Evolution Geass: Uzumaki of the Retribution

by SoulEmbrace2010

Naruto, Naruko, and Lucienne aim to destroy Britannia, in memory of their departed loved ones. The trio trained and prepared for the future war, but their hands are forced when they got caught up in the Shinjuku incident. In response, they start their campaign early to free Japan, only to find that there's more going on, and the world is at stake. AU, OOC, Naru/Harem, Mass-Xovers

14. STAGE 13: Light and Darkness

Bagley: WARNING! This chapter includes a scene discussing World War II war crimes, specifically Nanking, Unit 731, and the Doolittle Raid Retaliation. Real crappy stuff.

Soul: Alright Naruto, you ready for more Naruto x Code Geass goodness from my brainrot?

Naruto: …Fine, hit me with your best shot…

Soul: Idea #1: You're reincarnated as the son of Charles and the last Princess of Japan. You own a company independent from Royal Britannia affairs, and end up as the new Area 11 Viceroy with Cornelia as the sub-Viceroy after Clovis's death.

Naruto: Sounds like a vacation, and more girls to throw into my bed.

Soul: It is a lemon story, yes. Second is that you're an Honorary Britannian working for the Britannian military. You know Lelouch, Suzaku, and Kallen as children. You're partnered up with Suzaku, but you have an edge on morality. The story will be more detective themed, as in your Colombo with Geass and a Knightmare, trying to figure who Zero is with the clues left behind.

Naruto: Finally, some action that doesn't involve sex 24/7. Solving the mysteries of Lelouch and Suzaku is right up my alley! Believe it! Any more?

Soul: Nope, that's it! It'll never be a dull day for you…like ever.

Naruko: And it's all for fun! And more money for us!

Naruto: …So this is what it feels like to be an FGO 3-turn Arts Loop farmer.

Nick: Or a salaryman.

Lelouch: Both ideas put you in direct opposition to me. I won't make it easy for you. I have a reputation to uphold as the World's Greatest Villain Protagonist.

Lucienne: That Light fellow says hi. By the way, you forgot about Laila.

Soul: Yes…but it's fine. She's not looking to have fun now that she knows who her brother's killer is.

C.C.: Not that it matters much… *gets stabbed by Laila* Ow.

-Review responses

Soul: For those asking about updates to my other stories, if I get the urge to update them, they will get updated.

XenoBlade - Thank you. And that beach episode will be a thing in the story, sooner or later.

Raidentensho - Look forward to it. This chapter and the next will be Kallen and Aki focused.

kavin5415 - I'll refer to my resident gun-nut on my server.

Guest1 - Um, Claire li Britannia is not in the timeline of this story. She's from the Renya of Britannia manga, which happens years before the main events of Code Geass.

GunBlade2022 - Yeah. It was never explained in the actual series, no matter how many times I watched or looked it up. Tho there was something in the wiki.

Guest2 - I remember the assault thing on Nina's wiki page, tho it was never specified. I haven't read the manga, so I'm not sure. I have read that Nina never got help from her traumatic incident. Funny enough, I was going to have her on the evil side until I read some stories where she's on Lelouch's side. I remember that fanfic purge as if it were yesterday. I understand your concern about Kallen, but it was all part of my master plan that was going to be addressed in this chapter and the next, but I decided not to draw it out at the suggestion of NSG. You'll be seeing more of the crossover girls too. While Ryofu and Kan'u are not part of Naruto's harem here, they are in my Naruto x World's End Harem story that you can find on my Soul's Brain Dumps story. And yes, Claire is one hundred percent Best Girl in Hundred and deserves better than that one-girl ending of the series. As for the Gundam characters, we got you covered. Uzushio is more than an independent island-nation after all.

Gundam Meister Uzumaki - I have not seen the movie yet, so I'm not sure if the Kingdom of Zilkhstan will be allies with Uzu. It all depends on what I see from them. And pairing Suzaku with Carine? Sounds like an interesting idea considering her personality.

IsseixAtalanta - Suzaku x Laila? …No. She's already taken.

Vegito Uzumaki - More like resort episode, but yeah lol

P0k3d4th - Ride of the New Moon route? Dunno since I know nothing about it. We are developing how future KMF and airships will be run.

ShaDoWrAVen15 - Those are some good choices for Servants. Euphemia's first Servant is already chosen (hint: A Lancer), and Nina having Okita and Nobbu is a match made in heaven.

…

Soul: Anywho, thanks once again to NSG and Castle, and en…joy…the…huh?! What the-?! *static* Oh sh- …FU-! *suddenly blips out after the bursts of static and klaxons begin to blare*

Naruto: What the hell happened to Soul?! And what the hell is that alarm for?

Castle: ...Oh no…NSG, get to Discord! It's an emergency! Naruto, we're going dark for now! Just carry on with the story for now. We'll be in touch at the end…hopefully…"

Naruto and the gang watch in worry as Castle and NSG fade out.

---

"Humans…

Always confrontational, always craving conflict, and always believing that they are in the right.

Some just roll with the punches in their current predicament, while others fight to take back their life.

But if you fight, always seek to maintain the moral high ground. Not everyone looks for conflict and should be left alone at all costs. Always seek your vengeance against those that deserve it…"

"Lest you become the monster you're fighting against-"

"Chotto Emmie, this was supposed to be my time!"

"And you're still in time-out! Shoo!"

"Clearing the last of the debris from around the Lake Kawaguchi Convention Center Hotel"

"It's been two weeks since Joker unveiled his Crimson Suns, but there's still little insight into the individuals behind those masks."

"They weren't able to track their escape route?"

"They let the hostages go and somehow made it to the other shore…"

---

[Stansfeld residence]

As far as the Britannian Nobles of Area 11 were concerned, Akiza Stansfeld and Kallen Stansfeld were two blood sisters competing against one another to succeed their father in running the Stansfeld family. They had no choice, since there was no true heir between Lord Stansfeld and his legal wife, who had been unsuccessful in bearing one. It should have had nothing to do with redheaded sisters, but they shared his blood despite having a different mother, so they were thrust into the spotlight. Right now, they were going to school to learn everything they could to run the family, before going head-to-head to become the true heir.

Or so the money-brained nobles thought.

In reality, the two sisters were half-Japanese and half-Britannian, and were rebelling against Britannia's occupation instead of going to school. It was originally them and their brother, who once led them and their group, but because he was gone, it was up to them to carry on his legacy. The two were united in that legacy, certainly, but their personalities were pretty different from each other, which allowed them to easily maintain the illusion of what the nobles wanted to see. Of course, this meant that the two wouldn't get along completely. Both were strong-willed, determined, loyal, and brave, but the similarities stopped there.

Kallen was always a hot head: short-tempered, forceful, passionate and more than a little impulsive, having rejected her Britannian side, believing that to do otherwise would mean abandoning her Japanese friends, people, and self.

On the other hand, Akiza was once insecure, spiteful, and easily annoyed, but after Naoto's death, she grew up and matured. She became warmer, understanding, passive, and accepted both sides of herself.

But there was another major difference between them. Their differing personalities were small potatoes compared to their major source of contention.

But for right now, they laid face down on their respective beds, dressed in their panties with their clothes thrown all over the floors, not bothering to change into night clothes when they came home last night or turn the TV off. They had skipped classes before to take part in their other life, but now they were so exhausted that quitting school outright seemed like a preferable option. Since the debut of the Crimson Suns, they had been working to establish themselves as Knights for Justice, executing minor raids that involved stopping drug rings run by Britannian nobles exploiting the helpless Japanese, liberating woman forced into prostitution, and dealing with smugglers. All done to build up their reputation as champions for the people that would flock to their cause.

But speaking of their source of contention…

*Crash!*

"Ugh, not again…"

Both girls dragged themselves out of their respective beds. Their leaders were considerate, ending their activities early since it was a school night, but Kallen had insisted on continuing, while Akiza had to drag Kallen back before it got really late. Plus, they had to sneak back into their father's eyesore of a mansion so they wouldn't get caught.

Both threw gowns over their bodies and opened their doors at the same time, looking around the hallway to spot the cause of the disturbance. It was a woman with auburn-brown hair wearing a blue maid outfit and white apron over it, and she was fretting over a fallen chandelier with a broken ladder next to her. She looked around nervously before spotting Kallen and Akiza, the latter walking over to her.

"Ah, young mistresses! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you!" the woman said hurriedly as Akiza bent down and looked her over.

"Again?" Kallen whispered with a tone of irritation in her voice.

"What happened this time?" Akiza asked her gently, looking over her hands.

"I'm sorry, it was the step-ladder this time. It broke." the woman explained sadly.

"Still giving you the cheap tools despite all the money in the world." Akiza mumbled, after seeing to it that the woman was in good health.

"Just get it cleaned up. And be quick about it." Kallen ordered her. "We have to get ready for school."

"Take your time, though." Akiza suggested, side-eying Kallen at her sharp behavior towards the woman.

"Of course, Mistress Akiza," the woman replied, making Akiza's eye twitch. "By the way, you and Mistress Kallen have been attending school quite a bit lately. Have you finally made any friends?"

"Actually-!" Akiza started to happily say.

"I don't see how that's any of your business!" Kallen snarled before slamming the door behind her.

"Kallen~…" Akiza growled, glaring daggers at where she retreated

"...Just go…will you…?"

Akiza gritted her teeth before her features softened when the woman placed a hand on hers.

"It's alright, Mistress Akiza. I'll be alright." she whispered. "Please…continue to look after Kallen."

Tearing welling in her eyes, Akiza nodded. "Always, okaa-san…"

The sisters' rooms were the same, but their shared pictures of themselves, Naoto, and their mother were not. While one was untouched, the other had a sticker over the mother's face.

---

Chapter 13: Light and Darkness

---

[Warehouse Area]

At a warehouse compound located on the outer limit of the Tokyo Settlement, several armed men patrolled the grounds. These men were not of any military unit, but were members of the Chinese drug cartel, Japanese men who sold themselves out for foreign money.

Armed with light automatic weapons, they guarded the building in which the cartel was handling a shipment of their latest product. The objective was simple; keep anyone nosey away from the building.

They didn't have a clue they were about to receive some very nosey guests that night who had a particular disdain for what they were selling.

High above the warehouse in the night sky, several near silent drones began to circle the warehouse as their sensors swept the area and tagged each one of the armed men as hostile.

"Surveillance sweep complete. All exterior hostiles marked. Alpha group, you are cleared to proceed. Clear the stage."

"Roger that." The leader of the Alpha group responded as he pressed a button on the side of his visor. Immediately his vision was filled with the battlefield data being fed from the data link that all the Crimson Suns shared. From where he and his teammates were hiding, they could see the highlighted outlines of cartel members that were patrolling the grounds, even when they were hidden behind walls and objects.

He could also see the locations of other team's that made up Alpha lying in wait.

"Alpha group, cleared hot. Let's do this quietly."

"Roger."

What happened next was a flurry of silent movement as members of Alpha simultaneously broke cover and covertly stalked and silenced their designated targets. Between silenced arms fire and knife attacks to vital areas, in less than one minute, the entire group guarding the building fell, only brief grunts and muffled screams marked their ends.

"Clear."

"Clear."

"Clear."

"Clear."

"Clear."

"Clear. All hostiles eliminated. Perimeter is secured."

"Excellent work, Alpha. Proceed with Phase 2. The Crew is rolling in."

"Copy. We're cleaning the stage." Alpha leader acknowledged as he and his teams quickly removed and hid the bodies. After cleaning the scene and taking any weapons on the cartel members, the members of Alpha made their way to the warehouse walls and placed devices on the walls. The devices lit up and soon new data was streaming into the visors, showing the activity of the cartel inside the warehouse. Nothing was hidden as Alpha could see people moving about and working without any idea who was outside the building.

"Stage lights and mics in position. Light and sound check looking good on our end."

"Confirmed. Lights and sound feed coming in clear. Stand by."

From the road, two large transport vehicles rolled up to the gate. The members of Alpha assigned to secure the gate opened it up to allow the vehicle inside the compound. The vehicles came to a halt and doors opened, allowing heavily armed members to file out and take their positions at the main door to the warehouse. Several others headed towards the rear to cover any other exit to the building.

"Crew is in position. We are ready for the Actors to take the stage."

"Affirmative. We are coming out."

From out of the second vehicle stepped Joker, Cypher, Rei, Ginkaku, Red Queen, Black Rose, Ravel, Odin, Frigga, Freya and the Servants contracted with them. There was an air of intention between two of the masked individuals, but it was easily ignored by the others.

"Still fascinated by the real time intel feed, Odin. What did you call it, again?"

"The ARC System. Augmented Reality Collective. It takes all the data from the AR Sensors on the Crimson Sun visors and any portable sensor and drone sensor, compiles it all in the main computer through the data link, then feeds it all back to the visors. Allowing for all members to have real time three-sixty degree intel of the battlefield. As you can 'see', our cartel members are busy distributing the latest batch of Refrain to their street vendors. We can see them, but they don't see us. Not yet, at least."

"That's about to change. It's time to pull the curtain. Set the charges!"

…

Inside, there was a buyer finishing up his sale with a business broker who wasn't supposed to be there.

"I know it's for welfare, but why waste it on the Elevens?"

"That's why I'm selling it to you, my friend. The Eleven population could use a little thinning out if you ask me. As for your payment, it will be transferred to your wife's account," the broker said with an amused smirk.

"Princess Cornelia is a soldier; this sort of thing doesn't interest her all that much," the buyer replied with an identical expression.

"Oh, but it interests us!"

The light suddenly went out, drawing the men's attention, followed by an explosion at the cargo doors. Gunshots rang out next, with some of the men yelling out in shock with others falling dead.

"Hit the lights! Someone turn them on!" The buyer cried out, taking cover on the ground.

The drug dealer made it to the breaker and switched the lights back on. When he did, both men were greeted with the shocking sight of the now most feared group of the underworld, standing on the catwalk above the truck.

"Your lives are now in your own hands." Joker said, holding up one finger. "Option one, you surrender peacefully with no bloodshed," he flipped up another finger. "Option two, a trip to the hospital, or the morgue. Live or die, the choice is yours."

"You're-" The buyer stuttered in shock. "You're the…"

---

[Ashford Academy]

"The Crimson Suns!"

Kallen leapt up from her seat as she shouted out the words thanks to her sleep-addled mind as she jolted herself awake. She was starting to nod off in class when her brain decided to jump back to the previous night, resulting in her involuntary verbal exclamation.

The result was every eye in the room turning to her, and one Lloyd Asplund ducked behind the podium in fear of being assaulted. He was the guest teacher for today, as the homeroom teacher had called in sick, and he'd graciously accepted to see his Devicer's environment.

When her brain finally caught up with what she had just done, her face turned as vibrant a shade of red as her hair.

"Oh! For a sickly girl, you're quite the spring chicken!" Nero declared over the laughter.

Everyone laughed, while Lucienne and Rivalz sweatdropped. It was a good thing that's all she said, or else it would be a really awkward time, even more than usual.

Suzaku merely grumbled.

As for the older students in another classroom, Akiza was lightly snoozing against Naruto/Nathan's shoulder, while Naruko/Natalia was sneakily doing her assignment alongside hers. Naruto/Nathan smiled, lightly stroking Akiza's hair with the back of his fingers. Thankfully the teacher didn't mind, chalking it up to the stress of recent times, along with the knowledge of her and her sister being sickly at times.

Johnny 'Nines' Walker already had his assignments done, and was discreetly working on different things on his iDroid behind his book. If the teacher came through looking, Ryofu/Ren and Kan'u/Aisha would nudge and warn him.

Milly meanwhile whispered stuff to Nick about the Student Council issues, and disguised talk about the Crimson Suns in the form of a game she just started. Nick absentmindedly nodded during a pause, only chiming in on anything worthwhile.

…

"That's not like you, dozing off in class like that." Shirley said, with classes over and everyone assembled in the lunchroom.

"Well, I'm…" Kallen mumbled softly, trying to think of a reasonable excuse.

"We're just getting used to coming to school often." Akiza gumbled, still using Nathan's body as a pillow.

Rivalz laughed. "You could learn a thing or two from Lucienne. She's an expert at sleeping in class."

Everyone looked at Lucienne, who had her head propped against her hands and looking out one of the windows.

"She's not sleeping now, is she?" Kallen wondered.

"Only one way to find out." Naruto said, putting his finger in his mouth and moving it towards Lucienne's ear.

"...I've been wondering if my newest trick can rearrange organs. Wanna test it out?" Lucienne muttered with a sour look, opening her eyes to show an evil red glint.

For those in the know, she meant her Geass.

"And that everyone is why she's still the top student." Nathan said a presenting gesture.

Lucienne grinned. "We do have the same teachers."

---

[Britannian Base]

"The E.U. is starting an offensive along the Alamein front. We can't go on dragging our feet around here," Cornelia told Euphemia as they stood in front of some cargo trains, "I want to solidify domestic affairs. It's high time Area Eleven was made a satellite nation. For that to happen, we need to stomp out terrorism. But another problem is the rampant use of Refrain amongst the Elevens. Productivity from the Elevens is plummeting. It's coming from the Chinese Federation's Kyushu route and we have to put an end to it."

"Yes, but please be careful." Euphemia said, always one to be worried about her sister.

"You as well, I don't want you leaving the Settlement." Cornelia replied, having become paranoid since the hostage crisis.

"Cornelia, what about Joker and the Crimson Suns?" Euphemia asked curiously.

"I will let them roam free for a bit longer. I owe them that much for saving your life. However, upon my return," Cornelia's gaze softened as she reached and softly caressed her sister's cheek. "Once I clean up this area I'll entrust it to you, so there'll be no more school life for you. Try to stay out of harm's way from now on, alright Euphie?"

Euphemia grimaced but nodded. "All right, sister."

Cornelia turned to leave but stopped. "And one more thing. I want you to make sure Laila stays out of trouble. She's been acting odd ever since that Athena outed herself as Clovis's murderer. I have guards watching her, but since she managed to make her way here, I don't want to take any chances of her slipping out for a fruitless search for the Crimson Suns."

Laila had stolen a corkboard and plastered pictures of the Crimson Suns on it, most of them bearing Athena's mask and figure. She didn't care much for the others, but if Athena's name came up, it got her full attention.

"I'm well aware." Euphemia agreed with a worrying look.

…

"...Not that either." Laila groaned as her attempts to access Clovis's computers were denied.

She was in the tech room with Bourne trying to get into Clovis's computers. She wasn't invited into the investigation, but she barged her way through. Clovis was her brother, so she knew him well, and used every possible password she could think of that he would use. To her shock and confusion, none were working.

"Why don't you give it a rest?" Bourne said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "You've been here all day and-"

"No!" Laila said sharply. "We have to find something today! Anything! My brother, he did those horrible things, but there must be a reason!"

Bourne shook his head. "Even if there was a reason for his actions, Princess, it still doesn't keep the fact that what he did was pure evil."

"..."

Laila didn't reply and started typing again, leaving Bourne to sigh, feeling sorry for the poor girl.

---

[Ashford Academy]

Akiza and Kallen walked up to the Student Council room, Akiza stretching out her limbs and Kallen leaning against the wall.

"Man, this double-life is a killer," Kallen yawned, tears in her eyes.

"We'll get used to it. No complaining, imouto." Akiza replied, irking Kallen.

"Who said I was?"

"Hmm. I'm going to take a few days off of school. I really suggest you do the same."

Before Kallen could reply, several voices sounded off from behind the door.

"Nathan, Natalia! Hold her down!" Milly's voice commanded from the other side of the door.

"Damn it, you blasted twins! Cut it out!" a wailing Claire cried out. "Release me!"

"Aw come on, Miss Claire. I'm sure you'll look cute and sexy all dressed up like that." Nero's voice teased.

"Sorry Claire, but orders are orders!" Nathan and Natalia laughed together.

"Yeah, like you're not enjoying this at all!" Claire retorted. "Just wait until the squad comes around!"

Akiza finally opened the door, and the scene was not what she nor Kallen were expecting to walk into. Most of the Student Council were wearing cat theme costumes, with the twins trapping Claire in a chair so Shirley could paint whiskers on her face. As for Claire, she was wearing a cyan-colored maid outfit with frills, complete with cat ears.

At the same time, Gamagoori Ira was flying downwards outside the window, going after another troublemaker with a boisterous laugh.

"Would you hold still?" an irritably Shirley requested as Claire struggled to squiggle free from the twins' unescapable grips.

Milly then noticed Kallen and Akiza. "Good-meowning~" she greeted them, batting a pawed hand at them with a mischievous smile, just like a cat would.

She wore black cat ears and paws with a black furry outfit that showed off her figure with white fur along the chest, black mid-thigh stockings, and black boots with slight pink edges.

"Good morning, I guess?" Kallen sweatdropped, she and an equally baffled Akiza seeing the others.

Nina wore a yellow cat head that covered her head and mid back as she continued working at her computer, seemingly ignoring everything else. Suzaku was wearing a blue hoot cat costume with a spot painted over his right eye and cat whisker marks drawn on his cheeks. Rivalz wore a yellow hooded cat costume with various brown spots and the top half of the cat's head on his face.

"Oh, hi Kallen and Akiza!" Shirley greeted them, finishing up on Claire's face.

Shirley wore a pink cat outfit that showed off her midriff, pink shorts with a tail, fur-lined boots, arm-warmers, and pink cat ears with her hair in pigtails.

"What the bloody hell is all this?" Akiza drawled, having been on Student Council long enough to know of Milly's crazy schemes.

"What do you mean? It's a welcome back party for Arthur after his vacation." Rivalz replied, gesturing at said cat, who was laying on top of his scratching post at batting/playing with Ryofu, who was wearing in a sexy black cat outfit and making cat hands at him.

"Sounds like fun." Kallen commented quietly with an unsure look.

"Well classes are postponed so we might as well do something fine." Milly replied.

"I set out some stuff aside for you." Shirley pointed to a rack full of cat themed costumes. "Over there, to make up for me getting upset with you before. Go on, take your pick."

"Don't be shy! Show off those bodies of yours and celebrate with us!" Nero said boastfully, wearing a pure white "bondage" suit with frilly suits on her head and around her waist. She also has a golden bell around her neck, zippers in her front and on her legs, and a pair of cat ears on her head.

"I- wait." Kallen pointed at the twins. "Why are they not cats?!"

Nathan and Natalia were wearing fox ears and paws with a fox tail. The only difference is that Nathan was wearing an orange jacket and slacks with feral fox claw designs; and Natalia's was just as sexy as Milly's: a red and white Japanese miko robe that showed off her sideboobs and thighs.

"What can we say? We're mavericks." Natalia chuckled while Nathan grimaced. "Right, bro?"

Akiza tilted her head. "Nathan?"

"Don't ask." Nathan grumbled, now looking sour.

"Nathan and Natlia are more foxes than cats, so I got them cute, foxy costumes." Milly smirked. "Look at them. Don't they look so much better than kitty cats?"

"You tricked me." Nathan sulked, looking so much like a pouting fox.

"Oh, he's so cute!" Milly ran up and hugged Nathan. "And those whisker marks…" She ran a hand across the marks making Naruto groan and start to…

"Nathan, is that a purr I hear?" Milly asked teasingly.

"No!" he quickly replied, now finding himself trying to escape.

"He loves it when the gals and I do this." Milly said with a smile so mischievous that girls shivered like maracas. "He sounds like a kitten and looks so cute."

"Sounds like you're speaking from experience." Claire grumbled enviously as Naruto blushed.

"I do. It's the reward I give him for giving me a full body massage or when Lucienne and I wake him up in the morning." Milly revealed, smirking as almost everyone turned red.

'Too much information.' Kallen and Shirley thought.

'Damn! I need to move it stat! I just need to see if kaa-san can be moved to Uzu-' Akiza grumbled to herself before noticing Nick and Johnny. "Oi, is this really a cat party! What are those?!"

"What?" Johnny said, turning around on the spot, showing off his purple and orange striped cat suit. "I'm a Cheshire cat!" he declared, smiling just as wide as one.

"And I'm the Big Bad Wolf." Nick drawled.

"And why, Nicky-boy?! The twins are supposed to be the only exceptions!" Milly whined dramatically.

Nick gave her a particularly wolfish smirk. "I don't recall ever agreeing to such assertions."

"No one does if they think they can get away with it." Johnny lazily drawled with the grin still on his face.

"...I'll have my day in the sun with you, Nicky-boy. Just you wait." Milly grinned darkly before brightly. "Now then, get in those costumes, you two!"

"One of many since they're already wearing masks." Lucienne said slyly with a smirk.

'Subtle…' the Crusaders groaned in their heads while Nero let out a laugh.

"You really are a riot, you know that?" Kallen said, irritation laced in her voice. "You ought to be on television."

Lucienne shivered, reminded of Clovis's dramatic speeches. "Pass. Hard pass."

"What do you think, Miss TV star?" Rivalz asked, glancing at Shirley.

"Oh, I thought she meant Lucienne." Suzaku commented.

"Would you quit joking about that?! The whole thing's a huge pain in the butt. We've been hounded with questions day and night. Even in the bath!" Shirley complained, shuddering at all the times she and the others had been asked questions about the Crimson Suns. "We haven't even been able to leave the school grounds in a week!"

"Not that I don't feel for you, but I don't see why we can't leave either!" Rivalz pointed out to Milly, speaking on behalf of himself, since he was nowhere near the hotel.

"Hm. That's the price of friendship. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, it matters not that we were born apart, upon this day we die as one!" Milly crossed her arms and closed her eyes as she smiled.

"Is that your idea of a love poem?" Rivalz questioned with a sweatdrop.

"If I go down, then we all do!" Milly smirked as she waved her paw at Rivalz.

"You can't be serious!" Claire squeaked.

Nick rolled his eyes. "All that talk of group solidarity is great and all, but you fuckers are currently cats, it's every man and woman for 'emselves with them." He paused, before dryly adding, "Said the wolf."

Natalia let out a cat-like hiss.

"No, no, she's got a point." Johnny countered, referring to the other thing.

"Still, that's a tad dark. Right Suzaku?" Rivalz looked at Suzaku. "Uh?"

Suzaku was getting emotional and tearing up at the reactions. "I'm glad…that we could all be together again." he said, wiping his eyes. "You know, like this?"

"Oi oi, I thought soldiers don't cry." Nathan joked in amusement.

"What? I still have feelings-" Suzaku started to say, before Rivalz hopped over Claire, took him down with a Russian Leg Sweep, tripping him up and got him in a headlock. "Gah!"

"Come on! We're supposed to be unwinding here!" Rivalz scolded him.

"That's what is so refreshing about Suzaku." Shirley giggled.

"Yeah but there in a while, you just want him to get a clue, you know?" Milly agreed.

"I'm just in awe that a civilian managed to take down a soldier." Nathan chortled.

"You're letting down your fellow troops, Suzaku!" Natalia said dramatically.

"Oh, sorry about that." Suzaku said.

"Sarcasm, Kururugi!" Claire snapped at him with sharp teeth.

"Yeah, learn to love it, putty tat!" Rivalz said in a baby tone, playfully pulling on Suzaku's cheek while everyone laughed, Nina included.

'This is what keeps the Phantom Thieves of the rebellion sane, happy days like this.' Akiza thought with a smile. 'It reminds them of who and what they're fighting for. And here we are, joining them for a better tomorrow,' she mused and continued gazing at them. 'Two Uzumaki-jin, several Britannian students, sans Shirley of course, a former Princess of the Realm, members of Uzu's forces, and us, half-Japanese, half Britannian hybrids, versus an entire Empire occupying and colonizing Japan. If this is a cruel dream, I don't want it to end…' Akiza looked over at Kallen, who was grimacing and seemingly struggling with herself as she tried to choose an outfit. 'Imouto, I can only hope that you're not thinking about the Japanese that are suffering all there. Please don't worry. The rising sun will shine on them again.'

'...Ever since we made our big splash at Lake Kawaguchi, the Crimson Suns have taken the world by storm. We've become a friend to the weak just as the twins proclaimed we would. Terrorists who involve civilians and overbearing military, criminal syndicates, and corrupt politicians and profiteers. If the law would not punish them, then we would. And just like that, we became heroes, and our support has swelled, but…' Kallen flipped through the costumes, recalling how an Honorary Britannian mother scolded her child for pretending to be a member of the Crimson Suns. 'But right now, should we really be doing this? Frolicking in cat costumes? I know we're finally taking the fight to Britannia, but should we really be spending our downtime like that while our people suffer? Going after Refrain is fine and all, but we should strike now!'

While she kept her outward emotions in check, the whirlwind of emotions within Kallen attracted the attention of the twins, who gazed at the youngest Kozuki with concern.

---

[JLF Base]

In the mountains of Nagita, the main base of the Japan Liberation Front remained hidden to the eyes of many. While most were running around like chickens with their heads cut off, their main fighters, the Tohdoh Kyoshiro and the Four Holy Swords, were having a serious discussion.

"Why would the masses flock around those who saved Euphemia and Laila, the Princesses of the Realm?" Asahina Shogo asked, clearly annoyed, "One of them is even that bastard Clovis's blood sibling, for heaven's sake!"

"Even Kyoto said that they would be sending the Guren Mk-III to the Crimson Suns." muttered Senba Ryoga. "And its maker was all too happy to comply."

"To those so-called Phantom Thieves?" Urabe Kotetsu scoffed. "I wonder how young they are…"

"They're not part of the resistance. Killing Kusakabe was proof of that." Chiba Nagisa stated. "He should've been left alive to suffer for his transgressions that threatened the JLF's existence!"

"True, but it's not like he was going to be keeping his head after that stunt he pulled." Senba snorted.

"In any case, Lieutenant-Colonel Tohdoh, we can't let this stand!" Urabe declared, looking to his master for support.

"..." Tohdoh finally opened his eyes after remaining thoughtfully silent all this time. "What's done is done. We were able to move around easily because Clovis was a fool, but after Kusakabe involved her sisters in his schemes, Cornelia will spend all of Britannia's resources to find us. All we can do now is to prepare for her inevitable assault. It's unfortunate that we will not have the Guren. But as luck would have it, those Custom Burais should be completed soon. The sun has not set on us yet."

---

[Ashford Academy]

Nina was on the computer in the Student Council room, getting some much needed downtime after the party. But instead of writing out her report or working on her special project, she was staring at two windows open on the screen. One was Princess Euphemia, and the other was Naruko in her Cypher gear.

"Princess Euphemia. Naruko…san…" she murmured with a blush on her face.

The decision to get on the ground floor with the Crimson Suns wasn't easy, but Nina owes them all a great deal after saving her life on multiple occasions. And then there's Princess Euphemia, who also helped to try and save her. If she worked with the Crimson Suns, then maybe she'll be able to meet her other savior. But it was more than returning the favor. The Crimson Suns were a chance to better herself, build her confidence, and make her life have meaning and worth.

"Ya rang?"

Nina jumped out of her seat in fright and whipped around to find Naruko right behind her, a look of amusement on her face while sucking on a lollipop.

"Wah! Nata- Naruko-san!" Nina squeaked before ending up with the blonde's lollipop in her mouth. "Mmph?!"

"Spoiler alert, Euphie-chan's in on this with us. Childhood friends and all, thanks to our families getting along at one point." Naruko revealed, causing Nina's eyes to widen. "And if you're a good girl, if you want…" she unbuttoned one button of her school shirt. "We could all be in bed together~"

Nina's face went atomic red as Naruko drew closer to her face, twisting the lollipop on her mouth.

"No need to get off on pictures, when you have the real gal in front of you. But if you want to have some fun with me in my suit, I'll be happy to oblige." Naruko bit the end of the lollipop stick. "It's my favorite kind of kink, like nii-san with cosplay."

"Pah~!"

Nina fainted.

"Anko-neechan's School of Hard Knocks will make a hell of a woman." Naruko mused, licking her lips.

---

[Stansfeld residence]

A green island in an ocean of gray. A grand four-story house completely surrounded by a thick barrier of trees with pathways and a small garden. For the nobility, it is around 25 acres of home on Japanese soil, and it is no different for the House of Stansfeld.

"Mistress Akiza. Mistress Kallen." Ms. Kozuki called out, and saw Akiza and Kallen coming down from their rooms. "You have visitors."

"Madam President. Vice President. Harvey." Kallen said, wondering why they were here.

"I just dropped by to give you something." Milly greeted them.

"And I had nothing better to do." Lucienne shrugged. "So I drove them in the Wraith."

"I was curious about where you two were staying." Claire added before muttering. "Please don't call me by my surname."

"Welcome to our humble abode then." Akiza said warmly.

"Where would you like me to show them to?" Ms. Kozuki asked. "The parlor perhaps? Or maybe-"

Kallen glared at her coldly. "We'll be in my room-"

"The parlor. Much better atmosphere." Akiza cut across her with a look that told Kallen not to argue with her. "I'll take them. You can bring us refreshments there."

Ms. Kozuki bowed. "As you wish."

"Oh? So you two finally have friends over to visit?"

Akiza growled to herself. "Fuck.", as everyone looked towards the woman walking down the stairs.

She had long blond hair held up straight with a red band with a strand falling over the left side of her face, while dressed in a purple dress that showed off her status; and she stared at them with icy blue eyes.

"Since that's the case, then I hope it quells your frequent and meaningless nights out in the Ghetto. We can't afford for anything to happen to you two," she scolded them. "You two realize that you're the only heirs to your father's name, unfortunate as that may be. You're lucky your father's back in the homeland." She then smirked. "No fighting one's blood, is there?"

Ms. Kozuki flinched and shifted to the side to be out of sight. Milly's eye twitched, and Claire glared daggers at the woman. The latter's shadow shivered, but Claire stepped on it, keeping Ushiwakamaru from doing anything stupid.

"...It's better than having to listen to your so-called parties that go late into the night, Stansfeld-san…" Akiza countered with a scary closed-eye look on her face. "They're not exactly for proper members of society if you catch my drift. I wonder what Dad would think?"

Mrs. Stadtfeld scowled at Akiza, not liking what she was insinuating…even if it was true. Before she would snap back at her, there was a loud shattering sound, with Ms. Kozuki next to a broken vase.

"Oh dear. What have I done?" she gasped as she looked down at the broken vase.

"What's wrong with you!?" The woman demanded angrily.

"Forgive me, milady, forgive me!" The maid pleaded as she started to pick up the pieces.

Ms. Stadtfeld sneered. "Can't you do anything right?! Besides selling your body that is."

"Typical nobility filth." Lucienne muttered under her breath.

"...Come on, let's go." Kallen muttered, leading the others to the patio. Akiza shot a look at their mother before following.

…

"It's a good thing I'm all in. I've been questioning why you would skip classes to stay here." Claire said as they entered the backyard of the mansion. "Quite the complicated home life."

"I wish you would've called ahead. So what is it that you wanted to give us?" Kallen asked, trying to stay away from the subject as everyone sat down.

"Grandfather asked me to pass this on." Milly said, pulling out a file from her bag.

"Could you have done this on the school grounds? Or even the bunker?" Akiza questioned.

"Mainly curiosity." Milly admitted. "These just arrived. Your transcriptions since middle school." she said, handing the sisters their respective files. "Away from prying eyes and all."

"Unfortunately, Ruby-boy wasn't the only one to lay eyes on this." Lucienne revealed.

"..."So our secret's out then, isn't it? That Akiza and I are actually Eleven and Britannian half breeds." Kallen sighed, with Akiza shifting through her papers. "That was our stepmother back there. My real mother was that clod of a maid who knocked over the vase, Kozuki Fuyuko."

"Making your father the current Head of the Stansfeld family." Lucienne said, side-eying the mansion. "When we were looking into you, we've learned all about you, and what you two have to go through. It's why we used your authority to give you both leniency when you were out playing terrorists."

"That does explain why the teachers never bothered us about missing days." Akiza noted, signing off on her transcripts. "Thanks for that."

"It is disconcerting that your mother is a maid and you two are running about freely." Claire said.

"My mother is such a fool. In the end she wound up a servant. She doesn't have any real skills, no matter who's ridiculing her all she can do is laugh like it's nothing." Kallen looked down at the table with a disappointed look on her face. "She didn't have to choose to stay in this house, you know? She's just clinging to some old lover who's jilted her."

"Yeah, it's pretty easy to think that." Akiza snorted, drinking her tea.

"The one who's thinking easy is you. If she was truly here for us, she would've been long gone by now." Kallen growled back at her.

Akiza rolled her eyes. "Keep fooling yourself, imouto."

Milly laughed nervously at the storm brewing between the two sisters. "You really hate your mother don't you?"

"I just find her depressing." Kallen picked up the tea pot and poured more tea to calm herself down and for her guests.

"..." Akiza made a zipping-motion across her mouth.

"Well this is getting a little heavy." Milly looked towards the horizon. "Imagine, the wife, the daughter, and the other woman all living together. And not even sharing the same bed."

Lucienne groaned at that. "Oh Milly, please read the room. It's not even a competition."

Claire shook her head. "Not everyone has the charisma to keep a family together, I guess."

"Could be worse. Three square meals and a roof, right?" Kallen pointed out.

"...You could always move to Uzu. You, Akiza, and Kallen." Lucienne suggested. "Now that you're involved with us, the path to Uzu is clear."

"It'll take a lot to convince our dear mother." Kallen mumbled, causing a tickmark to appear on Akiza.

"We could just ask her, you know," she growled.

"Good luck with that." Kallen replied.

Milly, Lucienne, and Claire sweatdropped as an image of two horrifying han'nya creatures rose from the sisters and began growling and hissing at each other.

"I could just cut the stepmother's head off." Ushiwakamaru offered as she and the other Servants rose from their masters' shadows. "Quick and easy, and you'll be able to own the mansion."

"I agree with Ushiwaka-san. Consider it as a defensive act. Get that woman before she gets you." Nero suggested as well.

"Or my Master could bankrupt that Stadtfeld woman in a game of chess." Scathach added with a smirk.

"My stepmother left that much of an impression on you all?" Kallen drawled.

"They have a point, you know." Akiza said, stroking a kneeling Scheherazade's hair.

Everyone laughed nervously, Artoria gazing at her Master in concern.

"Let's put all of that on the backburner for now. Some things in life we can bear on our own, but when you add 'em all up they eventually break you. It's best not to keep them all bottled up." Milly said and took a sip of her tea.

…

A while later, Akiza went inside the mansion to get more refreshments. Along the way, she saw the mess cleaned up, and her mother walking up the stairs before seeing her.

"Mistress Akiza."

"One of these days, you're going to stop calling us that, okaa-san." Akiza said reproachfully.

"But you're the heir to-"

"You're our mother. That carries more weight," Akiza cut across her. "With that said, I need to ask you this, and please be truthful."

"What is it?"

"Are you here for us? Or dear old Dad?"

After a moment, Fuyuko smiled. "I've always been here for you and Kallen, no matter what."

After a while, Akiza nodded with a smile. "Thank you, okaa-san."

"By the way, those classmates of yours. Are they truly your friends?" Fuyuko asked.

"Yep. They're friends we never knew we had. It's not all of them. We're part of the Student Council now, and we missed out on a lot." Akiza said and smirked. "Best of all, I got myself a boyfriend now."

"Why, that's-!"

"And a few girlfriends. You just saw one of them."

Fuyuko blinked. "...Eh?"

"It's a long story. One I'll tell you all about once I get you out of here." Akiza replied with a grin.

"…Darling, I'm happy for you, but you know I can't leave. You and Kallen will be exposed."

"That ship has sailed, kaa-san. We just signed off on our transcripts from middle school. We're going to get heat from it. But don't worry, okaa-san!" she said quickly, hugging her. "We're working on something, and if- when it succeeds, we no longer have to hide our true selves. Okay?"

Despite Akiza trying to calm her down, her mother was looking unsure and uncomfortable…and weirded out over Akiza being in a harem.

---

[Ashford Academy, the next day]

In the Student Council room, the boys were helping to clean up the room after their little cat party. Arthur was the only one lazing about, while Naruto, Nick, Nines, Rivalz, and Suzaku were helping to clean up. Well, mostly Naruto, Rivalz, and Suzaku doing the cleaning up, with Nick handling paperwork, and Nines was working on something on his computer.

"Man, I can't believe you teared up like that. Sure, we were in a tight spot, but nothing was going to happen to us." Naruto laughed, wiping the table down with a cloth. "It's me, after all."

"C'mon, Nathan. It's called honesty." Suzaku retorted, jumping when Arthur woke up and bit him. "Gak!"

"No need, Suzaku. Rivalz knows about me." Naruto assured him, with Suzaku looking at him in shock. "What? I have a lot of girlfriends, but I need bros who I trust too."

"You wouldn't believe the series of events that lead to it." Rivalz chuckled before taking a seat. "Eh, Naruto, ol' buddy?"

"I suspect it has something to do with the pinball machine that was here for a couple weeks." Nick mused. "Usual waste of money by the Prez if you ask me."

"Well, it's a good thing that the Crimson Suns were there to get our bacon out of the frying pan. Unlike that JLF general who's no doubt burning in hell with the rest of his boys." Naruto said, seeing Suzaku freeze up for a second.

"...If they wanted to catch criminals, they could have joined the police force, you know." Suzaku said, waving a cat toy at Arthur. "Why don't they, I wonder?"

"Do you want the long version, or the short?" Naruto drawled, bracing himself for the pushback. "My guess is that they don't think the cops are up to the job. You'll find that a lot of people tend to agree. Even before the crap at Shinjuku."

"The police may not be effective right now, but they could evoke change from within." Suzaku replied.

Naruto and even Nick stopped what they were doing, staring at the soldier. The blond then started to laugh, lightly hitting different objects around him, before finally slapping his knee, twice. "Suzaku, before I respond to that, may I ask how long you were out of Japan while training for the Military?" Naruto asked in between breaths.

"For a few years. Why?" Suzaku responded with a frown.

"You might not have heard about Article 8 then." Nick told him.

"Article 8?" Suzaku repeated.

"I heard of it back in the homeland when they implemented it there. It's an article that grants extended power and authority to law enforcement, which extends beyond citizen rights and police accountability." Nines explained, spinning his laptop around to show said document.

"Basically, it's an umbrella legislation that allows the Knight Police to do whatever they feel necessary when pursuing a police investigation and responding to calls. While on paper it's sound, some cops took advantage of it to get away with brutality, and even murder." Naruto said grimly.

"No way! How could something like that get passed?" Suzaku asked, looking at the page in horror. "Surely those at the top, or even Clovis, should've prevented this!"

Naruto winced. 'Oh Suzaku, you are so dangerously naive to how the world works, it's scary.'

"Um Suzaku, you have your heart in the right place, but that's not possible. Anyone trying to interfere in those proceedings will get caught up in a little thing called red tape and bureaucracy." Rivalz pointed out. "I doubt the members of the Crimson Suns would have the patience for that. They'd quit first."

Suzaku was now looking disheartened. "If they have done everything in their power to change things, that might hold water. As long as they don't then all of it is just self-righteous posturing."

"...Wut." Naruto managed to get out, while Nines was cleaning his ears, finding no blockage, and he unfortunately, like him, did not misinterpret Suzaku's words. "Wat." It took out of Naruto's willpower not to slam his face onto the freshly cleaned table.

Nick shook his head. "If those guys were so self-righteous, then they would've left us and the others to die, you know." He did not let his satisfaction at the boy's flinch show on his face. "It's easy to talk about 'doing everything in their power,' but isn't that what they're doing? After all, they aren't the Britannian government. They don't have the power to change the laws and legislation through words or legitimate lobbying."

"On top of that, there's also the Blue Wall of Silence, so-" Rivalz trailed off with a side-eye glance.

"Blue Wall of Silence? What's that?" Suzaku asked, looking absolutely confused.

"..." Naruto looked floored.

"..." Nick just blinked.

"..." Nines slammed his face onto the table.

"..." Rivalz just silently laughed.

"What?" Suzaku was getting uncomfortable.

"Oh boy, Suzaku… You're gonna want to start keeping your ears to the ground from now on, mate. Ball Wall of Silence, Blue Code, Blue Shield, they're all "unwritten" police guidelines where they don't report on colleagues' misdeeds such as errors, misconducts or crimes. Combine that with Article 8, and you basically have a bunch of assholes with a legal license to kill running amok." Rivalz explained with a shrug.

"But…that's…" Suzaku tried to find the words.

"Rest assured, Suzaku; not all of the Knight Police are like that. Sadly, the good apples are far outnumbered by the bad ones, and they're almost never in positions of real power. Article 8 is one of the most corrupt police legislations to be signed onto paper. A lot of Japanese opt not to call in crimes in progress because they might be the ones who get shot." Naruto said, waving his hand nonchalantly. "Oh, and guess who had endorsed it without bothering to read the fine print- or had endorsed it."

"If you're about to say Clovis-" Suzaku started to say.

"Clovis~! It was Clovis, dattebayo!" Naruto steamrolled right over his hopes with a smile. "I mean, it can't be that much of a surprise. Do you actually believe that Clovis would be bothered with the troubles of the Japanese people, especially after Shinjuku? C'mon."

"But you just said it, that there are good people in the force that can do something-"

Nines finally had enough and slammed his hands on the table. "You don't get it, do you?" Standing up, he leveled a glare at Suzaku. "You just. Do. Not. Get it. The system they have put into place does not work like that. You, Kururugi, are like the desperate gambler, taking your life savings to the casino, throwing bet after bet after bet, believing that if you simply try hard enough, you are going to hit that lucky jackpot that will change your life, despite the fact that, in the back of your mind, you know the truth…"

"What truth!?" Suzaku growled.

"That the whole damn game is fucking rigged!" snarled Nines, getting right in his face, "That the ones in charge have rigged everything in their favor, and that while you might make small gains here and there, in the end, it will never be anything that can change the odds. That in the end, you will lose everything and be thrown out as a nameless, penniless loser! And you can complain to anyone you wish, but it will not change a damn thing. As long as they are in charge, the game will always be rigged, and the only ones who win big, are the ones who are in their favor. If you truly wish to change the game, you cannot play it by following their rules. Sometimes, you have to change the nature of the game."

"And it's not just the police. It's the military too. But now, things are changing." Naruto said, putting a hand on Nines' shoulder to cool him off. "The Shinjuku Massacre, and the Crimson Suns, they've finally started changing the status quo. Those who abuse their power are finally being held in check. And from what I've heard, the Crimson Suns are doing a much better job than the cops. Crime is finally down for real, and less Refrain is making its way on the streets."

"Still… But at what cost? What if they go too far in their vigilantism?" Suzaku pressed him.

"...Well I guess we'll have to wait and see." Naruto replied, already knowing it wouldn't happen as long as he and the others ran the show. "But it's not like we can do much here. All we can do is watch the show."

Before more could be said, Shirley walked into the club room, easing most of the tension. "Oh, hey guys. You're still cleaning up?" she asked.

"We're almost done here. It just got a little heavy, that's all." Rivalz assured her with a nervous laugh.

"Yeah. Anyway, I gotta get back to the base." Suzaku said, quickly grabbing his things. "I'll see you all around." He passed by Shirley and strode out of the room, shoulders hunched.

"Oh, uh, later!" she said as the door closed. "It looked like you all had a fight."

"Something like that." Nines grunted, sitting back down. "We tried to make all the sense in the world to him and he still pushed back."

Naruto snorted. "All those spin-kicks must've done a number on this brain. It's concerning, since he's Japanese himself. And 'back to base,' huh? An interesting choice of words, and so suddenly too. As if he wanted to run away."

Nines shrugged. "Like I said, in the back of his mind, he knows the truth. He just doesn't want to confront it."

"If you ask me, that's not normal. Maybe something happened during the beginning of the occupation that caused him to think that way?" Rivalz wondered with a thinking pose.

"Seemed that way when we first met." Nick nodded and glanced at Shirley. "But that's a conversation for another time."

Shirley just blinked at them in confusion, tilting her head with a pout.

Nines took that moment to start thinking on what was just said, and his mind went back to what he knew about the invasion and what he heard happened to Suzaku and the gang at the shrine. What could have happened back then, that would make Suzaku the way he was now?

Turning back to his laptop, he began a new project. He would need to talk with the gang and ask them some questions about the goings on at the shrine during their stay, but it could shed light on a certain incident that was reported to have happened just as the Britanians arrived.

And why suicide just didn't seem to fit the bill.

---

[Local Park]

Kallen and Akiza were out and about with their Servants, watching as the people went on with their day in the shopping center. Artoria was wearing one of Kallen's spare school uniforms, after it was tailored to fit her. Scheherazade on the other hand was dressed business-suit fit for a secretary, easily blending in as a bodyguard of sorts. Then again, both Servants were playing the part of bodyguard to their Masters, who were in communication with Ohgi.

"We've got the Refrain dealers running scared," Ohgi reported, "And Odin's got another lead on another distribution location."

"It sucks that Refrain is still all the rage here in Japan," Kallen commented in distaste.

"Yeah well, who doesn't long for the days before the occupation, right?" he remarked humorlessly.

"Not like those were any better I bet," Akiza muttered under her breath.

"The stuff was specifically targeted at the Japanese, thus Japan was used as a testing ground of sorts. Word has it that it's starting to spread to those who reside in conquered Areas, so we need to nip this in the bud, stat. As soon as the Knightmares are stocked, we move."

"We have all we need, yet supplies keep rolling in, and I hear lots of people are ready to join us. The Crimson Suns sure are popular, huh?" Kallen noted.

Akiza shrugged. "Well we are Black Knights for Justice."

"What she said. I'll see you all later tonight for the next Refrain bust. You two get some rest in the meantime." Ohgi said before hanging up.

"He's right. Staying up late multiple days is not good for your health." Artoria told them.

"I know my limits." Kallen shot back.

Artoria frowned. "And it's best not to push them-"

"Come on, Eleven, say something!"

The Masters and Servants turned around to find a group of Britannian street thugs beating and stomping on a downed Japanese man near a Hot Dog cart, with the latter wearing an apron with a Hot Dog on it.

"You are sorry, aren't ya?!"

"Bowing your heads is what you Elevens do best, right?!"

"How barbaric." Scheherazade muttered.

Kalle and Akiza glared at the sight, their Geasses unconsciously activating in their eyes. They moved forward to attack, ignoring the cries of their Servants to stop, before being stopped physically by some familiar faces, their arms out in front of them.

"Naruto, Naruko, Lucienne. Surely…" Akiza hissed at them, "Surely…surely you don't believe that we should do nothing?!"

"Why should we?" Naruto asked rather loudly, much to the sisters' confusion. "Look at them, beating on a helpless Honorary Britannian. Because they know that in a real fight, they'd get destroyed."

"Oi, Naruto-!"

"What was what?!" The thugs heard him and advanced on the group. "You're not feeling sorry for this Eleven, are ya?!"

"Any decent person would. Seriously, what's the problem, fellas? Not enough ketchup on your hot dogs? Pathetic, if you ask me." Naruto asked with a taunting smile, he and the girls maneuvering themselves to get between the thugs and the vendor.

"You think you can keep us from that worthless Eleven? We're only giving him what he deserves!" the leader snarled, getting in Naruto's face. "Get out of the way, before you and the bitches suffer worse than he is!"

"As much as we'd love to return the favor," Lucienne made a circling motion with her finger. "You lot will have to contend with social media."

The thugs frowned before noticing that there was a larger crowd than normal, and most of the people had their phones out, recording and taking pictures.

"Hope you didn't have any scholarships going for ya. Be a real shame to lose whatever you got going because you couldn't read the room." Lucienne hissed at them. "Run along now."

"C'mon, let's go hit the arcade." muttered one of the leader's friends.

"We'll remember this!" the leader snarled as he and his buddies left.

Naruto snorted before making a jerking motion with his head, followed by Medusa, her Alter, and Scathach tailing them to give them the beating they deserve. At the same time, Kallen rushed past him to help the bruised up vendor.

"Hey, are you alright?" she asked gently, with Akiza hovering over them.

The vendor looked surprised to see something helping him, and saw the Ashford crest on their ties.

"Oh, Britannian students! What can I get for you?" he asked cheerfully as if nothing happened. "How about a nice California hot dog?" He then noticed the others. "Are these your friends? I can get them something too. I have ice cream if you like."

"Well since you offered, we'll take a hot dog and scoop of ice cream, each." Naruko said, placing several dollar bills onto the counter.

"Yes, ma'am!" the vendor said as he set to work.

"Naruko, what the hell-" Kallen started to say angrily, but Akiza elbowed her, shutting her up with a look.

"Here you go." the vendor said, handing Naruko a tray with the requested food items. He then took the money and paused. "Uh, ma'am?"

"Keep the change." Naruko told him. "Have a nice day now."

"Naruko, those were not 20 Pound bills," Naruto noted casually as they all left.

"Really, I could've sworn they were." Naruko replied with a smirk and a wink.

"I'm surprised that you didn't beat them up on sight. I've seen you both act for much less." Kallen said as they moved to a nearby table where there weren't many people.

"The twins can be mature if they want to, and in this case, it was a good thing they stayed their hand. Acting as the aggressors would not have helped that Honorary Britannian." Lucienne replied grimly.

"How? There are Britannians who are helping them. What's different?" Akiza asked as her Servant was poking at her hot dog.

"Simple. Passive charity. Bringing food to the ghettos. Tipping Honorary Britannians out of sight. Grouping together to keep them out of trouble on the streets. Not one of them is using violence. Aggressive tactics by random strangers is something the Japanese or Honorary Britannians can't afford at the moment, and neither can the other races outside Japan. Remember, it's not just the Japanese who are subjected to the stupid Numbers system." Naruko explained before stuffing a hot dog in her mouth.

"Such a self-destructive piece of shit system at that. Makes you wonder how people in power with above average intelligence can even support it." Naruto added with a look out over the Settlement.

"Eleven is just a word to keep the Japanese in check and degrade us. What do you mean? " Kallen remarked, with Naruto now staring at her with a raised eyebrow. Even Artoria looked at her weirdly, a hot dog halfway in her mouth.

"It's more than just a word. The whole reason the Japanese, or the Elevens as the idiots here call them, are fighting is because not only was their land stolen, but so was their pride, history, culture, and even their name. It's the same everywhere else besides Britannia and a few key places. It's actions like these that foster hatred that is passed down from generation to generation, creating terrorists and resistance fighters that would do anything to see Britannia forced off their homeland, even if it means committing heinous acts, like killing unharmed civilians; god forbid not caring if they were Britannian citizens or Japanese. It's why we scouted you lot." he explained.

"Yeah…" Akiza mumbled, poking at her food. "Before you came along, our group wasn't exactly popular due to not having the guts to involve innocents, even Britannians. Naoto would put his foot down, so would Ohgi. No innocents, no kids, no matter what."

"And that, we liked. Everyone has a right to go home to a family and not get their life snuffed out because of stupid, trigger-happy adults." Lucienne said and looked back at where the mini-mall was. "Not just that, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do to put a roof over your head, and until we enact real change by booting the Britannian royalties out, the Japanese still need the Honorary Britannian system to scrape by. In fact…in some ways…" she braced herself for the pushback to her next remark. "Japan as Area 11…is better than the old Japan ever was."

"What?" Kallen gaped in shock, now looking disheartened at the twins avoiding her eyes as they ate.

"Trust me, if you knew what we knew, you'd agree. Before the war, the people were unhappy, and the Japanese government did fuck all to help those that got them into office. Don't get me wrong, the Numbers system is a steaming pile of shit, but there are benefits that came along for the ride. Being made a colony of the Empire has stabilized the military and economic position in the world. The Japanese can even attain full citizenship through the legal process. It's easy to become an Honorary Britannian, it's just a matter of pride, and whether you have anything left to lose."

Akiza swallowed. "Dare we ask how things were?"

"Where do we start?" Naruto said through a mouthful of hot dog and swallowed. "An isolationist mindset thanks to some uptight conversative geezers, an unhealthy salaryman culture resulting in an aging society and shrinking birth rates, and an economy in tatters thanks to not getting with the times. Pre-war, Japan would've been on a path of self-destruction that would've resulted in any of the Asian countries taking it over. Hell, my clan literally wrote a manifesto on how to fix their damn issues, but we have it on good authority that they used the sheets for toilet paper." He growled darkly at that. "Which is why Naruko and I are in full agreement with Lucy-chan. In a twisted way, Britannia's invasion and Kururugi Genbu's abrupt suicide saved the Japanese people."

"So suddenly Britannia are the good guys now?" Kallen snarled at them in fury, while Artoria nicked her untouched food.

"Not even close. That's why we're kicking their asses. Not just for the Japanese and every occupied Area, but for you, Akiza, and your mother." Lucienne told her shortly. "I'm quite jealous, really. You're both lucky to still have her."

"Lucky to have her?! All she's doing is waiting for that man to come back to her! Otherwise, she would've left a long time ago! I told you this the other day!" Kallen snapped at the former Princess.

"Don't sell your mother short, Kallen. The best mothers are strong, and from what I've heard, Kozuki-san fits the bill." Lucienne said casually, ignoring the fact that Kallen slammed her hands on the table and shot up, pacing furiously. "If you want my suggestion, tone down the bitchiness a tad. Preferably all of it. Kozuki-san is suffering so you and Akiza can have a better life."

"Shut up!"

Kallen moved to slap Lucienne, but she leaned back to avoid the blow. She didn't need to, however, as Naruto caught her arm and held her in place.

"Time to play Devil's Advocate, fire-crotch. Say that you're the mother of several kids during the occupation, and only you can provide for them. You know you have the means to fight, but you have no one to help you with those kids, and you're responsible for them. Would you go out to rebel, or would you swallow your pride to provide a better life for your children?"

"Sounds awfully familiar…" Artoria muttered.

"What you're asking is impossible!" Kallen snapped, taking a swing at him, only for him to dodge effortlessly.

"Answer the question, Kallen. Would you abandon your kids in order to resist and possibly die, or would you do anything you can to adapt and provide a good life for them? Your mother wasn't the only one who had to make that hard choice. Many Japanese had to swallow their pride to help their families by becoming Honorary Britannians. They get shit on like the hot dog guy there, but at least there's a roof over their heads."

"I will not answer that! Sacrificing your pride is the same as killing yourself! I've seen many who had the choice to become Honorary Britannians, but the mistreatment had them take their chances in the Ghettos instead!" Kallen shot back.

"Leaving most of us to fill the graves, even before Shinjuku, Kallen." Akiza said coldly. "And news flash since you forgot, but Naoto never treated okaa-san like crap! He knew what she had to do to keep us out of the Ghettos and formed the resistance to give her and us a better life!"

"Yeah well, it's not worth it since days!"

"That's bullshit and you know it!"

"Mother can easily escape from that prison of a house!"

"And she's not going to, for us!"

"Spare me your fairy tale crap!"

"Oh, projection! That's rich! The one who needs to come out of fairy tail land is you!"

"I am in reality! You and Mother are obviously not!"

"The more you push back, the more you prove me right!"

"Awawawawawa!" Scheherazade whined, waving her hands frantically.

"Oh dear." Naruto cringed, mentally patting himself on the back for projecting a Sound Barrier Jutsu around them ahead of time.

"Should we stop them?" Lucienne drawled as Kallen and Akiza continued to go at it.

"Nah, let them be." Naruko said, waving them off as a communication ping echoed. "Hello?"

"Jeremiah and Villetta came through again. Come down to the bunker for the next-" Nines paused as he heard the Kozuki sisters' continuing argument. "Did something happen?"

"The tension has reached its boiling point here." Naruto said and sighed. "Bagley, please pull the car around to our location."

"Special delivery coming up. Shall I activate the sleeping gas once they're inside?" Bagley offered in amusement.

Naruto laughed. "Please no."

"Oh I see now, my dear imouto! You're feeling guilty and you're trying to ignore it!"

"The only thing I'm about to be guilty of is shoving my foot up your ass!"

Their Servants discreetly slid into their shadows.

…

Elsewhere, everyone was looking up to see the same young men who bullied the Hot Dog Vendor by tied off on light posts. At their Masters' orders, they were covered in syrup and chicken feathers, with ball gags in their mouth. They moaned and groaned as pictures were taken and shared to social media, further humiliating them.

---

[Ashford Academy, Bunker]

"I remember how you were a nightmare to begin with, being the middle child and all, but embracing your Britannian blood has made you soft!"

"At least I'm not romanticizing how the Japanese are the only ones in the world getting the short end of the stick to sleep easy at night!"

Everyone was staring at Akiza and Kallen, who were still going at it. It was amusing to the twins at first, but now it's getting annoying. Lucienne literally buried her head in a book in an attempt to block it out. Milly, Rivalz, and Claire were both looking confused, while Nina was fretting over the situation with dizzy-eyes.

C.C. was just watching on with interest.

"Um, how long has this been going on, exactly?" Nines asked as he tried to concentrate on his work at the terminal.

"Feels like years, man. From the park, to the car, and now here." Naruto growled, rubbing his temples. "Ok girls, that's quite-"

"And don't get me started on how you're looking to off yourself in battle! It would not be worthy of Naoto and it's fucking stupid!"

"It'll give my life true meaning!"

"ENOUGH!" Naruko finally screamed, causing the bunker to shake and the sisters finally snapped out of it. "Seriously, this is getting ridiculous! Both of you need to cool it, or we're leaving your asses out of this next Refrain bust!"

"You don't have to worry about me. If anyone should be left behind, it's Kallen here. Between treating kaa-san like crap and the incident with the Hot Dog guy, her head's not in the game." Akiza assured her, jabbing her thumb at her sister.

"I am doing just fine! Why don't you go back to Mother since you care about her more than what we're doing-"

"SHUT UP, DATTEBAYO!" Naruto snarled, losing his patience with the two. "Fucking hell, your feud has no place in this! Britannian, Japanese, it doesn't matter! We're trying to fix this bloody world so both you and Kozuki-san can live freely! In case you didn't hear us, let me repeat it: you will both be left behind if you don't grow the fuck up!"

"Oh, that explains everything." Milly sighed, shaking her head. "Seriously you two, your arguments won't solve anything. Kallen, I've been meaning to say this at your place, but please be nice to Kozuki-san. Just because we have all this tech that increases our chances at survival, does not mean that tomorrow is promised. She's already lost your brother. Imagine how she'll feel if she loses both of you."

"...You're overestimating her."

"No, she's not. Her actions should make you proud. I even hear that it embodies the ideal Japanese spirit." Claire pointed out.

"You Britannians-"

"Finish that sentence and Milly won't be the only one getting a Harisen to the head." Nick interrupted her. "Just drop it now."

Akiza rolled her eyes and made a zipper motion with her mouth, but Kallen growled. "The ones who should drop it are all of you! My mother, strong Japanese spirit? Get real!"

Rivalz snorted. "Better than the ones with the Axis back in Nines' world if you ask me."

"At least they weren't as evil as that Hitler guy!"

Nick's arm, indeed holding a harisen, snapped out, and a rush of wind shoved the redhead back, making her squawk in alarm. "Don't count on it, firecrotch," he replied coldly.

"YOU LITTLE B-!" Akiza started to shriek before stopping herself and taking a breath. "...No. You know what? That's it. I'm done. I quit. I tried, I really tried. You guys deal- guys?"

Naruto, Naruko, and Lucienne had froze up, while Nines stopped typing completely. Milly and the others looked even more confused as the trio shifted awkwardly and distracted themselves by preparing their equipment, as if trying to get away.

Akiza noticed this. "What is it? What are we missing?"

"...Naruto can tell you all why!" Lucienne said, figuratively throwing him under the bus.

"Why me?!" Naruto yelped in indignation.

"You're our number one, you gotta man up! You should clarify that info Nines omitted when he discussed Imperial Japan in World War II." Naruko said quickly by trying to make herself small.

"Sounds interesting." C.C. said and smirked at Naruto. "Well, Naruto?"

Naruto swallowed loudly. "I really won't-"

"I'll do it…not going to like it, but I'll do it." Nines signed, spinning around in his chair.

"You sure about this?" Nick asked, withdrawing his harisen.

"Right, oversimplify it since we're on a timetable." Naruto interjected, tapping at his watch. "...And no pictures. Like, at all."

"I know, five, ten minutes tops. It's not going to change anything here. Please remember that all races are capable of evil, and depending on your beliefs, it knows no bounds." Nine said, inhaling another sigh as if to brace himself. "Kallen, the Japan in my world, back in World War II, didn't join the Axis powers just for the fun of it. Nazi Germany and fascist Italy, at least their leaders of their governments at the time, all believed they were racially superior, all felt hostility towards the Allies, and all wanted to militarize and take over everywhere…and Japan was no exception. In fact, if it weren't for the fact that they were humbled and created appealing products years after the war, Japan would have been just as condemned as the Nazis. Their war crimes…no, the Holocaust was just as bad as what they've done. All pure evil."

"...What did Imperial Japan do?" Akiza asked quietly.

"Nanking. Unit 731. The Doolittle Raid Retaliation." Nines said quietly. "I told you that Japan sought to expand its territory through conquest. The closest major landmass near Japan is the Chinese Mainland. Of course Japan would attempt to take as much land as they could from the industrial inferior nation. The Imperial Japanese sent their army to take Chinese lands while the navy conquered territory in the Pacific.

As bad as you think Britannia is to its conquest, it is nothing compared to how Imperial Japan treated theirs. To the Japanese soldiers, the Chinese people were not even considered humans, just cattle to be exploited. From 1937 to 1945, the Japanese either instigated or condoned the mass killings of millions of Chinese, either through mass executions, human experimentation, religious purges, mass starvation and forced labor.

One of the most notorious incidents was the Massacre of Nanking. Two-hundred sixty thousand Chinese citizens were ruthlessly slaughtered by the Japanese army, who also looted and burned their homes. That alone would have been heinous enough, but it is what they did to the girls and young women that cemented it in the history books as one of the worst war crimes ever committed."

Kallen swallowed, fearful of where this was going. "W-what did they do…?"

Nines sighed. "You probably already figured it out, but the incident quickly became known across the world as 'The Rape of Nanking.'"

A loud gasp echoed inside the room as all the girls aside from Naruko and Lucienne had horrified looks on their faces. Said two girls remained silent and gritted their teeth. The boys who were not in the know were equally speechless, while Naruto clenched his fists so hard his palms started bleeding.

"It was horrible, not one single young woman was spared, no matter the age. Even those who were not teenagers yet. And not one of them survived their 'encounter' with the Japanese soldiers. Those who were too old for the activities were simply killed, but honestly, they were the lucky ones. I could go on. God knows what kind of torture they put those women through before they were done, but…."

"No! No more! I…I can't…" Kallen collapsed to her knees as her tears fell.

"How….how can humans….how can they be such monsters…?" Claire whispered, shivering.

Naruto, Naruko, and Lucienne recalled the day they learned about it quite vividly. Unfortunately, they were hit with the images of said atrocities, causing them all to puke where they stood. The war crimes committed in World War II made Britannia look like bullies, as far as they knew at the time, and it was their first taste of seeing the evils of humanity. Worse, it was later discovered that had Uzu not kept their world's Imperial Japan in check, there might have been similar atrocities. Thankfully they'll never have to find out.

Or even thinking about it.

Nines shook his head. "Unfortunately, that was only the beginning."

"There's more!?" Rivalz yelped.

"Unit 731. They were a special army unit that conducted experiments on humans, specifically on civilians in occupied territories and prisoners of war. They primarily focused on biological and chemical agents in hopes of producing a weapon of mass destruction for the empire.

They also conducted surgical procedures on unwilling subjects as part of a study on the human body, including vivisections and amputations without the use of sedatives. People were cut open while feeling every bit of pain. They wanted to study the effects of common conditions and ailments that soldiers might endure by exposing prisoners to these conditions and then seeing how different stimuli affected them, like forcing a person to contract frostbite on their extremities and then having those limbs amputated until only a head and torso remained. The poor souls were then used in biological testing."

C.C. scowled at that, finding the explanation all too familiar. "How ironic. It feels like the same thing I went through, what Code R did to me. You say weapons of mass destruction, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was for immortality as well." she shook her head. "No matter that world, humans will always find a way to destroy each other."

Nick grunted, remembering a prior world where humans were turned into kaijin due to experimentations connected to Unit 731, and faced discrimination as a result, even when the truth came to light. They relied on a concoction called Heat Heaven, a substance made of humans and an extract from a 'Creation King,' to survive.

"Give a man money and power, and judge their characters from there," Milly growled.

"Finally, there was the retaliation for acts committed by the Americans. Take the Doolittle Raid for instance. After Pearl Harbor, the Americans stuck back at the Japanese by sending a small flight of bombers to Tokyo and bombing the industrial sector. Several factories were destroyed and fifty civilians were killed in the raid. In response, the army bombed every village in a 20,000 square mile area, killing 10,000 Chinese who the Japanese accused of aiding the Americans. 10,000 lives for just 50 people who worked in an industrial area that was a viable wartime target. Does that sound reasonable to you?"

"NO!" Kallen shook her head violently, clamping her hands to her ears. "No! Please stop…"

"Okay, I think we got the point now." Akiza said, rushing over to Kallen.

Nines stared at Kallen before he stood and walked over to the poor crying girl. He knelt down and hugged the girl as she wept. "I'm sorry you had to hear all this, but you need to understand that no one, not a single person, group, nationality or religious sect is above committing evil. If these people truly believe in their superiority and can get away with it, there is no boundary humans will not cross, even the most vile of acts." He looked Kallen in the eyes. "And that is why we do what we do, to keep people, no matter who, Drug Cartel, Britannians, Nazi Germany, or Imperial Japanese, from commiting these acts. That is what makes us Knights of Justice."

"Black Knights for Justice. The Black Knight part is important." Naruto agreed, walking over and patting Kallen on her head. "And as Black Knights, we protect the common folk from the actions of those who abuse their power. This world, and Nines' world, old men in suits send the young to either commit crimes or die because another country looked at them wrong. That shit will end, and you can believe that." he declared and looked at the others.

"GUTS! Damn right! The youth of the Crimson Suns will finally change the world!" Milly cheered to get the mood up.

"All that evil will be a thing of the past, so we all can live in peace." Rivalz agreed and winked. "For our future children, of course."

"I…I'm still in this!" Nina said, trying to clamp down on her stammering. "Everything about World War II was scary to hear about, but…I…we won't let anything like that happen, not in our lifetime!"

Claire nodded with a grin. "Noblesse Oblige. We'll show those old farts stuck in their ways how to truly use money and power for good. That world will be nothing like ours!"

Naruto smiled at all of them, with Naruko and Lucienne sharing it. It was looking bleak, but now everything's back on track. No doubt the story of Japanese war crimes still affected the others, but it only strengthened their resolve to not let history in either world repeat itself.

"So, will you be good to go now?" Nick asked Kallen, who was helped up by Naruto and Nines.

Kallen sniffed and wiped her eyes. "You don't have to worry about me. We have a job to do tonight, right? I will see it through."

"Kallen." Akiza murmured as her sister moved away from her.

"I just have…a lot to think about." Kallen muttered, taking a seat.

Nines nodded as he returned to his seat. "Just remember, not everything is black and white. Good and evil is not always apparent, and not all acts are, either. Your mother's choice to remain in that house might not be for the reason you think. There may be something else that she sees worth enduring pain for."

"Right…" Kallen nodded, even though she was only half-listening. "So the bust, where is it?" She needed a distraction now.

"..." Nines nodded and pressed a button, revealing a holo-map of the next distribution center. "We have Jeremiah and Villetta to thank for this. It's in another warehouse district, much larger than the last. Those pings," he pointed at the dots that are increasing every once in a while. "Ryofu and Kan'u are there reconning the area and marking hostile targets along with Tamaki."

"There's a lot more assholes than the other places. Could this be their main hub?" Naruko wondered.

"Probably. This warehouse sits in the central hub for sea freight imports. It would make sense that this is the main distribution site, which means expect a lot of resistance and even some outside help for these assholes. They do have a few of the Knightmare Police on their payroll and the girls have reported KP's on patrol around the site." Nines said as he indicated the patrol routes of possible hostiles in the area.

"Corrupted pieces of filth." Lucienne snarled.

Naruto grimaced. "Neutralize them. We can't kill them unless they leave us no other choice. Yes, we can take on the Knight Police, but it'll be on our terms, and not when they're deploying the whole force on us for killing one of their own, bad cop or not." he said before noticing something. "Luckily, in case things go south, we can take the underground railway since it's close."

Nines nodded. "True. Just a six hundred meter run to the access point. If things go south, head straight for it. I'll throw up as much electronic interference as possible to cover your escape, and I'm sure BB won't miss out on a chance to do some trolling."

"All right, then it's settled." Naruto said, clapping his hands together and rubbing them. "Let's go put this damn drug to the ground!"

"Fuck yeah, dattebane! Let's get it!"

Everyone made noises of agreement, except Kallen, who was trying as hard as she could not to think about what was revealed.

---

[Viceroy Palace]

Euphemia was with Jeremiah and Villetta in her office. She was sitting at the desk while the other two were sitting across the table from her.

"Do we know what Lucienne and the others are doing?" Euphemia asked.

"We've given them information on a possible Refrain distribution center in the Settlement." Jeremiah reported. "The Knight Police claim that they found nothing in the area."

"There is a high concentration of Ele- Japanese nearby as well," Villetta added, "It makes sense to set up shop there."

Euphemia sighed in relief. "At least they're starting small. I don't know how I would feel if Lucienne immediately attacked Cornelia."

"Lady Lucienne is only third-in-command of her little group, in charge of the Crimson Suns' strategies. Naruto is the one who makes all the calls to action," Jeremiah clarified for her.

"You might as well be all in like their friends. You're in a position of power to make sure innocents don't get caught in the crossfire." Villetta advised her.

"I've honestly thought I was, now that I know," Euphemia said with a wry smile, "And that was my idea from the beginning. This conflict against our father…won't be bloodless."

"No conflict ever was, Princess. Even with all the knowledge my lady possesses to enhance her craft, shedding the blood of the enemy is unavoidable." Jeremiah told her bluntly.

"I can only hope we can all live in a world where that will no longer be necessary." Euphemia said and gazed out the window. "Britannia has had a history of expansion since the Napoleonic Wars, but it wasn't until my father took power that he started aggressively expanding Britannia outside the Americas. Japan is explainable because of the Sakuradite here, but why the other foreign lands?"

"Oil?" Jeremiah guessed. "Minerals?"

"We have plenty of those already." Villetta pointed out.

"Probably a substance similar to Sakuradite. Or," he hummed.

"Something related to C.C." she completed for him, "And the mysterious power that is Geass. All that leaving aside whatever freaks of nature Kinkaku and Ginkaku are."

"There are mysterious and unknown wonders in the world…" Jeremiah's eyes widened. "Wonders that are now in Britannia's occupied Areas."

"If we can look for those, then we might get an advantage over my father." Euphemia decided. "If I see a chance for peace, I'll take it."

Villetta nodded. "Just be sure to run it by Lady Lucienne first…"

---

[Refrain Distribution Center]

"Another night, another Refrain bust. It's starting to get old if you ask me. It feels more like we're helping the damn Knight Police." Tamaki grumbled as he and the other members of the Crimson Suns waited behind a warehouse building.

"We're not helping the Knight Police, Tamaki. Besides, it's not like they do anything about this." Yoko said over comms, perched up in a sniper nest overlooking the warehouse district.

"It does feel good to have the will of the people on our side." Ohgi noted.

"He's right. We're totally heroes on the net," Kento, one of the Kozuki Group's OGs, agreed.

"...Are we in the right? I don't know anything." Kallen muttered, sitting on top of her red Glasgow V2, a heavily modified and updated version of the normal Glasgow, compliments of Uzu. Her head was on her knees, arms wrapped around them.

The reveal of the Japanese's war crimes in Nines's world were still echoing in her head, even at this second. She tried to convince herself that Britannia was still in the wrong, which was true, but she's still having a hard time accepting the fact that her own people who she favored over the Britannians were capable of such evil.

"Kallen?" Ohgi glanced at her, wondering what was wrong.

"It's going to be hard to say good-bye to these lugs, after all the trouble we went to to upgrade them," Akiza mused, banging her fist on her own Glasgow V2, "We'll be getting new toys, courtesy of Joker and Odin."

"All clear, people," Yoko sounded off, "The guards have been taken out, and a Knight Police patrol is moving away from the area."

"Mount up!" Akiza declared, putting on her Black Rose helmet and sliding into her Knightmare. She paused when Kallen wasn't moving. "Red Queen, c'mon!"

"...Right!" Kallen snapped out of her funk, securing her signature helmet and hopping into her Knightmare.

"Time to bury this Refrain crap for good." Ohgi said, pressing a button on the side of his helmet to activate his visor, with the others doing the same. "Let's move!"

…

Inside the warehouse, workers were quickly unloading the shipment of Refrain they had received.

"Is the shipment for Nagaya ready?"

"Nice and safe here in the Settlement, huh? No way those Crimson Suns idiots will find us here-" the man was interrupted by his phone ringing. "Hello?"

"Speak of the Devil, and he shall appear!" a cutesy voice jeered on the other side.

The man frowned and looked at his phone screen, his eyes widened in horror to see BB, wearing a 1920's mafia outfit and holding a Thompson Machine Gun, waving happily at him.

"And all of you are going to die tonight!" she added eerily with red eyes. "Rattle 'em, boys and girls! Gigigigigigi!" She laughed as she shot at the screen with the gun.

On cue, Knightmare-scale bullets shredded the rolling steel door, turning several Refrain workers into scraps of pulp and red mist. The lucky ones scattered to get to cover as the door was sliced open into pieces thanks to Joker's sword.

"You took my awesome quote, BB!" Joker grumbled, casually deflecting some return fire.

BB laughed. "Early bird gets the worm!"

The cartel fruitlessly tried to counterattack, but Joker and Cypher flashed-stepped around, cutting and shooting down the workers where they stood. The bullets bounced off of Kinkaku's silver armor, allowing him to menacingly walk over to a group of attacking workers, slashing each of them in half with swift, brutal slashes. And Odin, he strode on in and took a few intact vials of Refrain for testing, blasting those that shot at him. As he inspected the vials, a cartel member began to sneak up on him with a shotgun.

"You damn Crimson bastards…I'm not going down like this…I'm going to kill you…I'm going to get my money-"

"Heads up!"

"What the-oof!"

The man turned just in time for Cypher to drive into him with a forklift.

Odin looked as Cypher backed up.

"Thanks."

"No problem. You know, I'm actually not sure how to drive this thing fully, to be honest."

Odin stared at the girl. "And you decided to drive it into an active firefight why?"

"Because it looked fun!"

"...really?"

"So uncouth, uncivilized." Athena noted, lazily walking into the carnage. "It would be wise for you all to surrender. We're not looking to take prisoners."

"Fuck you, bitch!" a man yelled, throwing a grenade at her.

"No, you."

Joker appeared and landed a football kick towards the grenade, returning it to sender.

"What the fuck-?" the man managed to say, before blowing up.

"Ever thought about being a football player?" Athena wondered aloud.

"All the years here, why not you? I have the experience and the legs for it." Joker chuckled before snapping his fingers. "Ladies, bring in the heavy artillery!"

Some Warthogs, driven by Frigga and Freya, rolled on in, with Ravel on one of the turrets. They were followed by the Glasgow V2s piloted by Kallen and Akiza. The Servants rode on the vehicles, and as soon as they cleared the doors, they leapt into action. It became a one-sided massacre, but the mob were dealing in Refrain to take advantage of the Japanese, so fuck them. Sure it was unfair, but it was the result of the three leaders of the Crimson Suns learning everything about war and fighting for seven years.

"Knightmares!" one of them called out before being silenced by Medusa Alter. "Urk!"

"Get soooooooooome!" Ravel yelled, firing wildly with her armor stabilizing her grip, "That's right, take all these bullets you disgraceful assholes!"

And it was her first time on a turret.

"Have at thee!" Artoria yelled, evading gunfire and cutting down the men.

"These Knightmares and our Servants really are amazing. Both are armies unto themselves." Kallen noted, effortlessly gunning down the assailants.

"Yeah, it feels almost too easy at this point." Akiza said, using her Geass to stun her victims before shooting them dead.

Not only did the sisters have the help of their Geass, they also had the visors in her helmet that fed them real-time information.

"Some of the runners are escaping through that door." Akiza said, going after them with Kallen following close behind.

The door was almost closed, but Akiza blasted through it with ease. They found themselves in a dark room, with figures moving around erratically. Both girls activated their night vision, allowing them to get a clear image before looking stunned at the sight.

"Japan! Japan!"

"That's right! I'm getting married next month!"

"I'm being promoted!"

"Leave it to us! Japan is on the vanguard of technology!"

The room had several Japanese people inside, either running around, walking about, or sitting on the ground. They were talking animatedly and staring off into space with elated looks on their faces. They didn't even acknowledge the Glasgows, as if they weren't there.

"Refrain…" Kallen muttered, seeing its effects in action. "This fucking drug!"

"I'm studying abroad! I can't believe I got in!" shouted a young man, who turned out to be the Hot Dog Vendor from earlier.

"This is Black Rose. We have civilians doped up on Refrain here." Akiza spoke into the comms.

"You gotta be kidding! How the-?" Yoko wondered before sucking her tongue. "Dammit, they must've sneaked them inside the trucks!"

"Fuck! Medusa! Gather the rest of the Servants and secure the civilians! Bagley, summon another train to our location," Joker ordered. "We'll finish up here!"

"Roger that, Captain." Bagley acknowledged.

"These Japanese. They worked with the system, yet they're punished and taken advantage of. It's sickening." Akiza murmured, using her sensors to look around. "Add it all up, and it breaks a person."

"That's right, which is why we're here!" Kallen declared, filled with anger for what was being done to these people.

"Kallen, it's dangerous to run like that!" a voice called out from their external microphone, making the two gasp. "Aki, sweetie, be careful!"

The cameras on their Knightmares swirled downwards to see their mother, Kozuki Fuyuko, wandering out in front of them. She was waving her hands out in front of her, seeing something they couldn't, obviously reliving a moment from her past without any bearing on her surroundings.

"Mother?!" Kallen yelped, taking her mask off, her voice seemingly making the woman trip.

"This…can't be happening!" Akiza said, catching her with Glasgow's hand and lifting her up. "Why are you here, okaa-san? Of all places?!" she yelled, taking her mask off.

"Really, Naoto, please. I need you to keep an eye on your little sisters." Fuyuko continued, not realizing what happened.

"That was so long ago." Akiza murmured, remembering that day where Fuyuko took her, Kallen, and Naoto to an empty park. "Dammit, okaa-san, why didn't you say anything?!" Akiza cried, banging her fist on the console.

Kallen gritted her teeth and closed her eyes. "My god, how weak of a woman are you, Mother? First you give into Britannia, then into a man, and now this. My brother is gone forever, let him go- ah?!"

Kallen's Glasgow was suddenly riddled with gunfire, the arm nearly coming off until Akiza swerved her own Glasgow around to block it. Using her Factosphere, she caught eyes on the assailant, the white-and-blue Sutherland pointing a pistol at them.

"The Knight Police?!" they yelled, wheeling off as they were attacked and pursued.

"Why are they here?!" Minami asked as the others came in.

"Tamaki, wasn't this area clear of Knight Police?" Ohgi asked.

"Woah woah woah, don't look at me! When I checked with Frigga and Freya, there weren't any of them around!" he replied.

"He's right! There shouldn't be any more around!" Yoko agreed.

"Odin! It's your tech! How the hell did a big ass Knightmare Frame like that not show on our sensors?!" Tamaki demanded.

"BB, analysis!"

"Everything's in working order, love! The only thing I can guess is that there's a new kind of jamming signal not cataloged!" BB responded. "That unit's the only one not registering on our sensors."

"Sounds like we're not the only ones with new tech." Odin noted with Joker and Cypher zooming past him. "A prototype, huh? Can someone do me a favor and strip that tin can of any thing that looks like new tech after you gut that corrupt piece of shit piloting it?"

"Last one buy's the first round of drinks for the crew!" Joker shouted as he and Cypher went after them, his Geass activating to see the aura of the police unit turning golden. "Black Rose, Red Queen, keep rollin'!"

"What do you think we're doing?!" Kallen yelped as Artoria landed on her Knightmare. "Artoria, get my mother!"

"Way ahead of you, Master!" Artoria said, hoisting Fuyuko help.

Suddenly, the hostile Knightmare switched to a rocket launcher and fired. Before Artoria could get away with Fuyuko, the rocket exploded at the Glasgows' feet, causing them to lose their balance. Akiza's Knightmare fell over, accidentally tripping up Kallen's Knightmare and sending them all sprawling across the ground and into some containers. Artoria managed to hold onto Fuyuko, using her body to protect her.

"Kallen…Aki…Naoto…" Fuyuko murmured.

"Damn you!" Akiza yelled, activating her Geass, but winced in pain and clutched at her eye. "Dammit, I overused my Geass!"

"This Knightmare can't keep up with my Geass like this…" Kallen gritted her teeth as the Sutherland shot at them. "Artoria!"

"We're okay!" Artoria called over to her.

"Sorry to keep you waiting!"

Joker bounded off the container units and lashed out with his sword, lopping off the Knight Police's arm. He spun around and sliced off the other arm, leaving the unit armless. The Sutherland tried to wheel forward, but was stopped in its tracks by Cypher's Geass and forced on its knees. Twirling his sword in his hands, Naruto stabbed his blade into the cockpit, hearing the sound of steel meeting flesh. He twisted it and pushed it in further, making sure that the pilot was dead. He then yanked his sword out and sliced open the cockpit, revealing the pilot stumped over, dead.

"Piece of shit." Joker muttered, sheathing his sword.

"Damn, that is amazing. Alright, let's see what we have here." Tamaki said, coming over and started rummaging around the cockpit.

"Okaa-san!" Akiza cried out, jumping out of her Knightmare and cradling her. "Steady now!"

"How is she?" Kallen asked, joining her.

"She is unharmed." Artoria informed her, with Kallen breathing out a sigh of relief.

'...Wait, I'm glad she's alright?' she thought, staring as Fuyuko shifted around to look at her.

"I'm here for you." Fuyuko suddenly said. "I'm here for you, Kallen. I'm here, as I always have been."

Those words triggered something within, a long forgotten memory. Her mother had said those words to her when she was young, when she was just a scared little girl, before she'd jumped into resisting Britannia. With each incident against the Japanese, her anger grew until nothing else mattered, not the Britannian blood in her veins, or even her mother.

"I'm here for you, Kallen, Aki. I'm here, as I always have been. Everything I've done is for all of you. My pride and joys, the three brightest stars in my life."

But now, images flooded her head of her mother staying in the house, all the abuse hurled at her for even the smallest of mistakes. But one thing that stood out to her…was that Fuyuko never stopped smiling. Even the mention of her Britannian lover did not take away the smile deserved only for her children.

"...All this time, I convinced myself that she was the fool, to stay at that house for a lover that was never coming back. But in reality…I was the fool." Kallen said, dropping to her knees. "I…never wanted to believe that she stayed for us."

"You just didn't want to face reality." Athena said as she walked up to them. "You felt responsible for her suffering."

"You knew all along? Kallen, why didn't you say anything?" Akiza asked her slowly.

"Because the more I convinced myself, the more I believed in my own lie. Look how that turned out…being a Japanese fanatic, denying my other half, treating her like crap, lashing out at everyone when called out, and saying dumb shit. I was just…so afraid of admitting that okaa-san was forcing herself to suffer because of me…because of us," Kallen admitted, tears forming in her eyes.

Fuyuko, still drugged, suddenly said. "I'm so happy for you! You can finally become a Britannian now, girls. Nobody will ever be able to hurt you now! And you're free to travel and use the phone anytime you want…"

"O-Okaa-san!" Kallen wailed, hugging her.

"Um, sweetie! I hate to break up this heart warming family moment, but we got company coming!" B.B. called out over the communicator.

"I say, it was just getting good." Athena murmured.

"What's happening?" Odin asked as he opened the video panel on his wrist computer to see the AI.

"Looks like our 'Eppolito' managed to get out a call for help. We've got multiple Knight Police units heading your way. You need to book it with all the Japs that are in there. They'll be jail fodder if the cops find them there."

"She's right! I'm seeing multiple boogies on the way! Marking them now!" Yoko shouted, as Odin saw the screen change to show several blips on the map speeding towards the warehouse district.

"It's time to jet, people! Let's get these poor fools out of here!" Joker said hurryingly. "And where's that jamming device-!"

"Hey, I think I got something!" Tamaki shouted, pulling out a black and gray device with four antennas on it. "It's nothing like the insides of the Knightmare!" he said, handing it to Odin.

"We'll gush about it later, let's move!" Cypher said as the Refrain victims were loaded onto the Warthogs and Knightmares.

"C'mon Okaa-san, up you get." Kallen said, her and Akiza lifted Fuyuko onto a Warthog.

"Yoko, distraction!" Joker ordered. "And Bagley, plot an escape route!"

"One distraction, coming up!"

Yoko aimed and fired a single round at the Knight Police Knightmare in front of the pack. The bullet shot through the rollers behind the foot, causing the lead Knightmare to trip up and skid to the ground. The rest of the Knight Police's Knightmare's were too late to hit the brakes, and they toppled over like dominos.

"And that takes care of that." Yoko said and retreated from her sniper's nest. "Meet you back at the base!"

"Route confirmed!" Bagley said, the path showing on everyone's HUD. "Would you lot like some takeout to go along for the ride?"

BB giggled. "Sounds delicious!"

Kinkaku shook his head. "Do we have somewhere to be?"

The Crimson Suns cleared out, using Bagley's projected route to stick to the shadows. As for the Knight Police, they split off into two groups, one to investigate the sniper's nest, and the other to barge into the warehouse. All they could find were dead cartel members and Refrain, with one of their own found impaled on a construction beam along with their Knightmare.

---

[Nexus Underground]

The Crimson Suns' Knightmares, Warthogs, and Servants sped into an abandoned railroad opening in the ghetto, rolling up to giant steel doors. When they got closer, they could see Uzu's spiral logo etched onto the doors. "Open sesame." chuckled Bagley, followed by some grumbling from BB, and the doors quickly opened. As soon as the Crimson Suns were inside, the doors closed behind them.

"Woah, what in the world is that?" Ohgi asked, echoing the wonderment of those not in the know.

It was a brightly-lit room that looked futuristic with a light-blue hue. The walls and floor were metal with a few screens and control panels. And in front of the group were trains that were ready to go, big enough to fit Knightmares and vehicles.

"Welcome to the Nexus Underground. A high-speed electromagnetic train system courtesy of Uzu." Odin said, waving his arms around the large area. "It's how the others took Akiza and Kallen with us to Saitama to stop Cornelia."

"Speaking of Uzu, we'll be taking this train here to get the victims to Uzu for treatment. The rest of you can use the other train to get back to the FOB. Don't worry, Yoko and the troops there will be expecting you." Joker told them. "You can rest up there."

"Hey, how come we don't get to go?!" Tamaki asked indignantly.

"Because, Lord of Louds, we don't plan on staying long, and we need to get things moving. You never know when Cornelia's going to suddenly zero in on the JLF, and we'll want to catch her with her pants down." BB replied as if scolding a child. "Plus there are some that can be… really impatient." She added, looking to the side with red eyes.

As if looking at You.

"Steady now," Akiza said as the Warthog rolled into the train inbound to Uzu.

"Tell you what, we get through our first major battle, then we'll give you all a first class tour." Joker said and patted the train, "Until then, we'll see you all back at the base. Stay out of trouble now."

With the trains loaded up, the doors closed, with the passengers strapped in and secure. Soon the trains shot in opposite directions.

"...Say it." Akiza suddenly uttered.

Kallen, looking defeated, replied. "...You were right."

"How could you ever think that she'd do anything for any other reason?"

"..."

---

[Uzu Hospital]

Senju Tsunade looked over the charts for Kozuki Fuyuko with a frown. It seemed that the woman was suffering from an apparent overdose of Refrain. Most likely the dose she took was a more potent drug than the usual ampule contained. There was also evidence that the Refrain she and the others took might have been tainted. It wasn't good, as the poor woman was near catatonic. Not even the words of her daughters could reach her damaged mind.

"It's going to be a long road, girls. Her overdose and the tainted drug have left her mind in a fractured state. It will take both drugs and mental treatment to cure her."

Akiza blanched. "I suppose this will be costly?"

Tsunade raised an eyebrow at that. "Seriously, little girl? This is practically part of the benefits package for joining Uzu's forces. Just as long as you're still on the team, of course."

"Eh, sorry." Akiza grumbled, rubbing the back of her head.

"Good thing you delivered her and the others straight here. Back in Area 11 Japan, it would've been a 20 year sentence, despite the drug being targeted towards the Numbers and the authorities did nothing to stop it." Tsunade said as she made a few notes on her clipboard. "Don't worry, your mother will be safe here. The doctors here are the best in the world."

"Thank goodness." Kallen said, struggling to hold back tears. "Don't you worry, okaa-san! Aki-neechan and I are working to change things, where we'll make a world where we all can live normal lives! So please, okaa-san…"

"Hang in there."

"Uh?" Kallen felt Fuyuko's hand on her own.

"Hang in there, Kallen. Hang in there, Aki. My little angels." Fuyuko murmured, still staring off into space.

"We will, okaa-san." Akiza assured her. "We promise."

…

A while later, Naruto, Naruko, Lucienne, Nick, Claire, and C.C. were near the entrance to the stairwell, watching as Akiza and Kallen met on the hospital roof. All of their Servants were in their shadows, recovering their magical energy. Thankfully there was no tension, as there was a gentle breeze between them.

"I can't believe we're actually here, in Uzu!" Kallen said as she gazed out at the last sovereign Japanese landscape in awe.

"It almost feels like we're home, in a sense." Akiza agreed, brushing some hair from her face.

"We'll give you the official grand tour after our next operation! Promise!" Naruto called over as he watched the sisters take in the view.

"Seems that Kushina has made some…improvements." C.C. noted, viewing the renovated buildings.

"It's actually a perfect place to…bury the hatchet." Kallen said, her and Akiza's eyes meeting.

"Hopefully not in someone's head!" Naruko quipped loudly.

Kallen shot her a look, before turning back to her sister. "So, uh…I've been a real bitch, huh?"

"That's putting it lightly. And boy do I have some words for you, imouto." Akiza stated with a frown.

"Akiza, just don't say how you're feeling. Say what she needs to hear!" Lucienne suggested.

"Oh, Kallen is gonna hear it, all right! Kallen, you're gonna learn how you can't just let your emotions show you the world is black and white, that being a bitch to those that sacrificed her own well-bring for us, and she's acting so…so…" Akiza ceased her rant when she realized something. "So…"

"Violent and familiar, I'm guessing?!" Naruto chimed in.

"...Shhhhhhhhit." Akiza facepalmed. "Kallen…"

"I know, Aki-nee. I know I've been a bitch, a dumb kid, stupid, annoying, everything under the sun." Kallen said, looking away. "Got anything else for me?"

"I've been all of those things before, back when Naoto was still alive. The usual thing of a parent caring for the older and younger child, all that; and I acted out to get attention. When Naoto started the resistance and I joined, it was an outlet to vent my anger that I didn't know how to process. But when Naoto died…" Akiza swallowed and took a breath. "I knew I had to step up, especially when you've joined the group several months before. I couldn't act all tough or unapproachable, and I couldn't hate the other half of my blood. And when you started going all pro-Japan and treating okaa-san like crap, I had to step up, to show that the mindset you were going down was wrong. When you continued on after Naruto and the others recruited us, I lost my temper with you."

"I don't blame you for that. That was me being stubborn. I was so sure of myself and believed too much in what we were doing that I was beginning to lose sight of who my allies were, and who my friends were. Who would've thought that the actions of the Japanese on the other Earth would make me see differently. If there's one thing school doesn't teach us are the possibilities of other people committing the same type of evil. It's a concept that takes getting used to, and I can no longer be stubborn about it all." Kallen wiped her eyes. "I can't close my eyes or cover my ears anymore, can I?"

"No." Akiza bluntly answered.

"Fair enough." Kallen lightly laughed. "I never wanted to admit that someone could live like that…without pride. But I guess to a mother, pride can be discarded like anything else. I won't be treating okaa-san like crap anyone. It was stupid to do so."

"See that you don't." Akiza huffed.

"Not to mention, I was really irked that you could easily accept everything about yourself…and it got you into a harem." Kallen added a side-eye to Naruto. "And with all the suffering going on-"

"Everyone is suffering, yes, but it's my life, imouto." Akiza stated bluntly. "Healthy life, healthy mind."

"It works wonders!" Naruto added.

"Duly noted." Kallen grumbled and looked away.

"Everyone suffers in the world, but it's out of our control and has nothing to do with us. The more you focus on yourself and those you love, the better." C.C. said offhandedly.

"What she said. Let's face it, we both can be dumb, but that's what they call live and learn, right? Opens up new experiences and everything. So, wanna continue being dumb together?"

"I can live with that. Hopefully I can find some happiness too…" Kallen shrugged with a quick glance at Naruto. "I think I see a coffee shop down there. Wanna go for a cup? It's been a long day."

"I am so down."

"...Seriously?" Claire suddenly said after a while she and the others moved closer to them. "That's it?! No 'I'm sorry?' Nothing?"

"Claire, we're sisters." Akiza replied, blinking.

"Yeah, this is pretty much as emotional as we're gonna get." Kallen added, pointing at herself and Akiza.

"Yeah, you all just witnessed, like, an entire lifetime's worth of prideless emotion in one minute."

"Heh, what was she expecting?"

"Beats me!"

"So, are they good?" Lucienne asked the others as Kallen and Akiza continued to tease Claire.

"I think they're as good as they're going to get." Nick drawled.

"Works for me!" Naruto declared, clapping his hands together, while Naruko let out a sigh of relief. "Now we can focus on more important things!"

"Like a group hug!" Naruko cheered, spreading her arms out. "Come on, dattebane!"

"Not everyone's here." Nick pointed out as he was dragged into it.

"Next time for them, now bring it in!" Naruto said as they all hugged around the Kozuki sisters.

"This is…an interesting feeling." C.C. mused, noting that Naruko was sneakingly coping a feel of her butt. "I could get used to this…"

The fog has lifted. Everyone was now truly on the same page.

*ring ring* *ring ring* *ring ring*

"The moment feels ruined." Naruto mused, putting an arm around a now blushing Kallen and answered his iDroid. "Nines?"

"If everything's cleared up on your end, bring everyone to R&D. I got a nice surprise for everyone."

---

[Uzu R&D]

"Anything on that jammer?" Naruto asked as he and the crew entered Nines' lab.

"Still working on that, but that's not why I called out here. Listen up! While we were working the last Refrain raid, our boys here on Uzu came through. We officially have the first shipment of our own custom Knightmare Frames and support units, including our first UG's!" Nines announced to the assembled crew.

"Hell yeah, about time! None of the Burai Glasgow knockoffs. Our buddies will have some real firepower of their own." Naruto said, punching his fist into his palm.

"And we can convert those outdated Burais into simulators for the FOBs!" Naruko added cheekily.

"Not only that, our friends from the Three Houses have sent us a pair of one-of-a-kind Knightmare Frames for our group to use." Nines produced a pair of USB keys and tossed them to the Kozuki sisters. "Who better to use them than our two newest Aces in the organization? Behold!"

The privacy curtain fell, revealing Kallen and Akiza's new specialized Knightmares, prompting everyone to look on in awe.

"Meet the Guren Nishiki and the Kokuren Nishiki!"

The Guren was 4.51 meters tall; had a red frame with an orange chestplate and cockpit sticking out of the back. The head was red and had a single sword-like horn pointing forward, along with a silver face and green eyes; it also had large Landspinners behind its legs. The most noticeable feature was its right arm, which bore a large, silver claw.

The Kokuren was 4.60 meters tall, with a black frame trimmed in crimson, along with a red chestplate and cockpit. Its head was completely black and shaped like a rhinoceros beetle, with yellow visor eyes, with large Landspinners behind its legs. The mech bore a set of oversized pauldrons, and sheathed on its back was a double-bladed halberd.

"Woah! Now this is metal!" Kallen said, enthralled by her new Knightmare.

"Incredible!" Akiza gushed, matching her key with Koukuen and placing her hand on it.

"Finally, Naruto…Naruko…" the twins turned to Nines, who grinned. "They're ready."

The privacy doors slide back to reveal the Rizer and the Autoria in their full, complete glory. Both looked even more sleeker, larger, and more powerful than they did before from the tron lines now installed on the frames.

"Oh, how I missed you, Artorias!" Naruko squealed, running over and hugging her Knightmare Frame.

"Thanks to all the intel we gathered by examining the Lancelot, the GN Drive was completed and fully tested. We already have them equipped on every Frame and UG large enough to use one. Britannia won't know what the hell hit it!"

Naruto brushed his hand over the Raiser, grinning as it responded with a low hum. "I am so looking forward to taking ol' Raiser here for a test drive!"

"Hey now, leave some for my Guren. You guys have us for a reason." Kallen chided him.

"Well, you guys are going to get your chance very soon. Euphy just sent us word that Cornellia is finally making her move against the Japanese Liberation Front. The target is their headquarters in the Narita Mountains."

"Narita? That's curious." Claire commented with a frown.

"How so?" Lucienne questioned. "It seems like the logical hiding spot to me."

"What can be logical can also be a detriment." C.C. countered, eying the Unmanned Gears at the side.

"It's a mountainous region and an obvious place to set up a resistance cell due to how isolated it is. It's why most of the resistance cells are underground in the ghetto, right?" Claire continued thoughtfully.

"Yes, and a region like Narita would not be easy to fall back to. Only those with plenty of resources like the JLF can get to and from there safely. Resources not everyone had…until now." Akiza said with a grin.

Nick smirked in amusement. "Something tells me that this won't be a rescue mission, however."

"Hell no. If anything, they're bait." Naruto said, looking directly at Kallen and Akiza. "They're old news and we're the new hotness. Cornelia will be too distracted making them pay for putting Euphy-chan in danger, she won't see us coming for another spanking."

"Damn straight. Nina and I are already cooking up a plan to really stick it to them," Nines told them with a thumbs up.

"In that case, let me get first crack at Suzaku and the Lancelot," Nick requested, thinking back to all his interactions with him. "Between the two of us, there's been enough talk."

Naruko nodded. "Of course, Samurai." she turned to Kallen and Akiza. "How about you, Kally?"

"The JLF failed to create any more miracles, and one of their own endangered our friends with his stunt at the hotel." Kallen replied with a dark glare. "They can rot."

"Strong words. Akiza?"

"...Fuck 'em. And guys?"

"Yeah love?" Naruto asked as Akiza let out a sigh.

"...Just call me Aki."

"There! That'll keep any intruders from coming into my studio again! Now then, let's see what he got…oh…

Oh?

Oh!

Oh ho ho ho ho ho!

I am so keeping this a secret!

Oh my poor, little Crimson Suns~

If anything goes how I project…another poor little innocent girl will be join the round table.

Ku ku ku, AHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Now queue that "Next time on Asura's Wrath!" music!

---

END OF CHAPTER 13

---

The mountains of Narita rumbles with chaos as the first major battle to decide Japan's future begins. Cornelia commences her attack on the Japan Liberation Front stronghold in Narita, determined to punish the JLF for their crimes. The Crimson Suns then join the fray to test their fighting force, and to show the world, that they're everything they warned Britannia that they were.

*KA-BOOOOOOOM!*

Naruto: WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!

Castle: That was us… Nuking our original Discord server from orbit.

Soul II: Fucking hell. The hackers are getting smarter. Be careful about those on your friends lists, even when you haven't talked in about a year…

Castle: All that effort we put into something, only for someone to snatch it all away. Well, better to destroy it by one's own hands rather than see it used for nefarious means.

NSG: Yeah…it fucking sucks to have your account snatched out from under you. I can speak from experience myself…

Lucienne: So, if Soul's account got hacked, how'd you guys nuke your server.

Castle: That would be our doing. Admittedly, the hacker was smart enough to remove the Admin from the server, but he didn't count on us Mods.

Soul II: Get fucked, jabroni! I will have my revenge!

---

Next time - Stage 14: The Clash at Narita

---

[References and Explanations]

Akiza was once like her canon counterpart in 5D's before growing up and maturing.

"Live or die, the choice is yours." - I should've watched SAW years ago. *wink wink*

Lucienne's newest trick that she'll want to try out…a bit of a hint there. Have fun guessing.

"No, no, she's got a point." - Knonk.

Nina will soon have her R2 appearance, except more hotness and less crazy.

Nero's "Defensive Act" comment is a reference to Oversimplified's The First Punic War video, where in Part 1, he describes Rome's expansion as a Defensive Act.

Article 8 from Spiral/SAW fits perfectly in the world of Code Geass.

I'm assuming that the past Japan in Code Geass is similar to real world Japan back in the day.

Naruto's Devil's Advocate question is inspired by Actually Satan's Hilter question.

Apparently in supplement materials for Code Geass, Kallen was a death seeker.

"I quit. I tried, I really tried." - Powerpuff Girls, Mojo Jojo

Naruto, Naruko, and Lucienne doing everything they can to avoid the Japanese war crimes topic is inspired by Mightykeef's EVO 2018 and EVO 2019 videos.

The world Nick was in previously was Kamen Rider Black Sun, where it made references to Unit 731.

"Rattle em boys!" Bones Malone and the Spooky Boys…and CLOWNS ROBBING BANKS WITH SPOONS.

Naruko saving Nines from the cartel member is from the first part of Red vs Blue S13E19.

"So uncouth…" - William Regal in All Elite Wrestling.

Claire/Ravel using the turret like a madwoman from Red vs Blue S01E09.

"BB, analysis!" - "Kowalski, analysis!"

The jamming device is Mute's unique gadget, the GC90 Signal Disruptor, all from Rainbow Six Siege.

The Nexus Underground is inspired by the Hollow Earth underground train system from Godzilla vs. Kong. This time it's electro-magnetic instead of gravity.

Akiza and Kallen burying the hatchet is inspired from Tifa and Yuufie making up in FF7 Abridged Episode 22; and Tucker and E-Church making up Red vs Blue S12E16.

Akiza's Knightmare has been decided. It is the MD-0064 Darlibalde from the latest Gundam series, Witch from Mercury. I'm planning a story, but it's gotten derailed from a discrepancy regarding the timeline and Suletta's age. The mech will have the same color scheme as the Black Rose Dragon.

Kokuren is Japanese for Black Lotus.

Akiza will now be known as Aki going forward.

---

[Kuril Islands]

On an island near Euro-Britannia, part of the territory that was once known as Russia, an unnatural fog was starting to set in. From afar, it would be nothing out of the ordinary, but soon, it'll be quite the mystery.

An experiment took place on the island by the Chinese Federation. As one of three dominant superpowers of the world, it looked to take Britannia's number one spot by any means necessary. To be less than number one was to be subservient, and that was something the Chinese Federation refused to be under.

To that end, they had unleashed a new weapon. One potentially more destructive than anything the world had ever seen. A weapon that would strike fear into the hearts of their enemies.

A weapon…not of this world.

And for the poor souls that would become accidentally shipwrecked onto the island, who would spot the glowing green eyes within the fog, it would be the last thing they would ever see…

---

Released: Monday, December 12, 2022 (Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!)