"What's with the giant bandage on your face?" Izuku questioned, his expression conveying that he was worried. "Oh...fishing accident." Johnny responded. "Jiro said you were jabbed by a cactus, and now you cut your cheek fishing?" Johnny was on a video call with his friend, while Gyro was napping near the campfire. The previous fight had been exhausting for the both of them, with the impalement and all. But Izuku still had One For All to worry about, Johnny didn't want to add on to that.
"Well, you know how accident prone I am. It's really nothing to worry about." Johnny responded. "O-okay, if you say so." The way Izuku said that made it clear that he still didn't believe him, but he seemed to drop it for now. "Your dad is back."
"That's great! How is he?"
"He's actually doing pretty good, I think he's getting better."
Johnny sighed in relief. It was good to hear that his dad was recovering. "By the way JoJo, I like the hat, I-it looks good on you." Johnny glanced upwards towards his beanie. "You can thank Kyoka for that. She got it for me as a parting gift."
"Oh! Did you open mine yet?"
Johnny reached into his pocket and pulled out a small notebook. "Yep, I've mostly been using it to draw, but I've been taking notes on things that I've learned so far." Truthfully, Johnny had picked up the habit of taking notes from his friend, and most of them were about the Spin, as well as the mystery of the Corpse hand. "Have you heard of Cholla? It's a type of cactus that fires it's needles when something gets close."
"Is that what hit you?"
"Yeah, a few of them did actually. I'm trying to learn how to identify them so I don't run into them again."
"That's a pretty good idea, have you opened any of the other gifts?"
Johnny glanced at the bag that Pork Pie Hat Kid bashed with a rock. "Um...not yet." A wave of guilt washed over him. His classmates went through all the trouble of getting him presents, only for them to be smashed by an ink drinking goblin. Johnny could only hope that a few of them could be salvaged.
Suddenly a hand began waving up and down in front of Izuku's face. "Midoryia, we are going to be late for class!"
"Oh! Sorry Iida! Bye JoJo!"
"Wait, Jo-"
Izuku hung up, much to Johnny's amusement. Johnny crawled into his sleeping bag and closed his eyes. "Hey Johnny." Johnny reluctantly opened his eyes again. "Yeah Gyro?"
"You really miss them, don't you? "
Johnny breathed out. "A whole lot. I wish...I wish-"
"You were still at U.A with them?"
"Yeah..."
Gyro pursed his lips. "Y'know...we've already been through quite a lot in the past 48 hours. You might be away from home...but you're definitely not alone."
Johnny smiled to himself. "Thank you, Gyro."
...
A crowd was gathered at the front of the gates of U.A, screaming and shouting and holding signs which read things like: "Give her son back!" Jolyne looked at the crowd in disgust. "Brain dead assholes, every last one of them. But everything is going to plan..." Giorno nodded. "Are you ready Jolyne? The crowd looks nasty." Jolyne nodded. "I want to destroy that woman more than anything, after what she did to Johnny. But clearing Dad's name is more important."
Jolyne walked over to Present Mic, who was trying to hold back the crowd with Aizawa. "Hey, you mind getting their attention for me."
"Sure thing!" Mic took a deep breath. " hEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYY SHE HAS SOMETHIN' TO SAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYY!"
The crowd stopped shouting and turned to face the sixth JoJo as she walked up and stood in front of them, hands on her hips. "You all make me wanna vomit."
"What the hell?! You should be on our side!"
"AND YOU SHOULD SHUT UP BEFORE I SHOVE A ZERO POINTER UP YOUR ASS!"
"She isn't lying, she'll do it!" Present Mic called out.
" ...yes ma'am."
"You all marched up here, yelling your asses off, and terrorized a man who just saw his son get shot, just because some bitch on the internet told you a story. Well I lived that story, and let me tell you, what that woman said was complete and utter BULLSHIT! "
The news crew was focused on Jolyne now, and she pointed at the camera.
"You people had no evidence to back it up, you just rushed here and tried to ruin our lives, and for what? So you can ease your consciences destroying an innocent man grieving for his son? You guys wanna hear a story you can get mad about, good, I've got one for you! It was my sixth birthday, Johnny was three, and I was having a party. All my friends were invited, and we all had a good time. You know who didn't have a good time, Johnny! That woman made him stay in his room so he wouldn't ruin my "special day", and she made him clean up afterwards. SHE. MADE. HIM. CLEAN. I was just a dumb little kid, I didn't know what was happening at the time, but now I can't stop thinking about it. He was like fucking Cinderella, minus the ball! And that bitch had the audacity to say that my father was the abuser?! No! SHE WAS!
He had no choice to leave us, he had enemies! She hates my brother, he's not her "baby", he's just a tool to her. So Mom...no, I can't even call you that anymore. Susan...I hope you hear this. Why did you love me, and not him? What did Johnny do to make you hate him so much? I loved you...but my brother...my father, they are more important to me than you'll ever be."
Jolyne angrily stomped off, leaving a stunned crowd behind. Giorno immediately ran over, but Jolyne put up her hand. "I'm fine...just tired."
...
Diego Brando sat in the middle of a restaurant. He had just won the second stage, coming ahead of those bufoons, Kujo and Zeppeli. He took a sip of his coffee, stewing over recent developments. He had a conversation with that weird priest back when he was racing in Florida, but he wasn't interested in "changing the world." But the priest was right about a few things, like how the Joestar family would inevitably plague him.
Diego couldn't have cared less about his father. After all, the man had left his mother to die, Diego hated his guts. There was really only one reason as to why Diego was wearing his name.
Fear.
That way Johnny Kujo would consider him a threat, and try to stay away from him. Anyone else who had experience with DIO would undoubtedly do the same...at least that's what Diego thought. Instead, Kujo seemed to challenge him almost right away, undermining him during the first stage and giving Zeppeli the win. If there was one thing Diego hated more than anything, it was losing, and those two idiots could actually beat him, especially Kujo.
Diego wouldn't underestimate him. He may not pose a physical threat, but he was a damn good racer, and he is very intelligent. Diego would not lose to him.
Kujo, Zeppeli, from this moment on...this is war.
Diego paid for his meal and walked out into the street, and sure enough, the two men who he had just declared war on were sitting at a cafe across the street.
Diego ignored them and strode over to Silver Bullet. That's when he felt a tug on his pant leg. Diego whirled around in anger, and a little girl backed up out of fear. Diego's eyes widened slightly, before his face softened. "Sorry about that, didn't mean to scare you. I'm just a little angry today." Diego kneeled down to meet her eyes. "Did you need something?"
The little girl motioned to her mother, and her mother walked up to the British jockey with a saddle. "She wants to ride horses, just like you. Is it alright if she gets an autograph?" Diego smiled. "Certainly!" He took the saddle and signed his name onto it, drawing a little dinosaur at the end for fun. He handed it to the girl, and she squealed with delight. "Thank you Mr. Brando! I'm keeping this forever!" Diego chuckled. "Keep following that dream kid, and who knows? Maybe I'll be asking for your autograph!" The little girl ran away happily, while her mother gave him a grateful look and followed her daughter.
Diego may be a dirty cheat, even he's willing to admit this, but there was no denying that he loves his fans.
...
Gyro twirled his pasta, his face a mask of boredom and disgust. "Man, I wish we could get some DECENT PASTA around here!" Johnny, who was eating a bacon bleu cheesebuger, sighed. "Yare yare daze Gyro. I'm sure it isn't that bad."
"They forgot to salt the noodles Johnny! You can't make any type of pasta without waiting the noodles! This is a crime against cuisine!"
"Gyro, this is a diner...in a small town in America, not a five star restaurant. They're trying the best with what they have, so we should respect them for that."
"This merde is not al dente Johnny! Do you even know what that means?!"
"Yes, Gyro...I do, and I don't really care."
"WHAT?!"
Suddenly, a rope snagged around Gyro's fork, and it flew into the hands of a cowboy who sat down next to them. "Kujo's right, Mr. Zeppeli. Maybe you should be a little bit more respectful."
The cowboy wore a zebra print cowboy hat and a light brown jacket. The arms of the jacket appeared to be cheeta print. A pistol was attached to his belt, along with some bullets. His blonde hair was cut into a mullet, and his blue eyes shown with the same light as a doting father. The cowboy offered his hand. "Mountain Tim, pleased to meet the both of you."
Johnny reluctantly took it, catious of the man's intentions. Gyro glared at him. "Can I have my fork back?" Mountain Tim's arm extended at an impossible length, revealing that it was held together by the rope that he used to snag the fork earlier, and plopped the fork back on Gyro's plate. Johnny observed as the cowboy's arm came back together. "Quirk or Stand?"
"Stand, it's name is: Oh! Lonesome Me. I've got a rope inside my body, it allows me to detach parts of myself and hurl them at people. Let me tell you, it's come in real handy during gunfights."
Johnny raised an eyebrow. "What do you do it you're getting in gunfights?"
"I'm a bounty hunter. You see, I was hired to uh...catch you guys?"
Johnny and Gyro tensed up. Tusk materialized next to Johnny's head, and Gyro's hand reached for a steel ball. Mountain Tim put up a hand. "Relax you two. If I was gonna arrest you, I would've done it already." Johnny and Gyro didn't put anything away, but Johnny nodded to indicate that the bounty hunter could continue. Mountain Tim sighed, before pulling out a badge that read: Speedwagon Foundation. Johnny put his stand away. "It's okay Gyro, he's friendly."
Mountain Tim put his hand down. "I thought I would warn you boys, that's all. Someone is out to get the both of you."
"Can you tell us who tried to hire you?" Gyro asked, his voice hushed.
"You're not gonna like what you hear."
"That gremlin with the hooks let something slip earlier, we already have an idea, we just want to confirm it."
Mountain Tim sighed. "Funny Valentine. You guys basically just made an enemy of the entire United States."
Johnny felt his heart drop into his stomach as the dread began to set in. The entire United States?! Does that mean that he's a villain now? He didn't do anything wrong! Why didn't the president just ask for it? Johnny came to the sudden and terrifying conclusion: he's an outlaw now, and it wasn't even his fault. "Johnny. JOHNNY!" Johnny felt something forcefully make contact with his face, and he realized Gyro slapped him. The muscles in his chest felt like something yanked on them, he must've been hyperventilating.
"Johnny, calm down, relax. We aren't the bad guys here, the president is. He sent assassins after us first, does that sound like something one of the good guys would do? No. It's obvious...the president is secretly a villain." Gyro consoled his friend.
Mountain Tim nodded. "He wants that Corpse more than anything, and he's willing to kill two teenagers, and anybody else, that are in his way. Besides, he's doing this in secret, meaning that you aren't wanted by law, only by him...personally."
Johnny nodded. "Thank you, sorry about that. As a guy who wanted to be a hero, being in the other side of the coin was terrifying to me, especially since I didn't do anything wrong.
...We need to keep this Corpse away from him, who knows what he's planning to do with it."
Gyro nodded. "It looks like our priorities just went from winning a race to saving the world, huh?" Johnny nodded, and then he was struck by a sudden realization. Was this it?
A Zeppeli, a Brando, and an evil maniac that held a position of power, and a magic dead guy that everyone seems to want for themselves. It was all coming together...was it his turn? Was this his bizarre adventure? Was he finally going to leave a mark on the Joestar legacy?
Johnny glanced down at his useless legs. No...that can't be it. He was no where near capable as his predecessors. He just got himself into a big mess, one that he would have to rely on people like Gyro and Mountain Tim to get him out of it. Johnny felt something burn inside of him. He shouldn't have to rely on anyone! I
"I'm sorry, you two...I hate having to say this, but with the way I am now, I'm useless to you. I'm afraid I'm just going to be dead weig-"
Gyro clobbered him over the head.
"OW! WHAT THE F-"
"Sorry, it's just that you were about to say something stupid. If I recall correctly, someone battled an enemy stand user yesterday, while I was dangling all helpless. And if my memory isn't failing me, I believe he won."
"But, my legs..."
"Are useless...because you've proven that you don't need them. You got a top notch brain Johnny Kujo, and that brain will be all you could ever need. I couldn't of imagined traveling with anybody else."
Johnny nodded. "If you say so..."
...
The terrorist dug around in the hotel room, looking for the Corpse. His dark hair was unkempt, and a maroon jacket covered his otherwise shirtless pale body. Valentine had hired him to kill Kujo and Zeppeli, but it was a little more personal than the president initially thought. Oyecomova gritted his teeth. "Zeppeli...I'll have you dead!"
"Will you now? " The terrorist whirled around to see Mountain Tim pointing his pistol at him. "I'm afraid Zeppeli is under my protection. Did you really think I wasn't watching their hotel room?"
"Get lost, this doesn't concern you." Oyecomova walked away, ignoring the bounty hunter. "Hey! Didn't you hear me?! You're not getting anywhere near them!" Mountain Tim grabbed the terrorist by the shoulder, only for the skin on the man's shoulder to come off. "What?!"
"Hmm, wouldn't have happened if you hadn't touched me. Sayonara."
Then the whole hotel room blew into a massive explosion, sending Mountain Tim flying out the window in pieces, crashing to the ground below. Gyro and Johnny turned to the source of the explosion and saw their new friend on the ground looking like a bloody lego character after losing all of it's studs.
"MOUNTAIN TIM!" Johnny screamed as he wheeled over, Gyro bolting ahead of him. "DON'T COME CLOSE!" The cowboy responded. "Wait...you're actually alive? You're in pieces!" Gyro exclaimed. Mountain Tim raised a bloody stump, revealing that his stand was attached to his limbs. Tim began reeling in his severed limbs with the ropes. "An enemy stand user! He can turn things into bombs! I only survived because the ropes kept my body somewhat together."
Mountain Tim's eyes suddenly widened as he struggled to reattach his jaw. "Gyro, behind you!" Gyro whirled around, a pale hand brushing against Gyro's hand as he came face to face with the attacker. Gyro's eyes widened as he recognized the enemy. "You..."
"Ah...you recognize me, Zeppeli. Good...I'll make sure I'm the last thing you see."
"Gyro! Your hand!"
Gyro looked down, and saw that his hand was covered in little clock-like pins. "Hold those pins down Gyro! If they pop off, you'll explode!" Mountain Tim yelled as he tried to get up, without much luck. Gyro quickly put his hand on the pins, and Oyecomova frowned. "Party pooper, how are you still alive?"
Gyro looked down and he quickly realized that the pins were melting. "Shit! They're coming off with my sweat!" Gyro thought quickly, and activated one of his steel balls. The steel ball picked up the melted pins with its rotation and carried them down to Gyro's leg, where the explosion was set off, blowing a huge chunk of Gyro's ankle. The steel ball was sent flying from the force of the explosion, right into Oyecomova's side.
The terrorist coughed up blood as he clutched at where the steel ball had hit him. Gyro had definitely broken a few ribs. As for said Zeppeli, he fell to the side, wincing in pain as he glanced at his wounded ankle. Oyecomova took off, getting on his horse and riding away. Gyro hopped over to Valkyrie. "Come on Johnny! After him!"
Johnny saddled up on Slow Dancer, and the two rode off as Mountain Tim struggled to his feet, hobbling to his horse. "AHHHHH! ZOMBIE!"
"No! Miss, wait!" Said woman began beating him with a stick, screaming to her son about how she knew it was only a matter of time.
...
Johnny and Gyro raced after their quarry, slowly gaining as they followed him through the rocky terrain. "So Gyro, it looked like you knew this guy. Who is he exactly?"
"A terrorist by the name of Oyecomova."
"Oklahoma?"
"No...anyway, the Prime Minister of Britain came to Italy to pay a visit, and this guy tried to blow her up! It failed to kill her, but it took out innocent people, including two children. He was supposed to be executed by my father, but he snuck gunpowder in and poured it on a prison guards ear. You can probably guess what happened next."
Johnny grimaced. "So that's why he wants to kill you, he hates your dad."
"Well I hate my dad too, so if anything we should be friends since we have a few things in common, y'know, except for the whole mass murder part that is."
Oyecomova turned around. "You two are following me? Fine, don't blame me when you are torn to pieces." Oyecomova pulled out a cigarette and lit it, blowing the smoke towards his pursuers.
Johnny's eyes widened. "Gyro! There's bombs in the smoke!"
"ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?!"
Johnny and Gyro circled around the smoke just as an explosion went off. Johnny coughed as the stench of gunpowder and tobacco filled his nostrils. "Gyro? Is your leg okay? It looks like it's about to fall off! You should make a splint or something!"
Gyro smirked. "Funny, I'm getting leg advice from a guy without working legs. How ironic."
Johnny glared at his friend. "Well excuse me, asshole. I was just looking out for you."
Oyecomova grabbed a stick off the ground and smacked a bee hive from a tree, causing a swarm as the terrorist steered his horse into the river. The bees came flying at the two jockeys, as if they were blaming them for the destruction of their home. "Oh god, not the bees! " Gyro shouted. "Gyro, the bees are bombs!" Johnny shouted, taking advantage of his good eyesight. "BEE BOMBS?! God? Why do you allow these things to exist?"
Johnny glanced at the river. "He turned the fucking water into bombs too! This guy is giving Killer Queen a run for it's money."
"Killer Queen? "
"I'll tell you later, I'm getting an idea!" Johnny shouted. "It took about three to four seconds for those bombs to go off when you let go of them, right?"
"Yeah?"
"You think our horses can outrun the time limit?"
Gyro furrowed his brow, before he broke into a wide golden grin. "Johnny, I don't know if you're a genius, or if you're just crazy."
"What's the difference?"
...
Oyecomova looked back, a small grin on his face as he waited on top of a waterfall, watching the horizon for any signs of his pursuers. He must have shaken them off with the river bombs.
BOOM
Oyecomova grinned. One of them must have been obliterated now. He knew it was probably the cripple that Zeppeli was keeping as a pet, but he was really hoping it was Gyro.
BOOM
Oyecomova broke into a wide smile, pure elation coming across his face. There was a second boom, meaning that both of them must have blown up.
BOOM
Third...boom?
BOOM
BOOM BOOM
BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOOM!
Oyecomova could only stare in shock as explosions began appearing on the horizon, with two little dots quickly growing in size in front of them. No...there's no way they would have the balls to...
Apparently, they did.
Johnny and Gyro were racing ahead of the bombs, using the time limit to stay ahead of the explosions. Oyecomova staggered back in shock. "You...you...you MANIACS!"
Suddenly, a spider web flew at him, followed by a buzzing sound. "You think you can use one of my bee bombs against me?!" Oyecomova asked as he looked at the spider web, only to be shocked by the sight.
There was no bee, but rather a small spinning disk. "That's one of Johnny's nail bullets!" Gyro yelled up to the terrorist as he and Johnny triumphantly smiled at him. "You really shouldn't have brought that close to your face!"
Just then, a steel ball bounced off of the nail bullet and into Oyecomova's face, sending blood and teeth flying out of the villain's mouth. "Just one more should do it!" Gyro shouted as he threw his second steel ball, bashing the other side of Oyecomova's face as he toppled off of his horse. "Yeah, I don't think he'll be getting up for a while..." Johnny said.
"Hold on Johnny, I'm sewing my foot back on." Gyro said, his face lined with sweat as he was currently going through the painful process of sticking a needle into torn flesh. Johnny raised an eyebrow. "You can do that?"
Gyro nodded, winced, and pointed to the thread he was using to reattach his foot. "This thread is called Zombie Horse, it increases the body's regenerative properties when it is applied to a wound."
"Must come in handy, how does it work, exactly?" Johnny asked, curious.
"It's made from zombies, Johnny. You know, the reanimated corpses that are brought back to life by vampires? Their skin can heal others, believe it or not."
"That's disgusting, but I guess that explains the name."
"It's basically a skin graph on a thread. I just can't use Hamon in my leg until the regeneration does it's work."
"Okay, we should probably go check on Mountain Tim."
Gyro got up, tested his foot, and got back onto his horse. "I agree, maybe I can patch him up a bit." The two rode back to town, leaving the twitching Oyecomova as he drifted down the river.
...
"Thank you both, I didn't think that woman would leave me alone. Crazy old hag..."
Mountain Tim said as Gyro used Zombie Horse to permanently reattach his limbs. Johnny grinned. "Just don't scare us like that again, Cowboy. I think that was the first time I ever saw somebody get chopped up like that." Johnny shuddered.
Gyro wrapped the rest of Zombie Horse into a spool. "I'm afraid you're going to have a bit of facial scarring, but you should be fine." Mountain Tim chuckled. "That's not a bad thing, Gyro. Women like men with scars." Gyro rolled his eyes as he sat down next to his exhausted friends. " Well, at least we know it isn't just the two of us, right Johnny? " Johnny nodded. "It's good to know we have someone in our corner, thank you Tim."
The bounty hunter ripped his hat. "Don't mention it. I'll be looking around for any more information, I'll get back to you boys if I find anything of interest."
Johnny and Gyro nodded as their new ally departed into the sunset.
...
"So, Midoryia mentioned a fishing accident?"
Kyoka was glaring at him from the other side of the screen, indicating that she didn't believe it for a second. "It was! I got hooked!" Johnny put his hands in the air. "You're lucky I can't hear your heartbeat over a phone, otherwise I'd be able to tell if you were lying."
Johnny sighed. "Kyoka, I'm fine. There's nothing to worry about. I do appreciate your concern though." As if he could tell her that he saw a man get blown up today. Johnny knew he promised to come to her for problems, but if she knew how much danger he was in...
Johnny didn't want to put that burden on her. So, he had to lie to her face.
It felt wrong.
"JoJo...if you were in hypothetical danger...you would tell me, right?"
Damn it, now she had to say that.
Don't tell her, don't tell her, don't tell her, don't tell her. "My friend Gyro has a price on his head..." God dammit Johnny! Johnny watched regretfully as Kyoka grew even more concerned. "So you are in danger! Why did you lie to me?" Johnny looked down, his shame getting the best of him. "I...I didn't want you to worry about me. We didn't know about it until we were attacked by the cactus guy..."
"Cactus guy?! Someone did that to you?!"
Johnny nodded. "Yeah, although the cut on my cheek really is from a hook." Nice save Johnny...it isn't lying after all. Kyoka sighed. "JoJo, I care about you, you have to tell me these things! I said I would help you..."
"I know, I just didn't want to worry you. It should be over soon, though. We have a bounty hunter from the Speedwagon Foundation looking into it. "
"Well, that's a relief. I just wish you would've told me sooner. It makes me feel like you don't trust me... "
"I DO, I DO! I wasn't thinking, that's all."
Kyoka let out a deep breath, and then smiled. "I see you're wearing the hat I gave you."
"Hmm? Oh yeah! I love it! I honestly think you have me a new look. It's a part of my jockey uniform now."
"I'm...really glad you liked it, JoJo."
"Of course I did! Although you know what would've been a cooler gift?"
"What?"
"New legs."
Kyoka chuckled. "Well, I would've given you mine, but I still need them at the moment."
"Imagine me walking around with a woman's legs."
The two broke out into contagious laughter at the image that popped into their brains. "You'd. Look. FABULOUS!" Kyoka cried out as Johnny clutched at his chest, trying to catch his breath. "What the fuck did I just walk into?" Gyro's voice came from behind.
"Nothing...oh, Kyoka! This is Gyro! Gyro, this is Kyoka Jiro, one of my classmates." Gyro ducked his head into the camera's range. "Hi! I'm Gyro Zeppeli!"
Kyoka nodded. "We've met." Gyro's eyes widened. "Oh! You're that girl I had an awkward with on Johnny's phone!"
"Yep...that would be me."
Gyro smiled. "Aaaaaand it's awkward again. I'm gonna go buy some food, have fun talking to your girlfriend!"
Kyoka turned into a sputtering mess, while Johnny screamed: "SHE'S NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!"
After the two of them recovered from the curveball Gyro had just tossed at them, Kyoka continued. "You should have seen Jolyne today! She launched into this whole speech, and she left a bunch of reporters standing there like idiots! It was hilarious!"
"Reporters? Why were they there?"
Kyoka stared at him. "You...don't know?"
Johnny shook his head. "Kyoka...I've been in the middle of the desert of days. The only news from back home I have is you guys."
"Oh, JoJo..." Kyoka sounded heartbroken.
"Well, what happened?"
Kyoka remained silent.
"Kyoka..."
"I...don't want to be the one to tell you this..."
"Kyoka, I say otherwise. I'd rather hear it from you than someone I don't trust."
"A-are you sure, I-it's about your mom."
Johnny's face darkened, if it was about his mother then it was bound to be painful, but he was too deep in it now. "It's okay Kyoka, I want to know."
Kyoka looked down. "She...said some things..."
