Digimon Adventure 04 Chapter 11: That's amore
By Bluestar076
Hey guys! Bluestar here with a new chapter! I know that maybe the previous chapter was a little bit heavy,but as i said,this would have been a mature story,and i needed something like this to begin it. But don't worry,this one will be much tender. Also as you can see,the title has an italian word. Probably you've heard it before,but in case not,amore is an italian word and means love. That's because not only i'm italian,but also because the title is a reference to the song of Dean Martin (Also because the main character of this episode has connections with Italy). I've originally wanted to name this chapter Roman Holiday,as a reference to the famous movie,but since some things on the plot of this episode were changed,there were not references with the movie,so i decided to change it. Before we go,one last thing. The day when the chapter takes place is the day,but this is not a special. It's because this place occours a few days after the previous one (Which took place into the 28th of January) And also because the theme of this chapter is love.
I hope that i've not annoyed you with these notes and let's begin! Enjoy as always!
P.S: Sorry if this chapter took more time than the others,but i'be had some problems and in some parts i had the author's block. But i managed to fix it!
Note: I do not own Digimon or the song That's Amore. All rights and characters belong to Bandai,Toei Animation and Dean Martin. Also,this is a fantasy story. All references to real people,groups,places,laws and names are completely causal.
Chapter 11: That's Amore
"The questions remain on the mysterious murder of Shigeru Kojima,the mayor of Somnus and the barrier that appeared alla round the government skycraper of the capital two weeks ago. The police is still investigating on the fact,but there's still no answer. And the barrier seems invulnerable at all weapons,even to Digimon attacks. The fear is that behind all this,there are probably really dangerous people,like terrorist groups. The politics have already started their moves to increase the investigations,especially the Japan government. We will keep you posted as soon as possible. That's all for the news of Channel 5,have a good day."
What happened at Somnus,immediately became famous worldwide. After all,an attack at the capital of the Digital World could not go unnoticed. Everyone were talking about it on the newspapers,on the TV and on the internet,and everyone with their personal opinion. And of course,most of then wasn't happy about it. There were who was afraid,scared,or determined to see who was the guilty one. But of course,there were also someone who was happy: The ones who made the attack.
Saiba smiled a bit as he turned off his television and put on his clothes. This victory made him feel even more that his action was right. "The attack on the government skycraper was a success. With this…the second phase of my project can begin." He said.
"I can see that you are delighted by this…" His Digimon said.
"It's natural. We are talking of something that could change the world into something even more evolved. Now that we made the first step,we are closer to our goal. Now all that is left are small things but many. We have to go." Saiba answered. His Digimon nodded and entered his digivice.
Saiba made a normal walk like always. Despite being famous,he wasn't tormented by journalists like other very important people. Sometimes he was stopped by someone who wanted to salute him,ask him something or show him his gratitude. And he was happy to hear those words. But after what he had done,he wondered how the people that loved him for all these years would have reacted if they knew the truth? He didn't knew the answer,and personally,he didn't want to know. The scandal would come out of it would have been an annoying factor for him. And he needed patience and order for what he had in mind. Therefore he preferred the silence,since he also had to deal with the Chesire Cat Agency now. He was sure that they would have done everything to stop him. After all,he knew their parents and it's known that the parents behaviour is reflected on the children.
After a calm and reflective walk,he arrived at the building of the Corporation,where two bodyguards where waiting him.
"Good morning, ." They said. "Good morning." He replied. "This is the time of day that the building is closed at the public. Make sure that no one enters here like last time."
The two bodyguards embarassed themselves a little,since they remembered the mess with Kyoko and the intruder."We're sorry…" They then let him enter.
While he was climbing the stairs,Saiba noticed that the members of his corporation were productive as always,a thing he appreciated. But there was a section in particular that always caught his attention. The one on the second floor: The researchers one. This was the group of people that did researches directly on Digimon to study all of their skills and capacities. Since he called himself a seeker,he always had to make sure he knew more things on Digimon. Despite being with humans for several years,there were certainly many things that were still a secret for humans. In particular,Saiba reached a person he knew very well.
Koushiro raised his head to see the director coming closer to him. "Oh! Good morning Saiba!"
"Hello,Koushiro. Glad to see that you are doing well today." Saiba said.
"Yes! Since it's an important project,i'm very excited to discover new things. I've had this personality since i was little…" Koushiro answered. "But that is your best part!" Tentomon added.
"I see…by the way…today is . Have you thought of something for Meiko?" Saiba asked curious. In that moment Koushiro blushed. "W-what? Oh that…well yes…i've bought her a little present…eheh…what about you?"
"As you know,i'm not married. A romantic relationship does not attract me and it is not on my interests." Saiba answered. "But tell me…have you discovered anything?"
"More or less the same things…" Koushiro showed him the computer to make him see the statistics. "As we know,the strength of a Digimon is mostly determined by his level. When a Digimon evolves,his strenght and skills increase. The evolution can be triggered by a natural process or with the help of some force or device,like the digivice,the digimental or the power of a superior being,like Homeostasis. But even the bond with a partner can give more possibilities to a Digimon to evolve or to become stronger. The destructive power of a Digimon isn't determined only by the level. There are some Digimon that are particular cases,since they can easily fight with a Digimon that has a superior level than his,like my daughter's Digimon…" Koushiro explained his research.
"Your daughter?" Saiba asked curious. Koushiro nodded. "Yes. The Digimon of my daughter Rikka,Leppamon is one of these cases. I found out that he has much higher parameters than he should have. This allows him to defeat even Perfect-Level Digimon."
"So that is why Kumo's Digimon managed to defeat someone like Bishop Chessmon…" Saiba thought.
"Also,the power of a Digimon can depend from his behaviour,his intelligence and other stuff. But the level and the bond with his partner do most of the job,since they reach the Digimon directly to its heart. There are even some cases where an evolution or the increase of power can be forced. But this can make the Digmon go out of control. Some cases like these happened in the past…" Koushiro added.
"I know. Your first enemy,Devimon used to manipulate other Digimon with his black gears. Three years later,The Digimon Kaiser did a similar thing with his evil rings and evil spirals. They both made the Digimon go extremely aggressive and make them obey to every order. But they were easy to destroy. I also thinks that the reason why these tools have failed is because they tried to force the Digimon to follow him. It is the strength of your words and your charisma that makes you followed by many beings. The loyalty is based on the respect you show on the beings that are close to you. If you realise their wishes,they will follow you. It's a fact." Saiba said.
Both Koushiro and Tentomon got curious by those words and how they mirrored him. He always had been a charismatic person. That led him to the success he had. So Koushiro asked a question. "Saiba…why do you seek for this sort of energy?"
In that moment,Saiba invited him to look at the window. Koushiro was confused,but he decided to do so. "Tell me,Koushiro…what do you see?"
"Well…i see…normal people…with their Digimon…" Koushiro answered.
"That is correct. Don't you find incredible how i…no…we got this far? The path from a group of little kids watching two Digimon clashing against each other to today is a great result. But this result can also bring to some diversity. Usually,humans and Digimon protect each other in the most difficult moments and they also do their best to help other people. Think about how the Digimon were implemented in the business world so quickly as soon as they were recognized by humans. They immediately knew that they would have been a great resource for the planet,and the Digimon thought the same about us. And so the bonds started to increase at unthinkable heights. Thanks to the Digimon,the planet started to be healed by the damages of pollution,and thanks to the humans,the Digimon started to became more socialized beings. But there is always a dark side in everything. Look at those people. You never know what their true nature is. There is always the possibility that some of those people are rude and think of their own business. You have to remember that,despite the bond that can have with a human,the Digimon is still a a dangerous being. And the element that triggers his state of danger is his own partner. The problem comes when a human decides to follow cruel and violent ideals,and if an individual like this have a Digimon there could be trouble. Because the Digimon could always agree with his way of thinking and use his powers to help him. And one of them could become a Digimon that is as dangerous as those that you defeated in the past." Saiba made a long speech.
"But there are also forces that try to prevent them…" Tentomon said.
"It's true. Their work is surely remarkable. But unfortunately…is not enough. That is why i'm doing this. I want to find the key that could make our country the only one that can find corrupted people all over the world." Saiba answered. His words seemed…very patriotic,despite the fact that he wasn't american.
"So…do you think that this is the only path? There could be other ways…" Koushiro said.
"My friend. I'm the one that started this project. And i think that this is the best way. If it fails,i'll do my best to find another path. But until then,we shall go like this. I hope that i didn't scare you…" Saiba replied.
Koushiro shaked his head. "N-no! Of course not! I too think that this could be a way! Sorry for the question,then…"
Saiba did a little smile. "Don't worry. I'm always happy to hear the thoughts of a careful researcher like you."
"By the way…what do you think of what happened at Somnus two weeks ago?" Koushiro then asked. In that moment Saiba silenced for some seconds. But he didn't want to be suspicious,so he gave a normal answer. "They could be the usual fools. But i can say that this time they became more clever. But their plan will surely fail." He then turned on Koushiro. "Maybe the agency of your children could take on this case."
Koushiro made a little smile. "Maybe…"
"I'll now go on my office. Good luck with your work." Saiba said,while going away.
"Bye!" Tentomon saluted. "Boy…Saiba is a very mysterious man…am i right?" He then asked to Koushiro.
"Well…kinda. I know of his story,but i also know that is a very strong supporter of patriottism…And now that i And now that i think of it…he never showed his Digimon." Koushiro answered.
"Right! He said that his Digimon is very shy and don't likes to show himself to others." Tentomon remembered.
"At least he's determined to do what he wishes…" Koushiro added. "But there is still something that worries me in these days…" He thought. He then looked at a picture of him with his family. "Oh…i really hope that nothing bad happens to you…"
Meanwhile Saiba reached his office and pressed the button that led him to his secret room. He looked at all the Digimon that were inside the capsules. Everything seemed fine as always. Until…
"I can say that all of this is well hidden." A voice said. Saiba turned back to see a young boy with long,blonde hair,wearing a long blue coat and a white mask with blue eyes and red stripes,like claws on them.
"I recognize your look. You're Eligor." Saiba said with a grin.
The boy made a small bow. "David Eligor at your service. I've received your message and i got convinced by your words. Sorry if i came late."
"You don't have to worry about it. I'm sure that your travel was long." Saiba answered.
"So…what is exactly your plan?" David asked.
"I'm sure that you've heard of our attack at the government skycraper of Somnus." Saiba started.
"Yes,i've heard. Why that place?" David replied.
"It's related to all of these Digimon that you see inside the capsules. I intend to get a power like that of Homeostasis,the being that brings order to all the Digital World. And these Digimon will be the tools that i'll use. They are not enough for now. So i've sent the other mercenaries to find more of them. Once i'll get the right number of Digimon,i'll use all of their energy to gain power. But an energy focuses more when it's on very high places,especially when it's struck by thunders. The electric energy of the lightnings can give to their energy even more charge. So i needed a very high place. The government skycraper was a good idea,so i choose it. When the time will come,we'll transfer these Digimon to the skycraper and get the power i seek from them. As you can see,they're not dead,but in a state of drowziness. So their energy can still be used,even if it's not at their maximum capacities." Saiba answered.
"I see…" David murmured.
"But…everyone has their problems…their obstacle that prevents everyone to have their road clear. As you know,life is not perfect. There will always be someone who disagrees with your point of view and try to go against you,just like me in this moment. Recently,a group of detectives known as Chesire Cat Agency found itself involved into my deeds. So i've started to hire mercenaries from all over the world like you,but they are stronger than it looks. Also,one of them found out that i want to eliminate them,so they'll probably start to find a way to strike me down." Saiba added.
"And why didn't you killed the one who found out the truth when you met him?" David farily asked him.
"There are two reasons for that. The first one is that i was actually feeling pity for him. He was in a very miserable situatuion in that moment. And the second reason is that i knew that he was going to survive,one way or another. And i was right. So i have limited myself to make him fly away from the skycraper. Also because i was curious…i wonder how far they will go? How far will their will take them? I have to be sure that my will and purpose is right and stronger than others. And they are the perfect test. But despite that,i still want them out of the way,because they still can be a threat." Saiba answered. "I want you to join the other mercenaries. You are free to use every way to kill them."
"Understood. I'll do my best. The people that had to deal with me never escaped from my gold schyte…" David said. He then exited from the room and went away.
Saiba looked at the Digimon inside the capsules and thought about the barrier at Somnus. "The keys that can make one person cross the barrier have already been given to some of the mercenaries." He then looked at his laptop to see the latest actions of his men. He saw one of them and made a grin. "And i can clearly see that some of them already went into action…"
Meanwhile,far from the Rei Corporation,Kasai was making his way to his agency. During the walk,some boys approached her. She recognized them since they were some of his old classmates from high school. Of course,they were excited to see her.
"Hey Kasai!"
"It's been a while!"
"Where have you been?"
One of them even came closer to her. "So Kasai,do you have any programs for today?" But another guy pushed him away. "Hey,you! Don't you dare come closer to her! Kasai is too perfect for one like you! Ugly nerd!"
The other guy retorted. "Don't think you'll get her attention like this,small dick!"
The boys started to walk again,but they continued to insult each other.
"Ugly."
"Small dick."
"Ugly!"
"Small dick!"
The two boys became very frustated and they became more aggressive with the words. Until…
"SHUT UP! YOU'RE SO ANNOYING!" Kasai lost her patience.
"…Ok…" The boys said,terrified by her. So they went away. Finally Kasai could have some calm,so she could start to walk again.
"I can see that you are still agressive to men." Veedramon said from the digivice.
"I told you why i do this. Good grief…this day will be a pain in the ass…" Kasai answered,while adjusting her hat.
"Oh right,today is …" Veedramon said.
"Correct…and i'm sure that i'll find idots like those everywhere…" Kasai added.
"But you could do an excpetion for once." A voice said.
Kasai recognized the voice and turned around. "Speak of the devil…Kevin Barton."
"That's right. is the day of the lovers…and i can say that our fates are destined to interweave tonight…i know a perfect resaurant where we could go at 21.00 P.M…so if you are interested-" Kevin was trying to convince Kasai as always,but before he could finish,she gave him a kick in the genitals. For the pain,Kevin released a sharp scream and fell to the ground. "Come on! You know we are destined to stay together! Come back!"
Kasai ignored him and went towards. "Ahah! I really liked this scene! But i'm curious…do you think you'll find a crush?" Veedramon asked.
"Maybe. Maybe not. But i simply am not interested in idiots like them. There's the agency." Kasai recognized the building of the agency and came in.
When she entered,she could see Kouta,Kumo and Kyoko sitting on a table,talking. "Hm? Oh,hi Kasai! You arrived!" Kyoko saluted her friend when she turned around and saw her.
"Hey. What are you talking about?" Kasai asked curious.
"We are discussing on what moves we should do against Saiba Rei." Kouta answered.
"Oh. I see that we started to move. In that case…may i join you?" Kasai asked.
"Of course! Sit down." Kyoko answered with a smile. So Kasai sat beside Kyoko and joined the other three.
"If there is one thing that we have to be sure about is that we have to be careful. Saiba is surely a cold and smart person. His plan to take over a place like the government skycraper at Somnus was effective." Kumo said.
"By the way,do you feel better Kumo?" Kasai asked.
"Yes. Thanks to someone's support i'm fine now. Thanks! I'll do my best from now on." Kumo replied,looking at her sister. Kyoko made a grin and glared at Kasai. "Why the sudden question?"
"Silence." Kasai simply answered.
"Also,have you told your other friends about…well that?" Kyoko asked,but Kumo shaked his head. "No. I didn't get the chance. I've tried to call them several times,but they never answered…i hope that nothing bad happened."
"Don't worry. Back to our discussion,i think that we also should get as much information as possible about his men. Judging by what you said last time,Kumo,he's got many dangerous allies on his side,and maybe you just saw some of them." Kouta said.
Kyoko nodded. "Now that you make me think of it…we only know about Cassidy,Koichi and…right! Jake Ambra!"
"Jake Ambra…i've often heard his name on the television. If i'm not wrong…he's one of the most famous and dangerous criminals in circulation of the country." Kasai added.
"Exactly. The fact that one like him is working with Saiba is allarming." Kouta answered. "Hey! Can i talk too?" a voice said from his Digivice. It was BaoHackmon.
"BaoHackmon? Well,yes…" Kouta said. He then summoned him from the small object,so that he could come out.
"Another thing we should think about is his Digimon!" BaoHackmon said once he came out. "Kumo,did you know something more about it?" He asked.
"No.I couldn't see him very well. Just like i said to Kyoko,he was covered in shadow. But i can say that he was quite powerful. In a second he impaled Aija's Diigmon with a punch…" Kumo said,lowering the head a little bit.
BaoHackmon got worried. "Did i ask something wrong?" Sometimes he said things that could hurt someone without even knowing it.
"No,no! Don't worry,BaoHackmon! I'm fine!" Kumo said with a smile.
"Ok…i don't want to hurt you…" BaoHackmon said with a sad tone.
"BaoHackmon,you worry too much. You should think more positive if you want to be a great hero like you wish." Kouta said.
"If you say so…" BaoHackmon concluded.
"He killed a Digimon in a very quick way…with that said…he could be a Perfect-Level Digimon or at worst…" Kyoko thought. Kasai knew what she was meaning so she ended the line. "An Ultimate-Level…"
In that moment,even DORUgamon came out from the Digivice. "Wait a second! If you think so,then we are terribly disadvantaged! You know perfectly that we don't have the force to resist to an Ultimate-Level…" He said.
Veedramon too,came out from the Digivice. "Oh come on,DORUgamon,even if he's that powerful we still cannot let him accomplish his plan. We're detectives,right? It's our duty to maintain order! Besides…" He made a smile,showing his sharp teeth and clenched his fists. "This challenge seems pretty interesting…"
"Of course you say that! You only think about fighting! We have to consider even our limits! We are strong indeed,but i think we should use our minds sometimes!" DORUgamon retorted.
"Are you saying that i'm stupid!?" Veedramon asked angry.
In the end,Shoutmon came out from the Digivice and stopped them from arguing. "Could you please stop? You both have right,ok?"
Veedramon and DORUgamon looked at each other and calmed down. "Fine." They both said.
"Good grief…" Kasai simply said. "Where are the others?"
"They are in the other rooms,working. They too got stunned when they heard the truth about our enemy,so they are doing their best to work as always without getting demoralized." Kyoko answered.
"It's comprensible…speaking of the enemy,do you think we should tell something?" Kasai then asked.
"I wish we could,but they wouldn't believe us at first…and since the frequency we get attacked,we cannot lose time." Kumo answered.
"I see…" Kasai murmured. In that moment Aisu,alongside with Strikedramon came and saw her sister. "Oh,Kasai! Hello! You came just in time!"
"What is it Aisu?" Kasai asked.
"Our mom is on television! She's doing a special! Come and see!" Aisu answered.
"Oh good grief…as if this day wasn't frustrating enough…" Kasai sighed while following her sister.
"I see someone else that doesn't like love very much…" Aria said.
"Aria!? Where do you come from!?" Kyoko asked,falling off the couch. "AH! SHIT!"
"Sorry! I just came in! Are you ok?" Aria said. Fortunately,Kyoko got up. "Don't worry…i'm fine…"
"Thank god…anyways…how do you guys think you're gonna pass this day?" Aria asked. She then made a more romantic and cute face. "Are you gonna pass sometime with your soul mate?" But what she got was Kyoko,Kumo and Kouta watching at her with an annoyed face. She,of course,didn't know what was going on. "What's up with these faces?" Aria asked confused. So Growmon looked at her embarassed for the figure that her partner just made. "Aria…i remind you that everyone here is single…"
Aria took some seconds to remember that and then she blused. "Oh! S-sorry! I completely forgot!"
Kouta facepalmed. "Don't worry…it's fine."
"You're talking like you are going to do those things you just said…" BaoHackmon noticed. But Aria made a little laugh. "Me? Absolutely not. After all the story with the fake wedding,i think i'll stay away from romantic relationships for a while."
"Well,it's understandable." BaoHackmon nodded his head. "By the way Aria…you never told us how you met Kevin…does it bother you if we ask?" Kouta then asked.
"Don't worry…i suppose that you need to know after all…so…i met him around 6 months ago…i was sitting on the bench of a park. In that moment i saw him approaching me. When he came closer,he asked me if i had a tissue. So i gave him. He then thanked me and started to talk with me. At first he seemed a normal person,but when he heard that i came from a noble family he immediately changed mood. At first he started to become more sticky and then aggressive. The following months were terrible for me…but at least i had my chance to revenge! And now i'm here with you!" Aria expained. She then looked at where Kasai and Aisu headed. "What was the story with Kasai?"
"She went to see her mother in TV. As you know,her mother is Mimi Tachikawa,a famous chief all around the world." Kumo answered in a calm tone.
"Oh right! Mimi! I like her program!" Growmon said,smiling. "I suppose that you like food,Growmon…" Kyoko noticed.
"Of course! What kind of Digimon doesn't? I really like food and cooking in general! That's why i ask to Aria's mom to cook something big and divine! Since my partner is french i've inherited some tastes on the appearance of things. I remember one time that they made me a bread Guilmon-shaped,my previous form!" Growmon answered.
"Oh right! I remember! I was 10 at the time! That bread was so funny!" Aria said with a laugh.
"I remember when i tried to make some baked beans as a child!" Since the situation,even Kyoko wanted to remember a memory of the childhood connected to cooking.
"Aaand you blew up the entire kitchen." DORUgamon added. Everyone bursted out in laughs,except of course for Kasai and the person concerned who blushed. "COME ON! WHEN YOU'RE GOING TO STOP FOR BEING LIKE THIS!?"
Kumo then looked at the Digimon. "And you guys? Any love plans?"
"Well…i never actually thought of this before. I mean,usually,we Digimon are born in the Village of Beginners,but i've heard that a DigiTama could also come from a normal reproduction between two Digimon of opposite gender,like humans do." Growmon answered.
"With the exception that we don't come from an egg." Kouta specified.
"Maybe a girlfriend isn't a bad idea…i could think of that…" Shoutmon thought.
"Don't be too hasty,Shoutmon. There is time for love. During that time you can do other things!" Kumo answered.
"Like making a plan to defeat Saiba Rei…" Kouta suggested. In that moment Kyoko snorted. "Oh come on,cousin! Why do you always have to be so serious?"
"Because it's an important thing. Now,if you excuse me,i'll go see what the others are doing." Kouta answered. He then went away. "W-wait,Kouta!" BaoHackmon followed him.
"He reminds me of Chikara when he behaves like this…" Kumo said.
"Honestly,i prefer him to Chikara. At least he's calm…" Aria added.
"Well,we can say that he is a serious person,but he also likes the fact that this agency has got a lot of vitality. And since that,he usually keeps an eye on everyone to make sure they are fine. He really likes to stay here…" Kyoko concluded.
"So he's like…a mom?" Growmon asked.
"AHAHAAH! Good one!" Shoutmon bursted out of laughing.
Meanwhile,on another room of the agency,the TV was on and a kitchen show was on air,with a particular star…
"Now that the dough is made, we have to make the form for these delicious cookies! And since is ,i suggest you to make them heart-shaped! I'll do these cookies,thinking of my love! If you are hearing,my dear Taichi,i love you!" Mimi said while presenting her show.
"You are a very romantic woman,Mimi!" Palmon added.
Some of the members were watching the show with mixed emotions. And of course,Kasai and Aisu were watching the program of her own mother. Aisu made a little laugh,amused,while Kasai had a nervous tic on the eye while watching. Of course she was holding back,because if she could,she would freak out. Her sister noticed her and laughed again. "Oh come on,Kasai! You know our mother it's like that!" she said.
"I know…i know…" Kasai sighed. She then noticed something on her shoulder. It was saliva. When she looked up,she saw Veedramon drooling while watching the TV.
"I want those cookies right now…" Veedramon said with a greedy expression on his face. Kasai couldn't do anything but adjust her hat and say "Good grief…"
Meanwhile Rina was curled up in a corner,crying,while Sasuke and Kabuterimon were trying to comfort her. She was umpteenth victim of this day and love in general. " is the lovers day,but here i am,suffering for my loneliness! Why doesn't anyone find me cute!? Gosh! I hate this day!"
"But that is not true! You too have charm! You may be not intelligent,but you will get a chance to find love! I'm sure of it!" Sasuke was trying his best to make his friend happy.
"T-that's right! Remember,love comes from small things!" Kabuterimon tried to make a little philosophical thought to make things funny. But nothing worked. Rina slipped on the floor,while she continued to crying.
"Oh great…" Sasuke sighed.
On the other hand,Yatsura was way to happy. After all,she was a kind of romantic girl. She was so happy that she was drawing big and bright hearts on a paper. But this caught the attentions of Chikara.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING,YATSURA HIDA!?" He shouted. The yell scared Yatsura so much that she banged her head against the wall. "OUCH! Chikara,are you crazy!?" Yatsura exclaimed with a very angry tone.
"Now that we know the identity of the enemy,we can't be distracted by some petty things! Who cares about a lovers day!?" Chikara answered. But he immediately got punched by the girl.
"DO NOT INSULT THE LOVERS DAY,STUPID PARASITE!" She exclaimed.
"What the hell is going on!?" Kouta said,when he came in. "It's a good thing that we have a personality,but can we have order like other agencies?"
"But Kouta! Chikara said that-" Yatsura was going to retort but…
"URUSEI YATSURA!" Kouta exclaimed.
"Waah! Why!?" Yatsura cried out.
Pushed by curiosity,even Kumo,Kyoko and Aria with their Digimon entered to the other room. "I can say that really made everyone go crazy! Is it love?" Kyoko wondered with a sweet tone.
"Or maybe they are just frustrated?" DORUgamon suggested.
"Thank you DORUgamon…it wasn't necessary…" Kyoko ironically answered.
"It's normal. The master usally gets sweeter today." ExVeemon said.
"And why that? Do you have a crush on someone and hope that something would change today?" Tsuna said with a grin. That question made Yatsura turn completely red. "WAH! W-What are you talking about!? O-of course not! It's just that i really love this day! The most cutest things happen!" She tried to make a plausible excuse to hide the truth.
"Fine! Fine! We believe you! …Maybe." Toriko said with a laugh,while Starmon looked at him quitely.
In that moment,even Rikka and Leppamon came in. "That's right. made everyone crazy,especially the companies on the internet. The e-mail box is filled with promotional pages! I can barely see some case…" She complained.
"Oh gosh,i really hate when that happens…" Aisu added.
"By the way,have you found something new?" Strikedramon asked.
"Unfortunately not. They are clever than we thought. We tried to hack into their system,but nothing happened." Leppamon answered.
"I knew it…i think that we'll not ger anything with this…what should we do?" Coredramon asked.
Kyoko thought. "Well…that's a very dilemma…" But Chikara adjusted his glasses,which shined. "I have an idea. We'll just have to do what i have done with Koichi last time. We just have to predict their moves and attack them!"
"But Chikara,how can we know where and when they will attack?" Leomon fairly asked. Chikara didn't know what to say. He was paralyzed.
"Now we really don't know what to do…" Rikka said,while scratching her head.
"Don't worry guys! We'll find something! In the meantime,if they attack us,we'll surely beat the crap out of them!" Kyoko assured with a smile.
"That's how we talk!" Tsuna exclaimed with a grin.
"But now,let's just get back to work." Kyoko immediately said. Everyone,except Kasai weren't happy about it and came back on their places.
"I think i'm starting to get used to these types of scenario…" Kasai said. "Me too,but hey! That's the best part!" Aria added. Kasai glared at her. "If you say so…want to work with me?"
"Why not?" Aria answered. "I'll go too!" Aisu added,following them.
In the end,Kouta looked at everyone with a genuine smile. "I guess you really like this sort of view,right?" Toriko asked near him.
"Yes. It's bizarre,but good." Kouta answered.
"Oh! Since we are here,Starmon,how about a spar to see if i've improved my skills?" BaoHackmon asked for a little match,and Starmon nodded.
"You really want to be the best,right BaoHackmon?" Kouta asked.
"Of course! I want to be helpful in this agency! I'll wait in the Digital Room!" BaoHackmon said,while running away.
"He's so lively…" Kouta concluded.
Some minutes later,BaoHackmon and Starmon were looking at each other,prepared for an eventual first attack of the other.
"I warn you,Starmon! I won't go easy on you!" BaoHackmon advised. Starmon simply looked at him and nodded. And then…the clash started.
BaoHackmon was the first to attack,charging against Starmon with his blade pointed at him. Starmon stood still,guarding himslef. But he didn't expect that once he got closer,BaoHackmon immediately jumped away and shoot a fire attack "Burn Flame!"
To defend himself,Starmon started to roteate by withdrawing his limbs. "Star Seeker!" The roation extinguished the flames. Starmon then started to roteate towards the dragon,who was ready to attack him with all of his blades. In the end,they were both aiming at each other with a burst of shots.
"Fif Cross!" "Star Seeker!" BaoHackmon had the advantage to attack Starmon repeatedly with his claws,while Starmon could attack him with a barrage of punches. Since he knew that situation was hard,BaoHackmon used another of his advantages: Having a tail. So BaoHackmon made an uppercut with the blade on his tail to make him slam to the ground. The plan worked,and once Starmon was to the ground,BaoHackmon jumped to make a powerful kick with the blades on his legs. "Dragrey Spike!"
But Starmon already knew of a way to attack him. So when BaoHackmon jumped away,he summoned a rain of meteors above the dragon Digimon. "Meteor Squall!"
"WHAT!?" BaoHackmon exclaimed stunned before he got hit by the pile of meteors. He ended up kneeling on the ground with many bruises all over his body. "That attack was terrible…i can't get up…" BaoHackmon was going to fall,but his partner was there to motivate him.
"What are you doing? Is that the best you've got? If you go down so easily you won't be helpful!" Kouta exclaimed. In that moment,BaoHackmon felt more resolute and immediately got up. "OK! NOW IT'S TIME FOR THE SECOND ROUND!"
"Once he heard his partner's words,he immediately stood up…that's impressive Kouta…Starmon! We can't let our guard down right now!" Toriko said. He knew that Kouta and BaoHackmon were a perfect team. The Digimon had the strength and the purpose to fight,while Kouta had the brain and the right spirit to go on.
Starmon nodded and got ready. The first thing that BaoHackmon was to make a direct fire attack against Starmon. "Burn Flame!"
When the attack was very close to him,Starmon used all of his strength to divert it with a punch. The fire attack ended up on the ground,exploding. But the star-shaped Digimon could never know what was going to happen next. When he turned around,he saw BaoHackmon in front of him,already ready to attack him with his nails "Fif Cross!"
With the maximum of his reflex and a bit of luck,Starmon jumped on the left and avoided the attack. But the dragon Digimon wasn't going to end there. He continued to attack with his nails,and to be faster,he started to jump like his rival.
Starmon knew that BaoHackmon was going to attack with more strenght,so he continued to jump until he found himself in an advantageous situation. When Starmon avoided the attacks,BaoHackmon ended up hitting the ground,creating huge craters.
After avoiding another attack,Starmon eneded up a few metres far from BaoHackmon. So he opened his arms,getting ready to attack with another Meteor Squall,hoping to end the game.
"Now you got the chance! Use your best attack!" Toriko exclaimed.
"Don't make errors and use all of your powers!" Kouta exclaimed as well. In that moment,something unexpected happened. The Digivice of both Chosen Children was surrounded by a small light,along with the Digimon,who felt more energy within themselves.
"What is happening?" Kouta wondered,as soon as he saw the strange phenomenon. "Wait…could it be?" Toriko asked.
BaoHackmon charged with disruptive speed towards Starmon,who shoot his attack as well. It all depended on BaoHackmon's agility on dodging.
"Fif Cross!"
"Meteor Squall!"
BaoHackmon ran with his claws opened,while Starmon released a shower of meteors that ended up on all the field. With his newfound energy,BaoHackmon felt like he was a lightning ready to strike. His speed has increased,and after avoiding all of the meteors,as fast as he could,he reached Starmon,who got surprised by the effort of his friend. With a powerful punch,BaoHackmon made Starmon fly away. But before he ended up on the ground,Starmon threw one last meteor against the dragon. Due to the moment,BaoHackmon couldn't dodge the meteor and got slammed by it.
Both Digimon were knocked out. The match ended up in a par. Kouta and Toriko were just speechless for what happened. It had been years since they had witnessed such a thing. But maybe they already knew the answer,thought it could not be right. The truth can always be tricky,but it was their job to resolve mysteries.
"That was incredible!" Toriko exclaimed with a big smile on his face. He enjoyed what he just saw,while Kouta was happy but kept his composure.
The Digimon came out of the Digital Room,exhausted and looked at their partners.
"How…did it go?" BaoHackmon asked with still the breath. Kouta looked at him with a genuine smile and nodded. "You've made a great job this time."
Toriko was happy as well. "You were amazing as well." Starmon simply nodded,in sign of gratitude. He then looked at BaoHackmon. "You have improved since last time. You still rely on your partner,which is a good thing,but could make you weak,but after all,you made a good job."
Hearing those words made BaoHackmon immediately recover. "Thank you Starmon! Can't wait to train with you again!"
"You're too eccentric." Starmon concluded.
"Anyways,can you explain what happened before?" Kouta asked,recalling the strange phenomenon.
"I'll be honest…i wonder too! When you gave to me that encouragement,i felt like a huge amount of power surrounded me. When that happened,i sensed the duty to fight for you and went straight to Starmon…" BaoHackmon answered.
"I felt the same feeling…" Starmon added. Their explanation made their thoughts right.
"That was a prelude to…" Toriko started.
"…Evolution…" Kouta concluded.
"What!? I was going to evolve!? Really!? Oh,come on! What didn't work!?" BaoHackmon complained.
"Hey,at least we confirmed the fact that you can evolve! There is no reason to get upset!" Toriko said. "Anyways,i think i'll go to my room now and fix some documents. See ya later!" He then went away. "Keep it up." Starmon added,before following his partner.
Kouta and BaoHackmon saluted too. After that,they went for a snack. Kouta took a big hamburger as he usually did,while BaoHackmon took an entire basket of fruits,especially bananas.
"Delicious! Maybe even this will help me to reach Perfect-Level!" BaoHackmon said,while he continued to eat.
"I see that this idea of a next evolution gave a lot of charge." Kouta said with a normal tone,watching the partner tuck in.
"Of course! Do you have any idea of how long i have been waiting for this to happen? It's been over 10 years since i have achieved this form…and after that,nothing else happened. I'm sure i'll be a great help for the country if i go even further!" BaoHackmon answered.
"You actually never told me why you are so serious when it comes to utility." Kouta said,curious. "I'm your partner,can i know the answer?" He asked.
When he heard that,BaoHackmon made a sad face. "Kouta…do you remember our first trip to the Digital World?"
"Yes?" Kouta replied.
"And do you remember how weak i was? I was the most fragile back then,despite being bigger than the others. When we had to face that aggressive Digimon,i had to stay away,because most of my attacks didn't work and i got injured many times...i hated that situation. Looking at the others fighting with more resistance…made me feel pathetic…but then you were there to tell me that everything was going to be alright. Your resolution made me reach this form and i was able to join the others and defeat that Digimon. Despite being more stronger…i still feel that there could be another moment where i can't fight because i'm weak. That's why i want to improve myself better…i don't want to be frightened anymore and…i don't want to be a weight for the others…" BaoHackmon explained.
"Really? Is that the motivation?" Kouta asked.
"Yes…that's also the reason why when i got to know Starmon better,i asked him to train me to become stronger. He somehow accepted." BaoHackmon added.
In that moment Kouta sighed. "You remind me of Yatsura sometimes. But it's understandable…i too want to improve myself and be a great help for the agency,despite the fact that i don't know how to face Saiba at this point."
BaoHackmon smiled. "You are very understanding. Can i ask you a question now?" He then asked.
"What is it?" Kouta answered.
"Why do you always look for the others? You usally are the first one to accept a case and you awlays know what to say or do foryour friends." BaoHackmon made his question.
Kouta caught unprepared. He was used to be this kind of person. "That's a really tough question…" He simply said. He knew he cared for the others,but at the moment…"I'm sorry,but i can't find an answer yet."
"Oh…" BaoHackmon got a little bit deluded. "In that case,can i ask you another question?"
"Ok?" Kouta replied. In that moment,BaoHackmon made a grin. "How do you think you will pass this day?"
Kouta immediately blushed and got angry. "What are you talking about!? This isn't the right time to ask such a thing!"
"But Kouta! It's !" BaoHackmon added.
"SHUT UP! SHAME YOURSELF!" Kouta shut him up with a big shout.
"...O-ok…sorry…i just got attracted from what Aria said before…" BaoHackmon ended,scared by the yell.
"Ok…listen,you know we can't do much. We all are single. You know that!" Kouta said.
"Understood. Forgive me." BaoHackmon nodded. "I won't ask another thing about love today."
Kouta facepalmed. Sometimes,BaoHackmon could be so idiot. "You don't have to say that…anwyways…i think i'll go to Kyoko to discuss with her once again about Saiba Rei." He then got up and walked towards Kyoko's office.
Meanwhile,Kyoko was sitting on her chair,talking with Rikka,Kasai,Aisu and Kumo. They were already discussing on the new mission that Kyoko called. 'The Saiba case.' Rikka was doing some researches on her computer about some of the mercenaries that Kumo saw two weeks earlier. But the result wasn't satisfactory. "No way. I can't find anything about those three." She said.
"Oh great…" Kyoko sighed.
"They sure were prepared for this kind of situation…" Aisu said.
"It's probably because he knows that we are now searching for him. He said that he was ready to oppose if we tried to stop him…" Kumo spoke,remembering what the enemy said. Kasai simply watched in silence,but she too had questions on her mind. Saiba used to have an aura of mystery. Even between the original Chosen Children,he was a strange person. It was an hard task understanding what he has on his mind. But one thing was sure. He was way too smart. After all,he was the person who completed the union between humans and Digimon. And surely he wasn't an easy foe to defeat. But the question still remained…why was he doing that? What did he meant by reaching a power like that of Homeostasis?
"The mercenaries were surely payed to killing us and help him…but there is also the dark barrier at the government skycraper to consider…why such a place like that?" Aisu wondered.
In that moment both Kasai and Kyoko reminded something. "Wait…" They both thought. When they opened their eyes,the two girls looked at each other with a convinced stare.
"Are you also thinking what i'm thinking?" Kyoko asked. Kasai simply nodded.
"What do you mean?" Kumo asked.
"Do you remember Sykes Connor?" Kyoko made a question as well.
"You mean the guy that me and Kasai caught that time in Traverse Town?" Rikka answered.
"Correct. Didn't he say that he was working for Saiba Rei?" Kasai said.
"That's true…" Rikka replied…In that moment she reminded as well. "Oh right! He deprived the Digimon of energy or kindapped them…with that said…"
"His targets are Digimon…"Aisu added.
"Also,the fact that he committed suicide after i talked with Saiba Rei can't be just a coincidence…after all,he was really serving him. I'm still pissed off because he lied to me!" Kyoko said.
"So he's interested to the Digimon…but what else? Why?" Kumo fairly asked. No one could give an answer.
"Oh god…we are still far from the answer…" Kumo sighed.
"Good grief…what did you expect? We are detective,what did you expect?" Kasai said.
"By the way guys…i was thinking of something for the last two weeks…is fighting with Saiba Rei…the right thing to do?" Aisu asked. Everyone were caught unaware by that question.
"I mean…are we really sure that we are not dealing with something that is beyond our comprehension? I'm not saying that what we are doing is completely wrong…but maybe that this won't have impacts on our lives?" Aisu explained.
The question was actually fair. It could also have been a wrong choice. They were simple detectives,and maybe what they were doing had a too big risk. Before that,they had a simple life,despite being detectives. Their parents used to do that kind of stuff,not them.
Finally,Kumo broke the silence. "I'll be honest,i think that we are doing the right thing. We are detectives,and he's doing things against the law. Maybe i'm talking for myself,since i'm doing it to avenge my friend…but i don't want other people to get involved with his print. I find people like him disgusting. So i will fight him. Even if i have to die,i want to stop him."
"What about you guys?" Kyoko asked.
"I agree…i don't want my family or my friends get endangered…" Rikka answered.
"…Maybe i got too far with the speech that i made that night,but i'm the same opinion as Kumo. These people are just shit. And personally i don't want someone that ruins what is normal." Kasai added. "I'm doing it because i'm a detective…and i want to get to the conclusion."
In that moment,the phone ringed. That ring made everyone wake up from the discussion they had.
"Maybe we'll talk about that later…" Aisu said. "Sorry,everyone."
"Don't worry." Kasai simply neded.
Kyoko picked up the receiver and answered. "Hello? You're talking with the Chesire Cat Agency,how can we help you? Ok…an idol? Really? Yes…what? Ok…don't worry,we'll come to you. Where do you want to meet? To the Sony building? Ok. Thanks for the call. See you later,bye." She closed the call.
"Who called?" Aisu asked,curious.
"The owner of a Sony building that is hosting an idol." Kyoko answered.
"An idol? In San Francisco?" Rikka asked,since it was an unusual thing. "Aren't idols famous pop singers in japan?"
"Yes. The idol is Haruka Tachibana. An Idol who started recently her career. She was going to take a concert tomorrow,but something unexpected happened." Kyoko replied. "Apparently there is someone who is trying to kill her…"
Everyone became more serious. "What!?" Kumo exclaimed.
"Yes! They said that she found a letter from someone that announced her murder under a pillow of her hotel's bedroom." Kyoko said.
"So,someone will go there?" Aisu asked.
"Wait…i thought that maybe we 5 should go." Kyoko said.
"Really? Why?" Rikka asked.
"Because i think that maybe we are dealing too much attention on what happened with Saiba Rei,and if we continue with this mood,we'll end up confused and anxious,and he'll take advantage of that! So i think that a normal case will help us calm down. What do you think?" Kyoko answered. Her happy mood came back,with her smile that could make everyone happier,like Aisu,who nodded. "Ok! You convinced me!"
Rikka closed the computer and stood up. "Well then! Shall we go?"
"If you insist." Kasai simply said. Kumo touched her shoulder. "Come on! It'll be fun!"
"Get off my shoulder or i'll kill you." Kasai advised with a cold stare.
"Ok! Ok!" Kumo exclaimed,getting off her. In that moment,Kouta entered the room to see the others getting ready for something. "Guys?"
"Oh Kouta! Do you need something?" Kumo asked.
"Well,i was going to ask you about Saiba…" Kouta answered but he got interrupted.
"Oh,we decided that we should stop talking about him." Aisu said.
In that moment Kouta was confused. They coulnd't just ignore something like that. "What!? Are you serious!?" He exclaimed.
"Try to understand,we are doing it for our own good." Rikka said. "After all,we can't ignore other cases for one. Am i right?" She said with a smirk on her face.
"…You are going on a case?" Kouta asked.
"Well yes…do you want to come?" Kyoko asked.
"What? I didn't say that,but…" Kouta hesitated,but in the end he thought like them. He had too many things on his head,and maybe a regular case would have helped him out to feel better. "Ok. I'll go with you."
"Perfect! Tell the others we are going,Kumo." Kyoko said. Kumo nodded and went away. In that moment,Rikka reminded of something particular. "Where are our Digimon?"
Everyone turned around to see them sleeping.
"Only they can sleep in a discussion like we had now…" Aisu said,sighing. Digimon were always unpredictable.
The roads of San Francisco were filled with couples walking together,pleasing the partner or kissing. It was one of the most beautiful feeling in the world,and the young detectives…felt uncomfortable about that. Usually,when someone single see someone or something romantic,they got the pain for being all alone.
"Ugh,come on…why do you have to show me all of this? Why can't people stay at their own houses!?" Kyoko complained with a painful face.
"It's ,what did you expect?" DORUgamon answered.
"Personally i always liked this human holiday. The celebration of the union between two people of different or same genres. It's the best day to show affection to someone you like a lot!" Strikedramon commented the sight.
"You can't understand…we too like love but as you can see...we are still alone…" Aisu sighed,while she was looking at a boy who gave a ring to his girlfriend.
"Me and Kyoko especially suffer for this day,considering that our mother had the crest of…love…" Kumo said.
"Oh come on,Kumo! It's never too late for a soul mate! There is plenty of time and many ways to find it!" Shoutmon tried to comfort his partner who was still looking at the ground.
"There is also a stuff called 'Online dating' as i know…" Veedramon remebered,but his partner immediately stopped him. "That is the worst type of romantic relation you could ever use. Every kind of persion could be on the other side of the screen,waiting for using you in every way they can think."
"You talk about it as if you experienced such a situation…" Veedramon talked. But Kasai shaked her head. "No. I haven't,but i've heard of these types of stories."
"How about you,Kasai? Do you plan to get a boyfriend?" DORUgamon asked.
"No. At least not now. I don't have an open approach to men like others." Kasai simply answered,going faster than the others.
"Why that?" DORUgamon asked then. Veedramon came near him and told him the reason. "It's because usually men try to flirt with her,almost everytime. A few hours ago,some of his old class mates and a guy that she knows tried to flirt with her."
"Oh right! I remember as well! Back when we were at school. She was beloved by every man of the school. Poor girl,they never left her alone..." Kyoko added.
"Well,you know how she reacts when that happens." Veedramon remembered. It seemed that Kasai had to live with this kind of curse for a long time. But she didn't care at all,since she didn't care about almost everything.
"I actually like another thing of : the sweets that they make especially for this holiday! Especially the ones with strawberries flavour…" Leppamon said.
"Oh right,you're a Digimon…" Rikka ended with a smile. In the meantime,Kouta and BaoHackmon were the ones further away from the others. Kouta was still thinking about the question that BaoHackmon made him before. Kumo and Shoutmon noticed this clear distance and they called him back to reality. "Kouta? You alright?"
Kouta raised his head. "What? Yes,i'm fine!" He then came back to the others.
"Are you sure?" Kumo demanded,worried. "Yes. Sorry,i was thinking of a question that BaoHackmon made me before…" Kouta responded. Hearing those words made BaoHackmon gulp. He was afraid that his question made him tilt.
"What question?" Kumo asked.
"As you know,i used to look after the others and try to give them directions. He asked me why,and i didn't know how to answer…" Kouta answered.
"Really? Well i think you know the answer very well! It's because you care about us!" Shoutmon spoke.
"Is that so?" Kouta wondered.
"Yes. You said that you liked the atmosphere of our Agency and that you wouldn't change a thing! And we are happy that you care about this so much!" Kumo added with a smile. For Kouta everything was more clear. It wasn't a hard thing to explain.
"Maybe you didn't know how to answer in your formal tone as always!" Shoutmon guessed with a little laugh.
"Of course! I have to mantain a composure! It has to be exemplary as a member of a detective agency!" Kouta said. In that moment he even looked down and saw BaoHackmon trembling with a pained face. "BaoHackmon?"
"O-oh d-damm…i…i'm so sorry! I didn't mean to cause you such a paralysis! I'm sorry!"
Kouta dropped a drop of sweat from the head for the nonsense of that scene. "You don't have to act like this…you just made a question…"
"But i have disrespected you by invading your reasons! I shouldn't have behaved like that!" BaoHackmon insisted to apology but now Kouta simply couldn't hold it.
"SILENCE OR I'LL PUNCH YOU!" He finally got the comprehension of his partner,but at the same time he got the attentions of the passers.
With the face red for the embarassment,Kouta started to walk again like the others.
"I really don't like how everyone has their attention on me…can i have some space?" Kouta asked to Kumo and BaoHackmon.
"Oh! Of course…but i hope that you will be there for the case-" Kumo tried to say another thing but… "I KNOW THAT!"
"…Oh look! We have arrived!" Kumo said,pointing at their destination. Getting caught by his finger,Kouta looked where Kumo was pointing and saw the building,so he let him go. "Good."
Recently,Sony opened a building in the town of San Francisco. It was a small building of 3 floors (excluding the ground floor). From the outside,the building was black with lots of white stripes,belonging to the windows,which were made in iron. On the top of the building there was the logo of the azienda,which could be seen from a big portion of the city and from a second floor of another building.
The group looked at the building. "The place is this,right?" Kasai asked. "That is correct." Rikka nodded. "It opened only a few months ago. At first,it belonged to a textile company. When the company moved to Seattle,the building remained empty. Eventually,the famous azienda bought the building,so that it could have a location even in this city."
"I think that not many people work here…this building looks rather small…" Aisu noticed. But when she looked down again,she saw that Kouta was already heading over the entrance of the building. "We should focus on the case. Come on,let's go."
"Wait for me!" BaoHackmon followed him. The rest of the detectives were looking at each other with confused stares.
"What's with this hurry?" Veedramon asked.
"Maybe he's just upset. He seemed very stressed today..." Shoutmon tried to gave a possible answer.
"He would not be all wrong…all of these things with united to the tissues with Saiba and his own personal things must made him tired." Kyoko added. "But this case was supposed to calm him down…gee…i wonder what bothers you, cousin…anyways,let's follow him and see the truth!" She then proceeded to the entrance.
"If you say so!" Leppamon and Rikka nodded and followed her. Aisu turned to her sister. "Shall we go too?" She asked with a smile. But as always,Kasai simply walked in. "…At least a yes…" Aisu sighed,but over all she made a smile. "You never change…but that's the best part of you! Shall we go,Strikedramon?"
Her Digimon shrugged and followed her. Even Veedramon was going after the others,but then he saw what it looked like a very brightful butterfly. He noticed something strange. The butterfly didn't have a consistency. It looked like it was made of pure light. But then,DORUgamon called him back to reality.
"Hey! Are you alright?" He asked. Veedramon turned to the other Digimon. "Yeah,i'm fine! It's just that-" He turned back to see the butterfly again,but this was already gone. He then wondered. "Did i imagine it?"
"Are you sure?" DORUgamon "You seem distracted by something. Are you feeling sick because of all that ham that you ate before,right?"
Veedramon looked at him with an annoyed face for what his friend said. "Don't start." But alas,they started to make an argument,to the point that Kasai and Kyoko went back to take them and drag them inside. But none of them noticed that behind the building there was a shilouette of a man with a Digimon,looking at them. The butterfly that Veedramon noticed came back to the Digimon and disappeared. After that,the two figures came back to the building. The enemy was very close to his targets.
The inside of the building was much bigger than the outside. The floor was made of tile coloured in a brightful cobalt blue,while the ceiling was white with black dots and small black squares with the fire system on them. On the sides of the floor there were some benches and white chairs,where the people could sit,and the whole floor was filled with souvenir shops and electronic products stores of the company. At the end of the floor there were even a little bar that sold crepes and a pair of stairs that led at the first floor. The people could only stay at the ground floor,since the upper floors were reserved only to the staff.
When Kouta and the others entered,they were immediately surprised by the size of the building. "Woah…if this is big,i cannot think how bigger the buildings in the other cities are!" Kyoko said.
Kasai looked around. "It looks like a shopping centre. I think that here,the money instantly slip out from your wallet." She ironically said.
DORUgamon tried to see a free space,but it was an hard task due to the big amount of stores, their bizarre positions and all the people that were inside the building. "Dammit! Look at this mess! I assume that the director is in another floor,but how are we supposed to pass!?"
BaoHackmon looked as well and scratched his head carefully to not hurt himself with his claws. "Now that you make think of,it's very confusing…what do you think,Kouta?" He asked to his partner,but when he turned around,he saw that Kouta was missing. "Uh!? Kouta?"
Even the others looked around to see where he ended up. "Where did he go?" Rikka wondered.
"It's hard to answer,especially with all these people here. I just hope he hasn't been invested…" Strikedramon said.
Everyone looked harder,but they couldn't find him,especially when they didn't want to become one with the sea of people inside the building,at least not now. But fortunately,Kumo looked at the bar at the end of the floor and saw him taking a crepes. It was a tic of his. "Oh,of course…" Kumo said,shaking his head. "He's right there." He then pointed at the bar,so that the others could see him.
Kyoko looked where he was aiming and saw him as well. "Really!? Oh gosh,now we have to reach him,but…" She looked nervous at the people,but she took courage and got inside.
"I'm coming!" DORUgamon opened his wings and reached the bar before her. Immediately after that,a shout among the people could be heard. "SHIT! I FORGOT HE COULD FLY!"
The other detectives were embarassed by that. "Good grief…what a leader…i think i'll add this too to her stories. Let's go Veedramon." Kasai said. She then proceeded more carefully than Kyoko,but sometimes she had to push people away to pass,after all she didn't care. Even Veedramon was more laid back,since he was enough tall to see where he was going.
The others followed them in a simple way. When they reached the bar,they saw Kouta eating his crepes like nothing was. With the breath,Kyoko put herself in front of Kouta. "What do you think you were doing!? We could lose you!"
"Hey! Calm down! You could always call me! I was hungry…" Kouta answered.
Shoutmon noticed the size of the crepes and asked. "Wait,how big is that crepes?"
"What do you mean by that?" Kouta asked as well. It was BaoHackmon to answer. "It looks very big,and we don't want you to feel sick. Wait…didn't you eat some hour ago?"
Kouta pretended nothing and finsished the crepes. He knew that he had a problem with eating but he still wasn't able to tell the others. So he preferred to get back to his serious tone. "Come on,let's go meet the director."
The others looked confused. But in the end they shrugged and followed him. They didn't want to make questions for the sake of the case.
When they arrived at the stairs,two Guardromon,guarding the steps,stopped them. "Reveal yourselves."
Kyoko and the others show their plates. "We come from the Chesire Cat Agency. Your boss called us for an emergency." Kyoko spoke. After hearing that,the two Guardromon moved out,one on the left and one on the right. " is waiting for you at the third floor."
"Ok,thank you!" Kyoko said,in sign of gratitude. "Shall we go?"
On the first floor,there were a group of mechanicals,building new products,between Televisions,domestic appliances and videogame consoles. To help them,there were a group of small Digimon with the face that looked like a flat TV. They were called Hi-Vision Monitamon. Even if they had some skills and techniques,they were usually peaceful Digimon,who wanted to help the others. With their faces,they were showing at the humans,how the product was supposed to be built. This led them to complete the goods in less time and without them moving away from the workstation.
The young Chosen Children looked at them working and got somehow interested. "Look! They are helping the mechanicals!" Shoutmon said.
"Yeah…man,i wish i had one of them…so,working on the computer wouldn't be so hard…" Rikka sighed.
"Come on,let's proceed." Kouta ended.
On the second floor,there was the text room. This was the room where they texted all the products,once they were finished on the lower floor and check if they were ready to get selled. If there was a flaw or an error,the product was brought to the first floor again in order to correct the error. If the final result was correct,the model was approved by the director and put into the stores on the ground floor.
In particular,Aisu was watching the text of a console. "Hey! They are texting a Playstation!" The others got interested as well at her interest. "You look so happy watching that. Do you like videogames?" Kumo asked.
In that moment Aisu got iced. Her difficulty on socializing came to surface and she didn't knew what to say. It was mostly ashamed by the fact that a girl like her liked videogames. "Uhm…w-well i-i play them…but only s-sometimes…"
"Are you Ok?" Kouta asked. Kasai sighed and adjusted her hat. "Oh right…let me answer for her. Yes,she really likes videogames. She plays at them since she was little."
By hearing those words,Aisu had the face in a full red color,and Strikedramon had to comfort her.
"What's the problem? I don't think that is a bad thing! A girl gamer could be pretty cute!" BaoHackmon said with a smile.
"I agree! Even i,sometimes play at them! I usually use the computer,though…" Kyoko added. Aisu was still trembling,but she managed to stand up. "T-thanks guys…let's move on…"
And finally they arrived at the third floor,where there was the director's office: A big room with a long table where the a lot of people could sit and discuss. The chair of the director was at the toastmaster,of course. On the room there were some men with formal clothers talking to each other,and the director of the building was looking at some papers to sign. When he raised his head and saw the Chesire Cat Agency enter,he felt like he saw a group of angels approaching them. "YAAAAAY!" He shouted. He stood up and ran on the table to approach them. With a jump that looked almost acrobatic,he reached them.
"WAH!" Kyoko exclaimed. "I can see that you are happy to see us!"
"OF COURSE! My name is Tyler Gold. I'm the director of this building. And i suppose that you come from the Chesire Cat Agency!" He replied.
Kyoko nodded with a smile. "That's right! My name is Kyoko Ishida. These are my colleagues. Kumo Ishida,Rikka Izumi,Aisu and Kasai Yagami and Kouta Takashi! Alongside with our Digimon."
"Oh,that is just GREAT!" Tyler exclaimed,with his glasses shining.
Everyone looked at him with a strange and confused stare. "This guy is sick…" Veedramon murmured. "Veedramon!" Strikedramon complained still in a low voice.
"We've received your call. Can you tell us what happened?" Kouta asked.
"Of course! You see,this idol,Haruka Tachibana,recently started a tournèe around the United States,and we decided to sponsor her to give her a little help. But then everything completely went wrong!" Tyler answered.
"You said that there was someone who was aiming at this girl,right?" Leppamon asked. Tyler nodded. "That is right. Yesterday,on the bed of her hotel,she found this letter!" He then showed to them a little piece of paper.
Strikedramon took the letter and read it. "I know every of your weaknesses. I'll hit you when it hurts most…and then i'll kill you…there is no signature."
"Hmm…this guy surely has an elegant style,since he likes to write in a poetic way and he writes in italic…" Rikka said.
"The main question we have to have is why he wants to get rid of her…" DORUgamon said.
"Maybe he is a simple maniac who doesn't like her. Many people show their disgust towards an artist and do something with it. It happens most of the times with rappers." Leppamon spoke.
"And how do you know that?" Shoutmon asked.
"I've listened to some of the CDs of Rikka and made some researches." The other Digimon replied. Everyone looked at Rikka. "What? I like rap." She simply said.
"Anyways,don't worry . We'll make sure to solve this case and make sure that this idol is fine." Kouta reassured the director,who made a big sigh of relief. "Oh thank god! Just wait to her hearing this!"
"Wait,is she here?" Aisu asked.
"YES!" Tyler answered. In that moment,a voice could be heard from behind.
"Tylor,your voice could be heard from the other floors,could you stop yelling please?" When the others turned around they saw a beautiful girl with red eyes and black and long hair,caught in two ponytails. She was wearing the usual clothes of an idol,with two red ribbons on her hair,white glowes a yellow dress,a pink skirt and red boots.
"Oh,right. Sorry, …i was just excited about them coming here…" Tylor apologized.
"Wait,is she?" Strikedramon asked. Tylor nodded. "Yes! This is Haruka Tachibana! In all her glory!"
"Oh come on,Tylor…don't exaggerate…" Haruka said. She then looked at the Chosen Children and asked. "Woah! Who are these people? They have a wonderful style!"
Rikka blushed a little. "Well…thank you…" In fact,her dressing style looked like an idol one.
"We are detectives from the Chesire Cat Agency. Nice to meet you!" Kumo said with a smile. Haruka became happier. "Wow! I didn't knew that detectives were like this! You are younger than i have expected!" She then looked at each one of them.
"Well,we are a special case…" Kyoko replied.
"And you're all pretty tall…" Haruka noticed.
"Really? I don't think i'm that tall…i'm 1,73…" Kasai said.
"Well,consider that for a girl it's a lot!" BaoHackmon said.
The young idol then bowed her head. "Nice to meet you. I'm Haruka Tachibana!"
"The pleasure is all ours. I see that you are a polite girl!" Kouta said.
"Thank you! And i hope that Tylor didn't bother you with his ways…" Haruka answered,while Tylor sighed.
"Well,he is weird." Kasai simply said. "Kasai!" Kouta complained.
In that moment,Aisu had another paralysis.
"Hm? Are you alright,my dear?" Haruka asked. Aisu was trembling…again,but she still answered. "N-no…it's fine…it's just that i-it's the first time that i meet a celebrity…s-so i don't know how to behave…"
"Oh! But you don't have to worry!" Haruka answered. She then turned around and started to massage her shoulders. "Here! Relax…" Aisu felt even more embarassed,but at the same time she felt a feeling of pure pleasure,like she was taking a bath on the spa. "O-oh…thanks…mind if you continue?" Aisu asked with a soft voice. "No…" Haruka said with the same softness and a smirk.
Everyone got surprised by that act. Rikka slipped out even a laugh. "I didn't see that coming. Well,sister,now you have someone you can talk with." Kasai said.
"Oh? Is she your little sister?" Haruka asked. "No." Kasai simply answered. "Then she is your big sister?" The idol asked then. Kasai simply shaked her head. "Then…you are calling her sister but actually she's simply a friend?" Haruka asked. "No. She really is my sister. We're twins." Aisu replied,still in a soft tone. The massage made her stunned. "Oh! I see!" Haruka said. But then she thought "How the hell can they be twins!? They don't look alike!"
"Glad to see that she is a really good person! Am i right,Kouta?" BaoHackmon answered.
"Uh? Oh,sure!" Kouta replied. "Anyways,with this said,we can start the case. Am i right?" He then asked. The others nodded. Haruka looked at him and noticed that he was more serious than the others.
After that,everyone were sitting on the table,watching at the mysterious letter. A simple but still poetic message. It could be a simple maniac or a dangerous killer. Either way,they had to discover who was it.
"You said that you found it under your bed,right?" Aisu asked.
"Yes…" Haruka answered. "Especially under the pillow."
"Under the pillow…we could only presume that someone entered your room at the hotel in a silent way and put it while you were sleeping…" BaoHackmon said.
"But if that so,why didn't he took advantage of the situation and killed her while she was sleeping?" DORUgamon fairly asked.
"Maybe he only wanted to scare her" Kyoko answered. "…Haruka…have you heard some noises while you were sleeping at the hotel last night?" She then asked.
Haruka thought for a moment. At first she didn't think anything. But then she remembered something. A very strange particular. "Now that you make me think about it…i've heard a small sound…like a flutter of wings."
"A flutter of wings?" Shoutmon asked. "I don't think that a bird would enter inside an hotel,so…an insect?"
"An insect…let me think…it couldn't have been a fly or a mosquito…" Rikka thought.
Veedramon thought as well,but in that moment,his mind connected what he just heard with what he saw some minutes before. But was it the truth or just a coincidence. At least he wanted to try that option,so he spoke. "What if it was a butterfly?"
Everyone turned on him. "Really? Now that you make me think of it…you could be right…they flap very quietly and softly…" Kumo noticed.
In that moment,Kouta connected the image of the butterfly with the letter. "But wait,there's more! A butterfly is usually a beautiful insect with many varieties. Each of them has an elegant style,just like the one of this letter."
"Are you saying that he could be related to butterflies?" Kasai asked. "So what?"
"Maybe…he's trying to say that he's a person with an accurate style. So a possible thing that we can know is that he's probably someone with a certain beauty…" Kyoko answered.
"Yes! I wanted to say that!" Kouta said.
"Perfect…now we have a possible image of the guilty one…" Kyoko said. But in that moment,at the lower floor,a scream could be heard.
"What was that!?" Leppamon exclaimed.
"Hurry! Let's check it out!" Kouta followed.
"Wait! I'll go too!" Haruka suddenly exclaimed.
Everyone turned around and looked at her. "What!? Are you serious!?" DORUgamon asked.
"Yes! I want too to see what happened!" Haruka answered.
" ! Do you even know what this could mean? It's extremely dangerous!" Aisu tried to change her mind,but she told the same. "I don't care! I know what i'm doing!" In that moment Kouta came in front of her and talked with a more serious tone.
"Listen. Aisu is right! Remember that there is a dangerous individual that is going after you! What will you do if he shows up!?" He exclaimed. But Haruka's answer was outstanding.
"Then it'll be better! It would help you to discover him more quickly! Plus,aren't you supposed to protect us? I don't want other people to get hurt because of me,even if i don't know what have i done! So if it'll help more people to get better,then so be it!"
Everyone,especially Kouta were stunned by her words. Not only she revealed herself to be pretty unselfish and caring,but also…
"Her reason…actually makes sense…" BaoHackmon said.
"Good grief. And i thought that you were the usual weak but kind girl. But it seems that you are braver than i thought. I'm ok with her." Kasai showed her opinion with a smirk.
"Yeah! Me too! Ok,Haruka-chan! You can come with us!" Kyoko said. "Oh thank you, ! And you don't have to be formal,you can call me Haruka." The young girl answered.
"Well,then. Shall we go?" Rikka asked. The others nodded and went to the stairs. "WAIT FOR ME!" Tyler exclaimed,as he was following them. In the end,Kouta sighed. "Who would ever knew…" BaoHackmon came near him and touched his leg. "Well,that's a good thing,right?" he asked. Kouta looked at him with a smile and said "Yes. Who'd have thought?"
"Kouta? What's with that stare?" BaoHackmon noticed that his partner was having a strange face. When he heard the question,Kouta regained his composure. "Uh? What? Oh,it's nothing. Let's go." The Digimon shrugged and followed him.
At the lower floor a woman yelled because he saw something rather creepy. "AAAAAAAH! WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING DOING HERE! PLEASE! CALL SOME-" She got interrupted by another scream,but an aggressive one.
"SHUT UP! I CAN'T STAND YOU SCREAMING ONE MORE TIME!" Kasai's yell made everyone silent. "…Ok…" The woman said,shaking.
"We're the detectives. What happened?" Kyoko asked to one of the workers. The man,with wide eyes,pointed at something. When the detectives and their Digimon looked at the direction he was pointing at,they saw a hand cut off on the ground,with some blood.
"Oh My God! Have you seen that!?" Kyoko exclaimed.
"T-That's a human hand!" Tyler said.
"That's strange…this room is full of people. How did they not see what happened?" Kumo wondered,as he looked around and saw all the workers who were watching the scene as well.
"W-we didn't see or heard anything! It was all normal! So we continued our work!" A boy with a hat and long hair,caught in a tail said.
Aisu came closer to the hand and saw it. He noticed that the hand was still dropping some blood. She even touched the blood with her fingers and licked it. For some of them,that last action was a little bit disgusting. "The blood is still hot,and the taste is still fresh…" She said.
"So that means that the murder happened only a few moments ago…but we also have to wonder…where did the rest of the body disappeared? And how did this hand ended up here?" Kouta wondered.
In that moment,Rikka noticed that near the hand there was a desk,and behind that there was a door. So there had to be something behind it. "Let me check there…" She said. Leppamon followed her. After she walked around the desk,she saw that there was actually something: The rest of the body. It was all covered in cuts and scars. She then saw that the door was still open.
"This is the closet…it's completely dirt in blood. So the conclusion is that the victim was dragged here and got killed…probably the last attack made him slam against the door,opening it…" Rikka said.
"But if that so…Why was that hand cut off after that? What was the purpose?" Leppamon asked.
Meanwhile, Kyoko grabbed the hand to see if there was another particular. It was an hard feeling,touching a real hand,but detectives were prepared for these kind of situations,so Kyoko looked at the hand like an average item.
"Did you see something?" DORUgamon asked. Kyoko at first shook her head. "No. Everything is norm-" She interrupted herself when she actually saw something. It was small and yellow. "What is that?"
Suddendly,the yellow thing came out,and Veedramon was shocked when he recognized it.
It was a golden butterfly.
"Is this…" Strikedramon started.
"A butterfly?" Shoutmon concluded.
"The shape is that…" Kasai said.
"A butterfly…WAIT!" Haruka exclaimed. Even Kyoko and the others had that intuition. A butterfly,just like the one that Haruka heard last night. The sign was clear.
"THIS HAND WAS A TRAP!" Kouta exclaimed. Kyoko immediately left the hand,but the butterfly already started to fly and it multiplied. The group of insects started to shoot small beams on everywhere.
"EVERYONE! LOOK OUT!" Aisu exclaimed. The workers tried to escape,but some of them got injured. One got hurt even in the neck.
"What is going on!?" Rikka asked worried,once she came back.
"The hand was a setup from the criminal!" Veedramon answered.
"What!?" Rikka exclaimed.
"We gotta do something! Destroy all these butterlfies!" Kyoko ordered. The others nodded and the Digimon started to attack.
"Strike Claw!" Strikedramon started to run everywhere in the room,while shattering every butterfly with his sharp claws. "Cutter Shoot!" Veedramon on the other hand,sended blades of air against the butterflies,eliminating a good number of them. "Shinkū Kamaitachi!" Leppamon threw the blade on his tail against some of them. DORUgamon and Shoutmon only punched or scratched them,since their attacks were too destructive.
"Come on! Keep going! Uh!?" Haruka was inciting the young Chosen Children,but she saw that a group of butterflies was staring at her and attacked. Even if the pain was small,it still hurt.
Kouta noticed her and threw himself,pushing her away and getting all the pain. BaoHackmon heard the scream of his partner and saw the butterflies attacking him. "GET OUT MY FRIEND! Fif Cross!" He then slashed them with the sharp nails on his hands.
All of the butterflies were destroyed. Everyone could take a break.
"Is everyone ok?" Aisu asked. But the answer wasn't positive. There were injuried people everywhere. "I guess not…" Kasai answered.
"We saw the rest of the body over there…judging from what just happened,the enemy killed the worker who came at the closet,cut his hand and put it over there." Rikka explained.
"So he was waiting for us to discover the butterfly inside the hand…insanely clever…" Kumo said.
"Not only that,have you noticed that most of the butterflies attacked only us?" Aisu asked.
"Now that you make me think about it…it's true…" Kasai answered. Kyoko thought for a second of something,but she immediately cut off that idea and asked "What about Haruka? Is she okay?"
BaoHackmon reached them with a smile. "Yeah! Thanks to Kouta,she's fine."
Kouta stood up and helped Haruka too. "You protected me…" Haruka said. "As a detective,i have to be an example. It is my duty to protect you." Kouta answered. Haruka blushed a little. "Well…thanks…"
The others watched him with a smile,but Kasai and Rikka were thinking of something about the two of them. But they immediately changed their mind.
"Oh gosh! Look at the DISASTER!" Tyler exclaimed,as he saw the mess of the room."
"Why doesn't he stop yelling?" Veedramon thought.
Kasai came closer to Kyoko. Of one thing she was sure. "Kyoko,are you thinking about what i'm thinking?" The leader of the detective agency looked at everyone and answered. "Yes. Can i have everyone's attention?"
All the people in the room looked at her. "Thank you. Now you may think who could ever do something like this. Well,the guilty one…is between us!"
"What!?" One of the workers exclaimed.
"You can't be serious!" Another one added.
"I know that you might be shocked. We at first thought that he attacked us from far away. But since that guy was killed only a few moments ago,he was probably looking at us and he couldn't have gone too far." Strikedramon answered. Even the other detectives were thinking the same thing.
"So get some rest and then we'll interrogate you." Kasai said.
"Haruka,how do you feel?" Aisu then asked. "Don't worry,it's nothing…i just have some wounds." Haruka replied.
"But you could still get worse. Here,let me heal you." Kouta said. He then took some bandages from his pocket.
"Wow,you sure are considerate!" Shoutmon noticed. "He always had been so. I think he took this aspect from uncle Takeru…" Kyoko said.
After everything was ok,everyone moved in a more quiet room. The detectives were preparing themselves for the interrogation,except Kouta who was medicating Haruka.
"There we are. How do you feel now?" Kouta asked,after putting the last bandage on Haruka's knee. "Yes! I'm fine. Thank you…" She answered.
"Do you need something else?" Kouta asked.
"No. I think i only have to sit for a while." Haruka replied. "I'm still grateful for what you did before!" She added with a smile. That phrase made him blush a little. "D-do not even mention it! It was duty…"
After an ankward silence,Haruka asked something…particular. "Say,Kouta…would you mind if you make me some company?" Kouta blushed even more,but to mantain his regular composure he accepted. "Of course not…" So he sat on the chair next to her. At first he thought that he could stand a situation like that. But something made it even more uncomfortable. On the last floor,they used to play some radio,and the song of that moment was 'That's Amore' by Dean Martin,of course,a romantic song. Plus,the fact that a song like this was played on made him even more embarassed and nervous. "Oh great. Of all the songs they could put,this one." He said.
"Do you have any connection with this song?" Haruka asked. Kouta nodded. "Yes. It's based on Italy. And i have been on Italy for a year when i was on high school."
"Really? How is it? It must have been beautiful!" Haruka asked with a smile."
"Yes. It is certainly a beautiful country. Especially with its monuments and landscapes. But the same can't be said of the people…" Kouta answered,remembering some of the days on the european country.
"Of one think i'm sure! Their food is wonderful! Especially when it comes to pasta!" Haruka said with belief.
"I agree! When they put pasta in tomato sauce…it's like staying on heaven…" BaoHackmon said,making fantasies on a plate of spaghetti with tomato and drooling.
"Anyways…i was impressed from your speech before,Haruka. I couldn't even imagine that you were such a strong person...expose yourself so much on our work just for help us." Kouta wanted to explore more the meaning of the idol's words before.
"Of course! You have to take some actions in your life if you want to make happy yourself and the others! I couldn't just stand there,waiting for someone to kill me! That is the reason why i became an idol…To make everyone and myself feel better." Haruka answered.
Kouta,once again,got impressed. He also envied her for a moment. She seemed to have clear ideas of what she wants to do,unlike him. And that made him think of what BaoHackmon asked him before.
"Anyways,Kouta…i've noticed that unlike your friends,you're more serious and you try to give directions to them. Is there a particular reason for this?" Haruka then asked.
Kouta had a block for a moment. It was that question. But this time,he felt like he had to answer,since it was her client that asked to him. Also,BaoHackmon was there with them,so he could finally give an answer even to him. "I think it is…because i really like the life i'm living. Maybe it's also because it's in my blood. My father used to be careful and caring with his friends when he was younger,and my mother had always been a strong woman who did everything for her family. She especially taught me what really is love and what it means to be strong. But mostly,i'm doing it for my friends. Usually,you could never get the chance to be in such a bizarre agency. And i'm sure you've thought of something like that when you saw how the other detectives here interact. They often make even stupid moves and decisions,but despite that,i really love standing with them. Because of their uniqueness. Wait…so that is why i'm doing this…it's because i like to stay with the others!"
"Yeah! That's it! I've noticed too! Even if you are a serious person,you can also be a very sociable person. Even during work,you're usually the first one to get a case. I really like that side of you Kouta!" BaoHackmon said.
"Oh really? If that's so…you are a guy that tries to be serious,but you actually have trouble to reveal your true feelings!" Haruka jokingly said.
"What!? That's not true!" Kouta exclaimed. "By the way…i really like you…" He then said. That phrase made both Haruka and BaoHackmon stunned. Was that a love declaration? So soon?
Kouta looked at them confused and then realized. "What? I meant that i like her as a person! You have a dirty mind,seriously."
"Oooooh…that…" Haruka said.
"…Speaking of which. Do you have any plans for this day?" Kouta asked.
"No. I don't have a boyfriend…" Haruka answered. "Really? Me neither…" Kouta said. Those phrases,the music,and the stares…they just couldn't take it anymore.
"Uhm,Kyoko! Haruka is feel better now! We are coming!" Kouta said,trying everything to end that conversation. And Haruka was of the same opinion,so she got along with him (In fact,she was better now) "Y-yes! Wait for me!"
In all of this,BaoHackmon didn't understand the scene. So he simply shrugged and went with them.
Everyone decided in the end to use the director's room for the interrogations. It was the best place,since it was more quiet and more peaceful,despite the fact that everyhting could happen if they would find out the culprit.
The first person they interrogated was a muscular man with short and brown hair. "So,what were you doing when the employee was killed?" Kyoko asked.
"Well,i-" The man tried to say something,but he got immediately stopped by Tyler. "DO NOT LIEEE!" Everyone looked at him. "What?"
" ,i appreciate the fact that you want to help us,but you should let us do our job." Rikka answered. In silence,Tyler sat on his chair. "Continue." He concluded.
Veedramon facepalmed. "You were saying?"
"Yes…i was texting the controller of a new console. No one knew what happened until our colleague freaked out." The man answered.
"Is there someone that can support your answer?" DORUgamon asked. The man nodded. "Yes! Tommy was working with me!" He replied,pointing at another guy who was in the room. Tommy saluted.
"Ok…this seems resonable…" Aisu said,while writing to the clipboard. "Next."
The next person was the girl that shouted before. She was the first one to see the hand on the ground. Kasai and the others had to hear them carefully,because she could have done the murder and then stage the crime to get unnoticed.
"When and how did you saw that hand?" Kumo asked.
"I-i was bringing a cup of tea to the others…it was almost break time…then i've felt like my foor has touched something…when i looked down i saw the hand and some blood!" The woman answered.
"And then you yelled…" Kasai said,with a nervous tic on her eye,since she hated screaming women.
"I'm sorry…i was just scared…" The woman apologized.
"And what were you doing before?" Kouta then asked.
"Well…i was on the closet…" The woman answered. When she said those precise words,everyone got even more serious than before.
"Really? Because the victim was found precisely in front of the closet door…" Rikka said.
"What were you exactly doing there?" Leppamon asked. The girl started to shiver. She was clearly nervous. "W-what do you mean!? No! It wasn't me i swear! I didn't kill me! I was just picking some tools!" She exclaimed.
"Are you sure of what are you saying? Who tells us that you didn't use those tools to kill him,since he discovered you and then cut his hand to stage everything?" Kasai asked,coming more closer to her. The woman ended up crying and answered. "BECAUSE THAT MAN WAS KILLED 30 MINUTES AFTER I TOOK THOSE TOOLS!"
The detectives silenced. "I-i swear…i did nothing wrong…please don't arrest me…" The woman said with tears on her eyes.
"…Ok. Those words and your agitation convinced us. We believe you." Kyoko said,patting her head. After all that,the woman fainted. "Uhm…is she ok?" Haruka asked.
"Don't worry. She always exaggerates." Tyler replied.
The third questioned was a pretty tall man with long green hair,wearing glasses.
"Do you have an idea about who did it?" BaoHackmon asked. The man answered with a typical accent of New York. "Personally,no. I know everyone that work in this sector and they are good people. Plus,since this idol has started recently her work,i don't think that they had the right time to hate her. I think that whoever tries to murder her it's because he actually wants to reach something or someone else! By the way, ,i love your disc!"
Haruka blushed. "Oh thank you…" While the other detectives got caught by those words. "It's true…we hadn't thought of it…" Aisu thought.
"You made a good point…your name?" Kyoko asked.
"Josh Connery,lady!" The man asked.
"Josh…you are very clever! I think i'll remember you!" Kyoko said with a smile. Josh smiled as well. "Really,ma'am? I'm honored!"
"But if the enemy is trying to get to someone else…who could it be?" Kumo wondered.
"The first person that i would think is …" Shoutmon said,looking at the one he just mentioned. Tyler got worried. "What? Me? Why would he do that!?"
"Maybe he doesn't like the market on this specific building. Or he wants to protest against the whole company." Kouta answered.
"But i don't understand! I always tried to make the people who come here happy! There were even sales this weeks!" Tyler said.
"Really? Sales? Then maybe after we finished this I could buy a new television,since mine is broken…" Aisu said,liking the idea. Strikedramon dropped a drop of sweat while hearing at her partner. "Aisu,i don't think we should talk about this now…anyways,you don't have to worry, . These are just hypotesis. The answer could be another."
"I really hope so…" Tylor said,putting his hand on the front like in a soap opera. "…Yeah,right. Next." Veedramon ended.
The fourth questioned was the boy of before with the long tail. "Did you know who was the guy that got killed?" Aius aksed.
"Yes! His name was Richard Greg. He worked here since the building opened. I feel very sorry for him…" The boy replied.
"Really? And when did you started working here?" DORUgamon asked.
"Only a few days ago." The boy simply answered.
"Ok…and where were you while this happened?" Kyoko then asked.
"I was actually at the desk in front of the closet,but i didn't see what happened,since i was working on a new smartphone!" The boy answered. While looking at him,Kouta noticed that he had his clothes a little bit unmade. But he thought that it wasn't an important issue. "Ok. Last one?"
The fifth questioned was another girl with blue hair and green eyes.
"When we had that little attack from before,what did you do?" Kasai asked.
"I ran away like the others,of course! And during that,i got hurt on the leg…" The girl answered.
"Really? Let me see…" BaoHackmon asked. The girl showed her wound. There was some blood on it,but nothing dangerous. "Ok…i'll put a bandage on it." BaoHackmon ended.
"Ok…they're all with this…now we have to think about the facts that we just heard." Kyoko said to the other detectives.
"It won't be surely easy,there are a lot of them." Veedramon pointed.
"The sooner we start to look at them,the sooner we shall conclude something." Kumo said. "The most important issues that we have to see are what they were doing before and during the murder."
"Let's see…our first questioned and Josh are to exclude. The first one was actually doing something else while this happened with his colleague,while Josh made a good reasoning about the culprit. Plus,he likes Haruka,so i don't think he would lay a finger on her." Strikedramon started.
"Then there is that girl with blue hair. But i don't think she did something either. She told me before that she was at the bathroom when the murder happened. So i suppose that she's innocent too." BaoHackmon continued.
"So the only two that can be suspicious are the girl that saw the hand first and the guy with long hair…but they both have a valuable reason to be innocent…" Veedramon ended.
There were two people that were on a green zone,one on the yellow,and two on the red. But only one could be the real one. Maybe there was something that they missed. But who knew? During the talk,Kouta looked at the man who got killed and noticed a very important issue.
"Did you find something?" Haruka asked. Kouta nodded. "Look at him…he's not…wearing…his usual uniform…he wasn't even wearing any usual clothes. He only had a vest and a pair of boxers. In that moment,something triggered him,something he saw just a few moments ago. He then thought about everything that he heard during the interrogation. Everything was clear now. He had no doubts. "…Now i know the truth." He said.
"Really?" BaoHackmon asked. Kouta nodded and turned on the others. "Everyone,i understood who is murder."
"Seriously?" Kyoko asked,surprised. "Then tell us. Who is it?" Kasai demanded.
"These clues could have brought us to only a person. And that person…is you." Kouta was pointing at the man with the hair collected in a tail.
"Uh!?" Haruka exclaimed. "Really!?" Tylor added.
"W-what!? How can you say that!? I swear! It wasn't me!" The boy answered,worried.
"You said before that when the employee got murdered,you were sitting on the desk situated in front of the floor. But now that i think of it,you never mentioned the fact that you heard something. There was no clear possibility that you haven't heard anything. You were too close at the door of the closet." Kouta started.
"That's right…Plus…when we asked if you had heard or seen something,you were the first one that answered,right? You said that to pass unnoticed…" Kasai continued.
"And judging by what Josh said before,if you were really aiming at Haruka,you would have been here,looking at her in the shadow while we were talking. But instead you were on the lower floor!" Kyoko said. The proofs were getting even more founded,as the boy started to sweat.
"But wait,guys. If he said that he was on the desk while this happened,how did he kill him?" Rikka asked. Kouta already knew the answer. "It's simple. It was a lie. The one that was staying on the desk was not him,but instead,it was the one that got killed!" This was quite a twist.
"I see where you want to end up! You are saying that this guy entered from somewhere else and caught the guy's attention in order to kill him,cut his hand and set the trap. Then,in order to not get caught,he quickly took his place to pass unnoticed…plus,he knew his informations because he probably read his license plate." Aisu said. "That's insane,but how did you noticed Kouta?" She then asked.
"I noticed from the clothes. The murdered one isn't wearing anything at the moment,while this guy has his uniform wrinkled,like he put it in a hurry." Kouta answered. Everything started from there. Clothes.
"And wait…" Even Tyler talked. "Now that i see you better…i don't recognise you!"
"N-no! This is got to be a misunderstanding! It wasn't me!" The boy tried to defend himself,but Kouta came closer to him and licked his cheek. Someone find it disgusting.
"What a surprise! I can sense that this is the taste of a liar!" Kouta exclaimed. The detectives knew what that meant. "So it was you!" They exclaimed.
Everyone now was in silence,including the guilty one. He knew that he couldn't act any longer.
"So?" Veedramon demanded.
"Very well. You got me. I wanted to kill you in a silent way,but unfortunately,it seems that i have to pass on strength now." The guy said as he took off his uniform,revealing an elegant and pink dress,with even two pieces of silk on the armpits,like the wings of a butterfly. "I admit,i made some mistakes,Kyoko and Kumo Ishida,Kasai and Aisu Yagami,Rikka Izumi…and Kouta Takashi."
"What? Who are you and how do you know our names?" Kouta asked,as he felt that something was not right.
"My name is Molock Papilion. They call me 'The soul hunter'." Molock answered,as he striked a pose. "And to answer you,i've been looking for you for quite a long."
"What do you mean?" Aisu asked.
"You see,Haruka never been my plan. This was all a setup to go directly by you,Chesire Cat Agency,for as i have been hired to eliminate you." Molock replied.
Everyone got shocked. They knew what he was saying. After all,it was something that they started two weeks ago. "Unbelievable…He's one of Saiba Rei's mercenaries!" Kyoko thought.
"What does he mean by that?" Haruka asked worried to Kouta. "Just like he said…there is a man that is after us. He has been payed to kill us…" Kouta answered.
Haruka was even more confused. "I still don't get it! Who is after you!?" She asked. But the detectives remained silent,because they knew that telling the truth would have involved confusion,disbelief and disorder.
"We cannot tell you,right now,Haruka. But i promise…i'll find a way. Trust me." Kouta said. Haruka saw in his eyes pure resolution. So he believed him. "Ok…please win…" She said. Kouta nodded with a smile and looked back at the enemy like the others.
"I knew that a direct attack against you would have cost my life. So i decided to attract you with your own work. I recently knew that this idol,Haruka Tachibana,was going here in the United States and that she was getting sponsored by this company. So i decided to threat her,so that the director would have been forced to call you. And how was i sure he would have called you? Simple,you are one of the first detective agencies on the phone book. Then…when you came here,i decided to give you a surprise attack. But it seems that i've failed. Well,it doesn't matter…because i still have a good chance of defeating all of you." Molock explained his plan.
"So you used this girl to get us…i have to admit that you have the look of angel,but now we are gonna break that mask,demon!" Strikedramon said,as he assumed a fight pose.
"What language…you are very rude…this isn't the correct tone to talk to a soul hunter…" Molock said. He then made a grin. "But since you care so much about dealing with me…" In that moment,a brightful aura surrounded him and more butterflies appeared behind him.
"Everyone! Look out!" Rikka exclaimed. "The butterflies from before…he couldn't have used them! That means…" Kumo started and his sister concluded. "He has a Digimon on his side!"
"Shinkū Kamaitachi!" Leppamon threw the blade on his tail to destroy the butterflies,but then after doing that,a figure appeared and blocked the tail. "What!?" Leppamon exclaimed.
The figure's look got more clear,as he came down gently with his wings. It was an insect-Digimon covered in a gold armor and lilac wings. "Allow me to introduce my beautiful Digimon: Butterflamon!"
Aisu took her digivice to scan it. "It's an Armor-Level. Be careful,he's got a lot of techniques!"
"Don't worry. We got this. Come on guys! Let's do this!" DORUgamon exclaimed. "Yeah!" Everyone agreed. Then the enemy Digimon looked at Strikedramon. "Since you are the first one who talked,you shall be the first one." He said. He then flew high and used a powerful kick against him. "Sweet kick!" Strikedramon grunted,but fortunately he was quick enough to block it in time. "Curse you! Strike claw! HINJAKU!" The dragon Digimon tried to attack him with his arm,but the insect Digimon immediately jumped away and went to Veedramon. This one tried to attack him as well with punches. "Magnum Punch! ORAORAORAORA!" Despite the speed Veedramon used,Butterflamon managed to dodge all of them and to jump away a few centimetres away from him. He then opened his wings and and emitted sound waves from them. "Honey Wave!" "V-Breath Arrow!" Veedramon answered with an arrow in the shape of a V. The two attacks ended up in a little explosion and a pile of smoke. When the smoke disappeared,Veedramon noticed that the enemy was no more. "What!? Where did he go!?"
"Veedramon! Behind you!" Kasai exclaimed. Veedramon heard what his partner said and turned around. In fact,he saw Butterflamon in front of him,giving a kick. But like Strikedramon,Veedramon blocked him quickly with his arm. Then,he pushed him away with the arm and attacked with a kick. "ORA!"
Butterflamon got hit and he recoiled a little bit. Immediately after he gained balance,he saw Shoutmon jumping up and shoot a fire ball. "Rock Damashī!" But the Armor-Level Digimon flapped his wings strongly to avoid the attack. Due to the wind,the ball disappeared. But Shoutmon wasn't over yet. As fast as he could,he approached Butterflamon and gave him a burst of kickes. "MUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDA!" Butterflamon blocked the kicks with his arms,but he couldn't avoid the last one that got him on the neck. Annoyed by that he used the sound waves from before. "Honey Wave!" The waves hit Shoutmon that clashed against a wall. "Shoutmon!" Kumo exclaimed.
DORUgamon immediately attacked him,but Butterflamon was faster and jumped above him and put him on the ground with a kick on the back. "Sweet Kick!" DORUgamon clashed against the ground with a grunt of pain. Butterflamon was ready to give him another Honey Wave,but DORUgamon unexpectedly turned on him and opened his mouth. "What!?" Butterflamon exlclaimed. But it was too late. "Power Metal!" DORUgamon shooted a large iron ball in front of Butterflamon,making him clash against the ceiling and falling to the ground,just like he did. Butterflamon got up again dazed for that strike.
"Well? Are you finished yet?" Kyoko asked.
"Ok…you made me do this. Sweet Honey Straw!" Butterflamon released some balls of light that went inside the Digimon that attacked him. They felt somehow weaker.
"What is this!? I'm losing energy…" Veedramon said.
"Dammit! We should have destroyed those balls!" DORUgamon exclaimed. Molock laughed. "This attack drains all of the enemy's energies!"
"Are you serious!?" Kumo exclaimed.
"Yes. And now there is nothing you can do." Molock answered. "Do it,Butterflamon." Butterflamon nodded and created more images of him that attacked every other Digimon.
"Hey! Aren't you forgetting someone?" A voice asked. One of the replicas turned around and saw BaoHackmon approaching him with the blade of his tail. In a second,BaoHackmon cut the replica in two,saving Strikedramon. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah…thanks. BaoHackmon! Behind you!" Strikedramon advised. The spiky dragon looked behind and saw all of the replicas coming against him. "Burn Flame!" BaoHackmon then used a fire attack that got every of them with pinpoint accuracy. "Are you kidding me!?" Butterflamon exclaimed.
"NO,I'M NOT!" BaoHakmon answered,while charging against him and throwing him on the table. "Get off!" Butterflamon pushed him away with a punch. But BaoHackmon immediately recovered and started to attack him with his sharp claws,and Butterflamon replied by attacking with his punches. Since the punches were a par,Butterflamon moved away and used his sound waves. "Honey Waves!" But BaoHackmon wasn't afraid and knew how to answer. "Burn Flame!" He used the fire attack from before,destroying the sound waves. He then jumped high. "I'm not stupid enough to get fooled by a technique that i saw too many times! Dragrey Spikes!" BaoHackmon then made a last powerful kick with the blades,making Butterflamon slam against the ground and breaking the table.
"Yeah! Good job!" Haruka exclaimed happily. But Tyler wasn't of the same mood. "MY TABLE!" And also,the other Digimon regained their health. "Are you ok?" Rikka asked.
"Yeah. We are fine now." Veedramon answered. "Good job,BaoHackmon." Kouta said. His partner turned around to answer him. "Doing my best like always!"
Then everyone turned on Molock and his Digimon,who seemed badly wounded,with blood coming out from his chest.
"What were you saying before? That you was able to defeat us?" Shoutmon asked him with a mocking tone.
But despite the trouble,Molock and Butterflamon were still confident. "Oh yes,we are indeed…" Molock said. "I think you forced us to use that technique…" Butterflamon added.
DORUgamon was confused. "What technique?" Butterlfamon was honoured to answer. "You'll see…Demon Fantasia." Suddenly,everything was covered by a bright light. The detectives,their Digimon and even Haruka had to cover their eyes.
"W-What is going on!?" Kouta exclaimed.
When he could open his eyes again,he could saw that the whole place was changed: It was like they were on a field close to the sea,with many varieties of flowers. "W-what?" He said.
"What is this place!?" BaoHackmon asked. "I don't know! It must be him!" Kouta answered,while looking around. Then…something really unexpected happened.
"Kouta? Kouta!" A voice called out the young detective. It was way too familiar too him. "This voice…could it be?" He turned around and saw her. It was Akane.
"M-mom!?" Kouta exclaimed.
"Oh Kouta! I'm so happy to see you!" Akane said with a beautiful smile. But Kouta felt like something was wrong. "This cannot be…she should be at home right now…w-what are you doing here!?" He asked,as he slowly started to walk backwards. "Why am i here? But of course! To stay with you! My precious son…" Akane answered,while walking towards him. But in a moment,she became a dart of light that hit Kouta.
"AAAAAAAAARGH!" He felt a terrible pain as he fell on the ground. "I don't get it…what is going on!?" He exclaimed.
"Oh no! Kouta! What did you do to him!?" BaoHackom asked to Akane. Akane looked worried. "What are you saying? I didn't do anything!"
"No…You're not real! This has to be an hallucination!" Kouta said. In that moment,Molock's voice could be heard in reverb. "You're wrong. This isn't an hallucination,it's the people you care the most in the world in front of you."
Kouta was trembling with both fear and anger. "I DON'T BELIEVE YOU,DEMON!" He tried to punch Akane,but this one got scared and recoiled,so Kouta stopped,becuase he was going to fall prey to emotions.
"Even if you think it's a fantasy,you will not be able to hit her. She's your mother. If your Digimon attacks her,you'll kill her,and then she will completely disappear from your life. She will fade forever. It will be like she never existed for you. It's that what you truly wanted,Kouta?" Butterflamon's voice spoke.
Kouta looked down with tears falling from his eyes. He felt that this was all fake,but this also seemed so…real. He couldn't hurt the person that gave him life,grew him,took care of him with so much love. He really didn't knew what to do,and he felt the need to do something…but he couldn't. He couldn't have time to think either since another dart of light hit him. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"KOUTA! I don't get it…why is this happening!?" BaoHackmon wondered with confusion and loss. Then…the same effect of Kouta happened with the dragon Digimon.
"Why are you so confused,BaoHackmon?" The Adult-Level Digimon turned around and saw Starmon.
"S-Starmon!? What are you doing here!?" BaoHackmon asked. "It shouldn't matter. I'm here for you." Starmon answered. Then another dart of light hit BaoHackmon. "GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! Starmon…why…"
"I don't know what you are saying BaoHackmon…" Starmon exclaimed. In that moment,the others arrived and saw Kouta and BaoHackmon massacred.
"Oh my god! Guys! What happened to you!?" Kyoko asked. Aisu looked around. "There's no one here…so what happened?"
"Why are you asking this?" A voice said. Both Aisu and Kasai recognised that voice and turned around. There were Taichi,Mimi,Agumon and Palmon.
"Mom?" Kasai asked. "Dad? You here?" Aisu added. The two Chosen Children smiled at them. "Of course! We wanted to see you!" Mimi replied. "Even if you are grown-ups,you still are our precious daughters!" Taichi added.
"This is too strange…but yet…so real…" Kasai said. She then shaked her head. "No! What am i thinking!?"
"You…you are right,Kasai…" Aisu said. But then, a dart of light hit both of them. They yelled in pain and fell to the ground.
"Kasai! Aisu!" Both Veedramon and Strikedramon exclaimed.
"Veedramon! Strikedramon!" Agumon saluted them. "We want to greet you! Come here!" Palmon added. But then,another dart of light hit them.
"Guys! This can't be real…this has to be an illusion!" Rikka exclaimed.
"You mean that i am an illusion?" A voice said. Rikka turned around to see Meiko. "Mom!? You too!? N-no…i don't have to hear you!" Rikka tried to ignore her,but the voice of his mother sounded too much real.
"Rikka,please! Calm down…RIKKA! LOOK OUT!" Leppamon tried to advise her partner,but it was too late. A dart of light hit both of them. The scene was always the same: The victim saw a person dear to him and got hit by a dart of light. They couldn't do anything,because everything sounded too realistic,so they thought like they were really hitting them. The same happened to Kyoko,Kumo,DORUgamon and Shoutmon,when they saw Yamato,Sora and their Digimon.
"GH! Why are we here!? Why are we seeing this!?" Kyoko exclaimed.
"There has to be something!" Kumo exclaimed,banging his fist in the grass. In that moment,Yamato came closer to him and touched his chin. "You don't have to worry,Kumo…it's alright…" But another dart of light hit Kumo. "AAAAAAH!"
"Dammit! I want to attack…WHY I'M NOT DOING IT!?" DORUgamon exclaimed.
In the end,Haruka was alone,watching the ones that were protecting her suffer. "What is happening? What are they seeing?" She then looked up. "Why are you doing this!? Please,stop!"
Molock decided to answer. "I'm not doing anything. They are only seeing the people they truly love,but if they attack,those people will die. One should never depend on someone else…because that someone will become their weakness…and they will become another prey for me."
Unfortunately…even Haruka had the same effect. "Haruka! My little girl!" A voice said. Haruka turned around and saw a tall man. "Dad? Is that really you? I thought you remained in Japan…" She said.
"Look at you,Haruka! You made it this far! To think that your dream to become an idol became true…you made your old man so proud!" His father answered. Haruka dropped a tear from her eyes. "Father…" But she was no difference. And another dart of light hit her. "AAAAAAAAH!"
The place suddendly changed. Everything was green,with glass windows on the sides. The sound of some bells could be heard.
"The bells are singing to celebrate a brith or good news. But this will not last too long. Still few times…and they will sing a sad funeral chant." Molock's voice said.
Kouta was laying on the ground full of wounds. Since the pain,the sound of the bells bothered him,so he put his hands on his ears to not hear. "Gh…i seriously don't understand anything by now…C-calm down Kouta…try to reflect…" When he got up,he could see Akane looking at him with a worried look. "She is still here…the scenario is deeply changed. Is this an effect too? My mother is a human…she couldn't do those darts of lights. It must be Butterflamon…but how? Is he hiding somewhere? I've heard him say a name before everything was surrounded by that light…it was 'Demon Fantasia' if i'm correct…wait…that means…Fantasy of the Demon? If that so…this must be only a fantasy…and then the figure i see in front of me…is not my mother…but…i still have to be sure…" He thought. Everything now was even more confusing. What he thought could be the truth,but still…everything could be real.
"Answer me…are you my mother?" Kouta asked. "What are you saying? Of course i'm your mother! Son…you don't believe me?" Akane answered. Her face was full of tears. Kouta then clenched his fist and gritted his teeth. "Dammit! If what he said is true…if i let BaoHackmon attack her…i'll forget her…"
Meanwhile BaoHackmon was hit again by a dart of light. "GAAAAAH! Anf..anf…these attacks are too immediate…and i don't know what to do…Starmon,please! Tell me the way!" He said to the star-shaped Digimon.
"You don't have to worry BaoHackmon…you are here now. Everything is fine." Starmon answered. In that moment,BaoHackmon thought something. "What…what did you just said?" He asked.
"I said that everything is fine. You are with me now." Starmon replied again.
"Everything is fine…Wait a second! Starmon wouldn't never answer me like this! He would encourage me to stand up or hit me! Now i know the truth…" Finally,the first one to realize the truth. So he gritted his teeth and prepared the blade on his tail.
Starmon made some steps backwards. "W-what are you going to do,BaoHackmon!? Are you seriously trying to hit your master!?" His voice started to crack and change into a different one.
"Oh yes! I'm going to do it! Teen Blade!" BaoHackmon spinned his blade cutting Starmon several times. Starmon yelled out of pain,or apparently he looked like Starmon,because when he got it by BaoHackmon's tail,the form of Starmon changed to that of Butterflamon,who fell on the ground. "I knew it!" BaoHackmon exclaimed.
Butterflamon got up. "Y-you saw through the illusion…how!?" He asked.
"That's simple! At first i believed you because i saw the form of my precious friend. But that is not enough! You also had to behave like him! I'll be honest. If you had done it,i would probably have been killed. But enough talking! Now i think i'll use his teachings to finish you scum!" BaoHackmon answered,getting ready.
"Very well. I'll have to kill one of you directly then…" Butterflamon replied. After that,they started to fight.
"Sweet Kick!" "Dragrey Spike!" They both started with kicks. The clash produced a shock wave,that unfortunately it couldn't be heard by the others. Butterflamon took advantage of his nearness at BaoHackmon and used his wings to produce sound waves. "Honey Waves!"
BaoHackmon was threw away by those waves,but he had enough so he quickly gained balance and counterattacked with a fire attack that got the insect Digimon. "Burn Flame!" Butterflamon yelled of pain and fell on his knees." BaoHackmon used that little time to look around and see the others. They were still under the effects of the Demon Fantasia. But he couldn't see the illusions of the other detectives,except for that of Kouta and Haruka. "Great…it seems that they'll have to get out of this situation by themselves…" So he looked back at the enemy. "In the meantime i'll deal with him,and then'il help Kouta!"
"Kyoko! Please,Kyoko get up!" DORUgamon said to her partner. Even if she was injured,she could at least stand up. "D-don't worry DORUgamon…i'm fine…" She said.
"I still don't understand…why are they here?" DORUgamon wondered. "I wish i could knew as well…Agh!" Kyoko added,falling on her knee. Sora and Biyomon quickly ran to grab her. "Kyoko! Please! Don't move,you're injured!" Biyomon exclaimed.
"That is right,now-" Sora was going to say something,but Kyoko in a low voice said this. "Your next line will be 'Now we're here for you'" And Sora exactly said those words. "Now we're here for you….What!?" She exclaimed. Kyoko giggled. "What,do you really expected we would end up playing your game? At first you almost got me…but then we've noticed the repetitiveness of your words and your ways. So i've reserved a little surprise for you!"
In that moment What looked like Sora felt a little shock on her hand,so she immediately let her go. And when she felt the shock,she was like covered in a static,and for a moment,the figure of Butterflamon appeared. "What did you do!?"
"Simple! While you were hitting us, i've rubbed my jacket,so that it could have static electricity on my shoulder! This was my confirmation that you are not my mother!" Kyoko answered,with a victorious pose. "You know what to do,DORUgamon!"
The Digimon nodded and looked at the two fakes. "Power Metal!" He then fired a large iron ball from his mouth that hit the targets,making them fade away. "So they were replicas…and all of this was an illusion. But we are still here…" Kyoko said.
"So we have to find the true one and Molock!" DORUgamon spoke.
Meanwhile Kasai was also standing on her knees,without saying anything. Worried,Veedramon looked at her. "Kasai?"
Mimi came closer to her and hugged her. "I know that you are troubled and confused. But let me help you…" But in that moment,unexpectedly,Kasai punched her in the face. "AGH! W-WHAT!?" Kasai raised her head,with her usual coldness. "Get out of me,bitch." Mimi too had a static,and revealed to be an illusion of Butterflamon.
"Hey! Did you see it!?" Veedramon answered. Kasai nodded,while adjusting her hat. "I think that this bad boy really crossed the line." Veedramon liked that phrase and clenched his fist. "Now we're getting fun! Magnum Punch! ORAORAORAORAORAORAORA!" He then punched both Mimi and Palmon repeatedly. Even they revealed to be Butterflamon replicas and shattered.
"I usually don't hit my mother. But this seemed even too suspicious. It came out that i made the right choice."
Veedramon looked on the other side and saw something. "And it looks like we are not the only ones."
Yamato and Gabumon flew away,attacked by flames,revealed to be Buttterflamon replicas and shattered.
"I knew that there was a reason behind all of this. My father wouldn't behave like this…not yet…" Kumo said.
"But it seems that we are still here…" Shoutmon said,looking around.
Even Rikka and Leppamon were able to get out of the effect of the Demon Fantasia,by stabbing the fake Meiko with Leppamon's blade. It was another replica that fade away.
"An attack that use the feelings of the enemy…a very cruel but yet briliant technique." Rikka said. "But if there is one thing that i know,is that my mom is too shy to get closer to someone,even with me!"
In the end,even Aisu and Strikedramon were able to snap out of it. "He seemed to be too repetitive to me…" Strikedramon used his claws to shatter the replicas. "I agree with that. Hey,look the others are there!"
The detectives looked at her and reached her. "Are you ok,sister?" Kasai asked.
"Well,excpet for the several wounds and the blood,i'm fine. What do you say?" Aisu sarcastically said.
"We're almost everyone…" Rikka said,looking at everyone. "The ones that are missing are…Kouta,his Digimon…and Haruka!" Kumo added.
"I think that she too is under the effect of this attack!" Aisu said. "Then we have to find them!" Kyoko ended.
Meanwhile,Kouta was trembling for the pain. He was going to fall at any moment. "Dammit…I can't stand on my feet…at this point i'm doomed…"
Akane was coming closer. "Don't worry…let me end your pain…" BaoHackmon finally found him and tried to reach him. "Kouta!" But Butterflamon attacked him from behind,preventing him to help his friend.
The dart of light was appearing,but Haruka opened her eyes and looked at Kouta,that was going to get attacked. "KOUTA!" So she jumped,pushed him and got the attacked. "AAAH!" She fell to the ground with him.
When Kouta opened his eyes,he saw Haruka,laying on his body. "Haruka! What did you do!?"
Haruka raised her head and looked at his eyes,blue like the sea. "I…i couldn't see you suffer more..so i decided to pay the debt for what you did before…"
"But you could have been killed! Don't you know the risk!?" Kouta asked.
"Like i said before…i don't want others to get hurt." Haruka said with determined eyes. Kouta was impressed once again by those words. "…Thanks,Haruka…now i know what to do…" He then stood up. In his eyes…small blue flame were glowing. Those were the killer eyes. "I've got distracted by the look of a person that i love with all my heart…ending up forgetting my original purpose. Now you've really done it. Now you are just a piece of shit!"
BaoHackmon got up and saw Haruka's father coming closer. Since he knew the trick he used his Burn Flame to destroy the replica. "I knew it!" Haruka exclaimed. Then,the dragon Digimon came closer to his partner. "I'm here now! Let's finish this!"
Kouta nodded and looked and what it looked like his mother. "You played with our love. Now i can't really stand you. Even if this means deleting my most precious memories we'll defeat you! Do it BaoHackmon!"
BaoHackmon started to run towards Akane,who stepped backwards. For a moment,her voice distorted. "Are you letting your Digimon attacking!? You really want to hurt your mother!?" Then her voice changed in Molock's one. "You won't see her again!" He tried to convince them,but it was too late. BaoHackmon was already in front of her. Butterflamon tried to stop him,but he ended up getting hit as well. "Teen Blade!" With a strike from the blade on his tail,BaoHackmon attacked both Butterflamon and Akane,who yelled in pain and revealed to be Molock. When they touched the ground,the illusion started to shatter into pieces and everyone was back at the normal reality.
"Hey! We're out!" Veedramon noticed. "And Kouta,BaoHackmon and Haruka are there!" Leppamon added. Everyone reached them. "Are you ok?" Kyoko asked.
"Yes. Thanks to someone." Kouta said,watching at Haruka with a smile. The idol simply blushed. Everyone was fine now,so they looked at the enemy,who stood up with disbelief. "Are you going to continue?" Kasai asked.
Molock's beautiful face made a furious expression. "I'VE JUST HAD ENOUGH OF YOU! I'M GOING TO END ALL OF YOU RIGHT NOW!" He shouted. Butterflamon so launched an attack,but BaoHackmon was already there to attack him with his claws "AND I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!" His attacks immediately made the insect Digimon fly away.
"Curse you! Honey-" Butterflamon was going to send other sound waves,but…"Hey! Aren't you forgetting someone!?" DORUgamon grabbed him from behind and threw him to Veedramon who give to him a Magnum Punch. "ORA!" The punch made him go to Shoutmon who was ready to give him a Rock Damashī. "MUDA!" And in the end,Leppamon and Strikedramon ended with a double attack who slammed on the ground.
Butterflamon was barely able to get up. But he found out BaoHackmon in front of him. "You know? I've thought at first that you were a determined guy,just like we are. But then,by using these ways,you revealed to be just shit!" He said.
Molock couldn't take this any longer. "Shit,you say!? YOU ARE THE SHIT! HURTING OUR PRECIOUS BODIES!" Butterflamon tried to use his Sweet Honey Straw to absorb his energy,but BaoHackmon was faster,and with his claws,he made the Armor-Level Digimon clash against his partner.
"You won't be able to do anything when you are a piece of shit. Time to sends our regards." With that phrase,Kouta settled the end of the fight. BaoHackmon used a kick to make them fly high,and when they were going to touch the ground,BaoHackmon used one last…"Sharp Claw!" attacking them repeatedly. And in the end,Kouta and BaoHackmon used their fight shout.
"ARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIARIIIIIIIIII!"
Butterflamon shattered in data like his replicas,and Molock ended up on the ground with his body full of scars.
"…Arrivederci." Kouta ended.
"T-that's absurd! H-how did you get all that energy!? That's crazy! I've never believed you were capable of so much- AGH!" Molock was shocked by the detectives's strenght. And after splitting his blood,he breathed his last breath.
The detectives simply watched him. "He was rotten…but he was also strong." Aisu said. In that moment,Kouta noticed something coming out from his pocket. "Hm?" He came closer and grabbed it.
"What is it?" Kyoko asked. What Kouta was holding in his hand was a small red USB key.
"A USB key?" Veedramon asked. "So it would seem." BaoHackmon answered. Curious,Rikka came closer. "May i?" Rikka asked to Kouta. The boy gave the key to Rikka,who started to look at it carefully. "I think that this key holds a secret…if Molock had it,then there must be something behind it." She said.
"Really? Then we might have made one step fowards! Anyways,we can say that the case is closed!" Kyoko said with a smile.
"Oh you have defended such an angel Thank you so much Chesire Cat Agency! We'll be grateful for THAT!" Tyler exclaimed.
Veedramon shook his head. "Give up,Veedramon. He'll never stop."
"Uhm,Kouta? What was that word you said before?" Haruka asked.
"Oh! Arrivederci. It means goodbye in italian." Kouta answered.
"Oh…goodbye. I see! Maybe i'll start learning italian someday! Anyways,i want to thank all of you for what you have done for me and for this company! I hope i will see you again!" Haruka answered with a pure smile.
"Of course! If you want you can call us!" Aisu said,then Haruka was immediately behind her,giving another massage. "You are tired…i think you have to relax…" Aisu blushed again. "Why this is happening only to me…" She thought despite the pleasure.
After the massage,Haruka looked back at Kouta. "Well,i suppose that you have to go now." She said.
"Before that…i want to thank you. You helped me to remember what i had to do,and now i know excactly why am i doing this. And that you are a very special and particular girl." Kouta answered.
"Happy to hear that!" Haruka said with a smile.
"I think we said everything. Then,we shall go now! See you soon and good luck with the concert,Haruka!" Kyoko said.
"Bye!" Haruka saluted the young detectives,who went to the stairs. "Good grief…what a day." Kasai said.
Then Tylor noticed that on Kouta's back pocket there was something white. " ,did you put that on his pants?"
Haruka simply winked. "Who knows?" Meanwhile, on the roof of the building…Eligor was there. He watched them all the time. He was thinking of something. "Interesting." He then jumped away.
During the route to get back at the agency,the detectives discussed about what happened. Not only for the mysterious key,but also for the fact that what they thought from the beginning was true: This battle would have involved innocent people,so they sweared to give everything they got to stop Saiba Rei.
"Man,we said that for today we weren't going to talk about Saiba Rei and then we ended up fighting against one of his men…" Kyoko said,opening the door of the agency.
"Oh! You came! And you are all messed up! What happened?" Yatsura asked. Aisu was still red for Haruka's massage. "I'll tell you later…now i have to stay alone…" She replied. She then immediately went to her room. "Some things never change…wait Aisu!" Strikedramon said,following her partner.
"I think i'll get a rest too. Let's see what's in the vending machines...another day of research awaits me!" Rikka said,followed by her partner.
"Well…then i'll go to fix some papers. Wanna help,Kasai?" Kumo asked. The girl shrugged. "If you want." So they went to another room. "I think i'll take a nap…" Veedramon said. He then layed on the floor,sleeping. Shoutmon dropped a drop of sweat. "Maybe not here…"
In the end,Yatsura looked at Kouta. "I think i'll rest as well. I'm going to my room." He said. Yatsura was left alone in the end. "…Maybe it's better that i don't make questions…" She sighed.
"If you want,i could tell you with a coffee-" Kyoko was going to answer,but Yatsura immediately ran away. "I REMEMBERED THAT I'M BUSY,BYE!"
Kyoko shrugged. "Ok then…i'll go to my office…"
Meanwhile,Kouta was sitting on his chair. "We had a tiring day,aren't we?" BaoHackmon asked.
"Yes…But now i understand why am i doing this. And the others now…it's because i like this life,even if it is quite messed up. I wouldn't change a thing…and to protect these friends and my family,this life i adore…i want to stop Saiba Rei as well!"
"I'm happy to hear that!" BaoHackmon said. He then noticed something on Kouta's backpocket. "What's this?" He grabbed it and gave it to Kouta.
"It looks like a paper…" Kouta answered. He opened it…but when he saw what it was written on it,he got confused and blushed. Even BaoHackmon blushed.
On the paper there was a written that said "Call me -Haruka" and a phone number.
"…I think…i'll go to the cyber room,then…" BaoHackmon said,as he jumped on a computer. Kouta looked at his partner diving into the cyber room. "Oh great…i wasn't expecting this…" He said. Then…he looked around to be sure that no one was seeing him…grabbed his phone…and started to save the number.
