15:15 PM (Japan Time), Sunday February the 19th…
"… We are all gathered for this meeting. Excellent…"
"N-naturally, sir…"
"Please state your commands, Mr. President…"
"Meeting of the Second Triumvirate. February 19th, 2012…"
"Akihiko, representative of Bronze Sword…"
"Nakayami, representative of Silver Arrow…"
"And I, Rufus, representative of Shinra…"
Rufus, Akihiko, and another teen were sitting around a table.
The other teen had messy, silver hair.
His eyes were red.
A red bandana was tied around his forehead,
It had a silver arrow drawn on its center.
He wore a red sleeveless vest, a black T-shirt, jeans and sneakers.
"What's the status of the "Asset"?" Rufus asked him.
"It's making progress. A breakthrough is imminent, sir…"
"I expected no less. It's had time to sort out its head…"
Rufus leant forward and leant his jaw atop his hands.
"Continue the surveillance unless ordered otherwise…"
"By your orders…"
"And don't forget your training sessions, either…"
"Naturally, sir. We stick to the schedule…"
"I know that you do things properly. Unlike someone…"
He glanced at Akihiko, who gulped and sweated.
"Matters little. If it works to lure out the bigger fish…"
"The cat, sir?" Nakayami asked.
"Yes. I'm closer to drawing out the fool behind it…"
"Excuse me, but… What about the gloomy folk?" Akihiko asked.
"I figured out their weakness… It's the light…"
"Excuse me?"
"They dwell in a dark, poisonous world. Light harms them…"
"How do they operate outside of it, then?"
"Simple. Armors to filter the "light" and the "air"…"
"I see…"
"They are invisible, but they exist. If we damage those…"
"They won't be able to draw out their full powers?"
"Exactly. We can force them to retreat, too…"
"But that'd mere stalling, wouldn't it?"
"Yes. Since we can't raid their home so easily…"
"Star Man tried with a fake copy of himself, and failed…"
"Star Man was a fool. I overestimated his abilities…"
He chuckled and the teens gulped, nervous.
"I personally delivered the finishing blow to their long agony…"
He leant back on the chair, leaning on the armrests.
"As for that samurai… Don't take them lightly…"
"Didn't intend to. Especially given last year's battle…"
"But it's not invincible. They can make mistakes…"
"Affirmative…"
"Sergei. Remember to use that ace and smash all opposition…"
"By your orders, Mr. President…"
A Navi materialized next to Nakayami.
This Navi was of the same height as Rock Man.
His helmet was silver with crimson edges.
It had a red diamond set on the forehead.
His eyes were red.
His shoulder plates were a mix of red and black.
His bodysuit was silver with a central crimson line.
His forearms were silver with purple patterns.
His boots were purple with silver patterns.
He had a small red mantle, which covered the upper torso from the front.
It extended until under the waist from the back.
It was decorated with two golden diamonds.
There was a string made of gray and hollow horizontal diamonds.
His piece of cloth was tall enough to cover most of his head.
The interior had yellow and gray patterns drawn into it.
"If it's not something worth it, your swordsmanship will suffice…"
"Speaking of assets… What about that man, Tokugawa?"
"Hojo's failed experiment? Must be in Spain, busting Mafias…"
He shrugged and laughed.
"It's no better than a NEET…"
"You mean someone without education, employment or training?"
"Exactly…" He sneered.
"But their stealth ability is the real deal, right?"
"True. They might be used for spying…"
"Are you sure that they aren't here?" Akihiko nervously asked.
"I scanned the area several times. No traces…" Sergei argued back.
"R-roger that…"
"But what do we do with the "asset"?"
"We'll crush them when they become confident of success…"
"Because that's when they will lower the guard?"
"Correct. It's not stupid, it very like is aware of our surveillance…"
"But doesn't act to make us feel confident?"
"Exactly… And is probably more focused on its experiments…"
"What kind of experiments, anyway?"
"Probably a repeat of what it was doing "back home"…"
"… I take it back. I prefer not to know the details…"
Akihiko gulped and shook his head.
"I see that you're learning something. Keep it up…"
"Y-yes, sir. I'll use the head…!"
"You better do. Else you'll be a bump of meat forever…"
He glanced at Nakayami next.
"To be more accurate, their pet…"
"Y-yes… Yes… I am very aware of that, yes…"
"Good, good. Fear is good to keep fools in line…"
He snapped his fingers.
"Look at this…"
A world map hologram formed, and several red spots appeared there.
"The Thanatos factories are working at full capacity…"
"W-wonderful, sir…"
"The data gathered through battles in the Middle East is great…"
"What will be the next step, sir?"
"Easy. Pit them against each other to gain further data…"
"Sell "samples" to PMCs and militias and paramilitary…"
"Of course, they're equipped with a failsafe device…"
"If they try to tamper with them, they will self-destruct…"
"Naturally, it's not for free. Only the biggest players can buy them…"
"And what will these funds be used for?"
"To expand the business, building more factories and units…"
"Building the basis for the new "cold war" of this era?"
"Indeed. All-out destruction doesn't benefit anyone…"
"Use them as form of deterrence, too?"
"That could work, too. I'll consider it, Nakayami…"
"I am honored, sir…"
"Alright. Akihiko. Resume compilation of feedback data…"
"Roger, sir…"
"Nakayami. Resume the surveillance on the "asset"…"
"By your orders, sir…"
"The Second Triumvirate will leave its footprint in the world…"
17:17 PM (Japan Time)…
"… What? No. I didn't hire that service…"
"I apologize for the inconveniences. But we wanted to be sure…"
"Naturally. Good afternoon…"
"Glyde! What's going on here?"
"I'm trying to figure out what happened, yes! Miss Yaito!"
"Isn't it everyone's favorite troublemaker, Yaito – chan?"
"KIRYUUIN SAKURAKO!"
"Trouble, Meiru – chan…"
"As if it ever goes away…"
Meiru was calmly reading a women's fashion magazine.
Yaito was talking with someone over the interphone, annoyed.
"Who the heck sent an order to a sky typing business!?"
"The order was by "the maid of destiny, DIAM"…"
"Who on Earth is that supposed to be!?"
"It's a joke. "DIAM" is an anagram of "MAID"…" Meiru sighed.
"Well! I'll be blasted!"
"What was the message, anyway?"
"It was for White Day, next month! "Enzan! You're so silly!"…"
"No wonder that they called you back to ask if you were serious!"
"At least there's still people with common sense out there!"
"Fortunately!"
"I don't find records of a payment, so it's not a loss on our end…"
"Guess that the prankster paid for it themselves…"
"Tesla Magnets wouldn't bother, so…"
"That Rufus Shinra playboy wannabe!" She concluded.
"If he inherits Clark's tendency to mock everyone…"
"It's not illogical that he came up with that to mock me and Enzan!"
"Maybe was hoping that you'd fight each other…"
"He likes fights so much! He should run a boxing club!"
"Truly. If only these types didn't bother others…"
"Sorry for the wait! The takeaway!"
"The Maha Curry!"
"Cooled by the winter!"
Dekao, Chisao and Hikawa came in, laughing.
"By the way. Dingo – kun is still bedridden with a cold?" Meiru asked.
"Guts! Sure! Tomahawk Man told me a while ago!" Guts Man confirmed.
"And he was mumbling about compasses and maps and roads…"
Hikawa rolled his eyes, as if exasperated with the topic.
"No surprise!" Meiru sighed.
"… What? Sakurako said that she was going to the Bermudas!?"
Yaito was discussing with someone over the phone.
"Yes. She left a letter with that message in my desk…"
"Nonsense. How is she going to make it there, anyway?"
"Claimed that it was a top-secret mission from Mr. President…"
"Top-secret mission? Come on! I hope that she didn't steal a sub!"
"It takes several staff to operate it, Miss Yaito…"
"Good point. Then maybe that letter is a fake…"
"But why bother?" Hikawa argued.
"Probably to make it look like she's running wild or such…"
"Or if something happens, she's to blame…" Meiru offered.
"That could be it, too…"
"By the way. There's a notice from "Ms. Creepy"…"
"Who the heck is that?"
"It says "beware of playboys"…"
"Very funny. You can burn it!"
"Understood…"
"Hi, Ice Man!"
"Aqua Man! Let's play!"
"Let's play!"
Aqua Man joined the Navis and Ice Man rejoiced.
"Bubble Man said that he was busy hunting for treasure!"
"As always!" Roll muttered, unimpressed.
"There is also a letter by a "Mr. Busujima"…"
"Busujima? Who is that?"
"The President of KB Security…"
"I don't recall hiring a security business to protect the manor…"
"Says that we owe him 10 billion Z and that we surrender the ruby…"
"10 BILLION!? COME ON!"
She became annoyed once again.
"BURN IT! DESTROY IT! TEAR IT TO PIECES!"
"Understood…"
"The head maid must really be used to her screams…" Hikawa hushed.
"I don't want to be on the receiving end, either…" Dekao hushed.
"Then better do the job properly! Else Maha scolds you!" Chisao sighed.
"What next? Pneumatic hammers? No, we don't need them!"
"By the way, Tooru! Did you find the secret stamp?" Dekao asked him.
"I'm almost there. I'm trying to decipher the last hint…"
"The answer might be simpler than what you expected!" Chisao suggested.
"What now? A Picasso certified by Doburoku Studio? What's that?"
Yaito was still arguing with the head maid.
"It's a game reference. It's a forgery…" Hikawa clarified.
"Forgery!? As if I would buy that! Tell them to toss it into the trash dump!"
"Right away…"
"I feel like there was a similar farce before, too…" Meiru sighed.
"There was…" Roll confirmed.
"They don't know how to innovate, do they?"
"Sorry for the wait…"
"Hi, Iris and Trill!"
Iris and Trill walked into the treehouse, too.
"Netto will soon come, he had something to finish…"
"OK! I'll wait!" Trill laughed.
"How about we play some ping-pong before then?"
"Sure!"
"I'll play with you, Trill!" Chisao offered.
"Let's play!"
Trill and Chisao began to play ping-pong.
Iris sat on a chair and checked a magazine about gardening.
"Sorry for the wait! I brought the others!"
"Good afternoon!"
Netto, Yuuki and Hoshita came in next.
"Great! Now we have enough players for the domino games!"
Yaito ended the phone call as they split in two groups of four.
Meiru, Yaito, Dekao and Netto sat around one table.
Hikawa, Yuuki, Hoshita and Iris sat around the other table.
"Domino is always fun! You can't predict the outcome!"
"Sure. Let's begin!" Yaito giggled.
"… Say, Glyde. The cat hasn't been here, right?"
Rock Man was talking to Glyde in the meanwhile.
"No. I did carry out extensive searches and security upgrades…"
"Alright. Sorry, I'm a bit tense…"
"I can tell that…"
"But don't tell the others. Don't want to spoil the fun…"
"Naturally. Count on my discretion…"
"I'll go play with Trill next. Keep eyes on Ice Man and Aqua Man…"
"But of course…"
Rock Man walked away as Glyde headed for the duo.
They were laughing as they slid down a slider heading into a pool.
"Their innocent laughter always erases my exhaust!"
He smiled and hummed a tune…
17:48 PM (Japan Time)…
"… I'm the hottest in the world! The mighty Zoan Flame Man!"
"And I'm the most passionate Navi! Fire Man!"
"I'll crush you like the ant that you are! Chaos Flame!"
"Flame Tower!"
"Go on, Fire Man! Bust that alien invader come to wreck our store!"
"Delighted, Lord Hinoken!"
Fire Man was fighting Zoan Flame Man before a firewall.
He dodged the flames flying for him and hit the floor with the right muzzle.
A pillar of flames formed and cancelled the foe's attacks.
"Fool! Earthquake!"
"Area Steal!"
"Fool! Ice Stage!"
"Magma Seed!"
The golden "Powy" fell for Fire Man from above him.
He "warped" to place distance as the ground froze.
But he simply flung the red capsule to melt it and boil it.
"Fool! Hydro Pump!"
"You're more repetitive than a parrot. Flame Tower!"
Flame Man formed more pillars to intercept the "Hydro Pump".
"Definitive. This is a parody made by those fools…" Maha sighed.
"By George! They never grow up, do they?" Count Elec grumbled.
"Given how they have fun stirring married couple fights…"
"Madoi! Please don't say it like we're fighting the whole time…"
"Fool! Flamethrower!"
"Ocean Seed!"
"Fool! Thunderbolt!"
"Lightning Rod!"
Zoan Flame Man shot a stream of flames, intercepted by the capsule.
Water vapor formed before the foe, limiting his vision.
He wasn't impressed and made thunderbolts fall around the area.
Fire Man formed the Lightning Rod to intercept them.
"Fool! Dragon Dance! Destruction Beam!"
"What a lazy collage!" Colored Man sighed.
"It's but a distraction. Don't be fooled…" Elec Man warned.
"I am checking for backdoors and such!" Magic Man reported.
"Leave no stone unturned. Use the app made by Lord Wily…"
"Yes, Master!"
The sound of the door sliding open echoed.
"Welcome to…!" Count Elec began to say.
"Found you, Jackie! Confess! Where's the diamond!?"
"BROTHER!" He roared.
"Gauss Magners!" Everyone else hissed.
"Diamond? Tesla must've hidden it as insurance! To pawn it!"
"You must've incentivized her!"
"How could I? I don't know her location or how to contact her!"
"You must've hired a private eye!"
"As if I had the time or money for that! Lame spy wannabe!"
"Say that again!"
"Well? What did you break now?" Someone asked.
"L-Lord Wily!"
"Lord Wily!?"
"Well, well. If it isn't Gauss – kun… You never grow, do you?"
"Tell me that you hid Tesla in your Ultra Secret Bunker!"
"What? Who's saying that nonsense? Rufus Shinra?"
"What? It wasn't your assistant?"
"Who would that be? The "Professor"? Was caught a year ago…"
"That annoying youngster! Always meddling with the veterans…!"
"Not my problem. Get lost…"
"I see! You must be Rufus! I'll expose your true colors!"
"Deal with my bodyguard before that…"
"Father. I am not your bodyguard, but…"
"Yuriko!" Gauss hissed.
"Hello. Mr. Dumb that mistook me and my sister…"
"You should've told me!"
"Thought that you were smarter than that… Overestimated you…"
"Fool! Blizzard!"
"Such feeble snow can't put out my fires! Firearm!"
Fire Man increased power on his muzzles and shot through the blizzard.
He hit the candles, burning with green light, and destroyed them.
"Impossible!"
"The end! Tsunami!"
"Ridiculous!"
A huge wave washed Zoan Flame Man away, deleting him.
"A meek and feeble Phantom Navi…" Wily grumbled.
"Naturally!" Needle Man sighed.
"We're not done yet, Rufus!"
SMACK! THUD! CRASH!
"Didn't want to use excessive violence on an old human, but…"
"This fool needs some pain to wake up and face reality!"
"Mag Missile! Mag Ball!"
"Speaking of the devil!"
Both jumped to dodge the attacks from Magnet Man.
"Time to take out the trash in one sweep!" He chuckled.
"Really. Did you notice Shadow Man trailing you for 8 hours?"
Needle Man smirked and looked at Magnet Man's shadow.
"What!? Shadow Man!? Damn you, dirty ninja!"
He turned around, but then both Navis aimed their weapons.
"Needle Cannon!"
"Firearm!"
"You bastards!"
"I never was one to play fair!"
"Do you expect that from us?"
"Go, Mag Maggie! Smash those starving invaders!"
"Y-yes, milady!"
"Well, well. Did you find a diamond, Tesla?"
"YURIKO! I'll bust you and that stupid alien mole!"
"Then go play whack a mole at the game center…"
"Remember! I'll smash both you, Hikari Netto and Rufus Shinra!"
"Go ahead. Ms. Security Officer That Ran Away…"
"That was a strategic retreat!"
"They all say the same thing…"
"Whatever! You solve this mess yourself, Father! Let's pull out!"
"Roger! Eat this!"
Magnet Man flung a grenade into the air, and it detonated.
It caused a powerful flash and a loud BANG.
A couple of seconds later, he was gone.
"I'll come back on another day. Let's go, Yuriko…"
"Sure. The authorities will handle the rest…"
"I'll resume hunting for clues about the target!" Needle Man reported.
"Go ahead…"
Needle Man ran off as Fire Man scanned the area.
"Someone is trying to taunt me on the edge of my radar's range, sir…"
"Must be those fools. Ignore them!" Hinoken ordered.
"Roger that…"
"Man! We need training to get up to date!"
"Agreed. Lord Wily often says it, too…" Maha calmly added.
"And let's have Dingo join us when he recovers!" Iroaya added.
"Good idea. Maybe some curry will help him recover?"
"Why not…"
18:28 PM (Japan Time)…
"… Found you, our beloved fortune-teller of the rusted saucer…"
"Dear me! You sure are in a good mood today, Mr. Customer!"
"I shall show those barbarians how it's done…"
"Then show it to them, don't abuse of animals!"
"You won't run away so easily this time…"
Freeze Man had cornered Caith Sith in an area of the Cyber World.
He was closed inside of a mass of transparent ice.
"What do you want to do?" Freeze Man questioned.
"Well… Find Death Shadow and stop it before it goes wild?"
"Interesting. You must be best of "friends"…"
"Interpret it as you like!"
"Fine… But we shall dispose of the other interlopers by ourselves…"
"Do as you like!"
"Generous, aren't we?"
"No? More like Deathly Shadowy is more dangerous than the others!"
"Based on what?"
"On what that thing is! It's no parody by Rufus or Clark!"
"That much I am aware of…"
"It's going to really make a mess! A huge mess!"
"And how are you going to stop that?"
"I have a hunch of what it'll do. And I'll intercept it when it does!"
"Interesting…"
"Besides. Have you realized something important?"
"What?"
"I don't care if you become annoyed at me. But you are not…"
"… I figured that out time ago. And I don't care…"
Freeze Man crossed his arms, and his expression became serious.
"Call it running from reality or living a dream… Matters not!"
He closed his right fist, and the air became colder.
"I'm not a stupid fool. I have ability to "connect the clues"…"
He looked over his left shoulder and smirked.
"I don't recall inviting you over. Buffoon…"
He formed an ice spear from the back of his right elbow.
It extended backwards and hit something invisible.
"Mountain Spear!"
Several short spears formed in the air and shot for the intruder.
A black and slightly curved sword became visible.
This sword had a small purple sphere where the handle and blade fused.
It swung, drawing an arch across the air, and bounced off the attacks.
"As expected of the "original" Gospel… You're very sharp!"
Sergei became visible, smirking.
He formed another blade and gripped it with his left hand.
"Any last words before I cut you up to pieces?"
"That's what I should be saying… Buffoon of Shinra…"
"Tell that to that cat over there…"
"Very bold of you to assume that I came alone, Mr. Freeze!"
"Very bold of you to assume that I didn't expect that, buffoon…"
"What!?"
"Darkness Overload!"
"Shit!"
Sergei jumped away to dodge the blast from Forte, behind him.
"Enough games. Where's Death Shadow?" He demanded.
"Dunno! You're so smart and mighty, find him yourself!"
"Also… There are more mice over there! Mountain Spear!"
He formed more spears and shot them at the other end of the tunnel.
A powerful shotgun blast blew them away.
Hunter Man also became visible.
"Devil! The Second Triumvirate!" Caith Sith gasped.
"You're forgetting me, Two-Face!"
Rufus and his pet landed in, and he shot at the mass of ice, cracking it.
"Heck! Should've stayed in Mendoza, Argentina!"
"I'll prove that my words during the meeting were no bluff!"
The "dog" jumped at Cait Sith, and they began to fight.
"Dark Arm Blades!"
"That won't stop me!"
Sergei and Forte were having a clash of blades.
"Icicle Fall!"
"Eat grenades!"
Freeze Man made countless icicles rain on Hunter Man.
The foe formed grenades and flung them into the air.
Their explosions intercepted and shattered the icicles.
"… Careful, truly. The data is encoded, and this unit is autonomous…"
Rufus was reading a data output in the meanwhile.
"All of it is existing Earth tech, there's nothing odd about it…"
"What did you think I am, one of the Little Grey Men!?"
"You never know. Thought that you were like Slur…"
"I'm not the errands boy of a giant, if that's what you mean to say!"
"Good, good…"
"And if you're asking for a brawl, you'll have one! 80s style brawl!"
"Did you come to Earth in the 80s, then?" He laughed.
Caith Sith growled something under his breath.
"I see that there are foul folk to cut up…"
"Sir Yoshitsune! Please use your Eight Ship Leap to punish them!"
Yoshitsune joined the fray, and Rufus smirked.
"Fine. We have a score to settle from some hours ago…"
Yoshitsune didn't reply and tensed, ready to unsheathe his blade.
Rufus dropped the shotgun and quickly drew two semi-automatic guns.
He fired them at the same time, and Yoshitsune side-stepped to dodge.
However, Rufus also jumped away to change his attack angle.
The bullets curved and chased Yoshitsune.
"Tracking bullets? As if those would stop me!"
He "warped" and reappeared right before Rufus, drawing the blade.
However, Rufus turned into a silver, semi-liquid mass.
It jumped for Yoshitsune, who gasped.
"Use fire!" Cait Sith called out.
"Salamander!"
He became the fiery dragon and jumped into the air.
The liquid was boiled away by the intense heat.
The "dog" also became that, and Cait Sith used the chance to run away.
Sergei and Hunter Man also became that.
Forte grimaced and hissed.
"Clark! You won't turn me into your puppet again! Earth Breaker!"
He roared, jumped into the air, and loaded energy on his right hand.
He unleashed it against the puddle of "silver" and vaporized it.
Freeze Man roared and froze the ground, trapping the "silver" there.
He then formed a huge hammer the ends of which were burning hot.
He shattered the ice, and the heat boiled the "silver" away.
"Had the feeling that it was too good to be true…" Freeze Man scoffed.
"You handle the field! I must find that bastard!" Forte hissed.
He flew away before anyone could object.
"Fine. You fools can deal with that aberration. I'll chase Rufus!"
Freeze Man also escaped before they could argue with him.
"Well? What are you going to do?" Yoshitsune asked him.
"Resume searching for Death Shadow, of course…"
"Fine. We will bust their stupid Terminator parodies…"
"Feel free to. I busted a bunch on my own but grew bored of it!"
"Anyone would…"
"Don't take that freak lightly!"
"Didn't mean to. I'll cut them up if they appear before me!"