The Sleepwalkers return to Kasumigaseki under the cover of darkness. Save for the odd person here and there trudging towards the train station, nightfall has cleared you a path and set the stage for your meeting with Detective Matsumura.

As you draw near the Metropolitan Police HQ, you squint across the canal. It's hard to see by the dim light coming off the streetlights, but it does look like someone's left the gate to the Imperial Gardens slightly ajar. A glance at your watch tells you that it's a little after 9:30. The timing's worrisome – has Matsumura arrived already, or was this something he prepared ahead of time? You'd wanted to get there before him to make sure there weren't any surprises.

"Don't worry," says Gin, seemingly reading your expression. "I'll see what's going on." He taps a few things on his tablet, and Chiime takes off into the darkened sky with a soft hum. While Gin scouts ahead, you turn to the others to review the plan.

While you and Mariko are meeting with Matsumura, the others are going to be waiting in positions outside the gardens as lookouts. Yoko, Rin, and Gin will be at an Internet café to the north, while Nisekao, Koharu, Hayate, and Shibutani will take their places at a diner across the street from the Police HQ to the south. Shibutani had insisted that he would be better off not coming with you.

"I'm afraid I would only slow you down if we had to flee," he explained. "What's more, the detective may be more relaxed and cooperative if I'm not present."

The reasoning was sound, so you went along with it. It also put your mind at ease knowing that someone else would be there to help Nisekao keep Hayate and Koharu in check. However, looking at them now, they hardly appear to be in any mood for their usual shenanigans.

"Man, why's it so quiet out here?" asks Hayate. "Like, this is still the city, isn't it?" He takes furtive glances left and right down the empty street. "Jeez, I know this is supposed to be secret, but I'd at least feel a little better if I could hear cars or something."

Koharu puts her head between her knees and musses her frizzy hair in frustration.

"Ggghhh! Don't say that! Any time someone says stuff like 'It's too quiet,' you're just asking for trouble! Can't we just have this go nice and smoothly? I'd really like to be home before midnight, y'know. These are my peak productivity hours, after all."

"I hope you're right," you tell her, "And for what it's worth, I'm glad you're here."

Koharu looks away and starts polishing her glasses. "Yeah, well, if it's for you guys, it's not that big of a deal. Just don't set your expectations too high. I'm…still not really used to having those."

"Everything looks clear," says Gin, bringing Chiime in for a landing on his arm. "Just remember your escape routes, and stay in communication."

"And, you know, be careful," adds Yoko, before following Rin and Gin into the diner.

After you part ways with Hayate, Koharu, and Shibutani, you and Mariko make your way across the bridge towards the meeting point. Although the gate is still chained up, the chain's been secured so loosely that there's a small enough gap for someone to slide through, so long as you suck in your stomach.

On the other side, the grounds of the Imperial Palace sprawl out around you, a once proud castle now domesticated by the trappings of tourism and the passage of time. Even in its retirement, it maintains an aura of grandeur and stoicism, and the light breeze rustling through the branches overhead calls to mind the resigned sighing of an elderly man rousted from his sleep. Indeed, the entire place seems to have a living quality to it that chides your presence with each careful footstep.

Fortunately, the meeting place isn't far in. Most of the palace grounds are relics of an older era, guarded by deep moats and high walls, and would be difficult to enter without assistance. The outer gardens, on the other hand, are open, easily accessible, and – you would assume – are where Matsumura intends to rendezvous. You and Mariko find a bench nestled beneath the drooping boughs of an old pine and take a seat.

For a while, neither of you dares to make small talk, but waiting in silence eventually erodes Mariko's patience.

"Testuo…since we're alone, I wanted to ask you something."

"Huh?" The unnatural weight of her request catches you off-guard.

"In Cloud Four, did something happen to you after you left Koharu and I?" she presses on.

"I'm not sure what you mean. A lot of stuff happened."

Mariko pauses to gather her thoughts.

"I mean like in Clouds Two and Three. When you collapsed right before we fought the Dreamweaver."

Oh. That. Thinking back to it, she had noticed, but you were hoping that the topic wouldn't come up again. It's not that you don't trust Mariko, it's more that those…visions…or hallucinations…or whatever feel too personal to share.

"N-No. Nothing like that. Has it happened more than once?"

It's somewhat of an honest question. When the visions begin, you sort of black out for a bit. If it's that noticeable, then before long, it won't be just Mariko asking.

"A little, yeah. It really freaked me out the first time."

"Oh. Sorry about that. I'm not trying to make anyone worry. I think I just end up getting too tired is all. Maybe using more than one Persona takes more out of me than I think."

Mariko narrows her eyes.

"Testuo, you aren't telling me the truth."

"Wait, why would you say that? Why would I lie to you?"

"That's what I want to know! After everything we've been through, I want you to believe that you can be honest with me! When you pass out, what are you seeing?"

Your mouth comes open despite yourself.

"How do you…?"

"So you are seeing something. I know, because…it's happening to me, too."

Impossible. Those visions are meant for you. Only for you. Mariko's never been in them. Is she seeing the same things? Hearing the same people?

"What are they like?" you ask, but at this, Mariko grows uncharacteristically frustrated.

"Tetsuo, that's what I'm asking y-" she begins, but your earpieces suddenly crackle to life and interrupt.

"Shit!"

"Gin? Gin, what's wrong?"

"It's a sting, you've got to run! I've got two cars approaching the gate to the south. Head north towards our position! Now!"

Then, Shibutani's voice joins in.

"He's right - we can see them from the diner. Matsumura's just stepped out of one of the cars."

"Fuck. Of course this was too good to be true," you curse. As you spring to your feet, you lock eyes with Mariko in silent acknowledgement that any further discussion will have to wait.

The two of you take off sprinting up a tree-lined footpath that should take you out the northern side of the outer gardens. But after only a couple minutes, Gin's voice cuts in again with more bad news.

"Two more cars approaching from Tokyo Station…they're moving to cut you off from the north."

In the distance behind you, you can hear several low voices and the clanking of chains being removed from the southern gate. The northern gate is still too far ahead – there's no possible way you'll beat the cops to it.

"What're our options, Gin?" you hiss nervously into the mic on your collar.

"There's nothing for it – you're gonna need to cut through the East Garden and make your way towards the exit near the Museum of Modern Art. That should get you well clear of the cops coming from Tokyo Station. We'll meet you there."

You glance a ways ahead, and off to your left. The East Garden is one of those walled areas you'd seen earlier, and the only means of crossing the moat is a thin bridge which runs up to a locked gate. You could scale the wall if one of you gave the other a boost, but it'd leave you totally exposed and with nowhere else to run. Unfortunately, there's no time to consider alternatives – there's a flash of red and blue light coming through the trees up ahead, and the sound of pursuing footsteps from behind.

"C'mon. They might not know we're here yet. If we move quickly, they might assume we didn't come."

As quickly and quietly as you're able, you and Mariko duck through a copse of neatly-trimmed trees and onto the path that leads to the Eastern Garden. From here, though, the northern entrance to the outer gardens is in full view, and only a row of low hedges stands between you and the two cruisers parked in the middle of the street only a few hundred meters away. You awkwardly drop down behind them and crawl along until you reach the Eastern Garden gate.

Poking your heads out ever so slightly from behind the hedges, you spot a couple of officers shuffling out of their cars and pulling flashlights from their belts. The gate isn't well illuminated, but if one of them swings their light in your direction, you'll be easily spotted. But, hopefully, they might still be expecting you to come up the main path and won't look this way.

Thankfully, the police cooperate with your expectations and begin sweeping their flashlights along the footpath you just left. You turn to Mariko.

"It's now or never. Boost me over, I'll pull you up."

The two of you slink out from your hiding place and across the bridge. Mariko kneels down and cups her hands together to make a foothold. You steel yourself to make the leap up to the top of the wall and push a little harder off of Mariko's hands than you had intended. A tiny "Eep!" escapes her lips, and your heads snap towards the cops on the footpath. Regrettably, theirs also snap towards you.

"Hey! Who's that?"

Beams of light illuminate your frozen form as you straddle the top of the wall with your hand stretched towards Mariko.

"Stop right there! Hands up!" cries one of the officers. The other starts barking your position into a radio at his chest, telling you that it's only a matter of time before Matsumura arrives as well.

"Come on!" you bark, snapping Mariko back to her senses. She grasps your hand and you pull her up and over to the other side.

Despite being winded from scaling the wall, you dig a little deeper and force yourself to keep sprinting through the Eastern Garden. Impossibly well-manicured foliage speeds past in a blur as you vault over a couple low shrubberies and across a bridge spanning a shallow koi pond. Eventually, you come to a low, stone structure and duck around the other side. You recognize it from one of your textbooks – it's the foundation of one of the old castle towers, the rest of it erased by time.

From here, you can see the bridge that leads across the moat to the Museum of Modern Art, but it's a ways off to your right. In your hurry to put some distance between you and the police, you must have lost track of where you were going. And the decision looks like it's going to cost you – a couple of figures with flashlights emerge from the trees at the foot of the bridge, effectively cutting you off.

"Gin!" you hiss. "We've got trouble! We're stuck behind the old tower, and they've got the bridge out of here cut off! What do we do?"

"Yeah, I can see that," he responds. Turning your head skywards, you can just barely make out the dim shape of Chiime hovering far overhead. "You're just gonna have to find another way across the moat somehow."

You slump down against the flagstone wall and allow a frustrated sigh to escape your lips. Whatever happened to this being a 'low-risk engagement?' You can't even begin to imagine all the ways you'd be absolutely screwed if the police were to bring you in. There's no way you can let that happen. Not at this point.

"C'mon now, brother dearest, can't we be a little more helpful than that?" comes Rin's voice. "Try to hang tight for a bit longer. We'll bail you out."

"Wait, Rin! Where are you-" says Gin before he's abruptly cut off. Mariko shoots you a puzzled look, but you're not exactly sure what's going on, either.

You peer around the edge of the wall towards the bridge. Three more figures join the cops waiting there. One of them points in your direction, and you pull your head back so fast it almost gives you whiplash.

"Let's hide," you whisper. The two of you scuttle up a nearby ramp that leads inside the remnants of the tower. However, the interior offers only sparse cover – just a couple of stone walls that once comprised the tower's small rooms. You and Mariko quickly duck behind one and do your best to settle your staggered breathing as the sound of footsteps outside draw closer and closer. You're hoping against hope that they won't check inside. At this point, it's all you can do. Whatever Rin's got in mind, she'd better do it quickly.

"Hey! You here?"

It's Matsumura's voice, coming from outside. Judging from the footsteps making their way around the perimeter, one of the other officers is with him.

"Listen, running and hiding isn't doing anyone any good. We know you're around here somewhere. Come on out, and it'll make things a lot easier for me and you."

You glance up at the walls surrounding you. They're about as tall as the one you'd hopped earlier, and open to the sky. Aside from the way you came in, it's the only way out of the tower. However, the drop on the other side is more significant, and you're not sure either of you have the strength to hoist each other up another wall tonight. Please move on, you think, please move on!

In defiance of your hopes, the footsteps begin stomping up the ramp.

"I know this isn't exactly what we agreed upon, but this is really for the best. Chief Hoga's made a lot of…tough decisions for the sake of this city. We just want to make sure you have your facts straight for your assignment, that's all."

Matsumura's lies do little to win back any of your trust. The footsteps enter the skeletal remains of the tower, and stop mere meters away. The light from a flashlight illuminates the corridor just outside.

"I know the boys probably have you spooked, but they're just doing their jobs. Come back to HQ with me. We'll talk to the chief, and get the whole thing worked out. Nobody has to get charged with anything tonight."

The footsteps reach the entrance of your hiding spot. A few more steps, and a glance to his right, and Matsumura will discover you. But something has arrested his progress.

You can barely make out the low, fuzzy sound of a voice coming over a radio.

"What? The museum? Southbound? How the hell'd they get around you?"

Matsumura pauses for the voice to respond.

"Well get after 'em! I just wanna cuff these little shits and be done with it."

Matsumura makes a disgusted sound and turns away, allowing your heart to start beating again.

"C'mon," you hear him tell the officer, and the footsteps leave the tower.

Once you're sure they're out of earshot, you turn on your own radio.

"Rin? Gin? Yoko? What's going on? Are you guys all right?"

There's a moment of awful silence in which you begin to fear the worst. But then, it crackles to life and Yoko's voice fills your ear. She sounds flustered, and out of breath.

"Hahh…hahh…we're okay for now. How about you? Did it work?"

"Yeah," says Mariko. "Matsumura and one of the officers just left. Are they chasing you?"

"Hahh…yeah…you can thank Rin for that. Didn't even tell us what she was doing, she just…ran off," Yoko says in a tone that's more than a little annoyed. "We've split up for now…we're going to let them chase us around a little while you escape. We'll meet you back at the Museum once we've got them good and lost."

"Jeez, this is insane…but thanks. We really owe you one," you say.

"No worries. Just…try to be quick," she responds, and the signal goes quiet again.

But no sooner have you made it down the ramp than the radio kicks on again. This time, it's Hayate.

"Hey, what's going on in there? You lose those guys or what?"

"The others are running a diversion for us until we get to the museum. After that, I don't know. Listen – at this point, you guys might just wanna catch the next train back to Toshima before you get dragged into this, too," you explain as you and Mariko jog towards the bridge.

"Yeah, I don't think that's gonna happen. Even if we were gonna bail on you, we can't. They've got cops posted at the train station, too."

"Wait, what?!" you blurt. "Are you saying we're stuck here?"

"Not exactly," says Shibutani. "Nightmare, are you listening in as well?"

Yoko, Rin, and Gin buzz in with a brief "Yep."

"Good. If it's at all possible, could all of you make your way back to the diner?"

"Seriously? You want us to double back now? Why?" you ask.

"Because we found the entrance to a Cloud," says Hayate. "If it belongs to Hoga, it's our ticket to getting these guys off our backs."

"You're kidding me," Gin growls. "Now it shows up?"

"Well, it's not like there's any more doubt now that Hoga's played her hand," you say.

A sigh rattles out of your lungs. It's late, and you're exhausted. The others must feel the same. Infiltrating a Cloud wasn't part of the plan, but then again, neither has anything else that's happened tonight.

"So what do you think? Are we doing this?" Hayate asks.

"Not much of a choice, is there?" growls Gin. "Dammit. And here I thought we'd planned this better.

"We'll try to lose these goons and work our way back towards you. If we're not there in ten, don't wait - go in without us. Understand?"

"H-Hold on, you can't really expect us to l-leave you behind!" Nisekao stammers.

"Don't freak out, we'll be fine. Dunno about you guys, but this is loads more fun than just waiting around all night!" says Rin, although you really can't agree.

"All right, we'll be back as soon as we can. Stay safe, guys," you say before taking off back across the gardens.

Fortunately, retracing your steps proves to be much simpler now that Matsumura's opened all the gates. Within a matter of minutes, you and Mariko are sneaking back across the canal towards the diner. Through the front window, you can see your friends' eyes peering over the top of their booth seat at you. Taking care to stay out of the streetlights, you dash across the street and inside, where the others wave you over. Surprisingly, Rin's already with them.

"That was fast," you tell her, and she pridefully sticks her nose into the air.

"They always give up when you get on the rooftops."

The word 'always' raises some concerning questions, but you'll let those go for now. Shibutani pushes some tepid cups of coffee towards the two of you, which you accept gratefully.

"Well, can't say we didn't give it a shot," says Hayate. "But at least now it's pretty certain that Hoga's hiding something. Wouldn't go through the trouble of setting you up like this otherwise."

"Agreed. Although I can't say that I like the direction things are taking. In spite of what's happened, I can't say I'm particularly comfortable making an enemy of law enforcement like this," muses Shibutani.

"I-It's not just that," Nisekao adds. "I r-really hate to keep doing this, but am I the only one who's th-thinking about what's going to happen if we beat Hoga's Shadow?"

"Well, we'll get to go home without being arrested, for one," says Rin, eying him skeptically. Nisekao quails a bit, but keeps going.

"I know! B-But…the yakuza are criminals, right? Getting rid of them has probably saved a bunch of people's lives. If she was only able to do that because she let her Shadow take over, what would we be doing to all those people if we undo that? If we make Hoga go back to normal…and the yakuza come back…a-aren't people going to suffer because of us?"

An uncomfortable silence descends over the table, the kind that presses its way right through your skin to settle heavily in your chest. You'd like to say that there's no way to know, but a little black voice worming its way through your mind tells you that he's right. Why'd he have to bring that up at a time like this?

"So then, do you wanna walk out there with your hands up and turn yourself in? Let the Shadows have their way?" says Rin, far more seriously than she's ever been.

"I-I…well...no…" Nisekao stammers. Shibutani places a giant hand on his shoulder.

"Fukui-kun. There's no reason to be ashamed of having concern for your fellow man. But Jidou-kun is correct. Right now, we have little choice but to defeat Hoga if we're going to survive to fight another day. I'm afraid that fact alone makes any deliberation pointless."

"Ah, right. I understand. It's…just something that was bothering me. I mean…wh-what should we do if we ever run into a Shadow that's better than the person it's replacing? If that happens, and we have a choice…y'know? What's the right thing to do?" Nisekao says.

Across the table, Rin scrutinizes Nisekao with a heavy-lidded glare, but stops once she notices you watching.

"Maybe that'd a be a good question for our leader. What do you think, Tetsuo?"

You wince inwardly. A Shadow that's better than the person it's replacing…after all your encounters with Shadows thus far, you're not convinced that one of those really exists.

What is a Shadow? asks the little black voice.

They're the worst parts of a person. The parts you can't let others see, the urges you can't act on.

Says who?

No. It doesn't matter whether a Shadow can be good or not. They're not actual people living actual lives. They're creatures that are trying to steal other people's lives away from them. That's all there's ever been to it.

If you insist.

"Tetsuo?" Rin asks again, bringing you out of your own head.

"I think we should do what we've always done. I don't believe there's any such thing as a perfect Shadow, and I'd rather believe that the people we save have the ability to set things right themselves."

At that moment, the door to the diner flings open, prompting an annoyed look from the lady behind the counter who was probably looking forward to a quieter shift tonight. Gin and Yoko stride over to your table with a sense of urgency.

"Where's the Cloud?" Gin asks, doing his best to keep his voice level, but failing.

"Wait, hold on, is everything all right?" you ask. You notice that Yoko's leaning pretty heavily on Gin's shoulder, avoiding putting any weight on her left leg. "What happened?"

"Matsumura ran me down with his car," she says through gritted teeth. "I was able to give it a couple good whacks with my club, and probably busted something under the hood, but that won't keep him for very long. We need to move now."

"I'm so sorry," whispers Mariko. "If I hadn't gotten us seen, none of this would've happened."

Yoko shakes her head and gives Mariko a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry about it, it'll be okay as long as we can flee into the Cloud. If your Persona can heal me, I'd call that about even, right?"

"Oh! Yeah, of course!"

"Perfect," you say, rising from your seat. "Then we don't have any time to waste. C'mon, Hayate, show us where you found it."

Hayate leads you out of the diner and back towards the train station. It's too dark and far away to make anything out too well, but you think you see a couple of figures waiting at the entrance. However, before you get any closer, Hayate turns down a narrow street across from the Police HQ and stops.

Something about your perception of Hoga has certainly changed tonight, because there's no way this thing would have escaped your notice this morning. Two tall gates painted in a gaudy, sparkling pink and emblazoned with the letters 'MWH' block your way, sealed in the center with a mask in the shape of a star.

"Wow," says Koharu, which about sums it up.

"Y'know, somehow this one terrifies me more than the others," you remark. "Anyone else getting that feeling?"

"'MWH'…I guess the 'H' stands for 'Hoga', but what about the 'M' and the 'W'?" muses Rin.

Gin pushes his way forward and slides his hands under the mask. Further up the street, towards the diner, you can hear the sound of distant, arguing voices.

"Come on, let's quit wasting time," he says, breaking the seal and throwing the gates to Cloud Five wide open.