Hello readers and welcome to my new chapter. I'm glad that all of you liked the reactions to the first seven introduction. Hopefully, this will be just as good. The reactions to Kyoko's and 'Junko's' introduction were the most difficult. So, I hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Danganronpa.

Chapter 04: Watching the Prologue: Welcome to Despair Pt 4

Shaking his head, Makoto got himself out of his stupor and went onto the his next classmate, Kyoko Kirigiri. Makoto waited for the girl to say something, but there was only silence. Several seconds had past, and the awkward silence continued.

"Um, Kyoko, in an introduction, you introduce yourself." Leon pointed out dryly. "Even someone like Byakuya knows that."

Kyoko flushed and gave the baseball player a glare. "I know that Kuwata, thank you very much."

Finally, Makoto spoke. "Um….can I ask you name?" He asked hesitantly.

There was another moment of silence after that. But finally, Kyoko spoke. "My name is….Kyoko Kirigiri." After that, she went back into silence again.

"You really had a hard time interacting with us." Makoto chuckled, causing Kyoko to flushed.

"I never had any interactions with people my age before I got to Hope's Peak, so give me a break." Kyoko stated, looking a bit embarrassed. "I don't have your natural ability to get along with everybody around you."

Makoto blushed at that. "You're exaggerating about my 'natural ability'."

"Do I seem like someone who would exaggerate things?" Kyoko retorted. "You were the first one who managed to befriend me, and later helped me socialize with the others. Not to mention our other… more difficult classmates as well." Kyoko smiled. "Trust me, you're a natural at making friends."

Makoto blush grew bigger at this, but he held a smile on his face.

'She's pretty tight lipped, huh?' Makoto thought. Then another thought came to mind. 'Oh, but you know, her name didn't show up anywhere in that Hope's Peak Academy thread. And I did see students like me, ones who didn't have any real identity or presence. Could she be one of them….?'

Makoto shook his head. "You are too good at your job Kyoko." Makoto complimented. "To be able to keep your title and yourself out of the media is incredible."

Kyoko blushed and looked away. Despite being friends with Makoto for a while now, she still isn't used to his compliments. "I-It's nothing." Kyoko said. "A Kirigiri prides themselves in their skills."

"So, um….what are you doing at this school?" Makoto asked her hesitantly.

Makoto winced at how that sounded. More so when someone pointed it out. "Those were poor word choices Makoto." Taka told him.

The luckster smiled apologetically at Kyoko. "Sorry about that Kyoko."

The girl waved it off. "Don't worry. It isn't that big of a deal." Kyoko said. "Besides, I know you well enough that I know that wasn't your intent."

Kyoko stared at him. "What's that supposed to mean?" She asked.

Noticing his poor choice of words, he corrected himself. "No, I just meant…. getting invited here means you're some kind of 'ultimate', right? So what's your talent?"

She was silent again, looking away from him. When she spoke again, she sounded a bit defensive. "Why should I tell you?"

That surprised the others a bit, including Kyoko. "But I remember you telling me your talent when we first met." Makoto said in confusion. "Why doesn't your future self want to tell me?"

"That's what I'm wondering." Kyoko stated. "While I didn't like revealing my skills in the first place, it didn't matter all that much since I decided to reveal myself to Hope's Peak."

"Maybe it has something to do with the memory wipe?" Sakura suggested.

Kyoko thought about that. "Maybe, but I'm not sure about that. The memory wipe doesn't seem to have affected our personalities."

That startled Makoto a bit. "Huh?" He rubbed the back of his head. "Well….I guess you don't have to tell me."

"No, I don't have to tell you. So I'm not going to you." She said coldly.

That got a frown from Sayaka. "Your future self didn't have to rude about it." Sayaka said a bit angrily. "It's not he like he tried to push you into telling him."

Kyoko winced because she couldn't deny it. That was rude of her future self and despite the fact that it was her future self's words, she couldn't help but be embarrassed a little. After all, the future Kyoko is still HER.

Makoto, ever the pacifist, spoke up. "Calm down Sayaka, it's not that big of a deal." Makoto placated. "No use at getting upset for something that happens in another time, especially something so small."

Sayaka sighed, but didn't argue. Makoto is the type to forgive others easily, especially those he sees as a friend.

And knowing that Kyoko's feeling embarrassed, Makoto grabbed her hand, getting her attention. He smiled at her, silently saying not to worry about it.

That washed away the detective's embarrassment as she squeezed his hand in thanks.

'Nothing about her turned up online, so I was thinking she maybe got picked by chance like me, but….' Makoto examined her, seeing no facial emotions on her. 'Her face is like an iron mask. If she doesn't want to tell me anything, no point asking.'

"That's Kyoko for ya." Makoto agreed with his future self. "Don't say anything unless she wants to or know she needs to."

Kyoko smiled. That's what she likes about Makoto, his understanding nature and how well he reads people in first meetings. She then noticed that she's still holding Makoto's hand. She blushed a little at this, and quickly took her hands away.

She never really had physical contact with people, or let anyone touch her without her permission. So things like holding hands with her crush can easily fluster her.

Makoto then moved away from her and onto the next person, Junko Enoshima. "Hii! I'm Junko Enoshima! Charmed, I'm sure!"

Makoto narrowed his eyes at the Junko on screen, trying to figure out what's different. It didn't take him long to figure it out, and when he did, his eyes widened in recognition. A couple other eyes also lit up in recognition, mainly Byakuya's and Kyoko's.

"Wait a minute, that isn't Junko." Makoto stated, getting the group's attention. "That's Mukuro."

This shocked the rest of the class. "Seriously?" Taka questioned. "How can you be sure?"

"It's the freckles." Makoto answered. "Junko doesn't have freckles. But Mukuro does. If it wasn't for that, they would be exactly alike."

"There's also a difference in body size." Kyoko mentioned. "And a slight difference in the eyes' shape and color compared to Junko. The difference can be seen if you look more closely."

The others then took a closer look at the Junko on the screen, and began to see the differences. "Okay, I can see the difference." Leon agreed. He didn't dare mention Mukuro's assets. He doesn't have a death wish. "But why is Mukuro disguised as Junko in the first place?"

"Why not ask the girl herself?" Byakuya asked, looking at the Ultimate Soldier.

Mukuro shook her head. "I don't know myself, since this is in the future." Mukuro stated. "But if I had to guess, maybe my future felt that Junko was being targeted or something, and disguised herself to make sure she isn't harmed."

"And then Mukuro could beat the crap out of the creep!" Junko declared. She then got some glasses out of nowhere, and spoke in a teacher-like tone. "Too bad she didn't calculate the others getting targeted and her memories getting taken."

"So does that mean Junko is the only one who wasn't taken?" Celestia asked.

"Another mystery to add to the list of mysteries." Chihiro said.

'Anybody would recognize this one,' Makoto thought. The scene is then switched to the various magazines of Junko. 'She's got more charm and presence than any other high school girl in the country. She's the Ultimate Fashionista.'

Junko grinned and placed her hands over her heart. "Aww Makoto, I'm touched!" She teased. "If you want, I can arrange for you to get a front row seat for my next photo shoot!"

Makoto blushed scarlet red at that while several girls glared at the fashionista, including her sister. Junko giggled. It's so fun getting her female classmates angry.

'I've seen her in tons of magazines covers, but….' The scene is then switched back to the present Junko. "I feel that it doesn't match up to reality."

Mukuro frowned at that. "Are you saying that I'm not as pretty as my sister?" Mukuro asked. While she had been compared to her sister a lot, hearing it from Makoto was a bit painful.

"No, not at all!" Makoto quickly explained himself. "My future self is just seeing the difference between the covers and you disguised as Junko, that's all. Besides, you have your distinct beauty."

That surprise Mukuro. "R-Really?" She stammered.

Makoto nodded. "When you relax and let your guard down, you look….really cute. Cuter than most girls."

That caused Mukuro to blush madly and look away. "T-Thank you." Mukuro stuttered out, her cold demeanor melting instantly. Only Makoto and her sister were able to do something like that. She didn't notice the glares being sent in her direction.

Leon looked at Makoto enviously. How on earth does his friend pick up all the girls so easily? He even gets the colder ones, and he doesn't even know he's doing it!

"Huh?" Junko said in surprise. But then realization hit her eyes. "Oh, are you talking about my cover photos and junk?" She then grinned and gave a peace sign. "Ahaha, well of course! Those are totally photoshopped!"

"Photoshopped?"

"Yeah, you know - like edited to hell and back. With like, computers and junk." Junko explained.

"Oh, so they aren't real." Makoto said in a bit of surprised.

That caused Junko to frown. "Come on, don't act all surprised! You're gonna make me all depressed." She said. "It's totally normal these days to photoshop the crap out of cover photos."

"She's correct, but given the Ultimate Fashionista title, you would think she wouldn't need to be photoshopped." Hifumi stated. "After all, she's got that title for a reason."

"That's right. My beautiful little face." Junko stated, in her diva persona. "And my gorgeous looking bod." A few rolled their eyes at her bragging, but didn't disagree. Junko definitely earned the title of Ultimate Fashionista, especially since she can switch personas so easily whenever needed.

"If you're surprise by that, you'd be totally blown away by a certain dangerous little diva of ours." Junko continued. "They make the eyes and junk super big, and tweak the skin so it looks all ceramic and porcelain."

"Oh." Makoto said. Then he thought. 'So many dreams are getting crushed today….' These guys are definitely different from how others see them.

He then moved onto the next person, Mondo Owada. "Name's Mondo Owada. Nice to fuckin meetcha." Mondo introduced himself.

'Mondo Owada, huh? Which means,' The scene then switch to the army of bikers, with Mondo leading them. 'He's the current leader of the largest biker gang in Japan. He's earned respect, even awe, from every gang leader in the country. He's the Ultimate Biker Gang Leader….'

"Damn straight!" Mondo stated with a grin. "And let nobody forget it!"

"Being able to lead hundreds of those bikers is definitely incredible." Chihiro agreed. "Not many could be able to control that amount of people."

"It's not easy, let me tell you." The biker sighed. "Had to get people I trust to break up fights or make sure some don't take things too far. Good thing there were quite a few that my brother trusted….before he died."

Taka patted his friend's shoulder in comfort, knowing that it's hard for him to mention his deceased brother.

Makoto was silent, a bit nervous to say anything to the gang leader. "Umm," Makoto said before managing to get out a sentence. "Nice to meet you, too."

"Hell yeah." Was Mondo's response.

'I'd better be careful around him.' Makoto thought nervously. 'One wrong word and I could wake up at the bottom of the ocean….'

"You really thought I was that violent dude?" Mondo asked him.

Makoto chuckled sheepishly and rubbed his head. "Sorry Mondo, but to be fair, your appearance and demeanor didn't help much."

"Not to mention what happened to Chihiro's bullies and stalkers." Leon mentioned. "You've definitely got a temper in you."

Mondo rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, yeah." The biker sighed.

He quickly moved onto his next classmate, who looked even more threatening than Mondo, Sakura Ogami. "I am Sakura Ogami." Sakura stated simply.

Makoto opened his mouth to ask something before quickly closing it. 'Oh jeez, that was close. I almost asked her if she was a guy.' Makoto thought. 'The day I say something like that is the day I turn into a human meatball.'

Several of the students laughed while Makoto winced, smiling apologetically at Sakura. "Sorry Sakura."

The martial artist merely smiled in amusement. "It's fine." She stated. "You're not the first to think that I was a guy, and you probably won't be the last."

'But I remember now. She competed in a martial arts tournament and won, despite being a girl. She's the Ultimate Martial Artist. She's fought in over 400 matches and never lost a single one.'

"Definitely competing in the strongest out of the class." Leon commented. "The only one in here that could probably match against her is Mukuro."

"I admit, Mukuro is a worthy opponent to face." Sakura said. She then turned to Makoto. "By the way, what do you mean when you said 'despite being a girl'?"

Makoto stiffened and paled at Sakura's gaze. One wrong word and he's dead. "I-I don't mean it in a bad way Sakura!" Makoto hastily explained himself. "I know that some girls can be tough, but there aren't that many that are as strong as you! I meant it like that!"

Sakura stared at him a little longer, making the boy even more nervous. However, shortly after, she tore her eyes away him. "Very well, I will accept that. I know you are far too kind-hearted to mean anything of ill intent."

Makoto couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief, getting a giggle from Sayaka and a smirk from Kyoko. He dodged a huge bullet there.

'That thread also said a bit more about her.' Makoto thought. 'Some called her Ogre; some even think she's the closest known relative to the primates-the famed missing link.'

Sakura sighed in annoyance at that. "Where do people come up with such ludicrous theories?"

"Most likely the same place Yasuhiro comes up with his ridiculous theories." Celestia commented. "Because they are stupid, plain and simple."

"My theories aren't stupid!" Hiro protested. "They have at least a thirty percent chance at being correct! Besides, they might be right about that theory there!"

"It's no wonder he's still in high school." Byakuya grumbled under his breath.

'I remember a warning from one of threads. I think it was "Any incoming Hope's Peak students who are reading this, let me warn you right now. If you value your life, avoid her at all costs."'

Makoto took in Sakura's appearance. 'Standing in front of her now, I don't think they were exaggerating about that….'

"Sakura isn't violent!" Hina huffed. "She may look scary, but she doesn't have a temper like Mondo!" Then she realized what she said about her friend, and smiled sheepishly at her. "No offense Sakura."

"None taken Hina." Sakura reassured her. "I know my appearance can be frightening to others. That's probably the reason why they made that warning."

"It really goes to show that you can't judge a book by its cover." Makoto chuckled. "Though you can be frightening when one of us, especially Hina, gets hurt or harassed in some way." Sakura is protective of her friends, that's for sure.

Sakura then spoke up. "Hey, you."

"Huh? Y-Yes?!" Without knowing, Makoto stand up to attention. Saying nothing else, Sakura began to poke and prod at his body, confusing the boy.

"Um….what are you….?"

"Muscular quality and quantity is right around that of an extremely ordinary high school student." Sakura said in disappointment. "Hmph. What a shame. You aren't at all fit to be my training partner."

"It weirded me out when she started doing that to me as well." Leon sighed. "And I'm glad I'm not sparring with her."

"Which reminds me, how sparring with Mukuro?" Makoto asked the martial artist. Few months back, the luckster managed to convince Mukuro to spar with Sakura every now and then.

"Like I said before, she's a worthy opponent to be facing." Sakura said. "Her training and her time with Fenrir has served her well."

"I admit, Sakura is probably one of the toughest opponents I've faced." Mukuro admitted. The skills the both of them possessed eventually fostered into mutual respect towards one another.

'I'm not sure that's a shame for me.' Makoto deadpanned. The luckster then moved onto the next person, Byakuya Togami.

"Name's Byakuya Togami." Byakuya said shortly. He didn't say anything else afterwards.

"Hi, uh….nice to meet you." Makoto said. Byakuya still didn't say anything else. 'That's the most half-assed introduction I've ever heard.' Makoto thought with some annoyance.

"That's Byakuya for you." Hina sighed. "He did the same for the rest of us."

"Introductions are just introductions. No need for small talk." The Togami heir stated. "Especially in the situation our future selves are in."

"Still, your intro could've been better." Celestia commented.

Byakuya sighed. "I admit, I could've made some effort to greet you simpletons." He said. "But what's done is done, and it's a waste of time to even think about it."

"I-I thought master's g-greeting was c-cool." Toko muttered.

'But there isn't anything I could do about it.' Makoto thought in resignation. 'Even amongst the ultimate students, this one is special. Byakuya Togami….the heir to his family's massive financial conglomerate. He's already started managing business operations, and his own personal assets are, well, vast. His title of Ultimate Affluent Progeny is completely accurate. He's the definition of "exceptional". That's everything I learned about him in the Hope's Peak Academy thread online.'

Byakuya made a 'hmph' sound. "I don't need anyone telling me this." He stated haughtily. "I already know that I'm the very definition of exceptional."

Several rolled their eyes, especially Hina. "By the way, how big are your assets?" Hifumi asked him in curiousity.

"Big enough to make Sayaka's or Leon's look small in comparison." Was Byakuya's answer.

Makoto backed up that answer. "He's not exaggerating. I saw glimpses of his assets online, and they were a lot."

"We're done with introductions, right?" Byakuya questioned, jolting Makoto from his thoughts. "How much longer are you going to stand there? Go away. I'm sick of looking at you." His aura was similar to that of a king in training.

"I forgot how much of an asshole he was." Mondo groaned.

"You're acting like he changed at all." Hiro stated. "He's still a big jerk to all of us."

"He may still be a jerk, but he's our jerk now!" Hina stated cheerly.

Byakuya's eye twitched at that. Annoyances, all of them.

Quickly moving away, he went onto the next person, Yasuhiro Hagakure. "I'm Yasuhiro Hagakure-Hiro for short! Take it easy, yeah? I know I will!"

'Yasuhiro Hagakure, known as "Supernova" in the psychic community.' Makoto thought. 'The trend setting Ultimate Clairvoyant. Honestly, I don't really get this fortune telling stuff. It's pretty much beyond me. Still, I can't help but wonder if there's any truth to it.'

"There's truth in them!" Yasuhiro exclaimed defensively. "My fortunes are accurate thirty percent of the time! That's a higher chance than any other fortune teller!"

"I guess that's out of all the fortune tellers, he became the Ultimate Clairvoyant." Byakuya commented. "The others are even less accurate than he is."

"Ahh...okay, I give up." Hiro said, breaking Makoto out of his thoughts.

The boy looked at him in confusion. "Huh? What happened?"

"I saw it. I looked right at it." Hiro murmured. "Seriously, I totally saw it!"

"...Saw what?" Makoto hesitantly asked.

"A guardian angel with a crazy perm chasing after Bigfoot running off with a skyfish in its mouth." Hiro explained. "And that guardian angel….is YOUR guardian angel!"

…..

The group was silent for a moment, wondering if Hiro was okay in his head. "Where the hell do you come up with this shit?" Mondo questioned.

"I was just kidding about that!" Hiro stated in his defense. "Ask Makoto, I told him the same thing on the first day of school!"

Several eyes turned to the luckster. "Yeah, he was kidding about it." Makoto confirmed with a nod. "Said so himself."

Several 'ahhed' and nodded before going back to the screen.

Makoto stared at him, baffled at what the guy said. "Nah, I was just kidding." Hiro laughed it off. "But hey, we should grab some brewskis sometime and get real deep into Lemuria and its civilization."

"What?" Makoto said, both surprised and confused. "We're not allowed to drink! We're in high school!"

"Oh, I'm actually 21." Hiro casually replied. "I've been held back a few times you see, and….well, it's a long story."

"But still, you think that other students would be allowed to drink?" Byakuya questioned.

Hiro chuckled sheepishly. "I kinda forgot that most high schoolers are younger than me. And that there's very few who're twenty or over."

"V-Very few is c-correct." Toko mumbled.

'A few times?' Makoto thought in shock. 'Yeah, I bet that is a long story.'

"Wow, your thoughts are really snarky man." Hiro commented on. "I never hear you say anything of these things out loud."

"I don't think anyone did." Hina stated. "It's definitely surprising to see it."

Makoto chuckled and rubbed his head sheepishly. "Well, it can't be that surprising that there a few things I keep to myself." Makoto said sheepishly. "We all have thoughts that we keep in our minds, don't we?"

No one could argue with that. They all did have thoughts that they wouldn't reveal.

Shaking his head, he moved on to the last person to talk to, Celestia Ludenberg. "I do not think we have been introduced. I am Celestia Ludenberg." Celestia greeted politely.

"Celestia….Luden….huh?" Makoto couldn't pronounce the last part.

"Ludenberg." Celestia repeated. "It is my name. But if you don't mind, I would prefer you to call me Celeste."

That confused Makoto. "Um….you are Japanese, right?"

"Of course." Celeste confirmed. "Why do you ask?"

"If you don't mind….could you tell me your real name?" Makoto asked carefully.

That confused a few of the others. "So wait….Celestia isn't her real name?" Hina asked in surprise. Some rolled their eyes or shook their head at the oblivious swimmer.

"It is my real name." Celestia stated, her voice sounding polite, but forceful at the same time. "If you don't mind, why don't we go back to watching this?"

"Wait, but-"

"Hina, we can talk about it more later if you like." Makoto said before the Hina could continue. "But for now, how about we get back to watching this?" Hina was hesitant, but nodded. Celestia smiled at him gratefully for that.

Celestia giggled. "I don't know what you're talking about. Celestia Ludenberg is my real name. But as I mentioned, I would much rather you call me Celeste."

Makoto stayed silent at that. 'She's polite, but pretty forceful at the same time. I don't think she wants to say any more about it….'

Celestia giggled. "You are one of the very few who could pick up my mood like that. After all, you are very high in my list of C-ranks, and close to B-rank Makoto."

"Um….thank you?" Makoto said, not really understanding what that meant. Though some of the others suspected what the implications were, three of them being Kyoko, Mukuro, and Sayaka. The girls glared at the gambler.

'I guess the rumors in the thread were right about her.' Makoto sighed mentally. 'The self styled "Celestia Ludenberg", she's the Ultimate Gambler who's never lost a bet. Other than her obvious love of gothic lolita clothes, everything about her is wrapped in a veil of lies.'

'But I'm slowly unwrapping that veil.' Makoto thought to himself. After all, he's one of the few who found out Celeste's real name.

"It's more like an obsession than love." Leon stated. "We've never seen Celeste in anything else other than those goth clothing."

"Well, I don't see anything wrong with that. It's just something that she likes." Makoto said. "Besides, I think it suits her. It gives her a dark sense of beauty."

Celeste felt a tint of pink enter her cheeks from the compliment. But she cleared it up before anyone else could see it, and smiled at Makoto. "Thank you Makoto. That's very sweet of you to say."

'They say she entered and won an underground gambling tournament, earning the title of "Queen of Liars". She totally cleaned out the other players, taking their life savings and laughing as she did.'

"Yeah, that totally sounds like Celeste." Hiro sighed. "Polite on the outside, but brutal in the inside."

Slowly, Celeste turned towards him, a dark aura growing her. "What did you say about me Yasuhiro?" She asked politely, the dark aura growing bigger with every word.

Hiro yelped and moved his hands in front of him to defend himself. "Nothing! Nothing at all!"

"That's what I thought." The dark aura then disappeared, making Hiro sighed in relief. That's was a close one.

"I look forward to getting to know you better." Celestia stated, giggling at the end.

'That smile is beyond deceptive.' Makoto thought cautiously. 'I'd better watch myself around her….'

"That's smart of you Makoto." Byakuya stated with a nod. "Celeste is definitely someone you would need to watch your words with." Even he had to admit that Celeste is someone to keep a close eye on.

"Aw, don't worry. I don't plan on humiliating him." Celeste stated. "I have no need to, especially since he's my knight."

Makoto blushed a little at how that sounded while Hina, Kyoko, Mukuro, and Sayaka sent Celeste annoyed glares. The gambler merely smiled at them.

"Hmm, so it looks like all the introductions are done." Chihiro observed.

"So that's mean we'll be going back to the main part of the story!" Hifumi declared.

"And hopefully get some answers." Byakuya finished.

And that's the end. I hope you all liked this chapter, and that the reactions are still good. Now, we'll be moving on to the main story now, which is what many of you were probably been waiting for. By the way, when I end the prologue, should I show the opening of Danganronpa? If so, which one? The anime or the game? Review, favorite, and follow and I will see you later.