Hey, UknownHero here and I am currently sleep-deprived. Just a bunch of positive developments involving the people around me. I wish the best of luck to them, and I am not gonna reveal anything about it to not anonymously embarrass them on the internet, like the wedding.
Wait. Whoops. Hey, onto the reviews! To Luckenhalft: Glad to see you again in the reviews. For the To Love Ru stuff, it wasn't involved with anything. Not even any of the side stuff we have. JG just decided to do it for fun because why the hell not. Also, holy shit, you have way too many suggestions for side stories. Like the Challenge Accepted series isn't that perverted…right? To M Hijinks: You didn't even bother to make a real profile, so I don't really care what you think. Unless you're willing to read 150 more chapters and read Venmurasu twice over, I'll stick to doing time skips.
Anyways, that's it for now! Time to counter!
Load Game…Start!
Chapter 113: Heightened Tension
(9/13, Early Morning)
(Shibuya, Shin Megami Apartment Complete)
Asuka and Homura woke up bright and early almost as soon as the sun began to rise. Made a nice breakfast, watched the news, then went and did the best part of their routine.
SPLASH!
"Aaaaaah~" The sisters sighed out in satisfaction as they dipped and relaxed in the bath, steam elevating out of the tub.
Something the two deemed as the best part of the usual routine.
"Nothing like a warm bath in the morning." Homura declared while stretching her limbs.
"Hai~ Homu-neechan~" Asuka responded in agreement while doing the same. "We really should do an all girls spa trip again sometime in the future." She then suddenly suggested.
"If we do that, we'd all have to pitch in, Miyabi included." Homura responded. "Though not sure if she'd want to go." She then added.
"Ah Miyabi-chan's still just shy." Asuka responded while waving her hand. "Remember how she acted on her birthday when we surprised her?" She then reminded.
Homura in turn snorted in amusement. "Ok, you got me there Sis." She admitted as she began washing her sister's hair.
"She just needs more time to warm up to everyone. Once she is, we can do all sorts of fun stuff!" Asuka responded as the tan skinned girl then poured the water onto her head before going and washing her sister's hair with soap suds forming. "But I guess it won't be until Christmas. We don't have any free days until then, don't we?" She then added as she then got the pale of water and poured it on her hair.
"Uh..." Homura started as she thought about it. "No, wait, there's the Autumn Equinox on the 22nd." She then recalled.
"That's a Thursday." Asuka remembered. "...What do you want to do then?" She soon asked.
"I dunno. But I guess we'll know what to do when the day comes." Homura shrugged off. "Maybe something nice since your runway show is the 21st." She then suggested.
"Maybe a celebration day with the other girls?" Asuka suggested with a smile.
"That sounds fun. Maybe it can be that second spa trip we've been talking about." Homura replied. "Now let's finish up soon and head out. The sooner we get school over with, the sooner we can check out Makoto's sister's laptop data." She then decided.
"Hai." Asuka responded with a nod before they finished their bath and got dressed, heading out the door in less than ten minutes. However, while they were locking up their apartment, Miyabi stepped outside of her's with a duffle bag over her shoulder. Looks like she was heading out for the day.
"Good morning, Miyabi-chan." Asuka soon greeted.
"Yeah. Hi." The white haired woman yawned out.
"You look beat." Homura noted. "You get enough sleep last night?" She then asked.
"Not really. Don't worry, I have ways of staying awake." Miyabi assured before blinking.
"Well, don't over do it. We have a meeting after school to discuss Niijima-san's data." Asuka informed in a chipper tone. "Have you seen it yet?" She soon asked.
"No, I was a little busy." Miyabi mumbled as she rubbed the back of her neck. "Um...guys..." She began.
"Yes? What do you need?" Asuka got out with a raised eyebrow, while Homura narrowed her eyes, put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot impatiently.
"...Be prepared for anything today, okay." Miyabi soon advised.
"We always are, Miyabi." Homura sighed as she shook her head. "...Wait, are you talking about the weather? It's gonna be sunny all day." She then questioned.
"Yeah. I'll go watch the news later." Miyabi responded dismissively. "Just...good luck out there, you two." She then encouraged.
"Have a good day, Miyabi-chan." Asuka responded with a nod before the sisters turned and walked away. "She was acting weird." She soon whispered in concern.
"Yeah." Homura assumed. "Ah, it's probably her paranoia. She'll be fine after some food and coffee." She then waved off.
"I don't know...it was like Miyabi-chan was warning us something bad is going to happen today." Asuka muttered with a frown.
"Okay, you're being paranoid too, Sis." Homura accused in a playful tone.
"I am not." Asuka whined as they left the apartment complex.
Meanwhile, Miyabi sighed and shook her head. "I probably should've said something, huh." She soon stated.
"Probably." Nobunaga responded.
"They're gonna find out soon enough." Miyabi muttered as she shook her head. "All we can do now is plan for retaliation...after work." She then stated before disappearing.
(Ginza Line)
Akira yawned and rubbed his eyes clean of sleep. While Hawaii wasn't exactly the magical paradise vacation he envisioned, he really missed getting to sleep in a little more. "You'll get over it soon, Joker. Don't fall into bad habits until after high school." The Leader mumbled to himself, slapping his cheeks to reinvigorate himself.
"Good morning, Akira-kun." Yumi greeted as she approached the Leader.
"Morning Yumi." Akira replied while adjusting his glasses. "You do anything when you got back home?" He soon asked.
"No, almost as soon as I got to my apartment I went to sleep." Yumi confessed as she shook her head.
"Yeah, me too. Didn't think sitting down for 6 hours would tire me out so much." Akira sighed out. "Has your info network got anything while we were away?" He then asked.
"No, nothing you should pay attention to. It was actually quite a slow week." Yumi informed.
"Glad to hear it. It seems like almost every week we meet someone that needs a change of heart." Akira got out with a small smile.
"It sure does feel that way." Yumi admitted with a frown.
"Have your friends called you recently? Or you call them?" Akira soon questioned.
"I will after school. I need to buy a large enough box and some bubble wrap for all the souvenirs I bought for them, and then inform Gessen for a pick up to send it to their location." Yumi replied and informed.
"Can't you just use the normal postal service? Does your school have a PO box?" Akira questioned.
"..." Yumi simply gave the Leader a flat stare in response.
"Oh, right, yeah that might be a bad idea..." Akira muttered. Man, he would really forget a lot of girls he knew were shinobi some days.
At that moment, the dyed blond arrived with a can of soda in his hands. "Yo, Akira. Mornin' Yumi." Ryuji greeted the two.
"Hello." Akira responded with a quick wave.
"R-Ryuji-san, why are you drinking Dr. Salt so early?" Yumi questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"Meh, felt like it." Ryuji simply responded.
"You really should be drinking a more healthy drink in the morning." Yumi advised in concern.
"Don't worry. It's diet." Ryuji informed before taking a swig while the others sweatdropped.
"Note to self, put Ryuji through more of Homura's training." Akira thought to himself.
"Man, it feels kinda weird going to school after summer break and the trip." Ryuji admitted before yawning. "I'm so sleepy. You over your jet lag?" He soon asked.
"Not yet." Akira groaned as he stretched his limbs.
"I'm mostly over it, Ryuji-san." Yumi informed. "But it will take a while to feel like things are normal again." She then confessed. She might need a day or two to relax before she gets back to work.
"True. I kinda miss all the sand and water." Ryuji admitted.
"And all the ladies in swimsuits." Akira snarked.
"Oh don't you start, Akira." Ryuji grumbled. "Never mind that, though. Did you know about this? The Phantom Thieves are popular now! I was surprised when we got back to Japan. "People're actually payin' attention to who we're gonna target next. Ain't that amazin'? I'm gettin' really psyched. This is where we work hard! Let's do something big again and surprise the world!" He then informed and declared in excitement and determination.
"You know, there are limits to how many times we can top ourselves." Yumi pointed out with a frown.
"Aw come on, there'll always be a bigger bastard than the last, right?" Ryuji countered with confidence.
"Until we're either in over our heads or forced to fight God." Akira deadpanned. "And I do not like our chances with the latter." He then added.
"Also, that is not something you should be eager for." Yumi added with a judging look.
"We've beaten gods before." Ryuji got out with a frown.
"No, those were Shadows in the shape of gods." Morgana spoke up as he popped his head out of the Leader's bag. "There's a difference." He then corrected.
"We still effed them up." Ryuji grumbled just as their train arrived at their platform.
"Let's just go." Yumi sighed as she pushed the dyed blond towards the train doors while the Leader chuckled and followed after them.
(Niijima Residence)
Makoto was eagerly studying on their dining room table, trying to maintain her good grades as well as potentially getting a good future by her own merit. Of course, there were other pressing matters to worry about, specifically their Phantom Thieves problems, but now wasn't the time for that yet. She had to take it easy for now ever since they just landed back home from Hawaii.
"Hmm...the answer must be...this one." The short-haired brunette mumbled softly as she studied while holding her pen and pointing certain things with it on her book.
Not long after, her elder sister, Sae, came into the room with a bag over her shoulder. She then noticed her younger sister studying on her own.
Makoto perked up as she noticed Sae. "Hey, Sis." She greeted.
"You just got back from your trip yesterday and you're already studying?" Sae got out with a raised eyebrow. "How diligent of you, Makoto." She then praised in apppoval.
"It's just something quick before heading out to school today." Makoto responded. "Oh yeah, it isn't much and you were at work when I got home, but I did bring back souvenirs from my trip." She then revealed with a smile.
However, Sae internally winced. She didn't want to ruin her sister's good mood but...this had to be done.
"...The principal of Shujin passed away." She then revealed.
Makoto gasped before coughing harshly from taking in too much air. She quickly recovered, but she was still reeling from the reveal. "W-What?" she gasped.
"He suddenly stopped while crossing the road and was struck by a large vehicle. Hit and run, died...painlessly." Sae explained to her. "They say suicide seems to be a strong possibility..." She then added.
"P-Principal Kobayakawa committed suicide...!?" Makoto got out in disbelief.
"But would someone about to kill themselves try to go to the police station? He even used a taxi to get there." Sae soon wondered with a frown.
"Do you mean...this might be another incident?" Makoto assumed in a worried manner.
"Even if he had a sudden shift in his state of mind...it's still unnatural. I can only suspect that he had a change of heart." Sae deduced.
"Are you saying he was targeted by the Phantom Thieves!?" Makoto exclaimed. "But that's impossible...!" She got out in disbelief.
"How are you so certain?" Sae questioned as she narrowed her eyes.
Makoto's eyes widened, realizing her mistake and scrambling for a good explanation. "W-Well...In prior cases, the changes of heart seemed to be done to make people confess their crimes. It's hard to explain, but this incident seems contradictory to their usual modus operandi..." She replied.
"Did Principal Kobayakawa seem any different to you lately?" Sae soon asked.
Makoto blinked. She hadn't even seen the principal for the past few months, barely giving him more than a glare. "I don't really know. He rarely interacted with students, after all..." She responded in a vague tone.
"I see...Could something have happened during the school trip...?" Sae stated and asked herself before shrugging it off. "Ah, you should stop studying soon and head for school. I'm going to work now, I'll probably be staying late so don't worry about making dinner for me." She then advised and informed.
"O-Of course, Sis. Have a good day." Makoto nodded, quickly looking at her textbook in hopes of ending the conversation there.
"And Makoto?" Sae suddenly started.
"Hm?" Makoto hummed out in a curious confusion.
The prosecutor stopped for a moment before shaking her head. " ...Never mind. It's nothing. Just don't get dragged into trouble like last time, OK?" Sae warned in a serious tone.
"I've learned my lesson, Sis. Don't let me hold you up." Makoto responded. With that, the prosecutor nodded and headed out the door.
After a couple seconds of staying stock still and hearing the fading footsteps of her sister, Makoto grabbed the nearest pillow and screamed into it.
"MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMPPPPPPPPPPPPPPHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
And once she recovered, she grabbed her stuff and headed out the door.
Today was going to be...in her actual words, a shitshow. She just knew it...
(Asakusa, Hanzō Academy Dormitories)
A lace blue bra and panties wearing Katsuragi yawned as she woke up and stretched her limbs. "Ok, grope Ikaruga for a recharge, shower, get some breakfast, and get in some training before class." She grumbled in an exhausted manner as she got out of her bed and exited her room.
"Good morning Katsu-nee." Hibari sleepily greeted in her pink robe.
"Morning." The blonde responded. "Ikaruga up yet?" She then asked while scratching her butt.
"I think she's in the kitchen with Yagyū-chan making breakfast." Hibari recalled.
"Thank you." Katsuragi got out in a grateful tone before letting a perverted smile appear on her face. "Just the pick-me-up I needed." She then declared with a gleam in her eyes.
Once the busty blonde made it to the kitchen, she first saw Yagyū cutting up vegetables quickly and efficiently. Like everyone so far, she was still in her pajamas, which...were not sexy at all. It was just standard white loose-fitting sleepwear with pants that anyone could've worn. The only thing she found unique was the special sleeping eyepatch, a yellow circle with a spiral in it that looked like a narutomaki fish cake. Overall, 4/10, not enough cleavage.
However Katsuragi's eyes soon sparkled at the sight of the ravenette's pajamas. A simple black one piece dress that was slightly transparent, showing her black bra and panties underneath. "Sexy and revealing! And completely exposed for groping~ Banzai!" She mentally exclaimed in excitement as she brought her hands up in a groping manner while wiggling her fingers.
"Katsuragi-san, I am currently grilling fish over a controlled flame. Touching me right now will cause me to set the kitchen on fire so I suggest you don't do anything stupid here and allow me to make our breakfast." Ikaruga casually warned while tending to her fish, not even attempting to look at the blonde.
"Oh." Katsuragi got out, freezing with her hands mid-grab. "...Can I get a coffee then?" She soon asked.
"It's on the table already." The acting leader answered.
"Thanks." Katsuragi replied before dutifully sitting down at the table and pouring herself a cup.
With that set of antics taken care of for the morning, Ikaruga and Yagyū finished making breakfast consisting of grilled fish, natto, miso soup, and a side of rice.
"Hibari-san, breakfast." Ikaruga called out.
"Coming!" The pinkette responded with a yawn, coming into the kitchen, her expression brightening as a result. "Wow, this all looks great!" Hibari declared in awe.
"Thank you. Now sit down." Ikaruga ordered as everyone sat down at the table and put their hands together.
"Itadakimasu-" The four soon began before...
POOOOF!
That familiar moment made the four Hanzō Elites jolt in surprise before coughing from the smoke.
"Really!? Right when we're eating breakfast!?" Katsuragi coughed out.
The white haired girl meanwhile sniffed the smoke. "...Bacon?" Yagyū got out in a confused manner.
"Everyone, listen up." Kiriya ordered as the girls waved the smoke away. "We just received troubling news from our contacts within the police force." He informed, instantly getting the girls' attention.
"Oh dear God, please don't tell us it's-" Katsuragi began to complain, however her sensei held up his hand to stop her.
"It's not another kidnapping." Kiriya interrupted. "It concerns the principal of Shujin." He informed in a serious tone.
"The man who let a rapist run away knowingly." Yagyū recalled with a frown. "Has he been arrested?" She then questioned.
"No..." Kiriya responded as he shook his head. "He has committed suicide." He soon revealed in a serious tone.
Silence filled the room for a moment.
"Wait, what!? When!?" Katsuragi exclaimed and asked, eyeing her sensei from what she had just heard from him.
"Only a few days ago. Around midnight on the 11th." Their sensei answered. "They report that witnesses saw him stand in the middle of the road, allowing a truck to run him over." He then explained.
"N-No..." Hibari whispered in disbelief.
"A few days? Shouldn't we know about this already-" Yagyū began to question, however...
"Is this relevant to the current situation within Tokyo? Will it affect Asuka-san's mission?" Ikaruga asked with a frown.
"Possibly." Kiriya responded. "Because the police are suspecting that the Phantom Thieves have caused the man to freeze. An ill-timed change of heart." He then informed.
"The Phantom Thieves did it?" Ikaruga got out in disbelief.
"What if it was just another incident? A mental shutdown?" Yagyū however questioned.
"We don't know for sure." Kiriya admitted. "All we do know is that the council is now ordering all shinobi currently in Tokyo to look for the Phantom Thieves." He then added.
"We don't even know what they even look like. What will we be searching for?" Katsuragi pointed out before asking.
"You'll have to find that information for yourself." Kiriya stated. "The situation has not escalated to a point where we need to actively hunt them down, this could've just been a mere suicide or accident after all. I just wanted to warn you all to be cautious when guarding Okumura-san from now on." He then informed.
"Hai. We'll keep our eyes peeled for them." Ikaruga assured their sensei with a bow.
"Hibari, I suggest you leave now and meet with the CEO." Kiriya soon instructed.
"Hai, sensei." Hibari responded with a nod.
"And what will we be doing in the meantime?" Yagyū questioned.
"Continue your training, but I want you to gather whatever information you can on the Phantom Thieves while I will continue training the Elite candidates." Their sensei answered. "We can't rule out the possibility that they are the cause just because of their positive public image. I know that some of you here are supporters, but do not let your personal feelings get in the way of your objective. If it comes down to it, you'll have to eliminate them." He then advised.
"W-Wait, what if our hearts get changed?" Hibari soon asked in a nervous tone.
"Then do not allow them to." Kiriya immediately answered. "Dismissed." He then continued before...
POOF!
The shinobi coughed harshly as the teacher made his exit. "...Why is his smoke bombs popcorn flavored now!?" Katsuragi soon asked.
"To think something like this happened to the principal of Asuka-san's school." Ikaruga soon stated in concern. "And while she was in Hawaii of all times." She then added.
"Well, there's not much we can do about it now." Katsuragi pointed out with a sigh.
"Hibari, are you sure you still want to go?" Yagyū meanwhile questioned in a concerned yet serious tone.
The pinkette started to shift uncomfortably, looking down as she was trying to think what to do now. Of course, the eyepatch-wearing kunoichi slowly furrowed her brows in complete concern.
"Hibari-san, if you don't want to-" Ikaruga began to offer, however...
The pinkette suddenly shook her head. "No. Hibari is gonna do her best!" She soon declared as she pumped her fists.
"...But you'll be dealing with the Phantom Thieves once you set foot in Tokyo." Ikaruga soon reminded. "We don't even know what their methods are. Not to mention who their targets were going to be." She then stated.
"Uhh...the poll." Katsuragi got out as she pulled out her phone from in between her bust, showing the site on the screen.
"I know but still, we don't even know if they're actually using that." Ikaruga responded.
"But they've definitely taken requests from there." Yagyū pointed out as she scrolled through the forums on her phone. "Look at all the people they targeted that didn't make it on the news." She then stated.
"Are they really going to target Okumura-san?" Ikaruga soon muttered. "They should be expecting high security." She then recalled.
"Hey, they just took down an international hacker organization. Are we and more security guards going to stop them?" Katsuragi however countered. "...I mean, no offense." She then added quickly.
"No, you're right." Ikaruga admitted in agreement. "I just hope that if we do make contact with the Phantom Thieves, they'll be willing to use diplomacy." She then confessed.
Her other three Elite members simply looked at her, silence filling the air with two of them being confused.
"...It means questions first, use violence later." Ikaruga deadpanned. "Though I hope the latter won't really happen." She sighed out.
"I know that." Katsuragi scoffed. "Now can we please eat breakfast now?" She soon asked.
"It's probably gotten cold- eh?" Ikaruga sighed while shaking her head before looking down at her breakfast and realized something was missing. "He...He stole my grilled fish!" She gawked in disbelief.
"...Bummer." A sweating Katsuragi responded while looking away.
"Also Katsuragi-san, we need to talk about your...sleep attire." Ikaruga soon stated while looking down. "Just your bra and panties like when you're in Frantic? Really?" She questioned in a deadpan tone.
"I just felt like it, okay?" Katsuragi responded as she shrugged her shoulders. "Besides, we're the only ones here, aside from Kiriya-sensei and the newbies, of course." She then added.
Ikaruga sighed at that. "At the very least, Kiriya-sensei doesn't mind." She muttered.
(9/13, Morning)
(Shujin Academy, Gymnasium)
"All students, please head to the gymnasium now. We are having an assembly. I repeat, all-"
"Yeah! We get it! You've been repeating that shit all morning!" A frustrated male student loudly retorted.
The Shujin students from all year levels, including the faculty as well, entered the gym for their morning assembly. Most of them were groaning and some of them gossiping and talking casually as they proceeded and lined up in front of the stage.
"Aw come on, another crappy assembly?" Ryuji complained with a groan as the Thieves headed into the gym. "Grrr...this better be about the principal getting his fat ass hauled off to prison." He then softly grumbled in annoyance.
"Did it really have to be the day after our trip?" Ann groaned. "I'm still feeling a little jetlag here." She then muttered.
"Well, there's nothing we can really do about it." Homura sighed before turning to their advisor. "Isn't that right, Makoto?" She then asked, hoping her best friend would agree with her.
"..." However, the senior was silent, keeping her head down and keeping close to their group.
"Uh, senpai? You've been looking a little pale since we got to school. Are you okay?" Homura noticed, looking rather concerned for her friend.
"I'm...I'm fine." Makoto lied as she shook her head. She had a feeling what this assembly was about anyways.
"Guys, listen to what everyone's saying." Akira whispered as he tuned in to the ongoing conversations around him.
"There's another urgent assembly..."
"Is it true he died?"
"He was really taking some heat..."
"What's happening to this school!? Are we cursed?"
From all the worried and speculative whispers, the Thieves began to worry.
"Someone died while we were away?" Asuka got out in disbelief.
"Shit." Ryuji swore under his breath, starting to feel tense.
"Hey, did your sister mention something like that when you got back?" Homura soon asked.
"Yes." Makoto answered with a nod.
"Then who is it?" Ann pressed with a frown.
"I think you're about to find out." Makoto replied as she saw a man in a gray formal suit walk onto the stage.
The man on stage cleared his throat before tapping the mic. "Ahem. I will now begin the emergency morning assembly." He soon informed.
"Wait, who's that guy?" Homura questioned, suddenly realizing she had not seen this guys before.
"That's the Vice Principal." Ann revealed.
"...We have a Vice Principal?" Asuka and Homura got out with widened eyes. "We didn't even meet him when we first started." They then informed.
"...Really?" Makoto asked with a raised eyebrow, getting nods in response from the two sisters and Leader.
"We don't hang around school all that often." Akira admitted with a shrug.
"Speak for yourself." Homura scoffed as she rolled her eyes.
"You didn't know either! And you're the head!" Akira quietly called out.
"Guys, pay attention." Ann whispered as she urged the two to focus.
"As many of you may already know...Two days ago, Principal Kobayakawa passed away..." The Vice Principal gravely informed the student body.
"!?" The female Thieves present in the assembly gasped, barring the Advisor, who looked shamefully down on the floor, the Leader, who stared at the Vice Principal wide-eyed, and the dyed blond, who was not only wide-eyed but also with his mouth hanging open as well.
"I wonder if that suicide rumor's for real...It happened in front of the police station, didn't it?"
"I think I was passing through there at the time..."
"T-The principal's...dead?" Asuka muttered out in confusion and disbelief.
"Oh, did he finally get that heart attack that's been waiting to happen?" Homura asked quite casually.
"Homu-neechan, not now!" Asuka whispered in a chiding yet serious tone.
"What? It was totally going to happen!" Homura defended herself.
"Even still, remember what we talked about? How death would be the easy way out?" Asuka then quietly reminded.
"Yeah? What's the point here?" Homura muttered back. "He's done nothing but bully Makoto-senpai to where she was basically suicidal and sucked Kamoshida's dick until he was arrested. He's not worth a change of heart." She then added.
"Homu-neechan!" Asuka angrily called out.
Surprised by her sister's reaction to her words, she stepped back but remained steadfast in her opinion. "I'm...I'm sorry Sis, but I can't lie to you: I don't care that Principal Potato died." Homura bluntly admitted.
"Holy shit, Homura." Ryuji got out, gawking a little at the girl.
"The principal had been working hard to restore peace ever since the incident with Mr. Kamoshida. He only wished for everyone to be able to lead a normal school life, and because of that love..." The Vice Principal continued his long and flowery speech about the legacy the principal was supposed to have, but many were not buying this load of horseshit.
"Love? Bullshit. He was covering something up. Everyone's been talking about it."
"Maybe it wasn't suicide...Do you think the Phantom Thieves took him down!?"
"The Phantom Thieves? Do they kill people?"
"I mean, Kamoshida did say he was gonna kill himself to make up for everything he did."
"That would be amazing! Either way, it serves that principal right!"
"Hey, I heard they found a calling card at the principal's place? You think he had a heart attack?"
"I can't believe it! I thought the Phantom Thieves moved on from our school."
"Yeah. Didn't think they had it in them."
"They think the Phantom Thieves did what now?" Asuka and Homura got out in unison.
"Hell no. We didn't do shit." Ryuji meanwhile muttered.
"I would like to see everyone live up to our late principal's wishes as proud Shujin students, and..." The Vice Principal continued talking, but already he had lost many students...including the Thieves themselves.
"Hey." A familiar voice nearby spoke up, getting the Thieves' attention.
"Mishima-kun." Asuka got out. "What's wrong?" She soon asked in a worried tone.
"I just checked the Phan-Site. It's been blowing up. Turns out, a ton of news outlets just reported on the principal's death and that the Phantom Thieves might be responsible. Said that they timed a change of heart." The admin informed the group before leaning in a little closer. "But that can't have been you guys, right? We were in Hawaii." He then whispered, although the students talking pretty much masked his voice already.
"...Not everyone." Akira realized as his eyes widened.
"They think the Phantom Thieves did what now!?" Asuka and Homura quietly exclaimed in unison as they then paled slightly.
"This...This can't be real..." Ann whispered in disbelief.
"I'm already texting Yumi and Yusuke." Makoto informed. "I hope they haven't had the same thing happen in their school." She then added in concern.
Meanwhile, Akira narrowed his eyes, his mind already formulating a plan. "Remember the meeting. This evening." Akira whispered the order to his team.
With that, the Thieves nodded. Vacation was over, time to get to work.
At the very side of the gymnasium where the other members of the faculty lined up, clearly troubled by the announcement, one particular female teacher narrowed her eyes at the Vice Principal on the stage.
With her arms crossed, Daidoji went into thought after hearing the announcement. When the news got to her, she was in disbelief, for sure, but the fact that the police reports stated that the Phantom Thieves were involved in the situation made it more complicated.
For now, she'll need to stick to the shadows and gather info.
And hopefully, the order to bring Asuka and her merry band of thieves won't come any time soon.
(9/13, After School)
(Disciplinary Committee Board Room)
It was already assumed there was going to be an emergency meeting after school after the assembly. Homura had spent most of her free time today planning out what she was going to say and do to ensure that the committee could take care of things, as she felt that for the next few days she wouldn't be able to check on her committee and even now she didn't have a lot of time.
"Why can't the universe leave us alone?" Homura grumbled as she fast-walked down the hallway and into the committee room. Inside, the committee members were talking amongst themselves. While she couldn't figure out what they were saying specifically, the topic was clear.
The death of the principal, the Phantom Thieves, and the uncertain future of the school.
"I'm really starting to get sick of hearing our name..." Homura thought as she shut the door behind her, getting everyone's attention.
"Homura-san." Keiichiro got out.
"Hello everyone." Homura greeted in a mature tone. "Glad everyone made it in today. Alright, let's get this meeting-"
"Buchou, is it true you're happy about the principal's death?" Hikari interrupted, barely letting the head of the committee put her butt down on her seat.
Instantly, Homura felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up. "Where did you hear about that?" She practically demanded from the mangaka.
"Because several other students heard you say I don't care that Principal Potato died." Emica spoke up with a frown. "The newspaper club president has an article about it on the school forums." She then added.
"There's also a bunch of rumors saying that you and kaichou had contributed to his suicide." Suzuka added with a small glare.
"Those are baseless accusations. Ignore them." Homura brushed off, furrowing her brows in thought. She definitely needed to explain herself now to Tomoko as well...
"But there's plenty of people who believe you and Niijima-san intimidated the principal into letting you do whatever you want." Daigo pointed out.
"I am under the very same rules that govern all other students." Homura insisted. "While I did convince the principal to lay off me and friends, it wasn't to gain control of the school. It was so he would stop threatening us with expulsion and the shutdown of this committee at the slightest mistake." She then stated.
"And how do you convince people of that?" Satoshi questioned with a frown. "A lot of people won't accept such an explanation without much to back it up." He then pointed out.
"It will have to do." Homura responded. "God, I do not need this right now." She then grumbled under her breath.
"There's definitely people in my class saying that he got what he deserved." Naomi informed. "Shouldn't you take advantage of that?" She then questioned.
"I did not create this committee to be popular, dammit." Homura insisted.
"But don't you hate the principal?" Ichiko pointed out. "Come on, Homura-buchou, this is what the committee needs to get everyone's trust." She then stated.
"Not like this. Never like this." Homura responded as she shook her head. "And hate is an understatement. Hate was when he let Kamoshida do whatever he pleased for years. I loathed him for incompetence and decisions to uphold his reputation above all else. I despise him because he not only made Makoto-senpai go after the goddamn mafia, he threatened me and my friends into doing his bidding whenever he wanted."
"...He did what now?" Yui got out, dumbfounded by the reveal.
"You're lying..." Satoshi mumbled with a frown.
"H-He did that to Niijima-san?" Hikari gawked with widened eyes.
"Y-You can't be-" Hitomi tried to speak up, however...
"I am completely and utterly serious." Homura interrupted in a dead serious tone as she narrowed her eyes. "I will not lie to you all. The principal was scum of the earth. His very existence is a waste of oxygen, skin, water, and food that has let this school down again and again for nothing but his own selfish, short-term gain. I am glad he is gone, but not like this. I wanted him arrested and left to rot in prison, not splattered across the pavement. He could die later, long after I've forgotten his very existence. I simply want what's best for the school, but now because of this entire disaster, we're all that's left to clean up this mess." She then explained in a cold, firm manner.
The committee members shifted uncomfortably in their seats before one of them continued the discussion. "Homura, we're a disciplinary committee, not police officers." Yui reminded. "This is the job for the staff, not us." She then stated.
"I mean we were like staff during the Hawaii trip." Emica pointed out.
"It was just making sure no one gets lost or embarrasses the school, not...this..." Suzuka muttered as she rubbed the back of her neck. "This feels a little too much for us to deal with." She mumbled as she clenched and unclenched her fists to keep herself calm.
"Well, we have to." Homura insisted. "If we don't do something to placate the students, to fill the void of discipline and safety the principal should've fulfilled in his role, this school won't make it past the next decade. We aren't the police, we're peacekeepers." She then stated.
"...Is there a difference?" Ichiko asked with a confused look.
"Shut it." Naomi sighed while shaking her head.
Ichiko however ignored her fellow committee member. "I still don't think we have enough influence to actually get people to do what we say..." She grumbled with a pout.
"Plus, there's plenty of people not too bothered by the principal's death. Things aren't gonna fall into chaos because of this." Chitose pointed out. "Actually, what's riling people up is the fact the Phantom Thieves can kill people now."
"It's just a rumor." Homura got out with a frown.
"The cops are saying it was a change of heart." Chitose pointed out in concern.
"A possibility. It just could've been bad luck, or a heart attack, something else." Hikari pointed out.
"Something else?" Keiichiro got out with a raised eyebrow.
"I don't know, but it's definitely not the Phantom Thieves!" Hikari responded, looking rather heated.
Yui meanwhile nodded in agreement to this as she glanced at the tan skinned girl for a moment.
"But the cops from the news also said there was a calling card at his house. You can't deny that." Naomi countered.
"Yeah, but there was also nothing on his house. That Phantom Thieves would've painted it red." Suzuka pointed out with a frown.
"That's not really an effective argument. They didn't do anything for Medjed. Maybe they can't top their last stunt." Daigo muttered.
"Or they're broke. Stealing hearts probably isn't financially viable." Keiichiro spoke up with a shrug.
"Not if you know the right people." Ichiko pointed out.
"Not the time." Chitose groaned while shaking his head.
"How would they have even painted Medjed to begin with?" Sora got out with a confused look on his face. "I think hacking their site and exposing one of their members was enough."
"Uh...put up a billboard? Buy an advertisement?" Satoshi assumed.
"You seriously think the Phantom Thieves would buy an advertisement?" Homura had to speak up in a flat tone.
"It was a guess." Satoshi responded with a shrug.
"That's not the focus here!" Naomi soon stated. "What is that the Phantom Thieves are at the center of this entire mess! We have to hold them to at least some sort of...what was the word?" She then started before asking.
"Accountability?" Hikari guessed.
"Yeah. That." Naomi concluded.
"D-Doesn't s-something s-seem off about this?" Hitomi muttered to her fellow committee members. "I-I mean the Phantom Thieves d-don't kill, b-but everyone's s-starting to think they do and think it's amazing." She then added.
"Yes, that's worrying me." Keiichiro admitted in agreement while narrowing his eyes.
"Yeah..." Yui replied in concern. "I mean the principal wasn't exactly the best thanks to what he did protecting Kamoshida, but no one deserved this..." She then added.
"Well, they can always start." Satoshi got out.
"Hey, shut the hell up, asshole!" Ryoga called out in an offended manner.
"No, I agree." Emica quietly got out. "Some people need to die." She then stated as she narrowed her eyes.
"The principal didn't! He was going to jail!" Yui reminded everyone.
"Exactly! He should've been in jail months ago for criminal neglect!" Daigo declared.
"But for how long? A couple of years isn't enough for the lives he's ruined." Sora meanwhile asked.
"He was going to be put on death row anyways!" Chitose soon stated.
"That's not how that works!" Suzuka called out as she slammed her fist on the table.
Suddenly, the entire room was bickering and yelling at each other, so loud that the committee head couldn't even hear herself think.
"Everyone! Be quiet!" Homura snapped. "Enough about the Phantom Thieves! Right now we need to make sure everyone stays calm and nothing bad happens until the staff gets reorganized!" She then ordered.
"R-Right. We need to keep the peace." Yui got out with a nod.
"First the suicide attempt, then the arrest of Kamoshida, then the media flustercluck, now the death of the principal...This school is falling apart..." Homura listed off. "And we are the ones that have to make sure the order and peace is secure." She then declared in a mature tone. "Do I make myself clear?" She soon questioned.
"...Yes, ma'am!" The committee members replied in unison.
"Good. Now, I need to go. Some important business came up involving my family so please organize yourselves. I trust you with my life." Homura soon informed in a calm and mature manner.
"Yes, ma'am!" The committee members responded once more.
"Dismissed!" Homura declared before heading out the door.
"You know...she could have at least told us what to do before she left." Satoshi deadpanned. "Like...what we should be looking out for and what we should be doing." He then added.
"You have no initiative do you?" Daigo deadpanned.
"Well, we could just go home." Satoshi suggested. "The head just did it right now." He then stated.
"She did not just leave us alone because she didn't deal with this." Yui however stated. "She believes in us, and I say we need to believe in the person who believes in us who believes in...us." She soon added and concluded.
"...You sort of lost that." Emica soon stated.
"Yeah...yeah..." Satoshi admitted with a nod.
CRASH!
"Huh?" Chitose and Daigo got out in confusion.
"Holy shit, is it an earthquake!?" Ichiko exclaimed before going up against the wall.
"Oh, this day is just getting better and better..." Hikari groaned.
"Uh...our phones would've warned us of that." Hitomi reminded as she took out her phone.
"AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!" They suddenly heard someone roar in the next room over.
CRASH!
"WHY!? FUCKING WHY!? WHY CAN'T LIFE BE KIND!? WHY CAN'T IT LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE AND STOP DESTROYING EVERYTHING I CARE ABOUT! FUCKING CUNTING MOTHERFUCKING SHIT ASS TITS AND FUCKING HELL! WHY DOES IT FEEL LIKE EVERYONE IS TRYING TO KILL ME IN SOME WAY! NOT EVEN 24 HOURS BACK AND I HAVE TO DEAL WITH THIS ALREADY!? FUCKING STUPID BALLS AND DICKS HATE-FUCKING MY ASS INTO HELL! WHY!? JUST WHY DO YOU HATE ME GOD!? HAVEN'T I SUFFERED ENOUGH!? IS THIS SOME SORT OF SICK JOKE!? LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE ALREADY! AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" The muffled, yet clearly understandable voice of their committee head screaming to herself, interspersed between the sounds of windows being kicked and walls being punched hard enough to shake the room.
CRASH!
"Homura..." Yui got out in concern and a sympathetic tone.
"Jeez, sounds like stress is getting to her." Hikari assumed with a wince.
"I guess even she has her breaking point." Chitose deducted in a sympathetic manner.
"Oh, she is definitely gonna be paying some repair fees to the school." Ichiko noted.
Suddenly, the sounds coming from the other room stopped. After a few seconds, the door opened with Homura stepping through. "...Sorry, forgot to give you all proper orders." She sheepishly admitted.
"Um...no...I think we're good. You can...you can go home now." Satoshi nervously assured their increasingly scary committee head.
"No. I insist." Homura got out.
"Wait...did you...break anything in there, Homura?" Yui soon asked in a cautious manner.
"No, not really." Homura confirmed with a nod. "I was just slamming my head on desks and punching stuff, maybe threw a chair, but nothing was broken just...I needed to tire myself out a little." She then revealed.
"You don't even look like you're sweating. Or injured." Daigo noted.
"I have a much more effective anger management technique." Homura vaguely informed. From several of her members' expressions, they didn't believe her. "I'm leaving now. Do your duties and use tact, the school needs us." She soon informed as she left the committee room.
"...Wanna see the damage?" Ichiko soon asked.
"Oh hell yes." Satoshi responded as the two got out of their seats and left the room.
The others meanwhile sweatdrop as the two in mention went in.
"...Okay, dammit, I'm curious too." Hikari admitted as she stood up.
"Sit down." Yui ordered in an authoritative manner, making the girl sit back down. "Let's just do our usual patrols, make sure all the students not in clubs go home, and ensure no one is causing trouble." She then got out.
"Like we usually do." Daigo simply stated. "Let's hope this is the last thing that happens to this school." He then added.
"Given our luck, not likely." Sora sighed out.
"Ok how!?" They suddenly heard Satoshi exclaim in confusion.
"Why is this room cleaner than before!?" They then heard Ichiko exclaim from the other room in disbelief.
"This school really needs thicker walls..." Keiichiro muttered.
Away from the committee room and its members, Homura let out a breath. She somehow managed to navigate that entire meeting without screwing up too much but there was still a lot she needed to do.
First, she needed to explain herself to the newspaper club president, revealing the same information she gave to her committee members just now regarding her best friend and the mafia to hopefully salvage their good names before too many people believed they had something directly to do with the principal's death.
And then...to Mementos to burn off the rest of her bubbling anger on the upper levels, like she would sometimes inflict on her teammates when she was in Hebijo.
Old habits die hard.
(Gessen Academy, Elites Room)
"Shiki, what's the status on our guest list?" Yozakura questioned.
"I sent out the invites last night and I got all their replies earlier." Shiki responded as she held up three letters.
"And what did they say?" Yozakura then asked.
The fashionista soon sighed. "Not attending, not attending, sure why not." Shiki informed.
"...Only one person is coming." Murakumo deadpanned, her oni mask on her face as always.
"Yep." Shiki responded in a curt manner. "Kurokage was definitely not popular." She then concluded.
"I'd say that would be an insult to his memory, but by this point, just getting someone other than us and Yumi to come is a good sign." Murakumo responded.
"Wait, Yumi-chan has other friends!" Minori remembered. "Why don't we ask if they can attend?" She soon suggested.
"Erm...I'd rather prefer it if this event was a more private matter." Yozakura admitted. "Family and close friends to us only. Besides, the funeral will be at a shinobi-only location. No civilians allowed." She then stated.
"Didn't you give Akira the location of where Kurokage-sama would be buried?" Murakumo soon reminded.
Yozakura blushed as she recalled this. "T-That's besides the point." She quickly got out. "What's important is that we're going to all be together for the first time since last year. I want this to be personal and intimate, allow us to grieve and open up to each other instead of needing to worry about other people. The world can keep turning without us for a few hours. Let us stay behind before we look forward, so to speak." She soon explained.
"Alright..." Minori mumbled in a saddened tone.
"Let's all take a break. We've been working on this since this morning." Murakumo soon decided. With that, everyone nodded and began to relax.
"God, we could've paid someone to do this for us..." Shiki groaned out.
"Do you even have the money?" Yozakura questioned, remembering the bags and bag of swimsuits she brought back after some retail therapy.
"No, but we could've." Shiki stated before letting out a breath and pulling out her phone.
"Personal and intimate, Shiki." Murakumo sighed as she shook her head.
However, the blonde suddenly paused with a slightly pale expression on her face. "Hey, has anyone been on the Phan-Site lately?" Shiki questioned, looking rather worried.
"Shiki-san, we're in the middle of something." Murakumo informed. "We can worry about the Phantom Thieves a little later, okay?" She then stated.
"Or...not." Shiki however responded in an uneasy tone.
"Hm?" Murakumo hummed out as she and the others looked at the paling blonde
"Guys...look at all the recent forum posts." Shiki hesitantly requested with nervousness in her voice.
"'He totally deserved it.' 'Couldn't have happened to a more deserving person.' 'He was basically dead anyways.' 'Whoa, what's happening? My parents cut off my internet.'" Minori read out.
"Shujin Academy Principal Dies, Tragic Accident or Intentional Murder?"Shiki then read out. "Many suspect that the Phantom Thieves may be responsible for the death of 37 year old Kiyoto Kobayakawa." She then continued.
"W-What!?" Yozakura exclaimed. "They killed someone!?" She got out in shock.
"No, from the sounds of it he just...killed himself." Shiki responded while shaking her head. "I guess the fallout from that teacher's change of heart was too great to deal with..." She then added.
"It says here that he was...struck by a truck after suddenly stopping in the middle of the street." Murakumo informed. "That...That's never a good way to go out." She then got out with an audible wince.
"People are making assumptions, but who knows what actually happened." Murakumo assumed as she narrowed her eyes underneath her mask. "This doesn't feel right...they'd never do something like this right?" She then confessed.
To that, the other girls thought about it before nodding in agreement.
"Y-Yeah. This has to be just a wild rumor." Yozakura got out as she shook her head. "No way the Phantom Thieves would kill someone in cold blood." She then stated.
"We...We don't have to worry about this right now. It's not something we should be involved in. Yumi probably has it covered." Murakumo sighed as she shook her head. "Okay, maybe we should get back to work. I don't want to think about this right now." She then reminded.
"Hai." Minori responded as everyone else nodded before getting back to work.
But now there was a lingering question that was left unsaid.
How could they be so sure?
(Shujin Academy, 2F Hallway)
"Where is she...?" Homura quietly asked herself while walking and looking around. "I really hope you're still here, Tomoko. I have a meeting to get to soon."
"Why don't you find me tomorrow if you have something important to attend to?" A voice from behind her questioned.
"Because I want to take care of this now rather than later, and the more time it takes to deal with it, the more it destroys what I've built over the year." Homura explained in a mature tone.
"Homura-san, I'm pretty sure you're late for your committee meeting and your members have already left to do their thing. You should go home."
"No, I attended that meeting, this a different-" Homura began before shaking her head. "I shouldn't be here standing around talking. I should be doing my mission right now." She soon got out.
"Yeah. You probably should, considering your target is right behind you." The voice then advised.
"I don't-" Homura grumbled as she finally turned around to see...the newspaper club president giving her a flat stare. "...Hi, Tomoko-san." She soon greeted in a sheepish tone. To be honest, she thought she was just talking to herself.
"Homura-buchou." Tomoko replied. "Shouldn't you be with your committee making sure people don't spray paint the walls of the principal's office with RIP?" She then assumed.
"I uh, I have something I need to do but that's not why I'm here." Homura shook her head. "I'm here to talk about-" She then started.
"The principal's death. It's the talk of the town." Tomoko stated. "Especially since the Phantom Thieves happen to be involved." She then added.
"When are they not?" Homura grumbled under her breath.
"Point." Tomoko had to admit as she adjusted her glasses. "Anyways, why do you want to talk about the principal's death with me?" She soon asked.
"Well, it's not exactly about that. It's more like...what's around it." Homura answered.
"Like how you and Makoto-kaichou are involved because of your public hatred for the man." Tomoko responded. "And how it might affect how people see you." She then assumed.
"Good, we're on the same page." Homura replied with a nod. "Now, why is it that people are claiming that we had something to do with his death?"
"You don't have to ask me, Homura-buchou. People tend to put two and two together even when it's not the whole equation." Tomoko responded. "Besides, you shouldn't worry your pretty little head about this. It hasn't affected your image too much." She then assured.
"You're kidding." Homura got out in a flat tone.
"Not at all. I mean, look at the school forums poll." Tomoko informed as she pulled out her phone.
"The what?" Homura got out in a dumbfounded tone as she looked at Tomoko's phone screen.
Is the Disciplinary Committee necessary?
Yes [75%]
"...Did they seriously copy the Phan-site poll?" Homura assumed with a raised eyebrow.
"I dunno. That's not my job. I think the dull boy in your class helped set it up." Tomoko replied and revealed.
"Mishima." Homura guessed with a sweatdrop.
"Yeah, that guy." Tomoko muttered as she turned back her phone. "As you can see, people are in the majority supporting your committee. Although, the question is rather outdated don't you think?" She soon remarked.
"Outdated?" Homura repeated with a raised eyebrow.
"This was more appropriate for when your committee started. This is several months old." Tomoko explained. "What do you think would happen if we change the question to something more relevant?" She then asked.
"It would change like how the Phan-site's poll has been changed over time." Homura simply answered.
"Exactly." Tomoko responded. "Which is why I got this poll updated recently." She then informed.
"Tomoko, I really wish you don't beat around the bush." Homura sighed out as the newspaper club president showed her phone.
Has the Disciplinary Committee helped you?
Yes [55%]
"...Ok, so there has been an improvement, though it only went down twenty percent compared to the previous poll." Tomoko confirmed in an impressed manner.
Homura however sighed in response. "That should be 100%." She admitted in disappointment.
"Ah, but with so many different viewpoints and interpretations, that will never be the case." Tomoko soon stated. "And hey, you still have the majority." She then added.
"By five." Homura countered. "I mean I know it's better than nothing at all, but I want to make it so the school can stand up for itself. A safe environment for everyone where no one has to worry about issues like the ones the school has had of late." She soon declared.
"Well, 55% is barely a passing grade." Tomoko admitted.
"Exactly." Homura sighed out. "I'm planning to ace this by the end of the year." She soon stated.
"Go for an S. A stands for chumps." Tomoko advised.
"Triple S it is then." Homura decided.
Tomoko in turn smirked at that statement. "That fire in your eyes could light a culture festival bonfire on its own...if we could do that around here." She soon admitted. "Just don't push yourself too hard or you'll crash and burn." She then advised.
"At this point, at least it'll be in a blaze of glory." Homura jokingly responded.
"Well, if that's everything you'd like to discuss, I'll be heading over to my new clubroom." Tomoko responded with a smirk. "Thanks for that by the way. Although, it's still just me and the Vice Principal probably isn't going to let it last until I get more members." She then added.
"You should get to work on that-" Homura began suggesting before stopping herself. "Wait, I-I do have something else that I want to talk to you about!" She soon informed.
"Is it my new glasses?" Tomoko assumed with a raised eyebrow.
"Besides the fact that they are indeed nice glasses." Homura sighed out. "The article on school forums and certain rumors going around." She soon began.
"Glad to get back on track, Homura-san." Tomoko responded with a nod. "Well, if you must know, I spent my lunch talking to people around the school and wrote that article up in class. Not bad for 45 minutes, don't you think?" She then bragged a little.
"Tomoko-san, I don't think it's appropriate to post gossip." Homura advised in concern.
"It wasn't gossip, it was fact. And don't blame me, blame the teacher who used to supervise my club." Tomoko responded.
"And who is that?" Homura asked, ready to give the asshole a piece of her mind.
"Kamoshida." Tomoko revealed in an irritated manner.
"..." Homura's eyes immediately widened as she blinked a couple of times.
Well, she definitely already did that months ago...
"I wrote too many sports articles for that man before my club collapsed." Tomoko sighed out. "There's only so many ways you can write how great he is." She then grumbled.
"He really had a hand in every part of this school." Homura sighed out. "...He didn't ever try to-" She then began to ask in concern.
"Pfft. I don't have the chest or the muscles." Tomoko scoffed. "Thanks for the concern though." She then added.
"Actually I was talking more about abuse, but thank you for confirming that part." Homura corrected, also relieved to hear that bit.
"Getting off topic. Please." Tomoko sighed out, though smiled at hearing that. "Anyways, to make a long story short, everything written in that article is merely what I recorded from the student body. If you actually read the damn thing, you would actually know who said what." She soon explained.
"And they think me and Makoto had something to do with his death." Homura responded.
"As well as all the name calling, the threats of violence, and the meticulous planning to slowly but surely destroy him so that you can install a sock puppet principal so that you would have free reign over the school." Tomoko listed off as she adjusted her glasses. "Conspiracy theories aside, I flat out heard you say that you didn't care about the principal's death." She then confirmed.
"Listen, I know what you heard me say in the gym, so I just wanted to explain exactly why I felt that way." Homura revealed.
"You hate the principal for being an incompetent, arrogant fool for the better part of your school life here." Tomoko responded in a flat tone.
"And for forcing my best friend to try and go after the mafia all by herself and threatening me and my friends with expulsion for just being around." Homura added.
"Yeah, I know." Tomoko nonchalantly responded.
"W-What?" Homura got out in shock. "H-How did you-?" She then began.
"I'm not the president of the newspaper club for nothing." Tomoko replied. "Why do you need to explain such a thing to me? I get it already. He deserved yours and Makoto-kaichou's hatred for that stunt on her life and I plan to reveal that part in the next article in complete detail." She then added.
"Oh, thank you." Homura awkwardly responded.
"Not a problem." Tomoko responded as she adjusted her glasses. "But don't just assume that my articles are going to solve all your problems. I'm just one source of information in a huge sea of misinformation. Plus, there is a huge likelihood that it will only enforce the rumor that you and Makoto-kaichou had a hand in the principal's death." She then warned.
"Despite me and her both being in Hawaii at the time?" Homura reminded the newspaper club president.
"Homura-san, you don't have to physically push someone in front of traffic to kill them." Tomoko got out in a serious tone. "Do not try and say you're not involved in this. You are. And people won't let that piece of info go." She then stated.
"But all we did was-" Homura began.
"Intimidate him into submission, which is empowering to you but emasculating to our late principal. And given the media coverage, lawsuits, and various other problems I was sure he was dealing with outside of school, it's safe to say his mental state wasn't exactly what you would call fucking stable." Tomoko added with a glare. "I'm not saying you killed him. I'm just saying you've likely contributed to his suicide in the eyes of the public, and maybe even in his last moments. There is no fixing that. There are just some things people aren't going to let go of. I'm sure you're aware of Akira-san and Sakamoto-san's reputations, right? It's essentially the same thing." She then pointed out.
"I will clear up this misunderstanding, Tomoko-san." Homura reassured.
"You can try, but reality isn't that simple. You should know that by now." The newspaper club president stated. "I'm just laying out the problems you will face ahead." Tomoko soon informed.
"You really love making me suffer, huh." Homura grumbled with hands on her hips.
The newspaper club president's eye twitched, finally having enough. "You seriously think I'm a bitch who just loves telling you that I'm gonna write bad stuff about you if you don't do anything significant or just for fun?" Tomoko however accused with a frown. "I'm holding you accountable for your actions. And if that makes me the bad guy, make me the bad guy then, because I'll gladly play the role to ensure that this school has someone good enough to protect it." She soon explained.
"Maybe I will." Homura responded as she narrowed her eyes.
"Well, I hope you beat me, Homura-san." Tomoko admitted, confusing the tan skinned girl. "Because from here on out...we're rivals." She soon declared.
The tan skinned girl in turn took in a deep breath. "Fine! And don't expect any more favors from me." Homura replied.
"I didn't expect any more." Tomoko admitted with a smirk, feeling her respect for her grow within her heart.
SHATTER!
RANK UP! JUDGEMENT RANK 2!
"Hah!" Homura mentally cheered, feeling as though she won the moral victory at this moment...until she realized what happened. "...Wait, did that just happen?" She mentally asked in confusion.
"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Tomoko reminded the tan skinned girl, snapping the girl out of her thoughts.
"Huh? Oh, right!" Homura responded. "I'll see you around! This isn't over!" She then added and declared.
"Yeah, I know!" Tomoko responded before letting out a sigh. "Ugh...words are a lot easier when you don't have to say them..." She then grumbled to herself as she headed for her clubroom to get to work.
(Hebijo Academy, Elites Room)
At Hebijo, things seemed to be pretty calm. After spending most of the day training and discussing tactics on how to brutally destroy Murasaki at gunpoint, the Elites were allowed to retire for the day and relax before the test tomorrow.
Hikage as always was pampering Poochie by rubbing her stomach while Ryōbi watched and cooed at the sight.
Ryōna was...well, doing what Ryōna did best when no one wanted to deal with her: entertaining herself by inflicting some sort of pain on herself. This time, it was simply eating leftover Mystery Food X. It was supposed to be burned but it came back.
Imu had decided to start up a hobby to distract herself from the many stresses of her current life, so she took up drawing. Unfortunately, it only caused her to focus on those stresses as she ended up drawing way too much of Miyabi in many, many intimate poses.
Yomi, unable to cook under threat of death, had gotten back into gardening. She was currently tending to a new crop she had just planted. However, since seeds were way too expensive (in her eyes, where the only acceptable price was free), she took to growing beansprouts and weeds...which was so much harder given that everyone around them was as lifeless as Suzune-sensei's hopes and dreams.
Murasaki on the other hand was working out even more than usual to prepare for her own test, literally shining from all the sweat on her body that literally dripped off her from her new routine she came up with (consisting of 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 pull-ups, 100 air squats and finally 50 laps around the school) she began doing while listening to the radio. But even then, she seemed proud of herself while feeling some signs of muscles forming. And with Bebeby there to insult her from falling back into old habits, which she honestly was having less of an interest in doing by the day save for playing video games and chatting online with Futaba, she felt confident that tomorrow was going to be a cakewalk.
And finally, Mirai the loli first year was working on her online story, trying to figure out what to write next while making sure no one else knows or sees what she was actually working on during her break time.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a familiar hair color entering the Elites Room. On instinct, she switched tabs on her web browser, hiding her fiction work from anyone. She then glanced and noticed it was actually the purplette in her workout clothes.
"...Frickin' big boobs..." Mirai grumbled softly, noticing the purplette's chest for only a short moment.
Suddenly, Murasaki gasped with a pale face as she took out her earbuds. "Mirai-san, did you hear what happened at Akira-kun's school?" She suddenly asked quietly while patting herself down with a towel.
"Yes. For a while now." Mirai responded, looking a little annoyed. "The principal got caught for all his involvement with that rapist. Did he get arrested yet?" She soon asked in a disinterested manner.
The purplette in response however shook her head. "No, not that! He's dead!" Murasaki informed, instantly getting everyone's attention.
"Excuse me?" Hikage responded in surprise.
"What did you just say!?" Imu questioned.
"Huh?" Ryōbi got out in a dim manner.
"...Why is everyone freaking out?" Ryōna meanwhile had to ask.
"Because our leader attends the same school." Hikage answered. "What the hell happened...?" She soon asked.
"When did this happen Murasaki-chan?" Yomi asked as well.
"Only a few days ago. I just heard about it right now. It sounds like it's all over the news in Tokyo." Murasaki informed as she pulled out her phone and checked the news. "And people think the Phantom Thieves had something to do with it." She then revealed.
"Eh? Really?" Yomi responded in a curious manner.
"Dammit, we were so busy today that we didn't see any of this..." Mirai muttered before her eye widened. "This was all released hours ago!" She then revealed.
"Crap." Hikage soon swore.
"Well, there is a possibility it was a suicide." Murasaki corrected as she continued patting herself down with a towel. "He just stood in front of a truck in the middle of the road from what the news was saying." She then stated.
Hikage in turn raised an eyebrow. "He...just stood in place?" She repeated in confusion.
"Brutal." Yomi muttered with a frown.
"About time." Ryōbi got out with a shrug. "Fuckin' scum. Better fertilizing the ground than wasting air, I say." She then added.
"Aw~ I wish I was struck by a truck!" Ryōna meanwhile whined. "I bet it would've-" She then began, however...
SMACK!
"Not. This time." Ryōbi ordered in a dead serious tone as she then hid her shaky hand after slapping her twin sister's face. "Don't you dare say something like that again." She then added to the order.
Hikage meanwhile raised an eyebrow to the change in attitude from the brunette. "Why hasn't Homura or Haruka called us about this yet?" She thought to herself in a serious tone. "That's different coming from you Ryōbi-san." She vocally remarked.
"It's nothing. Don't butt into our business." Ryōbi growled.
"But you-" Mirai started.
"Shut the fuck up, and focus on your own bullshit. Now come here, you stupid bitch. Can't believe I'm even related to you..." Ryōbi growled as she dragged her twin sister away.
"Hai~!" Ryōna happily responded, enjoying the pain from being dragged.
The others meanwhile sweatdropped at this display. "Okay..." Imu began. "So...is there any chance we're gonna respond to this?" She soon questioned.
"Huh?" Murasaki got out.
"Well, this seems important." Imu stated with narrowed eyes. "The Phantom Thieves, for all we know, just killed someone or at least pushed them into committing suicide. Shouldn't we be worried about this?" She then reminded and questioned.
"Given the amount of accidents and such over the years, we simply can't blame the most obvious suspect without evidence that it was intentional." Hikage responded.
"So if it was an accident, it's fine?" Mirai assumed.
"Yes. It could be merely an unintended consequence, likely to not happen again if they are truly just." Imu confirmed with a nod.
"And if they aren't?" Yomi soon questioned.
"...If the Phantom Thieves have managed to kill someone on purpose..." Imu began as she adjusted her glasses. "Then they've just become public enemy number one to both law enforcement and shinobi." She stated.
"...So we'll have to take them down." Murasaki concluded in a worried manner.
"If needed." Imu responded. "I'll report this to Suzune-sensei just in case she doesn't know already." She then stated.
"Alright." Mirai got out as the glasses-wearing girl exited the room. After the sandy blonde left, the remaining girls took in a breath of relief.
"Jeez." Hikage got out.
"You think we can stop the Phantom Thieves?" Yomi wondered out loud.
"We'll have to actually meet them first." Mirai pointed out. "We don't even know if they're shinobi. We need more intel, but so far there's barely anything on them. Not even a name to go off of." She then added.
"...Please don't tell Onee-chan...but I'm actually a fan of the Phantom Thieves..." Murasaki quietly confessed. "And I don't really believe they would do something like this." She then added.
"Don't worry, we won't tell." Yomi reassured.
Hikage in turn nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I don't either. They've taken down several targets at this point that are essentially scum of the earth. I don't think they would screw up so late in their career." She then stated.
"Well, they only just appeared this year. Maybe they're still learning." Mirai responded. "I doubt their changes of heart are easy." She then added.
"...So all of us are Phantom Thieves fans?" Murasaki soon asked in a hopeful tone.
"Hai." Yomi responded with a nod.
"Yup." Mirai replied.
"Essentially." Hikage concluded with a nod as well. "Pretty sure Haruka is too since they helped out with where she works in Tokyo." She then recalled.
"That's a relief." Murasaki breathed out.
"Still, it would really suck if they really did kill someone." Mirai admitted.
"Well, to be honest, it couldn't have happened to a worse person." Hikage confessed. "And since when did we worry about such things?" She soon asked.
"Because power corrupts, and what's more powerful than a killswitch no one can see coming." Mirai answered before frowning and instinctively rubbing the spot on her neck where the Yoke Technique was. "And who knows, they might even target us one day. We aren't actually innocent." She then added.
"Arf!" Poochie barked out.
"Except Poochie. Poochie is an angel." Hikage corrected while petting the puppy's head.
"Oh yeah." Murasaki responded in agreement.
"Arf arf!" The puppy barked once more.
"Wait, have they ever targeted an animal?" Yomi had to ask.
"Nope. They targeted a crazy cat lady though." Mirai got out.
"They really do target just about anyone if they're terrible enough." Hikage muttered. "The day they finally target a shinobi is a day to be feared." She concluded as the blonde and purplette nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, the eyepatch wearing first year then took out her phone. "Dammit, I hope Akira-nii is safe..." Mirai muttered in concern as she began typing.
[Futsure: Akira-nii, we heard about what happened in Tokyo. Is everything fine on your side? Is Homura okay?]
[TheWildJ0ker: Yeah. Busy right now though.]
[TheWildJ0ker: Don't worry, I'll be alright.]
[TheWildJ0ker: Also, 'Akira-nii'? :3]
[Futsure: -/-]
Mirai immediately blushed to that last bit. Why did her big brother figure have to tease her like that?
[TheWildJ0ker: Homura is fine too, BTW.]
(...)
[Futsure: Akira-nii?]
[TheWildJ0ker: Um, she can't come to the phone right now though.]
[TheWildJ0ker: I'll keep you guys up-to-date if anything happens. Thanks for worrying about us.]
[Futsure: Just don't do anything stupid.]
[TheWildJ0ker: I'll try. Gotta go. Bye.]
Mirai sighed as she pocketed her phone. "Wait up Murasaki! I wanna work out with you for a bit." She called out while changing into her work-out clothes.
...She would immediately regret it later though...
(Yongen-Jaya, Takemi's Clinic)
"My, this is unexpected..." Haruka confessed as she narrowed her eyes while looking at her phone screen.
"Everything alright Haruka?" Takemi meanwhile asked. They were currently on break, having dealt with their last appointment for the day and decided to enjoy some Leblanc coffee before they continued their research.
"Well..." Haruka hesitantly started as she then showed her phone. "It seems as though the Phantom Thieves are being accused of the death of the principal at darling's school." She soon revealed.
"...Say again?" Takemi questioned as she raised an eyebrow.
"The Phantom Thieves are being accused of-" Haruka began, however...
"I heard it the first time." Takemi interrupted as she narrowed her eyes. "Any evidence?" She soon questioned.
"Mostly speculation, but the likely cause was a change of heart in the middle of the street." Haruka revealed as she read it out.
"I see..." Takemi hummed out.
"What do you think about it, Takemi-sensei?" Haruka soon asked.
"What do you think about it?" Takemi countered as she narrowed her eyes. "You don't seem too bothered by it " She then noted.
"Well...people die all the time. We can't stop that." Haruka pointed out before a saddened expression appeared on her face. "But...I feel there are some people that do not deserve to pass gracefully." She then confessed.
"...I agree." Takemi eventually responded.
"Eh?" Haruka gasped.
"Oyamada..." Takemi mumbled, spitting out the name in disdain. "Some days after what happened to me, I hoped he would die in some humiliating or ironic ways. Sometimes I imagine doing the deed myself..." She soon confessed.
"Sensei..." Haruka breathed out in disbelief.
"Do no harm..." Takemi recited as she closed her eyes in thought. "The first thing you're taught before you even start classes in med school. And I felt like I was betraying that oath with those thoughts alone." She soon stated and confessed.
"It's not your fault." Haruka however reminded. "Some people...some people need to be hurt." She then confessed.
"And what will that bring to life? Peace? Closure?" Takemi questioned as she narrowed her eyes. "...Maybe, if the stars align. But in reality...that's not what a doctor should think. You are the protector of the lives of many, not a judge on who lives or dies. Failure in that goal isn't the end, but when you choose to intentionally break that oath...that's when you lose yourself. I think the Phantom Thieves know that...If they are really the cause." She then added in a serious tone.
"Hai." Haruka responded with a nod of determination and inspiration from those words. "I can't let Takemi-sensei down with such things. Still, there are people who need to be dealt with personally when needed..." She soon thought.
"Damn, this coffee never gets old. Wonder how he does it..." Takemi breathed out, already wanting another cup, but restrained herself. She shouldn't buy too many cups, no matter how damn good each one was.
"He's a master of his craft, simple as that." Haruka responded in amusement.
The experienced doctor simply giggled in response. "In any case, don't believe everything you read online. We both know the Phantom Thieves wouldn't do what some people think they're doing." Takemi soon instructed and reminded. "Besides, I'd throttle the Leader myself if they really did anything so stupid..." She mentally added with a wry smile.
"Of course sensei. It honestly does seem fishy when you think about it." Haruka responded and confessed as she pocketed her phone. Even a shinobi like her would be able to tell that there was something off about all of this, though she just didn't know what it was.
"Now get back to work. You aren't being paid to be a conspiracy theorist." Takemi ordered as she put her coffee mug in the sink to wash later. "You're gonna have to be more focused when it comes to medical school as well." She then reminded.
"Hai, sensei." Haruka responded with a nod. "Thank you again for that chance as well." She then added in a grateful manner. She was still a bit surprised at being told that her sensei recommended her for medical school but, as she remembered, they would both land in serious hot water if she did get a real medical license even if they cured cancer.
"No worries. Just be prepared for the workload, lack of social life and being seven years behind everyone else." Takemi grumbled under her breath.
"Hai." Haruka responded with a nod.
Still, she couldn't shake off this feeling that things were about to change around here for the worse.
(9/13, Evening)
(Yongen-Jaya, Leblanc Attic)
The room was dead silent, even with all the Thieves arriving only half an hour ago.
Every single current member of the Phantom Thieves were currently not having a good time judging from their actions: Akira staring outside the attic's open window with an uneasy look on his face, Homura walking aimlessly around the attic with hands interlocked on the back of her head, Asuka sitting on the edge of Akira's bed while rubbing her forehead with her fingers, Ryuji gritting his teeth in annoyance with his hands on his pockets, Ann standing around with her hands on her hips not really sure how to feel about this, Yusuke scrolling through all the news they had missed while they were away, Yumi trying to remain calm, Makoto looking at Futaba's laptop with a serious look on her face, witnessing the latter's work on the data the brunette gained from her elder sister's laptop, Miyabi noticing everyone's reactions with an understandable look of concern along with crossed arms under her large chest.
And Morgana? Morgana looked like the world was about to end tomorrow.
"This is not good." Akira stated out loud, removing his glasses that show narrowed eyes. "Not good at all." He then muttered.
"You think, Leader!?" Homura exclaimed, whipping her head towards Akira. "The principal is fucking dead and everyone at school thinks we did it!" She then yelled out.
"Yeah. Most people online are guessin' it's the Phantom Thieves." Ryuji agreed and stated while scratching the back of his head. "Shit, this is not how I'd imagine this is how we get more people to talk about us." He mumbled with a sigh.
"There are other opinions." Futaba revealed. "Other people think he did it because that tabloid exposed how he was covering up Kamoshida's abuses." She then added.
"Did you have something to do with it, Miyabi!?" Homura soon accused as she glared at the white haired woman.
"What!? No!" Miyabi exclaimed in an offended tone. "I'm not strong enough to do such a thing." She then stated, wincing to admitting her weakness.
"Yeah..." Morgana mumbled sadly.
"I'm offended you think Big Sis is the culprit here." Futaba got out with a frown.
"Plus, I wouldn't have left evidence like that." Miyabi helpfully added. "I would've made that bastard get run over way more naturally. Or push him off a cliff and into the sea." She then nonchalantly explained.
The Thieves looked at the white haired woman uncomfortably. "...Thank you, Miyabi." Akira got out before coughing into his fist.
"Not helping Big Sis." Futaba deadpanned.
"So...if we had nothing to do with it, the only real possibility is that..." Yusuke began.
"He took his own life." Makoto concluded with a saddened look.
"Seems like it." Miyabi muttered with a shrug.
"Could it be that...we're responsible for Principal Kobayakawa's suicide...?" Ann suddenly asked, getting the attention of the others.
"Whaddya mean?" Ryuji soon asked.
"If we hadn't changed Kamoshida's heart, maybe this never would have happened..." Ann muttered with a frown.
"No. Don't think like that." Asuka however got out as she shook her head. "Kamoshida had to be stopped, there's no way around it. He just would've...I don't want to even think about it." She then began reminding before confessing in a nervous tone.
"...Y-Yeah..." Ann got out in a small tone. It didn't make her feel better, but it certainly made sense.
"And...if anything, I was more directly involved." Homura admitted shamefully.
"As am I." Makoto confessed. "And while I refuse to believe we were a direct cause, it certainly doesn't make me feel any better." She then added.
"We won't blame you." Akira assured as the others nodded. "We couldn't have known something like this would happen then, so don't beat yourselves too much over it." He then stated.
"But it certainly feels worse to know that people are actually approving of our first kill as far as they know." The gray haired girl then lamented. "Why is everyone celebrating that we're murderers...?" Yumi got out in a worried and disgusted tone.
"People are more likely to trust their heroes." Akira muttered with a frown. "And after all we've done, we're heroes to a lot of people." He then admitted.
"Yeah. There's merch with our logo slapped on them flying off shelves." Ryuji agreed and added.
"It seems like the public would rather believe in us than in the authorities." Yusuke informed. "People are trying to get the Phantom Thieves to solve societal problems, not just personal ones." He then added.
"This is kinda scary..." Ann soon admitted.
"All of this seems too fast..." Yumi muttered.
"We can't solve everything though." Homura mumbled as she looked down at the floor.
"Are we really doing the right thing...?" Makoto questioned in a worried tone.
"I mean, the principal was coverin' stuff up, right? I guess...he got what was comin' to him." Ryuji told them and hesitantly added.
"That's dark, Ryuji." Miyabi remarked, but didn't seem all that bothered. "Besides, why are you guys assuming it was suicide?" She soon questioned.
"Well, isn't it obvious?" Akira responded with a frown before he realized what she just said. "...Wait, are you implying it was a murder?" He then asked in confusion.
"Not implying. I'm telling you that it was murder." Miyabi informed as the orangette nodded in agreement.
"What?" Morgana finally broke the silence, looking at them in a mixture of disbelief and betrayal.
"Oh, sorry Morgana. But we only learned about it late last night." Miyabi responded. as the hacker petted the cat.
"Why didn't you tell us this morning!?" Ryuji called out.
"...Super late night." Futaba shamefully admitted as the white haired woman gave her a disappointed look.
"How late exactly?" Homura and Makoto had to ask in an authoritative tone, narrowing their eyes.
"...Seven?" Futaba awkwardly replied with a wince.
"It was 3 AM when I left!" Miyabi called out in disapproval. "There is no need to be lying about this young lady." She then stated with her hands on her hips.
"No. I'm being honest." Futaba responded, causing the white haired woman to pale a bit. "It was seven when I went to bed." She then revealed.
The others looked confused for a second before they finally got it. "...Seven in the morning." Akira groaned in realization.
"Yeah...I sort of woke up just as everyone came." Futaba sheepishly explained. "Motion alarm clock." She then added.
"So...irresponsible..." Morgana got out in a strained manner with a twitchy eye.
"...You are getting a lecture after this with me and Boss, young lady." Miyabi soon stated in disapproval, causing the orangette to pale.
"And sleeping pills." Akira added with a sweatdrop. "But we can discuss that later. What did you guys do while we were away?" He then asked.
"Well, it kinda just started as us waiting for the data to load, but then Big Sis came and suggested we find the principal's Palace so we'd have something to do as soon as everyone got back. A last kick in the nuts to ensure he regrets his life choices you know?" Futaba answered.
"And let me guess, you got stuck like us." Ryuji assumed.
"Actually, we figured out the last key word for the Principal's Palace after a day of info gathering." Morgana admitted, smiling just a little.
"Wait what?" Akira responded in shock.
"You figured it out!?" Asuka asked with widened eyes.
Instantly, Makoto grabbed the only adult in the room by the shoulders and pulled her down to her level. "Tell us!" She demanded. "Tell us the keywords now!" She practically begged in a frantic manner.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Isn't it already too late, senpai?" Homura questioned as she pulled the advisor off the woman, though her hands were just as twitchy. "He's dead. His Palace should be gone now. We should be focusing on much more current matters-" She then started, however...
"It was school." Miyabi casually revealed.
SHATTER!
And as the mental glass shattered, the entire room went silent as the others as their eyes widened while looking at the white haired woman, the orangette and the not cat.
"...What school?" Ryuji soon asked, expecting that there was more to that answer than what was given.
"School." Futaba simply responded. "He saw himself as the most popular kid on the playground, where everyone from his peers to his teachers sucked his lard or whatever. It was probably, like, his high school or something." She then stated and assumed.
"...School." Akira and Asuka repeated at the same time.
"Yes. Kobayakawa, Shujin Academy, School." Miyabi responded with a nod of confirmation.
"School." Yumi repeated as well while processing this information.
"Do we need to write it down for you guys?" Futaba offered, getting a little annoyed. "Because believe me, I barely believed it myself when we got it." She then admitted.
And at that moment...the pin dropped.
"School!? HIS PALACE WAS JUST FUCKIN' SCHOOL!?" Homura and Makoto exclaimed at the same time with fiery fury with equally fiery auras surrounding them.
The others could even swear that they could see their hair levitating a bit too, more so from the Shujin Student Council President.
"Told ya they wouldn't take it well." Futaba remarked.
"Well you can't exactly blame them." Akira pointed out.
"That has to be the worst distortion ever." Ryuji got out in disbelief.
"Of all time." Ann added with her jaw dropped.
"He truly was a pathetic man." Yusuke stated.
"Until the end." Yumi concluded with a shake of her head. "Did you at least see the Palace?" She soon asked.
"We were gonna save it for you guys." Morgana quietly muttered. "It was a chance at revenge for all the shit the principal put you guys through." He then explained.
"Shit..." Ryuji sighed as he kicked the air.
"Well, there's no way you guys could've known something was happening. Don't blame yourselves."
"How can we not!?" Morgana snapped. "We could've done something! A quick infiltration, some reconnaissance! Anything instead of just-" He then began.
"You didn't let him die!" Miyabi interrupted. "None of us did. The principal's death was caused by Black Mask and their team!" She then growled out.
The Thieves' eyes widened before frowning. "...It really all comes back to them, huh." Ann got out with a sigh
"How did you know Black Mask is working with a team?" Yusuke asked in a curious manner.
"The truck conveniently having its license plate obscured? A change of heart in the middle of the road? Knowing exactly where the principal was and his destination? That's too convenient to be a happy accident." Miyabi listed off. "And that's not discounting the idiots in his office. Whoever they are, they have some serious backup." She then stated.
"Huh?" Asuka, Homura and Yumi got out in confusion to that last bit.
"Wait what?" Akira responded in disbelief.
"Seriously, some men were at the school burning stuff in the principal's office?" Ann asked in shock after learning this information.
"And possibly burning down the rest of the school if I didn't step in." Miyabi continued. "Did a shitty job of it though. Should've used planted a fire bomb in the gas main..." She then added.
"But that still doesn't explain why people would think it's the Phantom Thieves." Ann pointed out.
"Actually, I did find this in his office. I hope this might explain everything." Miyabi revealed as she took out a red and black card from in between her breasts with a familiar logo on it as she placed it on the table.
The Leader in turn narrowed his eyes to seeing what it was. "...A calling card." Akira stated in a serious tone.
"It's like the one we would make." Ryuji noted in a serious tone, eyebrows furrowed as the Vice Leader grabbed the card.
"To Kiyoto Kobayakawa," Asuka read out. "The great sinner of envy and jealousy. We've let you live your fantasy for too long. That ends tonight. For your crimes against the kids you've abused and destroyed, we've decided to steal your heart. You've seen what we are capable of, so do not bother struggling. Sincerely, the Phantom Thieves of Heart." She continued and finished.
"The only thing missing is a grand art display of our power and you've got a classic Phantom Thieves calling card." Yusuke concluded with a concerned frown.
"But...how can that be though? We didn't send this. We were in Hawaii except for Mona-chan, Miyabi-chan and Futaba-chan." Asuka then stated in confusion.
"We know." Futaba deadpanned. "Come on, this isn't amateur hour. Use your heads." She then stated in a serious tone.
Yumi however narrowed her eyes to this. "So you think that-" She soon started.
The white haired girl however nodded to that. "Yeah." Miyabi replied, confirming the light gray haired girl's deduction. "I think someone's trying to frame us. Maybe for all the mental shutdowns and psychotic breakdowns that had happened over the past few years." She soon revealed in a serious tone.
"Do you really think they'd go that far?" Ann asked with a frown.
"We're the only ones with access to the Metaverse other than these guys who are abusing it. Our methods are unknown to the public. We're the perfect people to frame." Yumi answered. "And all you need to do is place a calling card at the right place, at the right time." She then stated.
"Wait, if you have that...why are people saying they found one at his home?" Makoto soon questioned in concern.
"Probably planted a few around his usual hang outs." Miyabi assumed. "Probably don't want to chance that he didn't see at least one of them." She then deducted.
"Damn. They really put some thought into this." The Leader grumbled.
"That means that whoever did this must be an organized one." Morgana stated.
"An organization. Of great power, so it seems." Yusuke simplified.
"A conspiracy." Futaba concluded.
"But why the principal? Why kill him instead of someone like, I don't know, someone more famous?" Akira questioned. "A principal of a high school won't make much of an impression to the public for more than a week or so. They're planning something..." He then deducted.
"Well, we might be able to get some sort of clue from Prosecutor Niijima's hard drive." Futaba suggested as she positioned her laptop so that everyone could see the screen. "Check it out." She got out.
"Bring up the files on her investigation into the incidents." Morgana ordered.
"Already up." The hacker responded. "Inari, read it out." She then got out.
"Why me?" Yusuke however asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Just do it, Inari." Miyabi bluntly ordered as the orangette snorted.
Yusuke sighed and shook his head before leaning in close to the laptop. "Well, Prosecutor Niijima has been looking into the continued cases of people collapsing." He soon started.
"Go Makoto's Sis!" Ryuji meanwhile got out with a smirk.
"It seems she is searching for a common thread to tie them all together. Some parts seem to be speculation, but she has cited a beneficiary of the majority of these incidents." Yusuke then read out.
"We got our mastermind already!?" Ryuji soon assumed.
"Probably not." Yumi however shook her head. "There was that whole thing at the beginning of the year. All the transport incidents? Why would that benefit their bottom line?"
"Maybe to throw people off?" Ann guessed.
"That is a possibility, but I doubt it." Homura responded.
"Who are we dealing with then?" Asuka soon urged with a serious look on her face.
"It's the corporation Okumura Foods. More prominently, its CEO, Kunikazu Okumura." Yusuke soon revealed.
"Okumura? I feel like I've heard that name somewhere..." Ryuji got out as he started thinking about it.
"From Big Bang Burger." Yusuke soon stated.
"Big Bang Burger? For real!?" Ryuji exclaimed.
"Oh you gotta be kidding me..." Homura muttered as her eye twitched. Was this company her arch-enemy or something!?
"Yeah, they've been getting their brand everywhere." Akira spoke up with a frown. "We practically lived off Big Bang Burger in Hawaii." He then informed.
"And the airplanes to and from there." Homura added as she unconsciously cupped her breasts in her hands.
Asuka meanwhile placed a hand on her sister's shoulder. "There, there." She muttered in a comforting tone.
"It says here they benefited both from scandals and the resignations of their competitors' executives." Yusuke soon concluded from the prosecutor's data.
"That would seem to be the case..." Yumi muttered.
"This is too suspicious though." Morgana eventually stated. "Only one CEO is profiting from these seemingly accidental incidents. I think it's natural to suspect he's intentionally causing them." He then added.
Miyabi in turn nodded as she narrowed her eyes. "Yeah. If Black Mask could cause shutdowns without leaving anything behind, why not take advantage of it and shop it around?" She soon stated. "Lots of people would pay good money for that type of service. We should know, it is kind of our job." She then added As the other shinobi nodded, though the Vice Leader and light gray haired girl being more weakly.
"So you think Black Mask is, like...a hitman." Ann assumed.
"I'm just throwing up assumptions and guesses." Miyabi got out. "Plus, it's too obvious. Someone who's actually running this wouldn't connect all the incidents to themselves so easily." She then stated.
"They could be sloppy. Even shinobi aren't immune to such things." Yumi muttered.
"...Or it's on purpose." Akira spoke up as his eyes widened.
"Eh?" Asuka got out in confusion.
"Think. If some random CEO gets blamed for the incidents, the real mastermind could continue their work without worry." The Leader explained.
"Or...give the Phantom Thieves a target to take down." Yumi realized with widened eyes.
"And...this random CEO did just shoot up in the polls..." Makoto slowly got out as everyone turned back to the laptop, where the hacker had the Phan-Site up in the background.
The white haired girl then looked towards the orangette. "Futaba, run a quick check on the Phan-Site. There might be someone manipulating the numbers of the poll." Miyabi suddenly instructed as she soon frowned. "That's a possible tactic used by Evil Shinobis that excel at using computers." She then added.
"Huh?" Futaba got out in confusion. "You sure Big Sis?" She then asked.
Miyabi in response nodded to this. "Yeah, at the moment, this Phantom Thieves fad now seems...unusual, and now suddenly a single CEO is at the top of the ranks despite the public barely talking about it until just now, which happens to be one that Makoto's sister was looking into? There's definitely something off about this." She then explained.
"Okay. I'll go check." Futaba responded with a nod before turning to her laptop. "Need some time though. Feel free to continue talking while I do this." She soon requested.
"So, just to make sure we're all on the same page, we think that the Conspiracy is trying to make us target Okumura." Akira soon started. To that, everyone nodded. "Do we have any theories on why?" He soon asked.
"He was already a controversial figure." Makoto got out. "Maybe he was simply the easiest person to turn the public against with the right motivator." She then assumed.
"Or maybe he has his own agenda against this Conspiracy." Ann guessed. "Urgh...we don't have enough information to really nail down why Okumura would be targeted." She groaned out.
The Vice Leader's eyes then suddenly widened as a thought came to mind. "...A scapegoat..." Asuka then muttered out as the others turned to her.
"Hm? Sis?" Homura got out in concern.
"Asuka-san?" Yumi called out in confusion.
"A scapegoat..." Miyabi repeated as she narrowed her eyes.
"Maybe the Conspiracy needed him gone while also taking care of us in the process." Asuka explained. "Frame us, trap us, kill us. They're using Okumura-san as bait for their next target!" She then realized.
"!" The eyes of the others soon widened to that deduction and realization.
"Using our own standards against us..." Makoto whispered in disbelief.
"Son of a bitch!" Ryuji swore in anger. "They're tryin' to play us like...like-" He then started.
"Pawns?" Yumi assumed as she narrowed her eyes
"What does seafood have to do with this?" The dyed blond got out in confusion.
"Aw, come on!" Homura called out before covering her face to groan.
"I'm just too pissed to think good, 'kay!" Ryuji defended himself. "They're screwin' with us is what I'm saying!" He then declared.
"What a sickening underhanded tactic." Morgana soon stated as he narrowed his eyes. "I'm almost impressed." He had to admit.
"They're gunning for us directly now." Homura growled out while narrowing her eyes. "We're in their way, now they're going to try and take us down while also furthering their goals." She soon stated in a serious tone.
"And they'll use any means necessary..." Yumi concluded. "I mean, if they could garner such a reaction after killing a guilty man, what would happen if they kill an innocent?" She then questioned.
"We'd be destroyed." Akira concluded.
"Setting us up high before knocking us all down." Miyabi stated while narrowing her eyes. "That's a shinobi tactic if I've ever seen one." She then confirmed.
"...Do they know shinobi?" Ann asked in a worried tone.
"If they did, they wouldn't have sent two idiots to burn papers." Miyabi pointed out. "We at least have that going for us." She then mumbled under her breath.
"Hold on...what if Kobayakawa is, er was, part of this group?" Ann eventually suggested. "I mean, they had to be burning something important if they came to the school." She then added.
"It would explain why he kept badgering Makoto-senpai to try and find info on the Phantom Thieves." Homura soon stated.
The Shujin Student Council President's eyes soon widened to that statement. "And he was in front of the police station when he died after taking a taxi there." Makoto informed. "It was likely that he was going to the police before he died." She then deducted.
"...He was going to expose them after all the pressure." Asuka realized.
"It's a possibility. Maybe his death wasn't just to frame the Thieves, but to also stop him from revealing the Conspiracy's existence." Yumi deducted as she looked at the Advisor. "Makoto-san, is there any other information you know? Was the truck driver identified?" She soon asked.
"I can't tell you anything else. My sister only revealed how the principal died, not the finer details." Makoto replied with a shake of her head.
"Futaba?" Akira stated, glancing at their group's masterclass hacker.
"Couldn't find it. As far as I know, the driver got away scot-free." The hacker responded as she shook her head. "Only clues were that the two bozos at the school were part of the government security detail." She then reminded.
"Then I say we track them down and beat the info out of them." Homura suggested as she cracked her knuckles.
"Is that really an option?" Makoto asked in a cautious tone. "If we do so, we could risk our identities being revealed." She then stated.
"A shinobi-only operation." Miyabi clarified. "This shouldn't be anything new to us. We have all the info we need thanks to Futaba. All we have to do is grab them and get to work squeezing the info right out of them." She then added.
"They could also lie and get us into even more trouble. Or take one of those suicide pills to avoid giving up secrets. They seem big and ambitious enough to do that sort of thing." Akira soon pointed out. "We don't know how powerful this Conspiracy is yet, so let's try not to poke the hornet's nest too much. We can't face them directly just yet." He then stated and advised.
"Are you sure, Leader?" Miyabi questioned.
"We're already way in over our heads here. We should at least use some caution, even if it could give us an advantage over our enemy." Akira reminded and stated.
"Okay, Leader. But that still doesn't solve any of our current problems." Homura stated.
"That's why we need to discuss this before we do anything rash." Makoto concluded.
"Hold on, we're all making guesses under the assumption that Okumura has a Palace." Ann reminded. "Has anyone checked if he has one?" She soon asked.
"Already did." Futaba responded, getting the attention of the others while she didn't even bother turning away from her laptop. "Can confirm that he has one." She then informed.
"...Crap." Ryuji swore under his breath.
"...It feels kinda bad to ignore it, then." Ann admitted.
"Yeah." Akira responded. "But that's okay. We can't go and do every Palace we come across. This was bound to happen eventually. We just need to stay calm and-" He then started, however...
"Got it!" Futaba exclaimed, causing a few of them to jump.
"Futaba, don't just scream out of nowhere..." Miyabi scolded.
"Sorry, but I've managed to find out where all the votes for Okumura came from." The hacker informed the Thieves.
"That was fast." Yusuke remarked.
"Hey, I have way more computing power than you think." Futaba got out as the not cat flinched a little. "I can't track 'em down yet, but I do know a lot of these votes are from virtual machines. Fake computers, spoof IPs, and dummy accounts." The hacker soon informed.
"You mean like those spam callers?" Ryuji guessed.
"Exactly." Futaba confirmed with a nod.
"Can you somehow fix it and erase those fake votes?" Akira then asked.
"Already working on it and beefing up the security of the site." Futaba replied. "You may want the admin in on this too." The hacker then suggested.
Akira in response nodded to that. "I'll let Mishima know his site was hacked." He replied as he took his phone out and began typing.
"And this is what the poll looked like before all those bots stuffed the app's voting system and algorithm." Futaba soon revealed as she brought up the fixed ranking.
"Okumura's not even in the top 100..." Asuka muttered.
"Shit. That means most of Okumura's votes are fake." Ryuji got out.
"And Akechi got first place." Akira stated with a frown.
"Bastards..." Homura growled out. "They were gonna try and frame us for an actual murder!" She then declared.
"How so?" Yusuke asked.
Homura in response sighed as she calmed herself down. "Okay. Here's how it would go if we just blindly went with the votes. They would know who our target is straight from the get-go. We would go through the Palace, send the calling card which signals the Conspiracy to act, fight the Palace Ruler because we suck at stealth and then suddenly, Black Mask comes in, assassinates the Shadow while we're not looking and then not too soon after, Okumura drops dead and we'll become murderers to everyone with them completely turning on us while the bastards who set us up just laugh as we all get blamed, at risk of being arrested and possibly sent to jail for life or executed!" She explained.
"...Unless Black Mask knows who we are already..." Akira pointed out. "Then that possibly becomes a definitely." He then stated.
"Huh?" Asuka got out in confusion.
"Look. Black Mask has already been to both Madarame's and Kaneshiro's Palaces. Their Shadows told us. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch to assume that they've been following us and have a clue to our identities, if not outright know who we are. I mean, let's be real, most of our masks don't exactly hide who we are if they look close enough." Akira then explained in a serious tone.
"Plus, there are other...defining features...that would give us away..." Makoto added as everyone looked at the shinobi girls.
"..." Said shinobi girls soon looked down at their defining features and sweatdropped. "Shit..." The four girls got out in unison.
"Moh, why is it always the boobs that give us the most trouble...?" Asuka mumbled out as she face palmed.
"So in summary...we are boned." Homura bluntly declared.
"Not necessarily." Akira responded as he finished texting Mishima. "The fact that we figured this out means we can counter it." He then stated.
"Yeah..." Ryuji began in an unsure tone before shaking his head and looked a little more confident. "Yeah, we still haven't lost yet. Let's start planning our counterattack against these assholes." He soon declared, with everyone nodding in determination.
"Also Futaba, can you place a message on the Phan-Site saying it's from us telling the people about what we have learned and make it so we are untraceable?" Miyabi then asked. "As well as letting them all know that we didn't kill Shujin Academy's principal." She soon added.
The orangette in turn nodded to that. "Alright." Futaba replied, already started typing on her laptop. "Anything specific?" She soon asked.
"...Just that there are people trying to frame us for all the incidents that have occurred relating to mental shutdowns and psychotic breakdowns." Miyabi answered as the others nodded in agreement.
"Alright." Futaba responded with a nod. "This should be good enough, right?" She soon assumed as she then showed her laptop.
Do not believe the rumors. We did not target the principal of Shujin Academy, and neither was it suicide. There is someone working against us to deceive everyone. We are not letting a murder under our name slide. -The Phantom Thieves.
"Quick and simple. Nothing to it." Makoto remarked.
"I dunno about this..." Homura mumbled with a frown. "If we send a message, we'll be showing our hand to the enemy. They'll know we'll know." She then confessed and explained.
"Well, we can't just say nothing about the principal's death." Yusuke pointed out. "Do we have another option?" He then questioned.
The tan skinned girl closed her eyes in thought before snapping her fingers. "What if we lean into it? Claim that we did it to throw this Conspiracy group off. Make them think that we're in their grasp but then rip the carpet right under them?" Homura suggested. "Because if we post that, this Conspiracy might become more dangerous when they realize they can't manipulate us." She then added.
The Leader however shook his head at this idea. "I wouldn't, that would cause us to gain a bad image and even make us wanted criminals if we do so." Akira responded.
"Akira, we are already wanted criminals. Ever since we took down Kamoshida and Madarame." Homura pointed out. "The Phantom Thieves, to the public, have just killed someone. Forcing confessions is one thing but straight up murder will have the police gun for us like we're terrorists. The principal may have been an ass, but any life taken will be treated seriously if they actually believe we're at fault for this." She then stated.
"What do you think, Leader?" Futaba asked in a serious tone.
Akira frowned as he actually thought about it.
We killed the principal. Leaning into it would definitely alert the public. The police will work harder on finding their identities. And the people might see them as no-good murderers or as vigilantes. However, if it all goes well and the public still supports them, it would more than likely cause the Conspiracy to think they could manipulate them, while in reality they were manipulating the Conspiracy.
We didn't kill the principal. Denying it would only do so much good. They were infamous criminals and it's natural to deny killing someone. They could only trust the public to take their word for it, and even then they couldn't just give evidence that they didn't do anything without revealing their identities. And the Conspiracy would work harder on framing the Phantom Thieves. Was there an advantage to denying that they were murderers, even if it is true that they had nothing to do with Kobayakawa's death?
Say nothing. Keeping the public and the enemy in the dark seemed pretty good on paper, but given the responses to the possibility of them killing, things might spiral out even worse.
Whatever he chose would have serious consequences for their group and public reception would most likely vary. And not to mention that the Conspiracy was keeping a very close eye on the website...if not one of them. Plus, their word would only go so far. It was up to the population to decide if they believed them or not.
Soon enough, the Leader finally came to a decision.
"...We're not murderers. Let the people know that. We didn't kill the principal." Akira answered in a serious tone.
"Are you sure? Because as soon as we post this, we're effectively declaring war against this conspiracy." Futaba warned.
"If it's a war they want, it's a war they'll lose. Post it." Akira ordered.
"Sending it to the admin right now." Futaba responded with a nod before typing away. "I hope you know what you're doing, Joker." She then muttered before hitting Enter on her keyboard.
Akira's body tensed, but didn't show it to his fellow members. There's no turning back now.
"Well, that's taken care of, but we still have a ton of other problems to deal with." Homura sighed out as she crossed her arms under her breasts.
"Kunizaku Okumura definitely has a Palace, but whoever's trying to manipulate us is trying to get us to change his heart for some reason." Makoto stated with a frown. "What do we do?" She then questioned.
"...It's actually pretty obvious." Yumi spoke up with a smirk on her face. "We change his heart in the real world." She soon declared.
"Huh? How the hell do we do that?" Ryuji then asked in confusion.
"Don't worry about that, leave it to me to figure out. But right now we should set our sights on another target. Someone not in the top three or even on the poll at all." Yumi soon suggested.
"And what would that solve?" Ann had to ask.
"Well, we need to blindside this Conspiracy somehow." Yumi answered. "If someone has been following us, we can distract them while we change their heart right under their noses. Once we do, they'll be scrambling to fix their plan for us. And that's when we go in for the kill." She then explained.
"Like...changing the hearts of two different people at the same time?" Asuka assumed.
"Yes. They won't expect us to not only change the heart of someone completely unrelated, but to also change their chosen target's heart without the Metaverse." Yumi added with a smirk.
"That's quite the plan." Makoto got out in an impressed manner. "But how would we go about changing his heart without our usual method?" She then questioned.
"Who said we can't get rid of a Palace by using the MetaNav and stealing his Treasure? Basically, we show the error of his ways in the real world. Show the suffering he's causing, make him experience his own cruel hands." Yumi answered. "If we can do that, there would be no need to even find his keywords. And given how much trouble that caused us..."
"If it's not an option, we could just do that instead." Futaba stated.
"It'll be a lot trickier to leave no evidence though..." Yusuke however pointed out with a frown.
Suddenly, Miyabi raised her hand. "...Does this involve kidnapping?" She asked.
"...Admittingly, that is an option. Maybe if it comes down to it. However, I think more along the lines of making him work in his own production line or at the very least actually going to one of his factories." Yumi answered. "Anyways, while one team does that, the other team will go after a completely different Palace to throw off these manipulators and also garner more support for the Phantom Thieves." She then explained her plan.
"I agree." Makoto replied as she nodded to the suggestion. "So there should be two teams. A Reality Team, to convince Okumura to rid himself of his distorted desires in reality." She then instructed.
"And a Metaverse Team to take care of our secondary target." Yumi added.
Everyone nodded, however the only one who didn't seem pleased with the plan was the Vice Leader herself. "Sis? You don't look happy about this." Homura got out with a frown.
"Mmm, I know Kunikazu Okumura was at the top of the hacked ranking..." Asuka started, getting the attention of others. "But, I think we should at least check it out." She soon revealed.
"Sis?" Homura got out in confusion. "Why do you say that?" She soon asked.
"Well, if we can't do either, we can do the Palace. Plus, we're aware of what this Conspiracy is planning so we can do our best to ensure we don't walk right into a trap." Asuka answered in an uneasy tone. "I just feel as though...we should look into it." She then revealed.
"...Well, it wouldn't hurt..." Akira muttered out. "Alright, then let's have a third, smaller Okumura Palace Team. If all else fails, we can at least have information on what we're dealing with." He then stated. "Is everyone in agreement?" He then asked.
"Sounds good enough. Splitting the team is dangerous, but it's not like we have a choice if we want to stop this Conspiracy." Makoto answered with a nod.
To this statement, the rest of the group also nodded in agreement.
"It's unanimous. Three teams will be needed for this operation." Morgana announced. "But now the problem is, how will the teams be organized?"
"Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. We better make sure the teams have our best possible people on the job." Makoto advised as she turned to the Leader. "You have any ideas, Akira?" She soon asked.
Akira was about to answer, however the hacker interrupted him.
"Ah, the post is up." Futaba informed as she scrolled through her phone. "And it is definitely blowing up all the socials. Look at all the reactions." She then got out.
"And the poll on the Phan-Site just took a nosedive..." Homura announced as she watched the poll drop from the low 90s to mid 60s.
"And there's already comments about how the poll was hacked." Asuka then informed.
"No way! The Phantom Thieves left a message!"
"Cosa dice? Mi serve una traduzione!"
"Tch, they let losers take over the site? Lame."
"They totally did it."
"Holy shit! The site was actually hacked!?"
"Why would someone fuck up the votes?"
"They're lying. They totally killed that fat fuck."
"Man it really dropped though."
"Whoa! So Akechi's number 1 huh?"
"But that principal totally deserved it..."
"Wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it."
"A conspiracy going on here?"
"How dark."
"Akechi can suck duck!"
"RALLY TOGETHER INTERNET! FOR THE THIEVES!"
"Find the actual murderers!"
As the group looked at their phones, they sighed briefly as they then looked at one another again. "Well those comments were to be expected." Yumi calmly informed.
"We still have supporters, but it seems not everyone believes us." Yusuke reported.
"We can win them back later. Right now, we have bigger fish to fry." Akira got out as he put away his phone. "Back to the meeting, we need three teams. Two big, one small. Who is volunteering for the Alternate Palace?" He then stated and questioned.
"Eh, I'll do it." Ryuji instantly spoke up. "Ain't too much of a people person." He sopn admitted.
"You have made that abundantly clear already, Ryuji." Homura muttered while the ash blonde and not cat snorted in agreement.
"Hey!" The dyed blond called out in an offended manner.
"I guess I will join the Palace team as well." Yusuke got out. "I am not one for talk, nor stealth." He then confessed.
"Alright, that's two..." Morgana muttered before turning to the Leader. "Akira, are you gonna throw your hat in?" He soon asked.
"Hmmm..." Akira hummed out as a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.
"Hey, wait! Hold on. If we're gonna be splittin' up, whatever team that doesn't have Leader on it is going to be at a serious disadvantage." Ryuji soon pointed out.
"He's right. Akira can make friends with just about anyone and he has an entire army of Personas at his disposal." Ann reminded in agreement.
"Well, maybe he should join Ryuji and Yusuke. They need the help." Miyabi soon suggested.
"But Akira could be useful in getting Okumura to confess without the Metaverse." Ann pointed out.
"But doesn't his Third Eye thing allow us to bypass security much more easily?" Homura pointed out as she tapped the side of her head.
"Enough! Look, I know we all need his charisma and special abilities in order to pull this off, but he can't be in three places at once." Morgana added. "We should let Akira decide which team he'll be on. So, Joker, are you going to be helping with the other Palace or are you going to help with changing Okumura's heart? Or will you be helping scout out his Palace?" He soon suggested followed by the question.
Join the Alternate Palace Team.
Join the Reality Team.
Join the Okumura Palace Team.
"...I'll go join the alternate Palace team. They're tackling an entire Palace with a third of the usual manpower. It'll be too dangerous without me taking care of weaknesses you can't cover." Akira decided.
"Alright, so Joker will lead the alternate Palace team." Morgana got out with a nod.
"Since Yumi's the one who brought up changing Okumura's heart in the real world, she should lead that team as well." Makoto suggested. "Miyabi, I believe you should go with her." She then suggested. "Be sure to get along." She then requested.
"...Of course." Miyabi hesitantly replied with a nod.
"I will gladly lead my team to victory." Yumi promised with a bow.
"If they're going through an entire Palace, then my skills will definitely be needed. I'm joining up with Joker's team." Futaba got out before looking at the white haired girl. "Don't worry Big Sis, I'll be alright." She then assured with a confident smirk.
Miyabi looked at her for a moment before sighing. "Just don't go crazy while I'm away."
"Hey, this is serious. I'll tone down my Futaba-isims." The hacker assured.
"Alright. I guess I'll agree to this." Miyabi got out with a nod. "So, who's the leader of the scouting team?" She soon asked.
"I will lead." Asuka spoke up with a determined look on her face.
"I'll go with Sis." Homura then stated. "There's no way I'm letting her go into whatever sick Palace Okumura has alone." She added as she narrowed her eyes.
"No surprise there Homura-san." Yumi meanwhile quipped out in amusement. "I thought you already had enough alone time with Asuka-san?" She then added.
"Yumi-chan, no teasing Homu-neechan." Asuka however chidded in disapproval.
"I'm sure Asuka and Homura alone should be good enough for our scouting team." Akira stated.
"I-I'm joining the scouting team too!" Morgana quickly called out, getting everyone's attention. "Since I'm the team medic, I can heal them just in case they run into trouble." He then added.
"Yeah? Asuka has healing spells too and Homura's a tank. Plus they're a ton more stealthier than you." Ryuji pointed out. "If all goes well, they won't need you. Having three members is pushin' it really if you're supposed to be a stealth team anyways." He soon added.
"I said I'm going, and that's final!" Morgana however declared.
"Um...Okay." Akira got out as he narrowed his eyes. Morgana has been acting pretty weird lately. He had a feeling he knew what his problem was but he wanted to wait a little bit more until he stepped in.
"Don't worry, Morgana-chan. We're gonna make it to the Treasure without even being seen." Asuka promised with a determined nod.
"I'm trusting you here, Asuka. You, Homura and Morgana will go and infiltrate Okumura's Palace." Akira soon instructed. "Collect as much info as you can and secure a route deep into the Palace. You're a small team so combat should be avoided." He then added.
"Roger that, Joker." Asuka replied with a quick salute.
"And don't be afraid to ask for help." Akira then added in a serious manner.
"We won't need it." Morgana assured in a confident manner. "Just take care of what you guys are capable of while we ensure the backup plan. Okay, who else needs a team to join?"
"That should just be me and Makoto then." Ann spoke up. "Well, there's only two people on the Reality Team so let's join them." She then suggested.
"I agree. We'll do our best under your care, Widow." Makoto responded with a nod, receiving one back from the leader of the team.
"Alright, the teams are Joker, Oracle, Skull and Fox dealing with the other Palace. Widow, Serpent, Queen, and Panther are going to change Okumura's heart in the real world. And Yin, Yang and Mona are scouting out his Palace in case both plans fail." Akira announced. "Any problems?"
"Uh...yeah?" The dyed blond got out as he awkwardly raised his hand.
"What is it?" Akira asked.
"We need better names for the teams than Okumura Palace team and shit. Too much of a mouthful." Ryuji suggested.
"Yeah, it kind of is." Futaba agreed. "How about Team Yin-Yang-Mo for Yin's team, Team Phantom for Joker's team and Team Heart for Widow's team." She then suggested.
"Why is Asuka's team name more elaborate than the rest?" Miyabi thought with a sweatdrop.
"Um, why Team Heart for my team?" Yumi meanwhile asked in a curious matter.
"Look, I just made it up on the spot. Plus, all of you are the most beautiful, cutest and nicest out of all of us." Futaba replied.
This however got Yumi's attention. "Cutest?" She repeated with a smile and a gleam in her eyes.
"Beautiful? Me?" Miyabi however asked in confusion with a raised eyebrow.
"You're also the least weirdest out of all of us." Akira added.
"Hey!" Ryuji called out in an indignant tone.
"...Eh, I can see it." Futaba however got out with a nod.
Ignoring the name choice for her team, the advisor put on a serious expression and let out a breath. "Okay. Our plan is set. Let's all get some rest for school tomorrow." Makoto concluded. "Hopefully we can stop this Conspiracy before they gather too much steam against us." She then stated.
"Hey, we're practically a force of nature at this point." Akira stated in a confident manner. "Whatever they're expecting, they've got another thing coming." He soon declared.
"Hai. They'll never see it coming." Asuka added with a smirk.
"In any case, this meeting is over, let's meet up in a few days. Maybe Sunday, or sooner if we run into trouble." Makoto soon instructed. "And besides doing your jobs, remember to act like normal as best as our group can." She then added.
"Roger that, Queen." Ann responded with a quick salute.
"And don't try to use our name for the sake of picking up girls." Homura added, looking directly at Ryuji.
"I get it, I get it. Come on, it was kinda a moment of weakness." Ryuji groaned.
"Ryuji-kun, you're stronger than that." Asuka stated. "You don't need to be a Phantom Thief to get a girl. I know you can do it by just being yourself." She then encouraged.
"Except less loud, and more well-spoken, and god's sake, stop staring at every new set of-" Ann then added, only for the Vuce Leader to elbow her stomach. "Oof! Sorry, sorry..." She got out and apologized.
"Everyone go home, please." Akira then ordered. With that, the group left the restaurant to go home for the night.
However, when Akira began his nightly routine of working out before bed, he noticed that someone was missing.
"Morgana?"
(Tokyo Metropolitan Police, SIU Director's Office)
It was a tough job sometimes.
Sure, there were perks. An office with the best damn view of Tokyo, a nice salary that would allow him to live comfortably once he retires, and the respect and authority that came with his position. However, there was always a need to ensure that it stays that way for as long as possible. A constant fight between him and variables.
And right now, the variables were making their move.
The current news report regarding the Shujin Academy principal displaying on the TV screen in front of him didn't really faze him completely. For the SIU Director, it was somehow bound to happen, though his eyes kept narrowed at the report since it is related to their major project.
"So...he got you now, huh..." He then muttered, arms on his desk with his fingers interlocking in front of his mouth. "A shame." He then stated, somehow sarcastically.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
Huh. He thought he had a little more time before this appointment. He was getting old.
"Come in." The SIU Director called out loud at the door.
The door swung open, allowing Sae Niijima to step inside his office. "Good evening, sir." She greeted with a polite bow.
"Niijima-san." The SIU Director breathed out. "How is your current case going?" He soon questioned.
"I've been making a lot of progress, but still nowhere near enough for a conviction." The prosecutor answered. "But that's not why I'm here." Sae soon stated, her red eyes darkening slightly.
"It's about the news, isn't it?" The Director assumed.
"Sir, the Phantom Thieves just released a statement on the recent death of Kiyoto Kobayakawa." Sae informed in a serious tone. "They believe someone is framing them. However, that was all just speculation, rumors the public spread around after news broke of his death." She then stated.
"That seems to be expected. The Phantom Thieves seem to care a lot about their public reception." The Director got out, not looking too bothered of this turn of events.
"I am aware. However, it seems his death managed to spur on their supporters." Sae informed as she pulled out her phone to show the Director the Phan-Site. "They're cheering for his death. They're potentially supporting murderers over the government and police." She then stressed with a glare.
"That is concerning, Niijima-san." The SIU Director admitted. "But still controllable. This has not been the first time the public has lost faith in the system. We still have plenty of time before the Phantom Thieves will announce their target. Besides, this has all but confirmed their guilt. We just need evidence to prove it." He then got out in a confident manner.
"Then what do we do?" Sae asked.
"Keep vigilant." The director answered. "Until we get a clue on their next move, we can only react and minimize the damage they do. For now, we gather as much evidence as we can and plan accordingly." He then explained.
"That has been the plan since the Phantom Thieves appeared back in May." Sae pointed out, holding back the frustration in her tone. "We need to take action before the public fully loses all trust in authority." She then insisted.
The Director raised an eyebrow to her tone of voice. "And what brought this on, Niijima-san?" He asked.
Sae subtly gulped. "...I believe something may have happened to me recently." She answered in a cautious manner. "I noticed there was evidence of tampering on my laptop. I have reasons to believe that someone gained access to it and stole files from them." She then revealed.
The director in turn narrowed his eyes. "A hacker?" He assumed.
"A possibility. Such individuals can do almost anything these days." Sae responded with a nod. "Although, I made sure to keep my laptop offline. I specifically bought one that cannot connect to the internet." She then added with a frown. That would mean stealing the data physically, and the only person who had access to her laptop was...
"Niijima-san," The SIU Director spoke up, snapping Sae out of her (troubling) thoughts. "I shouldn't have to warn you again that you're starting to go into matters meant for real police, not a prosecutor. You're getting too worked up over this case. You need to remain calm, or else these Thieves will take advantage of that vulnerability." He advised the woman.
Sae agreed with a nod. "Should I turn in my laptop for evidence?" She then asked.
"No. I simply want all the local files you have on it, especially those with signs of tampering by tomorrow morning." the Director requested.
"Yes, sir. I'll do this right away." Sae responded with a polite bow.
"You may leave. I need to be alone." The Director then ordered the prosecutor.
"Of course, sir." Sae replied, ending the appointment with another polite bow before leaving his office.
After a minute of silence, the man let out a sigh. "Che, we've gotten sloppy." The SIU Director muttered rather calmly but with a slight hint of irritation before pulling out his phone and dialed a number. "Sir." He then started, phone in his left ear.
"What is it?"
"Code Black, sir, Scenario 5." The SIU Director stated.
"Tch. Such a waste of time. I'll send some people your way."
"Location?" The Director questioned.
"Edogawa. Saturday, 1600. Payment should be in the 8 digit range."
"That will be arranged. That will be all. Have a good day." The Director promised before saying his goodbyes.
"To you as well."
The SIU Director let out a breath and looked out the window. After taking in the view of Tokyo at night, he smirked.
The Phantom Thieves...
If they're thinking this is a game, it's high time they start playing.
And the Phantom Thieves just gave them their entire hand.
(Shibuya, Station Square)
The two sisters had decided not to head straight home after the meeting. They still had a few hours left until the trains shut down for the night so they headed for Station Square to hang out before they end the day.
"So Sis, what made you think we should find Okumura's Palace to begin with?" Homura asked in a curious manner.
"Well, it was confirmed he has a Palace." Asuka replied. "And I've been looking into him since we left Leblanc. A lot of former employees are saying he's practically running a black company with how he treats his workers." She then added. She had looked this all up on their way here.
"...Was this also because of the mascot job I had for a short while?" Homura soon assumed.
In response, Asuka nodded. "Made by RondoCo. Cheapest mascot suits manufacturer in Japan." She soon informed.
"...I should be surprised, but I'm not..." Homura sighed. "Now, are we gonna get ice cream or not? I wanna savor this moment of calm before we dive head first into the fire." She then got out as she rubbed her empty-feeling belly.
"Don't you want to have dinner first?" Asuka questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"Hey, you can have dessert before dinner. And maybe after it too." Homura responded.
"Well, we could at least get some real food in our bellies first." Asuka advised. "Let's go get beef bowls." She then got out as they began making their way to Central Street.
"...You think one of us should've joined the Alt Palace team?" Homura suddenly asked.
"Team Phantom?" Asuka got out with a raised eyebrow.
"They're the only ones without someone like us to back them up." Homura pointed out while furrowing her eyebrows.
"They'll be fine without us. You need to trust them." The Vice Leader assured the tan skinned girl.
"I do, but there's always this feeling that something might go wrong." Homura sighed out.
"Okay, now you're the one being paranoid, Homu-neechan." Asuka stated.
"There's nothing wrong with being cautious though Lady Asuka. We do have the weirdest kind of luck after all." A familiar voice however pointed out.
The sisters quickly looked around before spotting a familiar yellow collar and blue eyes amongst the dark shadows of the night. "Morgana-chan!?" Asuka exclaimed in confusion.
"Hey, I thought you'd be at Leblanc." Homura got out with a frown. "You should go home and get some rest. We're gonna be busy for the next few days." She then instructed and added.
"I know. But I can't let an opportunity like this slide." Morgana however turned down. "Not after my failure." He mentally added.
"Morgana-chan, are you okay?" Asuka soon questioned in concern.
"It's nothing." The not cat reassured with a shake of his head. "Lady Asuka, Lady Homura, we already let our enemy take advantage of us. They've stolen a target from us, and are now trying to destroy us through lies and manipulation." Morgana soon reminded with a determined look on his face. "We will not let that happen again." He then added in a serious tone.
"Yep. We won't let this Conspiracy stop us." Asuka responded with a fist pump. "Let's meet up tomorrow and plan our infiltration. I'm sure everyone else is doing the same thing with their teams." She then suggested.
"Hold up." The not cat however stopped the sisters. "I just said we weren't going to let this Conspiracy stop us, right?" Morgana reminded.
"Yes? And?" Homura responded as she narrowed her eyes.
"Why let a night like this go to waste?" Morgana got out in a serious tone. "Grab your gear, girls. We're going Palace hunting." He then ordered.
"Wait? Right now?" Homura got out in an incredulous tone.
"Morgana-chan, I'm the one in charge of-" Asuka tried to remind the not cat, however...
"Well, there's no time like the present. We already failed with Kobayakawa's Palace, so we're not risking it this time." Morgana replied and stated before looking up to the stars. "Tonight...we're gonna infiltrate Okumura's Palace." He soon declared with a fire in his eyes.
Asuka and Homura looked at each other and grimaced.
Looks like they weren't gonna get ice cream after all.
Save Game…Quit!
Asuka/Yin's Social Stats:
Leadership- Paragon (Level 5)
Knowledge- Sage (Level 5)
Proficiency- Masterful (Level 4)
Diligence- Rock Solid (Level 5)
Courage- Heroic (Level 5)
Homura/Yang's Development Stats:
Maturity- Adult (Level 4)
Knowledge- Sage (Level 5)
Femininity- Natural (Level 4)
Elegance- Yamato Nadeshiko (Level 5)
Understanding- Saintly (Level 5)
Whew! Done! So this has been planned for a very, very long time. Morgana doesn't leave, he is just super depressed and determined to prove himself even if it means dying horribly. Hooray for a better outcome!
UknownHero signing off, my friends!
