Disclaimer : I don't own Naruto or Toaru Kagaku no Railgun/Toaru Majutsu no Index
The Trinity of Tokiwadai
Chapter Seventy Five: Jailbreaker - Test, Test, One, Two, Three! Prison Break!
Beta:
"Misaki-sempai, you got called in too?" Naru asked as she and the rest of the Trinity made their way into the richly appointed office of the Headmistress of Tokiwadai Middle School, surprised by [Mental Out]'s presence.
"Yes, Namikaze-chan, I wish to speak to all four of our school's Level 5s." The elderly, grandmotherly Headmistress said from her seat behind her ornate antique desk as she gestured towards the seats that had been lined up across from her. "Please have a seat and we can begin."
The woman in a kimono, which was quite a contrast with the otherwise Western aesthetic of her office, waited for Naru and her friends to take a seat during which they and Misaki-sempai exchanged curious looks and helpless shrugs before the woman finally decided to satisfy their curiosity.
"Shokuhou-chan, Misaka-chan, Namikaze-chan, Saten-chan, have you heard the challenge that the newly opened privately-run New Juvenile Hall has issued to our school?" The usually kindly old lady asked with a hint of uncharacteristic frosty anger in her tone.
Guess it really got under her craw. Naru thought, blinking in surprise.
Well, the new juvie's Director did essentially call out her school, implying that her students couldn't cut it.
Ah, so her pride got hurt?
A touch hypocritical there, prideful Number 2.
Naru mentally shrugged, Hey, if you got it, flaunt it.
She felt him roll his eyes, but unfazed, she retorted cheerfully. You're the same, you know~
Never said I wasn't. Her partner replied with a shrug, causing Naru to send him a mental pout. With him just admitting to her accusation like this, it just wasn't fun needling him.
Whilst Naru had been busy chatting with Kurama, Mikoto-sempai had nudged Rui-chan's shoulders only to have Naru's bestie shoot her a light frown. Catching on to the [Railgun]'s intentions, Naru nudged the Number 3's shoulders too. An action that had her bestie shooting her a betrayed look even as Misaki-sempai giggled in the background.
"Fine~" Rui-chan conceded nonetheless. "I'll be our spokeswoman. You two owe me for this though. You too Shokuhou-sempai!"
"I'll treat you to tea." Misaki-sempai replied easily. "Thank you, Saten-san."
"I'll let you take one of my slots for deciding what we do when we hangout." Naru offered.
"And I'll babysit your girls the next time you need one to go for a date with Accelerator."
"I'll hold all three of you to those promises," Rui-chan said, looking at each of them sternly in turn before turning back to face their Headmistress who had watched their little negotiation with amusement. "Yes, ma'am, we are aware that the New Juvenile Hall is running a Jailbreak Trial where they are inviting interested Espers to break into the facility to rescue a mock prisoner as part of a PR event and test of its vulnerabilities. One with the prize of a billion yen serving to lure in participants. And that in the process of announcing this Trial, its Director boasted that even if all of Tokiwadai's cohort attempted to beat it, they would fail."
"That is indeed what I am referring to," the Headmistress confirmed with a nod and an almost predatory smile. "I want you four to disabuse him of that fanciful notion."
"Ah, so just tossing Level 5s at the problem. What excess combat power." Misaki-sempai said, wrinkling her nose.
"Well, to be fair, he did include us in that boast," Naru pointed out with a shrug. "He started this."
"Semantics ability, Naru-chan." Misaki-sempai said with a roll of her eyes. "And Headmistress-sama, I must decline your offer. With the New Juvenile Hall's extensive use of AIM Jammers, I'd be next to useless in the Trial."
"You mean you don't want to help because it might accidentally cause you to work up a sweat. The horror." Mikoto-sempai snorted sarcastically.
"Misaka-chan," Headmistress-sama chided the [Railgun] lightly.
"Urk! Ah, y-yes Headmistress-sama." Mikoto-sempai answered back sheepishly, looking like she swallowed a lemon.
Looking satisfied that her rebuke had been taken to heart, Headmistress-sama turned towards Misaki-sempai.
"As for you, Shokuhou-chan, if you are unwilling then I won't force you."
"Thank you for your understanding power, Headmistress-sama. I will of course give all the support I can to my fellow Level 5s. If anyone in my Faction wishes to aid them, I'll send them over their way." Misaki-sempai offered with a charming smile. "If there is nothing else, might I take my leave ability?"
"Thank you, Sempai." Naru and Rui-chan replied to Misaki-sempai's offer with a smile while Mikoto-sempai just nodded. No doubt not trusting her sharp tongue.
"Yes, yes, you may go, Shokuhou-chan. Have a good day."
"You as well, Headmistress-sama, Naru-chan, Saten-chan, Misaka-san." Misaki-sempai said as she stood and offered the old lady a bow before departing the office.
Mikoto-sempai shot her a glare as she did, spotting the subtle barb that the [Queen] had inserted into her goodbyes by singling her out by addressing her, and only her, with the distant suffix of "-san" in contrast to the much more respectful "-sama" or affectionate "-chan". Thankfully, the [Railgun] had the sense to not make a scene in front of Headmistress-sama, though she was sure the payback she would extract from their Sempai for this slight would be amusing.
Only if we get to watch it from afar and don't get dragged into it.
You worry too much. Both Mikoto-sempai and Misaki-sempai know I'll always stay neutral when they fight.
And if your bestie gets recruited and comes asking for your help?
Rui-chan has enough sense to stay out of it and besides they both owe her favors now, she can cash them in to get out of this.
True…
Yup! So this time, all we need to do is sit back and watch the fireworks! It'll be glorious!
"Is it wise to just let Shokuhou-sempai walk out like that?" Rui-chan asked, as she cocked her head to the side in thoughtful contemplation. It was an odd mix of her leftover robotic mannerisms and the elegant ojousama air that she'd taken to cultivating lately that came together to give her a mesmerizing quality all her own.
And you wonder why Accelerator and that Frenda girl are head over heels for her. You are happily romantically attached and even you can't deny how attractive your bestie is.
Never denied it, my issue with the whole Accel and Frenda-chan situation is the whole threesome thing. And before you say it, I know I'm the pot calling the kettle black a little here, but this is different from me and Shu-chan and Arisa-chan. Accel and Frenda-chan aren't the same person. Things could get messy there. Very messy.
What, you're saying that if your girlfriends were okay with it, you wouldn't want a swingers night?
Naru shifted in her seat a little, rubbing her thighs together discreetly as she did. L-Let's not tread that ground. My maidenly heart may not be able to take it!
You really are a pervert.
"I understand your concern, Saten-chan." Headmistress-sama said in reply to Rui-chan's question. "But this is not an order on my part, merely a request. Shokuhou-chan can thus refuse to assist if she so chooses. Besides, forcing her to participate would likely cause more trouble."
"So that's why you let her just go like that?" Naru asked with a tilt of her head. "Smart move. 'Cos yeah, a reluctant Misaki-sempai is more likely to sabotage our efforts out of spite for being forced to take part than anything."
Tell me about it.
You're talkative today. Naru noted. What's up?
Well, this is your first time being called to the Headmistress' office. I got curious so I am paying special attention. I thought it was you being called out for all your indecency.
Ignoring her partner's tease, she couldn't help but startle in surprise. This is my first time being called to Headmistress-sama's office! Wow! How novel.
"I can see it." Mikoto-sempai said, nodding in agreement.
"So can I," Rui-chan agreed with a sigh. "Shokuhou-sempai can be a remarkably spiteful person."
"Setting Shokuhou-chan aside, would you three be willing to help defend Tokiwadai's honour?"
Naru knew her answer already and shot her two friends eager looks. Rui-chan shrugged, clearly not having a strong opinion either way and conceding to Naru's unspoken request. Mikoto-sempai was more hesitant but despite frowning as she considered the matter for a moment ultimately sighed and nodded her acceptance.
"Leave it to us, Headmistress-sama!" Naru declared enthusiastically. "It's time for a classy jailbreak."
"Is having the AIM Jammer effect spreading so far out of the facility like this even legal?" Naru-chan asked Ruiko as she rubbed her temples to fight off the side effects of the power disruptors that the New Juvenile Hall made use of. Ruiko would've done the same, even at the absolute limits of the effect's range as they were now, it was giving her a splitting headache but she had too much self-control to so easily give away her discomfort. Yes, with her AIM body, she wasn't quite as affected as other Espers by its effects but that didn't mean she was entirely immune.
"At their greatest extent, the fields only extend twenty meters from their exterior fence." Uiharu answered instead, using her tablet to show them the areas of effect of the New Juvenile Hall's AIM Jammers with a few keystrokes. "That's well within the area covered by the Hall's carpark and their property, so there are no legal issues."
"Which is why I had Kaa-san prepare this for all of us." Ruiko said, as she began handing out Counter Capacity Down earbuds to everyone. "They're tuned so that they counter the effects of AIM Jammer."
"Thank Science!" Naru-chan said with relief as she popped the earbuds in.
"Why didn't you hand those out earlier?" Mikoto-sempai asked as she and Shirai-san followed Naru-chan's lead.
"They only have a limited battery life." Ruiko informed them with a shrug as she put on her own set of earbuds. "We've just entered the range of the AIM Jammers, so distributing them any earlier than this would have been a waste of their charge."
"Why is Uiharu not getting a pair?" Shirai-san asked, shooting her Judgment partner and Ruiko's best friend a worried look.
"Ehehe," Uiharu held up her tablet, a bright smile on her face. "Everyone is allowed a single tool to assist them during the Trial. Since I need this to be of help there, I'll have to forgo the Counter Capacity Down earbuds. Besides, my Thermal Hand isn't much help here."
"But the headache the Jammers create can't be pleasant," Mikoto-sempai pointed out with a frown.
"It's fine, it'll just be like I'm on a forty eight hour shift!" Uiharu brushed off with a smug look.
"Uiharu, do I need to speak to Konori-sempai about your excessive overtime, again?" Ruiko asked with a sigh. Her overly diligent best friend really had no self control sometimes. If not for her, Shirai-san and Konori-sempai going out of their way to make sure she didn't overdo things, there was a good chance Uiharu would never clock off from her Judgment duties.
"Uwa! No, no! I-I'm just using it as an example!" The flower crown wearing girl fretted and waved her hands in the air frantically. "What I meant is that as a Level 1, AIM Jammer doesn't really have much of an effect on me if I don't use my power. Even the headache it causes is pretty mild for me too. It definitely can't beat the one I had after the one time I pulled a forty eight hour shift."
Ruiko was unconvinced and by Mikoto-sempai and Shirai-san's frowns neither were they, but Naru-chan surprisingly came to Uiharu's defense.
"Yo, let's just trust Ui-chan's judgment here. She'd know her limits best. If she says she can handle it without Counter Capacity Down then I believe her."
"Alright," Ruiko conceded with a mulish expression. She wasn't worried about Uiharu getting by without Counter Capacity Down - like Naru-chan, she trusted Uiharu when she said she could manage without it - but she recognised that continuing this argument here would get her nowhere. She'd just have to discuss Uiharu's workaholic tendencies another time. "But if you feel remotely unwell, let us know, okay, Uiharu?"
"Y-Yes!"
"So I guess Misaki-sempai didn't direct any of her Faction to the Trial after all, huh?" Naru asked with a frown. "Or are we just not seeing them because of the size of the crowd?"
"She sent a token effort." Ruiko informed her, picking up a few familiar AIM signatures amidst the massive crowd of competitors that were waiting for the start of the Trial outside the New Juvenile Hall. "She does have to show her support for our school in this type of situation. It looks like we have a group of Electromasters as well as a few others from her Faction."
"I guess they'll be of some use as cannon fodder." Mikoto-sempai said with a shrug.
"Well, we did tell her we didn't really need help." Ruiko pointed out. "Besides considering who some of them are, I think we might be pleasantly surprised."
"Nah, Sempai would take using her people as cannon fodder as a snub." Naru-chan disagreed. "She has to wave the flag in a meaningful way somehow, even if it won't help much…"
"If that's her plan then I don't know if her choice of representatives will measure up."
"What do you mean by that, Rui-chan?" Naru asked, her eyes narrowed.
Ruiko just offered her a coy smile. "Wait and see. I don't want to spoil the surprise."
"You and your secrets," Uiharu said with a good natured sigh.
Ruiko smirked. She had to keep up the air of mystery that she was famous for somehow and keeping secrets was the best way to do so.
"You're talking about Dolly and Kouzaku aren't you?" Mikoto-sempai said with a sigh. "I can sense Dolly and the whole flipping Council of Misakas here. Tell me that Order-chan isn't here at least?"
"No, Accel is watching her. I gave him explicit instructions to not let her get within a whole District of the Trial." Ruiko reassured her. Even though their eldest wanted nothing more than to smoosh this Trial.
Mikoto-sempai breathed a sigh of relief at that.
"I honestly don't know why they are here. Or why are there so many idiots here either." The [Railgun] said, gesturing at the massive crowd around them.
"A billion yen might not be much to a Tokiwadai student but to most people, it's a huge deal." Uiharu reminded them with a sigh, clearly exasperated at how out of touch they were about how life changing a billion yen could be to the average person.
"It's a lot to most Tokiwadai students too," Mikoto-sempai corrected before shooting Ruiko a look and continuing. "Though not to all of us."
"Need I remind you Sempai that you and the Sisters have a substantial stake in Eden Corp too?" Ruiko asked, arching an eyebrow. "You're not exactly short on money."
"Yes, but this is a billion yen we're talking about here!" Shirai-san cut in, loyally defending her roommate.
Ruiko shrugged. "Money isn't everything."
"That's true," Naru-chan agreed as everyone else in their little group nodded.
They would have kept chatting beyond that point but before they could, the New Juvenile Hall's PA system crackled to life.
"The Jailbreak Trial will now begin. Just to be clear, you will be deemed intruders from the moment you pass beyond this fence. This is your final warning. If you are prepared, then take your position. ...Begin!"
Despite the start of the Jailbreak Trial, Mikoto and her friends found themselves standing back and watching as the first wave of participants charged forward, triggering the New Juvenile Hall's initial defenses.
"I really don't like just standing here and watching others be our canaries in the coal mine." Mikoto commented with a frown as she saw the aforementioned first wave be confronted by a horde of guard robots.
The standard variant had a domed body on a crescent-shaped base with three legs and a translucent front covering sensors and circuitry and was armed with a weapons block located on the left side of the robot that was capable of firing impact rounds, electrified nets and liquid shots. There was even a variant which was equipped with a rubber bullet firing gatling gun instead.
Most of the first wave were taken out by these, but for the handful of stronger competitors, the organizers had something special in store in the form of larger robots, called War Armadillos if Ruiko's intel was correct, that were capable of moving around rapidly by rolling around as balls. This allowed them to get close to their targets before they could react where they transformed into a bipedal mode and revealed that they were equipped with a heat blade and air gun held in arms behind the head, as well as an acoustic weapon housed in the chest. Weapons that proved more than enough to take out all but the toughest opponents before them.
"Sempai, please don't say it like that. These fodd-ehem, contestants were here first, so they should go first. It's all fair and square. It's not really our fault they are failing at the start."
"Oh come on, even you don't believe that. At least be honest with your Sempai." Mikoto chided the little imp she was friends with. The Usagi's mischievous smile was her only reply.
"Those are cute designs," Uiharu-san said, eyeing the robots with a glimmer of want in her eyes. "Saten-san-"
"I'll see what I can do," Ruiko said concomitantly. "They are proprietary designs of New Juvenile Hall though, so we might have to settle for knockoffs."
"Good enough." Uiharu assured her. "You're the best, Saten-san!"
"Look," Kuroko said suddenly, pointing as a car that had a crudely forged iron ram bolted onto its front drove through the crowds swarming the entrance to the New Juvenile Hall as it made a beeline towards its main doors. It was making enough of a racket that everyone in its way managed to get out of its path ahead of time and with the help of its speed and ram, it easily brushed aside the attempts by the robots to stop it.
"Think it'll get thro-" Naru began only to cut herself off as a section of the ground ahead of the car popped up to reveal what looked like a massive set of speakers that proceeded to release a sonic blast powerful enough to send the whole car, and a good number of participants standing in its immediate vicinity, flying.
"Nevermind. Oof, hope the medical staff can help them out. That one had to hurt." Naru winced, rubbing her neck.
"Yeah," Mikoto agreed. "Though what the heck was that?"
"It's an acoustic shockwave barrier." Ruiko explained with a shrug. "It's exactly what its name suggests, a gigantic speaker that generates sonic shockwaves that deflect things."
"Between that and the standard pitfalls," Kuroko said, pointing to the aforementioned holes in the ground that were opening up ahead of the New Juvenile Hall's outer walls and forming a moat. "Looks like most of the first wave has been taken care of."
"Looks like," Uiharu-san agreed, looking up from her tablet. "The cameras from the other zones around the exterior show the same."
"You have access to the place's surveillance systems already, Ui-chan?" Naru asked with an impressed whistle as she, Kuroko and Ruiko teleported the whole group of them past the Hall's outermost defense and directly below its external walls.
"Ah, breaking into their code was easy. No biggie." Uiharu-san said with a shrug. "But more importantly, the system is surprisingly robust. They seem to compartmentalize everything! The external cameras aren't linked at all to the internal ones, so I haven't gotten access to those yet."
"That's still better than what I've managed. Misaka laments." Conspiracy Nut said as she led the Council of Misakas, all armed with their favorite long guns, Dolly and Kouzaku over. All of them were dressed in a variety of casual clothes. Even the cosplay fetishist Kouzaku, but Mikoto didn't really care about that. It was the diverse attire of her sisters, a sure sign of her sisters' growing individuality, that warmed Mikoto's heart. "Uiharu-sama, can you teach me your hacking secrets? Misaka begs with clasped hands and a cute smile."
"No," Mikoto said, crossing her arms and shooting her sister a glare. "You're enough of a nosey parker already, Conspiracy Nut. Besides, if you really need to get into a system, just use the computational power of the Misaka Network and brute force it."
"Drat, Misaka clicks her tongue at no fun Onee-sama stopping her attempts to learn."
"Consider that punishment for you lot coming here at all." Mikoto said, shifting her glare over the whole Council, all of whom fidgeted nervously as her angry gaze moved to each of them in turn.
"Even me, Onee-sama?" Dolly asked, pointing at herself. "You're mad with me too?"
"Yes, even you, Dolly." Mikoto said even as she walked over to the one clone of hers in the City she hadn't met until now and pulled her into a hug. "Even if I am happy to meet you at last."
"Ehehe~ I'm happy to meet Onee-sama too! You're just as grumpy as Misaki-chan says!" Dolly said even as she offered her a brilliant smile.
"Told you," Kouzaku piped in. "That she's a tsundere is a part of her Dark Side profile."
"So I'm told." Mikoto said with a defeated sigh as she pulled away from Dolly. She knew what Kouzaku was saying was true. Ruiko and Naru had shown her a copy of her profile that was circulated on the Dark Side. "But all that aside, why by Science are you girls here!?"
"The prize, Onee-sama. Misaka explains." Military Otaku said, stepping forward to speak for the Council. "It is one billion yen-"
"Yes, I know." Mikoto said, cutting her sister off. "That's a lot of money and I can see why it would tempt you to take part. But as your elder sister, I don't have to like it. I mean, seriously! Are all my sisters this greedy?"
None offered an answer to this. Her sisters all looked abashed at her scolding, whilst her friends and Kouzaku just respectfully kept quiet. Well most of them anyway, for some reason a pouting Naru was handing a smirking Ruiko a rolled up bundle of bills. Looks like someone won a bet. Mikoto could guess what it was about and honestly should've been upset her friends were betting on her reaction to her sisters being greedy idiots but she knew that would just amuse them and gain her more of a reputation as a tsundere so she refrained. It didn't stop a few stray arcs of static escaping her body in her irritation though.
"Ehem, if we're done?" Naru asked with a polite cough to gather their attention. "I think Kouzaku just got a little drone in there through the ventilation system. How goes it, Kouzaku?"
"Tch, of course you'd notice. You level 5s really are freaks of nature." The Level 4 complained, but nevertheless answered Naru's question. "It got wrecked. Even the ducts in this place have defenses apparently. And worse, the security system's sensors were advanced enough to trace my drone's signal back to me and send one of the guard robots after me and Dolly."
Mikoto shot her aforementioned sister a worried look.
"I took care of it," Dolly declared proudly as she flipped her hair over her shoulder meaningfully.
"I still think it's unfair that you can use your hair to create railguns. Misaka whines." Mecha Fan said with a pout. "Why can't the rest of us have cool applications of our Electromastery too? Misaka laments."
"You need to take care of your hair like a lover! That's what Misaki-chan tells me at least. Love-Love power!" Dolly declared, striking a pose.
"Ooooh, Misaka says, expressing their awe at the revelation." The group of Sisters said as one.
"Don't listen to her," Ruiko said, sighing. "If you want to broaden your applications for your Electromastery, then you need to experiment and practise."
"Uh, why are you getting exasperated, Rui-chan?" Naru asked, blinking in confusion.
"Saten-sama is worried that if we take Dolly's advice, it'll influence Last Order. Misaka explains helpfully to Namikaze-sama." Tsundere said, trying and failing to hide her blush as she looked at Naru shyly.
Well, that explains things at least. Since as far I know, Dolly isn't linked up to the Misaka Network.
"Order-chan has enough bad influences already." Ruiko said, shooting Naru a look.
"Not my fault I'm the fun onee-chan."
"Exactly! And that's the problem!"
"Can you two keep your little tiff till later? We have a job to do!" Kouzaku complained.
"What's the rush?" Kuroko asked, looking at her in confusion. "I mean, why not let the riff raff test out the defenses a little for us."
"Riff raff!? Shirai-san!" Uiharu scolded.
Kuroko just shrugged unrepentantly and pointed at the Hall's main gate which was suddenly rocked by explosions. Blasts that did absolutely nothing to damage said gate.
"Do those doing ineffectual things like that deserve to be called anything else?"
Uiharu looked ready to argue but Ruiko cut her off unintentionally.
"That was far too weak to breach those gates." She noted clinically. "They wouldn't even work against the Reformatory's walls and gate and those of the Hall are 1.81 times more blast resistant. An explosion of that magnitude is woefully insufficient."
"As expected of Saten-sama," Kongou-san said as she walked over with Awatsuki-san and Wannai-san following her on either side. "You even know the strength of the Hall's walls. Truly you are the City's best info broker."
"I try," Ruiko said with a smirk.
"If you're so great, Saten-sama, mind telling us what these three are doing with that trailer of logs?" Kouzaku asked as she eyed said trailer of felled tree trunks that was parked behind the three new arrivals.
"Kongou-san intends to shoot them with her Aero Hand at the walls from outside the range of the AIM Jammer."
"Wow, that's certainly… a unique idea." Naru whistled with a bewildered look, even as Mikoto's sisters all looked impressed by Kongou-san's idea.
"Ohohoh!" The heiress laughed that strange laugh of hers.
"I wouldn't try it, Kongou-san." Uiharu-san said, bursting the other girl's bubble. "The Hall has taken the potential of attacks from outside the range of its normal Jammers into account. If you do try, they'll either turn their directed long-range AIM Jammers on you and cause your power to backfire or they'll use the jet cannons they have to disrupt your ability that way."
Kongou-san pouted at that, looking dejected at her plan being shot down. "How do we get through then?"
"Give me a few more minutes to finish my calculations and I'll show you, Kongou-san." Ruiko said, offering their schoolmate a teasing smirk before turning to Mikoto. "In the meantime, Mikoto-sempai, mind taking out those security robots headed our way? I'd rather not have to route processing power away from my part in Headmistress-sama's plan, it'll make things take longer."
"Gotcha, Ruiko. Leave it to us." Mikoto assured her kohai with a nod before turning to her sisters armed with long guns as true to Ruiko's word off in the distance a group of security robots made their way towards their position. "Everyone! Backs against the wall! Council of Misakas form up in an infantry square facing in the other directions! "
"Napoleonic era tactics? Really?" Kouzaku asked, blinking in surprise as she and everyone else nevertheless complied with Mikoto's request.
"If it works, it works." Mikoto replied with a shrug as she turned to Dolly. "Mind if I borrow some of your ammo?"
"Go right ahead, Onee-sama!" Dolly said with a smile even as static arced in her hair as long strands of it shaped themselves into rails for railguns, small metallic objects - wingnuts, screws, washers, etc. - held between the electromagnetic fields she'd created.
Smiling at her sister, Mikoto fished out a handful of Dolly's ammo with her left hand and flicked one into firing position in her right hand.
"Naru, Kongou-san, take care of incoming." Mikoto ordered as the robots' various ranged weapons began firing their way.
"Leave it to us!" Naru declared for the both of them as between the two of them, they created a squall that deflected the assortment of impact rounds, electrified nets, liquid shots, rubber bullets, projectiles made of wind and acoustic blasts that the Hall's robot guards shot their way.
"Fire on my mark!" Mikoto ordered her sisters as the robots, heedless of the ineffectiveness of their ranged attacks continued advancing.
"Mark!" Mikoto roared once they got into optimal firing range. "Sisters, fire at will!"
Even as she gave the order, she unleashed her own railgun, the attack blasting through a pair of standard security robots and a War Armadillo. Dolly's barrage was only a fraction of a second behind her attack and whilst it lacked the penetrative power of her own railgun, it did have the advantage of quantity and the half dozen projectiles she shot at the robots managed to tear another three of the standard machines to pieces. That just left two War Armadillos and a dozen standard types. All of which were ripped apart by the fire from the Council, who working together had created an electromagnetic field ahead of their position that served to accelerate their bullets. It wasn't quite railgun speeds, Mikoto wasn't sure the standard bullets some of them used could handle that kind of acceleration after having already been fired out of a gun, but they still gave their rounds more than enough kick to reduce the remaining robots into scrap.
"And Justice prevails! Misaka cheers triumphantly!" Sentai-chan cheered as the last of their robotic adversaries toppled over.
"That was so fun! Misaka confesses. Let's do it again! Misaka urges." Genki Girl gushed.
"I still wish I could have brought my Powered Suit. Misaka whines." Mecha Fan said with a pout as she eyed the laser rifle she was carrying with displeasure.
"You know the rules, 11132. Misaka offers placatingly." 19090 reminded her even as 10039 patted Mecha Fan comfortingly on her back.
I really should come up with names for those two. Mikoto mused as she watched her sisters' interactions indulgently.
"Uiharu-sama, what are you doing? Misaka asks curiously." Neko-chan asked Uiharu-san as the tech wiz rummaged through one of the wrecked robots, clutching her assault rifle in a watchful guard.
"Oh, you'll see, Neko-chan." Uiharu said, offering them a mysterious smile.
"You're picking up Saten-san's bad habits again, Uiharu." Kuroko said with a sigh.
"Speaking of Rui-chan," Naru said, looking to the Number 3. "You done?"
Ruiko just nodded and gestured to a section of wall next to where they were standing which promptly just ceased to exist. A display of power that prompted gasps from not just their group but plenty of other nearby participants of the Trial too. Though Mikoto wasn't one of them as she hurriedly turned to Ruiko who was staggering from the effort of what she'd done.
"Some warning would be nice, Ruiko." Mikoto chided her kohai even as Awatsuki-san and Wannai-san helpfully caught her before she could fall down. "You know how draining doing that is for you."
"Sorry," an abashed Ruiko said. "I'll remember next time. But right now, maybe we should focus on securing our entryway? Naru-chan, what's the holdup?"
"Just thinking." Naru said as she rubbed her chin thoughtfully and eyed the trailer of logs Kongou-san had brought with her, even as behind them the opening Ruiko had created was rapidly being sealed up as a fast hardening filler that according to Ruiko's intel was known as Birdlime poured from pipes embedded into the walls. "Mind if I borrow some of your logs, Kongou-san?"
"Go right ahead, Namikaze-sama." Kongou-san said, even as she looked confused by what Naru could want with them. Mikoto was right with her. She couldn't see how they could fit into the plan for the day that they'd drawn up with Headmistress-sama.
"Thanks Kongou-chan!" Naru said before she teleported over to the trailer and began teleporting the logs into the sealing gap in the Hall's outer walls.
"I see where you're going with that, Namikaze-san. Let me help!" Kuroko said as she teleported over to join Naru in transporting the logs into the gap so that they formed a tunnel around which the Birdlime flowed. A passageway that was being reinforced by the sealant itself as it hardened around the wood.
"And that should do it." Naru said as she and Kuroko created a passageway through the now otherwise sealed gap in the Hall's outer walls with a combination of Kongou-san's wood and unless Mikoto was wrong, a little aerokinesis to direct the Birdlime where they wanted it to go around the wooden supports of said tunnel. "Thanks for the logs, Kongou-san. They sure beat me using my geokinesis to make the tunnel walls. With the consistency of the earth around here, I wasn't sure I could've made something in time that was sturdy enough to not be simply crushed by the Birdlime."
"Yeah, they deliberately modified the soil composition in the area to counter Geokinetics." Kouzaku chimed in. "You might've managed, but it wouldn't be a sure thing."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Kouzaku-san." Naru said, offering the Dark Sider a grin. "But seriously, using the logs was so much easier. Thanks again, Kongou-chan."
"Happy to be of service, Namikaze-san. I'm just glad that they proved useful after all and it wasn't a waste to bring them along."
"Uh, Onee-sama?" Dolly said hesitantly as she pointed at the horde of Trial participants streaming into New Juvenile Hall through the tunnel they had just created. "Are we just going to let the others use the entry we created?"
"Yeah, we are. We can't exactly show off like Headmistress-sama wants us to if the rest of our competitors are all stuck outside now can we?" Naru said with a shrug. "But I think we should start making our way in, don't you think?"
"Yes, let's." A still shaky looking Ruiko said as she stumbled out of the supportive arms of Awatsuki-san and Wannai-chan. She would have likely face planted if Uiharu hadn't abandoned her tinkering with the wrecked robot she'd been doing for the past little while to catch her.
"Saten-sama!" Awatsuki-san cried out worriedly as she rushed over to help Uiharu steady Ruiko.
"Is Saten-sama alright?" Wannai-san asked, shooting Mikoto and Naru accusatory looks. She wasn't the only one, Kongou-san and even some of Mikoto's sisters were too, the rest glancing worriedly at Ruiko.
"I'm fine," the [AIM Sovereign] reassured them. "Emulating molecular deconstruction is just particularly taxing for me, especially on the large scale I used it earlier and without my Angel Mode to support me. It's incredibly computation heavy."
"And you had to use it when you had to deal with the AIM Jammers' effect. Even with Counter Capacity Down it still takes its toll! Honestly, what was the Tokiwadai Headmistress doing asking you to use it!?" Uiharu hissed angrily as she and Awatsuki-san helped Ruiko steady herself.
"She wanted to show off." Naru reiterated with a roll of her eyes. "The Hall's Director's challenge to Tokiwadai really got under her craw."
"Yeah," Mikoto agreed. "She vetted every little step of the game plan we came up with for today."
"She shouldn't have pushed Saten-san so hard!" Uiharu insisted.
"I'm fine, Uiharu. Really." Ruiko assured her best friend as she gently pulled away from her and Awatsuki-san to stand on her own two feet. She still looked a little wobbly but at least she didn't look like she'd topple over again.
"Are you sure, Saten-sama?" Awatsuki-san asked worriedly, looking ready to catch Ruiko if she looked ready to fall again.
"I'm sure." Ruiko reassured Naru's roommate. "Let's get inside shall we? I think we've given our competitors enough of a head start already. Besides, I want to see what else the Hall can throw at us."
Despite the throngs of other Trial participants that had been literally fighting among themselves to use the tunnel through the New Juvenile Hall's outer walls that the Trinity and their friends had created, said group managed to walk through it unimpeded. Their sheer numbers, and the Council of Misaka's guns, meant that no one dared pick a fight with them. Though they had started to split up once they'd gotten inside.
"Was it a good idea to let Kongou-san, Awatuski-san and Wannai-san go off on their own like that?" Kazari asked as the remainder of the group walked through the wooded area inside the outer walls.
"It's fine, Ui-chan." Namikaze-san reassured her. "They can take care of themselves. Besides, you heard Kongou-san: 'May the best team win!'"
"Yup, we just need to be the winning team!" Kouzaku-san said with a grin.
"And who said you're part of our team again?" Misaka-san said, shooting the purple haired girl a look. "You're just a tagalong."
"Hey!"
"Onee-sama's right, Mii-chan." Dolly-san said, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "We never did ask her and her friends if we could team up."
"That's true. Misaka observes." 10039-san said with a nod. "Neither did we. Misaka added."
"But Onee-sama will definitely share some of the prize money if the Trinity wins it, right? Misaka questions hopefully." Genki Girl-san asked, looking at Misaka-san with puppy dog eyes.
"We'll see," Misaka-san said noncommittally as she steadfastly refused to look at her sister's pleading face.
A rustling in the shrubbery nearby had them all tensing and they spun as one to face the direction it came from just in time to see a quadrupedal robot with an oversized head shaped like the Hall's Director's own and which somewhat resembled a jinmenken step out of the foliage.
"What are you doing here? Don't you know that trespassing is illegal?" The robot said in a chiding voice seconds before everyone capable of a ranged attack unleashed it upon the poor machine, leaving it torn apart by the Sisters' guns, its chassis riddled by random debris Shirai-san teleported into it and melted by Namikaze-san and Saten-san's fire and acidic attacks respectively and its systems short circuited by a static burst from Misaka-san.
Well, almost everyone with a ranged attack had joined in. Dolly-san was the lone exception. In fact, she was almost doubled over laughing as she pointed at the wreck.
"Dolly, why are you laughing at the creepy thing?" Kouzaku-san asked her childhood friend, looking distrurbed. "Was how it got wrecked that funny?"
"No, the robot itself was funny looking." Dolly-san managed to reply in between her giggles.
Kouzaku-san just sighed in disbelief as everyone else, Kazari included, shot Dolly-san incredulous looks. Seriously, what was wrong with her taste to find that creepy robot funny? Especially to this extent?
"Dolly, rein it in. We've got company." Misaka-san said with a sigh as the sound of rapidly beating wings and skittering filled the surrounding forest.
Glancing around them, Kazari spotted a swarm of robotic wasps the size of small birds and mechanical centipedes about two meters in length appearing out of the forests around them.
"Tsch. These are Baba Yoshio's work." Saten-san said in an angry hiss.
"Wasn't that the guy who beat up Kongou-san, Awatsuki-san and Wannai-san during the Daihasei?" Shirai-san asked, her eyes narrowed.
"Yes," Misaka-san hissed as she unleashed a surge of electricity that knocked the majority of the attacking security robots offline. "Ruiko, what do we have to look out for with these guys?"
"The Type: Hunting Wasps have syringes for stingers, the Hall has them loaded with knockout drugs. The Type: Giant Centipedes will try to crawl up your body and restrain you via constriction." Saten-san explained as she did a Magneto impression and raising her hands into the air lifted a good chunk of the remaining robots into the air with telekinesis where she proceeded to crash them into scrap whilst squeezing her fists closed.
"Eh~? How cute." Namikaze-san said, her tone edging with bloodlust as she sported a smile that showed all her teeth. "I wonder what their temperature threshold is."
"Please don't use lava, Namikaze-sama. Misaka begs." Tsundere pleaded. "We don't want to set the whole forest on fire like last time. Misaka adds worriedly."
"Aw, well, if Tsundere-chan is asking me nicely." Namikaze-san pouted, her bloodlust disappearing as quickly as it had surfaced.
"'Last time'?" Misaka-san asked, looking at Namikaze-san with her arms crossed. "What did you and my sister do 'last time'?"
"Nothing, I just took Tsundere-chan out to one of my training grounds in District 21 so we could experiment with our powers. Miyahara-sensei was there to supervise. Nothing bad happened."
Tsundere-chan's cheeks were pink as she held them, looking away shyly. "Misaka learned so much, Misaka says with elation."
Ah, the Sister must have had her dreams come true with how much she admires Namikaze-san. As expected, hanging out with an Ojousama was the best after all.
"Ehehe, Tsundere-chan had a blast. So jealous." Dolly-san said wistfully.
Kouzaku-san just sighed as she used a broken branch she'd picked up off the ground to smash a flight of the Type: Hunting Wasps to pieces. "Can you girls take this a little more seriously?"
"Stop being a grouch, Mii-chan!" Dolly-san scolded even as she and the rest of the Sisters finished off the rest of the robots with a volley from their railguns and weapons respectively. "It's not like this is all that dangerous. It's almost a walk in the park."
"Plus we need to keep our aces fresh, Misaka comments with a cool demeanor." Military Otaku-chan said as with the threat dealt with, they continued their trek towards the Hall's Girl's Building.
"Should have packed a gun, dummy. Misaka snarks with a giggle." Mecha Fan-chan merrily pointed out.
"Or a bottle of your liquid metal so you could use your ability. Misaka points out with a roll of her eyes." Military Otaku-chan said with the aforementioned eye roll. "How shortsighted. Misaka added."
"I thought the drone would be tactically useful!" Kouzaku-san complained as she was bullied.
Kazari didn't comment, she had hurt Shirai-san during their fight in the Daihasei so some bullying was allowed.
Kouzaku-san pouted at this but perked up when Dolly-san saddled up to her side and wrapped herself around one of her arms. She even blushed!
Someone has it bad. Kazari thought with a giggle. Kouzaku-san is almost as bad as Seivelun-san is when Saten-san is nice to her.
"Oh, there's the Girl's Building. Misaka observes." 10039-chan said as they stepped out of the woods and found themselves standing in front of one of the squat rectangular buildings that were the standard style throughout New Juvenile Hall.
"Are you sure?" Namikaze-san asked with a frown as she looked at the other nearly identical buildings of the Hall. "They all look the same to me."
"It is," Kazari said with a giggle, knowing full well that the Number 2 was just joking around. With her esoteric senses, there was no way she'd gotten lost.
"Strange. Misaka observes." Sentai-chan said as she walked up to the building's door cautiously only for it to automatically open. "Someone else unlocked it? Misaka asks, frowning at the implication that someone had managed to get ahead of us."
The group exchanged looks at that.
"We aren't the only capable group here, someone else probably opened it." Namikaze-san pointed out.
Saten-san nodded in agreement.
"Whoever did it has to be a decent hacker. The doors are undamaged." Kazari's best friend said before turning to her with a knowing look, prompting everyone else to do the same.
Kazari just chuckled at being caught red handed.
"I had to show off my skill at some point. It wouldn't be fun otherwise." She said with an unrepentant shrug. "But don't worry, this is all I did. Misaka-san can still show off like the Tokiwadai Headmistress wants when the time comes."
"What exactly do you mean by that, Uiharu-san?" Kouzaku-san asked as they all entered the building.
"You'll see." Misaka-san said a coy grin.
Wandering through the building for a bit brought them to a hall that served as a common recreation area for the prisoners. It had a number of TVs mounted on the walls with comfy chairs set up in front of them, a small library along one wall, a number of gaming machines and tables with neatly stacked boxes of board games scattered throughout. It was all around a pretty nice set up, even if there was a balcony overlooking the area from the second floor that allowed guards to look down on its occupants and thus offered little privacy. It was pretty homely even with that, at least Naru thought so.
It could do without its current occupant though. For skittering along the second floor balcony to loom over Dolly-chan and Kouzaku was a large centipede type robot that was clearly the big brother to the Type: Giant Centipedes they had run into back outside.
"So this is the top dog security robot, huh?" Naru asked airily as the robot and the group engaged in a tense stare down, neither side willing to make the first move. "What's it called again, Rui-chan?"
"It's a Riot Suppression Gigapede." Rui-chan explained as she flicked a finger at it and it was neatly bisected by an ultrathin laser she shot at it with the gesture. "And now it's dead."
"That was anticlimactic. Misaka said with a disappointed sigh." Genki Girl said with a pout. "Where was the epic fight? Misaka laments."
"Exactly! Misaka asserts." Sentai-chan said with a pout of her own. "After that epic stare down, I wanted a fight! Misaka cries."
"We'll get them next time, sisters." Dolly said encouragingly to her sisters, stars in her eyes and radiating positivity.
"Hai, Onee-san. Misaka says obediently." Sentai-chan and Genki Girl chorused as they continued their trek through the building.
"Onee-san?" Mikoto-sempai mouthed, blinking in shock.
"Hai! As Onee-san is older than all of the current Sisters and younger than Onee-sama, the Misaka Network has just voted to acknowledge her as Onee-san. Misaka informs Onee-sama." 13579-chan said with a nod.
"I have admin privileges, even though I'm not really connected to it all the time. Though I love the cat pictures!"
"Thank you for all the likes, Onee-san. Misaka says honestly." Neko-chan said with a grin. "Kuro-chan appreciates it. Misaka adds."
"Speaking of Kuro-chan, who is taking care of him while you're here, Neko-chan?" Ui-chan asked, curiously.
"I have gifted Kuro-chan's presence to Index-san, Misaka states with a soft smile."
"Argh! I still don't understand how you can stand that crazy nun." Mikoto-sempai said with a groan. "She's a pest."
"Ah, Onee-sama's scandal with the Church, Misaka whimpers." Tsundere-chan fretted.
"Don't worry about it Tsundere-chan," Rui-chan assured the Sister. "The feud is really only between Mikoto-sempai and Index-san. The rest of the Anglican Church doesn't factor into it."
"Ah, that settles Misaka's heart, says Misaka with relief." Genki Girl sighed happily.
They were just walking past a t-intersection when suddenly a scared voice called out from the branching corridor.
"Help! Onee-sans, help me. I'm lost." A girl who looked ten years old with long brown hair tied in a long ponytail cried as she ran towards them. She was dressed in an outfit reminiscent of a cheerleader with a pink theme that consisted of a tied shirt under a pink long-sleeved jacket, exposing her smooth abdomen and her navel. For bottoms, she wore a pleated short skirt that barely covered her thighs and at her feet, she wore pink boots. Lastly, her look was completed by a large backpack.
Naru was about to step forward and offer the girl some comforting reassurance that they were happy to help her but stopped herself when Rui-chan snapped a set of barriers up between the girl and their group.
"Stop the pretense, Oumi Shuri." Rui-chan said, addressing the girl in a stern voice. "What does the Kouga Ninja School want with us? Why have you infiltrated Academy City and the Jailbreaker Trial?"
"Er, I, um-!" The cutesy girl flinched, holding up her hands in the universal gesture for surrender. "Please don't shoot!"
"Wait! This girl is a ninja?" Mikoto-sempai asked, looking at Rui-chan incredulously.
"Eh, hopefully she's better than the ones I deal with." Naru grinned at the girl, who took five steps away from her.
"Yes, I can show you her Bank Profile if you don't believe Saten-san." Ui-chan said as she flashed her tablet in Mikoto-sempai's direction.
"Oi, midget, get going. No dumb ninjas allowed." Naru thumbed over her shoulder. "If you try and weasel our win, I'll end you like every other ninja that runs into me."
To emphasize the threat, Mikoto-sempai shot a static bolt in the girl's direction causing her to let out a panicked squeak before rushing off.
"Yip! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" The girl shouted as she dashed away as if her life depended on it. Which it did.
"Okay, now with the spy gone. Where to?" Naru asked, turning to Rui-chan. "Keep going straight?"
"This way," her bestie said, dismissing her barriers and stepping forward to lead them forward just like Naru had suggested.
"Okay, these Riot Suppression Gigapedes are annoying. Weak but annoying." Mikoto grumbled as the last of the six machines that they had found defending the stairway down to the underground levels housing the prisoners crumpled to the ground as it was taken offline by a salvo from her sisters.
"We do have three Level 5s here," Naru reminded her as with the guards dealt with, they began descending the stairs to the underground levels. "They weren't built to fight even one, much less three of us. That they can delay us enough to be considered annoying is already quite an achievement."
"Yup," Uiharu-san piped up. "That's why I'm thinking of borrowing some of their design elements for my own drones."
"Oh! I'd love to help with that, Uiharu-sama! Misaka declares enthusiastically" Mecha Fan chimed in.
"Onee-sama, something is odd about this whole Trial. Misaka points out." Conspiracy Nut said with a frown. "Where are the human guards? Misaka asks."
"Maybe they didn't want them to be caught up in the mayhem?" Dolly suggested. "I mean, I doubt even if all the prisoners rioted at once, the Hall would have to deal with as many hostiles as they have to today."
"Maybe, Misaka allowed. But I'm not convinced. Misaka whispered under her breath."
"13577 is right. Misaka chimes in." Military Otaku added. "Something is odd with this Trial. Misaka asserts."
"I feel the same. But we can figure it out later." Kuroko said with nods to the two Sisters. "Right now, we need to focus on completing the Trial."
"Yes, Misaka agrees. But if something is nefarious about the Trial then we need to be more on guard, Misaka suggests."
"I think Sentai-chan is right," Ruiko said with a frown. "Be on guard, everyone."
"Hai, Saten-sama! Misaka acknowledges." The Council and Dolly chorused even as everyone else nodded their own agreement.
They had just finished this when they reached the floor they wanted and exited the stairwell, only to, much to their surprise, run into Kongou-san's group again. All of which were dressed in black bodysuits.
"Kongou-san, what are those?" Naru asked, looking their three schoolmates up and down appraisingly. "They look good on you three but I'm betting you didn't put them on just for that reason."
"You presume correctly, Namikaze-sama." Kongou-san said with a smug grin. "These are suits made out of absorbent material developed by the Kongou conglomerate that are used to avoid affecting readings when working in anechoic chambers during aircraft development and so can fool various sensors. We're using them to move around the Hall unseen. Ah, but I am sorry. I only have four more suits so there isn't enough for everyone."
"Hey hey, it's fine, Kongou-chan. We're almost to the target anyway." The blonde assured them with a beaming smile. "Besides, didn't you want to compete with us? Getting this far? You might just win."
"Ah, well!" Kongou-san blushed, looking happy at the compliment. "W-Well, we'll be off once more. Please don't dally too long. We want to show you our victory!"
Once more, Team Kongou dashed off and split off from their group.
"I think it's a little mean we didn't let them know they were going in the wrong direction." Uiharu-san said with a frown.
"It is a competition. It isn't our fault she vaulted ahead." Kuroko reminded her Judgment partner.
"Haha, Kongou-chan is a riot as usual." Naru shook her head with a smirk.
"Maybe you should have teamed up with them, you two are always on the same wavelength." Mikoto remarked with a teasing grin.
"Aw, Lonely Heart Sempai wants me to abandon us? How cruel!"
"Sh-Shut up, you Usagi!"
"Is the comedy act over yet?" Kouzaku asked with a roll of her eyes. "Seriously, how carefree are you Level 5s?"
"You're just bitter over being essentially unarmed." Ruiko said with an exasperated shake of her head. "If you weren't you'd be shooting the breeze right with us. It's the Dark Sider way. We'd all go even more crazy than we already are if we couldn't destress during missions by being cavalier."
Kouzaku had the decency to blush at the insightful observation.
"And here." Ruiko continued as she conjured a bottle of what Mikoto recognised as liquid metal and passed it to Kouzaku. "I used Dark Matter to make some liquid metal you can use. It's not the exact same as the one you usually use, but it's as close as I can get on short notice."
"H-How long have you been working on it?" Kouzaku asked as she accepted the bottle.
"I've been running the calculations for it since I disintegrated the segment of the Hall's outer wall." Ruiko admitted with a shrug.
"Thank you." Kouazku said even as Dolly pulled her childhood friend into a one armed hug as they all continued past one empty holding cell after another. The cells' occupants all having temporarily been rehoused for the duration of the Trial.
"Oh, we're here." Uiharu-san declared a few moments later as they reached the door they wanted. "It's showtime, Misaka-san."
Mikoto nodded and stepped forward. Rolling up her sleeve for dramatics, she grinned widely. "Alright, you girls all had your fun. Now it's my time to shine and hack the system."
"I could do that." Uiharu-san teased with a giggle.
"Uiharu-san~!" Mikoto whined at having her thunder stolen.
"Just do it, Sempai." Ruiko said with a roll of her eyes and an amused smirk.
"Oh fine~!" Mikoto said with a pout as she placed a hand against the electronic interface for the lock holding the cell closed. It was a very comprehensive thing that had both an electronic and separate purely mechanical component, but neither could stop the most powerful Electromaster in Academy City and with just a small application of her ability to hack the electronics and some electromagnetism to manipulate the metallic mechanical lock, the cell door slid open.
The fake prisoner chuckled at the sight of them, "I should have expected the Trinity would pull this off somehow. Though, you still have to extract me from here. Think you young ladies can do that?"
"If it's fighting riff raff, it should be a pleasant stroll." The [Elemental Empress] answered with an amused giggled.
"Yeah, especially since I've also shut down the guard robots." Mikoto added smugly. "There's only the other competitors to deal with."
"Which should be easy enough." Ruiko said with a bloodthirsty smile worthy of her moniker as the [Army Slayer]. "I wanted a workout today anyway."
"Dolly, why did a shiver just go down my spine?" Kouzaku asked, hugging the bottle of liquid metal that Ruiko gave her tight against her chest.
"Ah, it's because the predators have come out to play." Dolly pointed out nervously. "It's time to show people who exactly are at the top of Academy City's food chain."
"Someone has been watching too much Animal Planet. Misaka observes with an amused shake of her head." Military Otaku said with a grin.
"The only question is do we blare music for flair or not?" Naru laughed as she clawed her hands.
"Why don't we discuss that as we head back?" Kuroko suggested diplomatically. "It's quite a walk. We'll have time."
"Not gonna try and dissuade the Trinity from trashing the other competitors?" Uiharu-san asked her partner curiously.
"That is a practice in futility. And it is a competition after all. Besides, it's been a while since I think any of them have had a chance to go all out. It's a good chance for them to stretch their muscles."
This entire discussion was met with amused laughter by the mock prisoner as they escorted her out of her cell and towards the stairs that would take them back to the surface.
"Oh, I can't wait to see the beatdown that's about to be unleashed. I'm certain it'll be entertaining to watch."
Oh, this will be fun. Iizumi Rita, leader of Scavenger thought with a grin, as she deactivated her Predator Esper ability and turned to her teammates in the small copse of trees near the tunnel the Trinity had created in the outer wall of the New Juvenile Hall.
"The Trinity have the mock prisoner and are on their way," Rita informed her friends of what she'd seen using her Clairvoyance-type ability. "Anyone need a refresher on the plan?"
"No, it's simple enough." Yakumaru said, doing some stretching in anticipation of the fight to come. "We wait for the other groups waiting to ambush the Trinity and their entourage to wear them down then we execute a smash and grab before hightailing it out of there."
"Exactly. Simple." Naru said with a nod.
"Do you have anything on the other groups waiting in ambush, Leader?" Seike asked worriedly. "Anyone we need to be worried about?"
"I didn't recognize anyone that might cause us trouble." Rita reassured him, before adding more cautiously. "But it's not like I memorized every potentially dangerous individual in the Bank. I'm not Saten-sama. So be wary of surprises."
"Gotcha, Leader." Naru said with a salute even as Yakumaru and Seike nodded.
"Trinity! Hand over the mock prisoner! The prize belongs to us!" A brash voice shouted, causing Rita and her teammates to turn to peer out of the treeline of their little hideaway to see a group of three dozen ruffians rush out of various hiding spots and charge straight at the Trinity's group.
The ruffians didn't make it far before being summarily incapitated as Namikaze-sama clapped her hands and somehow released a blast of wind that sent all of them flying. Most of them were knocked out by this alone but those few who were still left conscious had the misfortune of being subjected to Misaka-sama shocking them into unconsciousness with her electricity.
Seeing the Trinity preoccupied with dealing with the first group emboldened the next and nine Kirigaoka Girls' Academy students charged out of the foliage at them.
"Oh look, some of my former schoolmates." Kouzaku said with a bloodthirsty grin as she threw a glass bottle at the lead Kirigaoka student which shattered on the ground as the girl evaded the projectile, releasing a pint sized liquid metal puppet that leapt at the surprised girl, pulling her charge up short.
"If they are your former schoolmates, Mii-chan, why do you look like you're enjoying beating them up?" The Sister that intel pegged as being named Dolly said, looking at Kouzaku curiously even as she fired off a volley of railguns using her hair as rails and random metallic pieces she'd fished out of a hip pouch as ammunition that proceeded to force another trio of the Kirigaoka girls back.
The other Kirigaoka students were in turn pushed back by fire from the other Sisters' assorted firearms. All except one of them who formed some kind of forcefield in front of herself and barreled through the fire.
"Well, I never did get along with my schoolmates at Kirigaoka. They were a bunch of asskissers and Ojou-samas. No offense, Saten-sama."
"None taken," Saten-sama said with a shrug. "But if you don't like them, you won't mind if I mess with them a little?"
"Sure, go ahead."
"Saten-san, what do you have in mind?"
Smirking at the famed hacker known as the [Goalkeeper], Uiharu Kazari, that was her best friend, Saten-sama simply picked up the Kirigaoka girls, including the girl with the forcefield, in a telekinetic grip before using Move Point to teleport them away.
"Okay, Ruiko, where did you send them?" Misaka-sama asked with a sigh.
"Just on the other side of the wall and into the moat," Saten-sama said with a shrug. "Did you know some sections are actually flooded? I'd like to see their dry cleaning bill."
Namikaze-sama, Kouzaku-san, the mock prisoner and a number of the Sisters giggled at the Number 3's attempt at a joke. But mostly the group just sighed in exasperation.
"I'm just glad you didn't decide to drop them from altitude." Judgment's premier Teleporter, Shirai Kuroko, said with a shake of her head.
Gah, why did the Trinity have to have all these super elites in their group? Seriously, some things were just unfair.
"And make them go splat? You wound me, Shirai-san." Saten-sama said, dramatically putting her hands over her heart. "This Jailbreak Trial is a mostly harmless competition, not a fight to the death. How low your opinion of me must be to think I'd stoop to murder to win something like this."
"I think you'd stoop to murder for the lolz if you could get away with it." Shirai-san said with a shrug. "Accelerator would and you sadly take after him more and more with each passing day."
"That's true," Namikaze-sama agreed as she stamped her feet and had tendrils of loose earth shoot out of the ground and wrap around the assorted group of opponents that had seemingly silently agreed to charge their group together whilst they'd been chatting. "But I think they've been influencing each other. They're evening each other out."
"The question is whether the end product is still a little too murderous or not?" Misaka-sama added in agreement as she shocked a few of their opponents who had managed to evade the [Elemental Empress]'s earthen tentacles or managed to fight their way free of them.
"I think they still need some work but it's still a pretty good improvement." Uiharu-san said, shooting Saten-sama an encouraging look even as the latter shot some lasers that judging by where they targeted and how her victims collapsed like puppets whose strings had been cut, severed the tendons of the poor fools she'd targeted. "Good job, Saten-san. Keep it up!"
"I will, Uiharu."
"I wouldn't phrase things quite so positively, but yes, please do keep working on your homicidal tendencies Saten-san." Shirai-san said with an exasperated shake of her head even as she teleported her bespoke tranquiliser nails into dozens of the seemingly endless tide of opponents charging them, knocking them out. "And is it just me or is there no end to this horde?"
"It is pretty big," Namikaze-san agreed. "I'm detecting something like three hundred people all around us and pretty much all of them are charging us."
"There's only two hundred and seventy three people." Saten-sama corrected. "And only most of them are charging us right now. Some of them are content to keep hiding and waiting for their chance."
At this, she pointedly looked in the direction of Rita and her teammates, causing them all to tense.
"But it won't come." She added, shooting them a dark look.
"Okay, you have a grudge against whoever is camped up behind those bushes or something, Saten-sama? 'Cause your look just now was seriously scary." Kouzaku said with a shudder as she had her liquid metal doll cut the achilles tendons of one of the attackers charging the Trinity's position.
"Maybe."
"Geez, Rui-chan, stop acting like they wedgied your panties." Namikaze-sama chided.
"But I want to amp up my yandere reputation!" Saten-sama whined, idly tossing a fireball at a particularly thick cluster of attackers as she did.
"And we can do that next week on an op, not at a public event!"
"Naru, stop humoring Ruiko as she jokes around. And Ruiko, your humor really needs work." Misaka-sama took time out of coordinating the Sisters' contribution to their defense to scold both of them, causing Rita to break out into a sweat. That was Saten-sama joking around!? What was she like when she was trying to seriously be intimidating!?
"Why are they super duper freaky?" Naru asked in a whimper.
"They're Level 5s." Yakumaru said as if it explained everything which it honestly kinda did.
All of Scavenger made understanding noises.
Damn lousy super elites.
Even Misaka-sama, the most normal of the Level 5s was showing how weird she was right now. Instead of being creeped out by Saten-sama's insanely scary attempt at humor, she just sighed and pointed at the copse of trees Scavenger were hiding behind.
"Ruiko, if you really have beef with whoever is there just nuke them already and stop scaring them silly with your jokes. Save them the suspense."
"Yeah, Saten-san." Uiharu-san added. "That's just cruel. Put them out of their misery already."
There was only one thing to do in such a situation.
"Scatter!" Rita yelped.
It was too late.
"Bye bye, Scavenger." Saten-sama said as she offered them a dainty wave before she dropped a pillar of darkness over their position that caught all four of them despite their best efforts to flee. "That's for Iizumi-san's Predator being too complicated for me to properly emulate at a usable level."
"Ah, is it wrong to pity the little ants?" Naru-chan asked, a finger to her chin with a tilt of her head.
"Did you seriously blast them because you couldn't copy one of their Esper abilities?" Shirai-san asked, looking at Ruiko with a frown. "And what on earth did you hit them with?"
"The lightshow was just me being theatrical." Ruiko explained with a shrug. "I knocked them out with some basic telepathy."
"You and your theatrics," Mikoto-sempai said with a sigh.
"I think it was cool, Onee-sama." Dolly said cheerfully.
"Dolly, please don't emulate Ruiko in any way." Sempai pleaded to the prototype clone.
"Not even her fashion sense?" Dolly asked, cocking her head to the side curiously even as she blasted away with another salvo from her hair powered railguns. "I think the dresses she started wearing lately are very pretty."
"Okay, that's maybe the one exception."
"Oh, and how about the part where she managed to get super rich in only a matter of months?" Kouzaku asked with a mischievous grin.
"A) That was Kiyama-sensei," Uiharu corrected. "And B) Technically she hasn't got that much richer in recent months. A lot of that is just her laundering her Dark Side money into the legitimate Eden Corp."
"Wait! Just how much money did you earn on the Dark Side!?" Kouzaku asked, shooting Ruiko a flabbergasted look. "I was an agent for years and I never made anywhere near the levels to sponsor something like Eden Corp!"
"The money behind it isn't all mine," Ruiko clarified.
"Your 43% stake says otherwise. Misaka counters." Conspiracy Nut-chan said with a grin. "'The lady doth protest too much, methinks.' Misaka quotes."
"43%!?" Kouzaku gasped, literally staggering in disbelief.
"It's not that much." Naru-chan giggled. "Even I'm getting my money filtered through Eden Corp now. Though Rui-chan, 43%? That's more than I expected."
"I did help the City carry out regime changes in a few countries. If said regimes' treasuries had a few billion dollars disappear during the transition, well… Things happen during transfers of power like that."
"And now we know why she doesn't think a billion yen is all that substantial." Mikoto-sempai said, rubbing her nose in frustration.
"Why does that sound like she robbed them, Mii-chan?" Dolly asked her companion as they began to near the tunnel through the outer wall, something that seemed to drive the surrounding horde to greater heights of desperation and prompted them to charge forward with renewed vigor.
"Because it is."
"Oooh. So it's okay to bully other countries?"
"L-Let's not get into that."
"Why did you even need so much money, Saten-san?" Uiharu asked curiously. "To bribe the higher ups in the City?"
"Partly," Ruiko admitted shamelessly. "I spent a good chunk of it just to help me buy my first audience with Oyafune-sama. A lot of her charities had plenty of very generous donations that year."
"And on dresses." Naru-chan teased, which caused Ruiko to pout, even as they worked together to create a series of tornadoes that sucked up their competitors and dropped them over the wall and into the moat beyond.
"Not now, Naru-chan." She pleaded to which her friend giggled. Geez, that tease!
"A single audience with a Director and a few dresses couldn't have cost that much." Shirai-san said with a frown. "And didn't you pay for that audience partially with blackmail?"
"How do you think I got that blackmail half the time?" Ruiko retorted. "But yes, I didn't spend it all on just that. I kept the rest of it around just in case I ever needed it. Part of the whole reason behind setting up Eden Corp was because Oyafune-sama found out I was sitting on a few trillion yen and wasn't doing anything with it. She asked me to either invest it in something or she'd confiscate it so it could be put to some use."
"Well, at least it's finally being put to good use." Mikoto-sempai said with a tired sigh as they finally reached the tunnel and she turned to her sisters. "Sisters! Form up a rear guard."
"But Onee-sama! Then we won't win the prize! Misaka protests!" Military Otaku said with a frown.
"Aren't you girls getting paid for working for Eden Corp already? Do you need the rep that comes with winning?" Dolly said, looking at her sisters curiously.
"Onee-san, we need extra spending money, Misaka explains to their ditzy sister." Conspiracy Nut told the prototype.
"You're not after the billion yen?" The mock prisoner, who had been quiet all the while since they'd made it out from the prison building, asked, looking at Dolly curiously.
"Nah, I just joined the Trial because it sounded fun and Mii-chan wanted to."
The Sisters whimpered, looking away from the pure innocence of their Onee-san.
"You will not set bad examples for Order-chan with your greed," Ruiko said, looking at the Council of Misakas sternly. "Stay here and secure this end of the tunnel."
As one the Council of Misakas gulped, cowed.
"Yes, Saten-sama. Misaka whispered fearfully." The ten Sisters said in terrified unison.
"You've gotta teach me how you do that, Ruiko." Mikoto-sempai said with an appreciative whistle as she ushered Uiharu and the mock prisoner into the tunnel after Naru-chan who was taking point.
"They just don't take you seriously because you're too nice of an Onee-sama." Ruiko teased her sempai.
"Yeah, you're probably right." Mikoto-sempai conceded with a pout as the two of them followed after them with Shirai-san, Kouzaku and Dolly bringing up the rear.
"So I think we're almost there? Geez, I was hoping for some more ompf, ya know?" Naru-chan pouted cutely.
"Only a Level 5 would complain about something being too easy." Kouzaku observed with a sigh. "You three really are nuts."
"Actually, I think something is amiss with the ease of the Trial as well." Shirai-san chimed in with a frown. "Like Conspiracy Nut-chan pointed out earlier, the lack of human guards or even simulacrums of them is strange."
The mock prisoner tensed at this and everyone shot her a look.
"Okay, spill." Naru-chan demanded with a frown, her joking lilt gone.
"Sorry, can't say why. Company secret and all that."
"So if we push you forward ahead of us? How would it turn out?"
"Why don't you try it and find out?" The woman said with a teasing grin.
"Alright, so it's not lethal. Good to know." Shirai-san said with a sigh of relief. "Onee-sama, Saten-san, Namikaze-san, we follow the plan?"
"Plan?" Uiharu asked, blinking in confusion. "Does the Tokiwadai Headmistress want you three to put on another big show at the end?"
"It's our own idea. Plan Beta Gamma Beta." Mikoto-sempai smirked.
"Do I want to know what that is?" Kouzaku asked warily.
"I do! I'm curious!" Dolly chirped.
"It's classified information." Naru-chan put a finger to her lips and winked.
"Drats." Dolly pouted.
"Rui-chan, ready?"
"Yup. You, Naru-chan?"
"On three?"
"Three!" Ruiko shouted playfully as she gently shoved Uiharu in the back, sending her stumbling the scant few steps forward and out of the tunnel even as Naru-chan did the same for the mock prisoner.
As a result, the two staggered out of the tunnel and to the other side of the New Juvenile Hall's outer wall one after another. And as they did, a shrill siren sounded from the facility's PA system.
"The Jailbreak Trial has been completed! The mock prisoner has been liberated. We have a winner! Congratulations to participant #779, Uiharu Kazari-san! Our staff will be with you shortly to escort you to the prize giving ceremony. To all other competitors in the Trial, thank you for participating and helping New Juvenile Hall stress test its security measures. Your assistance in strengthening our security is greatly appreciated. Please join us at the prize giving ceremony to congratulate our winner and enjoy the accompanying celebratory festival."
After the prize giving ceremony, the Trinity crew found their group whittled down to only the core group of five friends, Naru, Rui-chan, Mikoto-sempai, Ui-chan and Shirai-chan, as they wandered aimlessly through the festival set up by the New Juvenile Hall to celebrate the Jailbreak Trial.
"So~ Ui-chan, what do you intend to use the billion yen for? Build a supercomputer to become even more of the [Goalkeeper]? Or maybe add a few new models to your drone army, Miss [Drone Queen]?"
"Neither," Ui-chan said with a shake of her head. "I'm donating it to a Child Error care home, Asunaru Park. I volunteer there sometimes and they can really use the money to expand."
"Eh? I guess that's sensible and all. But wouldn't it be better to save some for yourself?"
Ui-chan shrugged and jokingly said. "If I need money I could always hack a bank or something."
"I can tell you which country's central banks have the worst cybersecurity." Rui-chan chimed in mischievously.
"Do I want to know why you know that, Saten-san?" Shirai-san said with a frown.
"The City hacks them routinely to extract information. I help sometimes." Rui-chan said with a shrug.
"Why don't I get asked to help?" Ui-chan asked with a pout.
"That's be-" Rui-chan began only to suddenly freeze midword, and Naru joined her, her instincts screaming at her that something very unnatural was happening nearby.
Kurama? What the heck was that!?
No idea. Her partner said with a growl. It seems somewhat familiar but I can't quite put a finger on it.
"You feel that?" Naru asked her bestie.
"Yeah…It felt nearly identical to something I felt distantly during Gensei's Level 6 Shift Attempt on Mikoto-sempai."
"Fuck." Naru cursed as the reminder jogged her memory on just where she'd last felt this feeling. "This is just like the aura of one of those freaky dragons that came out of Kamijou's arm when it got temporarily disintegrated during that fight."
Argh! One of those unnatural things?
Looks like it.
"I'm sorry, dragons?" Shirai-chan asked in shock. "You mean those things in the footage from the fight you showed me were actual dragons?"
"Well, I don't know if they were true dragons or not, but they looked close enough to be called dragons. I mean, they were giant, flying reptilian creatures! What else would I call them?"
"We can argue the semantics about the nomenclature of those creatures another time, Naru-chan." Rui-chan said with a frown. "For now, let's focus on investigating the source of this strange feeling."
"I'm with Ruiko on this one Chibi. Where is this feeling coming from?"
Naru nodded and putting a hand on Mikoto-sempai and Shirai-san's shoulder teleported them to the site from whence the strange aura originated, whilst Rui-chan did the same for Ui-chan. They all rematerialised on the opposite side of the New Juvenile Hall from where the festival was being held and beheld what was unmistakably a crime scene. Laying on the ground amidst a pile of beautiful white feathers were a pair of the Hall's guards, both of whom were very clearly not breathing.
The night after the Jailbreak Trial, Kazari was in her dorm room preparing for bed whilst on a video conference call with the rest of the Trinity to discuss the day's events.
"I've tried my best but I've still not been able to recover the footage from when the guards were killed. The data, if it ever existed, has been very thoroughly scrubbed." Kazari informed her friends.
"The only cameras that could have captured what happened belonged to the New Juvenile Hall." Saten-san observed.
"'Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.'" Namikaze-san quoted with a frown. Her serious face was on and that meant this was highly unusual. "The higher ups in the Hall would be the only ones with data access or the ability to destroy it. At least as quickly as it has been dealt with. So the question is what are they hiding?"
"And the whole Jailbreak Trial was suspicious too." Misaka-san added with a nod.
"Yeah, it only used automated guard teams."
"It's almost as if they were specifically trying to find the best hacker among the participants." Namikaze-san noted.
"But it seems that aspect of things failed, since we won by working as a team instead of relying on hacking alone."
"That may be true Saten-san, but that the Trial was slanted towards hackers is clear." Shirai-san observed.
"That's true." Namikaze-san said, sounding playful. "And even if the Trial didn't give her a chance to properly show it off, the best hacker did win.
"You flatter me, Namikaze-san."
"She's not wrong though, Uiharu. There's no need to be so humble." Saten-san chided. "But let's not get too sidetracked. We all agree that something is wrong with the New Juvenile Hall?"
Everyone expressed their agreement.
"I wonder though." Shirai-san said with a thoughtful hum. "Is the trouble with the New Juvenile Hall due to a rotten apple? Or is it that the whole tree is rotten?"
"We'll figure that out when we go shake it down tomorrow." Misaka-san assured them.
"Knowing our luck? The entire orchard is rotting at the roots." Namikaze-san grumbled.
"At least then we get to burn it to the ground." Saten-san said with an eager grin.
It seems she's in a destructive mood lately. Kazari noted. She must not have had the chance to go work out her aggression at the batting cages recently. Gotta make sure she gets an outlet soon or the City is liable to have a new crater it'll need to fill in soon.
"I am not adverse to that if need be, but let's hope it won't be necessary." Shirai-san said with a sigh. "In the meantime, any leads based on those feathers we found at the crime scene on your end, Saten-san? The Judgment analysts are still working on them but haven't made any progress."
"Outside of ruling out all known mundane species, unfortunately no."
"Mundane species!?" Misaka-san said, sounding alarmed. "Are you saying they're feathers from some magical creature?"
"Either that or something cooked up by some mad scientist." Naru opined. "That's a possibility too. And considering the aura I and Rui-chan felt was similar to one of Kamijou's dragons, I think we have our prime suspect."
"I know, but I just don't like it getting confirmed, ya know?"
Before anyone could reply to Misaka-san's whining complaint, Kazari's doorbell rang, interrupting their conversation.
"Sorry about that everyone," Kazari said as she stood up from her seat in front of her PC. "I have a delivery. Let me go pick it up. I'll be back in a jiffy!"
Her request was met with a chorus of agreement from her friends and Kazari offered them a smile before she went to answer the door.
"Coming!" Kazari shouted to the person on the other side of her front door as she made her way to it.
She was surprised when she finally reached and swung it open though. For instead of a delivery person, she was met with a older girl with long light blue wavy hair, which covered the right side of her face who was smiling at her, revealing notably sharp teeth.
"Hello [Goalkeeper]-san," the strange bluenette said with a predatory air to her. One that reminded Kazari unsettlingly of Namikaze-san at her worst. "I would like to have your help with something."
Before Kazari could even respond, the woman stepped aside and an older boy with pale skin and spiky, white hair, red eyes and dressed in winter wear, stepped in front of her with a spray can in hand that he used to spray something into her face.
"Wha-" Kazari managed before what she belatedly realized was some kind of knock out gas took effect and she fell forward into the boy's waiting arms.
Done and done! Thanks to Nameless as always!
Whelp, that was a fun time for the girls. Nothing like a pleasant event to get the day rolling. Dolly was a treat for the Trinity team to interact with and just all the little shenanigans they got up to were a delight. And of course we have the ending for our champion. Uiharu definitely deserves the win and all of the Trinity agreed. At least they were part of the winning team, so they did what the Headmistress wanted.
Nameless: Oh, the Jailbreaker Trial was fun to write indeed. The interactions between Mikoto, Dolly and the other Sisters especially. Dolly is just all sweet innocence that is at once so odd for a Sister and yet so utterly fitting. And the Tokiwadai Headmistress should be satisfied, if she isn't… Well, what can she do? Complain to the Trinity's parents? I want to see her try to get Kiyama or Aleister to care. Misuzu might humor her but only until she learns Mikoto let Uiharu win out of friendship, then she'll back her daughter to the hilt. And punishing the three of them won't work either, not when they participated in the Trial at her request and not her order. Punishing them for failing or sabotaging that would be an abuse of power and Ruiko and Naru at least are influential enough to get her into real trouble if she tried.
All hail the pure Onee-san archetype. The Sisters have someone to follow when Onee-sama is busy. I can only imagine their threads on the Misaka Network about Onee-san appreciation. And of course the ending with Uiharu, oof, it sucks but that is part of the arc sadly.
Nameless: Hope you guys liked the little cliffhanger we left the chapter on. We thought it would be a nice place to stop. Don't worry, if our release schedule holds, you'll get to see what happens next week and we assure you that it'll be exciting. Or as exciting as we can make it.
You know what to do! Smash that review button and tell us what you love! No flames and peace off my peeps!