The mood in the basement feels too tense and suffocating as fourteen zombies sat on the chairs laid out by Kotaro. In the center of the line of seats, Kakyoin and Sakura sat left and right respectively while the others took their seats according to gender.
To recap who the girls are sitting next to Sakura, they are in order:
Saki Nikaido (Legendary Biker Boss), who is looking pretty impatient while sitting on her feet.
Ai Mizuno (Legendary Heisei Idol), who seems to be trying not to let this… odd situation get to her whirling mind.
Junko Konno (Legendary Showa Idol), who averts her shy eyes from anyone who may look at her
Yugiri (Legendary Courtesan), who is inhaling from a kiseru before blowing the smoke out of her mouth.
Lily Hoshikawa (Legendary Child Actress Prodigy), adjusting her hair decoration with a cute smile.
And lastly, Tae Yamada (Legendary TAE YAMADA!), who is busy chewing her hair bangs, thinking they are food.
As for the boys, sitting next from Kakyoin is:
Muhammad Avdol (Legendary Fortune Teller) sitting with arms folded.
Bruno Bucciarati (Legendary Caporegime) having his hands clasped on his lap and legs crossed while seemingly alert.
Narancia Ghirga (Legendary Soldato) yawning while slouched on his chair.
Johnny Joestar (Legendary Jockey) checking his nails with a frown. A cane can be seen besides his chair.
Gyro Zeppeli (Legendary Executioner) inspecting a green steel ball with a nod and smile.
And last but not the least, Rai Mamezuku (Legendary Plant Appraiser) holding and checking his right braid with analytical eyes.
Apart from Tae, everyone has become conscious thanks to the stimulation needed to awaken them. Now that they are conscious, Kakyoin and Sakura are wondering what will happen next. If there's one thing they hope will happen, it's that no one takes their revival as zombies too harshly, but this is wishful thinking given the heavy tension they feel from the others and in the air.
The dreary silence is interrupted by the sound of the door opening. As everyone sans Kakyoin, Sakura and Tae really want answers to this situation they found themselves woken up to, they turn their heads to Kotaro Tatsumi walking to the center of the basement.
Hands on his hips, he looks at every zombie on their seats before he announces, "Well, ladies and gentlemen! Congratulations on waking up!"
Expecting a reply, he sees no one is speaking up so Kotaro decides to approach one of them. He picks Junko out, who gets nervous when he gets close to her.
"I SAID CONGRATULATIONS!" He shouted to her face, making her wince from the volume. He then switched to Narancia, who looked at him with a frown. "AND YOU! CONGRATULATIONS AS WELL!"
"Yeah, yeah, we heard you clearly so quit shouting our ears off!" Narancia exclaimed back, acting like his fuse was about to be set off.
Satisfied, Kotaro returns to his position to flip the chalkboard and reveal something written on it:
｢Mysterious Idol Producer!｣
｢Kotaro Tatsumi!｣
"I am the mysterious idol producer, the amazing Kotaro Tatsumi!" He boisterously declared with his hands on his hips. "Just like what my profession states, you girls are all going to become idols to save Saga, guarded by these guys against anything that may harm you! And boom!" He flipped the board again to reveal a drawing of Kotaro giving a thumbs up and fourteen figures, likely the zombies, displayed on it and two writings that say 'Ultimate Idol Legends' and 'Extravagant Bodyguard Legends'. "We're going to use your legendary qualities to turn Saga into the talk of the NATIOOOOOON! ! ! !" He finished loudly and bombastically.
Except for Kakyoin, Sakura and Tae who keeps chewing her hair hungrily, everyone is utterly puzzled over what he's saying. Legendary qualities? Save Saga? What the hell is he talking about?
"Sooooo, like," Everyone turns to Saki Nikaido as she speaks in the rough tone of her voice. "I don't get any of this."
"Oh, what's the matter, Saki?" Kotaro walked to the blonde girl.
"So I died right...? How come I'm still alive?" She inquired, checking her arm that has a scar on it while clenching her hand to see.
"What? You seriously don't know?"
"HAH!?" She growled, offended by his response because she believes he's making a fool of her. "Use your head for a second! Like I said, I don't know how did I-"
"BECAUSE YOU'RE A ZOMBIE!" He told this fact right to her face. "You're a zombie, so you're up and about, obviously! What kind of human normally has a green-colored face?" He grabs her chin as he emphasizes the point to Saki's irritation
"…Actually, now that I looked closer to my skin, we may actually have blue skin instead of green." Kakyoin pointed out the perceived color difference.
"SO!? Listen up, all of you!" Kotaro exclaimed, standing up straight. "You all died and came back as zombies, and such creatures have no place in our modern society!" Banging a podium that is somehow in the room, he adds, "I'm offering you freaks a place to belong by turning you girls into idols and letting these guys protect you for your safety, so your dumbasses better appreciate it!"
"Oh, I do appreciate you returning me back to life… if my legs haven't gone useless again. Now I have to rely on this cane you gave me." Johnny responded sarcastically, looking at the cane he's holding with displeased eyes. When he found himself having difficulty standing up on his own and even walking normally, he interrogated Kotaro intensely under the belief he did something to him that led him to become almost a cripple again. The producer calmly states that he was crawling when he was unawakened and had difficulty standing or walking like the others were. To ease up his enmity to him, he gave him a cane instead of a wheelchair after seeing Johnny can use his legs to a limited degree. While it didn't erase any animosity to him due to being revived without his consent, he calmed down and accepted it.
Everyone has questions about why an almost paraplegic man is revived but seeing his sour attitude, they wisely keep it to themselves.
"I agree with him," Bucciarati concurred. "I was content in giving my life for the sake of a goal so to see myself return back to life as a zombie is sudden and unnecessary," He stares at Kotaro with a stern look. He's neither angry over his decision to revive him along with Narancia nor happy about it. Just... distressed if he finds it as an appropriate word to describe it. "Then again, this is not the first time I became an undead…" He lets out with a sigh.
"Huh? Not your first time?" Narancia repeated, turning to the former capo together with every zombie in surprise and curiosity. "What do you mean by that Bucciarati?" He believes Bucciarati died fighting against the Boss of Passione if he became a zombie, so what is he talking about?
"AAAAAANYWAY! BACK ON TOPIC IN HAND!" Kotaro bangs the podium and shouted fast to get their attention back. "If you zombies are going to save Saga, what are you going to need the most? Go ahead Sakura!"
Sitting in attention over him urging her to answer his question, Sakura thinks for a second before she answers, "Oh! Uh let's see… We… mustn't bite… peop-"
"IT'S TO 「NOT GET CAUGHT｣!"
Turning on his laptop, a video plays showing scenes of zombies getting killed, mutilated and ravaged by humans in gruesome ways, ranging from getting shot, sliced, punched and getting a grenade in their mouth before exploding, splattering the remains to the screen. Kotaro promptly turned the video off once it ended, then looked at the zombies. "There. As you can see, the zombies were obliterated and killed in many ways so let's do a good job working together as fellow zombie mates so no one finds out the truth," he stated to the zombies, who are all practically freaking out or unnerved over what they have watched, including the calm and collected Yugiri, Bucciarati, Johnny, Mamezuku and Kakyoin. This is especially true for poor Sakura, who appears traumatized over the thought of being killed like on the video if she's outed as a zombie. "Referring to yourselves with numbers and nicknames for you girls and boys respectively is part of that strategy."
"I get that we're zombies now," Ai decided to speak up to express her opinion over Kotaro's plan. Everyone's eyes are on her as she continues, "but I don't get why we and the other girls have to be idols."
"To ｢save Saga｣!" He reminded her with a straight face.
"Revitalizing a prefecture as local idols? In Saga?" She asked incredulously.
"What, are you scaaaaaared~?"
"Grrr!" She growled at his taunting reply before stating something the zombie girls, guys and Kotaro should know. "It's obviously not going to work! Looking like this and trying to save Saga... And I'm not even from Saga!"
Kotaro shakes his head. "Saga doesn't sweat the details, even if you don't know a damn thing about it!"
"Hey, I know everything about Saga!" Ai insisted.
"Why don't you tell me what you knoooow~?" He taunted her.
Annoyed by his taunt, she answers, "It's…in ｢Kyushu｣!"
"Oh, very impressive~! That was super good, Ai-chan~!" He complimented her while not passing the opportunity to add a dose of sarcasm.
"Well, what exactly do you know about Saga then?!" She turned his question back to him after getting riled up over his taunts.
"I know everything! Everything there is to know!" He claimed.
"What is Saga's population then?"
"I know that down to the tiniest decimal!"
"Well, go on."
She waited a few seconds for Kotaro to answer, who meekly states, in a hesitant tone, "It's…small."
"…Huh?"
"It's on the smaller side."
"But specifically-"
"WHO THE HELL KNOWS, STUPID?!" He suddenly shouted, surprising Ai, Sakura and the others as he types on the laptop aggressively, exclaiming, "YOU WANNA KNOW STATS? LOOK IT UP ON WIKIPEDIA! OR IS THAT WHAT YOU THINK?! YOU THINK I'M WIKIPEDIA?! NOPE, NOPE! I'M THE GUY WHO'S GONNA MAKE YOU GIRLS INTO IDOLS, AND THAT IS ME, KOTARO-SAMAAAAAA! ! ! ! !" After his shouting fit, he said the next sentences in a calmer tone. "I know you girls, and I know that you will send shockwaves through society as Saga's idols. The first step for that occurs ｢tomorrow｣ at Saga Castle when you participate in the Shachi-no-mon Public Concert."
"This is clearly not going to work…" Ai muttered under her breath.
"It's going to be!" He heard her say it. "You just have to pull it off like yesterday's show. You just have the entire house jumping! Isn't that right, Sakura?"
"Huh? Oh. W-well… Sorta…?" stammered Sakura as the attention is on her again. Earlier, the girls were made aware from Kotaro and Kakyoin that they have their first performance in the Geils Live House. They claim they don't remember performing despite Sakura knowing about last night's event. Kakyoin guessed this is probably because they were unawakened at that time. This could include Tae though whether she knows it or not is a different matter and topic for another time.
At this point, the zombie guys aside Kakyoin are wondering what's their place here. They heard from Kotaro that he's going to turn the zombie girls into idols, but what about them? What is their role in all of this? They heard him say something about them being bodyguards for the girls so…
"Mr. Tatsumi, may I ask you a question?" Avdol spoke up.
"What is it? Fire your question away," Kotaro permitted him to ask.
Glancing at Kakyoin and the zombie guys, the fortune teller asks, "What exactly are Kakyoin, the others and I are here for? I heard you mention us protecting the girls from harm, but can you be more specific about the reason for our revival?"
"Yeah. It's about time you fess up cazzone," Narancia agreed with Avdol as he leaned backward on his seat. "The zombie girls are to become idols under your direction, but what about guys like us? What do we exactly need to do to 'protect' these pretty girls?"
Instead of answering them immediately, his eyes turn to Kakyoin and say, "Kakyoin, would you be nice to answer for your teammates?"
"Huh? Why me?" Kakyoin replied.
"Well, I told you about the purpose behind your and these guys' resurrection," he provided a reason. "Not to mention, I'm not an expert in your kind of work despite personally seeing all of you rotting zombies under my watch. After all, you have something that I cannot see. At least these guys will have the surprise of their undead lives when they see the reason why they are here with me and the girls."
"…You have a point but… Wouldn't it be easier for you to-"
"JUST SHOW THEM ALREADY, KAKYOIN!"
Flinching from his sudden shouting born from impatience, Kakyoin glared at Kotaro briefly before he moves up and stands next to Kotaro. Seeing everyone, including Tae, have their eyes on him, Kakyoin says, "Everyone, the reason why Tatsumi-san wants me and the other guys to protect you girls… is because of this."
Striking a pose, Kakyoin shouts out his Stand's name with gusto.
"Hierophant Green!"
Kakyoin's Stand emerges from the user's body in its humanoid form, revealing the reason for the guys being assigned as the idol's bodyguards.
As Kotaro and Kakyoin predicted, the Stand Users except Sakura are surprised to see Hierophant Green summoned by Kakyoin. Judging from their own reactions, it didn't take long for them to realize all the guys are Stand Users too.
"Holy shit… You have a Stand!?" Narancia exclaimed with mouth agape, summing up every user's thought.
"Correct. Kotaro told me that all of you are Stand Users," Kakyoin responded with a smile after seeing their reaction. "If we were to save Saga and protect these girls, we must use our Stands to protect them and fight against any threats that will come to us. And if I'm being honest, aside from Avdol, I'm curious what your Stands are. I'm aware we only know each other not even an hour at most, but my sincere hope is that we get along with each other as fellow comrades."
The guys have gotten their answer over the reason they are resurrected, but they didn't expect Kotaro to revive them all together as a group of Stand Users. Now they see why they are assigned as the girls' bodyguards.
Speaking of the girls…
"Oi! Hope ya didn't forget us or are you too busy being surprised over nothing?"
The zombie guys and Sakura turn to Saki looking at them with curious eyes and one eyebrow raised, which is shared by the other girls except Tae. "What are y'all gawkin' at Kakyoin for? Is there somethin' we ain't seein'? 'Cause I sure don't get what caused you guys to be wide-eyed over."
Reminding himself about how normal people can't see Stands, Kakyoin was about to answer them when Sakura beat him to it. "It's like what Tatsumi-san said. Kakyoin and the guys have something that allows them to use extraordinary abilities. It's a physical projection of their will and strength that allows them to use extraordinary abilities. As Narancia-san said, they are called ｢Stands｣."
"…Stands huh," The former biker gang leader eyed her suspiciously before turning to Kakyoin to question him about it. "If you have these 'Stands', why can't I see them?"
"Only Stand Users can see other Stands. While I believe object-based Stands can be seen by normal people, most Stands and their abilities are invisible to others aside from other users. If you can't see Hierophant Green floating to my side while the others can, you are not Stand Users," he answered. "That being said, Sakura can see a Stand for some reason despite currently not having one."
"Oh? Is that true, Sakura?" Avdol, having known Stands his whole life, asked Sakura. Everyone has their eyes on her for the third time as the red-haired girl answers affirmatively.
"Yes. I can see Stands. If I can see it clearly, then it's possible I may have the potential to wield one."
Feeling miffed over the "invisible to normal humans" thing, Lily dejectedly says, "Awwwww… So I cannot see Stands because we are not potential users?"
"YOU CAAAAN'T!" shouted Kotaro, standing over the girls except Sakura and telling them one fact they should know. "All of you girls can't see his Stand so it means you six are not Stand Users! The only one among you decaying girls who can see one is Sakura-chan! Whether you want one or not, just remember that you girls are idols first and foremost so don't obsess over the idea of having a Stand!"
While Kotaro is shouting to the girls, Bucciarati stares at Kakyoin curiously. He is wondering how effective Hierophant Green is in a fight, so he asks, "Kakyoin, if I may inquire, what does your Hierophant Green do?"
Noticing his curious staring, Kakyoin asks, "You wish to know, Bucciarati-san?"
"If you don't mind, that is."
Kotaro suddenly cleared his throat, cutting off Kakyoin's response to Bruno, "In case you forgot, we're currently in a meeting so I would advise you to keep that question to yourself after the meeting. Can you do that, mister Bruno?"
"…Well alright." As Kakyoin returned to his seat, Bucciarati asked the next question as he looked at Kotaro with the same gaze. "Now that we know seven of us have Stands, with Sakura potentially gaining her own, do you intend to lead us, signor Tatsumi? If so, do you have a Stand then?"
"No, I don't have a Stand. As such, I can't lead seven of you boys as my concern lies with turning the girls into idols. Do not worry however, as all of you are under my watch so you don't have anything to worry about if you follow every word I say," answered Kotaro "In fact, if I were to choose one to lead you decaying boys, it would beeeeeeee…" Moving his head while slouching, he pointed one finger to a certain zombie he believes to be the one leading their group. "YOU! BUCCIARATI!"
"Huh? Me?" He blinked twice upon hearing he's suggested as a leader. "Why do you pick me as a leader?"
"Don't play dumb with me!" He continued as he provides a reason why he's chosen as a leader. "You used to be the leader of your team, right? I heard of what you're capable of as a leader and expert Stand User so I see it fitting you must lead the guys to protect the girls and save Saga! Isn't that right, Narancia-kun?"
"…Huh? Oh! Yeah! I believe Bucciarati is suited to be the leader of our group! He is smart, tough, charismatic and determined to follow his beliefs and even cared for me enough to put me in the hospital! He may be a gangster, but believe me when I say Bucciarati is everything I wanted to see as a hero!" Narancia vouched for Bucciarati happily, knowing from experience how well the former capo led his team.
"You… praise me too much Narancia, but… I'm happy to hear it from you," he humbly downplays what he contributed to his former group back when he was still alive and working for Passione, but he doesn't dare hide a smile on his face. "As for being a leader of a new group, I… I'll think about it," he answered, sounding hesitant about his new role as an undead. As much as he wants to, he needs to think more before he can lead Narancia and the guys because he's unsure if being revived as zombies is beneficial or not. Currently, he's having a little bit of a crisis regarding his place here as a zombie, not that everyone in the room knows due to hiding it for the time being.
Though finding his answer slightly unexpected, Kotaro and Narancia accept his reply and drop the subject instantly as it ends. "Well, any more questions? Come on, anyone speak up if you have one," he said, wanting to finish the meeting. Gyro took this opportunity to clarify something.
"If you said we're under your watch, I assume me, Johnny and everyone are fine staying here?"
"Of course! All of you, as well as the girls, have nowhere to come back to. Why should I let you all run free out there when you're all zombies and far from your home!?" Kotaro yelled it as if it's an obvious thing. "In fact, you, Johnny and Mamezuku are pretty much faaaaaar from your home..."
Wondering why he phrased it like that, Mamezuku asks, "What do you mean the three of us are far from our home?"
"Isn't it obvious? We died many years ago and I'm from another country. Besides, there's a possibility that our home might not be the same as we remembered them," Johnny pointed out, not finding Kotaro's statement odd at first.
"I don't mean that, Johnny-san. It's just, the way he says it seems… odd and specific," He responded before turning to Kotaro and added, "Well? Can you elaborate on that?"
"…"
"…"
"…Fine. You wanna know so badly?" Kotaro leaned closer to the three.
"Well… Sure. Tell us already."
Under Gyro's answer, Kotaro stands up straight and proceeds to reveal one key aspect about Johnny, Gyro and Mamezuku. "OKAY! There's a reason why I see you three as… ｢peculiar｣ among you rotting zombies…" Hearing him cause Sakura and Kakyoin to sit up straight, particularly remembering their introduction as narrated by Kotaro.
"Is he gonna reveal the reason why they're 'not around here originally'?" Sakura whispered to Kakyoin.
"Appears so." replied Kakyoin.
"The reason why Johnny Joestar, Gyro Zeppeli and Rai Mamezuku are far from their homes is becaaaaaaaauuuuuuuuuuse…! They're plucked from an ｢alternate universe｣!"
…
…
…
"…I-I'm sorry. They're from what…?" asked Sakura.
"They're from an alternate universe! Or world. Or reality. Or a different universe, if you prefer that term…" clarified Kotaro.
…
…
"WHAAATTTT!?"
Kotaro's answer didn't fail to surprise every (awakened) zombie. For understandable reason, everyone, especially Johnny, Gyro and Mamezuku, must contend with the fact that the three are from an alternate universe.
Meaning, they're in an unfamiliar reality compared to the world they knew.
As such, they literally cannot go back home again.
Their reactions are deafening but expected.
"Alternate universe? Are you for real?" Ai questioned with more incredulity.
"That… That sounds like fantasy…" Junko agreed.
"I couldn't imagine the day would come that I would learn about this 'alternate world' concept," That was Yugiri speaking.
"Lily's head is really spinning from what she's hearing..."
"Well… This is a surprise," Avdol similarly expressed.
"Ooookaaay… I must be still dreaming. Alternate universe? I thought this is reality, not fantasy," Narancia pinched himself to see if he's in a dream.
"Oh great. Can't believe an alternate universe would haunt me again even after Valentine is killed," Johnny stated derisively.
"Well, it did come back to haunt us again Johnny, but I have a feeling it's gonna be interesting experiencing an entirely new reality... provided we don't meet our other selves, hopefully." Gyro is cautiously optimistic compared to Johnny.
"…This day just keeps on giving." Mamezuku stated, trying to look nonchalant despite being surprised after learning he's in another reality.
Once everyone has calmed down, even if some of them remain skeptical, it appears the zombies are satisfied with what they heard. Regardless of how unbelievable and surprising the answers are, they just accept it and don't think it too hard.
There's one thing Kakyoin wants to ask though, regarding how Kotaro got their corpses when they're from a different world. "If I may ask Tatsumi-san, how did you get their bodies? You don't have a Stand so... how exactly you did it when they're from another reality?"
"I received ｢help｣ from a ｢Stand User｣."
"A… Stand User?"
"Yup. A ｢Stand User｣ helped me," Kotaro answered. "And before you go worrying your heads off, the Stand User is not the enemy! He's responsible for bringing you seven boys here for me to resurrect and even assisted me a little, like bringing your belongings, many makeups and even a new addition for the van to accommodate the number of zombies and prevent the van from overloading! Also, he told me everything about Stands, the history of you seven, the three of you hailing from another reality and warning me about the enemy Stands that will ravage not only Saga but the soon-to-be idols once the project is underway. If I were to describe him, I'd say he's an… ｢interesting｣ individual!"
"…I see." Kakyoin stated, somewhat relieved that the Stand User that helped Kotaro is not the enemy. "Who is this Stand User then?"
"…Well, that's the thing… I ｢can't remember｣," he shrugged.
"You can't remember?" Avdol parroted.
"Yes! No matter how hard I try, I can't remember just who exactly the Stand User helped me. That includes his ｢ability｣."
"But you remember him helping you, right?" Bucciarati inquired.
"Of course I do."
"If I were to guess, his ability has something to do with dimensions, right?" Johnny asked.
"…Maybe. Maybe not."
"If he's a Stand User, can't he deal with the enemy Stands here in Saga?" Mamezuku inquired, finding it odd that seven of them were appointed to be the ones for the job.
"He stated and ｢insisted｣ you seven will fight against them. Don't know why he's insistent on it but he wouldn't budge and tell the reason why."
"For someone who can't seem to remember, you say too much about this Stand User that helped you before all of this," stated Ai.
"Hey! I'm not lying when I say I can't remember him! It is odd, don't get me wrong, but what can I do when my memory fails to make me remember? It's like some phenomenon is preventing me from remembering him!"
Silence rings in the air as the fourteen zombies process what they learned from the mysterious and obnoxious producer: the zombie girls are to be made into idols to save Saga under Kotaro's management, the zombie guys are Stand Users who will protect the girls and Saga from enemy Stands, Johnny, Gyro and Rai are plucked from an alternate universe after their deaths and an unknown Stand User warned Kotaro of the impeding Stand threat before bringing him corpses of the zombie guys to be revived by him.
With all the bizarre things they heard, it's a surprise they take it well and never question it. This is especially true for the seven girls who are forced to accept Stands and alternate universes exist thanks to the zombie guys' presence in just one day.
Even then, resurrecting zombie girls to become idol singers? They still need time (or not) to accept it because it sounds ridiculous and insane.
"In any case… It's about time you girls start preparing for the performance tomorrow!" Banging the board with his open hand, Kotaro exclaims, "NOW! Let's get cracking on those lessons!"
"Yosh! Yosh! Yosh! Yosh! OKAY!"
Kotaro repeats many times as he demonstrates dance moves to Sakura. The redhead obediently follows his movements, facing the mirror to better track their movements.
Currently, Sakura and the girls are in a shed outside the mansion to practice for tomorrow's performance. With Kotaro as a guide, Sakura follows his moves intently. With the performance slated to be tomorrow, Sakura makes sure she gets the dance moves down. If there are mistakes in their steps, they will rectify it.
While she's practicing just fine, the same couldn't be said for the other girls.
Directing her eyes, Sakura sees the girls are not training with her and instead, ignores them and goes off doing something else: Lily is stretching her cheek while facing the mirror to widen her smile, Saki is dozing off, Junko loiters near the wall, Tae moves on the floor with her legs while lying and bites Junko's legs, prompting her to tell her to stop biting her, Yugiri continues smoking with her kiseru and Ai is sitting opposite of Sakura while her eyes are seemingly focused on her.
Naturally, Sakura is worried that everyone is not training, especially when they may not be able to pull off the performance tomorrow at this rate. She wanted to motivate them but right now, she's focused on training with Kotaro.
Meanwhile, Kakyoin and the boys are also in the shed because they have nothing better to do other than watching the girls, or Sakura as she's the only one, practice.
Sitting sideways opposite of the girls, Bucciarati, Narancia, Johnny and Gyro watch the red-haired girl practice under Kotaro's exuberant guidance. Sitting on the floor with hands on his chin, Narancia asks, "Bucciarati, what do you think idols do? Do they dance?"
"If Sakura is practicing moving her body and memorizing it, it is likely Narancia," He replied, who is standing between Narancia and Johnny. "And if I were to guess, perhaps there is singing involved."
"So basically, that's what idols do? Singing and dancing?" Johnny said, having come from a time when idols didn't exist yet.
"It could be, but I'm willing to bet it's gonna be fun watching them sing and dance," Gyro expressed his interest and curiosity.
The four didn't speak for five seconds before Gyro turned to his friend and said, "So, Johnny... Can't believe we're together again, huh? Revived as zombies many years from our time, in a different reality... I'm surprised I am not questioning the concept of a dead person becoming alive seriously."
"Yeah... This all feels so surreal," Johnny replied truthfully. "As much as I'm miffed about becoming a zombie and having to use a cane to assist myself, which is not too different from when I have to use a wheelchair, just being together with you is more than enough for me to tolerate it."
"...You must have missed me a lot when I died." Gyro was aware he died before Johnny's eyes when he stated that. He has every reason to believe Johnny is devastated of his death.
"Why shouldn't I be? I saw you die before my eyes and even if ten years have passed, I long for your presence just for once. And if I remember correctly, I kept a steel ball in me as a reminder of our friendship..."
"Oh? And where is the steel ball now?"
"I don't have it in me. Perhaps Kotaro has it. I better remember to ask where he put the steel ball and hope he didn't lose it..."
Hearing some distress in his voice, Gyro crouches to his height and pats his shoulder to comfort him, stating, "Cheer up Johnny. I'm sure he must have kept it considering he knows you well. Besides, I'm here now so don't go worrying yourself out." His words managed to lighten him up, even a little, as evident by his smile.
"I have no intention doing that, but thanks."
Listening to their conversation just now, Bucciarati and Narancia share Johnny's sentiment. Never in their entire (undead?) lives have the two get together again as zombies. While it's possible they won't see Giorno and the others again to keep their identity a secret, at least they take comfort over their presence here. For Bucciarati, it feels comforting to see Narancia again after he died in Giorno's body. It makes the fact that he's a zombie bearable due to his presence, like how Johnny felt with Gyro around.
Off to their side, Avdol and Kakyoin are having their own conversation regarding how they died.
"Huh? What do you mean it's impossible for you to be revived?" Kakyoin inquired, surprised Avdol makes a bold statement relating to their revival.
Closing his eyes in thought, Avdol says, "When I was with Polnareff and Iggy, we were navigating DIO's mansion using my Stand's Life Detector and Iggy's sense of smell to detect any enemies we may face. After disposing a minion who created a maze for us to get lost in, I spotted a writing on a pillar. Alarmed, I turned around and saw a Stand manifesting as a void. The two were unaware of its presence so without hesitation, I pushed them out of the way and after that...nothing."
"...Nothing?"
"Yes. ｢Nothing｣. I believe that was when I died, possibly disintegrated into nothingness after sacrificing my life for their sakes." He opens his eyes and takes a deep breath to calm himself over remembering his death before continuing, "The fact that I may have disintegrated makes me think that it's impossible I can't be revived if my body is gone."
"...I see." Kakyoin mutters, now understanding his words and learning his death. Shivers run down his spine as he imagined how likely abrupt his death is, but he shakes the scenario out of his head. "Now that you said it, it is weird you're revived despite your body being gone. Kotaro wouldn't be able to resurrect you as zombie, unless..."
"It's the work of the Stand," Avdol guessed, referring to the unknown Stand User who helped Kotaro. "If this user managed to bring me back to the living, I believe its Stand is quite powerful."
"If it is, then I hope the user is not our enemy." Even though Kotaro assured them that the user had helped him, Kakyoin can't help but worry after guessing it's the work of a Stand. If he forgot who the user is and its Stand ability, then there's no doubt something is in the works that Kotaro is unaware of.
"So Kakyoin," He heard his name coming from the fortune teller's mouth. "How did you die? I assume you died while you're fighting against DIO after my untimely demise."
"Yeah... Your guess is correct..."
As Kakyoin revealed to Avdol how he died, Mamezuku is off to the side listening to them. Unlike the six where they stand by them because they knew each other, there's no one he recognized and as such, he's basically a stranger to them, thereby compelling him to stand away from them and let him be by his lonesome. While he likes being alone, he knows he's going to work with them sooner or later and sees no other way around aside from staying with the other zombies and using his Stand for protection. He also has nowhere to come back to because he's a zombie and in a different world entirely. Even if he suspects Morioh does exist in this world, he is sure it's gonna be different from the Morioh he knows.
With all of that in mind, Mamezuku can't help but feel a little queasy and worried if he's gonna fare well here as a zombie. He analyzed that he will be safe if he's with the others but making friends with anyone here is probably harder for him because of his antisocial nature.
Putting his worries aside for now, Mamezuku notices Ai has been staring at Sakura for a while. He only knows so much about idols at surface level, but he can hazard a guess on her intentions of inspecting the girl.
He's not the only one as Sakura noticed her calculating stare the entire time, making her wonder what Ai is thinking. Is she watching her movements and seeing if she has what it takes to be an idol?
Ignoring her for now, Sakura continues following Kotaro's moves while everyone stands idly by as they wait for time to pass.
Kakyoin and Sakura, who are in pajamas, put down two futons on the ground next to a row of futons to be used for sleeping. There are fourteen futons in total and seven of them are placed in two sets in a straight line according to gender.
In the living room counting as their bedroom, the twelve zombies are off doing their own thing while the two are busy placing the futons for them to sleep in provided by Kotaro, including the night clothes that they're currently wearing (except for Mamezuku, who insists he keep wearing his current outfit except his hat). Among them, Tae chases Junko, who tries to lose her by circling around Lily and Gyro reading a book about heavy machinery, Narancia attempts to stop Tae out of concern for Junko, Yugiri combs her hair while looking at the mirror, Johnny, who removed his knit cap exposing his shoulder-length hair, waits for her to finish, Bucciarati chatting with Avdol and Mamezuku about how they feel about their new undead life as bodyguards for the girls and lastly, Ai sits on a couch while holding a pillow close to her face. When they turn to her, she hugs it tightly, partially hiding her face while averting her eyes.
"...Ai-chan was an idol, wasn't she?" Sakura reminded.
"Yes. She's called the Legendary Heisei Idol by Kotaro so she must be." Kakyoin confirmed. "...You're curious of her, Sakura?"
"I am," Nodding, she continues looking at Ai as she says, "I know I've seen her somewhere before..."
"Really? Hmm, perhaps she's in the vision you told me about this morning."
"It could be. I just have to ask her and-"
"Oi."
Turning around when someone speaks to them, the two see Saki, who's the only one not in pajamas, crouched to their level. She ignores Kakyoin and has her eyes focused on staring Sakura down. "You're Sakura-chan, right?" She asked bluntly.
"Y-Yes. That's my name," She answered nervously, trying to keep a cool head while looking at the former biker gang leader.
"Where you from?"
"Huh?"
"I'm asking you what middle school you went to!" She leaned closer as she clarified what she's asking in an angry tone.
"Uh, well... I don't remember anything..." She truthfully stated.
Unsatisfied, she stands up and warns Sakura with a glare and scowl. "You screw with me and I'll kill you. Got it?"
"I-It's true...! I d-don't remember a-anything from b-before I-I became a z-z-zombie!" She insisted while trembling from fear.
"Then remember it! Make yourself remember!" Saki prodded. As Sakura is getting close to freaking out, Kakyoin stands up and puts his hand on Saki's shoulder as he says, "Nikaido-san, please don't try to make her uncomfortable. If she says she can't remember it, then stop forcing her."
"Hmph!" Pushing his hand off, she exclaims to him, "What about you? You remember anything before you became a zombie?"
"For your information, I do," He replied, folding his arms as he stares back. "You want me to tell my life story?"
"Nah. Keep it to yourself. Besides, there's something important here I'm gonna ask you two."
"And what's that?"
Crouching to Sakura to glare at her again, she asks, "Why the hell are you two taking this seriously? Are you two too dense or what, huh!? You want to get POUNDED?!"
"Not exactly..." Sakura responded. "It's just... We have a show to do so..."
"And enemy Stands to worry about." Kakyoin added.
"We oughta do a rally."
Sakura and Kakyoin looked surprised at what Saki suggested. As if their imagination is kicking in, Saki is suddenly surrounded by biker girls all wearing a pink biker suit and helmet.
バーン!
"SHAAAA!" She shouted for added effect.
"...You know you can't do that," Kakyoin pointed out. "You're a zombie remember? How can you rally when we're not trying to expose ourselves as zombies?"
Glaring at him, Saki sighs as she puts a hand on her forehead, mumbling something about how her Tamagotchi is dead before leaving the two on their own. Relieved she left, Sakura put her face on the pillow and clutched it with her hands. "*sighs* That was so scary..."
"She's one unruly girl, that's for sure." Kakyoin sighed, glad that she's not bothering them for now. He turns to his side and noticed Ai is gone. "Huh? Hey, Sakura. Ai's not here anymore." He informed her.
"Huh?" Looking up and seeing an empty couch and a pillow, she remembers that she wants to talk to her so she can see if she knew the idol.
After telling Kakyoin about it, he nodded understandably and told her not to take too long. With his blessing, Sakura left the room to search for Ai.
"OWWW! HEY! STOP BITING ME! MY LEG'S NOT FOR CHEWING, SO GET OFF ME! I SAID GET OFF ME!"
Kakyoin turned to see Narancia struggling to get Tae off his leg when she bit him, who growls at him in response. The two are on the verge of quarreling with each other, but Bucciarati and Avdol prevented them from fighting as they help Narancia get the feral zombie off him, As Lily, Yugiri, Saki, Mamezuku and Johnny watch, he noticed Gyro and Junko are not in the room.
"Hey Johnny-san, where's Gyro-san?" He asks the paraplegic, seeing the Joestar from an alternate world knows him the best.
"He said he wants to check something out. As odd as his request is, he shouldn't be taking too long." Johnny answered.
"What about Junko-san?"
He shrugs his shoulders, stating, "She left to get away from the crazy woman biting that kid's leg. I assume she left right after Gyro and that girl you're together with leave."
Thinking it's just a coincidence the three leave the room, Kakyoin turned to the door, wondering if Sakura is going to be fine.
Making her way through the hallway, Ai, wearing her day clothes, sneakily makes her way to the genkan with the intent of escaping the mansion. She's unwilling to accept Kotaro's insane plan to turn her and the zombie girls into idols under the belief it's going to fail. Also, Saga is not her birth prefecture; it's Tokyo and she wants to return.
Once she's near the door, Ai didn't hesitate to grab her shoes off the rack and put them on before moving to open the door. But then, she looked through the window and saw Romero on the steps. "A zombie dog...?" muttered Ai, surprised to see an undead animal in the doorsteps.
Romero turns to the door and sees Ai peeking through. The dog proceeds to jump to the window to demand her attention, but from Ai's view, a monstrous and savage dog has taken his place.
ワーン! ワーン! ワァァァンッ!
Shrieking in fear, she decides against opening this door, so she moved away to go look for another exit.
"AH!" She let out when she bumped into someone.
"Whoa there," Gyro blurted out as he remains standing compared to Ai almost tumbling backwards. As she steadied herself and looked to who she bumped into, he says, "You should look before you move. Can't have you run into someone else accidentally."
"I, well... I'm sorry." Ai apologize\d, feeling embarrassed.
"No need to apologize. It's a mistake so I'll let it slide." He replied with a smile.
"Right... If you'll excuse me..."
Moving around Gyro, Ai moves to another part of the mansion in search of the exit. Watching her go, he narrowed his eyes as he already guessed what's her intention is for tonight.
She's not thinking of leaving the place, is she?
To be continued
Onomatopoeia:
バーン (Baaan) - Sudden character close-up, mostly posing
ワーン (Wan) - Dog barking
Night clothes of Kakyoin and his team:
Kakyoin - His striped pajamas he wore at the beginning of Death Thirteen arc.
Avdol - His robe and accessories are removed and trades his shirt and pants for a jellabiya. While his headband are still on his head, his Bantu-knot styled hair are let loose into back-length hair.
Bucciarati - His clothes are unchanged.
Narancia - Green pajamas.
Johnny - Still the same as his day clothes, but he trades his long-sleeved shirt for a sleeveless one and doesn't have the feather. He also wears a beanie instead of his hat.
Gyro - Removes his hat, cape, hoslter, boots and spurs while changing his purple vest into a green, sleeveless shirt. He still keeps his pants and belt on.
Mamezuku -Like Bucciarati, his clothes are unchanged except for his hat, exposing his flat-top hair and bandaged part of his head.