Senran Persona: Ninjas of Hearts

by UknownHero

Collab with JGResidentEvil and VividMind17. Fate can be an interesting thing within life. It can bring unexpected changes that no one can truly see. For two girls, those that were destined to be rivals between good and evil, changed under the masks of rebellion to forge their own true paths. Now get up and stand your ground because these sexy ninjas are gonna steal your heart!

117. Resolve

Hey, UknownHero here and welcome to 2023 of Senran Persona everyone! Hooray! We're starting this year with the Halo number! I hope things are better this year than last year. And the year before that. And the year before that. Definitely the year before that.

Anyways, onto the reviews. To Little Voracious: To explain why Yumi had a spot in Madarame's Museum, well, Madarame considered Yumi as an accomplice to his forgeries and scams just for hiding the fact he was doing so in a vain attempt to protect Yusuke. She gets a spot because she helped him, and she would've gotten an actual portrait once she begins helping him… all he needed was to use Yusuke as a bargaining chip. To KingJGamer: I have already said in many other author's notes that we will do other installments after Senran Persona is done. Seriously, people need to read these more or I need to set up an FAQ. To FateKeepers: You'll see.

Okay, that's it! Time to have strange encounters of the shinobi kind!

Load Game…Start!

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Chapter 117: Resolve

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(9/14, Evening)

(Shibuya, Shin Megami Apartment Complex)

"We need to talk. Please." Murasaki soon stated in a dead serious tone, causing the white haired woman to freeze up.

She never heard the purplette sound like this before. It was foreign even.

"M...Murasaki..." Miyabi breathed out in disbelief.

"That's my name, don't wear it out." The purplette simply responded. "You recently spoke with...Onee-chan, didn't you." Murasaki soon assumed, though the second part was a little strained and venomous.

Miyabi meanwhile winced as she heard the tone of voice regarding her childhood friend. "Yes." She soon responded.

"Then you know why I'm mad at her." Murasaki then stated.

"And you have the right to me." Miyabi admitted in agreement. "Even I admit...Imu went way too far just to say you were weak." She then added.

"I'M NOT WEAK!" Murasaki however screamed, causing the white haired woman to wince at the fury. "SHE ONLY CALLED ME THAT CAUSE I TRIED TO NOT USE THE ROOT!" She then declared.

"M-Murasaki..." Miyabi started, however...

"Ever since my parents pressured me to use our family's shinobi gifts when I was a kid, especially the Root, it gave my life nothing but pain and suffering! Even Onee-chan pressured me to use it, and...and...I almost killed her because of it at that time!" The purplette soon ranted in anger and frustration. "I AM NOT WEAK, DAMMIT! I CAN BE A STRONG SHINOBI WITHOUT MY STUPID ROOT! RRRRAAGHHHH!" Murasaki soon declared while roaring.

There was a moment of silence between them, despite the purplette's heavy breathing from her sudden rant. "...Is that all?" Miyabi eventually asked as she heard the purplette calming down.

"Eh?" Murasaki got out in confusion.

Miyabi let out a sigh as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Because all I got out of that little rant is that you feel as if the world owes you something." She admitted. "Honestly, your former self sounds better than who I'm talking to now." She then added.

"W-What!? But I was-" Murasaki began.

"A shut-in who hated herself." Miyabi finished. "Is who you are now much better?" She soon asked.

"...What?" Murasaki responded in confusion.

"The vitriol, the refusal of anything of your past, you act like the Murasaki from only a few weeks ago didn't deserve to exist. Like they're a completely different person." Miyabi pointed out, almost sounding offended by such a thought. "Complete erasure of the old self. You still hate yourself, it's just with extra steps. That's not confronting the problem, you're just running away from it." She soon stated.

"I am not running away. I am not a coward." Murasaki got out, most likely gripping her phone tight at the mere thought.

"Then why did you come running to me instead of facing the real problem?" Miyabi soon asked.

"...Onee-chan?" The purplette guessed in a cautious manner.

"No, Hebijo. The principal, the investors, the higher ups." Miyabi corrected. "They were the ones that ordered Imu to get you to unleash the Root." She then pointed out.

"But it was Onee-chan that-" Murasaki once more began.

"Murasaki, do you honestly believe Imu would do something like that to you under normal circumstances?" The white haired woman questioned in a serious tone. "What has she done to you that didn't involve Hebijo in some way?" Miyabi soon added.

"...Erm...Um..." Murasaki got out.

"I won't let Imu be entirely blameless on this, but have you ever considered the possibility that she's been doing this for you?" Miyabi pressed, feeling a little worked up as the purplette seemingly scrambled for an answer. "I know plenty of times where hurting someone is best for them in the long run." She then added in a somber tone.

"But...isn't there a way that no one is really hurt?" Murasaki countered.

"Nothing is ever gained without sacrifice, and I'm speaking from experience here, all my days at Hebijo taking on missions and following orders from our investors and higher-ups." Miyabi replied. "There are no best options for everyone in life." She then added with a shrug.

"..." Murasaki was soon silent with no form of response.

"Look, Murasaki, I'm not going to get myself any more involved with this. This is between you and Imu." Miyabi stated. "I don't have a sibling. I wasn't even aware of any of this until a few minutes ago. I'm not going to tell you what to do because, to be honest, I'm the worst person to come to for situations like this." She then added.

"But I need-" Murasaki began.

"My advice to you is to sit down and work out your issues with Imu without any outside interference. That is the best solution I can come up with. Whatever happens is up to you." Miyabi interrupted.

"Miyabi-san, please-" Murasaki tried to get out.

"No. I am not a counselor, or a therapist, or anyone qualified for this! I'm barely even a shinobi! I just fucked a mission earlier, and I wanna go to sleep, but you're both dumping all this drama on me so don't! Call me! Until either you stab one another or you talk it out!" Miyabi snapped before hanging up.

She then grabbed the first object she could get her hands on and screamed into it.

Miyabi then slowly pulled her face away from the bundle of panties and put it back into her laundry pile. They needed cleaning.

Maybe she really shouldn't have told the purplette that last part with that kind of tone, but she was extremely stressed over the day's events, and she did not want to deal with this on top of the Conspiracy, or enemy Persona-users, or whatever disaster that was going to happen tomorrow. So, she just decided to get into the shower and go straight to bed.

---

(9/15, Early Morning)

(Shibuya, Shin Megami Apartment Complex)

Asuka and Homura glared at each other as they circled around the room, just waiting for the other to strike. They were dressed for school, sure, but the dangerous auras they exhumed made it clear that they were ready for a challenge.

"It had to end like this some time, Sis." Homura stated as she rolled her shoulders.

"I agree. This has been going too long." Asuka responded.

"Then...shall we?" The tan skinned girl asked as they stopped walking.

"We shall." The Vice Leader replied as she cracked her knuckles.

Homura nodded to that as the sisters readied themselves, a subtle breeze from an electric fan causing their hair to flow dramatically.

"Rock!" Asuka cried out as she raised fist into the air.

"Paper!" Homura responded as she pulled her fist back.

"Scissors!" They then concluded before...

WOOSH!

There was a moment of silence as the two dared the other to break and look down first, looking into each other's eyes without blinking.

Asuka had rock, Homura had scissors.

"Yes! We're getting fried eel for dinner tonight!" Asuka cheered as she hopped into the air joyously.

"Grrr...curse you, Asuka!" Homura growled while shaking her fist, her lips quivering as she tried to stop herself from laughing. "You may have won this round, but next time I won't lose." She soon declared.

"Homu-neechan, we can have sukiyaki next week." Asuka giggled.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Holy-!" Homura exclaimed as she heard the loud door banging."Miyabi, you don't need to knock on the door so hard! You wanna break it or something?" She called out.

"How do you know it's Miyabi-chan?" Asuka asked in a curious manner as she tilted her head.

"Who else visits us so early in the morning?" The tan-skinned girl however stated while walking towards the apartment door.

"Oh. Right." The Vice Leader replied.

The tan-skinned girl opened the door, revealing the white haired woman as she expected who it was. "You don't look happy. What do you want?" Homura asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Can...Can I come in?" Miyabi hesitantly requested. "I...need some advice from both you and Asuka." She then confessed.

"Yeah, I don't see why not." Homura responded.

"Have you eaten, Miyabi-chan?" Asuka soon asked.

"No. As soon as I woke up, I came here." Miyabi revealed.

"Okay, I'll make an extra serving." Asuka replied.

"Thanks." Miyabi replied in a grateful manner.

The Vice Leader soon headed into the kitchen and made a quick egg soup for everyone to enjoy. It was warm and filling. "Soooo, what happened, Miyabi-chan?" Asuka soon asked.

"Well...it happened last night..." Miyabi began as she told the sisters about what had happened after she went into her apartment.

"Eh!? Your best friend and her sister are fighting!?" Asuka exclaimed in concern.

Miyabi nodded. "Yeah. And all because of Hebijo." She soon explained.

"So...my squad back at Hebijo has been helping this Murasaki girl in a similar way with what we did for Futaba?" Homura deducted.

"Essentially." Miyabi responded with a nod.

"And...your best friend disapprove of this?" Asuka soon asked in confusion.

"...Yes." Miyabi shamefully answered. "She really took her family's lessons to heart and...it influenced her greatly." She then added in an uneasy manner. "But don't get me wrong Homura, I approve of your friends helping Murasaki out." She soon confessed in a grateful manner with a bow.

"Why do you think I would disprove such a thing?" Homura questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"W-Well...your friends aren't exactly what I'd call...sane." Miyabi confessed.

"Oh, I agree. None of us are, but at least we're trying as far as I can tell." Homura stated in a matter-of-fact tone. "So, the core of the issue right now is the Root of Calamity." She concluded.

"Yep." Miyabi responded with a nod.

"This Root thing...it's not good, is it?" Asuka soon guessed.

"It's fueled by one's sadness and anger." Miyabi revealed.

"Powers are not inherently good or evil." Homura pointed out.

"But...those emotions can-" Asuka began to argue, but was almost instantly rebutted.

"Be directed." Homura pointed out. "Sis, after we learn about a target, how do you feel?" She soon questioned.

Asuka blinked before furrowing her brow. "...Angry. Disgusted." She answered.

"And where do you focus those emotions at?" Homura pressed.

"The target. Shadows. Anyone in our way." Asuka responded.

"And the result?" Homura then asked.

"Changing their heart." Asuka answered.

"There you go. Say what you will about anger, or sadness, or hate, but they're good emotions to have." Homura explained. "Without them, we stagnate. We don't fight for the better, or wish things to change." She then stated.

"But...it still seems so...evil." Asuka admitted in a concerned manner.

"Guys. There's a Persona-user who has been killing people through the Metaverse for the past two years." Miyabi soon reminded. "They killed Futaba's mother too. We have the power to do the same to anyone else on this planet. The only thing stopping us is circumstances." She then added.

"Moh..." Asuka mumbled with a pout.

"Still, we're not going crazy when you unleash our Personas." Homura replied. "Do you have any idea how Murasaki can control it? A technique like that couldn't be passed down through generations if it kills everything at the drop of a hat." She soon asked and pointed out.

"I wouldn't know." Miyabi answered with a shrug. "My best bet would be Imu, but not only can't she use it, but I doubt those two will take my advice and talk it out before it gets worse." She then added.

"Plus the fact they're currently arguing." Homura reminded.

"That was implied, Homura. You don't need to spell it out." Miyabi deadpanned in frustration. "Ugh...maybe I should go back and resolve this in person..." She soon thought up.

"But we need everyone here to deal with the Conspiracy." Asuka pointed out.

"We have, like, a dozen Phantom Thieves. What will go wrong?" Miyabi questioned as the tan skinned girl flinched.

"Futaba-chan would miss you." Asuka answered. "And she's still recovering from her shut-in days..." She then added.

"...Fucking- This would be a lot easier if we were all in Tokyo, something Imu can't do right now thanks to all of her broken bones..." Miyavi grumbled in a frustrated manner. "I really hope that doctor's medicine works..." She mumbled.

"Maybe you should try talking to Yumi-senpai and Akira about this too." Homura soon suggested.

"...Why Yumi?" Miyabi had to ask with a raised eyebrow.

"Because she and the other Gessen girls are like siblings to one another." Homura answered. "I bet she'll have the right advice regarding sibling fighting." She then added.

"What other advice would be better than talking it out?" Miyabi questioned. "Because the other option is fighting, and that will not end well." She then pointed out.

"...I see your point." Homura sighed out. "Urgh...I do not have the brain capacity to be dealing with so many problems all at once." She then admitted with a groan.

"Yeah..." Asuka agreed with a nod.

"I know." Miyabi responded. "Goddammit, I'm gonna be late for work if I don't leave now. I'll see you guys at Okumura Foods, okay?" She grumbled and reminded.

"Hai." Homura got out with a nod.

"Sure thing, sensei." Asuka replied with a nod. "Don't worry, everything will turn out just fine!" She then reassured.

"Then why am I starting not to believe you?" Miyabi muttered as she headed out, causing the Vice Leader's smile to drop.

"Don't let that discourage you, Sis." Homura responded. "After all, we're always the ones who come out on top. The Phantom Thieves have already won, right?" She then got out in a hopeful tone.

"...Yeah." Asuka responded with a nod as they began to head out of the building.

However, the Vice Leader couldn't shake off the feeling that their winning streak was going to end violently or tragically...or both.

---

(Harajuku, Haruka's Apartment)

The blonde doctor in training yawned as she came up to her apartment and opened the door, only to be greeted by the Anointed Shinobi bowing to her.

"Good morning, Haruka-sama." Tsumuji greeted with a respectable bow, already washed and dressed in her maid attire. "How was your stay at the clinic?" She soon asked.

"So polite, Tsumuji-chan!" Haruka praised. "And it was productive and lovely, by the by. And how was your day cleaning up the hideout?" She replied and asked.

"It went...fine." Tsumuji replied after a slight hesitation.

"I don't like that pause in your tone." Haruka got out with a worried expression on her face. "What happened?" She soon asked in concern.

"The...The pink sprouts have overgrown at the hideout Haruka-sama." Tsumuji revealed in an uneasy tone.

"Overgrown?" Haruka repeated with a raised eyebrow.

"They're growing into the cracks and stuff!" Tsumuji responded. "I think a couple broke through some tiles. It's not good at all. The only thing that is good about it is that they shrivel up in sunlight." She then added.

"So...the hideout is going to be unusable eventually?" Haruka assumed in concern.

"It is most likely." Tsumuji confirmed.

"Hmmm...well, that could be a good thing. Hebijo knows of that location, so it's a good opportunity to find somewhere a little more discreet should the need arise." Haruka explained in a casual manner. Plus, she could always transport any samples of those bean sprouts in special containers.

Tsumuji blinked. "O-Oh. I...I thought you would be disappointed I didn't fulfill my duties." She soon confessed.

"It's something you cannot control, Tsumuji-chan. That fact that you tried is all I ask for." Haruka stated.

"H-Haruka-sama..." Tsumuji breathed out in awe...right before narrowing her eyes. "Wait...is this some sort of trick or prank?" She then questioned in a skeptical manner.

"Not at all, I am giving you the praise that you deserve." Haruka answered.

"Only a week ago, you made me lower than the dog." Tsumuji reminded as she slowly inched towards the nearest object she could wield as a weapon if needed.

Haruka however then approached the weary girl and embraced her in a gentle hug. "I'm serious Tsumuji-chan." She reassured.

The Rabbit Anointed flinched, her instincts flaring as she waited for the back stab...but it never came. Actually, this felt...nice. Comforting even.

"...Please tell me you're hypnotized or an imposter because you're genuinely freaking me out here." Tsumuji practically begged the woman.

"I'm not." Haruka responded. "Darling...recently told me some things I now feel guilty about." She then confessed. "And I plan to rectify them starting with you." She soon revealed.

"Eh?" Tsumuji got out.

"You no longer have to dress as a maid and serve me." Haruka soon offered, hoping the Anointed Rabbit kunoichi would understand.

Tsumuji's eyes immediately widened in a panicked manner. "E-Eh!? No no, I'm alright like this now Haruka-sama, I promise!" She soon reassured.

"No, don't say that because you think that's what I want to hear. You are free to do as you wish."

"But...But I do want to do this now Haruka-sama!" Tsumuji confessed before blushing.

"Hm?" Haruka hummed in surprise.

"D-Don't get me wrong. It's not like I like it or anything!" Tsumuji quickly denied. "I just...this is way too soon. I haven't earned my spot on the Crimson Squad yet! I've done too much to let this debt be unpaid. Soooo...I wish to be Haruka-sama's personal maid from now on." She then explained.

"...You also don't have anywhere else to go, do you?" Haruka soon guessed.

"Moh! Why is that so hard for you to understand now Haruka-sama!? I want this!" Tsumuji growled out.

"To be fair, you thought I was hypnotized!" Haruka countered.

"A-An instinctive response since you never usually say things like that." Tsumuji mumbled her response. "I pledge my loyalty to you Haruka-sama." She then concluded with a bow.

"Well...You'll be more than just a maid. You will be a friend, an ally, an Elite Shinobi by the standards of Hebijo." Haruka dramatically declared.

"Then please teach me." Tsumuji responded as she kneeled before Haruka. "I wanna be just as strong as everyone!" She then called out.

"You will be more." Haruka stated with a smile. "You will become...a Kagura!" She then concluded, getting a starry eyed look from the maid.

BZTT! BZZT!

"Hm?" Haruka hummed out as she looked at her phone. "Oh, hold that thought. Hikage is calling me." She then informed.

"Shall I make you breakfast?" Tsumuji soon offered.

"Just some miso soup, thanks." The blonde requested.

"As you wish." Tsumuji responded with a bow as she then happily skipped off to the kitchen.

Haruka then looked at her phone. "I wonder what Hikage's calling about?" She asked herself as she answered, putting the phone on speaker. "Good morning Hikage, are you doing well?" She soon asked.

"Actually, I am a seething ball of rage." Hikage answered in a flat tone.

The busty blonde blinked. "You don't sound like it." Haruka remarked.

"Trust me. I am." Hikage responded.

"What happened?" Haruka soon asked.

"You know the test we had to participate in with Imu?" Hikage soon asked.

"Murasaki-chan's Elite exam?" Haruka recalled before her eyes widened in concern. "Wait, she failed!?" She questioned in a panic.

"Actually, she passed." Yomi responded. "At great cost." She then added.

"...Is Murasaki-chan alright?" Haruka soon questioned in a dead serious and no nonsense tone.

"She'll be fine, she's just resting a little more due to her over-exercising." Yomi responded and explained. "We told Suzune-sensei to allow Murasaki-chan to skip classes for a few days." She then revealed.

"And what was her response?" Haruka had to ask.

"Online classes." Mirai answered.

"Oh." Haruka got out. So much for giving her a break.

"Anyways, now she has to learn to control the Root of Calamity at the end of the month." Yomi revealed.

"Also, Murasaki wants to be a Crimson Squad member." Hikage added.

To that, Haruka perked up in excitement. "Really!?" She happily asked.

"Yeah." Hikage responded. "We might need to move up our plans if we want to prevent Hebijo from killing her in a month because there's no way we're letting her use that power ever again." She then informed.

"And this happened yesterday." Haruka stated. "I'm assuming 29 days then." She then guessed.

"October 15th." Mirai stated. "Or...wait, did Suzune-sensei say in a month or the end of the month...?" She then wondered.

"It doesn't matter. That's plenty of time to plan an escape." Yomi waved off.

"Problem. Yoke technique." Hikage soon remembered.

"Right." Mirai replied. "Haruka-sama, we need you to find anyone out there in Tokyo who can help us. We can't do anything with it still on us." She soon requested and stated.

"Homura-chan had her's removed...I best start with her." Haruka muttered before frowning in thought. "But the main problem is getting that info out of her. She wasn't willing last time." She then remembered.

"There's been some time. Maybe she will now if you ask." Mirai assumed.

"I'll try when I have the chance." Haruka promised. "Please, it is of utmost importance that you keep low profiles now. We can't let Hebijo catch wind now more than ever. That means no more antics, got it?" She soon instructed.

"We haven't-" Yomi started, only for the busty doctor to hear someone jab her in the stomach. "Oof! We'll tone it down." She then got out in a pained manner.

"Good. I don't want to worry about all of you while I do my part here." Haruka breathed out.

"You could've mentioned Murasaki had bone shattering strength though." Mirai pointed out. "...and being the biggest out of all of us..." She then grumbled in an envious manner.

Haruka in response immediately blinked. "I...wasn't aware she had such strength." She soon confessed. "Hmm...that doesn't seem physically possible to gain so much in so little time." She then hummed out and stated.

"Turns out she trained a lot more even after coming back to Hebijo." Hikage revealed. "27 days total of straight training." She then revealed.

"...Make sure she gets plenty of rest." Haruka soon instructed.

"I doubt she would listen, though, Haruka-sama." Mirai retorted.

"Make. Her. Listen." Haruka ordered in a no nonsense manner. She did not want anyone foolishly destroying their body in the pursuit of physical strength.

"We do think she might need to change her Shinobi Tenshin appearance so she doesn't trip over herself again." Yomi soon informed.

"...That actually happened?" Haruka had to ask.

"It did." Hikage confirmed.

"Huh. Maybe she was just getting a bit rusty moving in her outfit for now." Haruka guessed. "You know she hasn't transformed into her outfit for a long time, being a shut-in and all." She then pointed out.

"True." Hikage responded. "Though even she thinks she needs to update her appearance for more mobility." She then added.

"I mean, her outfit looks similar to mine, and I like my Tenshin outfit." Mirai admitted.

"Mirai-chan, you're on duty helping her train in her dress." Haruka soon ordered.

"Huh, I'll do just that." The eyepatch-wearing Hebijo first year replied. "Kinda feel bad for her after what recently happened here in Hebijo, so I guess I'll do my best." She then sympathetically added.

"Okay, anything else." Haruka asked.

"Oh, by the way, Haruka-chan." Yomi soon started. "A Hebijo shinobi will be coming over to Tokyo soon, and she's currently on the way." She then informed.

That made Haruka's attention perk up. "Details, if you can." She then eagerly requested.

"The shinobi's name is Ryōna." Hikage reported. "A newcomer who came along to Hebijo with her twin not too long ago."

"Ryōna?" Haruka soon repeated in a curious manner. "What type of person is she?"

"Big masochist of the high degree, Haruka-sama." Mirai stated in a deadpan tone. "And she's coming your way." She then revealed.

"Well, I don't see why you would emphasize such cau-" Haruka then began before pausing and coming to the realization. "Oh shit. Darling..." She got out.

"Exactly." Mirai responded.

"Hold on, is she actually a masochistic one?" Haruka soon asked.

"She literally barks when her sister hits her and begs for more." Mirai bluntly revealed. "I'm not even kidding. Me, Yomi-oneechan, and Hikage witnessed her behavior and their interactions first-hand." She then added.

"C-Call and warn him, not me!" Haruka soon ordered in a panic.

"Already planning to." Mirai replied, causing the blonde to sigh in relief.

A Hebijo transferee who enjoys pain. Even though she witnessed such behavior from some of her male slaves and sometimes other random girls that she already met and encountered, Haruka thought that having an individual of such personality in Hebijo would be interesting to interact with.

Why did it excite her in the back of her mind?

Shaking that off, she moved onto the next thing she needed to discuss. "Also...girls?" Haruka began in a more solemn tone.

"Hm? What's up Haruka-sama?" Mirai responded in a curious manner.

"Can you...release the male love slaves in the basement?" Haruka soon requested. "I don't need them anymore." She then confessed.

"...What?" The trio got out in disbelief, shock and confusion.

"You heard me." Haruka responded. "Release those love slaves. Make sure you inject them with memory dampening serums in my lab. The green vials." She then instructed.

"H-Haruka-chan?" Yomi responded as she processed this.

"What's come over you?" Hikage soon asked.

"It's a bit complicated, but...I think you'll understand why..." Haruka vaguely responded.

"Haruka-sama?..." Mirai got out in a concerned tone.

"Is this also because Akira would disapprove if he learned about them?" Hikage guessed.

"Right on the money, Hikage." Haruka answered.

"Wow, you are so noble." Hikage deadpanned.

"Eh?" The blonde only got out in slight confusion of the greenette's comment.

"No guilt, no apology, and it took you this long to even think about it. You're only requesting it because it's for a boy." Hikage stated, most likely with a frown on her face. "I'll still do it, but I will give you shit over it." She then added

To that, Haruka sighed, expecting that kind of remark. "It's not just because of him..." She soon confessed. "Darling...told me some things that made me think more about myself. So I plan to rectify my past mistakes. All of them."

"Haruka-sama..." Mirai breathed out in a surprised manner.

"Besides, I can't become an actual doctor if I keep my mad scientist tendencies." Haruka confessed.

"...That's bullshit." Hikage simply stated about it.

"I'm serious." Haruka however confirmed in a no nonsense tone.

"No, we mean that's stupid of you to do!" Yomi consoled her. "You're curing freaking cancer, for god's sake! You gave Hikage-chan her emotions because you accidentally turned her into a boy!" She then pointed out.

"Do you really need to remind me of that?" Hikage bluntly asked in annoyance.

"And gave me literal balloon tits and I almost floated away." Mirai spoke up. "Hoping for a permanent version..." She quietly added.

"But...what about the monsters I've made?" Haruka questioned in a concerned manner.

"That's what you do on purpose. Those that you did on accident are way less deadly!" Yomi countered. "Your mad scientist tendencies are helping people, dammit!" She then declared.

"But some of my experiments have caused so much pain too." Haruka soon reminded in a more guilty tone.

"And they'll help more in the long run!" Mirai stated in an encouraging manner. "You can do the impossible, why limit yourself to being a normal doctor! You're the smartest damn person we know, maybe on the planet! You are Haruka-sama, the mad scientist that will save the world!" She then declared.

"I...you really believe in me..." Haruka muttered in disbelief.

"Yeah. And besides, you're a shinobi. Just keep your crazy experiments where no regular people are looking." Yomi added with a genuine tone. "That's the Haruka we know." She then stated.

"Yomi-chan..." Haruka breathed out.

"Just be you, but also know when you might go too far!" Mirai advised.

"...You're right." Haruka got out with crossed eyes. "I am not a mere doctor, I make physics my bitch!" She then declared.

"There you go!" Yomi got out happily.

"I spank conservation of mass on a daily basis, and lock up Einstein's theories in my basement!" Haruka then continued with the same tone.

"O-Okay. We get it-" Mirai replied.

"I WILL TOP THERMODYNAMICS, AND HAVE COULOMB'S LAW EAT MY-" Haruka then continued declaring, now in a confident tone.

"Haruka-sama!" Tsumuji happily interrupted as she came over with a tray in her hands. "Here's your miso soup." She soon informed.

The blonde immediately blushed to that as she snapped out of her speech. "R-Right, I went too far there." Haruka sheepishly admitted while accepting the soup. "Though I am abandoning anything that would make people think I'm a slut. So the love slaves in the basement are still a must to be released."

"I actually think you were more disturbed than slutty..." Hikage commented with a nonchalant tone like always.

"...You need to get laid, Haruka-sama." Tsumuji deadpanned in a concerned manner. "Now finish up your conversation. The rest of your breakfast is almost ready." She soon requested.

"But...I only asked for miso soup." Haruka however reminded.

"I wanted to do it." Tsumuji insisted with a smile.

Haruka in response blinked at this stubbornness. "Y-You don't have to-" She began.

"I wish to, Haruka-sama." Tsumuji responded once more, the same smile on her face as she bowed to the blonde before returning to the kitchen.

"...Oh crap, what have I done to her?" Haruka quietly muttered in concern. "Darling will definitely not approve of this..." She then thought with a pale face.

"I'll go back to continue washing your clothes after preparing the rest of your breakfast, so I advise taking a shower or a bath afterwards, Haruka-sama." Tsumuji stated and suggested from the other room.

"...Was that Tsumuji?" Hikage asked, reminding the blonde that the speaker on her phone was still on.

Haruka in response sweatdropped. Hai." She responded. "I told her she doesn't have to be my maid anymore...but now she wants to be one." She revealed in a sheepish manner.

"...Dibs." Mirai suddenly got out.

"Huh?" Haruka got out in confusion.

"I want her to clean my room when we escape." Mirai eagerly suggested. "She deserves it for attempting to kill Homura." She then added with the same tone.

"She's not a slave nor an item." Haruka insisted. "She is an ally and an equal, and you will treat her as such." She then stated.

"Who also willingly wants to be your maid." Hikage however reminded.

In turn, Haruka sweatdropped. "...Okay, I will accept responsibility for any desires and fetishes she may have awakened because of my former actions, but from now on she is our friend." She quickly corrected.

"Crimson Squad?" Yomi questioned.

"The Crimson Squad's personal maid and future Kagura!" Tsumuji happily suggested from the kitchen.

"T-Tsumuji-chan!" Haruka got out.

"You heard her." Mirai responded. "Alright! Who wants to get their room cleaned by her?" She then announced and asked.

"I'm good." Hikage got out.

"Can she water my bean sprouts instead?" Yomi asked in a genuinely curious tone.

"You three, don't make her do menial tasks you're too lazy to do..." Haruka sighed out as she shook her head.

"But what's the point of a maid if you discourage that?" Mirai pointed out.

"...I'm hanging up now." Haruka deadpanned.

"Completely understandable." Hikage admitted. Anything else the greenette wanted to say was cut off by the blonde ending the call.

"Your breakfast, Haruka-sama." Tsumuji informed while placing the tray of food in front of the blonde.

"Tsumuji-chan, you really didn't need to do this for me." Haruka stated.

"Hai, but I wanted to, Haruka-sama." Tsumuji responded and confirmed with a smile.

Haruka was now starting to have second thoughts on her behavior a little bit. "...Well, maybe I should start giving you money to buy groceries. Maybe something nice for yourself." She then added.

"Ooh, I could use a new jacket..." Tsumuji muttered as she went back into the kitchen.

The doctor-in-training hummed to herself, making a mental note to set aside an allowance for the maid before taking a sip of her soup. "!?" Haruka's eyes immediately widened as she ate. "This is...delicious..." She soon admitted in amazement.

"Thank you, Haruka-sama!" Tsumuji happily responded from the other room.

"Of course she heard that." Haruka mumbled to herself before continuing her breakfast once again.

This was going to be more complicated than she thought. Hopefully her darling can handle the arriving newcomer from Hebijo.

---

(Train)

The usual trains were a bit packed as it ran through the track with slight bumps, and the pair of Asuka and Homura were somehow able to sit down next to one another. Additionally, Akira was with them, however, there were no vacant seats for him around them anymore, so he decided to stand nearby the two kunoichi while holding onto the rail for safety instead...all while getting squeezed by random people inside the train.

"Whew, can't believe we got seats." Asuka got out in relief, sitting with her school bag in her lap.

"Yeah, lucky us." Homura breathed out in relief as well as she relaxed herself before noticing their Leader standing while being squished by the people inside the train. "Sorry, Akira." She then apologized.

"It's fine." Akira got out with a shrug. "I think you deserve some seats." He then admitted.

"Thanks." Homura simply stated before thinking about something in particular. "You think Miyabi will talk to Yumi-senpai?" She soon asked.

"...I hope she will." The brunette simply replied. "I get the feeling they'll get along well." Asuka then admitted.

"Looking on the bright side of things, huh, Asuka?" The tan-skinned girl stated with a slight smile.

"Yep." Asuka replied with a nod before letting out a yelp as the train suddenly shook harder than usual, causing several people to stumble even somewhere so tightly compact. She then blush as she felt a way-too-familiar pair of hands grab onto her breasts.

"Sorry. Again." Akira apologized as he got stumbled over by the train jolting before accidentally groping Asuka's breasts with his hands. He could've sworn he held the safety rail firmly to avoid the stumble, but based on the situation he was now in, at this point, he conceded to the universe forcing him into these situations.

All of a sudden, Morgana popped his head out of Akira's bag for a bit. "Hey, Akira, about our operation on Okumura's Pala–" He started...before noticing his Leader having a semi-risque situation with Asuka. "Akira. Really?" He then got out in a deadpan tone while sporting a slight blush on his face.

"It was an accident, Morgana." Akira admitted. "Stupid train." He then grumbled under his breath.

"Just please let go of Lady Asuka, Akira." The not cat soon advised, trying not to stare.

"Can't. Guy behind cramped me." Akira stated, feeling getting cramped by the people around him in the train.

"Mohhh...at least it's not some random perv...or Katsu-nee." Asuka groaned and stated softly. "...His hands feel really soft...what the heck?" she then thought before blushing and shaking her head.

"Besides, you already felt soft boobs lots of times, Morgana." Akira casually stated.

"N-No I haven't! I don't focus on such a thing when hugging a lady!" Morgana stammered out.

"Right." Akira sarcastically stated.

"You know, if I hadn't known you from the start, I would've snapped your fingers, Akira." Homura stated near him with furrowed brows and crossed arms, noticing the molesting-like action.

"Yeah, you would." Akira stated in agreement. "I like my fingers intact, thank you very much." He then added.

Morgana simply shifted uncomfortably inside the Leader's bag.

"Just be careful next time, Akira." Homura casually advised the Leader as she relaxed, not minding the accidental groping on her sister.

"I don't think that's physically possible at this point." Akira bluntly stated before getting his hands off the brunette's breasts once his body loosened from the people in the train.

"Then at least try and hide your hands like you usually do so you don't get in trouble." Homura advised before blinking and noticing the Leader's hands. "Wow, your hands look like they're glistening or something. Do you use something special?" She then asked.

"Lots and lots of time in the bathhouse." Akira answered. He was going to continue conversing with the girls, but the three couldn't help but hear other conversations going on inside the train cart they were on.

"So about the next target..."

"I heard my sister's boyfriend's friend got a calling card!"

"Why don't you put a request in to the Phantom Thieves?"

"Jeez, they use the Phan-Site for all the wrong reasons." Homura grumbled. "Good thing our admin along with our hacker put some very strict ground rules for the users." She then added.

"Which are subsequently ignored." Akira added with a sigh. "The site is getting way too much traffic. Mishima seriously needs to get more moderators." He then muttered.

"Man, this place sucks..." A random businessman complained while holding the rail to keep him from falling over. "My boss is just the worst. All he does is dump overtime on me while he dashes off right at five. I wish the Phantom Thieves would work their magic on him..." He then complained.

"What would that be like? If they changed his heart and all?" His work colleague asked and added.

"Well, they say you become the opposite of how you normally are." The businessman

"So I guess he'd become more open-minded, communicate better, and start taking initiative. He'd basically be as awesome as the president of Okumura Foods." The colleague assumed and statedd with a small smile.

If Asuka was drinking anything (which would not happen at this time in this century), she would've spat it out by now.

"...Please, Phantom Thieves! Please, make this happen!" The colleague then prayed.

"What the..." Asuka whispered. "I never heard of anything positive about Okumura..." She muttered.

"I think that's because we were only looking for the bad." Morgana guessed.

"Still doesn't fix that he has a Palace in the first place..." Homura murmured.

"Looks like we have a lot in our hands now for the next upcoming days..." Akira couldn't help but state.

"Can we stop talking about this, please?" Asuka requested with an upset look on her face. "It's stressing me out..."

"Sorry..." Akira apologized before they spent the rest of the train ride in silence.

---

(9/15, Morning)

(Shujin Academy, Gymnasium)

For the class section where Akira, Ann, Asuka, Homura, and Mishima were in, most of the students aside from the aforementioned ones were a bit surprised that they were seriously having classes in the gymnasium of all places. They never had a class like this before.

"Just because you only got back from Hawaii a few days ago, it doesn't mean you are allowed to slack off today." Daidōji declared with her hand on one hip and her other one holding a clipboard.

"A few days?" Ann repeated in disbelief. "God, it feels like weeks..." She then groaned.

"Given what we do, an afternoon feels like a month..." Homura muttered under her breath.

"Now, I'm going to be teaching you about first-aid, since the previous teacher neglected to do so and relied too much on the infirmary to fix any injuries." Daidōji-sensei informed the class. "This will be useful in real life, so I expect you to pay attention at all times." She then added.

"Um, Daidōji-sensei, I thought we were going to play dodgeball?" Mishima asked as he raised his hand.

"We don't have dodgeballs." Daidoji answered in a matter-of-fact tone. "Or at least any that won't knock a tooth out, who the hell thought hard rubber was safe..." She then grumbled under her breath. Thankfully, the P.E. budget was massively overfunded so she could easily buy foam balls.

"I suddenly don't want to play dodgeball." The admin weakly got out as he put his hand down. He juuuust had to remember those times he got socked in the face by volleyballs, courtesy of their previous gym teacher.

"Are we seriously having classes in the gym, too, of all places?"

"You know, Kamoshida-sensei never did this to his students before...I mean, all he taught was volleyball..."

"Keep it down! Daidōji-sensei could hear you!"

"I already heard that, just so you know!" Daidoji called out, scaring the students into silence. "Yes, we're actually having class in the gym in case you want a reality check once again. The front door's right there if you're complaining and want to leave the class, though I wouldn't recommend it if I were you all." She then stated. "...You'd miss out on the protein cookie bars." She soon added as she pointed over to the snacks and refreshments table she set up. It even had a nice little sign on it made as if it was from a five-year-old kid (which was totally on purpose).

"...I want a cookie bar." Asuka admitted as she raised her hand.

Daidōji automatically took one of those bars out of her pocket and unwrapped it. "Here." The P.E. teacher got out as she threw it over to the Vice Leader, who caught it in her mouth.

"Thank you!" Asuka thanked the teacher as she ate the bar. Many of the other students couldn't help but imagine her with dog ears and happily wagging tail.

"Wha-? She gets a free snack?"

"So not fair..."

"Anyway, back to our topic about first-aid. There are different kinds of first-aid techniques depending on what part of the body and what type of injury that particular body part is inflicted to." Daidōji continued on lecturing. "Ann Takamaki!" She then called out.

"Eep!" Ann jolted up in response.

"Answer my question, please." Daidoji requested. "Say I get my arm chopped off from an accident. What should you never do to my amputated limb?" She then questioned.

"Wow, getting off to a...disturbing start." Akira thought as several students went green in the face.

"Uhhh..." Ann got out as she turned her gaze towards Asuka and Homura. They should know what to do, right?

Put the arm in icy water.

Wrap the arm in plastic.

Bandage the stump.

Ann's eyes widened as the Vice Leader mouthed the answer to her. "Um, put the arm on ice?" She then answered.

"Correct." Daidōji got out with an impressed nod. "Thank you, Asuka-san, for providing the answer to Ann-san." She then added with a sweet smile.

That made the ash blonde and the brunette perked up in disbelief along with the feeling of slight shame.

"But yes, you should never put the amputated limb on ice or in water, at least without wrapping airtight plastic around it." Daidōji continued. "Thanks to modern medicine, we can reattach limbs provided that the nerves ends aren't damaged and the patient makes it to the hospital soon enough. However, putting the bare limb in cold water will cause damage to those nerves and kill any chances of getting that arm to move willingly again even when you reconnected the severed arm back."

"That's so metal!"

"Aw, but I want a robot arm..."

"...I think I'm gonna have nightmares soon."

"Quiet. Down." Daidōji ordered the class. "Remember, your actions then will have far reaching consequences, even in the smallest of ways. Do not make choices lightly, and do not dive into situations without any knowledge beforehand. Ignorance is just as deadly as any other method." She then informed.

The Thieves nodded to that. Akira and Ann put that knowledge away just in case as they made sure to pay close attention.

"So for you to witness the first-aid procedure firsthand, I secretly brought my machete with me." Daidōji casually informed the class. "So, who wants to volunteer to get their arm amputated?" She then announced.

Immediately, the normal students of the class started to shift uncomfortably in their sitting positions on the ground, and some of them began to shiver. Murmurs and sounds of induced fear started to fill the gymnasium.

"Wh-Wh-Wha...?"

"The hell!?"

"A-A-A machete!? Amputated!?"

"Kidding. Kidding. I'm rather surprised you think I was being serious." Daidōji chuckled out. "...And put your hand down, Akira." She then deadpanned.

Everyone in the class whirred their heads towards the glasses-wearing transfer student only to notice that he was having his hand up for real with a relaxed expression on his face.

"...What?" Akira questioned with a raised eyebrow, earning looks of pure disbelief from some of his classmates. He was also grateful he had Lionhearted-level Guts right now before putting his hand down.

"...EHHH!?"

"Is that transfer student serious?!"

"Akira. Seriously?" Homura only got out with half-lidded eyes.

"Did you really think the school would allow such a thing?" Akira pointed out. "...Now?" He then added.

"Says the guy with an actual knife hidden somewhere in his body." The tan-skinned girl mumbled not too loudly for anyone else to hear.

"Would you believe me if I told you I keep the knife in my crotch?" Akira softly told her as he leaned in towards the tan-skinned girl.

"Eh?" Asuka got out, hearing Akira's response. "Y-Your crotch? You mean...w-where your..." She nervously got out with a slight blush on her face.

"Some shinobis keep stuff in there aside from the boobs, so yeah, I could probably believe you." Homura admitted. "Though, a male person doing such a thing, that's kinda rare." She then informed.

"Is that so?" Akira got out, facing the two kunoichi.

"Uh-huh. I'm surprised your penis is still not cut off by that knife of yours." Homura stated casually.

"Shinobi magic or something like that, I suppose." Akira muttered with a shrug.

"Heh, you can say it that way." The tan-skinned girl snorted with a smirk.

Asuka only listened to their interesting conversation all while sporting a blush on her face.

"Okay, let's move onto a less serious first-aid situation..." Daidōji got out as she began to drill into everyone's heads that stabbing adrenaline into your chest would cause a heart attack.

And so, the class went on without many more surprises until the bell rang.

---

(9/15, After School)

(Roppongi, Okumura Foods HQ Conference Room)

The conference room everyone had gathered in felt stuffy, even with the air conditioning on full blast. Clearly they were extremely tense in their current situation.

Hibari was currently in quite a pickle, all for one particular reason:

Kunikazu Okumura was not happy.

And when clients weren't happy, things tended to burn.

"First, an attempted break-in, and now intruders entering my building!?" Kunikazu angrily ranted. "How the hell is this happening to me!?" He then continued with the same tone along with crossed arms while standing in front of the window, gazing at the city outside.

Along with him in the room were a group of his highly-trained security personnel of his company, barely trying to attain composure on their postures as they were currently getting an earful with their high-paying client. Surprisingly, the pink-haired kunoichi was with them as well, but only standing at the very side of the room.

"Sir, we did our best to stop the intruders to the best of our ability." One guard responded.

"Luckily for all of you, nothing important and valuable was destroyed nor stolen, so I guess I at least commend you for your work." The CEO responded.

"T-Thank you, sir." The guard responded with a bow.

"However, this is yet another failure in your jobs. They managed to get far into the building, while using the elevator! How did this not draw suspicion?" Kunikazu demanded as he slammed his fist on the table.

"We...We use the elevators all the time..." The head of security informed.

"Well, I order all of you to shut down elevator access until this situation has been resolved." Okumura commanded.

One of the guards coughed. "S-Sir, that goes against disability laws." He pointed out.

"We don't employ the disabled." Okumura scoffed. "Only I, the shinobi, and selected individuals will be allowed access to it from now until these intruders are caught. Consider it a good chance to exercise. In other words, there must be security posts on the elevators themselves. Do you understand?" He then informed before silently daring any of them to try and challenge his decision.

"...Yes, sir..." The head of security sighed out. Hibari idly wondered if the CEO was actually allowed to do such a thing. Shouldn't the head of security decide that, not him? Well, it wasn't her place to speak, so she didn't even let out a peep.

"Good. All security personnel only, you may now all leave." Kunikazu got out, satisfied with his actions. "Once again, continue with your assigned duties to protect this building at all costs."

"Yes sir!" The security team responded with a dutiful salute before leaving the conference room, with a certain pinkette remaining in the room and leaving only two people in the conference room.

Kunikazu nodded to that. Good. Now to take care of the rabbit in the room. "Hibari-san." The CEO suddenly got out, causing the pinkette to straighten her back. "A word." Kunikazu requested.

"Oh, uh..." Hibari got out before nodding. "Yes, sir. W-What is it, Okumura-sama?" She replied and asked.

"I want to ask you about what happened last night in detail." The CEO stated. "You and those intruders disappeared for 30 minutes, correct?" Kunikazu recalled.

"In a Shinobi Kekkai, to trap them and protect the surrounding area." Hibari confirmed.

"Well, it's obvious that didn't work, did it?"

"...No, sir." Hibari shamefully responded.

"Do you have any idea on who the intruders were that you encountered and fought?" Kunikazu questioned.

The pinkette swallowed. "It was... four girls, sir. In masks." Hibari answered. "And then they used a Tenshin, and weird summons, and a whole bunch of stuff!" She then added.

"So you have no idea who they were?" Kunikazu assumed with an unamused expression on his face.

"No, sir." Hibari responded with a shake of her head.

"And these summons..." Okumura continued pressing the girl.

"They weren't like anything I ever saw." Hibari admitted with a shrug. "One of them was a motorcycle!" She then added.

"...I see." Kunikazu got out in a dull tone. "Do you have any theories on who they may be?" He then asked.

"Erm...only one possibility comes to mind." Hibari answered, looking a little unsure. "I think it was the Phantom Thieves." She then revealed.

"The Phantom Thieves?" Kunikazu repeated with a frown. "Why would they come after me, even despite their declaration?" He then questioned.

"I'm wondering that too, sir." Hibari admitted. There was no way it was the Phantom Thieves, but there was no one else she could think of. "Don't worry, Phantom Thieves or now, I won't let them get away with this!" She soon reassured her client with a fist pump.

"You have done quite enough." Kunikazu however responded. "I've already requested another shinobi to rotate with you in. You will finish collecting evidence and inform the next shinobi of everything you know by tomorrow evening." He soon informed.

"E-Eh!?" Hibari gasped, almost choking on the amount of air she inhaled. "But, Okumura-san, I did my best! I drove them off!" She soon reminded.

Kunikazu in turn nodded. "And it was clear that wasn't enough, otherwise they would've been arrested. Who knows when they will strike once again?" Okumura pointed out in a matter-of-fact tone. "Do not think I will not compensate you for your efforts, but I do not wish for you to be involved any further. Now leave and finish your job." He then ordered.

"I...I..." Hibari stammered out. However, the glare that came from the client killed any fight she had in her to argue. "Yes, sir." She then got out before bowing and leaving the conference room.

As soon as the pinkette left, she saw a guard approach her. "Hibari-san, finally. We need your help with an important matter." He soon informed.

"Um...is it that important?" Hibari soon asked. "I was given a mission by Okumura-san and I need to leave right now." She soon revealed.

"Oh. I see." The guard responded. "Well, don't let me stop you." He then added.

"Thank you. Sorry." Hibari replied and apologized while bowing to the man.

"It's okay. You've done enough last night." The guard responded in a grateful manner.

Hibari swallowed before walking past the man with her head down, getting to the elevator as fast and as naturally as she could get away with.

Once she made it outside, she found a nice and quiet street with no one around, squatted down...and promptly started crying.

"Wow, Hibari, you barely made it three days. That has to be a record."

"An expected outcome, just not one so soon..."

"I knew you needed me..."

"Shut up! Shut up!" Hibari got out through gritted teeth, punching the wall behind her and leaving a small crater in it. "...Oops..." She mumbled.

She was letting her imagination run wild again with these thoughts. With a calming breath as she sat down on the ground, she pulled out her phone and opened up her contacts list.

Akira

Asuka

Ikaruga

Katsuragi

Yagyū

Hibari really wanted, no, needed to call at least one of them, but when she hovered her finger over one of the names, she didn't have the willpower to tap on them.

Maybe she could save it for later, when she had fully calmed down. Maybe in an hour...or tomorrow...or next week.

"Hibari-san?" A feminine voice suddenly got out, snapping the first year out of her thoughts.

"Huh!?" The pinkette got out in confusion as she stood up and turned to who had found her. It was the secretary. "W-What is it?" Hibari soon asked.

"Thank god I managed to catch you." The secretary responded. "Sir Okumura contacted me, and we are now preparing to deliver the requested compensation for your work and effort here. Now, physical cash or account transfer?" She soon explained.

"Eh?" Hibari responded before thinking about it. "Oh, um...physical." She soon decided.

"Well, why don't you come back inside while I get your pay packet." The secretary replied.

"Um...okay." Hibari quietly replied with a nod before she followed the secretary back inside the building.

Well, if she was being paid anyways, she may as well treat herself for lunch.

Some sweet treats would do on the side as well.

---

(Shujin Academy, School Gate)

Homura was exiting the school after another day of keeping the school safe. "As always, a Dragoness's duty never ends." She thought to herself.

As she makes her way to the gate, a car comes pulling up and stopped right in front of the school. All the students who were also leaving stopped in their tracks to look at the expensive vehicle parking right in front of their school.

"...How did a car even park itself in front of the school?" Homura thought with a raised eyebrow.

Just then, the doors on both the driver and passenger sides opened to reveal a man and a woman stepping out of the car. Both looked around at the school and the students, only to sigh in disappointment.

"Who the heck are these two?" Homura soon thought in confusion as she got a better look at them.

The man had some facial hair on his chin, black eyes, black hair, and he wore a business suit. The woman had brown hair and auburn colored eyes, brown hair tied in a ponytail and draped over her shoulder, and wore a long sleeved shirt with a long skirt.

"They really look like they have sticks up their asses..." Homura couldn't help but bluntly think as the two approached the school and walked past her.

The man and the woman walked entered the door of the school as all the students were wondering what was going on.

"Are they going to complain to the principal or something?" Homura jokingly asked herself as she decided to follow.

---

(Classroom Building 1F, Hallway)

As Homura follows the man and the woman down the hallways, she's wondering who they were and why they are here at Shujin Academy. But as she was thinking about it, she noticed them approaching one of the committee members as he was exiting his classroom.

"Orimura-san?" Homura thought as she decided to lay back for the time being.

"Mother. Father. I wasn't expecting you to come to see me directly." Satoshi simply stated as he turned to them. "I thought you'd be at work again, Father." He then added.

Homura's eyes immediately widened. "Ah, so that's it, his parents." She thought as she continued listening on.

"It was a slow day today, so I decided to take an early leave." Mr. Orimura stated. "The boss was generous enough to let me leave since I've done so much for the company. So I came home and picked up your mother and we came here right after." He then explained.

"And...why are you here?" Satoshi soon asked.

"Straight to the point." Homura thought with a sweatdrop.

"We wanted to see how you've been doing here. Making sure you've been following the rules." Mrs. Orimura answered. "We know you tend to be a little bit moody at times, so we came here to make sure you've been keeping in line." She then added.

"...That's it?" Satsoshi soon asked.

"Not exactly, we're also here to talk with your principal." Mr. Orimura answered. "We've heard about what happened with your PE teacher and want to know what really happened."

"But that was months ago..." Satoshi reminded. "And the news back then explained what happened." He then added.

"They're here about the Kamoshida incident?" Homura meanwhile thought in confusion.

"Yes, that's true. But the news was also talking about these Phantom Thieves who seem to be at the center of it all." Mr. Orimura stated. "Something like that appearing in this school and somehow changing the heart of Kamoshida? That is something we can't ignore. Especially if they plan to corrupt you with all their changing their hearts bullshit." He soon stated as he placed his hand on his son's shoulder. "We're just looking out for you, son. We know what's best for you." He then reassured.

"Hey! Our change of hearts are legit!" Homura thought in anger.

"We don't want them corrupting your mind like how they've done with everyone else in Tokyo." Mrs. Orimura then informed. "We just want you to grow up into an upstanding citizen of society and not become like those Phantom Thieves. We're just looking out for you, that's all." She soon added in reassurance.

Homura meanwhile had to hold back a growl as she balled her hands into fists.

"Right...Of course..." Satoshi looked down at the floor. "You're just looking out for me...You know what's best for me..." He then added.

"So that's it...Orimura-san's brainwashing came from them..." Homura meanwhile thought, calming herself down to a cold and unnoticeable fury.

"That's right, son. It's our job to steer you in the right direction and be a productive member of society." Mr. Orimura reminded with a nod. "So just keep on doing what you've been doing and everything will work out for you." He then instructed.

Homura can almost see them tightening his leash to the point where it's almost choking him, not letting him get a word out edgewise.

"Hm? Who's there?" Mr. Orimura soon questioned as she looked in the direction of the tan skinned girl.

"Crap." Homura thought, a bit surprised someone was able to detect her.

"You know this girl?" Mrs. Orimura asked her son.

"Yeah, I do. She's my school mate." Satoshi replied with a nod to his parents.

Taking in a deep breath, the tan skinned girl approached her committee member. "Good afternoon to you too Orimura-san, I just happened to be in the area." Homura calmly explained.

"Then why were you hiding? If you were in the area, how come you didn't say anything until now?" Satoshi soon asked as he raised an eyebrow at her, though he was inwardly happy to see her.

"I have no idea what you were talking about." Homura however responded, feigning ignorance.

"Listen, girl. This doesn't concern you." Mr. Orimura on the other hand stated. "This is a family conversation and you are not welcome to take part. So I'd advise you to just stay out of this and mind your own business." He soon instructed.

"Rude much?" Homura bluntly thought.

"Father..." Satoshi mumbled out.

"Now that I think about it, our son has told us a lot about you." Mrs. Orimura then realized. "He always said how this girl has turned the school into a new place that was far different from how it was before. I take it that's you, correct?" She soon assumed.

In response, Homura made sure her stance was prim and proper as she gave the two adults a respectful bow. "Hai, my name is Homura Shinkukage and I am the head of the Shujin Academy Disciplinary Committee." She introduced herself in the most polite tone possible.

"So you're this Shinkukage he's been telling us about?" Mr. Orimura looked at her "And you say that you're the head of the Disciplinary Committee? Quite the accomplishment for someone like you. And a polite girl, no less." He then added.

"Why thank you for the praise sir. I am just doing my duties the best I can." Homura replied with a gentle smile. "Keep acting like Yumi-senpai..." She mentally instructed herself.

"So we've heard. The school does look better than before when he first enrolled." Mrs. Orimura replied. "I hope our son hasn't been causing you any problems with you and your group. He tends to act out from time to time, so we apologize for any inconvenience he might've caused." She then added.

"Mother..." Satoshi groaned out in embarrassment.

"Not at all, Orimura-san has been a good member so far." Homura praised with a pleasant smile, mentally smirking in amusement at her committee member's obvious blush.

"I see. That's good to hear." Mr. Orimura replied with a nod. "We always remind him that he has to follow the rules and listen to those above him. So we're pleased to see him actually taking our advice to heart." He then explained.

"Which is what makes him a good committee member." Homura soon stated.

"That he is and we're happy to see him actually doing something productive." Mr. Orimura agreed. "I must apologize for my rude behavior before. I thought you were someone spying on our family conversation." He then apologized.

"Oh no, it is no trouble whatsoever." Homura responded.

"Good to hear. I'm happy to see we're on the same page." Mr. Orimura replied and nodded.

"Why thank you sir, ma'am." Homura replied in a pleased tone.

"Well, we best get going now. We still have a meeting with your principal, so please excuse us." Mrs. Orimura stated as she and her husband bowed.

"Have a pleasant afternoon." Homura responded with a respectful bow as she watched the two leave.

"And a pleasant afternoon to you, as well." Both Orimuras bowed before taking their leave.

"I must say, she sure is quite the achiever in creating this committee for this school." Mrs. Orimura admitted to her husband.

"Indeed. Perhaps our son will be able to take over for her as soon as she graduates." Mr. Orimura replied in agreement. "Who knows? She's someone who can definitely be more useful in later years." He then added.

"Oh, she might be a good wife to Satoshi." Mrs. Orimura soon suggested.

"I agree. She does look like wife material for him." Mr. Orimura agrees. "I'm wondering what our grandkids would look like?" He then asked in a curious manner.

"MOTHER! FATHER!" Satoshi cried out in embarrassment at his parents as his face turned bright red.

Homura meanwhile sweatdropped as she watched the two parents go up the stairs and out of sight before relaxing herself. "So...they're your parents..." She awkwardly got out.

"Yeah...that's them..." Satoshi embarrassingly responded with a nod as he leaned against the wall. "Sorry you had to see that...That was just so embarrassing..." He then apologized.

"It's not a problem Orimura-san." Homura replied while waving it off. "I guess your parents are really traditional huh?" She then added.

"Oh, you have no idea. They're so traditional that I don't always have time for myself." Satoshi sighed. "It's always about studying for my future or I need to become a productive member of society, it's out of control. I know they always say it's for my best interest, but I don't know...That's why I go to the gymnasium, it's the only place where I can be myself, but I think I already told you that a while ago." He then explained and reminded.

"You did." Homura replied with a nod of understanding. "Though...you do know better then what they say right?" She soon asked.

"I...think I do...I'm still trying to find a way to use the advice you gave me the other day." Satoshi awkwardly informed while rubbing the back of his head.

"Well that's good to hear." Homura responded in an encouraging tone.

"I just hope it's going to work, I know I have to stand up for myself and become more independent." Satoshi admitted with a nod. "I have to tell them that they can't dictate my life. I'm my own person and I need to stand up on my own two feet." He then confessed with determination.

"That sounds like a good idea." Homura replied, feeling the bond with her committee member improving after both meeting his parents as well as hearing what he told her.

RANK UP! TOWER RANK 3!

Non-negotiable: If Joker fails to negotiate with a Shadow, a teammate will rarely force them to comply.

"I guess since my parents are here, I'll probably be leaving with them after their meeting with the principal." Satoshi declared. "...Or at least I would say that, but I'll head back home on my own." He then decided.

"Sounds like a good idea." Homura replied in agreement.

"Thanks. I'm just reminding myself with the advice you gave me." Satoshi informed as he smiled a little. "So I'll be seeing you tomorrow then." He then added.

"Yup." Homura replied with a nod.

"Also, thanks for stepping in when you did." Satoshi thanked as he smiled. "If you haven't, I didn't think I'd ever stand up for myself." He then admitted.

"Oh, it wasn't that big of a deal. Was just helping out one of my committee members." Homura however waved off.

"Yeah, I'm your committee member. But thanks anyway, Shinku- Homura." Satoshi bowed to her.

Homura in turn smirked to that. "Well well Orimura-san, you actually called me by my first name." She teased in amusement.

"Yeah...well...I just thought it'd be a nice change of pace." Satoshi stammered with a blush while rubbing the back of his head. "Your last name is so long, so I thought it was time to call you by your first name. You don't like it?"

"It's fine with me...Satoshi." Homura replied as she winked at him.

This causes Satoshi to blush even more as an arrow was shot in his heart, but he managed to catch himself before falling over. "Safe." He thought to himself and regained his composure.

Homura meanwhile feigned ignorance as she raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I think it's time for us to head home now." Satoshi soon suggested. "We still have a long way to go to make sure our school is safe for everyone. So let's keep up the good work." He then added.

"Now that's what I like to hear." Homura replied in agreement.

"I've got a great leader to look up to. And a friend." Satoshi added and nodded with a smile.

"Well now, aren't you being a flirt." Homura teased as she walked off in the other direction after winking at him.

"I...uh..." Satoshi blushed even more as he stuttered.

Homura meanwhile didn't look back as she walked down the hallway with a smirk to the end result.

Satoshi watched her leave down the hallway as he pulled up his bag over his shoulder and headed for home as well. But not before looking back at the stairs where his parents were as he walked on.

---

(Kichijoji)

For Akira, every day felt like something was going to happen eventually as he explored around Kichijoji for a good and decent walk and breather. Luckily for him, he wasn't dead yet, especially when he finally had knowledge about the existence of both the Metaverse and the shinobi world.

Right now, he just wanted some peace before heading to Roppongi for their first official visit to Okumura's Palace. Do some shopping, trade in all the dirty armor he didn't need, fuse one or two Personas, and buy some gifts and jewelry.

"I better save some of my money for fusion. If I'm right, the steps to give Seth the High Counter skill should be..." Akira muttered to himself as he did fusion calculations in his head. "Dammit, this would be so much easier if I had the damn skill card."

Grrrrr...

Suddenly, the Leader stopped his overcomplicated thoughts and held his stomach. "Okay, stomach, you're right. I should get something to eat..." Akira mumbled out. "It's been a while since I ate here." He then added.

"Me too." Morgana agreed as he popped out of the Leader's bag. "Been having tuna and fish constantly. Time for something new this time aside from meat." He then added with a contempt look on his face.

Akira simply hummed in agreement with the not cat.

They both walked further around the stores while swiftly passing through the crowds that were going on about their days until Akira noticed a promising-looking cafe with tables and seats outside the front while being covered under a fabric roof.

"Care for some pastries, Morgana?" The frizzy-haired Shujin student soon suggested before noticing the shop's name: Sticky-Creamy-White Bakeshop and Pastries. "...Okay, Tokyo's getting weirder and weirder by the second." He then thought with a sigh before proceeding in the establishment.

"Huh? Pastries?" The not cat responded before noticing the store. "Hmm, haven't eaten some bread in a while..." He then admitted as they entered the store, the cool air from the AC greeting them.

Inside the store, they saw people somehow crowding over the counter for their order, and some customers were on their seats either already eating or waiting for their order.

"Hmm...some filling would be nice." Akira mumbled as he gazed into the display of bread and pastries.

"Hrnnnn...so many things to choose from..." A young female voice got out, catching his attention. "What to eat, what to eat, what to eat..." She then muttered out.

Akira glanced towards the voice and saw a familiar pink-haired girl wearing a pink and white shirt with a rabbit head on it, a darker pink skirt, thigh high white socks, white sneakers and had a backpack on her back. He couldn't help but notice the most prominent feature of the girl, which made him blink, and that is the young girl's chest.

Of course, he also noticed some customers in the cafe taking occasional glances towards the pinkette who was currently reading a menu, already figuring out what they were really focusing their eyes on. "...I'm so lucky I'm already used to girls with...well-developed assets." Akira then thought with a sigh.

"Oh man, I really hope I can get trained in making these! These look really good!" Hibari muttered to herself with stars in her eyes.

"Hibari-chan?" Akira eventually called out in a curious manner to see the pinkette at the cafe.

"Hmm?" Hibari hummed out as she looked up from her menu and saw the black-haired boy coming towards her. "Oh! You're the boy from the beach! One of Asuka-chan's friends!" She replied.

Akira simply smiled at him as he slowly approached her table outside the shop. "I assume you remember my name as well?" He soon asked.

"Um...A-Akiba-kun, was it?" Hibari tried to guess with a finger on her chin.

"Akira, Hibari-chan. With an R." Akira corrected with a chuckle. "Can I sit with you, if you don't mind?" He soon requested.

"Akira-kun. I see. Um, sure, go ahead, and it's nice to meet you again." Hibari got out with a nod. "How's Asuka-chan?" She then asked.

"She's fine. Probably hanging out with my other friends." Akira replied as he sat down on the chair across the pinkette before setting down his bag slowly to not hurt Morgana inside. "That or at her job." He then added as he leaned back on his chair.

"Wow! Still can't believe she made so many new friends!" Hibari exclaimed as she shifted comfortably on her seat. "It's like I'm seeing this new side of Asuka-chan!" She then added.

"Well, she's more of a socialite or an extrovert, if you ask me." Akira replied while nudging his glasses up. "Won't even hesitate to make some friends." He then stated.

"I still can't believe she even took a modeling job here in Tokyo of all places!" Hibari got out with starry eyes filled with amazement. "I've been seeing her in magazine covers in every shop I passed by! She's become so pretty!" She then revealed and declared.

Akira simply chuckled to this. "You never know what will happen." He simply stated. "Asuka's one tough girl, that's for sure." He then added.

"You know, Hibari also noticed something different about Asuka-chan, too, back at the beach." Hibari soon recalled. "She seems...more carefree than before, like she's more open now." She then added, though not really able to describe it.

"She is, actually." The Shujin student agreed. "Why? Is she not like not like this before?" He then asked in a way that he was feigning ignorance in a sense. Even so, he thought it would be interesting to hear from Asuka's shinobi companion's perspective about the topic.

"Um, not really." Hibari responded with a shake of her head. "She's a great friend along with Hibari's other friends back at our school."

"Tell me about them." Akira urged the pinkette.

"Where to begin..." Hibari muttered as she then began to talk about everything that came to mind about school and her friends. They were all interesting (if rather risque at times) tales that got a laugh out of the Leader.

However, as the conversation went on, Akira began to notice a few things; The eyes twitching, the slight cracks in her voice, the subtle fidgeting.

He didn't need Third Eye to detect that Hibari was distracting herself from something, and was using him to keep her mind off it. Well, running away from it won't solve anything. She needed to confront it.

"-And Ninto decided it would be funny to steal my panties and run around the room with it, showing it to everyone." Hibari continued talking, however the boy put a stop to that.

"Is there something wrong, Hibari-san?" Akira had to ask.

This however surprised the pinkette. "W-What do you mean? Nothing's wrong." Hibari shakily responded.

"That tone of voice..." Akira thought with a frown. "Hibari, be honest with me. I know something is wrong." He soon stated.

"Oh, you're just..." Hibari began before trailing off.

Akira looked directly into her unique eyes and dared her to lie to him again.

"I got...I got fired..." Hibari mumbled out.

"What?" Akira responded in a surprised manner.

"I just...I completely messed up!" Hibari cried out as she slammed her head on the table. "I tried my hardest to do my job but...but..." She sobbed out, but couldn't finish her sentence.

"Hey, hey, hey...calm down." Akira tried to reassure the pinkette, taken off guard by the sudden outburst. "It's just a job. You could always get another one. There are plenty of places that would happily hire you. I even know a few-" He then began, however...

"No!" The pinkette immediately countered. "T-That was Hibari's only chance to prove to everyone that...that I belong. That I can pull my own weight, and I can help without needing help myself!" She then explained. "Maybe...Maybe Hibari should've let Yagyū-chan join me..." She soon added with a downed expression.

"You think you can't do anything by yourself?" Akira had to ask in a concerned manner.

"H-Hai..." Hibari somehow got out before taking another bite of her donut, albeit a bit weakly.

Akira frowned. "Hibari-san, what year are you in again?" He asked.

"Huh? Oh, um...I'm a first year." Hibari responded, looking a little confused why the boy would ask her.

"And how has high school been so far for you?" Akira soon asked in a curious manner.

"Oh, it's...it's been really hard for Hibari." Hibari shamefully admitted. "The...The homework is really hard sometimes, and Hibari barely remembers what the teachers say. Yagyū-chan is usually the person Hibari goes to if I need help catching up."

"Heh. You were just like me." Akira chuckled out.

"Huh." Hibari responded in confusion.

"Hey, not everyone takes to going from middle school to high school easily." Akira stated. "Suddenly, everything changes. Lessons are more important than ever, not doing homework isn't just a slap on the wrist, and all your friends start to drift away. It sucks." He then listed off and concluded.

"Yeah...I guess..." Hibari had to admit in agreement. "Um, what does it have to do with my problem right now?" She soon asked in a curious manner.

"Well...you're just starting out. This year is where you start transforming from a kid to an adult, and it can be the hardest thing you can experience." Akira soon explained. "That's why we're in high school for three years. To ease people like us into adulthood, and the first damn thing you learn in your first year is that you can't do it without help." He then revealed.

In his mind, however, he wondered how shinobi would handle such challenges, but he didn't need to tell Hibari about that.

"We have teachers that should help, friends to cheer you up while you're down, family to go...back...to..." Akira then continued, only to see the pinkette grow increasingly sad at the mention of family. "Crap, she has family issues..." He thought to himself. "I-I mean...t-the family you've made to support you fall. No one is ever alone."

"But...everyone expects me to be...better than this."

"And you will be. Later. When you're done." The Leader replied with an assuring grin. "This isn't about proving something to your peers, or the world, it's about learning to walk before you can run. Then, once you do, break into a sprint." Akira then explained. God, that sounded like something Ryuji would say to the track team if he was still in it.

The pinkette blinked at the boy's words. "Where did you get this from?" Hibari had to ask.

"My dad." Akira revealed with a nostalgic smile. "First time I've used his advice since I came here." He then admitted. The only other advice he could actually remember before coming to Tokyo was Don't get into trouble or do something stupid and look how that turned out.

"Still...Hibari still wants to prove her worth." The pinkette soon admitted.

"And you will. But that comes later." Akira responded in a reassuring tone. "You need to learn before you can put those skills to the test." He then explained.

"I'm...still in-training." Hibari muttered with widened eyes, only to realize she shouldn't have said that last word.

"In-training?" Akira got out, feining confusion and earning widened eyes from the pinkette. "Uh, you mean your PE classes, right?" He then asked, feigning ignorance.

"Y-Yeah, yeah. Please don't tell the others, especially not Asuka-chan!" Hibari pleaded with a slight bow, along with a slight relief with that in-training part.

This in turn caused Akira to raise an eyebrow. "Um, why?" He had to ask in a curious manner.

"Because...because..." Hibari responded, though couldn't find the right words to say.

"They're your friends, Hibari." Akira reminded. "If they laugh at you, or do anything but comfort and support you, they aren't your real friends and you should cut them out of your life."

"...I-I know they would never, but they'll just..." Hibari began before trailing off.

"Hibari. It's okay to ask for help so that one day, you will be able to strike out on your own." Akira stated in a serious tone.

"Huh? Y-You mean Hibari can still prove herself, is that it?" The pinkette got out, starting to have an uplifting tone in her voice.

"Yeah, that's exactly what I mean by that, Hibari-san." Akira stated with a genuine smile. "And I think your other friends will be very proud of you." He then reassured.

"Really? Even Yagyū-chan, too?" Hibari soon asked.

"Especially Yagyū-chan." Akira stated with confidence. "You can do it later, when you're ready." He then advised.

"Heh. Asuka-chan really made some great friends while she's here in Tokyo." Hibari giggled out.

"She did. Really hope you can hang out with my other friends someday." Akira replied with a nod. "I assume you won't be here for much longer?" He then guessed.

"Uh-huh. Hibari has to go back." Hibari confirmed with a nod. "Hanging out with Ann-chan would be great. Maybe even make some sweets of our own if we had the chance." She then added.

"Ann Takamaki, yeah. Total sweet tooth." Akira confirmed with a nod before chuckling. "You two could wipe out the entirety of Japan's sugar supply if you had the chance." He then joked.

"Ehehehehe...maybe." Hibari giggled with a light blush on her face.

"Guh! How the hell did that guy get a girl like that?!"

"She looks so cute, too! Dammit!"

"What the– are those things natural or plastic surgery!?"

"I can't believe she has a chest like that at a young age!"

"Huh?" Hibari innocently got out as she tilted her head in confusion. "Why is everyone staring at us?" She then asked, apparently not quite catching what everyone was saying about her.

Akira however heard those comments from the cafe's patrons and simply sighed at the consequences of his situation right now. Then again, Shujin Academy wasn't any better.

"Um...because of how cute your outfit is?" Akira got out with a wry smile.

"Oh." Hibari got out before standing up to face the people who were actually gossiping at them. "Thank you everyone!" She innocently stated at them with a bright expression.

Akira chuckled as Hibari bowed down (and exposed her bunny panties in front of him). He was glad he could have the chance to get to know her better. And considering how things have been happening right now in Tokyo, he couldn't trust any random guy in the vicinity to interact with the pinkette since from what he observed, she looked too innocent for her own good, which can still be a problem despite her being a shinobi.

Still, he felt a bond forming with the girl in front of him all the same.

---

(Fast Forward)

Sae looked at the files and documents for a moment before setting them down and looked at her suspect with crossed arms. "So I've looked into these files of yours and...I can't help but notice that you've barely had any male acquaintances that are the same age as you." She then deduced with stern eyes.

"Well, about that...I have a thing for getting people's attention." Akira replied with interlocked fingers on the table. "How it was mostly females was kind of weird to me at first, to be honest. But then again, the record I already had did its job of making some people want to stay away from me." He then reminded as he shifted on his seat.

"Uh-huh...and this girl that you've met with the, ahem...large breasts, was she...one of your female acquaintances, by any chance?" Sae soon assumed while coughing into her fist.

"She...and many others." Akira vaguely concluded as he continued recalling the events in his mind.

"Come to think of it, I've gone to the streets of Tokyo a couple of times, and I've noticed an increase in women that have been developing large...assets all of a sudden, especially among females in their teens and young adults. Even the media got a hold of the situation." Sae explained further while feeling a bit weirded out on the inside as much as not liking to show it in her face right now. "Is there something I should know about that? Because it surely can't be a coincidence." She then questioned and stated.

"Oh...about that..." Akira trailed off as he instantly got reminded of a certain female blonde who has a knack for...getting handsy with girls of young-adult age. "Yeah, that was...very unexpected. People on the Internet have called it The Big Boob Plague, for some reason, which sounded a bit dumb on my part. In any case, all will be explained in the end." He then reassured.

Sae went silent for a moment...before glancing down for a brief moment as she then decided to let the boy continue telling his tale. "Fine, if that's what you want, then I'll wait. Go on. Continue."

Akira simply nodded as he was requested to do so.

(Rewind)

---

SHATTER!

I am thou, thou art I...
Thou hast acquired a new now.

It shall become the wings of rebellion
that breaketh thy chains of captivity.

With the birth of the Suit of Coins
I have obtained the winds of blessing that
shall lead to freedom and new power...

RANK 1

"Suit of Coins?" Akira muttered to himself. "Huh, that's interesting."

"Akira-kun?" Hibari got out as she waved her hand in front of his face. "Are you alright, Akira-kun?"

"Hm? Oh, sorry, Hibari-chan." Akira quickly apologized to the pinkette. "Lost in thought for a moment there."

Hibari blinked at that before shrugging it off. "Anyway, let's get back to ordering. So whaddya want, Akira-kun?" She soon asked the Leader.

"Ah, something small. I need to be somewhere soon." Akira admitted.

"Me too..." Hibari muttered, not looking forward to going back to Okumura Foods HQ. "Well, let's have some of it to-go." She then suggested.

Akira nodded to that as they stood up and headed to the counter.

"Oh, Hibari and everyone got super nice new phones! We can give you our numbers now!" Hibari suddenly remembered before proudly showing the boy her new phone. It was pink with bunny puffy stickers on it.

"Right, we couldn't do that back at the beach..." Akira muttered before reaching for his own phone.

"Ah, but Ikaruga-chan and Yagyū said..." Hibari began to recall before trailing off.

"Hm? Is something wrong?" Akira soon asked in a curious manner.

"Um...uh...they told me Hibari shouldn't..." The pinkette began before trailing off.

"Give your phone number to strangers...?" Akira finished the assumed sentence with a raised eyebrow.

"S-Something like that..." Hibari responded. "Um, I guess...one contact would be okay since we know each other." She then added.

"Would your friends be okay with it, though?" Akira however asked.

"Well..." Hibari began as her mind began to wander back to when she received her new phone.

---

(Rewind)

(Hanzō Academy, Elites Room)

"I'm gonna use my phone for booty calls! Or should I say booby calls, haha!" Katsuragi proudly exclaimed while holding her new phone that was in a blue case. "And by that, I mean boobies to grope! That's why the human race revolutionized communication!" She then declared.

"That's not what these second phones are for." Ikaruga sighed out. "We have one phone for strictly shinobi business, the other is to be given to the enemy in case they want one for information." She then explained.

"...So it's a personal phone." Katsuragi deadpanned.

"Yes, but-" Ikaruga responded and began, but...

"Already adding my favorite ramen place that delivers!" Katsuragi instantly declared as she began typing the ramen place's number into it.

"Katsuragi-san..." Ikaruga let out another long suffering sigh before glancing down at her own new phone. "...Well, maybe such useless information like that could make it more difficult to look through, thus buying time..." She then muttered before beginning to type in numbers to her personal favorite shops.

"...Why didn't she think to add our own numbers first?" Yagyū questioned with a raised eyebrow.

(Fast Forward)

---

"Hibari-san?" Akira asked, trying to get the pinkette's attention once again.

"Oh, it's nothing. Here, time to exchange phone numbers." Hibari decided as the two got their phones out.

["PinkyBunnyHop" has been added to your contacts.]

"Huh. Cute." Akira remarked. "Anyways, have a lovely day, Hibari-chan." He then added.

"Bye bye, Akira-kun!" Hibari replied with an energetic wave.

"Well, that went well." Morgana commented as he popped his head out of the Leader's bag. "Looks like it's time to start heading to our objective." He then stated.

"Looks like it." Akira got out as he checked his phone's clock. "Sorry, Hibari-chan, but it looks like we're gonna have to infiltrate Okumura Foods again." He quietly apologized.

"Hey, at least this time she won't get into trouble with our methods." Morgana pointed out as Akira headed to the train station.

Once the boy had left, Hibari had decided to go wandering around Kichijoji to help work off some of the calories from all the sweets she ate.

"Wow, Akira-kun was really nice." Hibari got out, happily walking through the streets. "I wonder if I'll get the chance to see his other friends while I'm still here..." She then asked herself in a curious manner

TRIP!

"WAH!" The pinkette yelped as she tripped over something and barely managed to stop herself from face-planting into the sidewalk. "Owie...what did I-" She began to wonder as she looked back.

Hibari's eyes widened, nearly letting out a scream as she saw a very dirty girl laying on the sideway, unmoving with her eyes wide open. "A-A corpse!?" She gasped in horror. She looked about her age, maybe younger. How!? Who would-

No...wait...that didn't look like dirt. Was that...rust...?

Hibari blinked before cautiously crawling over to the unmoving girl. She didn't smell blood but she smelt...oil, and other mechanical stuff that reminded her of a mechanic's garage. The girl also had visible joints, and her torso was wrapped up in bandages.

"A...robot..." Hibari breathed out in awe. "Wait, I think Katsu-nee mentioned this once..." She then remembered, as an imaginary, chibi version of the blonde appeared next to her.

"Tons of lonely men buy these special robots that have the best breasts! I would love to buy one!" Imaginary Katsuragi informed while Imaginary chibi Ikaruga shook her head in disappointment right across the street.

Hibari quickly shook her head. She needed to get this thing off the streets and properly disposed of. Still though...she was curious why the torso was all wrapped up.

"Moh...I guess it wouldn't hurt." Hibari muttered to herself as she pulled out a kunai and cut the bandages in one swift move.

It instantly became apparent why there were bandages wrapped around her torso, as within the robot's chest where a human's heart would be, were two crystal feathers that glowed with a faint aqua-colored light. It sort of resembled a butterfly together.

"What the..." Hibari whispered in awe as she began to reach for one of the crystals.

GRIP!

"Eh!?" Hibari yelped as she felt something grab onto her wrist. She then looked down at the robot...who was looking directly at her with her purple and red eyes.

"H-Help...me...please..." The robot managed to get out, her voice stuttering like a broken speaker.

"Eh?" Hibari blinked as the robot stared at her with pleading eyes. "EEEEEEEEEEH!?" She then screamed in disbelief, her voice echoing throughout the city.

---

(Roppongi, Okumura Foods HQ)

"What the hell was that?" Ryuji asked as he looked around, wondering where that scream came from.

"Either someone just got a huge pay bonus, or they got fired out of nowhere." Akira assumed. "Either way, none of our business." He then stated as he continued walking towards Okumura Foods HQ.

The busy streets and sidewalks near the tall infrastructure resembling the headquarters of Okumura Foods were going on about as usual with the cars driving and pedestrians walking around while going about their day, save for still gathering the broken pieces of the statue in front of the building.

"This is the place, right?" Yusuke asked.

"Yeah. This is the place." Ann sighed out, the memories of last night still haunting her. "What a wonderful way to get caught; returning to the scene of our crimes..." She then mumbled under her breath as she looked at the police nearby who were taking notes and talking with one another.

Akira swallowed as he took a few steps back.

"So Asuka-chan and Homura went on ahead?" Ann guessed.

"Seems like it." Yusuke replied.

"They must be waiting for me." Morgana assumed as he jumped out of the Leader's bag. "I'll meet up with them. Don't do anything stupid while we're in there, and especially don't enter without a good reason. We'll tell you when we're good to go." He then instructed

"Morgana, you're still gonna need one of us to get you into the Palace." Ryuji pointed out as he pulled out his phone.

"No I don't!" Morgana suddenly snapped before clearing his throat. "I can enter and exit the Metaverse without the Meta Nav, remember? It's just more convenient." He then reminded the founding members.

The Thieves were shocked by the not cat's outburst, flinching. "Okay... Akira awkwardly got out. "Well, stay safe in there, Morgana. Good luck." He then added with a wave.

"The last thing I need is luck." Morgana muttered under his breath before closing his eyes. After a few seconds, he began walking forward as reality began to warp around, almost embracing him as he soon disappeared.

"... Wow, that is so much freakier looking at it from the outside." Miyabi got out as the group blinked.

"Soooo we just have to wait or somethin'?" Ryuji stated.

"Seems like it." Ann got out with a shrug.

"Okay." the dyed blond replied as a few of the Thieves pulled out their phones to relieve their boredom. "...Should we get something to eat?" He suddenly asked not even ten seconds later.

"No, we can't leave." Makoto insisted. "If they come back needing us, we need to be ready." She then stated.

Ryuji sighed and shook his head, before snapping his fingers. "Hey, we know effin' ninjas. They can get food for us." He then pointed out.

"We're not your errand girls." Miyabi deadpanned.

"I'll give ya money." Ryuji instantly offered.

"What junk do you want?" Miyabi immediately asked.

"So weak!" The other Thieves thought in disbelief.

"Ryuji-san, if you were hungry, you could've picked something up on the way here." Yumi pointed out.

"Dude, the only food place I'd buy at was Big Bang Burger."

"Okay, seriously, how many locations are there?" Ann questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Approximately 2.9k right now." Futaba informed as she looked down at her phone. "Man, this is some explosive growth. No wonder-" She then began.

"Everyone, heads up." Yumi suddenly warned.

"What?" Ryuji got out in confusion, only to turn around to see a certain detective walking towards them. "Oh shit." He then swore.

"A-Akechi-kun. Hi." Ann nervously greeted the detective.

"Hello." Akechi replied in a polite tone before giving them a serious look. "Why are you all here in front of Okumura Foods?"

Akira blinked as he tried to think of an excuse. "...What?" He responded in a dim manner.

"The headquarters of one of the biggest fast food chains in Japan, and was recently broken into. Twice." Akechi informed with narrowed eyes. "This isn't exactly a popular hangout spot for high school students." He then added before looking at Miyabi.

"...What?" Miyabi got out as she glared at the detective, almost daring him to say what she was expecting him to say.

"H-Hey, you shouldn't be here too!" Ryuji called out as he pointed at him with an accusatory finger. "Shouldn't you be, like, at the police station?" He then questioned.

"I'm investigating the break-ins." Akechi answered automatically. "I am a detective, if I need to remind you." He then pointed out with an amused smile.

"...Nice going there, Ryuji." Miyabi deadpanned under her breath.

"Well, if you have to know, we're here to see the break-in too." Makoto informed, lying as naturally as she breathed.

"We are?" Ryuji got out in confusion, only for Yusuke to elbow his stomach. "Oof! We are." He corrected.

"Y-Yeah, we were on our way to Tsukishima and, well, it was on the way so we decided to check it out." Ann added with a nervous smile.

"For what reason?" Akechi asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Same as anyone these days." Akira answered with a shrug.

"The Phantom Thieves." Akechi concluded as he shook his head. "I have seen online that people think it's them but I'm not so sure." He then admitted.

"Their brand of vandalism is graffiti and defacement. Not property destruction." Makoto spoke up. "This doesn't add up." She then stated.

"It's what many of the Thieves' fans are saying." Akechi agreed with a nod. "Although, it is possible that they are changing tactics. After all, they might be capable of much, much more than what they show to the public." He then guessed as he rubbed his chin in thought.

"Probably." Akira responded with a shrug. "I guess we just have to wait and see." He then added.

"Waiting and seeing may be the worst possible move at this point for the police." Akechi countered with a frown. "Guilty or not, they are causing more trouble than what it's worth, even indirectly." He concluded.

"Well, it's better than doing nothing at all." Akira responded.

"Maybe. But all actions have consequences." Akechi reminded. "Be sure to remember that next time, Kurusu-san." He then added with a smirk.

"What do you mean by that?" Ann questioned as the Thieves began to all glare at the detective.

"You know what they say: criminals often return to the scene of their crime." Akechi pointed out, causing the civilian Thieves' hearts to stop for a second. "Joking, of course. Most criminals are at least smart enough to not do that, or else there would be no crime at all. Have a good day at Tsukishima." He then got out in a good-natured manner before walking away towards the crime scene.

"Thanks..." Akira got out in a soft tone as they watched the detective leave. "Fuck." He then swore as soon as Akechi was out of their hearing range.

"Fuck is right." Miyabi groaned in agreement. "I think Akechi's catching onto us." She then assumed.

"N-No. He's just...aw man..." The dyed blond tried to speak before giving up while scratching her head.

"If we stay, we're suspicious. If we go, we're abandoning the sisters and Mona if they need us. If we go in, we're just letting ourselves walk into the Conspiracy's hands." Miyabi listed before letting out a groan. "Every path leads to doom here..." She then muttered.

"Well...only one of those options gets us something in return." Akira stated as he pulled out his phone, only for Yumi to grab his wrist.

"Joker, are you sure?" The gray haired girl questioned in a serious tone.

"I am." The Leader responded as he pulled his arm away and activated the Meta Nav. "Kunikazu Okumura. Okumura Foods Headquarters. Space station." He then got out as a wave of distortion rippled through reality.

[Candidate found. Beginning navigation...]

---

(Okumura's Space Station of Greed, Side Entrance)

When the distortion died down, the Thieves first noticed the sci-fi like environment of the area, but didn't focus on the specific details first. What they did notice was what they were wearing.

"We're in our Thief outfits..." Widow muttered with widened eyes, eyeing her Thief attire.

"We're already considered threats!?" Panther exclaimed.

"I mean, there were two break-ins." Serpent reminded with a flat look on her face with crossed arms under her breasts.

"Man, more shit's keeps pilin' up against us..." Skull groaned as he slumped down.

"Hey, uh...everyone might want to look...everywhere." Fox suddenly got out.

The Thieves looked confused for a second before looking up to see that the entire station was covered in a dome...which clearly showed the Earth in this distance as well as an actual outer space.

"Well, that's a little disorienting." Joker muttered as the Thieves stared at the planet outside.

"Whoa! Are we in outer space or something?!" Skull exclaimed.

"That's what Yin and Yang described when they were here." Queen stated. "Looks like they were telling the truth."

"Yeah. I think the biggest hint was that one of the keywords is space station." Serpent deadpanned.

"You know, all the Palace we've seen were all out of this world, but this one is really in space..." Panther muttered.

"What is with this guy's obsession with space?" Serpent wondered out loud, gazing at the area around them. She had to admit that this was the first time witnessing a world that is set in outer space.

"Whoa..." Oracle got out in awe. "Can't believe we're actually in outer space! We didn't bring any spacesuits, which sucks." She then got out geekily.

"It's as though we're in a film...I wish I had brought my sketchbook." Fox lamented, making a rectangular hand gesture and pointing it at the scene.

"Hey, stop humming and hawing. We have a job to do." Widow reminded the group. Although, she couldn't help but feel a little sad that cameras didn't work in the Metaverse. It's not every day a shinobi gets to go to space.

"We...We really shouldn't be doing this..." Queen hesitantly muttered out in a concerned manner.

"But we have to." Widow spoke up. "But we can still turn this to our advantage. Once we have the information we need, we can forget about this place and truly plan out our next move."

"UCHU KITA!" Oracle suddenly cheered as she pumped both fists into the air.

Joker meanwhile snorted in amusement. "I understood that reference." He remarked with a smirk.

"You do?!" The hacker got out in surprise, her eyes sparkling through her goggles. "Sweet!" She then cheered with a fist pump.

Widow then sighed. "...One of these days, everyone will treat a Palace seriously..." She muttered while shaking her head. After a little bit, the Thieves began to explore the area, looking for a way to get deeper into the Palace safely.

"Hm? What is this?" Fox got out in confusion as he stared at the odd device sticking out of the floor.

"Hey, I don't know what this thing is but it doesn't look like it's working." Skull informed as everyone gathered by the strange device.

"Let's see here...looks like a lever for the elevator to me." Oracle answered before going up and fiddling with it. "Aaand it should be working now!" She then informed.

"For real? You're amazin', Oracle." Skull praised.

"Mwehehe, that was nothing." Oracle giggled with a blush.

"It's certainly reassuring having you with us. Anyway, let's try using the elevator." Queen advised.

"Alright, going down." Joker announced as he pulled the lever down. Suddenly, the floor jolted underneath them before it began to move down. "Whoa! Right, space station. Because who needs elevators in space?" He then thought as they went down further into the Palace.

---

(Facility Passageway)

Once the Thieves arrived at the bottom, they stepped off the platform and looked around.

"Hey, what's the security level around here?" Serpent asked.

Their newest member tapped her goggles. "Ummm...30%." Oracle reported.

"That's a little lower than what we usually start with." Joker muttered out. "Looks like Team Yin-Yang-Mo's doing work." He then assumed.

"Well, we should still remain cautious. Who knows what we may-" Queen began to advise the group, however...

CRASH!

"Huh? What's that noise?" Skull got out in confusion as they walked into the next room towards the source of the noise.

"Look down there." Widow responded as she looked over the rail and pointed down at the lower floor. There were many robots, all of them looking like they were in business suits carrying boxes and pushing trolleys around, with a few taller red robots looming over them.

"What is that?" Fox asked.

"Robots? There're tons of 'em!" Skull answered.

"Hey, look on their backs." Panther got out as she leaned in a little closer. "They all have the Big Bang Burger logo." She then informed.

"They're saying something..." Oracle suddenly got out. "You must adhere to your shifts...if you don't like it, you can quit...however, you will not be compensated." She then relayed to her teammates.

"What're they talkin' about?" Skull wondered out loud.

BZZT! Fssshhh...

"Oh!" Panther got out as one of the black suited robots suddenly malfunctioned and collapsed in a heap. Almost automatically, the red robots began approaching it.

"What the hell? Did one of those bots just break down?" Serpent questioned before seeing the red robots drag the broken bot away from their view. "Where are they dragging it off to? Repairs? Maintenance?" She then wondered.

"No. They said...it's being disposed of." Oracle informed with a frown.

"Oh...Oh no..." Widow breathed out in concern from the fearful realization.

"These robots are part of Okumura's cognition, correct? That means they represent..." Fox started, his tone growing colder by the second.

"The workers." Joker finished as he gripped the rail tight while gritting his teeth.

"This must be how the CEO sees his employees." Queen got out with a frown.

"So he thinks they're his robots!?" Panther exclaimed.

"Robot is derived from a word that means forced labor..." Widow remembered out loud from one of her classes back at Gessen.

"If they're treated like this in reality as well...then the company truly is exploiting them." Fox concluded.

"That piece of shit!" Skull called out, shaking with rage while gripping the rail tightly.

"Quiet down, dumbass!" Serpent growled. "Those guards down there could hear you. Now, let's go find the others before something inevitably goes wrong." She then added and instructed.

"...Dammit. Right." Skull responded with a nod as he pushed away from the rail. He had seen enough.

The Thieves then continued to explore the rest of the Palace, going through high-tech pathways.

"Hold up!" Oracle suddenly called out just as they got to the door.

"What is it, Oracle?" Joker asked...and just as he said that, the door closed. "Oh great." He then sighed. He really should've expected this.

"Huh? Did we set something off?" Skull got out in a confused manner.

"If that happened, there would be Shadows here to attack us." Widow pointed out.

"Then why did it shut on us?" Panther questioned.

[PERFORMING BIOMETRIC AUTHENTICATION.]

"I'm gonna guess that..." Joker muttered as he shivered a little. Oh, that's probably not good. Suddenly, there was a buzz as the words Access Denied appeared in red letters above the door.

[AUTHORIZATION ERROR. ONLY AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL MAY PROCEED PAST THIS POINT.]

"Oh, you've got to be fucking kidding me..." Joker soon groaned. "Just kick us in the nuts, why don't you?" He then grumbled.

"Don't jinx it." Panther muttered under her breath.

"This security system might be a bit of a problem..." Oracle got out.

"What the hell's up with this!?" Skull growled before shoulder-tackling the steel door.

"That's not going to work, Skull." Serpent stated as she shook her head.

"Look at it...there's no way we can force that thing open." Panther sighed out.

"And there aren't any fingerprint scanners or keypads. We can't trick it like we could at the bank." Queen pointed out with a frown.

"We've hit a blockade quite early. Will we have to control the real Okumura's cognition to pass?" Fox assumed.

"Or steal a little bit of Okumura's DNA from the looks of it." Serpent muttered with a groan. She was not looking forward to a third attempt...

"There's no need." A familiar voice suddenly called out to them.

"Huh?" A few of the Thieves got out in confusion as they looked around.

"Up here." Yet another familiar voice instructed.

The Phantom Thieves turned towards the shelves filled with various boxes, and spotted four people standing on the top shelf.

"You guys made it in one piece. I'm impressed you managed to make it without us." Mona admitted in a smug manner.

"Mona, it was only an elevator ride away from the entrance with no enemies. I don't think we need to worry about them." Yang deadpanned as they jumped off the shelves.

"W-Well, for all we know, guards were on break." Mona mumbled out his explanation.

"I don't think anyone gets breaks in here." Yin bitterly stated before smiling upon seeing her friends.

"Mona, Yin, Yang." Joker greeted as he watched the three Thieves approach them...along with a newcomer. "...Wait...oh." He then got out.

"Ehehehe..." Yin awkwardly giggled out while rubbing the back of her head. "So uh...meet our new friend...uh...she's..." She soon began, however...

"BLACK MASK!" Serpent suddenly shouted as everyone, save for the Leader, very quickly aimed their guns at her.

"H-Huh!?" The newcomer yelped as she raised her hands into the air.

"Guys, what are you doing!? She's innocent!" Yang called out as she stood in front of everyone's guns.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Why are you accusing people by the color of their mask!?" Yin called out. "This is discrimination! Profiling! Other...such...colored-based discrimination stuff...!" She soon declared.

"Well, we don't have any other information we can draw from." Joker admitted. "...We should've probably asked the previous Shadows if Black Mask is a male or female." He then pointed out.

"Please don't jump the gun, people. We've seen...the Beauty Thief's awakening." Mona told the Thieves.

"Beauty Thief?" Everyone got out in confusion.

"Seriously Mona, we're actually going with that?" Yang muttered in slight annoyance.

"What? I just don't want them to know her identity yet if she doesn't want them to know." Mona replied.

The light gray haired girl then lowered her rifle as she took a closer look, examining the newcomer. "Wait a moment, aren't you Haru Okumura of Okumura Foods?" Widow soon questioned.

This in turn got everyone's attention as they looked at the light gray haired girl, with the one named Beauty Thief got a reaction of disbelief as well.

"Excuse me?" Skull got out in confusion.

"Haru Okumura. Heiress to Okumura Foods. Third year at Shujin Academy. Her hobbies include gardening, planting vegetables, and brewing coffee." Widow calmly informed as she placed her rifle away. "...May I remind everyone that I run an information network?" She then reminded.

"You may." Joker responded.

"W-Wait, did you say...information network?" Beauty Thief stammered out as she tried to lower her hat to hide her face.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me..." Panther groaned as she threw her hands up in disbelief.

"How did you know it was her?" Fox however asked in slight confusion.

"A hat is not a good enough disguise." Widow deadpanned. "She is usually known as the fluffy haired princess." She then revealed.

"Ehhh?" Beauty Thief got out in disbelief.

"Welp, there goes her anonymity." Yang groaned out as she looked at the new girl. "Haru-senpai's hair really is fluffy looking." She meanwhile thought with a sweatdrop.

"I...I kinda want to touch it now." Yin soon muttered as she looked at the girl in mention.

"P-Please don't." Haru requested in a whisper with a blush.

"Yeah. You're one to talk, Widow." Panther deadpanned. "You show the most skin out of all of us and gray hair isn't exactly common..." She then reminded.

"Panther, you wear the same hairstyle every day, even in most of our shoots." Yin however pointed out.

"Wh-What!? No I don't!" Panther countered.

"I have never seen you with your hair down. Ever." Skull admitted.

"I agree with Skull here, Panther." Fox admitted in agreement.

"Well, we did see Panther fixing her hair during our infiltration mission toge–" Widow however began, only to get cut off by someone.

"Everyone, stop. Focus." Yang suddenly interrupted before narrowing her eyes at the other Thieves. "Why are you all here now? Didn't we say not to enter until we came back?" She soon asked.

"Had no choice. Akechi was investigating the HQ and staying wasn't an option." Skull responded.

"Of course. That dick really loves to screw us over with his..." Yang growled, cursing under her breath before taking a moment to calm down. "Grrr...okay, okay. We're still good. At least you guys made sure he didn't see you enter the Metaverse, right?" She then got out. "...Right...?" She added.

"Y-Yeah, we made sure. Right, Leader?" Skull got out as he turned to Joker.

"Yes, we made sure, Skull." Joker answered with a nod.

"Oh thank God." Skull breathed out in relief. "Oh, I mean...uh..." He then got out nervously.

"You didn-" Yang began to scream at the dyed blond, only to stop herself. "It's okay, just...don't let it happen again."

"I agree. We are suspecting he's catching onto us." Fox admitted.

"No..." Yin got out in worry.

"That pretty boy Ace Detective just appeared out of nowhere like an NPC." Oracle stated, adjusting her goggles.

"I immediately panicked when I saw him!" Panther confessed.

"Really wish I could just kidnap the guy and take him somewhere where he'll never see daylight again." Serpent admitted with a hand on her hip.

"The police would catch wind of that if that ever happened, Serpent." Widow however reminded.

"Plus, we kinda suck at kidnapping..." Panther added.

"Grrr...why can't we ever do the fun solutions...?" Serpent growled.

"Anyways, you guys see the CEO's cognition of his employees?" Joker questioned the advance team.

"Robot slaves that get scrapped if they lose a screw? Yeah, one of the first things we saw." Yang answered with an angry frown.

"Okumura Foods really is a black company..." Yin muttered in a sad tone as the fluffy haired girl flinched. "Which Haru-chan here wants to stop." She then revealed.

"Well, that explains the Thief outfit..." Queen muttered.

"Man though. For someone so famous and rich, I never knew she attended Shujin." Skull admitted as he put his hands in his pockets.

"You tried to hit on her Skull, remember?" Yang pointed out, earning a reaction of bewilderment from the dyed blond.

"Huh? Really?" Haru innocently asked in a curious manner as she looked at the tan skinned girl.

"G-Guh! No I didn't!" Skull countered in a flustered manner.

"You were thinking about it though." Joker stated in a teasing manner.

"D-Dude! Shut up...!" Skull cried while everyone else chuckled at his indignant tone.

"O-Oh...I'm rather flattered but...you are not my type..." Haru admitted, adjusting her hat.

BANG!

And with that, Haru had (metaphorically) shot the dyed blond straight in the heart with his own shotgun.

"Critical hit!" Oracle called out. "I repeat, a Critical Hit!" She then added in an over-dramatic tone.

Skull simply fell down on all fours with his head down. "Why the hell do you have to say that to me out loud?" He muttered.

"I was being honest, though." Haru responded in an innocent manner.

"Can you at least consider how I'm supposed to feel about that?" Skull pleaded.

"...I did?" Haru answered, causing the dyed blond to groan again.

"Don't worry, Skull. You'll find someone." Queen comforted the dyed blond.

"Yeah. When pigs fly." Yang thought in a flat tone.

Meanwhile, somewhere in Tokyo, Ryōna joyously flew through the air...before she crashed into a tree. "Ahhhhnnnn~!" She moaned in happiness.

...

...

And of course, some people were staring at her as they went through their daily lives while others just videotaped her like they wanted to be famous online.

"Yeaaaaahhhh, I highly doubt it." Mona got out with crossed arms and half-lidded eyes, referring to Skull getting a girlfriend one day.

"Anyways, since everyone is here already, we may as well see if we can get further in."

"You guys got past?" Queen got out in surprise.

The team who entered the Palace first nodded to that. "You can thank Haru-chan here for that." Yin informed with a proud smile under her mask.

"Oh! Because she's Okumura's daughter!" Panther realized.

"Yep. We guessed that since Haru is an important person to Okumura, she has access to most places in the Palace. She is basically our all-access keycard." Yang informed before turning to the girl in mention. "No offense." She then added in an apologetic tone.

"Oh no, none taken." Haru replied as she shook her head. "Even if I cannot fight on the same level, I'll do everything I can to help you." She declared as she walked up to the locked door and opened it for them.

"Wait, you can't what?" Joker got out...just in time to see the many, many guards on the other side. "Oh, you gotta be effin' kidding me." He muttered.

"W-Why are there a ton of guards on the other side!?" Skull exclaimed.

"Someone must've set off a security measure!" Yang answered.

"...The biometric scan." Joker groaned as he slapped his forehead.

"I would now like to remind everyone to CHEESE IT!" Mona yelled out as everyone ran away from the robo-guards.

"Haru-chan!" Yin got out in worry as she saw the fluffy haired girl begin to lag behind.

"I can keep up!" Haru got out, running for her dear life.

"Screw that! Mona!" Yang shouted out.

"Morgana Henshin!" Mona called out before transforming into his car form and swung all his doors open.

"EH!?" Haru exclaimed in surprise. First the talking cat, now this!? Mona is a wonder!

"GET THE HELL IN!" Skull called out as the Thieves began to leap into the car.

"Haru-chan! Keep them off us!" Yin ordered as she leaped onto the Morganamobile.

"Huh?" Haru got out in confusion before her eyes widened. "Oh, right!" She then realized as she pulled out her gun.

"Uh, is that a grenade launcher?" Oracle asked, noticing the weapon.

PHOMP! BOOM!

"Yep, it is!" Panther responded as she saw a few bots get blown up from the shotgun seat window. She then ducked back inside just in time to see who had taken the driver's seat: Yang. "Oh shit, why are you in the driver's seat?" She soon asked in a panic.

"No! Fucking! Time!" The tan skinned girl growled as she put on her seatbelt. "Everyone in!?" She then asked as she looked back.

"Yep! We're good!" Serpent responded as everyone put on their sealbelts. "Floor it!" She soon ordered.

"Flooring it!" Yang yelled as she stomped on the gas.

SCREEEEEECH!

And with that, the Thieves drove off, running over several guards and splattering oil all over the Morganamobile's windshield in their escape.

"Someone prepare the Nav!" Panther yelled. "We're getting out of here for now!" She then added with the same tone as they made their escape.

---

(9/15, Evening)

(Yongen-Jaya, Leblanc Attic)

Sojiro was having a somehow peaceful business run for the day, all while watching the news on their TV. "...Phantom Thieves again? They're still the talk of the town, huh." He then stated, watching the news report.

DING! DING DING!

"Hey, welcome ba- what happened?" Sojiro began greeting Akira and his friends, only to notice how...messed up they looked.

"Nothing. Just...we all decided to go to the gym together..." Akira panted out, nearly tripping over his own feet before catching himself with the counter.

"...In your school clothes?" Sojiro had to ask with a raised eyebrow.

"We had gym today." Akira waved off as the Thieves stumbled their way over to the stairs.

"...Okay?" Sojiro only got in slight confusion. "Well, at least Futaba's getting exercise." He then muttered as he watched Akira's friend group climb the stairs and enter the Leblanc attic before tending the counter once again.

"That was close, dude." Ryuji breathed out as he panted, plopping himself onto the Leader's bed. "Too effin' close!" He then groaned.

"Close!? My tail got caught on fire!" Morgana called out. "Those guards are vicious!" He then declared.

"I really wanna go for some curry right now..." Futaba groaned, trying not to remember their recent escape attempt out of Okumura's Palace.

"Well, it's not like we were expecting anything less." Makoto responded. "Okumura is seriously on guard now. Getting any further into the Palace will be tricky with only four people..." She then warned.

"I don't think that would be a good idea..." Yusuke pointed out as he shook his head.

"None of what we've been doing in the past couple of days has been a good idea..." Ann mumbled as she rubbed her forehead.

"Well...let's just organize what we know now." Akira suggested, with the others nodding to the idea. "So to start off with the elephant in the room...Haru Okumura has a Persona?" He soon got out as he turned to Asuka, Homura, and Morgana.

"Yep." Morgana responded with a nod

"And a battle ax and grenade launcher." Yumi added with a raised eyebrow.

"Miyabi literally uses a minigun." Homura reminded in a flat tone.

"That does not make it better." Miyabi herself got out with a sigh. "What's next? Rocket launchers?"

"I don't think Iwai could stock such a thing..." Akira muttered.

"How did Haru-san get into the Metaverse?" Makoto asked.

"..." The three went silent, not wanting to answer. "She uh...We accidently pulled her in while we were using the Nav." Asuka finally answered for them.

"Because of course you did." Akira muttered as everyone else face palmed.

"Why can't we stop accidently pulling people into the Metaverse!?" Ann groaned in frustration while in her seat. "Oh, we are going to get someone killed eventually. I just know it..." She then added.

"Oh, I forgot to ask earlier but did Okumura-san make it home safe?" Yumi asked the tan skinned girl.

"Yeah. Even tucked her into her bed." Homura replied. "You should really see her room." She then added in an impressed tone.

"Yeah. Her room was like...wow." Asuka got out in agreement.

"Hey, what were you guys doing exactly before we came?" Futaba had to ask as she turned to the sisters.

"Oh, we were looking for safe rooms, maps and checking on the types of Shadows in there." Asuka answered. "But things got too hot for us to really continue after a while, so we were going to head back and get back up." She then explained.

"Until the back up came in and set off the authorization error." Akira concluded.

"Don't feel sorry. We messed up too." Homura replied and admitted. "Morgana here set one off first by accident." She then explained.

"..." Morgana went silent, looking away from the group.

"We didn't find a map, but Sis managed to draw up all the Shadows we had to fight." Homura soon revealed as the Vice Leader held up a small notebook. "Some of those guys are really tough without everyone to support us." She then added.

"Any special cognitions?" Makoto asked.

"Nope. None that we have seen yet." Homura shook her head.

"Well, at least we got something out of it. Good work." Akira got out in a grateful manner.

"Yeah, but we're still following the Conspiracy's script." Asuka reminded with a sigh. "And...just from what we saw there, Okumura needs a change of heart. He's causing so much pain and suffering for people, and I can't help but think about inflicting all of that back to him." She then admitted.

"Yeah. Treatin' people like garbage as soon as they break." Ryuji growled. "Starting to care less and less about that shit against us." He then grumbled.

"But we can't ignore it." Yumi reminded. "Especially since Haru Okumura herself is involved." He then added.

"Hai, Haru-chan even told us that she once put her father down as a request on the Phan-Site." Asuka soon revealed as her sister nodded in confirmation.

"...How the hell did Mishima miss somethin' like that?" Ryuji asked in disbelief.

"I'm checking the site right now..." Futaba responded as she scrolled through her phone. "Looks like she deleted the post after a couple of hours. She must've gotten cold feet." She then informed.

"So why now?" Makoto questioned with a frown.

"Something major happened with her personal life, maybe?" Homura assumed as she shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know, that was a guess on my part." She then added.

"Well, if she does have something going on, she's not talking about it." Yumi assumed with a finger on her chin. "I'd rather let her tell us on her own rather than force it out of her." She then stated.

"Yeah..." The tan-skinned girl got out in agreement.

"Well, what are we going to do about...everything?" Ryuji questioned as everyone turned to the Leader.

"I'm not sure." Akira admitted with a shrug. "Morgana, you must be thinking of something right?" He then guessed, noticing the not cat with his head down.

"..." There was silence on Morgana's part.

"Mona?" Ann got out in slight concern for the silence.

Asuka frowned as she got closer to the not cat. "Hey, Morgana, you okay?" She asked as she glided her hand through his fur.

"...Am I useful?" Morgana suddenly asked.

"Hm?" Yusuke hummed out in confusion.

Homura meanwhile groaned and palmed her face upon hearing this. "You're still not over this, are you...?" She sighed out.

"Huh? What are you talking about Homura?" Ann asked.

"Morgana-chan thinks he's becoming less and less of an asset to the team the more members that join." Asuka explained while petting the not cat's head.

"Hey! Don't say that so suddenly!" Morgana called out.

"What? I don't get it." Ryuji got out.

"Oh come on." Homura grumbled.

"What? I don't get why he's even askin' this question in the first place." Ryuji admitted with a shrug. "Of course he is. I thought that was obvious enough." He then added.

"Wait, what?" Morgana got out in confusion.

"I mean, come on Mona. We wouldn't have started the Phantom Thieves without ya helpin' us, especially in the castle and museum. Did you eat some bad fish that's causin' you to think like that?" Ryuji replied.

"Wait, hold on!" Miyabi interrupted. "I thought you two hated each other!" She then declared.

"Hey, Morgana can be a dumbass but I can be a dumbass as well and Asuka is way too forgiving to call him out on it. We keep each other in line." Ryuji then explained.

"I-I'm not too forgiving!" Asuka stammered out.

"Jack Frost~" Futaba fake-coughed out in an obviously teasing manner.

That immediately made the Vice Leader pout. "Moh..." Asuka got out.

"No teasing Futaba." Miyabi instructed in a chidding manner.

"Aw, what!? It was an observation!" Futaba exclaimed.

"Hey, we're having a moment here!" Ryuji called out.

"Sorry, sorry..." Futaba quickly apologized while the white haired woman gave them a sheepish look.

The dyed blond then let out a breath. "Dude, I'm sorry it seemed like we were takin' you for granted. We ain't gonna forget what you've done for the team just because we get more and more awesome teammates. Actually, it makes ya way more important! You're the reason why we're here changin' the world, and we won't trade ya for anything else." Ryuji got out in an apologetic tone. "Besides, we got a debt to repay. We're gonna get to the bottom of Mementos, no matter what!" He then added with a determined fist pump.

"Thanks, numbskull." Morgana got out with a genuine smile.

"You're welcome, ya stupid cat." Ryuji replied as he petted the little guy.

"Aw~ That's so sweet~" Asuka cooed. "Maybe you two should spend the night with each other."

"Oh hell no!" Morgana quickly shut down. "His room stinks! I can barely last an hour there!"

"W-What!? It does not! W-Well not anymore! My mom put air freshener in there." Ryuji tried to defend himself, but the look on the others told him everything he needed to know.

"It still can't overpower the smell..." Miyabi deadpanned.

"Gah..." Ryuji groaned. Why does everyone like ganging up on him?

"I'll stick with sleeping at Leblanc, thank you very much." The not cat replied. "This is where I belong, and there's no way anyone is going to take it away from me." Morgana soon declared.

"Aw, Morgana-chan..." Asuka cooed out as she hugged the little guy.

"H-Hey! Too tight! Too tight!" Morgana exclaimed, but calmed down at the feel of the Vice Leader's bust.

"Alright, alright. Enough of this lovey-dovey stuff. We need to get down to business." Miyabi responded. "We still have no leads on other Palaces, and Okumura is becoming more and more of a serious candidate even if it plays into the Conspiracy's hand. What the hell do we do?" She soon listed off and asked.

"...I think it all comes down to Haru-chan." Asuka answered as she let Morgana go. "It's her father in the Conspiracy's crosshairs. It's not our decision to make anymore."

"You're probably right. This means more to her than any of our problems right now." Akira agreed with a nod before checking his phone. "It's getting late. We should all go home and get some shut eye. Hopefully by then we'll have a real plan of attack." He then informed.

"And if we don't?" Homura asked as everyone began to stand up and stretch.

"...We do our best." Akira answered honestly, looking rather worried.

A little later in the night, after Akira showered and changed into his pajamas...

"No Haruka sneaking in tonight?" Morgana assumed as he looked around.

"Don't think so, but we still have the rest of the night." Akira responded. "Not that I mind though." He then admitted.

"Because it has happened so often she practically lives here." Morgana assumed before sighing. "You have to go on that date at some point." He then reminded.

BZZT! BZZT!

"I know, I know. Now give me a sec." Akira waved off as he pulled out his phone.

[Shut7heFUp: Things're really heating up online.]

[Shut7heFUp: People are going on and on bashing Okumura Foods.]

[Sweetkat06: Apparently they've been secretly using low-quality ingredients brought in from overseas...]

[All4Painting: Furthermore, any employees who were suspicious of Okumura were let go without reason. That coupled with the mysterious death of a rival company's CEO...]

[Road2Queen: What's this all of a sudden?]

[Alibaba9: Things are going up in flames, that's for sure.]

[Negative8Degrees: Could it be the Conspiracy trying to get us to change Okumura's heart despite our declaration?]

[FireGirl20: It's likely. But his Palace exists for a reason. Lies or not, he's definitely abusing his power.]

[Sweetkat06: People have been coming after us too. They think we should just hurry up and punish him before tackling the Conspiracy.]

[TheWildJ0ker: That's irresponsible.]

[Alibaba9: They're acting like spectators or something.]

[SushiRoll23: We can't fall for this!]

[SushiRoll23: ...But we can't just let his Palace remain...]

[DarkEyeXI: Okay, okay. What are we going to do tomorrow?]

[SushiRoll23: I think we should talk to Haru-chan. It is her father's Palace after all. We need her input.]

[All4Painting: That seems like the appropriate move.]

[Road2Queen: Okay, that sounds like a plan. It may be best if Asuka and Homura do this for us. They are her only true contact.]

[SushiRoll23: We'll try, but maybe as a good show of faith, you and Akira-kun come as well. You all did nearly shoot her...]

[TheWildJ0ker: Yeah...not our brightest moment...]

[DarkEyeXI: We need to tread carefully with this whole thing. The Hanzo shinobi could be watching over her given our actions.]

[FireGirl20: And all the kidnappings.]

[Shut7heFUp: Wait what?]

[Right. Haru-chan's schedule involves getting captured regularly...]

[TheWildJ0ker:...Oh, that would explain why we haven't seen her all that much at school...]

[Shut7heFUp: Shit, she's gonna have guards and shinobi and shit!]

[SushiRoll23: It's only Hibari-chan right now, and she's mostly protecting the CEO. I think we can do this without anyone else finding out.]

[Negative8Degrees: Still, be cautious. We don't want to fight our friends.]

[SushiRoll23: Wouldn't dream of it.]

"We're really playing with fire here..." Morgana got out with a frown. "One wrong step, and it'll be all over for us." He then reminded.

"Like it hasn't happened before." Akira responded. "Although, prison is a little more tempting than a beating and/or death." He then mumbled under his breath.

"Whoever this Conspiracy is wants Okumura to have a change of heart, and we still don't know why it has to be him out of all people." Morgana soon stated. "This is all a total mess we have to clean up here, Joker. Don't falter in the slightest!"

"We won't." Akira replied with a nod. "And promise you won't either." He then added.

"I won't. Never again." Morgana responded with a fire in his eyes that burned brighter than ever. "I'm here with you until the end. Count on it." He then reassured with confidence, as the Leader felt his bond with the not cat strengthened further.

BZZT BZZT!

"Now what?" Morgana sighed out as the Leader looked at his phone.

[DrSeduce: Akira-kun! Finally! I got a hold of you!]

[TheWildJ0ker: Haruka? Is something wrong?]

[DrSeduce: Yes. Hebijo sent over another shinobi and she's a total masochist. Avoid at all costs.]

(...)

(...)

[TheWildJ0ker: That's it?]

[DrSeduce: Eh?]

[TheWildJ0ker: I've dealt with weirder while in Tokyo. I think I can handle a masochist.]

[TheWildJ0ker: How's Tsumuji, BTW? You've been treating her right?]

[DrSeduce: Of course! She's become a trusted ally within Crimson Squad now.]

[TheWildJ0ker: That's great. Better a friend than an enemy.]

[DrSeduce: But Akira-kun, I do need to inform you of what type of masochist Ryona is.]

[TheWildJ0ker: I'll be fine. It's not like I run into shinobi who come into town. And if I do, they're usually nice.]

(...)

[DrSeduce: Usually?]

[TheWildJ0ker: Have a good night, Haruka.]

[DrSeduce: Hey! This isn't over darling!]

"Sorry, but tomorrow we have places to be, Haruka." Akira apologized as he plugged his phone into his charger and laid on his bed, with the not cat on his belly.

"A masochist, though?" Morgana muttered in concern. "That sounds really dangerous." He then added.

"Ah, I'm sure it's fine." Akira shrugged off. "Although, I think Homura would like someone who loves pain. Might get her to ease up on the others when she's training them. And Haruka does love BDSM." He then began suggesting.

"...How did you know that?" Morgana deadpanned.

"Have you spent more than two seconds around her?" Akira countered.

"...Well, I see your point, but..." Morgana mumbled out as he tried to think of a response. "Let's just get to sleep." He then ordered.

"I shall take that as your surrender." Akira chuckled out before laying down and closing his eyes. "Night, Morgana." He then added while relaxing himself.

"Night, Akira." Morgana breathed out as he curled up and dreamt of the ash blonde...in BDSM gear whipping him.

Maybe they shouldn't have talked about that before bed.

---

(Shibuya, Shin Megami Apartment Complex)

Meanwhile, the sisters and the white haired woman made it home without any incident. They were tired, hungry, and they were pretty sure they had cut something when they flung themselves out of the Metaverse, but the apartment complex filled them with relief once they entered. "Well, everything went crazy this time around in the Palace..." Homura groaned as she, Asuka, and Miyabi entered Apartment 269.

"At least it wasn't a total shitshow. We didn't even need to fight any Shadows in there." Miyabi got out, trying to see the bright side of things for once.

"You didn't need to. We got our asses fried." Homura grumbled as she rubbed her own ass.

"You're resistant to Fire. Your ass is fine." Miyabi reminded.

"It was a saying." Homura groaned. "It was more like Bufudyne anyways..." She quietly added.

"The names of elements are still weird for the Personas. Who came up with them exactly? The only one that makes some sort of sense is the Water Spell." Miyabi soon remarked and wondered.

"It's magic. It doesn't have to be in a common language." Homura stated as her sister nodded in agreement. "P-Plus, they're from some alternate reality made from human consciousness! Why the hell are you complaining about that instead of questioning other things!?" She then added and questioned.

"Oh, okay. I understand." Miyabi nodded in understanding. "I'll ask a more relevant question: What the hell happened on your first trip?" She soon asked.

"Uh...We ended up getting lost, got our asses kicked by too many guards,then had to escape by shooting out a window and spacing ourselves." Asuka sheepishly answered.

"...How are you all alive?" Miyabi deadpanned as she shook her head. "And you did all that while also endangering a civilian. You guys suck at checking your surroundings." She then added.

"I know, but we never learn!" Homura complained as she palmed her face. "For the love of God, I hope she's the last one by accident." She then added.

Asuka however giggled in response. "You just jinxed it, Homu-neechan." She pointed out

"...Can you give me, like, a minute to scream into an unending void? Cool. Thanks." Homura mumbled out before quietly sending herself into her Shinobi Kekkai.

The other girls meanwhile just sweatdropped in response. "Um...I'll make sure Homu-neechan is okay." Asuka soon decided as she got her phone out.

Miyabi shook her head. "Sanity is a commodity in the world of shinobi. And given our lives now, I think we barely have any left." She muttered out.

"Don't worry, we'll get through this, Miyabi-chan." Asuka reassured. "Everything will work out as long as we keep trying and never give up." She then stated.

"Like giving up is a choice for us." Miyabi whispered to herself before yawning. "Have a good night, Asuka. See you tomorrow." She soon replied.

"You too." Asuka responded. "Oh and good luck with your friend and her sister fighting." She then added.

"I don't need luck, I need a goddamn counselor." Miyabi grumbled. "You know anyone?" She then asked.

"Nope. Sorry." Asuka bitterly chuckled. "Therapists are a commodity too." She then added.

"Well, when I take over Hebijo, we are definitely getting one." Miyabi promised. "Or twelve. Or fifty." She then mumbled under her breath.

"Can you send some to Hanzō?" Asuka requested.

"I could pull a few strings... you'd be fine with an alliance between schools?" Miyabi replied and asked.

"Good and Evil are the same, and we did just end the central cause." Asuka reminded. "Though I do wonder what'll happen to those sentient Yoma and human-yoma hybrids Mona-chan told me and Homu-neechan about." She then confessed.

"Ah, they probably all died along with all the mindless ones. Don't worry about it." Miyabi responded, waving it off.

"ACHOO!" A silver haired girl suddenly sneezed.

"You ok, Reki-chan?" A blonde asked in a curious manner while looking up from her phone.

"I'm fine Yuki, just still feeling a little weak for some reason." The silver haired girl responded, shifting uncomfortably in her seat.

"Might wanna go to a clinic for that one." Yuki replied, getting a nod of agreement from the silverette.

Meanwhile, Fubuki stopped in her tracks and blinked.

"Hm? What is the matter, Fubuki-sama?" Senko got out and asked in concern while

"Nothing. Just thought about punching a shinobi's skull out the back of their head." Fubuki responded with a shrug.

"...Like you always do?" Gekko suddenly stated.

"Please don't get distracted." Fubuki got out as she continued on her way. "We still have work to do."

"Hai, Fubuki-sama." Senko and Gekko responded at the same time before following their master.

"Ehhh...you're probably right." Asuka replied with a shrug. "Anyways, have sweet dreams, Miyabi-chan."

"You too. And remember to train more in katana style!" Miyabi responded and reminded.

"Hai!" Asuka responded with a salute. Just then, the tan skinned girl reentered the apartment. "Ah! Homu-neechan, you're back! How are you doing?" She soon asked in concern.

"Fine now. Needed that." Homura simply responded as she wiped her mouth. "Now I'm good for a nice dinner followed by a bath and then bed." She concluded with a grin.

"I'll get it started then." Asuka offered as the two headed in.

After everything that happened today, a bath sounded more like a necessity than a luxury.

---

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! Gonna be honest, Australian summer is kinda kicking my ass, especially since my room seems to be warmer than any other place in my house. Anyways, the next chapter is just more stuff.

UknownHero signing off, my friends!