Summary: Don't look at me. Please don't look at me.

"Now, the first thing you need to know about fighting is that you should never do it." Naegi resisted the urge to chuckle at Fujisaki's earnest look of attention as he instructed the Programmer on how to properly wrap one's knuckles. He did accept the request to teach them how to get stronger, and rather than spend time brooding over Hagakure's ominous warnings and what to do about Enoshima, it was better to do something productive with his time. Was he running away from his problems? Probably. Was this terribly unhealthy considering his tendency to lapse into a spiral of self-destruction? Possibly. Did he care about the repercussions of continuing to repress his problems? Nah. Not in the slightest.

He shook his head slightly. "Anyway, where was I? Ah, right, the principle of not fighting. The main issue why people end up injured after training in the martial arts, or just in combat, is that they forget that the human body is really squishy."

"Squishy?" He watched Fujisaki mirror his movements as he went through a series of warm-up stretches, adjusting their posture whenever necessary. The question made him blink, before he proceeded to elaborate.

"Will a martial art help you in a fight? Maybe. Depends on who you're fighting, the context of the fight, who your opponent is…there are a lot of factors to consider. But most two-bit chumps go through a week's worth of lessons on Muay Thai, think they're invincible and promptly get stabbed in a back alley." This time, the Luckster couldn't hold back his laughter as Fujisaki turned white as a sheet. He patted them awkwardly on the arm before they continued.

"The thing a lot of people don't realise, especially if you don't do your research, is that the best way to win a fight is to just run away. Especially if you've only practiced kata without any form of randori . Sure, you can learn ten different ways to kick someone, but it doesn't really help you out if some guy with a knife is running at you and you freeze." He demonstrated by throwing a quick punch at the Programmer, watching their eyes widen as his fist came to a halt centimeters from their face.

"In that case," he could see the gears turning in their head, "it's less about learning how to fight, and more about learning the mentality of a fight?"

"Sorta." He handed Fujisaki a weight, caught it before it could hit the floor, then replaced it with something lighter. "Proper technique is always useful. You don't want to hit someone and break your fingers. Those take forever to heal. But you're also correct; in a fight, the worst possible thing you can do is freeze. Contrary to popular belief, most street fights are won before they even begin. If you can hit hard, hit fast and hit first, that'll guarantee your victory nine times out of ten. Which is why one of the first things we'll do while getting your fitness up to an acceptable level is training you out of your fear reflex."

The Programmer laughed nervously, already beginning to show signs of exertion as Naegi attempted a set of one-armed exercises. "That sounds…terrifying."

"Better learn it in a controlled environment than when you're fighting for your life." He hung off the pull-up bar with some difficulty, muscles twitching with the strain. "Habits you learn while under fire are tough to break, and often bite you in the ass later on." The Luckster shivered despite his increasing body temperature, banishing the unpleasant reminder to a corner of his mind that was beginning to get rather full. "Regardless, we'll start from the basics, and work our way up from there. Hopefully we won't need to do that."

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Fujisaki open their mouth to question that last statement, only to close it with a grim frown. Yep. Wordlessly, the two continued with their exercises, dodging the implications in favour of their training. Best not to think too much about it.

Naegi ignored the little voice in the back of his mind that pointed out, rather unhelpfully, that there was a very long list of things he was trying not to think about.

"Thank…you…for…the…lesson." Fujisaki attempted to string together a sentence while slumped bonelessly over a bench. He shrugged, opening his locker and passing a bottle of water to the Programmer. It never hurt to be prepared, even if it meant spending a couple nights squirrelling rations and water over the school. He wasn't going to be sleeping anyway. They nodded their thanks, taking several deep gulps before letting out a blissful sigh of relief.

"Normally I'd suggest doing this every day, but you're just starting out." Naegi grunted as he poured the last bit of water in his own bottle over his head (he was due for a shower anyway). "We'll alternate days, with a little leeway here and there in case something happens, or one of us happens to need a longer break than usual." Being stuck in a school-turned-prison had made him a little more lax with his schedule, but considering how many life-threatening events he had been through in the past week, it was best that he kept his reflexes sharp. Especially now that he was down one arm. That was a big weakness.

"Yeah…that works." The Programmer got to their feet with some difficulty. "Before you go…how bout…we use the bathhouse?" He tilted his head slightly, not really seeing the point before Fujisaki shot him a look. Mentally, he ran through the results of obsessively searching the first and second floor of the school time and time again, before nodding slowly.

"Just let me stop by my room for a change of clothes."

"So." He paused to make sure that he wasn't misremembering things, and there was not, in fact, a camera in this room. "What'cha got that you don't want the Mastermind to see, Fujisaki?" While there wasn't a lock or a door, he angled himself to make sure that he could see the entrance while also paying attention to the Programmer.

"Well—" they produced a key from a pocket, unlocking one of the lockers people normally placed their belongings in before using the onsen . "—remember that laptop you asked me to look at a while back?"

Naegi hummed his affirmation. With all the things that had gone on in the days between that request and now, he had nearly forgotten about that device. "Did you manage to get it working again?"

Fujisaki nodded, offering him an innocent grin. "It didn't take too long. The battery was broken, but that was easily fixed. Plus I had to break through the passcode but considering the OS of this thing is outdated all I had to do was switch it to safe mode—" They cut themself off, smile taking on a sheepish edge. "Sorry, I'm probably rambling about things you don't care about."

He waved a hand, brushing off their concerns. "It's always fun to learn new things."

"Right…long story short, I got the computer running again and found some encrypted files on it." They punctuated their sentence with a frown. "Normally I'd spend a week or so running through the more common ways to decrypt them, but then I realised whatever's on here might not be something the Mastermind wants us to find. So I took a gamble." A couple keystrokes, and the press of a button later, Fujisaki gestured for him to walk closer before turning the screen to face the Luckster.

"Meet Alter Ego." A digitised image of Fujisaki's face bobs up and down gently on the screen, disconcertingly identical to the boy sitting on the floor next to him. Naegi frowns, eyes flickering from the Programmer to their Alter Ego, but motions for them to continue. "I was working on a confidential AI project before we ended up in here…but considering the circumstances, I'm sure no one will mind."

"What does it do?" He doesn't like the way its eyes seem to follow him as he walks across the room.

"For now, it's learning. I've been feeding him information whenever I can, which is pretty difficult when I'm trying to keep him a secret from the rest of the class. I've instructed Alter Ego to work on decrypting the files."

"Efficient."

"I haven't been doing much since the beginning, especially since we're cut off from any sort of technology. This way at least, I can do my part."

Naegi grimaced. "This isn't a competition or anything, Fujisaki. But thank you for figuring this out."

The Programmer smiled shyly, shaking their head. "You say that, but I've seen you do reckless things in order to fight for us. Even at the beginning. Remember Togami-san? You may have been a little too violent in that confrontation, but you did it simply to stand up for me. And the thing with our secrets…" They sighed. "I can't do what you do. But I have my own Talent too. So let's keep doing our best."

He stood there silently, taking a moment to admire the quiet courage of the boy who thought himself the weakest among them. "How long until the files are finished?"

"Maybe a couple days?"

"We'll meet back here when it's done, then."

He spends a little too much time staring at the stacks upon stacks of dollar bills, lost in his thoughts. Most of the pieces were already in place, and now it was really just a waiting game. The Luckster took several deep breaths, fingers drumming away.

Part of the reason he wasn't already enacting his plan was the fact that he hadn't finished setting up. He still had a couple steps to go. But a bigger, much more important part of that reason was his own cowardice. A night had gone past after Naegi had moved the equipment he needed here, and he had justified his inaction with the excuse that Monokuma would've been on guard that first day post-motive reveal. But then he had spent an entire day-night cycle dealing with the most mundane of tasks. Talking to Fujisaki barely took up a morning. Investigating the files in the secret room, which he could do at any time. And then he allowed another cycle to pass. He shivered. For all his bluster and fury, Naegi Makoto was a complete mess. Even with everything planned out in his head, there was a good chance this wouldn't work. And he only got one shot at it. Failure meant that the Mastermind would keep an even closer eye on him. If he was really unfortunate, he'd be executed for his actions. It was one thing to fight for your life in the heat of the moment. It was a completely separate thing to stake your own life on a fool's gamble. It was like looking death in the face and daring it to blink.

His hands trembled. It was a good thing he was doing this in the middle of the night, because there were only so many excuses he could come up with to explain why exactly he was loitering in the gym like he actually wanted to do something with the money. Three days had passed since the latest motive had dropped. Well, technically the third day hadn't quite ended yet. That would occur in five minutes. Still, his inaction would have consequences. Each moment was another gamble, another roll of the dice, hoping against hope that no one had found a way to kill someone else while he hesitated. Tensions were building, people were running out of things to do and the clock was still ticking. And ticking. And ticking.

Closing his eyes, he pondered the nature of the situation. Was it arrogance, to think that it was up to him to keep everyone else alive? Despite the fact that it was his own self-imposed mission? Naegi Makoto was an ant among giants. He wasn't smarter. He wasn't stronger. Even his Talent had been more of a curse than a blessing. His fingers continued their tapping. Even the idea of saving everyone else had been conceived in a fit of blind rage, a line drawn in the sand in defiance of their unseen puppet master. Acid burned at the back of his throat.

Arrogance. Cowardice. Whatever complicated cluster of emotions he was dealing with right now was unimportant. Lives hung in the balance. People who were far more important than himself. If he was going to make a decision, he'd have to make it soon. Choose his side, and see it through. He laughed at himself. Wasn't that the point of standing against the Mastermind? Fine then. No more excuses. No more indecision. Dig two graves, and be ready to lie down in one of them. He was sick and tired of this constant internal back-and-forth. What did he have to lose?

Monokuma came to investigate two hours later. Naegi would know. He counted the minutes as they went by, sitting idly on the vaulting horse with several empty canisters lying around him. He was getting a little dizzy. Was it courage or just foolishness that forced him to his feet? Even he didn't know.

"Hello Naegi-kun~" The bear always managed to talk in the most annoying way possible. "Thinking about what'cha going to buy with all this moola?"

His lips twisted into a snarl as he walked forward, glaring down at their infuriating captor. Monokuma looked pleased, bouncing slightly on the spot. "What's wrong, my favourite student? Bear got your tongue?"

"Monokuma…" Naegi murmured, taking another step towards the animatronic. "Remember that first day?"

"How could I forget!?" The Principal giggled. "That exquisite taste of Despair intertwined with disbelief when you all finally realised this wasn't a prank or a hoax…and then when Maizono-chan stabbed you in the back just a couple days later!" It wiped away an imaginary tear. "Ah, good times."

The Luckster tilted his head. "Rule number five. Violence against headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited, as is destruction of surveillance cameras."

"Eh?" Monokuma pranced around him, scratching its head in confusion. "Did ya lose a couple marbles after everything that's happened? It wouldn't be too out of the question…a little boring though. Finally went bonkers?" It waved a hand in front of his eyes. "Helloooooooooooo? Anything in there?"

Without warning, Naegi lifted the bear up with both hands, squeezing as though he could strangle the life out of the robot. It shrieked, squirming in his grasp despite the grin on its face. "Violence against headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited! Violence against headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited!" The Luckster tightened his grasp, heart beating like a war drum in his chest as a high-pitched beeping began.

"Violence against headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited!" The beeping grew faster. "Violence against headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited!" Even faster. "Violence against—"

In a reflection of Owada's actions on day one, Naegi threw the bear at the pile of cash before shielding his eyes. This was going to hurt.

The explosion buffeted his body with shockwaves, and the sudden flash of light left him blinking spots from his eyes. With ringing ears, he began to laugh, a series of hysterical giggles that tore from his throat.

"You." A new Monokuma pounced on him, sending him tumbling to the ground. It raised sharp claws and without hesitation, grabbed his throat in the same way its predecessor did all those days ago, after the first Class Trial. "Do you have any idea what you've just done!?" He laughed in its face, only stopping when the grip started to become suffocating.

Using his good hand, the boy began to pull at the chokehold he was currently in, ignoring the way the blades sliced at his fingers. "I was wondering…" He wheezed, "why…you would…let me dump all that gasoline here. Then I realised…that there wasn't…a way to ignite it."

"Of course there wasn't!" Monokuma actually looked furious. "Why would I let you idiots burn down my school!?"

Naegi barked out another rattling laugh. "Originally…I was going…to…light something on fire…and bring it here. But that was…too…risky."

"...you played me." The bear loosened its grip enough for him to take in a desperate gulp of air.

"Like a goddamn fiddle."

"You…!" Monokuma slammed his head against the floor before releasing him, stomping on his chest like a toddler throwing a tantrum. "I tried to be nice! But you just insist on fighting me, huh Naegi-kun? What do you get out of this!? Argh!"

The Luckster grinned, face illuminated in the flickering firelight. "Absolutely. Fucking. Nothing."

"Oh you twisted child." Sighing theatrically, Monokuma shook its head. "You always find new ways to surprise me." It grinned. "How fun!"

"Still…" The bear leaned closer, red eye gleaming threateningly. "It seems like you're due some disciplinary measures. Don't worry. Papa Monokuma's gonna take care of that~" It wiggled its claws, placing one paw back onto his throat, while the other one hovered over his face.

"Hold still, Makoto-kun—" He watched grimly as five tiny knives inched closer to his face. "—wouldn't want you to lose an eye now~"

He wouldn't scream. He wouldn't scream. He wouldn't scream—