Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Danganronpa.

Chapter 54:
Yin and Yang

Sato would be lying if she said she wasn't feeling a little self conscious right about now. After all, it was more than a little strange to be carried back so delicately to her dorm room after everything that had happened today, after what she had attempted to do. She supposed it wasn't the grand finale that she had expected, but it was nonetheless surreal that the Ultimate Team Manager was carrying her bridal style right now. She probably weighed nothing to the muscular teenager. Those bulging muscles probably weren't just for show.

Sato's body was still weak. She was once again glad that Akane hasn't permanently broken her. Mikan had given her, with great hesitance and displeasure, some medicine to ease the pain that she was no doubt going to be in for the next week, possibly longer. Before leaving, Naruto had told her that he knew someone named Seiko who might give her some stronger medicine for her aching body. Sato did not recognize the name, but it was probably another Ultimate that she wasn't aware of.

It was another act of kindness that Sato felt she didn't deserve, but Naruto hadn't given her a chance to refuse, something else that Hiyoko hadn't approved of. There were a lot of things that the blonde girl hadn't approved of, but in the end she only backed down after Naruto promised to make it up to her later. Not that it meant that Hiyoko had forgiven Sato. Far from it. That rang true for Mikan as well. The Ultimate Nurse was just too self-conscious to be more vocal about it like Hiyoko was.

So here Sato was, being carried by Nekomaru to her room while Mahiru walked beside them with an amused expression.

"Feeling comfortable there?"

Was Mahiru teasing her?

Sato blushed in embarrassment.

"I told you guys that I could have walked on my own."

"No, you couldn't have." Mahiru didn't need to have Mikan's skills to realize how messed up Sato was right now. The only reason she had been able to sit down properly in the classroom was because she had been tied up.

Nekomaru grunted. "Owari's punches and kicks are nothing to scoff at. She might be still inexperienced, but she makes up for it with her innate explosive power. Trust me, I've been on the receiving end of many of those kicks myself. Just be glad that you're only getting bed rest for the next week."

Sato almost groaned at this. Now she wasn't going to be able to go anywhere for the next several days. How annoying.

But she still felt grateful for it all. It was better than prison…..or death.

Thankfully, there were no other Reserve Course students up and about at this hour, so the trio didn't attract any attention. They had no problem finding Sato's room and quietly stepping inside, or as quietly as Nekomaru could be. The rooms were not all that different from the Main Course dorm rooms, although maybe they tended to be a bit on the smaller side.

With the same level of care he had shown so far, Nekomaru gently placed Sato on her bed. He didn't tuck her in or anything. He had enough tact to know that that wasn't his role.

Sato was still thankful.

"Thank you, Nidai-san." Mahiru vocally thanked her friend with a small smile.

Nekomaru nodded. "It's no problem at all. You're the one who asked me to lend a hand."

"Still." A troubled expression overcame Mahiru's face. "I know you're probably angry at what Sato did too-"

"HA!" Nekomaru's sudden loud voice startled the two girls. "You don't have to worry about that. I'm not one to fixate on the past too much. Besides, Uzumaki has vouched for her. That's good enough for me."

Was it really that simple?

Sato was curious to know. "You trust him that much?"

"Hm?" Nekomaru turned to look down at the now bed ridden girl. "Of course! That guy has a better sense for people than even I do! I might be able to gauge one's physical potential, but his eyes are even keener than mine. He is able to look into your soul and see if you have the ability to overcome the darkness within you. I've seen it myself several times now."

Mahiru laughed at this. "That's true. I guess we've all sort of had that experience with him, huh."

"Heh." Nekomaru smirked as he crossed his massive arms. "He's always pushing you to become a better version of yourself. I feel honored to call him a friend." He then looked back at Sato. "That's why I'm willing to forgive you, Sato. People deserve a second chance. You might have taken the wrong path, but that does not mean that you will continue to do so. It is never too late to start doing the right thing."

Sato's eyes almost watered at Nekomaru's words, but she held herself back from crying. There was no reason to cry here. That would be an insult toward Nekomaru, or so she thought.

"Of course, I know some of the others will not share the same opinion as me," Nekomaru added after a slight pause.

Mahiru looked somewhat troubled again. Hiyoko and Mikan quickly came to mind when Nekomaru said this. Probably Kazuichi and Akane too, now that she thought about it. Ultimately, however, there wasn't anything either of them could do about that. They were all free to make their own choices, and Mikan and Hiyoko had made theirs.

"I suppose this is where I leave the two of you alone." Nekomaru headed back for the door. He gave Mahiru a wave over his shoulders. "Don't hesitate to call me if you need some help, Koizumi."

Mahiru returned the wave and smiled. "Thank you, Nidai-san. Rest well."

"You as well."

The two girls watched the overly muscular teenager leave the room and vanish from their sights after closing the door. Soon only the loud clanking sound from his wooden sandals could be heard until even that disappeared.

Now, it was only the two of them.

Sato felt more awkward now as silence descended upon them. She couldn't handle it for long so she decided to speak up.

"Don't you have more questions for me?"

Mahiru looked at her for a moment before shaking her head.

"Maybe before, but not anymore. I think we both deserve to get some rest before any sort of interrogation, don't you think?"

"You don't have to say it like that…."

"Interrogation" made it sound kind of sinister.

"I think that's my call to make," Mahiru said, a small smile tugging her lips.

Sato slightly relaxed when she noticed this. Mahiru was only teasing her.

"I guess that's the best that I can hope for," Sato said, sighing as she tenderly slipped under the bed covers. She wasn't going to bother to change. She was too tired for that.

"You got that right." Mahiru pursed her lips in thought before shaking her head. "You really are stupid, you know that?"

"Yeah….I know."

Sato wasn't going to deny it.

"I'm going to give Komaeda-san a stern talking to as well, but you shouldn't have let him manipulate you like that."

"I know. I let my jealousy get the best of me."

Clearheaded as she was now, Sato could finally admit that to herself.

And it made her feel better about it. She wasn't trying to make excuses for herself. Nagito might have egged her on, but she was still to blame for letting things get as far as they did.

Knowing that her friend was finally able to look at things with some clarity, Mahiru allowed herself to relax as well.

"Get some rest. We'll talk later. I doubt you'll be going to class tomorrow."

"At least something good came out of this." Sato tried to make light of the situation but knew it was probably gonna fall flat. "And no Natsumi either."

Mahiru looked worried at this for a second before frowning. "Sato. Don't start trouble with her either. You can just ignore her from now on. You know she just wants attention."

Oh, so they were going to get into this too.

Sato felt defensive again.

"But when she talks bad about you-"

"Sato."

Mahiru's voice was firm. There was no arguing about this. The last thing Mahiru needed was for there to be another repeat of what had happened today.

Sato wanted to argue still but in the end she relented with a heavy sigh. "I know, I know. I'm having trouble accepting your decision about this, but if that's what you think is best….."

"I'm not sure if it's for the best or not," Mahiru admitted, somewhat bashfully. "I probably should have talked to Kuzuryu-I mean, Fuyuhiko about all of this sooner. I just don't know how to approach him about it."

It was kind of hard to tell one of your friends that his sister was bullying you.

"I think you're underestimating him." It was Sato's turn to do a little lecturing. "Weren't you the one who was telling me that he wasn't all that bad?"

A small smile tugged at Mahiru's lips. "Sometimes. Other times, he can be worse than Naruto."

"I think you're just describing all boys at this point."

"True. It's hard to believe how any of them have survived this long without some female guidance."

The two girls started laughing softly at this small exchange. It felt familiar, joking like this. It once again helped Sato realize that there was a future for her still. Probably more uncertain than before, but it was still there. And really, at the end of the day, wasn't that for the best?

"Get some rest, okay?" Mahiru ordered her again before turning to the door. "We're going to be very busy this week, so get ready."

Sato watched her go with a small smile.

'Thank you again…..Uzumaki-san.'

It was going to be a painful night for Sato, but she still slept with a smile on her face.

The coming week saw class 77-B return to its normalcy…or at least, as normal as things could be in a place like Hope's Peak Academy.

Sato's actions were swept under the rug. Sort of forgotten, but not forgiven. At least, not by some. But they still put that aside for now. It was largely because of the gravity of Sato's actions that most of them sort of moved on from Nagito's involvement in the whole thing. Mostly because they knew that Nagito hadn't wanted to see Naruto get hurt. Even subconsciously, they were putting the blame on Sato's shoulders, and that included Mahiru. Was it fair? Perhaps, perhaps not. They were bias, and despite his faults they considered Nagito to be one of them. Most of all, it came down to them just wanting to move on from the whole thing.

After all, the main event of the school year so far was almost upon them.

The school festival.

There was only about a week left before it began, and the Ultimates in class 77-B were hard at work to make their play come together by then. They all wanted to come out on top in this competition. Perhaps it was because they were all competitive in some form or another. Perhaps it was because Naruto had influenced them more than they realized. Either way, they were making an earnest effort to make sure everything went as planned.

To that end, Sonia took charge and made sure to set the gym aside for them for the next week so that they could finish their preparations. These "preparations" included finishing up the different set designs as well as their practices with their scripts.

It was now the Tuesday of the week before the festival, and some of our characters found themselves in the gym doing just that.

Naruto stood at the center of the stage, looking up at the makeshift "castle" that Kazuichi and Fuyuhiko's yakuza buddies had constructed together. It was made to resemble the ones that had been common in Naruto's world, as they had used Naruto's descriptions to put it together.

Next to Naruto stood a blushing Peko as she held her script in hand. If it wasn't for the fact that he was getting into his character, Naruto would be teasing the Ultimate Swordswoman like no tomorrow. She just looked positively adorable right now, acting all meek like that. Teruteru would have called it "moe," but Naruto wasn't going to use that term. He wanted to empty his mind from all the crap Teruteru had been wanting to teach him for these past couple of months. The cook was damn persuasive at times unfortunately.

Standing on the balcony of the "castle" was none other than a beaming Sonia with a smiling Nagito next to her. They also held their own respective scripts in hand.

All four of them were already in costume, designed by both Sonia, Ibuki, and surprisingly Chiaki. The Ultimate Gamer had wanted to help, and the two girls had happily accepted her.

Naruto stood in gear that was very reminiscent to the standard Leaf chunin uniform. Since his original headband had been discarded, with the symbol itself being added to his new "ninja outfit," the blond now wore a black replica. He still loved it.

Peko on the other hand was in a costume that was more reminiscent of a samurai, which fit with her character. After all, she was meant to be the main defense commander for the castle that had switched sides and was now traveling with him. She wasn't his main companion, as that honor belonged to Chisa, but for this part of the story she would be his main helper.

Sonia was dressed far differently from the two of them. She wore a very expensive and fancy white kimono adorned with gold linings. She and Hiyoko had picked it out together for the play, as Sonia was playing the role of a daimyo whose husband had died previously due to a past war. It wasn't the first time Naruto had seen her dressed in a kimono, but it had still made him flustered, much to Fuyuhiko's amusement and Kazuichi's horror. Naruto knew that Sonia was a European monarch, but she could still play off a Japanese ruler pretty well, which meant that she could have passed as one in his old world too.

The aura of the Ultimate Princess was not to be underestimated.

Nagito was in a more moderately designed costume as he was playing the daimyo's main advisor in the story and ultimately the main villain. With how happy he looked right now, it was hard to picture him as such, but his acting wasn't half-bad. At least, that's what Kotoko had said, and with how tough the little girl had been with them all during practice, it was a big compliment to receive. The luckster was in a pair of modest grey robes that suited him well.

In the back of his mind, Naruto knew that he was lucky that so many of his new friends were loaded. It made it easier to finance the play and make it stand out more. Ultimately, though, it would come down to the writing and performance.

"Please, you must understand the circumstances of this land," Naruto read from his script. Unlike Peko, Sonia, and Nagito, he had already memorized all his lines. "You can't stay up there forever. You have to face your people directly. Then you will be able to understand their struggles."

"I believe you are the one who does not get it." Despite his earlier smile, Nagito quickly got back into his character and sneered down at Naruto. "You are an outsider here. Did you not only arrive to this kingdom a week ago? What makes you think you understand the troubles of our people?"

"That's longer than either of you. I mean, you won't even take a stroll through your own city!"

"Watch your tongue, outsider. Or we shall cut it for you."

"J-Just try it," Peko stammered as she looked down at her script. "Do not forget that I am a-also here with him!"

Naruto stopped himself from laughing out loud.

Down away from the stage, Fuyuhiko did not have the same self control and chuckled pretty loudly, much to Peko's horror.

"Y-Young master, you cannot laugh right now!" she half-shouted, her blush growing. "This is too much for me!"

"Oh man." Seated like a director, Kotoko nursed her forehead as she shook her head slowly. "Pekoyama-san, you know that we expect the gym to be full when we perform this next week, don't you? This few people shouldn't trouble you so much."

Next to her in his own seat, Masaru was grinning from cheek to cheek. "Man, this big sis used to scare me a lot because she carries a sword on her all the time. But she's looking really embarrassing right now."

"Why you-!" For a second, Peko's eyes flared in embarrassment/anger.

Fuyuhiko laughed harder.

Naruto looked amused. "Masaru, I don't think that was the right thing to say right now."

The redheaded boy picked his nose in disinterest. "I'm just saying."

"Masaru, shush for now." Kotoko was still nursing her forehead. "One of my actors is going through some mental blockage, and you're not helping her get over that."

"I-I'm being talked down to by elementary school kids," Peko muttered, almost falling to her knees in shock.

"Well, she does have more talent than the rest of us when it comes to this," Chisa said, bringing the attention to her for the first time. She was also grinning as she tapped the fake sword she was carrying on her shoulder. She wasn't on the stage at the moment as this scene didn't include her. She was also in costume, wearing a loose fitted green kimono. It was different from Sonia's, as this one afforded her more flexibility which was perfect for her role as a wandering warrior, akin to the main protagonist. Of course, with how loose the kimono was, it also left her chest more exposed, a sight that had made both Kazuichi and Teruteru very happy.

Hey, Chisa was their teacher, but she wasn't that much older than them.

Kotoko looked pleased by Chisa's praise. "I'm more than happy to pass on my wisdom to you lowly peasants. Aw, doesn't that sound so adorbs to you all? You can keep praising me if you want."

Fuyuhiko scowled. "Don't get ahead of yourself."

"What's this?" Kotoko covered her mouth with her hand, looking coy. "Is the tiny yakuza speaking? I can't hear you if you don't speak up."

"YOU'RE SHORTER THAN ME, YOU BRAT!"

"For now."

"YOU FUCK-!"

"Ahem." Chisa's loud cough cut into their little back and forth while Naruto was laughing in the background. Peko was still too distraught from Kotoko's and Masaru's comments to jump into her master's defense while Sonia and Nagito just watched on with amused expressions.

"I don't think it's appropriate to use that language around the kids, Kuzuryu-kun," she scolded him. She then narrowed her eyes. "For that matter, you're still a kid yourself. You shouldn't be speaking like that in the first place."

Naruto almost snorted. "I think it's too late to teach him manners."

Fuyuhiko fumed. "I know you're not talking about manners right now, you whiskered fuck."

"See~" Naruto wagged his finger in disapproval. "It's that kind of talk that gets you in trouble."

"Oh, you wanna go!?"

"Bring it! I got a few seconds to spare."

"We'll see how tough you are when I put a bullet in that empty head of yours!"

"Oh boy." Chisa looked both tired and amused as Naruto and Fuyuhiko descended into another argument. "There they go again."

"They're so violent." Masaru whistled. He was sure he could see lightning coming from the two older boys. "Don't they get tired of doing that?"

Kotoko rolled her eyes at him. "I don't think you have any room to talk."

He was always butting heads with Jataro and sometimes Nagisa too.

"Um." Up on the balcony, Sonia looked unsure as Naruto and Fuyuhiko continued to threaten each other. "Is that it for this scene, then?"

"We didn't even get to the halfway point," Nagito observed, humming slightly. "If we keep up this pace, we should be ready in a month."

But…..they didn't have a month.

Sonia looked confused. Nagito always confused her, so this was nothing new honestly.

"I'll figure this out." Kotoko looked confident as she jumped on the stage and patted her chest. "You have me on your side. There's no way this won't go perfectly."

Unfortunately, her words were heard by no one as Naruto and Fuyuhiko were too busy running away as Peko decided to finally separate them from their friendly discussion…at the tip of her sword. The others just watched with varying expressions of lightheartedness.

This happy mood wasn't meant to last, however, as the doors to the gym were haughtily shoved upon.

The noise of the doors hitting the wall was enough to catch their attention. Right away, Naruto looked ticked off when he saw who it was.

Yasuke was not alone, nor was he the one to open the doors. That honor belonged to the smug looking Ultimate Actress who stood next to him. No, the tall teen was just standing there with his usual bored expression, hands in pockets.

Sōshun was there as well, and he looked apologetic while rubbing the back of his head.

"Ha, I told you that we were worried over nothing. These guys can't act!" Alice said with clear glee.

No one had a response for her. Naruto and the others were still trying to take in their arrival.

"You're so cruel, Alice-chan." Almost like she was appearing out of thin air, Rin stepped from behind Yasuke with a small smirk. "I know you got excited when you heard that they were putting on a play, but I think this is too much."

"I was not excited!" Alice shrieked in denial, glaring at the smirking Ultimate Hunter. "I really don't like you."

"Awww, I wuv you too! Meow~"

Faster than Alice could react, the purple hair girl was beside her and licking her cheek, much like a cat would do its owner.

Alice shrieked again. "I've told you stop doing that!"

"But you taste so good!"

"That's no excuse for your brutish behavior! I am a star!"

"And suddenly I'm even more glad that Kamishiro-kun decided not to follow us," Sōshun said under his breath.

They were already causing a scene. The Ultimate Spy would have made it worse.

"What the fuck?" Fuyuhiko put it eloquently as he got over his stupor. "I recognize the student council president, but who the fuck are the rest of these jackasses?"

"Remind me to schedule you some diplomatic lessons in the future, Kuzuryu-kun," Chisa said offhandedly before focusing on the newcomers. "Welcome, rotten students! I don't know what business brought you here, but we scheduled the gym for the next week during this time, you see. So I'm afraid you're going to have to-"

"We already know about that," Alice cut her off while shooting the grinning Rin one last glare. She then looked at the homeroom teacher with a sneer. "I just wanted to see what kind of completion we could expect from you guys. I was surprised when you decided to face me in my own turf."

"And probably happy too~" Rin said with a sing-song voice.

"If you don't-!" Sōshun had to physically restrain Alice from throwing herself at the grinning Rin.

"Kobayashi-san, please don't rile up Alice-san so much! We're already disturbing our friends enough as it is."

"Who's friend with whom!?" Alice demanded to know as she struggled against the student council president. Sure, she wasn't all that physically strong, but neither was Sōshun. It made for an interesting match.

"Sooooo." Naruto raised his hand as he looked back at the others. "Does anyone know what the heck is happening right now?"

Sonia shook her head. "I couldn't even begin to guess…."

Nagito chuckled. "I'm not surprised you don't know them, Uzumaki-kun. They're our fellow first years. They've been doing their own thing these past couple of months. Although I've heard that they recently started coming to class together."

"Woah." Masaru looked up at the luckster. "You know a lot of things."

Nagito didn't answer him.

"Talk about scary~" Masaru nearly wet himself when he saw that Rin was now standing next to him. Of course, the Ultimate Hunter wasn't looking at him. She had her eyes up at Nagito. "Are you keeping tabs on us or something?"

Nagito raised his arms in defense while smiling weakly. "Not at all. I'm not talented enough to do something like that."

"Good. We already have one spy in our class, and the dude sucks."

"Spy?" Sonia tilted her head, her brow furrowed. For some reason, that sounded familiar to her.

"Course, right now, the one I'm most curious about is you." Rin's eyes shifted to Naruto who only raised his eyebrow at her.

Peko took a few steps closer to her blond friend while Fuyuhiko did the same. The Ultimate Swordswoman had been following Rin's movements in the gym thus far, and she could tell that this girl was a fighter of some kind. She moved fast, and her movements were always deliberate. She didn't make noise unless she wanted to. That kind of control over one's body required a lot of training, and it made Peko nervous. She wasn't going to let someone like that get close to Naruto for no reason, not after what had happened with Sato.

Yes, she was going into protective mode. Adorable, wasn't it.

"I don't know who you are," Naruto said bluntly. Sure, he heard what Nagito had said, but that didn't do much to change anything for him.

"I felt that right over here." Rin pointed at her, admittedly, well endowed chest that only made Naruto's eyebrow twitch a little. "We're all friends, aren't we? Isn't that what our student council president said?"

"Kobayashi-san." Sōshun's eyes began to tear up. "I knew you would start to believe!"

Fuyuhiko almost groaned. "She's being sarcastic, you dumbass."

"Sarcasm or not, it's a well meaning thought!" Sōshun argued.

Chisa nodded, beaming. "Indeed! I like the way you think, president-kun!"

"Likewise, sensei!"

Oh no, they were starting to get along.

"Will you shut up already?" Alice groaned. "We didn't come here to do any of this hippie stuff. I just wanted to scout out the competition." She smirked. "Although, from what I'm seeing, there's nothing for us to worry about. Who taught you guys to act?"

"How dare you!" Kotoko couldn't let that comment slide. "You may be some famous actress right now, but you're second rate!"

"Huh!?" Alice glared up at Kotoko who was still on stage. "Who does this brat think she is? Where did she come from?"

Sōshun crossed his arms. "She's from Hope's Peak Elementary school, Alice-san. She's a famous child actress….."

The student council president left it at that. He wasn't going to mention the scandal surrounding the young girl or how it was still being hotly debated online.

"Seriously? This brat?" Alice pointed at Kotoko with disgust. "I bet she couldn't even act in a small play like this, least of all in a famous production."

"You-!" Kotoko might have hated becoming a child actress, but she still took pride in her work. Instead of lashing out further, however, she simply crossed her arms and huffed. "You're not adorbs, and so not worth my time. Naruto, can you kick them out already? They're ruining our precious practice time."

"Ah!" Sōshun looked apologetic as he bowed. "I knew it, we were interfering! My apologies!"

Rin laughed at this. "Man, he has no pride at all, does he!" She looked at Naruto again. "Don't you agree, my whiskered friend?"

Naruto almost grumbled at this. It was always about the whiskers, wasn't it?

"I gotta ask…..are they real?"

While the others may have missed it, Naruto and Peko saw Rin move. The Ultimate Hunter was incredibly fast, no doubt about it. Peko might have even been caught off guard if this had been a couple of months ago. However, thanks to all of her constant training with Naruto, her own senses had been enhanced so she was able to keep up with Rin's movements.

Incidentally, Naruto noticed that Chisa was able to spot Rin's movements as well. How cool.

It was because of all of this that Rin found a sword between her and Naruto, with her hand stretched out looking like she intended to caress Naruto's cheek.

The blond himself hadn't moved an inch. Unlike Peko, he was just curious about Rin's intentions. Her earlier words were still echoing in his head. Just why was she was curious about him?

"I think that's far enough." Peko's eyes could melt steel as she locked eyes with Rin.

Rin just grinned at her. "My. So jumpy. I'm not going to hurt him, you know."

"You heard her." Fuyuhiko was ready to back up Peko as he glared at the girl.

"Pekoyama-san! Kuzuryu-san!" Sonia looked worried at this unexpected turn of events. She didn't want to see her friends getting into a fight.

Nagito said nothing, just looking on with open curiosity.

"Now, now. There's no need for all of this tension." Chisa's voice was calm, but her small smile promised pain to anyone who dared escalate the situation. "I don't mind if you kids declare war on one another, but let's keep things friendly."

There were many sweatdrops at this. How was going to war "keeping things friendly"?

Rin loved it. "Ahahaha! I wish you were our sensei instead!"

"Sorry, but I'm already occupied by one class of troublemakers," Chisa answered, her smile in place.

"Boo. Hey, prez, can't you abuse your power and make her our teacher instead?"

Sōshun's shoulders sagged a little. "T-That's not what the student council does, Kobayashi-san…."

"Tsk. Useless." Rin spat on the floor with a pout.

"Whatever." Alice huffed as she walked off. "I think we've made our point."

Fuyuhiko scowled. "You had a point?"

"Obviously!" Alice stopped just long enough to point back at them, more specifically at Sonia. "Remember this. You might have had the spotlight so far, but that's going to change next week. Class 77-A will be winning this silly competition. I'll be declared the most beautiful and most awesome at the beauty pageant too. Can you picture it? I'll win both contests at once!"

"Um." Sonia didn't know what to say to this, so she just smiled. This had the miraculous effect of lighting up the room.

Masaru almost fainted on the spot.

Kotoko and Rin both whistled.

"Adorbs."

"Hot."

Alice almost screamed. The Ultimate Princess had a stronger natural effect than her, the Ultimate Actress.

How infuriating.

"I won't forget this!"

She stormed off, leaving behind an apologetic Sōshun who was trying to drag Rin out of the gym.

"I'm really sorry about this, you guys! Don't worry! You can expect a fair and honest competition next week!"

"Yeah, that's true." For the first time since arriving, Yasuke spoke up. He was looking straight at Naruto, his face betraying nothing.

Naruto…..already looked ticked off.

"We're also putting a play together."

Yasuke's declaration had the intended effect of rattling the other Ultimates.

Class 77-A was putting a play as well? What kind of development was this?

At least they now knew what Alice was trying to say earlier, about fighting in her own turf.

"What the fuck?" Fuyuhiko narrowed his eyes. "This feels intentional."

Before Sōshun could say anything, Yasuke replied.

"You guys aren't the center of the universe. It's only a coincidence that things turned out this way."

"Bullshit." Fuyuhiko wasn't going to buy that excuse.

Yasuke just shrugged. He didn't seem to care.

"Think whatever you like."

He left it at that, but there was something in his eyes that caught Naruto's attention. No, it was more accurate to say that it was meant only for him.

Sōshun said another quick apology while dragging the grinning Rin with him who gave them a wave as they disappeared out into the hallway of the first floor.

"That was…..something." Peko allowed herself to relax as she looked at her young master.

"Really random," Masaru said, unsure of how to feel about what had just happened.

"Random?" Nagito questioned. He shook his head. "It didn't seem that way at all. It's like sensei said. They were declaring war on you guys."

"I think you mean 'us,' Komaeda-san," Sonia corrected him with a disapproving look.

Nagito smiled a little. "Right, of course. My mistake."

"I welcome it!" Chisa looked proud as she raised her fist. "The bigger the challenge, the more effort you have to put in to overcome it, the bigger the growth! I'm sure this is what the school festival is supposed to be about!"

Masaru snickered. "She's a teacher, but she doesn't even know what the school festival is about?"

"Did you say something, Daimon-kun?"

The young boy wisely kept his mouth shut.

"I say forget about them!" Kotoko exclaimed as she put on her best "fighting" face. Which was just adorable to the others, including Fuyuhiko. "Who cares about the enemy? We gotta do what we gotta do!"

"I believe that's the right spirit," Nagito said with approval. "Even if it is against the likes of the Ultimate Actress, I know you guys will come out on top. You have the Ultimate Hope on your side."

"Fucking weird bastard. He couldn't inspire a cockroach if he wanted to," Fuyuhiko grunted.

"At least he's on our side." Peko tried to be reassuring for once.

"Is he? It doesn't feel like it sometimes."

Peko knew her young master didn't mean that, so she let it slide.

Naruto just kept his eyes on the spot Yasuke had occupied.

This was going to be a headache.

"You know, you don't have to watch me eat every morning."

"H'mph. After what you tried to pull last week, I'm not taking any chances."

"It was only one time!"

"One time too many!"

"I-I agree, Mitarai-san. Your recovery plan must be followed to the letter!"

"…..yeah, I know."

Ryota really hated the smug look on Byakuya's face. So what if he quickly gave in just because Mikan was saying so!? It didn't mean that he had a crush on her or anything!

The Ultimate Animator found himself silently blushing as he munched on the rest of his breakfast while Mikan finished the last of her examinations for the day. It was standard procedure for him by now. That is, having the Ultimate Nurse come check up on him every other day to make sure that his body was recovering properly.

To say that he was doing better was an understatement. He no longer had the bags under his eyes as he was now sleeping properly every night. He wasn't just skin and bones as he made sure he had proper meals every day, some of which were courtesy from Teruteru, the Ultimate Cook. Ryota knew he was going to have to thank the guy when he met him.

Now Ryota had more energy, which meant that what time he did spend on his anime project he could do so with newfound vigor. In all honesty, he probably got twice as much done as when he was starving himself half to death. Funny how that turned out.

In the course of his recovery, Byakuya and Mikan had become a sort of constant for him. Byakuya would check up on him daily, and Mikan a bit less than that. Ryota always felt ten times better when he saw the Ultimate Nurse, though. He had been lying to himself for a while now about why that was, but recently he had accepted that it meant that he probably had a crush on her.

So embarrassing! Yeah, Mikan was beautiful, and when she was in nurse mode, she was more assertive but also calm and dare he say nursing…..and yeah, she was the first girl his age who treated him with respect and dignity. So what?

...

Okay, maybe his newfound crush on her made a lot of sense.

Byakuya had picked up on this tidbit a while back, but thankfully apart from some smug looks he hadn't commented on it. Thank the heavens for that. The last thing Ryota needed was for Mikan to be creeped out by him. There was no way an amazing person like her could feel the same way about him, so it was better to keep his newfound feelings buried until they went away. No need to trouble her with something so mundane.

Mikan looked satisfied as she put away the last of her stuff in her bag.

"He's almost fully recovered. I-I think things can go as planned, Togami-san."

Byakuya smirked. "But of course. I have already declared it so."

Ryota's eyebrow twitched a little. "I still can't get over how smug you are when you're like this."

It was a bit uncanny.

"I've been holding back."

He had!? Damn. What was the real Togami Byakuya like then? Ryota almost shuddered at the thought.

Something else caught the animator's attention.

"What do you mean 'things can go as planned'?"

What were they planning?

"Hear this now." Byakuya pointed at Ryota with a determined look. "By my decree, you shall be joining us for the school festival!"

Say what now!?

"The school festival!?" Ryota's eyes widened. As per Mikan's instructions, he had been trying to find other ways to entertain himself when he wasn't working on his anime. As such, he had heard all about the infamous school festival that Hope's Peak Academy was hosting next week. Apart from the recent murders and conspiracy surrounding that Utsugi Kotoko girl, it's all people were talking about online. Not surprising really. In all of its long history, Hope's Peak Academy had never hosted an event like this before. There were "club meets," but that was about it. Some people were speculating that perhaps the school was even going to let outsiders come in to enjoy the sights. Of course, no such announcement had been made, so others were denying those claims.

Ryota didn't know how much of that was true, since he was out of the loop on everything. He was aware that all of this had started partly because of his class, but Byakuya and Mikan hadn't given him any solid information so far. Probably because he had never asked them.

Despite all of that, now Byakuya wanted him to participate!? Impossible!

"Oh, that sounds like a good idea!" Mikan seemed excited about the prospect.

….which meant that it couldn't be such a bad idea, right?

"I'm sure Naruto-san will be very happy when he hears this!"

That comment was almost enough to make Ryota sigh in dismay.

Something else he had come to learn was that Mikan's affection was already taken by someone in their class, this Uzumaki Naruto guy. Ryota had heard a lot about him from both Byakuya and Mikan, so he would be lying if he said he wasn't at least curious to meet the guy. The fact that Mikan had feelings for him just made the whole situation awkward for Ryota. How was he meant to act? Should he even be worried in the first place? It wasn't like there was anything serious between him and Mikan….but what about her and Naruto?

Damn teenage hormones. Why did Ryota have to have them too?

"That was my goal from the start." Byakuya's boasting broke Ryota from his somewhat depressing musings. "I told him that he could leave this in my hands. Given the progress we've made so far, I feel it's only natural that we proceed to the next stage."

Ryota raised his hand in protest. "Don't I get a say in this?"

"I think we've established why that isn't such a good idea."

No, they hadn't!

"At any rate, the school festival will be the perfect opportunity for you to start coming to class with us."

Mikan tilted her head a little. "We will need another seat for him."

That's what she was worried about?

"I think you guys are moving a little bit too fast." How could Ryota delay this? There had to be something. "Will the others appreciate me just announcing myself while they've been working so hard for the school festival?"

"Not to worry." Byakuya wasn't going to be deterred so easily. "We hadn't told you this, but our class is putting on a play inspired by Naruto's former master's work. While all the parts have been filled already, you can still help Soda with the behind-the-scenes stuff."

"I still think you should think this through-"

"There's nothing more to discuss." Byakuya wasn't giving him any openings. "For I, Togami Byakuya, have decreed it so. Starting tomorrow, you will be introducing yourself to everyone else. Congratulations. Your social group is about to expand."

What the hell!?

While Byakuya looked pleased with himself, Ryota was having an existential crisis.

Why was Mikan clapping and why did she look so cute while doing it!?

Nothing in this world was fair dammit.

Nagisa had started to change.

Even though Monaca didn't particularly care for her classmate, this was very clear to her from just observing him. Well, perhaps she was just stating the obvious, something that she had been doing a lot lately, she noted to herself.

Another way of putting it was that Nagisa had started to overtly change. It was different from the subtle shifts in his personality that had been happening this past month.

Monaca couldn't be entirely sure about this, but she was confident that Kotoko's truth had played a big part in that. Namely, how it had ended…..or who had ended it.

It was a bitter truth for Monaca to swallow, but she had lost her bet with Kotoko. Worse still, rather than rub it in Monaca's face, Kotoko hadn't said anything about it. It was like she was torturing Monaca with this turn of events. More annoyingly, she was starting to act more like Naruto, always happy to take charge and being more considerate with them despite her usual teasing.

Perhaps this change in Kotoko was another factor in Nagisa's change. The blue haired boy was now smiling more freely while being happy to skip their classes in order to come to the Main Course Building to help Naruto and the others with their play. He didn't try to make excuses about being good students or anything like that.

Today was the same.

Ibuki was trying her best to imitate an old monk while Hiyoko shouted at her to cut it out. Nagisa and Jataro were watching this from the sidelines, laughing at the two girls and their so-called comedic back and forth. Off to the side Nekomaru was trying to help Akane read her lines while Gundham conversed with a couple of squirrels, his hamsters, and Kurama.

'It is a beautiful day.' Monaca couldn't deny this as she glanced up at the bright sky. Summer was almost upon them, so it was only natural to take advantage of that fact and come practice in one of the many gardens that surrounded Hope's Peak. Later, they were supposed to get the last of their costumes ready so that they could get some rehearsal while wearing them. Apparently that's what Naruto and some of the others were doing at the gym.

Thankfully there wasn't much to Monaca's part. She was only playing one of the troubled villagers at the beginning of the play, so there wasn't much for her to memorize. Well, even if her part had been larger, memorizing some lines from a play would be simple for someone of her intellect.

Someone like Masaru would be struggling, though. The boy would rather run around than read anything that wasn't a manga.

Monaca found herself smiling a little at the thought, which deeply annoyed her. She quickly let the smile fade as she pondered this. It was something else that she had noticed lately. While she smiled a lot, those were fake smiles that she had practiced over and over. It was a simple way to trick people. Coupled with her wheelchair and bam. The trick was complete. It was easy to get away with things like that.

Lately, however, she had been smiling for real.

But why?

While she was hiding it, Monaca knew that deep down she was seething. There was nothing for her to be happy about. Not in that past and especially not right now in the present. What was the source of her smile then?

After all, how dare Kotoko find a happy ending while there was none for Monaca? Was the world just going to continue to taunt her like this? For the rest of her life?

It wasn't hard for Monaca to put the pieces together. Kotoko might be happy staying ignorant of the situation, but Monaca wasn't like that. Even though nothing was said, she was confident in the fact that it had been Naruto who had killed Kotoko's mother that night. It was the only way to explain such a convenient turn of events. Perhaps that's why Kotoko was happy to stay in the dark, because deep in her heart she might have already acknowledged that truth and didn't want to face it. Perhaps this meant that Kotoko's "true happy ending" hadn't arrived yet.

After all, it would be so easy for Monaca to leak this information out to the press or even just the Internet. There were many theories online about how Hope's Peak Academy was involved somehow. It wouldn't be far fetched then to say that one of the students who currently attended the school had been behind the whole incident. It was a common truth that Ultimates were exceptional. No one thought of them as just "students." Regardless, even if not everyone believed it, enough would. Monaca was confident of that fact.

Should she, then? How would Kotoko react? How would Naruto? What would be the outcome of something like that?

Hmm. So many options.

Monaca almost giggled to herself while thinking about it.

"-and let it go already!"

"Never! Ibuki will rise to become the main star of the show! As the female lead alongside Naruto-chan!"

"This isn't a romance story, you brain dead music monkey! And even if it was, how is your old man voice going to help with that!"

"You don't understand love, Hiyoko-chan. It's okay, let Ibuki teach you!"

Hiyoko looked ready to strangle someone.

With how loud they were being, Monaca couldn't dwell on her thoughts for too long. Not only that, but Nekomaru seemed to be in the process of tying Akane to the fountain. Not with rope mind you, but with metal chains.

How bizarre.

The Ultimate Gymnast squirmed as she struggled to break free. "Let me go, old man Nidai! This stuff is bonkers!"

"Ha! You need to learn your lesson, Owari! You can't go your whole life without reading."

"Reading is for suckers!"

"That's the kind of attitude that's going to hinder your future potential as an athlete."

"I don't care. Let me go dammit!"

"Kekeke. Truly, you are weak, woman." Gundham approached the pair with an eagle now perched on his head. Where the bird came from, Monaca had no idea. Was the guy a magician or something? "To be defeated by mere words on a page. How embarrassing. I was a fool to ever consider you a threat."

"What the heck does that mean?"

Akane didn't get it, and Gundham was too busy smirking to himself to explain.

Hmm. Monaca once again concluded that she was surrounded by idiots. Despite that, she once again couldn't stop herself from smiling alongside Nagisa and Jataro, the latter of which was trying to lend some support to Akane for whatever reason.

This place…..it had definitely become more fun for her.

It just didn't make any sense.

"My ears are picking up a distinct sound approaching." Ibuki suddenly started to hop in place while her ears twitched. "There can be no doubt. It's my future lover, Naruto-chan!"

Hiyoko looked angrier now. "He's your what now!?"

"That's just foul," Nagisa muttered just loud enough for Monaca to hear him.

Despite Ibuki's crude words, sure enough Naruto appeared from around the corner, wearing his costume from the play. It was the first time Monaca was seeing it, and she had to admit that it looked cool, even if the person who was wearing it wasn't.

"Woah." Nagisa was obviously impressed, but he was just a kid. He was easy to impress.

"Uzumaki?" Nekomaru spotted him next. Well, technically it was Kurama who did. The small fox was already dashing toward the blond just as Nekomaru turned to face the approaching blond. He grinned as he waved the blond over. "Welcome to our practice session! Tread lightly." He then rubbed his chin in thought. "I thought you were practicing at the gym with Sonia and the others."

Hiyoko snickered. "I bet the princess couldn't act, huh."

Naruto rolled his eyes as he stopped next to Hiyoko and Ibuki, the latter giving him an energetic high five while Kurama made himself comfortable on top of the blond's hair.

"Sonia was doing fine, but you guys will see tomorrow."

"Hmm, true." Gundham crossed his arms. "We begin the most sacred of rituals tomorrow."

Ibuki looked amused. "That sounds like something from a cult website."

Gundham didn't dignify that with a response.

"THE GROUP TRAINING AT LAST!" Nekomaru flexed his muscles. "I've been looking forward to it. The words your master left behind brought me to tears. I can't way to see it play live in front of me!"

Naruto's face softened a little. "I'm sure he would have been happy to hear that."

Hiyoko was quick to interject. "Jeez. Don't bring the mood down, you dumb ape. We're supposed to be pumped up, aren't we?"

"Ugh!" Nekomaru flinched as he bowed his head. "My deepest apologies! It was not my intent to bring up painful memories."

Naruto waved him off. "You're fine. It makes me happy to hear that you guys enjoyed the story. But thanks for that, Hiyoko."

"W-Whatever. And don't pat my head!"

Despite her words, she did nothing to stop Naruto from doing just that.

The whiskered blond just laughed a little at this.

"Hey!" Akane was still struggling against her binds. "Can someone get me down from here already! This isn't comfortable, I'll have you know! Plus I'm getting wet!"

Naruto took one look at the tied up Akane before looking away.

He wasn't going to ask.

"That costume is so cool!" Jataro couldn't contain his excitement any longer as he ran up to Naruto with stars in his eyes. "I feel ashamed for not having designed it myself! As the Li'l Ultimate Art, this defeat will shame me forever! Ah, but I guess that's only normal, right? You wouldn't want a costume that's designed by me. I'm sure it would only be ugly, like my face. It's okay, Naruto. You can tell it to me straight. I promise I'm man enough to handle it! So don't lie to me."

"How are you supposed to handle anything? You can't even come out of that mask, you idiot," Nagisa said with a shake of his head. "Don't bother Naruto with stupid stuff like that."

"Stupid stuff?" Jataro sounded confused as he cocked his head. "Oooooh, I get it. So even my feelings are stupid. I guess I should have guessed that before. Or maybe I already knew that, and I just forgot about it. I mean, it feels like something I should have already known. I might have even said it a couple of times. It's like when a farm animal forgets that it's just a farm animal. Like a cow who's about to get slaughtered for beef. But I think that might be better for the cow. To know that you're going to die and not be able to stop it. It might be better to just not know at all, don't you think?"

All he got were several blank looks from the others.

Hiyoko's face was full of disgust. "Seriously, this kid might be worse than big bro Tanaka."

For once, Gundham couldn't argue.

Nagisa held his head. "You jump from one random topic to another."

Even Monaca had a hard time following the boy's logic sometimes.

Naruto didn't seem annoyed, just confused.

"One of these days, I'm going to understand what you say, Jataro. I got better with Nagito. I'm sure I can get there with you too."

"I don't think that would be healthy for you, Naruto," Nagisa cautioned.

"Being berated like this." Somehow, Jataro seemed pleased. "I guess I'm really loved, but it doesn't feel all that good."

"Then why the heck are you smiling, brat!" Hiyoko had enough and went for a noogie.

Even though he was wearing what appeared to be a thick mask, Jataro still cringed in discomfort.

"This kind of love might be too much for me!"

"Who said anything about love!?"

Ibuki hummed. "I thought for sure that Hiyoko-chan was more of a tender love type….."

"Kazuichi would be shaking his head at you if he heard that," Naruto deadpanned.

Ibuki just shrugged it off.

It didn't take much to separate Hiyoko from Jataro. The young boy was quick to hide behind Naruto while giving the exasperated blonde wary glances.

First it was Masaru who had been traumatized by Hiyoko, and now Jataro. Who was next?

"As fun as this is, I only came by to tell you guys to head to the gym." Naruto answered Nekomaru's earlier question while Monaca and the others paid attention. "We finished our scenes for now. Your costumes should be ready for you to try out too."

"Now that is exciting!" Ibuki cheered. "Ibuki will steal the show. Twice!"

Nekomaru was curious. "Twice?"

"Indeed! Yowza, look at me using a big word like 'indeed.' Ibuki is proud of herself!"

"You're all over the place too," Nagisa said under his breath.

Monaca silently agreed.

"She's talking about the beauty pageant." Hiyoko huffed in annoyance. "It's a stupid contest, but if you think for a second that you'll be able to win over me, then you're mistaken. I'm in high demand, you know."

"Awww~" Faster than Hiyoko could react, Ibuki closed the distance between them and started hugging her. "I know just how adorable you are, Hiyoko-chan!"

"THIS IS SEXUAL HARASSMENT!"

In front of kids too. How shameful.

"It is always so loud with these two," Gundham said, his tone somewhat annoyed.

Nekomaru on the other hand was laughing. "Ahahaha! There is always much energy in the air when they're together!"

"Right?" Naruto grinned. It was obvious he was enjoying what had become a typical interaction between Hiyoko and Ibuki.

Monaca didn't care about any of that. Rather, she glanced at Naruto. "So you're going to follow us back to the gym?"

Since he was the main character of the play, he had to practice with every group before they all came together tomorrow.

Some of the light left Naruto's eyes at the question. He glanced back at her.

"Nah. I have to do something real fast before that. Don't worry, I should be back by the time you guys are ready."

How curious. Regardless, Monaca had just thought of something rather fun herself. She wasn't going to let herself be down in the dumps forever.

"Are you free to talk for a minute then? There is something that I need your help with…."

Monaca trailed off, but she knew she had said enough. Naruto had a hero complex, after all. It was easy to manipulate him.

"Sure!"

See?

Monaca had to stop herself from smirking.

Whatever annoyance Naruto might have felt at seeing Yasuke earlier had left him when he had met up with Ibuki, Hiyoko, and the others. It helped that he had Kurama along for the ride too. The small fox was always going off on his own adventures lately, so it was nice to have the little guy beside him.

The annoyance started to creep back up when he was reminded of what he had to do, but that too disappeared when Monaca requested his assistance. It was the first time that Monaca was asking something of him directly, so he was curious to find out what the girl needed help with.

Nagisa had seemed curious too, but Monaca had insisted that this was something private.

So here he was, pushing Monaca along in her wheelchair as they took a private walk through the gardens of the school. They were definitely beautiful but also artificial, so Naruto wasn't all that impressed with them. He much preferred the sights he had seen on the camping trip with his friends.

Kurama seemed to share his opinion, as the little fox was already dozing off.

"So." Naruto really didn't know how to start this. He hated being awkward at times like this. "You said you needed my help with something?"

Monaca giggled. "You can relax, you know. I'm not going to ask you for anything crazy."

Oh crap. Did he seem worried about that?

"It's nothing like that." Naruto tried to correct his mistake. "It's just that this is the first time you're asking me for a favor."

Out of all the kids, Naruto could confidently say that he knew the least about Monaca. Mostly because she just stood back a lot of times and let the others do the talking.

"I suppose that's true."

Monaca didn't answer his question. Maybe she was trying to make him squirm a little? But why?

Naruto didn't get it.

"You know summer vacation is coming, right?"

Monaca's question caught him off guard.

"Summer vacation?" He repeated with confusion. "What's that?"

Monaca turned her head to look back at him, her eyes widening just a tad. "You don't know what summer vacation is?"

Crap, was this something that was common knowledge that could expose him as not of this world if he didn't know? He thought he already had that covered!

"It's not something that we did where I come from. My village isn't from around here."

Would that work?

"Hmm." Monaca hummed as she faced forward again. "That's interesting. I didn't know you grew up in a village. I don't think you've spoken of your home before."

Naruto shrugged a little. Had he not mentioned it to the kids? He couldn't remember.

"It's…..not really important."

He wasn't sure if his tone was convincing or not, but honestly why should he be worried about that? Monaca seemed smart, sure, but she was still just a kid.

"Hopefully you can tell me more about it someday!"

Her chirpy response put him at ease.

"Sure."

Naruto had no problem with that.

"I'm glad you brought up your home village. You see, my favor has to do with my home."

Oh yeah?

"It's already the end of June, and summer vacations starts on the 20th of next month. It might be short notice, but I was hoping you could accompany me back home during the summer."

Say what? Naruto might not have known what kind of favor Monaca was going to ask of him, but he was still surprised.

"Your home?"

"Mhmm! It's not very big at the moment. It started as a project by my family. Have you heard of artificial islands before?"

"Nope."

It didn't sound all that appealing to him, though. Artificial? There were plenty of naturally made islands everywhere!

Monaca giggled again. "You're quite simple, Naruto."

Yeah, and he liked it that way.

"It has an official name, but the locals are just calling it Towa City," Monaca further explained. "Like I said, it's still expanding and construction won't be finish for another couple of years. Kotoko lives there too. I mean, she did."

Oh. Was that right?

But still, despite his negative impression of them, Naruto knew that creating an artificial island was no small feat. Gundham might have complained about them once or twice before as well, so Naruto was aware of the money that was needed to pull something like that off.

"Your family is wealthy, huh."

A common trait among many of his friends. Funny that.

"You could say that." Monaca's tone was even. "You've never heard of us? Even if you're not from there, the Towa Conglomerate is very powerful. We may not stand at the very top, but we're close enough."

"Nah. I don't really involve myself with stuff like that."

"That's refreshing to hear." Monaca sounded pleased. It made Naruto grin a little. "You have no idea how many people have approached me before just because I was a Towa. It can get bothersome after a while. That's why I don't tell many people my family name."

Naruto could imagine. It was that way for Fuyuhiko and his sister sometimes.

"So what do you say?" Monaca asked him again as they stopped by another water fountain. "It doesn't have to be longer than a week."

Naruto was still a bit confused. "Why do you want me to come home with you?"

What did she want him to do when he was there?

"Ah." Monaca pursed her lips as she hummed. "Well, I'd rather not get into specifics right now. It's a little sensitive. It involves my family, you see."

Oh yeah?

Naruto scratched his head as he thought about it. It wasn't like he had any other plans for this supposed "summer vacation." From the sounds of it, they were going to get a small break from the school. Why not visit a different place then? Even if it was an artificial island. Besides, if it was so important that Monaca went out of her way to ask him, then there was no way he could turn her down, right?

Naruto smiled as he patted his chest. "I'm not sure what you think I can do, but sure. I'll be happy to tag along."

The pleased look on Monaca's face was enough to make him think that he had made the right choice.

It was hard for Naruto to maintain his good mood as he climbed the stairs up to the roof of the science building. Kurama was happily still napping on his head, so at least he had good company on the way over here. Plus, he was still in costume, so there was that.

After his brief but informative conversation with Monaca, the two had parted ways. Naruto had offered to bring her to the gym to where the others had gone, but she had told him it was fine and that she could do it alone. He had still wanted to go with her, but she had practically shooed him away.

Really, he was only trying to delay this meeting as much as possible.

He really didn't like this jerk.

Despite his wishes, Naruto still opened the door to the roof. It was really bright up here, so his eyes needed a second to adjust. When they did, he instantly spotted the one who had summoned him up here.

Yasuke was leaning against the railing while gazing out towards the Main School building in the distance. There was also the new main building that was still under construction but about to be finished.

When you came up here, it was easy to see that Hope's Peak Academy really was massive.

But that was beside the point.

Right now, Naruto was only giving Yasuke his attention.

"I'm glad you came. It would have been a hassle if you hadn't gotten my message. I guess maybe you're not a total idiot."

This guy. Already starting with the insults.

Naruto closed the door behind him as he approached the Ultimate Neurologist.

"Let's skip the introductions."

"Really? I thought for sure you would have already forgotten about me."

This jerk. Was he serious?

"Your attitude leaves an impression."

Naruto was being nice when he decided to phrase it like that.

"I can say the same to your ignorance."

He wasn't going to let go of the fact that Naruto hadn't known what physics was when they first met, was he?

Naruto scowled. "Get to the point. You called me for a reason, right?"

It better not have been just to insult him, or Naruto was going to be mad. Or madder.

Yasuke turned to face him.

"It's about the school festival."

Naruto crossed his arms. "What about it? Also, I didn't peg you as the type to get involved with something like this."

"You guys have been making a huge fuss for the past couple of months. It's gotten the whole school talking about it. Isn't it possible that I just got caught up in the excitement?"

Yeah…..Naruto was never going to buy that excuse.

Something akin to amusement flashed on Yasuke's face for a split second. "Right. You're not that stupid."

Yeah, fuck this guy. Naruto really wanted to sucker punch right now.

"The others in my class feel a desire to win, for a multitude of reasons that aren't really important. Our student council president just wants everyone to have some fun, but that's also irrelevant to me. I only started motivating those around me so that I could get your attention."

What the heck?

Naruto furrowed his brow. "What for?"

"I want to make a deal with you." Yasuke wasn't going to beat around the bush. "You're a simpleton, so approaching you straightforward like this is the best way to get results. I guess it's not something those old geezers in the Steering Committee can understand. They've gotten used to sneaking around."

There was that name again, Steering Committee.

Naruto's body tensed. "You're working with them?"

"Officially." Yasuke actually smirked a bit. "You can relax. I'm only here for my own purposes."

"And that's supposed to make me feel better?"

"It should, yeah. Given what I'm trying to do."

"Which is?"

"To help the human race."

Naruto was startled. "You want to help people?"

Yasuke shrugged as his smirk disappeared. "Ultimately, it's still for my own selfish reasons. But yeah. I believe my research can help a lot of people down the line. Research that can be expedited if you help me."

Expedited?

Naruto didn't know what that word meant, but it was obvious that Yasuke was asking for his help.

"What do you need from me? You know that I know nothing about all that science stuff, right?"

"I'm quite aware of that." Cue another scowl from the blond. Yasuke ignored it. "Your cooperation is more simple than that. Simple, and yet important."

What?

"I need your body."

….

Naruto's blank look was enough to make Yasuke scowl.

"You really are a simpleton, aren't you? Obviously I didn't mean it like that."

"Hey, man. If that's how you roll, I'm not gonna judge. But uh. I'm not into dudes like that."

"Would you be serious for a second?"

"I am serious! You're the one who said he wants my body!" Naruto hugged himself as he took a couple of steps back. "My purity is at stake!"

Yasuke massaged his forehead. "I really want to end your miserable existence right now. Perhaps that could be another way of going about this."

"Don't worry, your secret is safe with me!"

"There is no secret!"

"Yeah, okay."

Yasuke glared at him as he lowered his hand. "Drop the act. You must be vaguely aware of it by now. The school wants something from you."

Naruto didn't say anything to this as his posture relaxed. There were many ways to answer that, but he didn't know what the correct one was. Mainly because he didn't trust Yasuke. The guy had admitted that he was working with the Steering Committee, and those were the guys running the school. The headmaster had already told him that those guys were after his blood and perhaps other stuff too for that project of theirs.

How much should he reveal about that to Yasuke, though?

"Man, you're easy to read." Yasuke started to relax as well. "So you do know some stuff."

Naruto still said nothing.

Yasuke didn't seem to mind. "You probably would know a lot more if you weren't wasting so much time with that class of yours."

To this, Naruto narrowed his eyes. "It's not wasting time. They're my friends. They're important to me."

"So idiotic." Yasuke outright rolled his eyes to those statements. "If stuff like that was needed, then the world would be a better place than it is today. Human connections don't matter in the face of salvation."

"I don't agree with you."

"So honest. I guess that makes all of this easier."

Naruto scowled. "You've been saying a lot but nothing at the same time, you know."

"There's no need to get into details right now. After all, I already set the stage for our contest."

Yeah…..he did mention that.

"You want to make a deal?"

"A bet." Yasuke locked eyes with him. "I wager that my class will come out on top of this school festival. If we do, then you will allow me to study your body."

This dude…..why did he have to phrase it like that?

Naruto's eyebrow twitched. "You know you sound creepy, right?"

"Irrelevant."

It was not! It was like he was talking to Orochimaru or something.

Huffing, Naruto crossed his arms again and tapped his foot on the ground. "What do I get out of this?"

Yasuke shrugged. "Name your terms."

So that's how he was doing this, huh. He was obviously tempting Naruto with this, and it was working.

This was more than just a little dangerous. Naruto was certainly playing with fire here, but when had that ever stopped him? Besides, this might have been the opening he had been seeking.

"If me and my friends win, then you'll tell me everything you know about the Steering Committee. And that project of theirs. And then you're gonna help me stop them."

That last part seemed to tick Yasuke off.

Good.

Yasuke didn't argue. "That's all?"

Naruto thought about it. "You'll also tell me what your goal is all about."

Yasuke scowled. This condition seemed to annoy him the most. "You're asking for a lot."

Naruto shrugged. "Hey, you approached me. If you don't like it, then we can both walk away right now."

He was taunting Yasuke back, and he enjoyed every second of it.

After all, Yasuke knew that Naruto was right. He had been the one to start negotiations like this. That put him at a disadvantage. While Naruto was taking his own risks, so was Yasuke.

Basically, he couldn't refuse Naruto's terms.

There was no reason to hesitate.

"It's a deal then."

Naruto smirked.

"Yeah, it's a promise."

The school festival just took another turn.

I recently moved states, and then had no wifi for about a week. The struggle.

Anyway, that's all from me this time. It's a long chapter, so there are probably grammatical errors in there somewhere. Sorry about that.

Enjoy.

Till next time.