Alter Ego said.

"Why would you want to do that?" Sonic typed.

"Cause I... I don't want anybody else to die!" Alter Ego said. "That's why I'm going to help you get out of here." Naegi gasped. "But I can't... Not while I'm stuck on this puny hard drive. Without network access, I can't help you at all!"

"Sounds like he's taking quite a gamble..." Marinette said.

"We're worried that the mastermind will find out about you if you access the network." Sonic typed.

"I'm aware of the dangers involved. Even so... I want to do my part!" Alter Ego declared. "I'll be fine! Whenever I think of how brave you've been, I feel brave, too! I guess that's a silly thing for an AI to say, but I really do mean it! It's 'cause of you!"

"Very well." Shadow complied. "Let's get him hooked up to the school's network."

"But... what about...?" Marinette asked.

"I want to honor the choice he's made." Kyoko said.

"Yeah, you're right." Marinette agreed.

"If we're smart about this... and get lucky..." Shadow deduced.

"Maybe our foe won't even notice him." Kyoko continued. "That hidden chamber beyond the bathroom has no surveillance cameras in it. And I remember there being a network access port. However... we have no clue how close of an eye he's been keeping on the system."

"That said... It's still a gamble worth taking." Shadow said.

"Yeah it is..." Naegi agreed. "And I'd like to be the one to take him to the room, if that's okay."

"I should join you, in case we're compromised." Sonic volunteered.

Everyone agreed and Naegi and Sonic head to the secret room. Naegi pulls the laptop from underneath his shirt, where he kept it hidden from the cameras.

"Are we there yet?" He hears Alter Ego. He opens the laptop, revealing the AI.

"Let's get you plugged in." Naegi said. "Sonic, do you have that network cable?"

Sonic fished out the cable from his pocket. "Let's get to work." Sonic connects the laptop to the access port.

"Are you connected?" Naegi typed.

"Yup! Everything looks good!" Alter Ego confirmed. Naegi sighs with relief. "You can leave the rest to me! I'll be sure to track down some useful clues! Just cross your fingers and hang tight!"

"We've just gotta get out of here! All of us together, as friends!" Sonic typed.

"So you... think of me as a friend? That means a lot!" Alter Ego said. "Thank you!" Naegi and Sonic smiled.

The next day...

"RIP, Ultimate Martial Artist (LOL)! A Locked-Room Murder (LOL)!" Monokuma said. "I don't know if you guys realized this, but these parentheses are freaking amaze-balls! No matter what horrible thing you put out there, so long as you slap a parenthetical "LOL" afterwards, it's all gravy! Back on topic! We got twenty-three students still alive and kickin'. Think it's gonna stay there? Or are we heading down to twenty-two?"

Later, Naegi and Twilight are in the laundry room. "Sounds to me like everyone is handling this differently." Twilight said.

"Yeah. All we can do at this point is believe in them." Naegi spoke. "And hope they do the right thing."

"Naegi...!" They hear Kyoko's voice. They see her and Shadow.

"We have a problem!" Shadow told them.

They rushed over to the third floor game room. "What happened?" Twilight asked.

"It... it's Sakura, she..." Asahina pointed inside. Naegi looks inside and sees Sakura seated on a couch in the center of the room.

"What's she doing?!" Naegi asked. He tries to open the door, but it won't budge. "It's no good! Ogami! Open the door!"

"I tried that... Why doesn't she answer?" Asahina asked.

"Oh, man..." Naegi breathed.

"It could be that either the door was locked from the inside, or something is blocking the knob from turning." Shadow theorized.

"We have to get in there! Do something!" Asahina demanded.

Naegi smashed the window, making him able to move the chair and unlock the door. They were able to get in.

"Ogami!" Naegi called out to the martial artist as they approached her.

"Stay back!" Shadow yelled. Naegi and Kyoko stopped. "Let me check on her." Shadow approaches Sakura and places two fingers on her neck. He gasped when he felt that she was cold. This was an indication that Sakura Ogami, the Ultimate Martial Artist, is dead.

"And behind door number one—that's right, a big beefy dead chick!" Monokuma announced. "Scramble around awhile for clues, and then we'll get down to the judge-mo-fyin'!"

"No... Not again..." Twilight shuddered.

"Sadly... this was inevitable." Kyoko said.

"Of course... They killed Sakura... Of course they killed her." Asahina said. "I'm gonna... I'm gonna go get the others now..."

"You sure, Asahina...?" Twilight asked. "You're looking a bit pale."

"I'm fine... Couldn't be better..." Asahina told her as she left.

"I'm a little worried about her..." Twilight whispered.

Kyoko prayed that her spirit find peace as she kicked off the investigation. She began by checking her eyes, and then her head. "I see two separate instances of head trauma." Kyoko said. She then checked her mouth. "Seems to have vomited blood."

"There's a yellow powder spilled on top of her trainers." Shadow spoke.

"That's pretty amazing... seriously." Naegi commented. "Still freaks me out to look at a body up close."

"All I can figure is... I must've worked with corpses sometime before." Kyoko said.

"Huh?" Naegi asked.

"Nothing. Just thinking out loud." Kyoko shrugged him off. "Sorry."

"From what we know, the only door to the crime scene was locked and barricaded from inside." Shadow deduced. "It's looking like a locked-room murder."

"A "locked-room" murder?" Naegi asked. They continue investigating and find a few more clues, those being two Monokuma bottles being missing, a magazine placed upside-down, a bloodstain in front of the rack, and a Monokuma figure on the floor with shards of a glass bottle.

"Dude!" They hear Hagakure as the others came in. "What if... she's faking...?!"

"Well... Ain't this a kick in the dick?" Sho spoke.

"Didn't you hear the corpse announcement earlier? She's dead." Shadow told him.

"Togami... Hagakure... Fukawa... I know one of you bastards did this..." They hear Asahina speak to them. "One of you killed Sakura Ogami!" Everyone gasped in shock.

"Hold up! How do you know?" Naegi asked.

"She told me herself." Asahina informed them. "She asked for the three of them to come and meet her here!"

"Is that true?" Tails asked.

"Yes. Those three... were the last people to see her alive!" Asahina confirmed. "Whoever killed her, I'm gonna make you pay!" Monokuma laughs, reveling in the discord among everyone.

As they continued the investigation, the only other clues they found were a supplement cup and footprints in the chemistry lab.

After the clues were collected, they took the elevator to the trial room.

"We hardly have enough evidence to convince Asahina that neither Hagakure, Togami nor Fukawa killed her." Tails said.

"Don't worry. We'll figure out the truth at the trial." Naegi said as they reached the trial room.

To be continued...