Catch-22: The Bluff
By: M14Mouse
Summary: Yu stared at the case files littering his table. He was missing something. There was some connection and something else…
Disclaimer: Don't own them. This story is unbetaed.
If a magician makes a mistake, it's sometimes forgiven by the audience. If a gambling cheat makes a mistake, they will almost certainly lose their lives - and probably in a horrible manner. -Steve Truglia
"Why do you want to kill him so bad?"
"Because that piece of shit is my father. He abandoned us. I was left alone. I moved from place to place but you know how that is it, my friend. You're the same except your cage was covered in gold."
The hatred bleeded into Akechi's voice.
You and Naoto expected as much.
He forced himself not to nod at Izanagi's comment. Their theory was correct. He wished that it wasn't.
"Does he know?"
"Of course not. The fool was blinded by his power and puppets. It is humorous to see that he thought of me as one of his puppets. I would have cut his strings anytime. His fall will be glorious"
That boy is smart but a fool. He lost in his own game that he isn't paying attention to the other players at the table.
He is right in a way. He ignored some players in favor of others. He discounted them as useless or not worth his time. Dangerous mind set to have in a game like this. He may appear not to know Akechi's plan. From his research, Shido is a smart man. He probably did know his plan or some vague hint of it. He learned the art of keeping his hands clean by letting others get their hands dirty. Akechi was willing to do it again and again to achieve his goal to the point of being blinded by everything.
Foolish and dangerous.
"Are you sure?"
Akechi laughed.
"Of course, I do. I know that he doesn't have any knowledge of what is coming for him."
"That is strange. That wasn't the impression that I got from his palace."
You're bluffing.
His persona sounded…shocked. His job was to convict Akechi. Joker's job was convicted Sai-san. He was going to pull every card up his sleeve if he needed to.
"You're lying."
"You and I know that he has a palace. It is very detailed…more so than any other palaces that we have even been in. His cognitive version of you is….interesting."
Akechi didn't reply.
Silence filled the air between them. He could almost hear Akechi thinking over what he said.
"What is he like?"
"He was dressed in the same outfit on the first day that I met you. It was strange in a way. You know how all of the shadows we face were extreme versions of that person. Shinto's cognitive version of you was almost normal. Besides, trying to kill me."
More silence.
"Interesting. You're ahead of the others in this little game and yet you didn't tell them. Why?"
"I have my own mission outside of the Phantoms. My goal was never to join them. Aid here and there. No more but you know how best laid plans turn out."
Partly, that was true. In the beginning, his purpose was to never join them since their mission and his were separate. At first, they didn't seem related but he wanted to be there for them. A persona user that understood what they were going through. To be a support system, when their own was lacking.
"Mine usually turned out flawless until you and the others came along. What is your mission?" Akechi spoke again.
"I have been through this before."
"Cognitive world just came into existence two years ago….there was no way."
"Cognitive world may be new but shadows aren't."
"Explain. Who are you?"
"I am a member of Shadow Operative and our sole purpose is to hunt shadows that are a threat to mankind."
-P4P5P4-
He stared at the piles of folders and papers on the desk before him. His laptop sat next to the pile. Mitsuru-san sent over everything that she had on the cases.
It gave him time to think over something else beside his encounter with the fake Igor. He rubbed his chest slightly. He still felt them….but it was different.
He shook his head and looked down at the cases before him.
There was a lot of information to go through but first, he had to make a phone call. He promised to call when he started to look over the cases. He pulled out his phone and scrolled through his contracts. He hit the familiar number then put on the speaker.
He set the phone beside him and let it ring.
Few moments later, he heard a familiar voice.
"Hello?"
"Hello. Did I wake you, Naoto?"
"No…no…Yu….I…"
"You were taking a nap on the paperwork again," He said in amusement.
"NO!"
She grumbled softly into the phone. He didn't say anything for a moment.
"It was the laptop."
He laughed softly.
"Is everything okay?"
He heard her sigh over the phone.
"We were wrong about correlating it with the Hebrew calendar."
"It was a good idea at the time."
"Yes, but one of the attacks happens on a day with no link to any calendar."
"Expect maybe a personal one?"
"Perhaps but with a city filled with millions of people daily…."
He nodded.
"There is always a connection."
"Truly."
It was something that they learned from their adventures in the tv world and other worlds. No matter how random anything may appear to be…there is always a connection.
"Anyway, how is your case?"
"I just started to look it over but I think that it is political in nature."
"Oh? I remember looking it over briefly. How did you come to that conclusion?"
"Some of them have been local politicians and members of the DIET had a psychotic break."
"But there have been other attacks that haven't been political in nature, especially in the beginning."
"True but…just call it a gut feeling."
"Stay with that feeling especially the more you go through the case."
"Words of wisdom, Naoto?"
"Words of advice."
Ones that you need to heed.
His back straightened at the voice.
This voice wasn't one of his personas.
End of The Bluff
Next Chapter: The Gamble
A/N: Yes, Yu is totally bluffing about Shido's palace and totally won a cookie for being right. One of the aspects that I took for the anime was his ability to totally bs people with a straight face. And I brought one of the biggest things that drove me nuts in P5 was where was Naoto? So, I explained where she was and what she is doing in the coming chapters. Don't worry...more of the P4 cast coming soon! Second, I want to thank everyone for their reviews. You guys are totally awesome with your support. Thank you from this author's happy little heart. As always...read and review if you wish.
Fun Author's fact: Hermes was originally going to be Yu's new persona but it was too much in relation to Mona's final persona. So, I decided against that.