Phantom Files Book 2: Rise Of The Monarchs

by sithlorde1988

The sequel to Persona 5-The Phantom Files. A few years after Ren returns home, the Phantom Thieves find themselves drawn back into the Metaverse once again out of nowhere after a mysterious app surfaces with the powers to access the Metaverse. Can the Phantom Thieves stop a mysterious new group of individuals called Monarchs? Better summary in chapter 1! BOTH STORY AND EDITS DONE!

24. The Wolf of Kyoto? Wolf's Resolve part 2

A/N: sithlorde1988 here, with another chapter of Phantom Files, Book 2: Rise Of The Monarchs! I know I left the last chapter on something of a cliffhanger, but it was needed for various reasons. However, this chapter will pick up right after that cliffhanger, since I plan to add in a scene that covers the Phantom Thieves' perspective of Zenkichi's decision and their reactions to said decision, before transitioning to the next part that follows the ending of chapter 23, so there's that to keep in mind. That said, let's get the disclaimer done while I'm thinking of it.

Disclaimer: I, sithlorde1988, do not own the Persona series in ANY way, shape, or form ((other than the OCs Kusa/Draconis, Taichi, Momoe, the OC Personas Malefor and Albus, and the Phantom Thief attire for both Pendragon and Draconis, along with the Phantom Thief attire for two of the three remaining Thieves who have awakenings still to come.

I do not, however, own the OC Persona Hester, nor the Phantom Thief attire for Flare, despite coining her code name. The creative credit, and by extension the ownership, of both Hester and of Shiho/Flare's Phantom Thief attire belong to thalassatides (at symbol) bsky on X (or Twitter as it was called for a long time before becoming X), so credit to them for that! They do great work!

I am just using the idea of the design for the purposes of the story.)), and the ownership credit for the Persona series mainly belongs to Sega and Atlus, with secondary credit going to Koei Tecmo (at least for Strikers. The rest of the spinoffs, such as Tactica, Phantom X, the 'Arena' games, the 'Q' games, and the 'Dancing' games were all done by other studios, who know who they are and are given credit for their part in owning the various spinoff games of Persona), so all credit to them!

And with that out of the way, let me just take a quick second to say LET'S GO, NINERS! Took us four straight trips to the NFC Championship Game, but as of the point of typing this start-of-chapter A/N, we're finally on our way back to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2019 (even though the Super Bowl of that season happened in 2020) so let's go! Granted, we're gonna have to play the same team we played the last time we got to the Super Bowl, aka the Kansas City Chiefs, but we have a different team this time than we did the last time, even if it's only somewhat different.

So I'm cautiously hopeful this will finally be the Niners' year to hoist that Lombardi Trophy. The last time we got one of those was apparently back in 1994, when the Niners beat the Chargers in Super Bowl XXVIII (or 28), and this is Super Bowl LVIII (or 58 if I have the Roman numerals correct), so we're definitely due to win one!

And now that I've gotten that out of my system (at least for now), let's get on with the chapter, yeah? I'll try to have another A/N after the chapter where we talk about more Persona-related stuff, so keep an eye out for that. But for now, here's chapter 24!

Chapter 24: Contingencies, Plotting, and Traps! Howl Of The Resolute Wolf part 2

(In the hot springs hotel of Kyoto, shortly after the hot-springs debacle, with Ren, Sojiro, Sumire, Sophia, and Yusuke)

"That was pretty close back there, am I right?" Ren said to Yusuke and Sojiro, who were the only three sitting in the lobby of the hot springs hotel after the girls, with the exception of Makoto, who'd remained in the hot springs to punish Ryuji for getting caught trying to escape, had caught up to the guys who'd escaped the hot springs. Afterwards, the guys got a sternly-worded lecture about not trying to be in the hot springs at the same time as the girls, to which Yusuke had protested by saying they didn't do it intentionally, and that they'd gone in right as the allotment switched.

Ren then chimed in by saying that they wanted to tell the girls they were there and to let them leave before getting in, but had been overruled by both Goro and Kusa, who'd insisted that the girls wouldn't buy that and would just treat it as them being pervs. The girls then nodded their understanding and then each of them grabbed their respective boyfriend/potential crush/girlfriend and led them to a room to 'talk' as the girls put it, leaving just Ren, Sojiro, Yusuke, Sumire, and Sophia in the lobby. At that point, Yusuke nodded and spoke up.

"Agreed. I can't believe Ryuji tripped over a rack and nearly got both of us caught. As it is, I'm glad Goro and Kusa led us out quickly so only Ryuji got caught back there." Yusuke said as Sumire giggled and spoke up.

"I had a feeling Goro and Kusa were the ones responsible for masterminding you guys' escape efforts. Luckily for them, Haru and Futaba are understanding, so they'll only be minimally punished. As for the rest of you, well, Makoto-senpai is personally punishing Ryuji for getting caught. And I believe I saw Nanako-chan drag Morgana into one of the rooms. My guess is they're gonna get to know one another, but maybe she intends to punish Morgana?

We'll wait and see what ends up happening with that. As for myself, I could care less that you were part of all that, Ren. And obviously, Ann and Shiho were more pre-occupied with each other than with what the guys got caught doing. So that leaves the five of us." Sumire said with a smile as a 'BIP!' from her phone preceded Sophia speaking up, a slight frown on her face while she spoke.

"Wait. Nanako took Morgana into a room? And you're sure she's not crushing on him?" Sophia asked uncertainly as Ren spoke up.

"Honestly? They could be crushing on one another for all we know. But at the same time, didn't you yourself just tell Sumire and I that you might see Morgana as a brother anyways, Sophia?" Ren asked as Sophia nodded and spoke up.

"That is true. I think I might see Morgana as a brother. But at the same time, I spent most of the time up to this point thinking I had a crush on him, so it's still going to somewhat hurt to see him and Nanako hook up, assuming they end up getting together." Sophia said as Sumire spoke up.

"True, but I seem to recall hearing Nanako tell some of the other girls that she wanted to let you have first dibs on Morgana before she made a move on him, since she realized you were interested in him." Sumire pointed out as Sophia smiled and spoke up.

"I see. Sounds like Nanako is a very considerate woman, then." Sophia said with a smile as Sojiro spoke up.

"I'm not surprised. While Goro was napping the day that Nanako joined me and Goro for tanning, she and I talked a bit, and she mentioned how a lot of people always told her she was quite mature for her age, so I can see her being able to make decisions most women her age wouldn't be able to make. And I know I wasn't the only one who saw Morgana's jaw drop when he got a good look at both Nanako's hair, and her figure, the other day." Sojiro said sagely as Ren nodded his agreement. Around that same point, Ren frowned as he heard his phone go off, seeing a message Zenkichi had sent the group chat.

"Are you guys all right in there? Hurry up and get out of there while you still can! I think I inadvertently sent you guys into a trap! If you see this in time, hurry and get the hell outta there!" Zenkichi sent as Ren's eyes widened and he spoke up.

"Crap! We might have to get the others and tell them to get decent so we can escape in a hurry if needed." Ren said as Sojiro spoke up.

"I think that shouldn't be too tough, except the fact that someone's gonna have to go tell Ryuji and Makoto to get dressed, since I'm pretty sure I heard moaning from inside the hot springs a little bit ago, but tried to tune it out. If I had to guess, I'd say Ryuji and Makoto are probably being naughty in there, for the sake of not saying anything too inappropriate around Sophia." Sojiro said, getting an approving nod from both Ren and Sumire as the latter spoke up.

"I'll handle that. I can just peek my head in and yell at them to get out, get dressed and get ready to leave. I don't think Ryuji-senpai and Makoto-senpai will be too mad at me for that." Sumire said as Yusuke spoke up.

"Right. And while you're doing that, the rest of us can go try and figure out which rooms the others disappeared to and tell them to get dressed and get out." Yusuke sent as Ren nodded his agreement along with Sojiro. Sumire then spoke up.

"And I'll leave you out here in the lobby so that if any of the others show up while we're doing all this, you can tell them to get ready to go." Sumire said to Sophia, who nodded and spoke up.

"Understood. I'll be sure to pass the message along if I see any of the others." Sophia said as Sumire nodded. At that point, the gathered quartet went about gathering the others...

(A little while later, in the lobby of the hot springs hotel, with Ren, Morgana, Ryuji, Ann, Yusuke, Makoto, Futaba, Haru, Goro, Sumire, Kusa, Sophia, Sojiro, Shiho, and Nanako)

After gathering the group in the lobby, Goro spoke up with a frown on his face.

"So we're gathered here because we need to hurry up and get out? I wasn't aware that Zenkichi-san had reached out to warn us about that?" Goro said as Yusuke spoke up.

"Probably because he likely reached out to Ren and Kusa first and foremost?" Yusuke said as Shiho nodded and spoke up.

"Makes sense he'd reach out to the leaders first before letting them tell the rest of us." Shiho said as Kusa spoke up.

"Good point, Shiho. And to answer your question, Goro? That's probably because he did that while we were dealing with other things, and otherwise pre-occupied." Kusa said as Ren grinned and spoke up.

"True. I know that some of us got quite lucky earlier, even if some of us didn't." Ren said, aiming a sly wink at Makoto and Ryuji, who blushed at Ren's alluding to what they'd done in the hot-springs a little while prior. Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"Even if you're right about that Ren, that's none of your business. What Ryuji and I may or may not have done in the hot springs stays in the hot springs." Makoto said as Nanako giggled and spoke up.

"You say that, but that only applies to if no one else hears what you were doing. Unfortunately for the both of you, Morgana and I chose the room on the opposite side of the girls'-side wall for the hot springs, so we heard all of what you and Ryuji got up to for the most part. However, I'll keep quiet about what I heard, out of respect for you. But let me just say, I wouldn't have pegged either you or Ryuji for being the vocal types when behind closed doors." Nanako said with a sly giggle, not at all bothered by the embarrassed/mortified glares Makoto and Ryuji aimed at her as the latter spoke up with a pout on his face.

"Shut up! And before you go to tease Makoto and I, might I remind you that all of us saw you surprise Morgana with that rather blatant bit of flirting after Sophia teased him about being a pet? Pretty sure that says quite a bit about your potential opinion of Morgana, if you ask me." Ryuji said as Nanako blushed, but nodded her understanding, not able to refute Ryuji's retort as he had a point about her finding Morgana attractive. Haru giggled and spoke up with a sly grin on her face.

"You know, you're not helping your case when you start blushing like that, Nanako-chan. Besides, you can't help that you find Mona-chan adorable." Haru said sagely as Nanako merely nodded. Sophia, for her part, blinked and spoke up.

"Wait, why are you bringing up my teasing of Morgana, Ryuji? Yes, I'll admit I could've refrained from calling Morgana a pet, but hopefully he knows I was kidding? Besides, that face he makes when he gets annoyed can be quite adorable at times." Sophia said as Morgana spoke up.

"I didn't know Lady Nanako teasing me meant she liked me? Also, isn't it a bit fast for you to be saying she likes me when we've not known each other for more than a few days, Lady Sophia? Not to mention the fact that you're saying that in front of both Sumire and Ren, the former of which has a pretty scary 'mama bear' streak?" Morgana said as Sumire smiled and spoke up.

"I won't apologize for being protective over those I care about. As for the odd potential love triangle with you, Nanako, and Sophia? All I ask is that you let Sophia down gently if you do decide you'd rather be with Nanako than Sophia. Not that I expect you to know which of them you want to be with yet." Sumire said, giggling at the shocked look on Morgana's face as she kept speaking.

"Don't be shocked, Morgana. I saw that almost happy smile you had on your face when we retrieved you and Sophia from that Ferris wheel compartment the night before we left Sapporo, which was while you were still in your other form. You might say you don't know how you feel about Sophia, but I think there's a small part of you that really cares about Sophia, and might actually have legitimate feelings for her. Don't be so quick to assume that you have no interest in her." Sumire sad as Futaba spoke up.

"Mwehehe, I could see Morgana being Sophia's knight in shining armor in a pinch. Of course, this assumes he doesn't just dial the simping for her up to an 11 instead. Either one is possible with him. Plus, I seem to recall Kusa telling me about a conversation where he-" Futaba said as Nanako spoke up, blushing prettily as she realized what Futaba was alluding to.

"FUTABA! Enough! I didn't mind Morgana complimenting me like he did that day, since he was really sweet to say what he did. Also, at least Morgana and I didn't basically hit a home run in the hot springs earlier, unlike a certain pair of others I could name." Nanako said with a sly grin as both Ryuji and Makoto blushed and spoke up.

"SHUDDUP!" Ryuji and Makoto simultaneously rebuked Makoto as Morgana spoke up with a grin.

"Mwehehe, look at that. You two are already getting embarrassed in unison. And also, to be fair? Is it really our business what Ryuji and Makoto do with their sex lives, Lady Nanako?" Morgana asked as both Futaba and Sumire exchanged shocked looks at Morgana's remark, before both turned to pass a slyly-smirking Ren some yen, making Kusa smirk and speak up.

"Ah, makin' a few bets on the sly there, eh Ren? Smart." Kusa said approvingly as Nanako blinked and spoke up.

"I wouldn't have pegged either of you two as the gambling type, but I suppose to each their own?" Nanako said warily as Kusa nodded while Sumire spoke up.

"They don't bet that often, Nanako-chan. But usually when Kusa bets, he does so responsibly. Besides, that's what Goro and Morgana are there for-to police the bets Ren and Kusa make, but moreso Ren's bets." Sumire said as Ren spoke up with a sly smirk.

"Am I hearing complaints? Usually when I make bets with you, they nearly always end favorably for you whether you win them or lose them." Ren pointed out as Sumire blushed and said nothing as Goro frowned and spoke up.

"Of course. We went from needing to escape to Ren and Sumire saying suggestive things to each other." Goro deadpanned as Sojiro spoke up.

"That's love for you, Goro. And I have a good feeling you'll eventually be the same way with Haru. And if Ryuji did hit a home-run with Makoto, assuming I have that metaphor right? More power to him. I trust Makoto to be responsible about such things." Sojiro said as Makoto blushed in embarrassment before Kusa frowned and spoke up after he heard movement outside.

"Wait, what's that? Excuse me while I crack a window so we can hear." Kusa said as he walked over and lightly cracked one of the outside windows enough to hear what was going on outside. Right as he did, he recognized the voice that spoke up as the voice he and Goro had heard speaking to Zenkichi before.

"Oh? Correct me if I'm wrong, but you seem awfully concerned for a group of criminals, Inspector Hasegawa." Commissioner Kaburagi's voice could be heard saying as Zenkichi was then heard whimpering before speaking up.

"Ergh, you're not wrong. But even so, I know that I've told you before, Commissioner! The Phantom Thieves have nothing to do with that man's death! That body was already there when we-" Zenkichi said as Kusa heard Kaburagi's voice cut Zenkichi off.

"-Enough! It's just as Mister Konoe says. The Phantom Thieves are under suspicion for hacking EMMA and murdering the director of EMMA's research center." Kusa heard Kaburagi say as he heard Zenkichi's voice speak up.

"Ugh. And you're going to take him at his word!? Where's the proof of any of this? Be honest, do you think they'd ever sink so low as to murder? That director had died before they even-" Zenkichi said as Kaburagi's voice was heard once more after she and Zenkichi exchanged a few lines that were too quietly spoken for Kusa to catch.

"I know how you feel Inspector, but there's nothing to be done for it now. This organization is as rotten as it is immense. Like it or not, one cannot simply bend it to their will without considerable power. Once I'm on top, I'll bring the corrupt to their knees. So for now, let my justice be your justice." Kaburagi said as Kusa heard what sounded like a conflicted-sounding groan from Zenkichi before he heard Kaburagi speak up once more.

"All units ready? Prepare to move in on my signal." Kusa heard Kaburagi's voice say, but when he heard Zenkichi's next words after a pause that suggested to Kusa that Zenkichi might be hesitating on something, his eyes went comically wide at what Zenkichi said next.

"Hold it! Run for it, you fools! RUN FOR IT! ALL OF YOU! SAVE YOURSELVES!" Zenkichi called out, making Kusa gasp in shock that Zenkichi put everything on the line to give the group a heads-up to escape. As he got up to go get the others to safety, he heard Kaburagi's voice once more.

"Ugh, what are you doing? You idiot. Zenkichi Hasegawa? You're under arrest! Interfering with an officer is punishable by law! And once you're dealt with, the Phantom Thieves are next! All units, after them! Don't let them escape!" Kaburagi could be heard saying as a visibly horrified Kusa heard grunts from what he figured to be Zenkichi being restrained and cuffed, prompting Kusa to dart off to the others, speaking up so only they could hear.

"Shit, this is bad! We gotta escape, now! Zenkichi just got arrested trying to buy us time to get out of here! There's a friggin' SWAT team outside the front exit of the hotel! So we're gonna have to find another way out if we're gettin' out of here!" Kusa said as the others gasped and Makoto spoke up.

"No! They arrested Zenkichi!?" Makoto said in horror as Ann spoke up.

"But what about Akane-chan!?" Ann said as Kusa spoke up.

"That, once we get out of here, is going to be Goro and Nanako's task. I'll ask them to take the Ferrari and drive over to keep an eye on Akane-chan, since I suspect that the cops will try swarming Zenkichi's place to seize anything they can as evidence against him. If you guys can get there quick enough, you can help Akane hide her Phantom Thieves merch to be on the safe side.

The last thing any of us wants is Akane-chan being accused of being an accomplice or sympathizer of the Phantom Thieves. We owe it to Zenkichi to keep his daughter OUT of prison if we can avoid it." Kusa said firmly as the others nodded, heading towards the back exit, which Futaba had looked up with her laptop, their stuff in a bag over Kusa's shoulder as they carefully made their way out of the hotel with Futaba and Sophia's help, after which, the majority ran off towards Zenkichi's hideaway, while Kusa stopped Sojiro and spoke up.

"Sojiro? I know this is a lot to ask, but I need you to ride with Goro and Nanako to Akane-chan's, and once they get there, I need you to take the Ferrari and head back to Yongen as fast as you can, ideally without getting in trouble for speeding if possible. Once there, I need you to head to Makoto's house and speak to her older sister. If I'm right, Niijima-san the elder is our best and/or only chance of getting Zenkichi out of trouble. And we'll probably need his help before long, so can you do that?" Kusa asked as Sojiro nodded, heading to the Ferrari with Goro and Nanako, which drove off as Kusa ran after the others towards the hideaway...

(The next day, in the hideaway that Zenkichi had shown the group, with Ren, Morgana, Ryuji, Ann, Yusuke, Makoto, Futaba, Haru, Sumire, Kusa, Sophia, and Shiho)

As the group laid low in the hideaway Zenkichi had brought them too, Kusa frowned and heard a knock on the door, walking over to speak up.

"Who is it?" Kusa asked as he recognized the voice that spoke up.

"Hey, it's me." Morgana said as Yusuke frowned and spoke up.

"We'll see about that. The password. What pairs well with curry?" Yusuke asked as Morgana sighed and spoke up.

"Ugh, why are we-? Fine. It's coffee." Morgana said, seemingly irritated by the idea of a password. After Kusa and Yusuke exchanged a nod, Yusuke spoke up once more.

"Accepted." Yusuke said as he opened the door for Morgana to walk in and stand at the counter behind Shiho, who was sat on a bar-stool between Futaba and Ann. Next to Ann, Sumire was sat on a barstool next to Ren, who was smirking as he stood with her. Meanwhile, Haru was sitting at the booth seats with Makoto, while Ryuji, Yusuke, and Kusa stood together near Futaba, the former of the three frowning as he spoke up.

"The hell kinda password is that?" Ryuji asked as Futaba spoke up with a smile.

"Something only a true Leblanc aficionado would know. It's foolproof." Futaba said as Sumire spoke up with a frown.

"I still maintain that anyone could get that by searching the internet, but if you say so, Futaba." Sumire said as Morgana spoke up.

"Did we really need a password?" Morgana asked as Ren spoke up.

"We all agreed it was a good security precaution, Morgana. So yes, we did. After all, if someone doesn't know the password, they can't get in very easily." Ren pointed out sagely as Haru spoke up.

"Never mind that for now, though. How are things out there, Mona-chan?" Haru asked as Morgana spoke up with a frown.

"Ugh, it's a nightmare out there. The streets are packed with cop cars, and there are foot patrols on every corner. For once, I kinda miss looking like a cat. Thankfully Kusa has plenty of hoodies, so I was able to wear one of those with the hood up and no one thought a thing of it." Morgana said as Shiho spoke up.

"Yes, well, no one knows of your human form but us, so I don't know that they'd have said anything to you in particular, which is probably why Kusa-kun sent you to do the recon job." Shiho said as Ann growled and spoke up.

"Good point, Shiho. But, ugh! Dammit, this makes no sense! I thought part of our deal was that they wouldn't arrest us!" Ann said as Sumire winced and spoke up.

"No, I'm pretty sure the exact wording of the deal was that Zenkichi would do his best to ensure no one lays a finger on us, not that he guaranteed we'd be safe from arrest. After all, not much he can do about it if his higher-ups go over his head like they seem to have done in this case." Sumire pointed out. Ren then spoke up.

"Whatever the case might be, the bottom line is that now the cops are out looking to cuff us all in full force." Ren pointed out as Ryuji nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"Yeah, you're right, RenRen! And now they're treatin' us like killers! It's total bullshit!" Ryuji said as Yusuke spoke up with a frown.

"Good point, Ryuji. This journey was supposed to prove our innocence, yet it only led to further condemnation for us instead." Yusuke said as Ryuji spoke up.

"True. Not to be the voice of doubt here, but you guys don't think Gramps tricked us by booking that hot springs hotel for us, do ya?" Ryuji asked as Ren spoke up with a frown.

"That's impossible, Ryuji." Ren said as Kusa spoke up with a nod.

"Ren's right, Ryuji. If Zenkichi was gonna trick us, he wouldn't have gone to the trouble of booking us those rooms, which we had to give up on to avoid arrest. So these cops owe us some free rooms to make up for the reservation we had to give up on. Not to mention they owe Zenkichi a lot of reparation money. And besides, I could tell by looking in Zenkichi's eyes that he had no malicious or deceptive intent when he got us those rooms." Kusa said with a frown. Yusuke nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"Kusa's correct. And from what he told us before about how Zenkichi was arrested, Zenkichi clearly put himself at risk to warn us. Without his sacrifice, we'd be in much greater danger right now." Yusuke said as Makoto spoke up with a nod.

"Right. And if Zenkichi-san really wanted to sell us out, the police would've showed up here, too. So on that note, let's please stop doubting him, guys." Makoto said as Ryuji sighed and spoke up with a nod.

"Yeah, you have a point, Makoto. You're right." Ryuji said as Futaba turned to face Sumire's phone, which was set out on a stand on the counter next to Sumire, and spoke up.

"By the way, Sophia, thanks for getting us here safe. Between the two of us, we did a good job getting everyone out of there safely." Futaba said as a 'BIP!' from Sumire's phone preceded Sophia speaking up.

"No prob. But how did all this happen?" Sophia asked as Haru frowned and spoke up.

"Truthfully? I think Kusa-kun had a point when he mentioned Zenkichi-san's bosses were likely going over his head on this. As such, it's probably safe to assume this is something beyond Zenkichi-san's control." Haru said as Ryuji frowned and spoke up.

"Betcha Konoe set it up, with how much bullshit he was spewin' about justice." Ryuji said as Kusa frowned and spoke up.

"I still can't believe we're being branded as terrorists and murderers again. I thought we'd gotten past that back when we changed Shido's heart about four years ago." Kusa said as Yusuke spoke up.

"True. But I think this was to be expected. After all, we've wreaked havoc in four Jails already. If Konoe had created them, it would only stand to reason that he'd lash out now." Yusuke said as Kusa spoke up.

"That's possible, Yusuke. But let's not forget that Goro and I ended up in a Jail in Yongen before either of us were able to link up with the rest of you. And it's a good thing we did, too. After all, that Jail was where Pendragon awakened to his Persona. As such, I feel like Konoe couldn't have created those Jails by himself, if only because I seriously doubt he even had so much as an iota of reason to believe that the Black Mask exists, so that begs the question of why there's a Jail for him if Konoe was the one making Jails." Kusa pointed out as Morgana spoke up.

"Good point. It's unlikely, but it could also be Owada, that politician Zenkichi told us about. If it is either Konoe or Owada creating these Jails, they may have all of us profiled, for the most part." Morgana said as Ryuji sighed and spoke up.

"Fair. So what do we do now?" Ryuji asked, getting unsure looks from the others before a 'BIP!' from Sumire's phone preceded a worried looking Sophia speaking up.

"Hey, why is Zenkichi's name on TV?" Sophia asked as Ren, Kusa and Sumire's eyes widened and all three spoke up.

"WHAT!?" Kusa, Ren, and Sumire all asked in unison as Makoto quickly turned on the TV in time to hear a newscaster speak up.

"Last night, the Kyoto Prefectural Police announced their arrest of Inspector Zenkichi Hasegawa for harboring fugitives. Police headquarters have released a statement regarding this apparent scandal, which has been met with much confusion by much of the population of Kyoto." The newscaster said on the TV as a wide-eyed Ryuji spoke up.

"You gotta be kidding. Looks like they really did arrest Zenkichi, like Kusa said. But more to the point, it looks like the police are mad that they couldn't catch us, and as such, they're takin' it out on Zenkichi!?" Ryuji asked as Haru spoke up.

"Why would they arrest him?" Haru asked as Ren spoke up bluntly.

"Because he helped us, obviously." Ren said before Kusa's eyes widened in realization before he spoke up.

"Not just that, Ren. They also arrested him because he warned us all to get out before the cops could swarm the hotel and arrest us. They're mad at him for costing them their shot at capturing us. Hopefully, the others were able to safely get to their destinations to do what I told them to." Kusa said as Ren spoke up.

"I know what you sent Goro and Nanako to do, but why'd you send off Sojiro?" Ren asked as Kusa spoke up.

"Good question, Ren. Me sending Sojiro off would be classified as what most sports fans would call a 'Hail Mary', in that I'm taking a bit of a risky gamble that Sojiro can convince a certain ally of ours to step in and help Zenkichi get out of trouble. And I think Makoto, for one, has a good idea of who I'm alluding to." Kusa said as Makoto spoke up with a gasp.

"Oh! You're talking about Sis, aren't you?" Makoto asked as Kusa nodded and spoke up.

"Precisely. I feel like if anyone can get Zenkichi off the hook, it's your sister. After all, we saw how well she did while saving Ren from that trap both Shido and Goro laid for him close to four years ago. So I think we can trust her to help with this situation too." Kusa said sagely as Makoto nodded and spoke up.

"True. We do need to save Zenkichi if we can. After all, he sacrificed everything to save us. And for what it's worth? I'm sorry that incident ruined your birthday, Kusa." Makoto said as Kusa spoke up.

"Never mind that now. We can always celebrate it later, or skip it this year. Zenkichi's fate is far more important than me celebrating turning another year older." Kusa said wisely. Ryuji nodded and spoke up while getting to his feet.

"Truth! Then let's get off our asses and help him!" Ryuji said as Morgana frowned and spoke up.

"Don't be reckless, Ryuji. We'll only be led into their trap, and that's EXACTLY what they want." Morgana said as Ryuji spoke up with a frown.

"I get that Morgana, but still!" Ryuji said as Makoto spoke up.

"For now, I'll try talking to Sis. With any luck, Sojiro will have gotten there and apprised her of the situation by now." Makoto said as Haru spoke up in recollection.

"Oh, right! Sae-san's a lawyer, isn't she?" Haru asked as Makoto nodded and spoke up.

"Correct. She quit her SIU job and became a defense attorney not long after Ren went back to his hometown close to three and a half years ago." Makoto said as Ren spoke up.

"As much as I'd rather not get your sister involved in this, I don't think we have a choice here. We need her help, Makoto." Ren said decisively. Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"Understandable. Assuming Sojiro hasn't told her everything by now, I've kept her out of the loop so far, and I imagine she won't be too happy once I get her up to speed on everything that's going on. But there are more important things to worry about than her reaction. I'll see if she can help, provided Sojiro hasn't already recruited her successfully." Makoto said as Morgana nodded and spoke up.

"Good. As for the rest of us, let's keep gathering as much information as we can." Morgana said as the others nodded their agreement and got to work...

(Meanwhile, around that same time, in an interrogation room at Kyoto police headquarters)

As Zenkichi sat in a chair by himself in the interrogation room wincing in pain, he groaned and spoke up to himself.

"Dammit, that smarts. That bastard interrogator took his time interrogating me. It's like he enjoyed getting those hits in. Ugh, but I guess that's what I deserve. Oh, what the hell am I doing? Ugh, I should've just left those thieves alone and not reached out to them. Then neither of us would be in this shitty situation. I couldn't even protect the ones I care about most, dammit! Urgh, goddammit!" Zenkichi swore as he frowned and kept speaking.

"Still, I wonder if they made it out all right. Heh heh, As if that even matters anymore. Akane, my beloved daughter. Aoi, my dearly beloved late wife. I'm sorry. I couldn't save anyone in the end, despite my best efforts to do so." Zenkichi said to himself as he sighed and leaned his head back to await his fate...

(At that same time, in the living room of the Hasegawa residence, with Akane and a small army of cops)

"HEY! Please stop touching our things! And since when can you enter someone's home without a warrant, anyways!? You lack probable cause!" Akane said as one of the detectives turned to face her and spoke up in a sarcastic tone.

"Whoa, not bad for an inspector's daughter. Listen here, uhh, Akane-chan, was it? We have plenty of probable cause. See, your daddy's been arrested, thanks to the Phantom Thieves." The sarcastic detective told Akane, who gasped in disbelief and spoke up.

"Wha? What are you saying? Are you trying to tell me the Phantom Thieves got him arrested for some reason?" Akane asked before shaking her head in disbelief as she put her hands on her hips and kept speaking, her eyes clearly conveying her disbelief of what she was being told.

"No. No way that's true. I mean, it makes no sense. Why would they get my dad arrested?" Akane asked as the sarcastic detective laughed and spoke up.

"Oh, you mean you really didn't know? I'm sure it's all over the news by now, both TV and online. Now move along. We have work to do." The sarcastic detective said before moving Akane aside as the cops seized everything in the lower level, mostly leaving the upper level alone as they didn't have a warrant to search it. Once the cops were gone, Akane stood by herself and pulled out her phone to read the report, frowning at what she read.

"Huh!? 'Inspector Zenkichi Hasegawa of the Kyoto police held under suspicion of assisting the escape of criminals. Arrested for harboring fugitives of the highest notoriety. Phantom Thieves found responsible for murder and...hacking EMMA!?' No, there's no way that's true! That's impossible.

After all, Goro and Nanako assured me they were being framed. So could this be a frame job? And I had to send them away so the cops wouldn't arrest them, so I have no clue when they'll be back. Oh, what am I gonna do? Somebody, anybody, help me!" Akane said in desperation. Unbeknownst to her, Goro and Nanako had just gotten back, but they stopped short of knocking on the front door as they heard a 'BIP!' from inside the house and a familiar voice speak up.

"Sure. How can I help you?" Goro and Nanako heard EMMA's voice say from inside, making Goro frown and use the keys to open up the front door so he and Nanako could bring their groceries into the house, doing so just in time to see Akane collapse to the floor wordlessly, unconscious before she hit the floor...

(Later that evening, in the Madicce executive headquarters in Osaka, in Konoe's office with Konoe)

"Tell me. Have the Phantom Thieves been caught?" Konoe asked as Owada sighed and spoke up over the speakerphone.

"No, not yet. I've seen three-legged dogs work faster than the boys in Public Security." Owada said as Konoe chuckled and spoke up.

"Haha, they sure are tenacious. Guess that's how they made it this far. You think the police could, uh, turn up the heat on their 'hot pursuit'?" Konoe asked as Owada spoke up in amusement.

"If you're asking, I'll see what I can do. But in return, make sure you don't forget to set up a Jail of mine as well." Owada said as Konoe spoke up with a closed-eye smile.

"Oh, that's a given. Please look forward to what I have in store." Konoe said as Owada ended the call on his end, leaving Konoe to frown to himself before speaking up.

"EMMA." Konoe said as EMMA spoke up with a 'BIP!' from Konoe's phone.

"Yes, Akira? How may I help you?" EMMA asked as Konoe spoke up with a thin smile.

"Level with me. Do you think the cops can actually catch the Phantom Thieves?" Konoe asked as EMMA spoke up.

"Considering the Phantom Thieves' unknown power, it may take a considerable amount of time." EMMA said as Konoe spoke up.

"I see. Truth be told, I was hoping to get you back online once we captured them." Konoe said as EMMA spoke up.

"Good point. To be honest? If it takes any longer, it may negatively impact our public image." EMMA said as Konoe spoke up.

"Hmm. Maybe what I said on TV wasn't exactly reassuring to enough people. All right, EMMA, what's our best option?" Konoe asked as EMMA spoke up.

"The fact that the Phantom Thieves can access Jails poses a threat to our plans. Since we can't afford to wait for the police, we could always trap them in a Jail and force a change of heart. Failing that, we could always try and enlist the assistance of a group of people with similar powers. And fortunately for us, I have evidence that there are members of one such group currently vacationing in Osaka. Granted, it's risky, since one of them is a well-known idol. But using that group to try and stop the Phantom Thieves if our main plan fails could be a worthy back-up plan." EMMA said as Konoe smiled and spoke up.

"Hm. Trap them in a Jail and try to force a change of heart on them? That's pretty good. And having a group of people who can use similar powers on our side to try and stand up to the Phantom Thieves as a plan B? Now there's an idea worth considering. After all, we wouldn't want to waste their precious talent if it can be avoided. Good plan, EMMA. How do we make it work?" Konoe asked as EMMA spoke up.

"For the optimal chances of success, it would be best to make the Phantom Thieves come to us instead of chasing them. Perhaps we can use someone they're close with as bait to lure them into a Jail?" EMMA suggested as Konoe blinked at this, but smirked in intrigue as he spoke up.

"Oh. Not bad. And do you have someone in mind?" Konoe asked as EMMA spoke up.

"Yes. And it's also the perfect candidate to cow PubSec into staying out of our affairs, since she's a daughter of one of PubSec's inspectors." EMMA said as Konoe nodded and spoke up.

"Impressive. Then that's who we'll go with. EMMA, make that person a Monarch and have them capture the Phantom Thieves. And if you can, bring the members of that other group you told me about to my office so we can discuss the other facet of your plan. Because I'll be honest, I kinda like the idea of having an ace-in-the-hole to fall back on if needed." Konoe said as EMMA spoke up.

"Understood." EMMA said as Konoe spoke up with a frown.

"Once they're in our grasp, we change their hearts to our liking. And if that proves impossible, they die. Same for those others you mentioned. If they don't cooperate with us, they die." Konoe said as EMMA spoke up.

"Understood. Should we contact Mister Owada?" EMMA asked as Konoe spoke up with a shake of his head.

"No. Let him be for now. After all, in order to cleanse this world of evil, nothing will get in my way. And you, Phantom Thieves? If you won't help me, then you will be the sacrifice to bring about my new world order." Konoe said ominously to himself...

(At that same time, back at the Hasegawa residence, with Akane, Goro, and Nanako)

"Crap, she's unconscious! We need to get her into her bed ASAP!" Goro said as Nanako nodded, helping Goro carry the unconscious Akane to her bed, where Nanako gently tucked her in and made sure Akane's head was gently on a pillow, smiling at how adorable Akane looked while asleep. Goro then kept speaking after Akane was situated.

"Well, for now, all we can do is keep her comfortable and hope she wakes up under her own power soon enough. After all, the fact she passed out like this after we heard EMMA's voice speaking to what I'm guessing was Akane in here can't mean anything good." Goro said as Nanako nodded and spoke up.

"True. I have a feeling this could end up turning into another of those Jails you mentioned. So if it comes to it, you can leave me here to watch over Akane while you go back and help the others out if they need it. As it is, they'll be going in without Sojiro if they have to go into another Jail in the near future." Nanako pointed out as Goro nodded and spoke up.

"That's fair. I think we can trust you to look after her on your own, Nanako-san. After all, you yourself said you're straight, so I doubt you'd try anything untoward with Akane-san while she's unconscious. After all, I'm nearly positive I saw you checking Morgana out the other day." Goro said with a sly grin, making Nanako sputter and speak up, her cheeks reddening slightly as she spoke, embarrassed by both Goro referring to her decision to pay Morgana a few compliments, and by the fact that Goro's remark about her being straight brought her to mind of a certain accidental encounter that had happened earlier that day involving Nanako accidentally walking in on Akane changing while bringing in some folded laundry to Akane's room. This accidental encounter had also resulted in Nanako getting quite the unintentional view of Akane's body, which Nanako oddly found herself occasionally revisiting in her mind in her spare time, furthering her embarrassment as she spoke.

"Wh-What!? Nuh-uh! I wasn't admiring him. I was stunned by his transformation, that's all. Besides, you're the one who couldn't keep his eyes off Haru-san's bikini at the beach. So you have no room to tease me about being nice to Morgana when I'm nearly positive I've seen you sneaking Haru off to be alone with her." Nanako said as Goro chuckled and spoke up.

"You have a point, Nanako-san. Well played. But, you know, it's not a crime to like someone, or even to like both genders. I'm not one to talk, I know, but you don't have to lie about things like who you like or which gender you prefer." Goro said as Nanako seemed to hesitate before speaking up.

"Does it matter? Someone else already has dibs on Morgana, and I'm not trying to get in their way. So whether I feel something for Morgana or not, it's irrelevant." Nanako said honestly as Goro spoke up.

"For now, maybe. But who says that'll last forever? After all, fate has a funny way of changing things. Take Haru for instance. Before she agreed to be my girlfriend, she was stuck with an arranged marriage to some low-down scumbag named Sugimura, who Haru's dad was attempting to basically pimp her out to in exchange for an alliance with Sugimura's family in an attempt to break into the political scene. Too bad for him, his plans didn't amount to much in the end.

And in the end, Haru was able to annul the engagement with Ren and Kusa's help after an article about Sugimura abusing animals and beating on women surfaced, basically destroying his reputation and his credibility. So it's not impossible that Morgana and whoever you're letting have first crack at him could end up not working out in the long run. At that point, you'd have an open shot at trying to stake claim to him. So don't be so quick to give up on your feelings." Goro suggested to Nanako, who blinked at Goro's words but nodded and spoke up.

"I see. That's surprisingly persuasive advice, Goro. Thank you. Maybe down the line, if Sophia doesn't end up making a move on him, which I doubt will happen given how much she clearly is smitten with Morgana, I'll confess to him. But for now, I'm okay with just being his friend. After all, no need to rush into potentially getting my heart broken." Nanako said decisively. Goro nodded his understanding and spoke up.

"Fair enough. And for the record? I was just teasing you about doing anything untoward with Akane-san. It's not my business if you might happen to be tempted by her, after all. Anyways, let's go to bed for now, and I'll go check in with the others in the morning." Goro decided as Nanako nodded, mostly out of not wanting to acknowledge Goro's suggestion that she might swing both ways and possibly be interested in Akane, but also out of not wanting to let her mind wander overmuch on how much she'd caught herself thinking about Akane since she and Goro had started staying with her.

After acknowledging Nanako's nod, Goro returned the nod and the two got comfortable for the night, Goro sleeping downstairs on the couch, and Nanako briefly hesitating before climbing into Akane's bed and getting comfortable next to her, which the only sign of Akane noticing the shifting of the bed weight was Akane's face smiling slightly as she and Nanako dozed off for the night...

(The following afternoon, back in the hideaway, with Haru, Futaba, Makoto, Ann, Morgana, Shiho, Ryuji, Sophia, Sumire, Ren, Yusuke, Kusa, and Goro)

"So, I got a hold of my sister. And yes, she was angry with me, but she said that Sojiro had already reached out to her and that she was willing to do her best to help out with Zenkichi's situation." Makoto said as Morgana nodded and spoke up.

"That's a relief. Then we'll leave Zenkichi to Niijima the elder for now." Morgana decided as Sumire spoke up.

"And if Goro's right in what he told us, we can leave Akane-chan to Nanako-chan for now, since I think she can look after her on her own." Sumire said as Goro nodded and spoke up.

"Well said, Sumire-san. Nanako-san seemed quite determined to look after Akane, so I left her to it." Goro said as Haru spoke up from next to Goro.

"Fair enough. But be that as it may, what should we do from here? We can't just sit here and wait around forever, can we?" Haru asked warily as at that moment, Makoto's phone went off, prompting her to check it, blinking as she realized it was a group chat. Makoto spoke up.

"Hm? It's a group chat from Akane-chan. That's odd, considering Goro said she passed out last night after hearing EMMA's voice inside the Hasegawa residence. So how is she able to send a group chat now?" Makoto asked in confusion as Ren pulled out his phone to check the group chat, which was from Akane's chat ID, and included Ren, Ryuji, Ann, Yusuke, Makoto, Haru, Futaba, Goro, Kusa, Sumire, and Sojiro. When he read what was sent, Ren gasped.

"Phantom Thieves. We have Akane Hasegawa. If you want her back, come to Inari Taisha." The message read, as Makoto gasped and spoke up after the group put their phones away.

"Wh-What the heck!?" Makoto said as Ann frowned and spoke up, not having seen the chat.

"What's wrong?" Ann said as Makoto spoke up.

"Didn't you just see that chat, Ann? Akane-chan's been taken! It says if we want her back, we have to go to Inari Taisha!" Makoto said as Ren, Sumire, Ann, Morgana, and Haru all gasped and spoke up.

"WHAT!?" Ren, Sumire, Ann, Morgana, and Haru asked as Goro spoke up.

"Wait a minute. We get this message the day after Akane mysteriously passes out and has to be helped to her bed by myself and Nanako? Kusa, correct me if I'm wrong here, but I think this is another trap being set." Goro said as Kusa nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"I agree. And probably one that involves EMMA. After all, didn't we all see that announcement that EMMA's supposed to be shut down for the foreseeable future? Yet you say you and Nanako heard EMMA speaking to Akane yesterday, and then we got that group chat just now? No, I agree. This is not a coincidence. I smell a rat here. Either this is bait to lure us into a trap, or we're about to end up in a brand-new Jail." Kusa said after pondering Goro's words carefully. Ryuji's eyes widened at that and he spoke up.

"Huh!? The hell's that supposed to mean!?" Ryuji asked as Ann looked at Makoto and spoke up before Kusa could answer Ryuji's question.

"Taken, you say? Do you mean kidnapped, Makoto!? Why? She's got nothing to do with us!" Ann said as Sumire frowned and spoke up.

"Not quite true, Ann-senpai. After all, her dad was arrested recently protecting us. So, it's not impossible that someone's trying to use that to try and set a trap for us with Akane-chan as the bait. And perhaps even more than one trap. After all, didn't Nanako-chan tell us before that her 'big bro' and 'big sis' had a group of friends they went to school with that all worked together to save her one time when she was kidnapped back when she was only seven?" Sumire said as Goro spoke up.

"That is true, Sumire-san. She did say that. Well spotted. So you think that in addition to Konoe and/or Owada possibly planning to use Akane as bait, they could be setting a secondary trap where they attempt to manipulate things so that we could end up pitted against Nanako's friends somehow? A bit far-fetched, but not impossible." Goro said as Kusa nodded before Makoto frowned at Ann and spoke up.

"I don't know, Ann! I'm just going off of the message that was sent to us from her chat ID." Makoto said as Shiho spoke up.

"Hold on. Is this only happening with you guys? I'm checking my phone and I don't see anything." Shiho said as Ren spoke up with realization on his face.

"That might be because you have not even met Akane yet. Also, even though she already met her, it is weird that Akane created a group chat and did not have Nanako in it as well. It's only addressing to those who are Phantom Thieves specifically." Ren deduced as Ryuji spoke up with a frown.

"I wonder. Y'guys think, maybe Akane's just messin' around with us?" Ryuji said as Kusa frowned and spoke up.

"Maybe, but why would she pass out after hearing EMMA's voice if that's the case, Ryuji? I don't think she's messing with us." Kusa said as Makoto nodded and spoke up.

"Kusa-kun's right! Besides, Akane-chan doesn't know our other identities. And even if she did, she wouldn't trick us like this." Makoto said as Ann spoke up.

"True that, Makoto. And also we can't discount Sumire and Goro's theory about there being a second trap involving Nanako-chan's friends. Who would do such an awful thing?" Ann asked as Ren frowned and spoke up.

"I can't say for sure, but our most likely suspects are Konoe and/or Owada." Ren said as Morgana nodded and spoke up.

"Hm. That's definitely a possibility, Ren. But I think I have to agree with Kusa when he says EMMA could also be involved in this." Morgana said as Haru spoke up.

"Oh! So they're using Akane-chan just to lure us out!?" Haru asked as Yusuke frowned and spoke up.

"Given the timing, what else could it be?" Yusuke asked as Goro spoke up.

"You're likely right, Yusuke. But at the same time, we can't discount the possibility that Konoe and/or Owada are trying to set all this up to potentially eliminate most of their biggest threats all at once. So we should be on guard if we spring this trap." Goro said as Kusa nodded and spoke up.

"I agree. I'm almost tempted to have some of us hang back and not go, in case it is a trap. That way, if we do spring a trap, not all of us will be caught, and we'll have reinforcements to alert Zenkichi to what's going on after Makoto's sister frees him, not to mention getting Sojiro back here so he can help out." Kusa said as Goro spoke up.

"I wouldn't worry too much about Sojiro, Kusa. If we're right, he'll get dragged into the trap alongside us." Goro pointed out sagely as Kusa nodded before Makoto spoke up, shaking with visible anger as she spoke.

"Unforgivable is what this is. How dare they use Akane as a pawn like this?" Makoto said as Ryuji spoke up.

"What do we do? We can't even go to the cops with this." Ryuji asked as Makoto spoke up in an agitated-sounding tone.

"What else is there to do!? We go after her!" Makoto said as Yusuke spoke up.

"Calm down a moment, Makoto. I agree with Kusa and Goro. This has to be a trap." Yusuke said as Ann spoke up.

"Yeah, that's true. If we tried leaving too soon, they'd probably catch us within minutes of stepping out the door." Ann said as Makoto growled at this, clearly frustrated by the apparent peril Akane was in. Makoto spoke up at that point.

"I get that. But we can't just leave her! If they even lay a finger on Akane-chan, I'll make them regret it! And anyways, with Zenkichi-san behind bars and all, we're the only ones who can save her right now. If we put our own safety above that of an innocent life, we have no right to call ourselves phantom thieves! I'm well aware what this is, and I'm fine going out there alone. You guys stay here and hold the fort." Makoto said as Kusa and Goro blinked at this and the former spoke up.

"Excuse you, Makoto? You're not going anywhere on your own!" Kusa said as Ren nodded and spoke up.

"Yeah, I agree with Kusa. We're all in this together, after all. Besides, last I checked, Kusa and I both outrank you. So if we tell you to not go on your own, you really can't go against that. We know how you feel, but if we're going, we're all going together. And then if things go pear-shaped, we can try to have some of us hang back in case a trap is sprung so the stragglers can hurry up and escape while they still can." Ren said wisely as Makoto spoke up with a sputter.

"I know. But still!" Makoto said as Ryuji cut her off by speaking up.

"I'm sorry, but are you losin' it, babe? Besides, we'd never let a friend risk their neck without at least givin' backup." Ryuji said as Ann spoke up with a nod.

"Ryuji's right. Plus, Akane-chan's our fan. She knows more than anyone we never abandon people in need." Ann said as Yusuke nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"Exactly. Otherwise, we couldn't live up to our name." Yusuke said as Haru spoke up.

"Right!? And if nothing else, we've proven we can spring traps and come out unscathed in the past, as Goro found out the hard way. So even if it is a trap, let's turn the tables against them!" Haru said with a resolved look on her face as Futaba nodded her agreement and spoke up with her own resolved look.

"Darn right, Haru! Let's show them how big a mistake they've made coming after us!" Futaba said as Kusa spoke up.

"So it sounds like it's unanimous that we've decided for us to save Akane-chan. Unless, of course, either Morgana or Goro has an objection to it? I believe that those two, plus Sumire and Sophia, are the only ones not to weigh in on this, aside from Shiho." Kusa said as Shiho spoke up with a frown.

"I have no objection. I may not know this Akane-chan person whom you all have spoken of that well, but even so, I can tell that she's clearly someone close to Ann. As such, I consider her a friend on principle." Shiho said as Goro and Morgana nodded their agreement as the former spoke up.

"I can't speak for Morgana, but I, for one, have no intention of sitting here and letting the enemy get away with such a brazen attempt to corner us. I'm for us striking back by saving Akane-chan. Besides, I know full well how it feels to feel like you have no one who you can count on. So I feel like I have a good idea of how she might be feeling right now. So I agree with saving her." Goro said as Morgana spoke up.

"I agree as well. So as Kusa said, it's unanimous. Let's go save Akane-chan, everyone." Morgana said as Makoto spoke up with a grateful closed-eye smile.

"I-Wow. Thanks, everyone." Makoto said as Morgana spoke up.

"All right, I'll take the point and guide you past trouble. Sophia, you'll handle the navigation in this instance." Morgana said as a 'BIP!' from Sumire's phone, which was in Sumire's hand, preceded Sophia speaking up with a nod and a determined look on her face.

"Okay, got it. I'll find the quickest and safest route there." Sophia said as Sumire spoke up.

"Be careful navigating us, Sophia. I don't want you putting yourself at risk to try and get us there safely." Sumire said, getting an agreeable nod from Sophia inside her phone as Morgana spoke up.

"All right! Then let's get going!" Morgana said as the others nodded and left for the appointed rendezvous point...

(Meanwhile, back in Konoe's office at Madicce HQ, with Konoe, Yu, Rise, and six others)

"So, let me make sure I have this straight, Konoe-san. You're saying that this group of terrorists called the Phantom Thieves is using EMMA to try and subjugate the world using the cognition of the masses? Forgive me if I take that with a grain of salt." A short-haired female with dark blue hair, piercing dark grey eyes, and a deceptively masculine hairstyle said, adjusting the black cap on her head as she crossed her arms over her surprisingly generous bust, making Rise speak up with a frown as she looked the female over, taking in her dark blue button-up jacket, dark blue pants, black shoes, and the aforementioned cap that looked black, but was actually also dark blue like the rest of the female's outfit.

Not that Rise had much room to talk about mono-colored wardrobes, given how predominately black her own wardrobe was, given she wore a silver knee-length dress that hugged her figure in all the right places, black heels, grey leggings, and a black jacket to keep her arms covered and compliment the dress while also not clashing with her auburn, almost dark brown, hair that she kept out of her face with a silver hair clip she used to hold her hair up on one side, a trick she eventually taught Nanako for her own hairstyle.

"I know it's hard to believe Naoto-kun, but apparently it's true. The police even have warrants out for the group's arrest. And to make matters worse, Dojima-san let a woman named Suzui-san, who's a suspected accomplice of the Phantom Thieves, watch over Nanako-chan after we got separated in Kukojima after Yu and I had to go and handle some work from Inoue-san, since it was work we didn't want Nanako-chan exposed to. But let's leave it at that for now, yeah?" Rise said to the now-named Naoto, just before a gasp from nearby drew everyone's attention to a blonde-haired, blue-eyed man with a slender but athletic build, a form-fitting grey tank top worn under a light-blue denim short-sleeve jacket top, red plaid jeans, and brown work boots. After seeing everyone look at him, the young man spoke up.

"Are you serious, Rise!? Nana-chan might be in the hands of the Phantom Thieves!? That's terrible!" The blonde-haired man said in horror as a brown-haired man next to him scoffed and spoke up, crossing his arms over his chest, which he had clad in a dark grey short-sleeve T-shirt, along with dark green cargo pants, black lace-up shoes with white laces, and a green button up jacket worn open over the T-shirt.

"Weren't you listening, Teddie? Our leader just said that Dojima-san had gotten in contact with Nanako recently and she's apparently doing fine! I agree this is bad, but I feel like we need to be cautious here, lest we end up in a trap. And I don't know about the rest of you, but some of us have more reasons than others to want to be able to survive this whole kerfuffle in one piece." The brown-haired man said to the now-named Teddie, as an amused chuckle from near the brown-haired man drew the group's attention to the blue-haired female with a slender and petite frame that didn't seem impossible for how metallic her arms and legs clearly were, wearing a form-fitting silky black sleeveless sundress, white knee-length leggings, and black lace-up sneakers with red laces sitting next to the brown-haired man, an amused smile on her face as she spoke up.

"Oh, um, sorry for laughing like that, but I always find it amusing how much Yosuke-kun and Teddie-kun banter with one another. If not for the fact they're not related, I'd have thought they were brothers." The blue-haired female said, smiling as she sat back in her seat, a very subtle hint of red on her face as she got embarrassed at all the stares directed towards her, even as her striking red eyes moved to look towards the brown-haired man, or Yosuke as she'd called him, prompting the now-named Yosuke to chuckle fondly at the blue-haired female while he smiled at her and spoke up with an amused look on his face.

"Don't worry about it, Labrys. You were just stating your mind, that's all. But you're not wrong that Teddie and I get along like brothers sometimes. Teddie is kind of like that annoying younger brother who drives you up the wall with his antics, but then manages to get under your skin, so to speak, and make you care about him." Yosuke said as a pair of giggles from nearby drew the attention of the group to a pair of similarly built women sitting next to each other.

Of these two females, one of them was an athletically-built woman who had shoulder-length brown hair and was wearing a green form-fitting T-shirt, dark green slacks, and black shoes, while the other female was a petite and slender woman with back-length black hair that was held up by a red hairband, which matched the silky red sleeveless knee-length dress, brown leggings, and black heels she wore. Furthermore, the brown-haired woman had what appeared to be hazel eyes, the black-haired woman appeared to have brown eyes. The brown-haired woman then spoke up.

"Sorry, I just find it amusing how much Labrys makes it obvious she enjoys being here despite the fact that all the idle chatter shouldn't be that interesting to an anti-Shadow weapon like her. Granted, I fervently believe that Labrys is more than likely also in denial of what I believe to be her feelings for Yosuke-kun, but we can worry about that more later." The brown haired female said as the black haired female spoke up before the blue-haired female, or Labrys as she'd been called by the brown-haired female, could do more than blush slightly in embarrassment at the brown-haired female's comment.

"Good point, Chie. The main issue here is making sure Nanako-chan doesn't end up a bartering chip of these Phantom Thieves, or worse, their hostage." The black-haired female said sagely to the brown-haired female, or Chie as she'd called her, before the now-named Teddie spoke up.

"I have a feeling Nana-chan would fight back way too hard for the Phantom Thieves to be able to take her in easily." Teddie said as Konoe spoke up with a nod.

"Well said, Teddie. But at the same time, I would be remiss if I didn't point out that you're overlooking a key detail. From what our records show, these Phantom Thieves may have two of Nanako's biggest heroes in their ranks. I assume most of, if not all of you, are familiar with the 'Kung-Fu Dragon' and the up-and-coming gymnastics prodigy, Sumire Yoshizawa?" Konoe said, fully expecting the gasps that came from Yu and the black-haired man next to him, whose icy grey eyes widened behind his glasses on hearing the nickname 'Kung-Fu Dragon'.

The black-haired man spoke up, allowing the rest of the group to take in the button-up short-sleeve white T-shirt he wore open over a black muscle shirt, dark grey jeans, and lace-up brown steel-toed boots as he spoke.

"Yo, hold up. Wasn't the 'Kung-Fu Dragon' the guy who single-handedly handed the Yasogami karate team their asses a few years back during the quarterfinals of the inter-school karate championship? Plus, according to rumors online, he has an older half-brother who was said to be a notorious hitman when he was alive. But apparently said older brother died about three years ago in a fire, according to the records." The dark-haired man said as Naoto frowned at this and spoke up.

"You're referring to the alleged demise of Goro Akechi right now, aren't you, Kanji-kun?" Naoto asked the now-named Kanji, who nodded and spoke up.

"Yeah, that's the guy. Sorry, I always forget his name somehow." Kanji said sheepishly as the brown-haired woman, previously identified by the black-haired female as 'Chie', spoke up.

"Of course you forgot his name, Kanji-kun. If your mom and Naoto both didn't remind you to, you'd forget to tend the store sometimes. So it's not that surprising you have a bad memory at times." Chie said as Kanji sputtered and spoke up.

"Wh-what!? Shut up! And you're one to talk about forgetting stuff, Chie! Didn't you once say that you forgot about a lunch you'd scheduled with Yukiko?" Kanji pointed out to Chie as the black-haired female, or 'Yukiko' as Kanji had called her, spoke up.

"Let's not play the blame game here, Kanji-kun. What Chie said was uncalled for, but so was you using me as an example." Yukiko pointed out as Yu frowned and spoke up, crossing his arms over his chest and drawing the others' attention to the button up dark grey jacket he wore open over a white buttoned-up dress shirt, black jeans, and dark brown boots, which he topped off with a simple silver band ring he wore on one hand, which Rise had the matching ring of on her hand as he spoke.

"As amusing as all this banter is, weren't we here to discuss how to help Konoe-san stop these Phantom Thieves and possibly save Nanako from them if needed?" Yu said as Konoe nodded and spoke up.

"Very well said, Narukami-san. I take it you're all familiar with my assistant, EMMA? She'll help you with a lot of the more technical aspects of this undertaking, but if you agree to help me, we can get you into a Jail that we've set up to trap these Phantom Thieves in. Our first goal is to hopefully change their hearts so they'll repent for their crimes, but if that proves impossible, it'll be your group's job to help EMMA dispose of them any way you can. I won't pry, but EMMA tells me you can use similar powers to these Phantom Thieves?" Konoe said as Rise and the blue-haired female, who Yosuke had previously called 'Labrys', both gasped before Rise spoke up.

"No! Are you trying to suggest-?" Rise said as Labrys spoke up to finish Rise's question.

"-that the Phantom Thieves could be Persona-users!?" Labrys said, drawing stunned looks from the rest of the group. Teddie frowned and spoke up.

"It's possible. I have been smelling things that could be similar to the TV world popping up across Tokyo recently. Could these be those Jails you spoke of, Konoe-san?" Teddie asked as Konoe spoke up.

"I'm not privy to the specifics of that. You'd have to ask EMMA for those answers." Konoe said as a 'BIP!' from his phone preceded EMMA speaking up.

"Hello, Investigation Team. I am EMMA. And I'd have to apologetically tell you that such information is on a need-to-know basis for now until such time as you agree to help us stop the Phantom Thieves. You can, of course, choose not to help. But if you did, there wouldn't be much you could do about it if the one you call Nanako ends up a pawn/hostage of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts.

Or even worse, the Phantom Thieves could somehow convert the one you all call Nanako into one of them, and pit you all in the position of having to fight against her. Is that something you want to risk having happen to you? If you agree to help myself and Konoe stop these Phantom Thieves, we can work together to ensure that these Phantom Thieves are brought to justice and that this Nanako person who you all spoke of is kept safe from the Phantom Thieves' clutches. So, do we have a deal?" EMMA said to the gathered group, who frowned at the implied threat to Nanako, before Yu sighed and spoke up.

"I hate that you've basically got us between a rock and a hard place, but you do have a good point, EMMA. Very well, we're in." Yu said as Konoe spoke up with a smile.

"Excellent. I was hoping you'd come to a favorable reply. For now, you all can relax in my office. But eventually, I'll need one of you, most likely either Narukami or Kujikawa, to come with me to get a phone fitted with EMMA, since that's the only way you can reach the Jail we've set up for trapping the Phantom Thieves. But for now, please, relax and enjoy yourselves as my honored guests." Konoe said amicably as the Investigation Team nodded and got comfortable, Yu and Rise exchanging a wary look as they did so, hoping they weren't making a mistake in agreeing to help Konoe and EMMA out...

(A short time later, over in Inari Taisha, with Ann, Shiho, Futaba, Kusa, Goro, Haru, Makoto, Yusuke, Ryuji, Sumire, Sophia, Ren, and Morgana)

After the group eventually arrived in Inari Taisha, which was apparently a bustling tourist spot with many buildings around that appeared very Japanese in design, most of which had very pointed rooftops, Ryuji crossed his arms and spoke up.

"Well, we made it here somehow." Ryuji said as Morgana spoke up while turning towards Sumire's phone, where Sophia was.

"Sophia, are you sure this is it?" Morgana asked as Sophia spoke up with a frown on her face.

"I'm definitely sure. We're outside Inari Taisha." Sophia said as Haru spoke up with a wary look.

"But I don't see anybody suspicious around here." Haru said as Ryuji spoke up in an irate tone of voice.

"Tch! If it's a trap, then frickin' hurry up and come on out already!" Ryuji said as Sumire frowned and spoke up.

"Calm down, Ryuji. I doubt it'll be that easy to spring it if it is a trap." Sumire said as Goro spoke up.

"I agree with Sumire-san. I doubt whoever's setting this trap is going to be so easily tricked into tipping their hand." Goro said as Kusa spoke up.

"Maybe, but then again, maybe not. You forget, Goro, that sometimes overconfident bad guys have been known to over-play their hand at times. And when doing so, they often tip their hand and expose themselves in the process, so to speak." Kusa said wisely as Ren spoke up.

"I agree with Kusa. We need to stay on guard." Ren said decisively. Yusuke nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"Right. They could be hiding anywhere." Yusuke said before a 'BIP!' from Sumire's phone preceded a wide-eyed Sophia giving off a sudden gasp, and making a wary Morgana speak up.

"What is it, Lady Sophia? What did you find?" Morgana asked as Sophia spoke up, her eyes still wide.

"I found the presence of a Jail! This whole area smells like one!" Sophia said as Ryuji spoke up and shock.

"WHAT!? Ya mean there was a Jail in Kyoto this whole time?" Ryuji asked as Sophia spoke up with a shake of her head.

"No, there wasn't one before. I'm sure of it. But there is one now!" Sophia asked as Makoto spoke up with wide eyes.

"How is that possible?" Makoto asked as Goro spoke up.

"Very easily, actually. After all, correct me if I'm wrong here, but I do believe that all of us just discussed the possibility of Akane being used to bait us into a trap? So it would follow that whoever's setting the trap made a Jail to set the trap in." Goro said as Kusa nodded and spoke up.

"I agree with Goro. Besides, what better way to stick it to all of us than to make Akane-chan, who the majority of us are already quite fond of, into a Monarch, thus basically forcing us to have to fight her at some point in order to change her heart and save her?" Kusa said dryly, fully expecting something like that to be the case with this new Jail. As if on cue, right after Kusa finished speaking, a 'BIP!' from Ren's phone preceded EMMA speaking up.

"You have a friend request from the Phantom Thieves. Please state the keyword." EMMA said as Ann spoke up in shock.

"Now what is it?" Ann said as Yusuke spoke up with a frown.

"It seems it's a friend request on EMMA. How odd." Yusuke said as Goro spoke up.

"I think this could be the next step of the trap being sprung." Goro said as Kusa nodded his agreement before Haru spoke up.

"Oh! That's a good point, Goro. Could it be the kidnapper?" Haru asked as Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"Given our location and the circumstances we're in, I'd say it's definitely the kidnapper, without a doubt." Makoto said as Futaba winced and spoke up.

"True. But we don't know the dang keyword, do we?" Futaba said as Kusa spoke up with what appeared to be a look of resignation on his face, much to the shock of Ren and Goro.

"Good point, Taba. We can't accept this friend request without a keyword. As such, they can't spring their trap if we can't accept this friend request." Kusa said bluntly as Morgana spoke up with a nod.

"True, but wait a minute. Why do we even need one? Isn't EMMA supposed to be inactive? So why's it working now, all of a sudden?" Morgana asked as Ann frowned and spoke up.

"Yeah, good point, Morgana. You're right. Maybe they restarted their service?" Ann said as Shiho spoke up with a shake of her head.

"Perhaps, but i doubt it. I think Goro and Kusa are right and this is part of the enemy's trap." Shiho said warily. Ryuji frowned and spoke up.

"True. I just wanna know why the friend request says it's from the Phantom Thieves! What gives? Makes it seem like we're the bad ones-" Ryuji said before being cut off mid-sentence from a ping coming from Ren's phone as EMMA spoke up once more.

"Keyword was successfully entered. Beginning navigation." EMMA said as the entire group's eyes widened and Yusuke spoke up.

"What!?" Yusuke said as Makoto spoke up in surprise.

"The keyword's 'Phantom Thieves' too!?" Makoto said as Kusa blinked and spoke up.

"Seems like it. Wonder if the enemy decided to make it easy for us after hearing me seem to give up just now. If so, they make it far too easy to manipulate them into giving us what we need." Kusa said with a smirk as Ryuji spoke up with wide eyes.

"Aw, you're shittin' meeee!" Ryuji said as the group was pulled into the Metaverse, unaware of Sojiro also being pulled into the Metaverse from outside the hideaway...

(Inside the Kyoto Jail, with Fox, Noir, Crow, Flare, Skull, Seeker, Violet, Panther, Draconis, Oracle, Queen, Mona, and Joker)

After looking around once they got to their feet, the group saw that this new jail appeared to be very heavily based on Feudal Japan, with a very kung-fu like setting. The group took in all the raised buildings and rooftops, blinking at the various poles with red banners on top that had calling cards stuck to them. After looking around a bit, Queen spoke up in surprise.

"Odd. This looks like some kind of feudal castle-type set up." Queen said in surprise as Panther spoke up with a nod.

"It's a Jail. It has to be." Panther said as a portal opened up in front of the group, and Pendragon landed on the ground with a muted grunt, making Oracle and Draconis race forward to help him up.

"Are you all right, Pendragon?" Draconis asked Pendragon, who nodded and spoke up.

"I'm fine, Draconis. I'm more stunned than anything. After all, who would expect to be dragged into a Jail out of nowhere like this?" Pendragon said as Skull winced and spoke up.

"Yeeah, my bad, guys. It's my fault we ended up pulled in here like this. I just had to go and blurt out the keyword." Skull said as Mona spoke up.

"Don't worry about it, Skull. Either way, the kidnapper wanted us to be here. Why else would he have set up a brand-new Jail?" Mona asked as Draconis spoke up.

"Maybe to trap us in? After all, I did theorize, as did Violet, that there could be a trap within a trap here. So we should be on guard for that possibility." Draconis said. The group nodded, but before anyone could reply to Draconis' observation, a familiar voice echoed around the Jail.

"Help me, someone." The voice of Akane was heard saying as the group all gasped and Queen spoke up.

"That voice!" Queen said as Akane's voice was heard again.

"Help me, Phantom Thieves!" Akane's voice said as Queen spoke up.

"That sounds like Akane-chan!" Queen said as Skull spoke up with wide eyes.

"No way, is she actually in here somewhere!?" Skull asked as Mona spoke up with a frown.

"If so, that's a problem! Where there are Jails, there are bound to be Shadows!" Mona said as Flare spoke up in surprise.

"Shadows? As in the kind that are turned into Monarchs? Or is there more than one type of Shadow?" Flare asked as Joker blinked at her question before he spoke up with a frown.

"To answer your question, Flare? There are many varieties of Shadows in the Metaverse. The ones that turn into Monarchs are usually the ones that are the most dangerous, as far as I know. That being said, if it is Akane in here and not her Shadow, she's in trouble! We need to hurry and track where her voice is coming from. But let's stay on guard, in case it's a trap." Joker said wisely. Queen nodded and spoke up.

"Yes, I agree! If Akane-chan really is in here, there's no time to waste! Let's track that voice and get Akane-chan out of here!" Queen said as the others nodded and prepared to search for Akane. As the group started to search the Jail for Akane, Queen frowned and spoke up.

"I'm sure Akane-chan's here! We need to hurry and find her!" Queen said as Seeker frowned and spoke up.

"Question: If this is a Jail, wouldn't the Shadow of Akane be here, rather than the real one?" Seeker pointed out as Panther spoke up with a nod.

"That's true, but that doesn't mean there's no danger." Panther said as Crow spoke up with a sage nod.

"Well said, Panther. Also, we're assuming that Akane's Shadow, if it is here, is the only dangerous thing in this Jail. Let us, therefore, be on our guard moving forward." Crow said as Draconis spoke up.

"I concur, Crow. We should be on high alert, just to lessen the chance of one or more of us falling into a trap." Draconis said as Noir spoke up.

"I agree with Crow and Draconis. We need to be careful as we go." Noir said as Mona spoke up.

"Right! Let's stay on our guard while we hurry up and find her!" Mona said as the group kept moving. After a bit, Fox frowned and spoke up.

"Odd. There's not a Shadow in sight that I can see. I wonder why that could be?" Fox said as Draconis spoke up.

"I can think of a few reasons why off the top of my head, but none of them are good." Draconis said as Violet spoke up.

"I agree. Odds are this Jail isn't nearly as simple as we're being led to believe it is." Violet said as Flare spoke up with a perplexed look on what was visible of her face beneath her mask.

"Maybe it's the fact I'm less experienced than the rest of you guys, but isn't that a safe bet that there's more to this Jail than meets the eye?" Flare asked as Pendragon spoke up.

"Good point, Flare. I agree that we should be on high alert as we move through here. Everyone should try to keep their eyes out and be ready for anything." Pendragon said as Mona spoke up.

"I agree with Lady Flare, as well as with Pendragon. This might be a Jail, but that's not to say that finding and saving Akane is going to be an easy task by any means. Everyone, try and stay on your guard." Mona said as the group kept moving. After clearing the first section of the area, the group started dashing as one towards the next area. After running to the end of the hallway they were in, the group turned and looked around before Oracle gasped and spoke up, pointing ahead of her as she spoke.

"Oh! She's right there!" Oracle said as the group looked to their right, where a clearly feminine figure was tied to a wooden pole with chains, her eyes closed. The apparent schoolgirl attire she was wearing notwithstanding, the group recognized this figure's hairstyle and body shape immediately. It was what appeared to be Akane! Skull groaned and spoke up as he frowned.

"Crap, that IS her!" Skull said as Queen spoke up with a frown.

"Come on. She needs help!" Queen said as most of the others nodded and made to follow, aside from Crow and Draconis, who exchanged a skeptical look, both agreeing this was too easy and screamed trap. As the group darted towards Akane, Oracle groaned before yelping in surprise as she tripped on a rock and lost her balance.

"Wh-Whoa!" Oracle said as she started to fall, only to be caught mid-fall by Draconis, who helped her up, getting a sheepish nod and a grateful smile from Oracle as Crow hung back to help Draconis get Oracle on her feet. Draconis then gave Oracle a worried look as he spoke up.

"That was almost a nasty fall right there. That being said, are you all right, Oracle?" Draconis asked as Oracle spoke up with a nod.

"Ngh, I'm fine. But we need to go after the others." Oracle said as Draconis shook his head as he spoke up, a wary frown on his face while he spoke that Crow matched.

"No. Let's hang back. I'm not 100% sure, but I sense this is a trap, and we should try not to have ALL of us fall for it if possible." Draconis said as Crow nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"I agree. Let us wait and see what happens." Crow said as Draconis nodded before Flare turned around, frowned as she saw Crow, Draconis, and Oracle hanging back, and turned to Panther and spoke up as the rest of the group ran towards the bound Akane.

"Panther? Why did those three not follow the rest of us?" Flare asked as Panther shrugged, not sure of the answer to Flare's question. Before she could verbally respond to Flare, she and the others who'd charged towards Akane yelped in shock as bars started materializing around them, eventually turning into a full-size iron cage with bars and locks, and even a keypad lock to keep the Thieves trapped. As the cage formed around the shocked Thieves, Fox spoke up in shock.

"What!?" Fox asked as Pendragon spoke up with a frown.

"Damn! Were Draconis and Crow wise to hang back?" Pendragon said as Flare spoke up.

"I think they avoided a trap doing so, Pendragon." Flare said as Violet spoke up.

"Of course we ran headlong into a trap! Crap." Violet said as Skull frowned and grabbed at the bars of the cage while speaking up.

"Huh? What the hell's goin' on!?" Skull said as Noir spoke up with wide eyes while looking up.

"Look out!" Noir said as a roof dropped on top of the cage, held up by a chain. As Oracle scrambled forward to try and save the others, Draconis and Crow shook their heads, knowing Oracle wouldn't reach them in time. Sure enough, as Oracle got close to the cage, it started lifting up into the air with the others trapped inside. As Oracle got close enough, she made a futile attempt to leap up and try and pull the cage down, speaking up in a mix of disappointement, regret, and shock when she failed.

"No! You guys!" Oracle said as the cage rose up out of both Oracle's line of sight and out of her reach. While she was watching the cage rise up, both Crow and Draconis' gazes turned toward the bound Akane, who suddenly smirked as her eyes shot open and glowed yellow while easily breaking free of her chains, as the rest of the group could only look on in a mix of confusion, horror, and surprise from up above in the cage they were trapped in.

As she strode forward towards Crow, Draconis, and Oracle, Akane's attire suddenly changed itself in a flash of red and black, replacing itself with a form-fitting, figure-hugging red midriff-baring corset that was tied up with black laces, a red and black plaid skirt with a black leather belt, black leather thigh-high stockings with red boots that had black laces and soles, along with red elbow-length fingerless gloves, as well as a black mask.

And to complete the look, a red and black top hat with a black star on the red part of the hat wound up appearing on top of Akane's head, covering most of her brown hair, which had also been changed, now appearing to have dark red streaks on the tips, making the group in the cage all gasp in a mix of horror, shock, and disbelief at Akane's apparent transformation as Joker mouthed 'what the-!?' under his breath as Crow spoke up with a frown.

"Dammit. She's awakened into what I'm assuming is her Monarch form! This is bad." Crow said as Draconis spoke up, noticing Akane turn away from him, Oracle, and Crow.

"Agreed. There's nothing that the three of us can do for the others at this point in time. I hate to do this, but we need to retreat before she notices us and put our heads together while discussing what we can do about managing to figure out a way to rescue Joker and the others once we're back in the real world." Draconis said, getting reluctant nods from Oracle and Crow as the three made a hasty but silent retreat from the Jail while Akane was focused on the captive Thieves. After the cage was fully raised, Akane raised her arms up and spoke up.

"Welcome, Phantom Thieves, to what will likely be the last place you'll ever see! In other words, welcome to my own Jail!" Akane said as the captive Thieves frowned, not having seen Draconis, Crow and Oracle escape to the real world...

(Meanwhile, back in the real world, in an interrogation room with Zenkichi and an investigator)

"Spit it out, Hasegawa! The Phantom Thieves, the ones you let get away with your actions! Where are they!?" The rude investigator said, pushing Zenkichi's head against the table, making Zenkichi groan in pain, but otherwise he gave no response. The investigator frowned, glaring at Zenkichi as he spoke up.

"Damn traitor. Your actions cost us all the achievement of a lifetime." The investigator said as Zenkichi chuckled hollowly and spoke up.

"Hahaha, is that right? You say that, and you have the gall to call ME a traitor?" Zenkichi said as the investigator frowned and spoke up.

"What was that!?" The investigator said as Zenkichi smirked and spoke up.

"I can see it in your eyes, you know. Each and every one of you. Your heart's been changed, and not for the better. You're just a zombie." Zenkichi said as the investigator frowned and spoke up.

"Zombie, my ass! You'd better cut the crap and give me a straight answer! Unless, that is, you want your face to get run straight through this table!" The investigator said as Zenkichi huffed and spoke up.

"Hmph! If you think you can do it, be my guest. But, might I remind you who you're dealing with? I'm PubSec, asshole. We don't bend easily to pissants like you." Zenkichi said smugly as the investigator growled and spoke up.

"Pissant!? Why, you little-!" The investigator said before hearing the voice of one of his co-workers outside.

"Hey, wait a second! You can't just barge in here like this!" Zenkichi and the rude investigator heard, just before the door opened up and the rude investigator spoke up.

"Who is it!?" The rude investigator said, letting Zenkichi up as he saw another investigator, this one with short brown hair, glasses, brown eyes, a white dress shirt, a black tie, and black jeans with a brown belt and black shoes, speak up.

"I'm sorry, Miss Niijima, but we're in the middle of questioning!" The frantic investigator said, trying to stop the woman who was coming through, a woman who Zenkichi let himself look over, admiring her bleached silver hair, piercing red eyes, pressed black business suit, and distinctive silver earrings on each ear. The woman then spoke up, a slightly distinct frown on her face as she looked around the room, her eyes eventually landing on Zenkichi as she spoke.

"Hm. So it's you?" Sae Niijima mused to herself, not seeing Zenkichi looking her over, until her eyes met his, making her blink and look him over in a rather decidedly appraising sort of way, finding that the group had understated how handsome he was. Sae then concluded that the man being bound couldn't be that bad. Zenkichi, for his part blinked and spoke up, a look of confusion on his face as he noticed Sae looking him over, forcing himself to focus on his current situation and not on appraising Sae, even if part of him idly noted that Sae was decidedly quite attractive in her own right.

"Hm? Is there something on my face?" Zenkichi asked as Sae eventually smiled and spoke up, finding Zenkichi's question amusing.

"Hm, you have honest eyes for the most part. Interesting. I can see why they would trust you so implicitly now, Inspector Zenkichi Hasegawa." Sae said as Zenkichi spoke up in surprise, recognizing the woman in front of him from a description Makoto had given him once, but realizing that maybe Makoto had managed to understate how beautiful her older sister was. Either way, Zenkichi gave Sae a confused look and spoke up.

"Niijima the elder?" Zenkichi said as Sae nodded with a smile and spoke up.

"Indeed. Though not the circumstances I'd have liked for this to happen under, beggars can't be choosers. That said, it's nice to meet you, Zenkichi Hasegawa. I'm Sae Niijima, and some mutual friends of ours have asked me to get you out of here. I have one of them parking the getaway car out front for us." Sae said as Zenkichi's jaw dropped.

"What!? You have one of the others with you?" Zenkichi asked as Sae nodded and spoke up.

"Indeed. And he's someone I know won't be given even an ounce of grief, if only because of the fact that most people believe him to be dead. That said, I heard you've been looking after Makoto for me?" Sae asked a confused Zenkichi, who could only dumbly nod his agreement, finding himself inexplicably tongue-tied at how breathtakingly pretty the smile that Sae was aiming at him was...

(Meanwhile, back at the hideaway, with Kusa and Futaba)

"Urgh, dammit! I can't reach anyone!" Futaba said as Kusa spoke up with a shake of his head and a fond smile.

"Of course not. Most of the others are still trapped back in that Jail, and I don't expect Goro to show back up for a little while, since he went off to check on Nanako and make sure she's got the real Akane with her. If she does, then that confirms beyond the Shadow of a doubt, pun not intended, that we're dealing with a Shadow and not the real Akane. Besides, no way in hell am I going to leave you alone right now, Taba. You seem to be shaken up still from that trap most of us went into headlong." Kusa said wisely as Futaba nodded and spoke up, leaning into the comforting hug that Kusa gently pulled her into as she spoke.

"I know that, Kusa. But still, I feel so useless. Sure, I have a combat-specced Persona and all, but even with both of us, how are we supposed to help them? I can't just sit here and do nothing, Kusa! Ugh, think, Futaba! Think!" Futaba said as both Futaba and Kusa jumped at the sound of the door opening, Futaba speaking up before Kusa could do so.

"Who's there!?" Futaba asked as Kusa crept up the stairs to look through the peephole to see who it was, only to be shocked when Zenkichi burst into the hideaway, Goro following close behind with a smirk on his face as Zenkichi looked at Kusa and Futaba before speaking up in relief.

"Sakura the younger! Amamiya the youngest! Thank heavens you're both all right! From what Amamiya the eldest said, you three barely avoided some sort of trap that the others got caught in?" Zenkichi said as Futaba walked over and shocked not only Zenkichi, but both Goro and Kusa, by wrapping her arms around Zenkichi and hugging him for all she was worth as she spoke up.

"Zenkichiiii!" Futaba said as Zenkichi comforted her as best he could while turning to Kusa and speaking up.

"Amamiya the youngest! Where are the rest of the group? Did they make it!?" Zenkichi asked Kusa, but before Kusa could begin to answer the question, Futaba spoke up, crying slightly into Zenkichi's shirt as she spoke, showing how relieved she was to see him.

"You're okay! I'm so glad you're safe, Zenkichi!" Futaba said as a shocked Zenkichi gently patted her on the head comfortingly as he spoke up.

"Whoa, calm down there, Sakura the younger. Of course I am. Now, where's the rest of the gang? Are they all right?" Zenkichi asked as Futaba spoke up with a shake of her head.

"Nobody is! Other than myself, Kusa, Goro, and of course Nanako, who is currently at your house looking after things, the others have all been caught!" Futaba said as Zenkichi's eyes widened as he spoke up.

"Caught? By the police!?" Zenkichi asked as Futaba spoke up with a shake of her head.

"No, not by the police! By Akane!" Futaba said as Zenkichi's eyes widened in surprise before he spoke up.

"Akane? What's my daughter got to do with any of this? Listen, I need you to fill me in." Zenkichi said as Kusa finally got to speak up.

"Let me get this one off of you so she's not glued to your chest for all of this, and I'll fill you in. See, it happened like this..." Kusa said before carefully prying Futaba off of Zenkichi, scooping her into his arms as he sat at a booth seat, after which he gently sat Futaba on his lap as he and Goro took turns explaining about the threatening messages the group had gotten from what seemed to be Akane's chat ID.

As they did so, they made it a point to break down the risky mission the group had undertaken to find her, only to end up in a new Jail where most of the group fell into a clever trap that captured everyone except for the three people in the room with Zenkichi, and how the trap had seemingly been sprung by what Kusa theorized to be Akane's Shadow.

Needless to say, Futaba was surprised by Kusa's theory, though Goro was less surprised, having surmised something along those lines himself. After Kusa finished his explanation, Zenkichi spoke up with wide eyes.

"Wait, what!? Akane not only caught most of your group in a trap, but she has a Jail? Wh-What!? You're saying she's a Monarch!?" Zenkichi asked as Futaba spoke up.

"Uh-huh, that's right." Futaba said as Goro spoke up with a slight frown on his face.

"Technically, it'd be Akane's Shadow, or her suppressed other self, that's the Monarch. Kusa and I are both currently working under the theory that the real Akane is still out cold in her bed in this world, being overseen by Nanako." Goro said as Kusa spoke up.

"And what's worse is that, if Goro and I are right? This might merely be part of a much larger trap for the entire group. No doubt this is either Konoe or Owada's handiwork." Kusa said with a frown. Zenkichi frowned and spoke up.

"Akane's...Shadow!? That's insane, Amamiya the youngest! If not for the fact you all showed me that other world, I'd hardly be able to believe what I'm hearing right now." Zenkichi said as Futaba gave him a concerned look while speaking up.

"But it's true! More importantly, did they rough you up when you were arrested, Zenkichi?" Futaba asked as Zenkichi smirked and spoke up.

"Ah, I'm fine." Zenkichi said before turning to give Goro and Kusa a nod of respect as he kept speaking.

"I actually owe the two of you and Amamiya the middle a big thank-you for sending in the cavalry, in the form of a kick-ass lawyer. And Amamiya the eldest, thank you for being such a level-headed get-away driver. I could tell you wanted to try and ram those annoyingly persistent detectives that were trying to chase myself and Niijima-san the eldest ouf of the station." Zenkichi said as Futaba blinked in confusion before smiling as she spoke up.

"Oh, right Makoto's sis! Dang, she and Sojiro work fast." Futaba said as Goro smirked and spoke up.

"Yes, well, Sae-san does owe Sojiro more than a few favors for how she treated both you and him about four years ago, so this was really the least she could do. The fact that Kusa's desperation play worked so well is really quite impressive." Goro said with an amused grin as Zenkichi nodded and returned the grin while speaking up.

"That she does. Next time my own people decide to arrest me, I'm calling her up, first thing." Zenkichi said as Goro smirked and spoke up.

"Uh-huh. And you're not just saying that because you were quite plainly impressed by how Sae-san carried herself, to say nothing of the outfit she was wearing." Goro said with a rare facetious smirk on his face. Zenkichi sputtered and spoke up.

"Wh-What? Shuddup!" Zenkichi said, making Kusa and Goro chuckle at the subtle hints of red on Zenkichi's face from Goro's rare instance of a teasing comment as Futaba spoke up.

"So, changing the subject from what could be a rare instance of Zenkichi being embarrassed, I have to wonder. Zenkichi, what is the cavalry doing now?" Futaba asked as Zenkichi spoke up with a smirk.

"Working with her superiors to take some of the pressure off us, at least for the time being. That way we can make our move." Zenkichi said as Futaba spoke up in confusion, her head cocked slightly to the side.

"What move? Are you cooking up a plan?" Futaba asked as Zenkichi nodded and spoke up.

"Yeah. I want to get in that Jail, and walk out with my daughter and the rest of your crew! If they want to accompany us, Amamiya the youngest and Amamiya the eldest can join us as well." Zenkichi said as Futaba spoke up.

"What? That's no plan! That's a suicide run!" Futaba said as Goro grinned and spoke up.

"Ah, but sometimes suicide runs are the most effective type of runs, Futaba. Not that any of us is trying any such run here. After all, between myself and Kusa, we should have a pretty good bit of firepower to bring to bear, not to mention your combat-specced Persona, Albus. So we're not without combatants to call on." Goro said as Kusa shook his head and spoke up.

"No. While it is true we could easily dispatch any Shadows we run across with just us, we'd risk tipping Akane's Shadow off to the fact we escaped her trap. I'm pretty sure she hasn't cottoned on to that detail just yet. She might have an inkling that Taba escaped, but I'm pretty sure that you and I escaped her notice that whole time. And I feel like we should try to preserve that element of surprise as long as possible. Besides, this seems like something that Zenkichi needs to do for himself." Kusa said to Goro before turning to Zenkichi as he kept speaking.

"Zenkichi? I know this sounds scary to you, but this is your chance to finally prove to the world that you're not just a coward, and that you're ready to take a stand for what's right. You just have to believe in yourself, that's all." Kusa said as Futaba spoke up with a scoff.

"That's all well and good, but let's not forget that there are Shadows all over the place in that Jail! If Zenkichi charges in with no Persona, he's likely toast!" Futaba said as Zenkichi frowned and spoke up.

"What, I need one of these Persona things too? Can't you take 'em down with yours?" Zenkichi asked as Kusa spoke up before Futaba could do so.

"Technically, we can. But like I told Goro, we'd be setting off the security if we did that. And while we can defend ourselves, you cannot. Thus, a stealthy approach is the most practical in this instance. Besides, Futaba has two Personas, but one of them isn't combat-specced." Kusa said as Futaba nodded and spoke up.

"Kusa is correct. I have Albus, who IS combat-specced. Al Azif, on the other hand? That Persona is more of the 'support' persuasion." Futaba said as Zenkichi smirked and spoke up.

"That's fine. If this is going to be a stealth mission, I'll take whatever support you've got." Zenkichi said as Futaba gave Zenkichi a serious look while speaking up.

"Zenkichi? Not to be a nag, but you do realize this could kill you if you get caught by the Shadows with no means of self-defense?" Futaba said as Zenkichi spoke up.

"That may be true, Sakura the younger. But I'm Akane's father. I'd die for her without a second thought!" Zenkichi said resolutely as Futaba spoke up in shock and awe.

"Zenkichi..." Futaba said, trailing off mid-sentence as Goro smirked and spoke up while giving Zenkichi an impressed look.

"Sounds to me like someone's finally found their backbone. I'm impressed." Goro said as Kusa spoke up with an approving nod.

"True, but I always knew Zenkichi had a strong backbone in there somewhere. He just had to dig deep inside himself to find his strength and discover the courage to stand up for what he believed in before that." Kusa said sagely. Zenkichi nodded and spoke up.

"Amamiya the youngest is right. Besides, if our loved ones are on the line here, I'd rather take a stand than sit back and calculate risks when we can save them. I know it's the same with you guys." Zenkichi said as Futaba sighed and spoke up.

"Hah. You have a point." Futaba said as Kusa spoke up with a smirk on his face.

"Dang straight he does, Taba. Zenkichi knows that we gotta get back in there and save the others. At this point, the four of us are the only ones who can do so. Mind you, Zenkichi will be the one doing most of the main stealth maneuvering with you guiding him from above to ensure he doesn't get surprised by an ambush, all while Goro and I try to sneak along the perimeter and pick off any and all security Shadows that we can pick off from the shadows.

I know that this is asking quite a lot of you Taba, but I have faith that you can safely guide Zenkichi to where the others are and get there yourself, all while doing your best to avoid detection. Once Goro and I finish picking off most of the Shadows, we'll make our way to where the others are and meet up with you two." Kusa said as Futaba nodded and spoke up with understanding in her eyes.

"Know what? You're 100% right, Kusa. Let's work together and get the others back!" Futaba said as Zenkichi nodded before the rather unlikely foursome of Kusa, Futaba, Goro, and Zenkichi put together a plan of action...

(Back in the Kyoto Jail, with Panther, Flare, Queen, Noir, Fox, Joker, Violet, Skull, Mona, Seeker, Pendragon, and Akane's Shadow)

"Dammit, what the heck is this!? Argh, shit won't budge!" Skull said as he tried to pry off the bars from the cage, getting an exasperated sigh from Mona, who spoke up.

"Hey! Give it a rest, Skull. You're just wasting your energy." Mona said as Skull huffed and spoke up.

"Yeah, but still!" Skull said as Joker spoke up with a firm look on his face.

"I know how you feel, Skull. But try to be patient. After all, I can't help but notice that three of us didn't get caught in this cage. And given who those three are, I think it's a safe bet that they're thinking up a plan of attack even as we speak, so let's just sit tight for now. Help will arrive." Joker said wisely. Skull huffed but nodded as he spoke up.

"Gah, I hate it when you break out the sound arguments, Joker. Ugh, fine." Skull said as Seeker spoke up with a concerned look on her face.

"I sure hope Oracle, Draconis, and Crow are okay." Seeker said as Violet smiled at her and spoke up.

"I admire that you're worried for the three of them, but I know Draconis pretty well. He made sure that he got all three of them out in one piece. No doubt he's back in the real world enacting some crazy plan to try and get us out of here." Violet said as Mona nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"Violet's right. And with any luck, the three of them made it out unscathed." Mona said as Panther turned shocked, tear-filled eyes onto what appeared to be Akane in Monarch attire as she spoke up.

"Akane-chan, please help us to understand. Why are you, out of all people, a Monarch?" Panther said as Queen got to her feet, looking ready to cry as she spoke up.

"Who can say? How did it even come to this?" Queen asked as Joker scoffed and spoke up.

"I think we can all agree this has Konoe and Owada's influence written all over it." Joker said sagely as Akane's Shadow walked over and spoke up derisively.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to change your rotten hearts." Akane's Shadow said bluntly as Queen gasped at Akane's Shadow and spoke up.

"Akane-chan!" Queen said in horror as Akane's Shadow scoffed and spoke up.

"It's true, isn't it? You Phantom Thieves do nothing but dress up murder and glorify hysteria. No, you can't be the real Phantom Thieves. You're fakes hiding behind masks. I'll make extra sure to personally change your hearts." Akane's Shadow said as Mona spoke up, hoping to reason with Akane's Shadow.

"Akane, that's not true! Please, believe me! We're not the bad guys here!" Mona said as Joker spoke up.

"Mona's right! I know it's hard to believe, but we're on your side here. Moreover, we're not who you're after." Joker said persuasively. Noir spoke up with a nod.

"That's right! Even your father's been set up!" Noir said as Fox spoke up.

"Not only was he set up, he sacrificed everything to give us a chance to get away and be able to try and save you now. As such, we owe a lot to him, and would hate to let him down by not being able to save you, his daughter, when you need us the most." Fox said as Pendragon spoke up with a huff.

"True, but sometimes, there are just people who don't want to be saved, as a couple of people we know can attest." Pendragon said as Flare smiled and spoke up.

"If you mean who I think you do, then I agree, Pendragon. Those two would rather see other people save themselves, rather than save them." Flare said sagely as Akane's Shadow huffed and spoke up.

"Bullcrap. I won't let anyone fool me again. I can't trust anyone anymore. Not the police, not him, and damn sure not you losers. To be honest, I think the only ones I can somewhat trust are Amamiya the younger, and maybe Dojima-san, since she's not only really pr-err I mean kind, but she's also been pretty good about staying at my side alongside Amamiya the eldest recently." Akane's Shadow said as Violet smirked and spoke up.

"I caught that slip, Akane-chan. You almost called Nanako pretty just now, didn't you? Interesting. Y'know, if I didn't know better, I'd think that you not only swing both ways, which is fine if you do like both women and men, but that you might also very well be starting to take an interest in Nanako-chan." Violet said understandingly as Akane's Shadow frowned and spoke up, her cheeks reddening very subtly as Violet's words registered while she spoke.

"Wh-what!? Did you just suggest that I might have a crush on Dojima-san, Yoshizawa!? You do recall that she's straight, right!? Never mind that! You're trying to distract me! Too bad it won't work!" Akane's Shadow snapped at Violet before she huffed and snapped her fingers, after which a small army of Shadows appeared behind her as Queen spoke up in desperation.

"Akane-chan!" Queen said as Akane spoke up with a sly smirk on her face, her eyes glowing an orangish-yellow hue behind her mask.

"Enough with the empty platitudes, you scum! Now choose. Who wants their heart changed first?" Akane's Shadow said as the Shadows advanced on the caged group...

(At the same time, at the entrance of the Kyoto Jail, with Zenkichi, Oracle, Crow, and Draconis)

As the camera panned up, it showed Zenkichi desperately struggling to pull himself up onto a rooftop. Oracle winced at this and spoke up in a low whisper.

"Zenkichi! Get down already or they're gonna see you!" Oracle rebuked Zenkichi, who groaned and spoke up.

"Urgh, sure. 'Get down,' she says. As if it's that easy." Zenkichi said before gasping as he slipped off the roof and landed on his feet on the ground below, grimacing from the impact of the landing since he was at least five feet off the ground, if not ten. After he shook off the discomfort of the landing, Zenkichi looked out at the jail in front of him, noting the many Japanese looking buildings, as well as the rather distinctive cage-like structure in the distance that was visible even above the trees, only being dwarfed by the large moon glowing ominously above it. As Zenkichi walked towards the entrance, he spoke up.

"Akane's in here, then? I believe you said the trap was sprung in this area somewhere, am I right?" Zenkichi said as Oracle spoke to him through the comms piece in his ear.

"They're on you, Zenkichi! Hide!" Oracle said as Crow spoke up over the comms at that point.

"And try not to fall so loudly. Draconis and I heard that impact clear across the Jail. Luckily, we're pretty sure Akane's Shadow and the others are further in, so they won't have heard that impact." Crow said with a vaguely amused edge to his voice as Zenkichi gasped and ducked behind a pillar as some sentry Shadows walked past shining flashlights in front of them. The Shadows looked at one another, wondering if they were going to find the reported intruders around here.

Unbeknownst to them, their reinforcements were presently being ambushed and eliminated by a very efficiently performed jump-strike by Draconis and Crow, who then promptly slipped back into the cover of darkness as the defeated Shadows dissolved into black mist. As Zenkichi looked up, he saw Oracle give him a thumbs-up from a nearby rooftop and speak up.

"Nice job hiding, Zenkichi. I just got word from Draconis that he and Crow are in position on their end. Now it's our turn. Let's get stealthy." Oracle said as Zenkichi nodded and spoke up, sliding his glasses up his face in an epic and/or badass way while speaking.

"Okay. Heh! Let's do this, partner." Zenkichi said as he prepared himself for his foray into the Jail. As he got ready to move, Oracle spoke up over the comms.

"Incoming, dead ahead! Hide, or it's over!" Oracle said as Zenkichi nodded and hid behind a pillar while speaking up.

"I know, I know. I'm going. That's why I need your backup, Sak-err, I mean Oracle." Zenkichi said as Draconis spoke up over the comms at that point.

"No worries, Zenkichi. You can count on Oracle to guide you to the target location safely. I trust her with my life." Draconis said sagely as Zenkichi nodded and kept moving. As Zenkichi moved, he heard Crow and Draconis quietly yet playfully bantering over the comms about who was racking up more Shadow kills. As they did that, Zenkichi deftly moved from pillar to pillar, eventually reaching the goal after a couple of near-misses that he barely got out of. As he got to the end, Oracle spoke up n the comms.

"Heh, not bad, Zenkichi! You're getting thiefier by the minute!" Oracle said as Zenkichi huffed and spoke up.

"Is 'thiefier' a compliment? Or even a word, for that matter?" Zenkichi asked as Draconis spoke up in amusement.

"Not really. But we've just learn to interpret it as Oracle-speak for 'you did good!', and accept it as such. But to answer your question? No, I'm pretty sure 'thiefier' is not a word, but I've learned not to argue with Oracle at this point. So just go with it if she says words like 'thiefier'. That said, good work on reaching the goal without getting caught." Draconis said as Zenkichi spoke up with a shrug.

"Eh, if you say so. Either way? I'm not sure I'm a fan of it myself." Zenkichi said as Crow chuckled and spoke up.

"That's fine, Zenkichi. I felt much the same way myself when I first joined the group full-time. They're a handful at times, but you learn to tolerate them and even appreciate them after a while. So just let yourself roll with the punches in this instance, I think." Crow said as Zenkichi nodded, eventually reaching the steps in time to see what appeared to be Akane sneering at a cage which had Joker and the others in it. As Zenkichi got close enough, he heard Akane's Shadow speak up.

"Now choose. Who wants their hearts changed first?" Akane's Shadow asked the group. But before she could speak up, Zenkichi ran up and spoke up, shocking the caged Thieves, who hadn't expected Zenkichi to show up.

"Don't do it, Akane!" Zenkichi said as he ran into view, leading a wide-eyed Skull to speak up in shock.

"Whoa! ZENKICHI!?" Skull said as Panther spoke up in shock.

"He escaped the police after all!" Panther said as Akane's Shadow frowned at the unlikely appearance of Zenkichi, speaking up in shock.

"YOU! What are you doing here, Dad?" Akane's Shadow asked Zenkichi as Oracle came running into view and spoke up.

"Guys! We came to help!" Oracle said as Noir spoke up in a mix of respect, awe, and shock.

"Oracle! I can hardly believe it." Noir said as Pendragon spoke up.

"Not to be the skeptic here, but when you say 'we', do you just mean yourself and Zenkichi over there?" Pendragon asked as a familiar voice chuckled from above before two more figures leapt down into view as the left-most figure, who'd previously chuckled, spoke up, revealing himself to be Draconis, making the group realize that the right-most figure was Crow.

"Of course not. She means the two of us as well. Sorry we're late, had to run interference a bit for Zenkichi to help him get here easier. By the way, you were very lucky that Crow picked off that search chopper that was on your ass at one point, or you would've been a goner, Zenkichi." Draconis said as Crow slyly smirked and spoke up.

"Be that as it may, Draconis, I do believe I got more Shadow kills than you, so I win our bet." Crow said as Draconis huffed but nodded, reluctantly passing a wad of yen over to a grinning Crow, making Joker chuckle as he spoke up while Crow gleefully pocketed his winnings.

"Heh, finally lost one, eh Draconis?" Joker said as Draconis spoke up with a frown on his face, blushing in embarrassment while he spoke.

"Shuddup! But yes, I did lose this one to Crow." Draconis said before smiling at Crow as he spoke up.

"But for real, all grumbling aside, well played, good sir. You bested me on this occasion fair and square." Draconis said as he clapped Crow lightly on the shoulder respectfully. Seeker, for her part, bounced up and down happily as she spoke up, ignoring the fond smile on Mona's face as he watched her excitably bounce around to focus on the group's unlikely apparent saviors while she spoke.

"Good going, Oracle. I knew you, Draconis and Crow would come back for us." Seeker said as Zenkichi stared down Akane's Shadow while speaking up.

"Uhh, just to clarify. You are Akane, right?" Zenkichi asked as Draconis spoke up to answer the question before Akane's Shadow could do so.

"Yes, and no. She is Akane, but not the 'real' Akane. She's what we refer to as a 'Shadow', or the suppressed other half of Akane that she usually keeps hidden deep inside herself. So simply put, this is a manifestation of Akane's inner feelings." Draconis said wisely as Akane's Shadow scoffed, but made no move to correct Draconis. Zenkichi nodded his understanding and spoke up.

"I see. Thanks for that clarification, Draconis." Zenkichi said to Draconis before turning to Akane's Shadow as he kept speaking.

"Just stop this, Akane! None of them did anything wrong. If you're willing, we can talk this out." Zenkichi said as Akane's Shadow scoffed and spoke up.

"Talk it out? With you? Ahahahahaha! If you think I'm ready to talk anything out with you, then you can just go to hell! No matter how many times I told you what happened before, you didn't do a thing! So don't try acting like a father to me!" Akane's Shadow rebuked Zenkichi, who winced and spoke up.

"Akane, I know I've been a bad father, but please listen to me. Just this once. You're right. I couldn't catch the person who took your mother's life. I understand why you'd want nothing to do with a father who kept his head down and took it. But if you don't snap out of it, they're gonna get you too! NOW WAKE UP!" Zenkichi said as Akane's Shadow scoffed and spoke up, ignoring the shocked gasps from the rest of the group at her next reveal.

"Pah! You say you couldn't catch him? It's more like you didn't WANT to catch him. That monster who killed Mom all those years ago and took her from us? You knew it was Owada!" Akane's Shadow said as Joker, Crow, and Draconis all spoke up in shock.

"WHAT!?" Joker, Crow, and Draconis all said in disbelief as Mona spoke up.

"Owada!?" Mona said as Fox spoke up with a frown, noting a key detail in Akane's Shadow's previous outburst that needed clarification.

"You mean Owada, as in Owada the legislator, one of the masterminds we seek!?" Fox asked as Akane's Shadow nodded, her expression turning to a mix of sadness, anger, and bitterness as she spoke up.

"It happened right in front of me! Owada ran Mom over without a hint of regret! I told you, the police, and everyone I could think of! But even then, he wasn't arrested!" Akane's Shadow said, making Draconis frown as he got a good look at Akane's Shadow, noticing what appeared to be a blood-like red teardrop under the right eye socket of her mask. Zenkichi, for his part, winced, not able to refute Akane's accusations, as they were true. Akane's Shadow kept speaking at that point, her voice starting to get more hysterical.

"Why is that!? Why does he get to take an innocent life? Aren't the police supposed to do what's right?" Akane's Shadow asked as Zenkichi spoke up.

"Well, that's true. Nngh." Zenkichi said, wincing as he admitted that Akane's Shadow was right. To his shock, Crow scoffed and spoke up at that point.

"Ordinarily, you'd be correct to say that, Akane-chan. But that's on an above-board, legitimately run police force. Unfortunately, that's not true of most police forces nowadays. I know for a fact that there were many in the Yongen police force who are very corrupt. And I've no doubt that there are also many corrupt individuals in PubSec as well. And yes, at one time, I was employed by one such corrupt individual.

I thought I was doomed to remain on a path of darkness, anger, and hatred for the rest of my days. But in the end, both Joker and Draconis, and to a point both Violet and Oracle, gave me a hard reality check and helped me to realize I had a choice. I could choose to turn my back on my old ways and strive to right my wrongs. Sure, it's not gonna be easy, but I've heard integrity is rarely easy to muster up nowadays." Crow said as Draconis nodded and spoke up.

"Crow's right. And on top of that, I can tell that Zenkichi has a lot more integrity in his whole body than probably half of the Yongen-Jaya Police Department, not to mention at least half of Public Security. I know he has his own agenda, but I believe he's seen the light and wants to do what's right, rather than what's easy." Draconis said, making Zenkichi give him a shocked look after hearing what he had to say.

(POV shift- Zenkichi's POV)

As I took in the rather charismatic, and even blunt, words of both Crow and Draconis, I turned to look over what was apparently my daughter's Shadow, trying not to think about how moved I was by Draconis' words, as well as Crow's pleas to Akane's inner humanity and goodness. As I looked on, Akane's Shadow scoffed. But before she could say anything, I heard Queen speak up behind me, her voice a mix of frantic and pleading.

"Zenkichi-san, tell her!" Queen said to me as I spoke up in disbelief, shocked by what I was hearing.

"Niijima the younger, are you sure?" I asked Queen, who nodded and spoke up.

"I am. Akane-chan isn't just angry for the sake of being angry in the moment. She's been consumed with frustration and bitterness ever since she lost her mother! Until you tell her the truth, she's going to keep replaying this over and over in her heart, leaving her trapped in an endless loop of anger, anguish, and suffering. And if you do nothing? She'll NEVER move past it!" Queen said as Joker spoke up.

"Have faith in her, Zenkichi. If you can't be honest with your own daughter, how are you going to find the strength to move forward and stop hiding from your fears!? If you want to bridge the gap with your daughter, then show it now and tell her the truth." Joker said sagely to me, making me sigh, knowing he was right. I then turned to Akane's Shadow and spoke up.

"You want the truth? Here goes. After your mom died, I was taken off the case. They reasoned that a family member couldn't judge impartially. Soon after, that secretary ended his own life out of nowhere, leaving behind a note saying he was the one responsible. No one else spoke up to contradict that. To the police, it seemed like solid proof.

Eventually, they concluded the secretary was at fault and left it at that. To them, the case was as good as closed. Akane, when you told me what really happened, I knew that note was fake. So without skipping a beat, I opened up my own investigation. But no matter what I found as proof, it'd get wiped one way or another before I could bring it to light." I said, fully expecting the disdainful scoff from Akane's Shadow as she spoke up.

"Hmph. So you gave up, right? Your sense of justice sure didn't get you very far, did it Dad?" Akane's Shadow said, making me wince and speak up, not caring about the abuse being hurled at me by her, knowing I deserved all of it and more. I then focused on Akane's Shadow as I spoke up.

"Akane, please listen to me! I made a promise to Aoi, your mother, that I'd protect you with my very being! No matter what the case!" I said imploringly, making Akane's Shadow blink at this in shock as she spoke up, shocked by what I'd said.

"What was that?" Akane's Shadow said as I nodded, not caring about what the others thought. All that mattered to me was being honest with my daughter, or rather my daughter's Shadow, at that moment. I then spoke up once more.

"You heard me. And at that point, you were my only reason to live. I didn't want to lose more family. So I promised Aoi that I'd never let anything happen to you, no matter what! Even if it killed me." I said, causing Akane's Shadow to give me a horrified look as she spoke up.

"So what? Saying that doesn't change anything." Akane's Shadow said as I winced and spoke up, knowing this next part would be the hardest to hear, but knowing that Akane's Shadow deserved the truth.

"One day, I received a threat letter in the mail with no return address. Inside the letter was a warning, telling me to either stop my investigation then and there, or my daughter would die." I said, expecting the horrified gasp that came from Akane's Shadow, but not the outraged shout from behind me.

"Wha-!?" Akane's Shadow said as Skull, Draconis, Joker, Violet, and Crow all spoke up as one behind me.

"WHAT THE HELL!?" Skull, Draconis, Joker, Violet, and Crow all said, the latter frowning as he kept speaking.

"What a bunch of spineless, pathetic cowards! To think they'd stoop to using innocents to try and strong-arm you into stopping your investigation." Crow said irately as Queen spoke up in horror.

"How could they do such a thing!?" Queen questioned as I spoke up with a wince.

"I'm not proud of this, but it was at that point that I realized there was definitely evil in this world. And in the end, try though he might? One man is nothing compared to the forces of darkness." I said as Skull spoke up in a mix of awe, shock, and even what sounded like respect.

"Zenkichi, that's so raw and hardcore." Skull said to me as I winced and spoke up.

"That's how I feel! And no matter what you think, Akane? I will NEVER forgive Owada! Even though I can't lay a finger on him personally. And to be honest? If it weren't for my current boss, I'd still be wallowing in despair at this point. I decided, then and there, that I'd do whatever it takes to help her reach the top. All the while thinking it was the only way to protect Akane, and honor Aoi's memory.

I was so far engrossed in that mentality, I didn't care who or what I sacrificed to achieve that goal. And I was even prepared, shameful as it is to admit, to use all of you without a second thought. But then Draconis helped me to see the truth. He helped me realize that I was lying to myself and trying to run away from my failures, not just as a father, but as a man." I said honestly, not seeing the impressed looks Crow and Draconis gave me as Oracle spoke up in a mix of shock, awe, and wonder.

"Zenkichi, you poor thing." Oracle said before, to my shock, Akane's Shadow started laughing.

"Heheh. Ahahahahaha!" Akane's Shadow said, guffawing at my admissions. Noir winced at this and spoke up.

"Akane-chan, are you truly so consumed with anger and hate that you'd laugh at your own father's honesty?" Noir asked as Akane's Shadow spoke up, ignoring the question.

"See!? You hear that just now!? He's nothing but a scheming manipulator! As long as he gets his way, he'll hang you all out to dry!" Akane's Shadow said sneeringly as Panther spoke up in shock.

"How could you say that, Akane-chan?" Panther said as Skull spoke up in a mix of shock, disbelief, and anger.

"Do you not get that he's been tryin' to keep you safe!?" Skull asked as Akane's Shadow scoffed and spoke up.

"Oh, I know what he was trying to do. But to do it, he sacrificed his values as an officer." Akane's Shadow said as I spoke up with a frown.

"Akane, is that REALLY how you feel?" I asked as Draconis spoke up in a gentle but mildly rebuking tone.

"Remember, Zenkichi. These are the suppressed feelings Akane-chan has bottled up inside her, so this is likely all her bottled-up suffering and pain that's coming to the surface right now. That said, I would be remiss not to point out something to Akane-chan." Draconis said as Akane's Shadow scoffed and spoke up.

"Yeah? And what might that be?" Akane's Shadow said as Draconis spoke up.

"This. It might seem to you like Zenkichi's just manipulating everyone around him, and you'd be right in thinking that, at least to some extent. But I can see that deep in your father's heart, he truly believes that he's doing it for your sake. He might be self-serving to a high degree, but he does it to protect those he cares about. More importantly, I can see the pain and regret that reaches his eyes when he does it.

I know that your father doesn't want to do it, but Zenkichi knows he has to do it in order to not only keep his job, but be able to provide for you and him. He is what I would call the textbook definition of the walking martyr. One who sacrifices much in order to protect those he cares about, while somehow remaining true to his morals, beliefs, and most of all, himself.

Sure, he's made his share of mistakes, but haven't we all? I think you're being too harsh on him, Akane-chan. I understand you're upset with him, but I think if you two just sat down and really heard one another out, you'd both be shocked how much you two could really clear the air with each other. I think, deep down?

Neither of you truly is mad at the other. You're both just afraid of being hurt again, and I totally get that. Believe it or not, I was also the same way at one time in my life. Back before Joker and I got sent to Yongen-Jaya for our year-long probation several years ago, we had to uproot our life one other time prior to that without warning, all because stuff came up and we had to move.

In retrospect, I can see that I was a complete and utter brat in how I handled things, but back then I was too immersed in my pain and regret to care. I blamed Joker for everything I lost when having to up-root, even though it wasn't at all his fault! But I still took it out on him. Fortunately for me, Joker's understanding enough that he forgave me when I apologized for it afterwards, but still, the idea that I hurt him, much less our parents, bothered me deeply for some time after that.

So in at least that respect, I can relate to Zenkichi's pain. It's not easy to make tough choices at times, but he does it because he knows it's the right thing, or so he tells himself. I'm sure deep down, he hates himself for it. But he keeps telling himself it's for your sake, so he can keep going every day. So try not to be so hard on your father, Akane!

You might not feel this way about your actions towards your father now, but eventually, you'll end up regretting them, and if you take it too far, it might get to a point that you can't recover from. So please, try to forgive him before it's too late." Draconis said honestly, making both myself and Akane's Shadow look at him in shock, before I spoke up with an impressed smile on my face as I gave Draconis a grateful nod while I spoke.

"Draconis. Heh, you're right. I'm not proud of how I've lived my life the past many years, but I've gritted my teeth and told myself it was for you, just so I could keep going." I said as Akane's Shadow smiled and spoke up, shocking all of us with what she said next.

"Dad, I had no idea? To be honest, if it was only us? I'd get it. We're family. Mom would think so, too. But what about the secretary who died? Did you ever stop to think about what his family's going through!?" Akane's Shadow asked as I gasped, not expecting to hear that from her.

"Ah!" I said in shock as Akane's Shadow spoke up in a mix of disappointment and sadness.

"Judging from your reaction, I'd say not. Well, listen up! Not only did they lose a loved one, but they have Mom's death hanging over their heads! Did you forget that!? Or did you choose to forget on purpose!?" Akane's Shadow asked me as I gasped in shock and spoke up.

"I'm so sorry, Akane. I had no idea you were thinking of them at all. Truly, you're a much kinder person than I give you credit for." I said honestly. Akane's Shadow scoffed at this and spoke up.

"Yeah? You know what I think? You're just like the trash who killed Mom that day. Pretending nothing ever happened." Akane's Shadow said to me, making me wince, knowing she wasn't wrong. I couldn't help myself from speaking up, though.

"I'm what!? Did you just say that I'm like Owada, Akane!?" I asked Akane's Shadow, who nodded and spoke up.

"Exactly! You and the police just sit on your asses all day, letting the bad guys roam free. You people can't save anyone. But I can save people. And right now? I think I'm the only one who cares." Akane's Shadow said as Violet spoke up in a voice that was a mix of rebuking, annoyed, and appalled.

"Is that really what you think, Akane-chan!? You're wrong! THAT'S NOT TRUE! Sure, we don't have the best track record for saving others, but more often than not, those people whose hearts we change? Usually, they change for the better and become better people after we get through with them. Sure, there was the time with Noir's father, where the heart change went awry.

Not to mention the time in Okinawa, where we didn't have a heart to change because that Monarch killed himself to try and prevent a catastrophic event from happening on that island. It was just our bad luck that some insidious individuals, likely using unknown means to do so, found his body first and were able to use it to try and frame us for murder to get us out of the way." Violet said honestly as Akane's Shadow scoffed and spoke up.

"So what!? Maybe you're right, and you do help people. But right now, that doesn't matter! You're at my mercy, and I could end you all with a few choice words. That said, who cares about Jyun Owada!? I'll change that evil bastard's heart so Mom can finally rest in peace!" Akane's Shadow snapped, making Joker, myself, and Violet all exchange appalled looks, not expecting to hear such strong language from Akane's Shadow. I then spoke up.

"Oh!" I said as Akane's Shadow kept speaking as if I hadn't interrupted.

"And once I'm done with Owada, I'll beat down every last villain in this world!" Akane's Shadow said as Queen winced and spoke up.

"Akane-chan, please! Don't do this! You don't have to do it alone! All of us want to help you! Can't you see we're on your side!?" Queen said pleadingly. I then spoke up, my eyes widened slightly in horror, even as I winced.

"Is this it, Akane? Is all of this why you became a Monarch? Because I sacrificed others to keep what little family I have alive? Was I wrong to do what I've been doing this whole time? And this whole situation we're in right now? From what you're saying, this is all my doing. You're like this because of me and my mistakes!" I said as I reeled backwards and grabbed my head, clearly shocked at what I had heard from Akane's Shadow. Panther looked at me in concern and spoke up.

"Zenkichi?" Panther asked as Flare spoke up with a shake of her head.

"Let him be, Panther. If he's going through what I think he is, this is something he has to do himself. When I first awakened to Hester's power, I had to take a hard look at myself and answer a few rough questions before I could muster the resolve to awaken like I did." Flare said kindly, geting an understanding nod from Panther as I spoke up with a sigh and a nod, realizing that whether I liked it or not, I had to accept what was being said about me if I was going to save Akane, or rather Akane's Shadow, at all.

"It's true. I used whoever I could. As long as my daughter was safe, it didn't matter what anyone else suffered. What else was I supposed to do? I WAS TRYING TO PROTECT MY FAMILY! It's what anyone would have done! ANYONE!" I said, blinking as I heard a voice echoing in my head at that point.

"So you say, but the truth of the matter is that anyone would do that. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that anyone would do it except for he who considers himself to truly be a man of justice." I heard, making me look around in confusion for the source of the voice I'd just heard even as I spoke up.

"Who's there!?" I asked, not seeing Joker, Draconis, and Crow exchange a shocked look nearby, having an idea of what was happening in that moment. Before I could question what the look meant, I heard the voice speak up again.

"Are you sure you weren't at fault?" I heard as I spoke up in confusion.

"What the!? Who's talking to me!?" I asked as the voice ignored my question and kept speaking as if I hadn't interrupted.

"You knew what it would cost to give up the chase. Yet, you fled from the truth. Moreover, you convinced yourself it was right and just, with your daughter's name hollow upon your lips. You are as guilty as those you hate, Zenkichi Hasegawa! A foul villain, rotten to the core!" I heard as I spoke up as if struck.

"That's not true. No, I'm not a villain!" I said as the voice kept speaking, a note of derision in their tone.

"Aren't you? You traded away the justice you'd built. You bought your comfort, bribed your guilt. Heheheheh, you know I'm right, Zenkichi! You can't deny me, any more than I can deny you! HAHAHAHAHA!" I heard. As I started wincing and beginning to zone out, I heard Seeker's voice speak up and snap me out of my trance, turning to see her looking at me with a wide-eyed look of concern on her face.

"Zenkichi?" Seeker asked as Mona spoke up at that point.

"Zenkichi, what happened!? Snap out of it!" Mona said as Crow spoke up.

"Don't interfere, you two! Let him handle this!" Crow said as Draconis nodded and spoke up.

"Crow's right. If he's going through what I think he is, this is his moment to confront his own demons and awaken his inner potential. Put simply? This is the moment that may well dictate if Zenkichi has the inner potential to truly be one of us." Draconis said wisely, making me blink in surprise at his words. I couldn't stop the thought that ran through my mind in that moment.

"Is he right? Am I about to awaken to my inner potential and possibly get the same power as the others?" I thought to myself skeptically. I then spoke up in a mix of guilt, pain, and remorse.

"He's right, though. Everything he just said? It's all true. I let Aoi's murderer run free, and used the Phantom Thieves solely for my own benefit. Whether I like it or not, I'm just as rotten as those criminals I chase after every day. I don't have the right to lecture Akane over something like this. To be honest? I never did have that right to begin with." I said remorsefully as Joker scoffed and spoke up.

"Didn't have the right!? Get a hold of yourself, Zenkichi! So what if you've made your share of mistakes along the way? We've all been there! What matters now is that you need to not lose sight of yourself. Right now, you're the one with the best shot of saving Akane from herself!" Joker said to me, making me wince at that and speak up.

"You want me to not lose sight of who I am, Joker?" I asked as Oracle huffed and spoke up.

"That's right, Zenkichi! Wake up! Maybe you did stuff your emotions away, but it was for your family's sake. You did it to protect Akane, the daughter you love with all your heart! My mom was the same way when she was alive! She worked as hard as she could every day, doing what she believed was right! So stop blaming yourself! If you want to blame someone, blame those monsters that hurt your family!" Oracle said as Skull spoke up with a nod.

"Yeah, what Oracle said! Don't lose sight of your target, Zenkichi!" Skull said as Pendragon spoke up with a smile.

"I might have given you a rough time when I first met you, Zenkichi, but I can see now you're just a concerned father who is trying to do right by his daughter. And if I can have a second chance after being a coward and spending most of the time that Oracle's lived with me burying my head in the sand like a coward, then you damn sure deserve a second chance to make amends to your daughter and repair the father-daughter relationship between the two of you! Now stop whimpering, get back up, and show us how much you want to do right by Akane-chan!" Pendragon said to me, making me give him a shocked look, impressed by his words, as Fox spoke up.

"Pendragon is right! Your devotion to your daughter is what matters. Torturing yourself over that would be a waste! Now look deep within your heart and find your way forward!" Fox said as Draconis then spoke up, shocking me with what he said next.

"Fox is right. Remember the day we had our conversation while driving back to Kyoto? I told you that the time might have to come where you had to make a hard choice between what you knew was easy, and what you knew was right. Well, so far, you've done rather well about doing what's right, rather than what's easy! But this is the moment that really counts!

What will you do!? Will you take the easy way out and hide behind your feelings of guilt, self-recrimination, and anguish? Or will you stand up, look yourself in the metaphoric eye, and have the courage to do what's right!? Only you can make that choice right now! So show us all what's in your heart, Zenkichi!" Draconis said imploringly as I winced, flashing to Draconis' previous words from the day in question.

"But let me ask you this. If it comes to a point when you have to choose between what's right and what's easy, can you summon up the backbone to do what's right, no matter the consequences? And if nothing else, I want you to ask yourself this, Zenkichi: What would Akane end up thinking of whatever decision you end up making?" Draconis' voice echoed in my head as I spoke up in awe.

"Guys, why are you all being so nice to me? I tried to use you all! For all intents and purposes, I nearly betrayed you all!" I said as Crow spoke up with a frown.

"But you didn't, did you!? In the end, you found the intestinal fortitude to be able to put everything on the line to buy us enough time to escape, even if it meant getting yourself arrested and risking everything you'd spent your whole life working towards. I think that at that moment, the real you rose up to the surface! Deep down, you know in your heart that you're not a coward! You're a man with a strong moral compass, who's not afraid to get his hands dirty in the pursuit of justice and truth! So can you let that you come out once more, here and now?" Crow asked as Seeker spoke up with a nod.

"Crow's right. Be strong, Zenkichi." Seeker said as Flare nodded and spoke up.

"I agree with Seeker! If I can find the strength to get back up and start over after nearly losing everything after a certain sick scumbag who I shall not name drove me to consider ending it all, then surely you can find the backbone and resolve to get back up and fight for what's important to you!" Flare added as Noir nodded her agreement and spoke up, shocking me with what she said next.

"Crow-kun, Seeker-chan, and Flare-san are all absolutely right, Zenkichi-san! As a wise person I know once told me? STAND UP, ZENKICHI HASEGAWA! No matter how many times you get knocked back down, you can ALWAYS get back up and start over again! And it's never too late to do the right thing. So what will it be? Will you stand there and cry about your failures? Or will you get back up and do something about them? Either way, this is something that only you can do!" Noir said, making me blink before smiling wryly at Noir's words.

This was because I recognized them as being a reference to an empassioned speech Noir had given Mariko Hyodo the day that Hyodo nearly broke down in front of the memorial in Odori Park after her change of heart, causing me to weakly chuckle despite myself as Queen nodded and spoke up.

"Noir's right! The real enemies are still out there. Bring them down for Akane-chan's sake!" Queen said, making me sigh, as I knew what I had to do at that moment. I then spoke up with a frown.

"You know what? You're right. The real threat is still out there even now! Those who ruin lives and tear families apart without a second thought. How stupid have I been?" I rebuked myself as I forced myself back to my feet and kept speaking up, not intending on letting up on myself.

"My own daughter tells me how to do my job, and then these Phantom Thieves start lecturing me on top of that. But to tell the truth? I may not be a hero, and I sure as hell don't deserve any awards, especially with how I've acted the past several years? But at least I know what makes a person evil. Evil only cares about itself! It's the mark of a man who would bring another to ruin and dare not show remorse. I will NEVER let people like that go free. And I'll give everything I have to BRING THEM DOWN!" I said, groaning as I felt a dull ache in my head as the mysterious voice I'd previously heard echoed once more in my mind.

(Awakening Start-Zenkichi)

"Do you finally see the truth?" I heard in my head, crying out in a mix of pain and agony as I held my head, flailing around as the voice spoke up.

"Do you know the true face of the guilty?" I heard, looking to my right to see a silhouette that was vaguely shaped like myself, with glowing golden eyes. The silhouette then spoke up in the same voice I'd been hearing in my head the past few minutes.

"They condemn the good to slavery. Pretend they do not see their agony. And before you deny it, don't. Much as the true enemy sees things in this way, they try to convince themselves what they're doing is for the greater good. Just as you once did. But in order for that story to be brought to an end, another must begin." I heard as I dragged my hands across the ground briefly, screaming in agony while trying to get rid of the throbbing ache in my head as I heard the voice speak up. As I looked the silhouette in the eyes, it spoke up with a firm voice.

"Now, show your gaolers that you will wear a different chain. If you are truly set on making a stand for yourself here and now, then vow to me! I am thou, thou art I...If you yet seek true justice, we will see it done!" The silhouette said, reaching a shadowy hand towards me, which I instinctively knew I needed to take, so I punched my fist into the ground, as if trying to shake the hand, while using my other hand to hold my head.

As I punched the ground, I gave off a low rumbling growl of affirmation, as if making this growl my assent to the voice's words. As I lifted the hand off the ground, I didn't even bat an eyelid at the small droplets of blood that fell from the hand I'd punched the ground with. As I struggled back to my feet, I spoke up in a resolved voice that dripped with every iota of my sincerity and desire to make this pact.

"Fine then, if you're so sure of this path, then seal the contract." I said as a flash of blue preceded a black and silver mask materializing on my face, making Akane's Shadow gasp in shock as she looked on, unable to do much else as I heeded the call of the voice within me. At that point, I felt the mask that had covered my eyes, reaching for it to try and tug it free, knowing I needed to do that as I invoked the name of the being which I had just sealed a pact with.

As I tugged the mask free of my face, causing a small torrent of blood to fly from my face where I'd ripped the mask free, not caring that I was presumably ripping the skin off my own face to do so, but as I did so, I arced my body backwards and yelled out one phrase, a phrase that I knew by instinct, despite never having uttered it before in my life.

"I have heard your call and accept your contract. Now come forth, and show me the extent of your power. Come forth! GRAAAAH! VALJEAN!" I called out, causing an explosion and a blinding flash of light where I'd awakened. For a time, the light blinded everyone present, including Akane's Shadow. When everyone could see again, a new being had materialized next to me.

Despite the fact that all I could see of the being was the same glowing golden eyes I'd seen on the silhouette that had spoken to me, I could tell it was intended to be the manifestation of my inner resolve! At that point, the now-named Valjean reared its head back and roared in righteous fury, allowing everyone present to get a glimpse of his rippling indigo trenchcoat with silvery lining and a silver dress shirt underneath. And from each of Valjean's arms protruded long iron chains, made of a similar sort of silver to the barbed wire lining Valjean's legs and the mesh-iron helmet on his head covering his shadowy face and golden eyes had.

But at the same time, my own attire changed, my usual wardrobe being replaced with a black pointed fedora, turtle-necked black leather trenchcoat, black leather gloves, and on each of my arms were several silver bands, stacked together in the image of gauntlets. On either of my hips were holsters, inside of each sat one of a pair of twin flint-nock pistols, not unlike the one holstered on the front of Valjean's chest.

(Awakening End-Zenkichi)

After seeing my new attire and Persona, I heard Draconis lean over and whisper to Crow, not needing to look to see what I was sure was the mixed impressed, surprised, and amused look on Draconis' face as he spoke.

"Psst, Crow! Am I wrong, or is that the most metal thing ever!? And look at Zenkichi and his Persona! They look like they belong on the cover of a friggin' heavy metal album!" Draconis said as Crow nodded and spoke up, a smirk slowly spreading on his face as he took in the sight of my new attire.

"You're not wrong. I think Zenkichi-san's attire is even edgier than my own, and that's saying something." Crow said honestly as I smirked, taking their words as a compliment while Valjean and I stood imposingly over Akane's Shadow and her small legion of guards. Akane's Shadow gasped in shock as Skull spoke up in surprise.

"For real?" Skull said as Valjean reared his arm back and swung his chain forward, creating a mighty gust of wind that knocked most of the guard Shadows backwards to land in a motionless heap behind Akane's Shadow, who could only gasp in horror and watch as the downed Shadows all dissolved into black mist as I spoke up once more.

"I understand. I know what I have to do now, whether or not I like it." I said as I stepped forward, getting a good view of the pointed-toe cowboy boots I'd gotten with my ensemble, which were black and silver, rather like the riveted steel-toe combat boots Valjean wore. As the group took in my boots, I finished my sentence, a resolved look on my face.

"I have to condemn the evil, and HUNT THEM DOWN!" I said, swinging an arm imposingly in front of me as I prepared to battle the remaining Shadows that stood in front of Akane's Shadow. As the fight started, I spoke up, slightly shocked at my transformed attire.

"What the heck? What happened to my clothes!? Am I finally losing my marbles?" I asked, blinking as I felt a giant metal hilt when I reached my hand behind my back, but if I was shocked, it was nothing on what Queen said next.

"Is that his phantom thief attire!? And more than that, he has a Persona!" Queen said as Draconis smirked and spoke up.

"He found his own resolve, like I knew he could." Draconis said wisely, getting an amused smile from Joker as he spoke up.

"Good point. And I must say, after everything we've been through? It only makes sense that Zenkichi would actually end up becoming one of us at some point sooner or later. That being said, both his attire and his Persona suit him well. Now, let's see what he's capable of." Joker said as Draconis nodded his agreement to Joker's remark before turning to me as he spoke up again.

"Go for it, Zenkichi! You can do it! Get through to your daughter and save her from herself! I believe in you!" Draconis said as Akane's Shadow turned to the remaining Shadows and spoke up in horror.

"What are you waiting for!? Get him!" Akane's Shadow said as some of the Shadows shifted forms, changing forms into a bunch of cat-like beings I didn't recognize. Mona then spoke up with wide eyes behind me.

"Here they come, Zenkichi! Get ready!" Mona said as I spoke up in confusion.

"Get ready HOW!? Agh, never mind, there's no time for that! Guess I just gotta wing it!" I said as the battle started! As I reached behind my back to heft the hilt I'd felt before, I was stunned when I pulled out a giant two-handed blade that I recognized from a book Crow and Draconis had shown me as a zweihander. At that point, Skull spoke up in surprise.

"Holy shit! Zenkichi has a big-ass sword for his melee weapon!? Get them, Zenkichi! Mess up their shit!" Skull said as Noir spoke up, making me frown with her next words.

"Look at him go! He's moving with the grace and speed of a person half his age!" Noir said as Pendragon frowned at that and spoke up.

"I get what you were going for, but I feel I would be remiss not to point out that I resemble that remark to at least some extent, Noir." Pendragon pointed out as Draconis nodded and spoke up, clearly looking as if he wanted to laugh, but was refraining out of respect for me, which I appreciated, while he spoke.

"Pendragon is right. Be nice, Noir! I know you know better than to disrespect your elders! Besides, do you not see how freaking hardcore Zenkichi's new attire looks!? I wouldn't want to get on that man's bad side now! Hell, I don't even think Crow, for as edgy as he is, wants to be on Zenkichi's bad side now." Draconis said, getting what I figured to be a nod of agreement from Crow as I smirked, amused at how much of both their respect I'd apparently earned with my transformation. I then growled at Noir, as I'd heard Draconis refer to the girl who'd made a wisecrack about me, and spoke up.

"Hey, why don't you just can it with the wisecracks and let me do my thing, Noir!? Time for me to strut my stuff!" I said as I focused on the enemies in front of me. As I saw the enemies in front of me, I smirked, reaching for the guns I had holstered, smirking as I fired them and found that they were a hybrid of a flint-nock pistol and an SMG to some extent, in that they had rapid-fire capability, were highly accurate, and did good damage.

As I alternated between cutting foes down with my zweihander, blasting them with my pistols, and even calling on some of Valjean's skills, I found myself inwardly smirking as I saw the wide-eyed looks of shock on the faces of Crow, Draconis, and Joker as they recognized the skills Valjean used as a hybrid of both Gun and Almighty moves. After tearing through the enemy for some time, I finally took out the last of the Shadows, panting slightly as I caught my breath while Akane's Shadow growled and spoke up, the look on her face making it plain to see how frustrated she was with my having bested her minions.

"Grr! How could you beat my many hordes of Shadows!?" Akane's Shadow said to me as I spoke up, seeing a chance to try and reach out to her and hopefully reason with her.

"Listen to me, Akane. Those scumbags are feeding off your pain, and that of other decent human beings. They drain the lives of all those around them like parasites, all for their own petty convenience. So don't let them take advantage of you! You need to come home with me!" I implored Akane's Shadow, who huffed and spoke up.

"Really!? Even after all this, you still won't see things my way! I won't believe you, Dad! I can't! With the power I have, I can finally change the bad people's hearts!" Akane's Shadow said as Mona spoke up in an attempt to try and reason with Akane's Shadow.

"Akane! I know you've been through a lot and you're hurting, but you're not alone! I know you don't think that you can trust us, but you need to understand that we're all after the same thing here! None of us are trying to stop you from avenging your mom! We just want to help you do it the correct way, so that you don't have any further regrets when all is said and done!

Besides, I've seen the real you! Yes, you're scared and hurting, but deep down you're a kind, selfless, beautiful person! Are you really so consumed with hatred and pain that you'd turn your back on your own humanity just to get what you believe is the power to change the bad people's hearts!?" Mona said as Akane's Shadow scoffed and spoke up, seemingly ignoring the subtle bit of flirting in Mona's last remark, though if the subtle hint of red on her face as she spoke was any indication, she did acknowledge it even if she didn't respond to it.

"S-So what!? You say that like you know me or something! You don't know crap about me, cat-boy! And Dad? If what I'm doing bothers you so much, then come get me! But fair warning? If you do, don't blink, or you'll find that I'll have changed your heart before you even know it!" Akane's Shadow taunted us before vanishing in a flash of red light, leaving me to gasp and yell at the spot where she'd been standing.

(POV Shift-Neutral POV)

"Akane, don't go!" Zenkichi called out to the spot where Akane's Shadow had previously been, but it was in vain as she was already long gone. Oracle blinked in shock as she spoke up.

"What the-? She disappeared! Was she some sorta hologram!?" Oracle asked as Zenkichi growled and spoke up, clearly frustrated at his own failure to reach his daughter.

"Argh, she's gone! Damn it!" Zenkichi said as he walked over to the cage that most of the group was trapped in and spoke up as Crow and Draconis started working on the keypad to try and get the combination to the lock, Oracle lending her assistance to the two.

"You guys are all right?" Zenkichi asked as Queen nodded and spoke up.

"We are, but what about you? That outfit of yours is not what most of us were expecting." Queen said as Joker smirked and spoke up.

"Speak for yourself, Queen! I think his outfit-" Joker started to say, only for Zenkichi to cut him off as he spoke up, thinking he knew what Joker was going to say and not wanting to hear it.

"-Belongs in a museum, right? I know. But forget about that for now, let's get you out of here." Zenkichi said as Joker spoke up.

"I was going to say your outfit looks so badass on you. I personally agree with Draconis when he said your outfit is so totally metal, it hurts! Like, it's even edgier than Crow's Black Mask outfit, and that outfit is so damn badass." Joker said as Crow smirked and spoke up.

"Oh, you mean this old thing? I do the best I can. Besides, we all know this suits me far more than that other dog-and-pony farce of an outfit I had early on in my run as a Phantom Thief." Crow said smugly as Oracle spoke up.

"Never mind Zenkichi's outfit, his Persona is awesome! But back to this lock? Looks like it's electronically locked. Hold on, guys. Draconis and I will get it open in a jiffy!" Oracle said as she and Draconis went to work, and sure enough, they had the door open in a couple minutes. After the group was out of the cage, Skull breathed a sigh of relief as he spoke up.

"Phew! Thanks, Oracle!" Skull said as Panther spoke up while pumping a fist and giving Oracle a cute closed-eye smile.

"I knew you'd come to our rescue, Oracle!" Panther said as Joker smirked and spoke up.

"The fact you had Crow and Draconis with you helped, I'm sure." Joker said as Violet swatted Joker on the arm rebukingly and spoke up.

"Behave, Joker! Yes, those two were helpful, but Oracle did most of that by herself! Give credit where it's due." Violet said as Flare giggled and spoke up.

"Oh? Well, now I guess we know who wears the pants in that relationship, don't we?" Flare joked as Crow and Draconis exchanged a stunned look before both burst out laughing, ignoring the annoyed frown Joker gave them both as Oracle spoke up.

"Of course I came back for you guys! I'm so glad you're all okay!" Oracle said as Joker spoke up.

"You did great, Oracle. Truly. And so did you, Zenkichi." Joker said as Pendragon spoke up, smiling at Oracle as he spoke up.

"Joker's right. Zenkichi, I'm glad you managed to see the truth of how society can be corrupted in the most ludicrous ways, especially when it comes to the police force in most cases. And Oracle, I've never been so proud of you as I am right now. Good job." Pendragon said, pulling Oracle into a hug, making her squeak cutely in surprise but ultimately allow herself to return the hug as Draconis smirked, enjoying the sight of the two having a bit of a family bonding moment.

Pendragon ignored the quintet of near-unified 'Aww's that came from Seeker, Violet, Panther, Noir, and Flare to pat Oracle on the shoulder before stepping back as she spoke up, her cheeks pinking in embarrassment as she spoke up.

"Eheh, no problem? Hey, you can always count on me!" Oracle said as Fox smiled and spoke up.

"We narrowly escaped a dark fate." Fox said as Seeker sighed and spoke up with a frown on her face.

"Yeah. I thought I'd be stuck inside of a Jail all over again." Seeker said as Queen looked at Zenkichi and spoke up.

"We heard you were arrested. You had us worried sick, Zenkichi!" Queen said as Zenkichi smirked as he spoke up, shocking both Crow and Draconis with the rare sight of a grin on his face while he spoke.

"Yeah? Well, thanks to you, I got out. Gotta tip my hat to your older sister, too. She's not only professional as hell, but she's quite a class act." Zenkichi said as Draconis smirked, knowing what Zenkichi really meant, but not calling him on it for the time being as Queen spoke up with a closed-eye smile.

"Good going, Sis. I knew you could do it!" Queen said as Skull spoke up with wide eyes, ignoring the disgusted looks that Violet, Flare, Noir, and Panther gave him for what he said next.

"But damn, Zenkichi, I nearly dropped a brick when you showed up." Skull said in surprise as Panther and Flare both said 'EWW!' in unison as Violet frowned and spoke up.

"Skull, can you NOT say such things around Seeker, please? That's disgusting." Violet said as Joker chuckled and spoke up.

"That's rich of you to rebuke Skull, Violet. I also find it ironic that you're rebuking him about not being crass around Seeker, especially when considering the fact that the aforementioned rebuke is coming from the person that brought up such things as spanking and doggy-style in front of her." Joker said teasingly as Violet's cheeks turned red in embarrassment as she spoke up.

"JOKER! Even if you do have a good point, you're not helping." Violet said with a pout as Zenkichi spoke up.

"Yes, well, let's change the subject from Joker landing himself in the proverbial doghouse with Violet. Hey, I'm just as flabbergasted as you. And what's with the chained-up knight thing?" Zenkichi asked as Mona spoke up in excitement.

"Good question. That's the rebel in your heart awakened, Zenkichi. Or in simpler terms? That's the power of your Persona." Mona said as Zenkichi spoke up.

"A rebel, huh? Interesting. Hey, fine by me. I don't understand a damn thing, but if it can help me fight, I'll take it." Zenkichi said as Skull spoke up with a grin on his face.

"Sooo, since he got his Persona and Phantom Thief attire, you guys know what this means." Skull said as Pendragon spoke up.

"Ah, right. This is the part where we formally induct him into our ranks, isn't it?" Pendragon said, shocking Zenkichi as Noir spoke up.

"Right, Pendragon! He needs an official code name!" Noir said as Zenkichi blinked and spoke up, recalling what Draconis had once said about code names.

"I do? Oh, right, Draconis mentioned that, didn't he? Whenever you're in uniform, you always call each other something different." Zenkichi said as Draconis spoke up.

"Well spotted. And to expand a bit on what you said about my mentioning of our group using code names? To be honest, that's mainly because Mona pointed out how stupid it is to yell out our real names in the cognitive world. After all, who knows what impact yelling out our real names might have on our target's cognition, if that makes sense to you?" Draconis explained as Zenkichi spoke up.

"Oh? I see. Hm. In that case, I have one in mind. If you want me to have a code name, then go ahead and call me 'Wolf'. Those endless days of barking on command are done. From now on, lone wolf or not, my fangs will shred all evil!" Zenkichi/Wolf said as Crow smirked and spoke up.

"My, my. That's quite possibly the most impressive thing I've ever heard you say, Wolf. Not bad." Crow said as Draconis spoke up.

"Wolf!? Not bad. And it goes quite well with the whole vibe you've got going, too. I still maintain your attire is so hardcore and metal it frickin' hurts, but in all seriousness, I like your idea. All in favor of calling him 'Wolf' while in the Metaverse?" Draconis said as he got a near-immediate and unanimous chorus of 'AYE!' from the others, making Skull grin as he spoke up.

"Wolf, huh? I like the sound'a that!" Skull said as Panther spoke up with a pumped fist.

"Yeah, that totally puts it in perspective!" Panther said as Flare spoke up with a smile.

"Not to mention, it's so on-brand for you it's not funny." Flare said with a sly smirk. Seeker hopped up and down excitedly as she spoke up, smiling at the idea of another new teammate.

"You do look cool, Wolf!" Seeker said as Violet spoke up with a smile.

"Seeker's not wrong, though. Your Phantom Thief attire is awesome." Violet said honestly. Queen then spoke up with a closed-eye smile, ignoring the pair of glares Draconis and Joker gave her for what she said next.

"All right, then. Looks like it's official. Welcome to the Phantom Thieves, Wolf." Queen said as Joker pouted and spoke up.

"Hey, that's my line." Joker said as Draconis spoke up, the frown on his face behind his mask conveying his true intent clearly despite the deceptively calm and gentle tone his next words carried.

"And you got it wrong, anyways! It's 'Welcome to the Crew'! Get it right please, Queen." Draconis rebuked Queen gently, with no real venom or anger behind his words. Joker then spoke up.

"But yeah, ignoring Queen trying to do my job for me, let me be the first to formally welcome you to our ranks, Wolf. Welcome to the Crew!" Joker said as the now code-named Wolf blinked and spoke up in confusion.

"Uhh, so it's that simple, huh?" Wolf said as Draconis spoke up with a nod.

"Yep, just that simple. You got a Persona, and the attire to match, and that makes you a full-fledged Phantom Thief in your own right." Draconis said as Joker spoke up.

"Draconis is right. You're one of us now, moreso than you already were. So welcome aboard, Wolf." Joker said as the now code-named Wolf smirked and spoke up.

"Thanks. Good to be here, Joker." Wolf said happily. He then kept speaking up.

"Uhh, not to change the subject, but I want to get back to Akane. And I'm gonna need everyone's, ugh, help? Urgh, what the hell?" Wolf said as he went to one knee, making Fox wince and speak up sympathetically.

"Ah, you're experiencing the draining that typically comes after awakening to a Persona. Other than both Crow and Mona, and technically Seeker, all of us have experienced that draining as well when we awoke to our Personas, so we can understand that feeling quite well." Fox said kindly as Skull spoke up with wide eyes.

"Whoa! Wolf, are you good!?" Skull asked as Crow scoffed and spoke up.

"Are you deaf, Skull? Fox just explained that he's likely feeling the energy crash from awakening to Valjean's power. I know you know that feeling." Crow eventually said dryly. Wolf, for his part, pouted at Crow having a vaild point for a bit, before he then spoke up with a huff.

"I'm okay. Damn, though. Ohh, why the hell am I, ugh, so exhausted?" Wolf asked as Mona spoke up.

"It's all part of the process of awakening your Persona. Takes quite a toll on your psyche. That said, this would be a good opportunity for us to head back to the real world and rest up for a little bit before coming back in to try and save Akane." Mona said as Wolf shook his head and spoke up stubbornly.

"No! I'll be fine. Akane comes first." Wolf said as Joker spoke up.

"Easy does it, Wolf. We all know how you feel. But even so, you won't be any good to Akane if you burn yourself out trying to save her. She needs you rested and healthy, not sleep-deprived and sickly." Joker gently but firmly rebuked Wolf, who frowned and spoke up.

"Argh, I hate that you're right. Ugh, dammit, this sucks." Wolf said as Queen nodded and spoke up.

"Wolf has a point, though. We can't fail this mission if we want to save Akane-chan's life." Queen said as Noir spoke up.

"Right. Let's come back when we're able to fight at our best." Noir said as Wolf sighed, but nodded, knowing Noir was right. Wolf then spoke up reluctantly.

"Fine. I don't like it, but you all have a point. Let's go." Wolf said as the group returned to the real world...

(Back in the real world, in the hideaway, with Goro, Yusuke, Makoto, Morgana, Kusa, Ryuji, Ren, Sumire, Zenkichi, Sojiro, Sophia, Futaba, Haru, Shiho, and Ann)

"All right, let's take a quick break here. We'll wait for Zenkichi to recover, then head back into the Jail." Morgana said as Zenkichi winced and spoke up.

"Damn! Man, this is pathetic of me. I didn't want to slow you guys down." Zenkichi said as Ren spoke up with a smile.

"Don't worry about it, Zenkichi." Ren said as Sumire smiled and spoke up.

"Ren's right. We've all been where you are at least once during our time as Phantom Thieves." Sumire said as Goro spoke up with a sly grin.

"Well, MOST of us have. As for myself, Morgana, and Sophia? We didn't have that problem. I theorize that in the cases of myself and Morgana, we came 'pre-awakened' to our Personas, so had no need to be drained from them. And in Sophia's case, I theorize that her not having experienced the draining that most of the rest of us have has to do with her being an AI." Goro said as Kusa spoke up.

"While you're not wrong, I'd say it's not that simple, Goro. More likely, it has to do with Pithos being more of a defensive implement than a Persona. But your theory has merit too." Kusa said as Zenkichi gave Ren a smile, shocking everyone with what he said next.

"I owe you one, Ren. Err, assuming I'm being too bold in addressing you by your given name outside of the Metaverse, that is." Zenkichi said as Sojiro spoke up.

"Nonsense. I'd have to defer to Ren and/or Kusa to make the final call as the leaders of the group, but we've been calling you by your name since back in Sendai, so I feel like you've more than earned the right to be on a first-name basis with each of us." Sojiro said as Ren nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"Sojiro is correct. I have no issue with you calling me Ren, Zenkichi. We're all equals here to some extent." Ren said kindly as Zenkichi nodded and spoke up.

"Very well. But I'll let the others choose if I can call them by their first names or not. I've seen proof that at least you and Sojiro are okay with it." Zenkichi said as the others all took turns assuring Zenkichi he could call them by their given names while Ryuji grinned and spoke up.

"Don't worry about it, Zenkichi. Either way, ya just gotta take it easy for now and get your strength back. This is where we gotta make a comeback." Ryuji said as Makoto spoke up.

"Well, if that's so, we should take a nap before going back into the Jail. I don't think we've had time to sleep since yesterday." Makoto said as Kusa spoke up.

"Well, most of you didn't. As for myself, Goro, and Futaba? We did take the time to get a bit of sleep while we waited for Zenkichi, but I'm sure the rest of you are bushed from what you've been through, so I understand if there's anyone who needs to rest for a little while." Kusa said as Ryuji spoke up.

"Yeah, for real. Even I'm feelin' kinda woozy." Ryuji said as the group nodded, and everyone present took a bit of a power nap so they could rescue Akane at closer to full strength...

(A short time later, in the Velvet Room, with Lavenza and Ren)

As Ren found himself waking up in the Velvet Room, he walked to the bars of his cell in time to see Lavenza approach him and speak up with a soft smile on her face.

"Yet another has awakened to the flames of their rebellion, Trickster. And not only is this Awakening significant as this should be the final male to be awakened to a Persona, but as I previously mentioned, this man bears the 'Apostle' Arcana whose awakening I warned you of not long ago. Representing both fairness and compassion, the Apostle walks the road of life upholding his beliefs as well as the precepts of the law. His encounters with you all have released him from the chains that once bound him. And you are worth special mention. You possess an extraordinary ability to touch people's hearts." Lavenza said as Ren spoke up.

"As much as I want to say I had a hand in helping Zenkichi to awaken, it was mostly his own doing that he awakened to his Persona. And maybe a bit of Goro and Kusa's influence too. So Zenkichi did it all himself." Ren said honestly, making Lavenza giggle before speaking up uneasily.

"Perhaps your modesty is why so many have come to respect you. Now, in addition to apprising you of the awakening of another of your ranks, of which you should only have at most three more left to awaken to their full power in the forms of 'Justice', 'Magician', and 'Aeon', respectively. Note that 'Justice' and 'Magician' are considered secondary holders of their respective Arcanas due to the fact that the ones you call 'Crow' and 'Mona' already have primary recognition as the wielders of the Justice and Magician Arcanas, respectively." Lavenza said as Ren spoke up.

"I don't mean to ask this of you Lady Lavenza, but I feel that I must ask this nonetheless. While I don't know who could potentially be this second 'Magician' or 'Aeon', am I to assume that the one for 'Justice' may refer to Nanako in some way? After all, she did help with saving Morgana's life back in the Okinawa Jail. Oh and by the way, I never got a chance to say thank you for your help in saving Morgana's life." Ren said as Lavenza smiled and spoke up.

"You are most welcome my dear Trickster. When I saw Morgana in that state I knew I had to do something to help him. Although this did come at the cost of his original cat-like form, I believe this is a worthy sacrifice given that Morgana had a desire to become a human. As for your question regarding the young Nanako Dojima, I'm afraid I can't disclose that answer at this moment. Rather than answering you now, I believe that it's best for you to see the answer to that question for yourself when the time comes.

That said, the other reason I brought you here was to inform you of a new execution method. Its purpose is to strengthen your Personas. While this method does not give rise to new Personas, it will instead allow you to strengthen those you already possess." Lavenza said as she explained to Ren about how he could use his Persona Points to increase the stats of a chosen Persona, with the cost being in part dependent on the level of the selected Persona and on the value of the chosen stat to increase. Lavenza then spoke up.

"Please make use of this power on your quest to save that innocent girl. Even though at this moment she is your current enemy, she may provide help in the long run for you and the rest of your friends." Lavenza said as Ren nodded his understanding. After taking a quick second to use his new tools to power his Personas up a bit, mostly stat-buffing Raoul, Ren returned to the real world...

(A little later, in the hideaway, with Futaba, Haru, Sophia, Ann, Makoto, Sumire, Ren, Ryuji, Sojiro, Yusuke, Zenkichi, Morgana, Kusa, Shiho, and Goro)

After a couple of hours to rest up, the group had reconvened, at which point Morgana gave Zenkichi an impressed look and spoke up.

"Zenkichi, you're better already?" Morgana asked as Zenkichi nodded and spoke up with a smile.

"You bet. No one in Public Security stays down for long. I may be a geezer in your eyes, but a little rest goes a long way with me. Eh, but at any rate? I'm gonna need the full support of the Phantom Thieves. So please, everyone. Help me get Akane back!" Zenkichi asked the group, who all nodded approvingly as they prepared to head back into the Kyoto Jail to try and confront Akane's Shadow. As they did so, each of them knew they needed to be at their best, since this Jail had the potential to be the group's toughest challenge yet...

END OF CHAPTER

A/N: And boom, another chapter done and dusted! And just like that, Wolf is now a full-fledged Phantom Thief! Without going into too much of a tangent, let me just say that Wolf is easily (and I do mean EASILY) my favorite part of Strikers. Not only does he have what I view as easily the better of the character arcs for the new characters added into Strikers (e.g. Zenkichi/Wolf and Sophia/Sophie/Seeker), but have you seen his Phantom Thief outfit!?

Those threads legitimately scream 'DESPERADO' to me, and are probably some of the most badass threads in all of Persona 5 (only being rivaled by Crow's Black Mask suit and Joker's attire for the males, and Violet's attire for the girls. Note that I'm not including OCs and/or characters I added in for Phantom Files and/or Rise of The Monarchs like Draconis, Pendragon, Flare, **REDACTED**, and **REDACTED** for this).

Not only that, but have you seen Valjean's design!? Not only is he arguably one of the most metal-looking Personas EVER, but I legit almost confuse him for the Reaper every time I look at him, mostly because of all the chains he has. Between all this and how well Zenkichi was built up as a character prior to his Awakening, it's not even REMOTELY a close contest between him and Sophia/Sophie/Seeker. Mind, I have had my opinion of Sophia/Sophie/Seeker go up at least a tiny bit since starting this story, but not enough for me to say she's better than Wolf by any means.

So yeah, Wolf might or might not be one of my top 5 favorite Phantom Thieves, with the other four being Joker, Violet, Crow, and Noir, in that order. I wanted to include Oracle, Mona, and Draconis (even if the latter only exists in these 'Phantom Files' stories I've made), but I feel like I can get away with having them in my top 10. But enough about Wolf, we were talking about the story.

In the next chapter, the group returns to the Kyoto Jail to continue exploring it. Given that the Kyoto Jail, despite the many trips needed to finish it, is actually one of the shorter Jails of Strikers, with only the Okinawa Jail and *REDACTED* being shorter Jails than it (and maybe the Yongen Jail when we come to it later, dependent on how I end up having that Jail play out), and as such, there's a 50/50 shot we might see the end of the Jail either in the next chapter, or the chapter after next at the latest.

That said, let me just say there may or may not be stuff added to that fight compared to the version in canon Strikers. But I'll leave it at that for now for the sake of spoiler prevention. But anyone who is eagle-eyed enough should've spotted at least one hint to what I have planned in this chapter. Kudos to anyone who figures it out.

Real quick aside before we get to the usual thanks and wrap-up, let me just say that the poll I have up has been up for a couple weeks now, yet only two people have voted on it. At this point, it's currently a 2-0-0-0-0-0-0-0 vote, with as many as three more days remaining on it. I might end it tomorrow if nothing changes on the poll, but if it suddenly turns into a close race, I might extend it an extra two days to allow more time for a clear winner to emerge. So if you haven't voted on the poll yet, you have time to vote still!

As a reminder, you can find the poll by clicking on where it says 'sithlorde1988' in blue on the top of the page (if you're viewing this chapter on a laptop/computer), which will take you to my profile page, where the poll should be visible on the top of that page for you to click into and vote on. So feel free to vote if you haven't yet as time is running out. And now, back to your regularly scheduled thanks and wrap-up part of the end-of-chapter A/N.

Anyways, thanks as always to everyone who's read this far into the A/N, and this far into the story as a whole, as your continued support is greatly appreciated! Feel free to leave a review (or PM me if you're not comfortable leaving a review) with your thoughts/feedback/constructive criticism/suggestions for the story, as I enjoy hearing from my readers. And the constructive criticism lets me continue to make this story better for you, the readers. So feel free to chime in and make your voices heard. And until the next chapter, sithlorde1988 out!

PHANTOM THIEVES LEVELS AND ALLY LISTINGS AS OF THE END OF CHAPTER 24

JOKER (Ren) - Level: 52 Current Personas: Raoul (Level 32), Jack-O'-Lantern (Level 38), Jack Frost (Level 38), Okuninushi (Level 48), Fortuna (Level 52), Ganesha (Level 52), Unicorn (Level 42), Queen Mab (Level 51), Pixie (Level 24), Pisaca (Level 24) Equipped Persona: Queen Mab Persona Moveset: Maragion (Fire), Bufudyne (Ice), Makajamaon (Ailment), Concentrate (Support/Buff), Mapsio (Psy), Makouga (Bless), Garula (Wind), Agidyne (Fire)

SKULL (Ryuji) - Level: 47 Current/Partner Persona: Seiten Taisei Persona Moveset: Zionga (Elec), Megaton Raid (Physical), Tarukaja (Support/Buff), Attack Master (Passive), Mazionga (Elec), Rebel Soul (Passive), Swift Strike (Physical), Shock Boost (Passive)

MONA (Morgana) - Level: 48 Current/Partner Persona: Diego Persona Moveset: Garula (Wind), Diarama (Healing), Mediarama (Healing), Magarula (Wind), Wind Boost (Passive), Samarecarm (Healing), Masukunda (Support/Debuff), Dodge Elec (Passive)

PANTHER (Ann) - Level: 48 Current/Partner Persona: Hecate Persona Moveset: Agidyne (Fire), Dodge Ice (Passive), Fire Boost (Passive), Soul Thief (Passive), Maragion (Fire), Matarunda (Support/Debuff), Marin Karin (Ailment), Diarama (Healing)

FOX (Yusuke) - Level: 48 Current/Partner Persona: Kamu Susano-o Persona Moveset: Bufula (Ice), Speed Master (Passive), Masukukaja (Support/Buff), Knockdown Style (Passive), Vicious Strike (Physical), Tempest Slash (Physical), Mabufula (Ice), Dodge Fire (Passive)

QUEEN (Makoto) - Level: 47 Current/Partner Persona: Anat Persona Moveset: Freila (Nuclear), Defense Master (Passive), Marakukaja (Support/Buff), Mafreila (Nuclear), Diarama (Healing), Flash Bomb (Physical), Mediarama (Healing), Nuke Boost (Passive)

NOIR (Haru) - Level: 48 Current/Partner Persona: Lucy Persona Moveset: Psio (Psy), Psy Boost (Passive), Heat Riser (Support/Buff), Triple Down (Gun), Evil Smile (Ailment), Amrita Shower (Healing), Mapsio (Psy), Gun Boost (Passive)

ORACLE (Futaba) - Level: 52 Current Personas: Al Azif and Albus Equipped Persona: Al Azif Persona Moveset: Analysis (Passive), Moral Support (Passive), Active Support (Passive), Moral Boost (Passive), Active Boost (Passive), Moral Boost EX (Passive), Active Boost EX (Passive)

SEEKER (Sophia) - Level: 48 Current/Partner 'Persona': Pithos Persona Moveset: Kougaon? (Bless), Bless Amp? (Passive), Diarama? (Healing), Makouga? (Bless), Mediarama? (Healing), Marakunda? (Support/Debuff), Divine Grace? (Passive) Recarm? (Healing)

WOLF (Zenkichi) - Level: 48 Current/Partner Persona: Valjean Persona Moveset: Megido (Almighty), Gun Boost (Passive), Dekaja (Support/Debuff), Technical High (Passive), Triple Down (Gun), Tarukaja (Support/Buff), Rakukaja (Support/Buff), Sukukaja (Support/Buff)

VIOLET (Sumire) - Level: 48 Current/Partner Persona: Ella Persona Moveset: Kouga (Bless), Dodge Curse (Passive), Diarama (Healing), Bless Boost (Passive), Heat Wave (Physical), Makouga (Bless), Tempest Slash (Physical), Samarecarm (Healing)

DRACONIS (Kusa) - Level: 47 Current/Partner Persona: Malefor Persona Moveset: Agilao (Fire), Garula (Wind), Mediarama (Healing), Rising Slash (Physical), Masukunda (Support/Debuff), Vicious Strike (Physical), Megido (Almighty), Almighty Boost (Passive)

CROW (Goro) - Level: 47 Current/Partner Persona: Hereward Persona Moveset: Eiga (Curse), One-Shot Kill (Gun), Maeiga (Curse), Deathbound (Physical), Debilitate (Support/Debuff), Mudo (Curse/insta-kill), Megidola (Almighty), Curse Boost (Passive)

PENDRAGON (Sojiro) - Level: 47 Current/Partner Persona: Kohryu Persona Moveset: Psiodyne (Psy), Assault Dive (Physical), Concentrate (Support/Buff), Mediarama (Healing), Mapsio (Psy), Evade Nuke (Passive), Spell Master (Passive), Psy Boost (Passive)

FLARE (Shiho) - Level: 47 Current/Partner Persona: Hester Persona Moveset: Bufula (Ice), Memory Blow (Physical), Mediarama (Healing), Divine Grace (Passive), Recarm (Healing), Freila (Nuclear), Ice Boost (Passive), Nuke Boost (Passive)

Allies: Ichinose, Akane, Nanako, Taichi, Momoe, TBA