The Phantom Thieves found themselves staring at Yoshiki himself. "So...you are..." Toshiro gulped as Yoshiki called him out, as a good for nothing son.

"You hear me, don't you?" Yoshiki's buddha appearance held a smile, but the face inside was doing anything but. "Toshiro Kasukabe. Are you listening my beloved, foolish son?"

"Ngh...!" Toshiro gripped his head in agony. It felt like static was in his head, obscuring his memories. But the words that Wolf told him earlier finally clicked. Yoshiki truly was his father, but how could he forget something like that? In fact, why was he only just remembering it!?

"Ah, so you remember me now? Ohohohoho!" Yoshiki laughed. "What kind of son forgets his own father's face?" And then his face came out of his mask. "Apologize, you helpless moron! I want you to reproach yourself and beg for my forgiveness! ...Is what I'd like to say, but I'll let that slide for now." He was calm again... "However...I'll never forgive you for taking off with that!" And again, he was angry.

"What the hell!?" Skull's eyes were wide at how Yoshiki flipped personalities on a dime.

"Prepare to pay the price, you undutiful, pitiful, excuse for a son!" Yoshiki shouted, glaring straight at Toshiro.

"...There are definitely some interesting tidbits in that speech, but..." Panther was sweating. She had no idea what to make of this. Wolf brought up Yoshiki's attitude in passing, but this was far beyond what she was expecting.

"Is he emotionally unstable or what? He's like a teenager at the peak of puberty, am I right...!" Oracle exclaimed.

"I'm...confused..." Sophie had no idea what to make of this. Yoshiki was Toshiro's father, but he was being so mean to him...

"That hidden face of rage...it must be Yoshikii's true nature." Fox commented.

"Perfect. He makes this easy." Crow said while aiming his gun at Yoshiki. "We can end this right here."

"That's not going to work and you know it." Ichinose remarked. Crow sucked his teeth in annoyance at that. She wasn't wrong, but he wasn't going to admit that. And taking a shot right now may not have been the best idea...

"Tch..." Wolf clenched his hand into a fist. Was this a reflection of how Yoshiki treated Toshiro in reality. What kind of father would...

"You..." Dragon was glaring at Yoshiki, feeling her own rage bubble to the surface slowly.

"I...I don't have any idea what you're talking about...really!" Toshiro attempted to defend himself.

Once again, Yoshiki appeared calm. "You need not feign ignorance, my boy. I know fully well that you're not the kind of person who would defy his father. Hehehe...I'm the one who made you that way, after all. You haven't forgotten, have you?"

"T-That's not!" Toshiro grunted. Luckily Wolf and Dragon were standing in front of him. "Agh...!"

"Toshiro!" Erina gasped worriedly.

"Now hurry up and hand it over!" Yoshiki demanded. "Unless you want to fill your lungs in the depths of my watery grave of love!?"

"We can end this right now..." Joker was getting ready to sprint forward. If Yoshiki insisted on badgering Toshiro like this, he'd pay the price. However, before anyone could take any real action...

"I come with a report for Lord Yoshiki!" An Aizen Squad member rushed over to the scene, ignoring the others and focusing on Yoshiki.

Yoshiki, however, was still in a fit of rage. "The hell do you want!?"

"Ack-!" The messenger gulped. Very rarely did they experience the anger Yoshiki held within, but when they did, it frightened them. Still, this message was imperative and he had to deliver it. "W-We've recovered control of the monitor that was hijacked by an unknown perpetrator!"

"I don't give a damn about that! You want me to drown you too!? HUH!?" Yoshiki barked at the messenger, who was doing his best not to prostrate himself on the spot.

"B-But...there's not much time left until he scheduled broadcast of I love Haiku with Lord Yoshiki!" The messenger gulped.

At that moment, Yoshiki's rage came to an end. "...Hohohoho! Now that just wont' do." And once again, he was calm. His face retracted into the buddha statue. "Everyone is waiting for my words of love. I must return immediately!" He then made a heart symbol with his hands, and winked towards the Phantom Thieves. "Reluctant as I am, I must take my leave."

"Never do that again!" Viper pointed and gagged at Yoshiki's show of love. She was practically dry heaving..

"Running away already, are we?" Joker asked.

"Hohoho! How hot-heated you both are. You lack love, my son and daughter. A rich, boundless love is what you need." Yoshiki responded calmly.

"NEVER CALL ME THAT AGAIN! You and your love make my sick!" Viper shouted even louder than before, so thoroughly disgusted by Yoshiki that couldn't she couldn't hide it. With this, she has made herself the most vocal hater of Yoshiki and his love.

"You'll have to excuse me, but my patriots of love shall tend to you now." Yoshiki said calmly.

"W-Wait..." Toshiro had questions, but the pain in his head was too much. So much, in fact, that he ended up collapsing onto the ground.

"Toshiro-san...!" Yuki quickly rushed over to him. "Toshiro-san, stay with us...!"

Suddenly, Yoshiki's attention turned to Yuki. He appeared surprised. "It's you...! I see. I was wondering how they were so well prepared. So you've been helping them, hm?"

"...!" Yuki, upon being spotted by Yoshiki in the first time in a long time, gasped at him.

"I don't know what kind of schemes you're concocting, but evidently you have yet to realize its futility. Surely you must know that my people will never betray the love of their Lord Yoshiki. The citizenry seek my love from the very marrow of their bones. And I am gracious enough to pour it upon them."

"What, the rage and verbal abuse?" Viper scoffed.

"This guy really likes the sound of his own voice, huh?" Ichinose scoffed. She couldn't recall the last time she met someone so talkative...excluding herself when she started nerding out on things. But that didn't count.

"I bid you good daaaaaaay! Ohohohoho!" And with that, Yoshiki simply made his exit.

"Did he show up just to pick a fight with us?" Dragon asked. Although, that question was quickly answered as Aizen Squad members quickly began to file in on the streets. "I suppose that answers that question..."

"Let's wrap this up quick." Wolf said while gesturing to Toshiro, who Erina and Yuki decided to help up.

"Sorry..." Toshiro grumbled.

"Whatever, just make sure he's not in the way." Viper said while glaring at the Aizen Squad. After that encounter with Yoshiki, she had a lot of rage she needed to work through. So mauling Yoshiki's henchmen was the perfect way to blow off some steam. "It's about to get ugly in here." And ugly it caught. The Aizen Squad caught most of Viper's wrath before they could even set up properly. Yoshiki really pissed her off.

"Oh, wow." Panther blinked. She'd never seen Viper so overtly upset before!

"They're on the roofs, too!" Oracle pointed out.

"I can take care of this!" Dragon said while leaping forward. She pressed her staff to the ground and allowed it to extend. This pushed her to the rooftops where a fee Aizen Squad members were trying to take aim at the Phantom Thieves. she arrived before they could take aim, and used her extended staff to knock all of them off the roof. "To you!"

"Got it!" Panther, Fox, and Noir exclaimed at once. They fired their guns as the Aizen Squad members fell from the sky. The moment they hit the ground, they were defeated in a heartbeat.

"Nice work!" Oracle exclaimed.

"We've an opening. Let's get out of here." Joker said. It was better to not fight in the middle of the city, especially since the Aizen squad could keep coming if they weren't careful. In order to aid in their escape, he pointed at a group of Aizen Squad members attempting to give chase. "Raoul!" Raoul then blasted the group of Aizen Squad members with a Eiga, the widespread curse magic stopping them from moving after impact. "There!" And now, it was time for them to retreat.

.

.

After pulling away from the battle against the Aizen Squad, the group was able to sneak away and return to Leblanc. A much needed rest was taken as they all attempted to go over the information they had. "Okay, we should start by going over the situation..."

"But wait, where's Yuki-san?" Ann asked.

"She went out into town - she wanted to check in on the people we rescued." Erina explained.

"She's quite kind hearted, isn't she?" Yusuke said with a smile. "We can tell her everything later."

With that clear, Zenkichi took a seat while looking at Toshiro. "You look like you remember some things now. Care to fill us in?"

"Yes." Toshiro nodded slowly. "I remember everything. Just as Hasegawa-san explained before, that man is indeed my father, Yoshiki Kasukabe, a current member of the Diet."

"That's where I remember him..." Akechi realized it just now. "He doesn't attract much attention. He tends to stay under the radar. He was present while Shido was making his campaign, but it was extremely easy to overlook him."

"He's had a long standing career." Makoto added. "I've heard he even has a reputation for consensus building within his party."

"Yes, some people call him "Buddha Kasukabe" in admiration of his serene temperament." Toshiro said. "...On the surface, that is."

"Based on what we just saw, it looks like your old man has some anger management issues to iron out." Ichinose said callously. Not intentionally. But anything involving parents was not something she could relate to, aside from losing them...

"Yes." Toshiro couldn't argue with Ichinose's words either. "My father is obsessed with political power. Not being one for the spotlight, he tended to shy away from publicity. Which is why he sought to fulfill his desires by making me Prime Minister. When I was a child, he raised me strictly. Not just academically - he drilled me on political etiquette and controlled my social interactions. If I failed to comply with his demands, he wouldn't hesitate to raise his hand against me."

"What an asshole..." Ryuji grumbled.

"...Some parent he is." Zenkichi scowled. Hearing it from Toshiro's perspective did irritate him as a father. He would never treat Akane like that. He couldn't even imagine it!

"Tch." Akechi just scoffed in annoyance.

"Even as a child, there were moments when I resented being born into such a family." Toshiro closed his eyes, recalling the memory with a frown.

"That sounds horrible...you couldn't resist?" Ren asked.

"My father's word was absolute. The thought of rebelling never even crossed my mind." Toshiro admitted. "Moreover, I had no one else to turn to."

"Not everyone can push back like you and expect the same results." Mika told Ren. She was right and he let out a small sigh.

"Uh...what about your mom...?" Futaba asked meekly. "Didn't she help you?"

To that, Toshiro shook his head slowly. "My mother was very frail. She passed away from illness when I was little. To be honest, I barely even remember her..."

"Illness...I'm sorry." Hifumi rubbed her arm. Losing a parent to illness...even almost a year later, it was still a fresh wound for her. "But I'm sure she loved you dearly."

"..." Toshiro fell silent from Hifumi's words. A thought crossed his mind. But he shook it off. "Anyway, I eventually became a Diet Member by riding on my father's coattails. Even now, I simply do what my father tells me to do. That still hasn't changed. Given my history, it's rather laughable that I could forget him."

"Yeah." Mika agreed to that.

"Hey, take it easy on him!" Ann huffed. Mika just sighed in response.

"I have a question." Sophia lifted her hand, and everyone turned to her. "I am confused. Yoshiki is Toshiri's father, but he treats him so horribly. Why does he say he does things out of love, if it hurts Toshiro in the end?"

"It's a type of abuse." Zenkichi stated. This made Sophia tilt her head.

"Abuse...?" Sophia asked.

"Kids are innocent. They only know what their parents teach them for a long time. As such, they are shaped by how they're raised." Zenkichi looked to Sophia. "Kids want nothing more than to be loved by their parents. They'll accept and do anything they're told, because they don't know better. Yoshiki says it's out of love, because that probably quelled any questions and concerns Toshiro had. But it's just plain abusive behavior."

"I see..." Sophia frowned. "That makes me sad. I'm sorry you had to go through that, Toshiro."

Hearing an apology from Sophia did make Toshiro smile slightly. She was so earnest and innocent, how could he not? "It's alright..."

"I have another question, now that I think about it." Sophia looked to the others. "If Toshiro was always seen as an obedient child, why did he appear so angry when he saw him? He even went so far as to call him a criminal...?"

"Maybe he is a criminal." Ichinose joked.

"Ah...right. My father actually isa criminal." When Toshiro said this, everyone looked surprised.

"Are you sure about this?" Zenkichi was the most serious about this. "That's a very grave thing to say."

"I'm certain of it." Toshiro looked to Zenkichi with a firm nod. "Following Representative Shido's downfall, my father decided to take action. He began laying down the groundwork to ensure that I would be nominated as the Prime Minister. But then, senator Owada made his move due to the political turmoil that's been occurring since last year. Luckily for him, that situation resolved itself when Owada was arrested in August."

"Gramps got him real good, too!" Futaba snickered.

"Is it that easy to do?" Sumire questioned.

"Under normal circumstances, no. But my father began employing shady characters to intimidate representatives he had dirt on. He also went about wheeling and dealing a large amount of Marie's family's financial resources."

"If that's true, then he's guilty of extortion, guilty, blackmail, and bribery. All criminal offenses..." Makoto listed off each offense.

"And you're sure of this?" Zenkichi asked once again.

"I have documents he forged, voice recordings, and the other hard evidence as well." Toshiro confirmed. "I had a hunch my father began to rig the election, which is why I investigated. I still have the evidence, which I secretly stole on hand."

"I guess that explains those files we saw on your phone." Ichinose crossed her arms. "We were just about to take a peak at them before we got whisked away to Marie's Kingdom.

"Another corrupt politician. I'm so surprised." Akechi's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "Why do they appear to pop up every few months? You take out one, another reappears. I'm sick of it."

"Toshiro-san. If you go public with all that information, and have Zenkichi-san arrest your father...you wouldn't have anything to worry about, right?" Sumire asked. It all sounded perfectly reasonable and logical...

"Y-Yeah, but...I was too afraid to blow the whistle at him." Toshiro admitted with a grunt, clenching his gloved hand into a fist. He felt so cowardly about it. "My father's schemes were not out of the ordinary in the political world. The only person he couldn't get anything on was Toranosuke Yoshida...ending the political confusion with steady leadership was in everyone's best interest...is what I kept telling myself. It's truly a shameful story."

"You said it." Mika filed her nails. "No wonder you're a coward right down to your core."

"You don't have to be so blunt about it." Makoto said with a sweat drop.

"No, she's right. Not speaking up about it makes me equally guilty. I won't talk my way out of it." Toshiro shook his head.

"Then turn over a new leaf. It's not too late." Ren said firmly.

"...I wonder..." Toshiro mumbled.

"Well, settin' that aside for now...I think I get the gist." Ryuji could put this together pretty easily. "Yoshiki thinks you hid that evidence, so he's tryin' to get it back, right?"

"Well, no." Toshiro shook his head. "I thought so at first, but something doesn't make sense. I don't think he knows. First of all, he didn't show any signs of panic about his misdeeds potentially being exposed...furthermore, I doubt the thought of me betraying him has ever crossed his mind. So...so maybe...maybe because I thought that he knew about it. The thought of my father questioning me about the evidence I stole fills me with terror...in other words, I think he knows, because that's how I perceived it to be..."

"So that confirms it." Hifumi said with a small frown. "I was wondering this since our encounter with Marie, but now there is no other possibility: this Kingdom, and the one before it, were all born out of Toshiro's cognition. Much like The Streets..."

"The Metaverse works in patterns." Zenkichi said. "So this tracks. The first one could have been a coincidence, but everything after that..."

"...?" Erina couldn't quite follow the conversation. Some of the stuff they talked about went over her head, but this gave her a strange feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"So the Metaverse we've been pulled into belongs to Toshiro." Ichinose stroked her chin. "If this is the case, then what happened earlier makes a lot more sense. All of the other incidents pointed to this obvious conclusion, but what Futaba-chan and I witnessed was undoubtedly the last straw! I couldn't believe he figured out a password that was giving even the two of us trouble. But naturally, if this is all part of his cognition, he would be the only one to figure it out!"

"W...What's happening." Toshiro began to sweat. Ichinose was talking fast and far more than he was used to.

"She does this." Sophia said with a simple nod. She was used to it.

"What incident are you talking about?" Ann asked, feeling out of the loop...

"It went like this..." Morgana began.

.

.

[Flashback.]

After getting the information from the others in the banquet hall, Futaba and Ichinose were attempting to crack the security code that would give them access to the cameras and the monitor. "Unbelievable." Ichinose was surprised at the difficulty they were having. The two of them, unable to crack a simple password!

"This is even giving the two of us trouble...this guy must either be really paranoid or something...!" Futaba grunted. To make matters worse, over the communications line, she could hear the beginnings of a fight. The others were doing their best to hold back, but it was clear they were losing time and patience.

"Oh no! It sounds like there's a tense situation over there!" Toshiro was beginning to panic. He knew they wouldn't be able to hold back much longer.

"It's gonna get ugly if we can't get through this..." Morgana grunted.

"This is lookin' really bad! Oracle, how much longer?!" Ryuji asked.

"Sorry, we need just a little longer." Futaba frowned. "But if we can get through this, we can expose all of Yoshiki's misdeeds!"

Those words triggered something within Toshiro. "Misdeeds? Expose...? Agh...!" And once again, his head started to hurt. But at the same time, he remembered something. "Sorry, but I'm borrowing this for a moment!" Without warning, he nudged past Ichinose and Futaba.

"W-What are you...?" Ichinose was surprised by this.

"Hey, Pops, what are you...huh!?" Futaba gasped.

"All I have to do is input the password, right?" Toshiro began pressing a few buttons. After a second, the door they worked so hard to open just...opened.

"It opened!" Yuki gasped.

"Whoa, way to go, Toshiro! You have a knack for this kind of thing, too?" Morgana asked.

"N-No, that was just..." Toshiro wasn't sure how to answer that. "I just..."

"..." Ichinose didn't say anything, but her brow did raise at this.

Futaba had no idea what just happened, but it was good for them. "A-Alright! We're all set on our end! The ball's in your court, guys!"

[End flashback.]

.

.

"I must've been able to open the door because I perceived myself exposing my father's crimes." That was the logical conclusion that Toshiro came to.

"I doubt it's likely that you just got lucky, huh?" Haru asked.

"My father is a cautious man. He would frequently change the password on these kinds of devices." Toshiro said firmly.

"More like a paranoid man." Futaba quipped.

"And I've realized something about this place as well, Leblanc." Toshiro went on. "My being the youngest candidate for Prime Minster caused some commotion - I was uncomfortable no matter where I went. I was overwhelmed every day - having to entertain visitors, meet other Diet members, and deal with the media...then one day, I stumbled upon Leblanc in a backstreet. From then on, I went there to find refuge whenever I wanted to be alone."

"Leblanc does have that kind of appeal, doesn't it? I used to do the same thing." Haru said with a slight smile.

"Hehe, it's so quiet that you can hardly tell they do business!" Futaba snickered.

'I don't think Boss would be very happy to hear you say that." Sumire added.

"Oh, and the coffee there is exquisite." Toshiro complimented. "Although I didn't start visiting more often until earlier this summer, it's still possible I may have encountered a few of you at the time. Not that I would know, though. That doesn't explain what this world is, or why you were all dragged in here..."

"I believe we can shed some light on this." Akechi spoke. He gestured to Hifumi, Ren, Yusuke, Mika, and Sumire. "We've encountered something similar just recently."

"Ah, that's right." Yusuke nodded. "The Streets..."

"The...what?" Toshiro blinked.

"You explain." Mika pointed at Ren. Mostly because she didn't want to do the talking.

"Right." Ren nodded. "So, basically...this isn't the first time we've encountered this kind of situation specifically. I don't know how time works in here, but the day before we got dragged here, the six of us were dragged into a Metaverse that was created by the artist Guernica."

"That same mysterious artist that's been putting graffiti on government buildings?" Toshiro asked, and they nodded.

"Indeed." Yusuke replied. "The world we landed in was called The Streets, created by Guernica's cognition. As it turns out, there was some evil higher being attempting to use their art to control and destroy the masses."

"Huh?" Now Erina was confused. "How does that work?"

"Long story short, a bitchy bird by the name of Jerri was strong arming that poor girl and trying to make her go mad." Mika said with a scowl. Whereas Yusuke was attempting to keep Guernica's identity under wraps, Mika just let it slip because the memory of it was too irritating. "Guernica's art resonated with people, and that bird wanted to use that and destroy people from within. The Streets were filled with mice, like civilians in this world...and Guernica was being controlled to kill all of them."

"There was a person we met named Luca, who was very near and dear to Guernica. Luca was the one thing keeping Guernica's mind and heart from being taken over. We were able to save her because of Luca." Sumire went on.

"What we've been doing in the Kingdoms is very akin to this." Hifumi crossed her arms. "So, essentially...I believe that some higher power is at play here. Toshiro is a target of interest for them, and they must be trying a different approach than Jerri. Jerri's approach was violent and manipulative. She attempted to make Guernica destroy herself in the process . This approach...it feels as if they are waiting for Toshiro to ultimately break on his own."

"But I don't get it? Why me?" Toshiro had so many questions. He wasn't anything special...!

"Because you are going to be the Prime Minister." Akechi said calmly. "From what I understand, for some reason, higher powers have an obsession with people in political power. Whoever is responsible for this, believes they can probably use you to enact whatever awful plan they have for humanity."

"That would be par for the course." Ren said.

"That makes sense." Even Ann could just nod at this.

"The fact that this is normal to you all says too much." Zenkichi had enough of fighting deity-like beings after the Demiurge. But everything they said tracked with what he knew.

"Gods are pretty annoying, aren't they?" Ichinose said with a slight laugh. She wasn't wrong.

"So this means that the people we've encountered are people that Toshiro knew." Makoto surmised. Some things of the Metaverse still remained the same.

"Even more importantly...we have to ensure they stay safe. At least, those that are on our side." Hifumi added, her eyes glancing towards Erina. Erina's expression did shift to one of uncertainty, as the words they spoke made her feel strange. "We are in Toshiro's heart. If anything were to happen to, let's say...Yuki for example...it may be bad for him."

"Yuki-san..." Toshiro glanced to the side for a second. If something happened to Yuki...

"Erina..." Sophia turned to Erina, who fell silent. "Are you..."

"Huh? Oh, I'm completely fine!" Erina said, even though that may not have been Sophia's question at all. "I mean, I don't really get all of this stuff. But I know one thing: I want to help. That's always been true, and nothing will change that!"

"..." Hifumi pursed her lips. There was a lie in there and she felt it, but...maybe it was for the best they didn't push it for now. So she turned to Toshiro. "So I assure you, as the Shield of the Phantom Thieves, I will not allow any harm to come to the people here!"

Hifumi's determination was so earnest. Toshiro had seen it before, but such a declaration... "Hah..." Even Toshiro couldn't help but grin.

"That's our Fumi." Ann said with a faint smile. "You can totally trust her, Toshiro. She's saved us more times than I can count."

"She's tenacious about it to a fault." Akechi added.

"I...I appreciate this, I do." Yet, that didn't stop the guilt from eating him inside. "But I feel as if I've dragged you all into my own problems. You shouldn't have to bear the responsibility for something you were never apart of to begin with. I'm truly sorry."

"No need to apologize, man." Ryuji said with a dismissive hand wave. "Even if it turns out we're stuck here, we'll just work somethin' out."

"Yeah, I mean, we're practically masters of Metaverse combat by now!" Futaba grinned.

"If we can't overcome this, then perhaps we were fated to be here." Yusuke said.

"Don't drag me into this!" Mika pointed at all of them. "I never wanted to be here to begin with, least of all in some the middle of some old man's problems! I'm only here to get out."

"She's part of the team, but you can exclude her." Ann said while glaring at Mika with daggers in her eyes. Mika just scoffed and turned away. "Besides! How are Fumi and I supposed to enjoy all the sweets in the world if we die here?"

"That's a sweet sentiment. I do want to go home with you." Hifumi smiled softly.

"We're in this for the long haul, with plenty of reasons to want to go home." Zenkichi crossed his arms. He had a daughter waiting for him!

"So don't worry about it." Ren told Toshiro. "We'll get home together."

"I see..." Toshiro glanced off to the side. These young adults were much stronger than he ever was at their age. He couldn't help but feel jealous about that. "You're all very tough, aren't you?"

"We've been through a lot." Morgana said with a slight smile. "But you're not so weak yourself, you know."

"Yes, I agree. You have a strong heart, Toshiro." Sophia said.

"What? Me?" Toshiro looked surprised. He and strong were not words that he ever thought would be in the same sentence.

"You discerned your father's motives and acted of your volition. If you hadn't acted, you'd still remain his puppet." Makoto spoke with a smile.

"You couldn't overlook your father's crimes, so you wanted to make things right, isn't that so?" Haru could see the effort that Toshiro was putting in.

"But, I didn't have the courage to..."

'Not at the time, right?" Erina cut in, causing Toshiro to gasp. "Think about it, it's just the same when you confronted Marie. It's just like you said - even puppets have a backbone!"

"Hah, yeah, you're right." With this in mind, Toshiro let out a deep sigh. "Phantom Thieves, I have a favor to ask of you all Even if this world is in my mind, I still can't manipulate it at will, right?"

"Fat lot of help that is." Mika added.

"For example, I just can't wish my way out of here..." As nice as it sounded, Toshiro realized it wasn't that simple.

"And while we're in here, our own lives are at risk." Akechi stated.

"In that case, there's something I have to do." Toshiro looked to the others. "I'm not going to run from my father, not even the version of him in this world. Will you lend me a hand, Phantom Thieves? I give you my word that I'll indict my father for his crimes! I'll expose everything, and clean the political world of corruption!" And then he paused. "No. I can't call this a deal. What you all would get in return is too ambiguous."

"I thought striking deals was one of your strong suits?" Ichinose couldn't help but tease Toshiro about that. Seeing him flounder at his supposed strength was enough to make her chuckle. Toshiro felt a cloud over his head as Ichinose continued to poke fun at him.

But having someone constantly joking at him felt nice in a way... "I need a more tangible reward. Since you're Phantom Thieves, maybe some cash, or jewels, or even gold...but where would I get that kind of money? Would it even be legal? Agh, there must be something...!" Toshiro was beside himself trying to sweeten this deal. It didn't feel like he could offer anything that was a suitable reward for them!

"Please no gold." Sumire shook her head frantically. She couldn't forget what happened earlier in the summer.

"I'm going to choose to ignore it this one time." Zenkichi cleared his throat. Legally speaking, this wasn't a deal he should allow or take part in...but he was willing to let it slide this one time. The matters concerning Yoshiki were far more important.

"How about this," Makoto began. "We'll fight by your side while we're here - in exchange you'll indict your father for his crimes in the real world. Zenkichi can take care of it from there. He's got a track record of arresting politicians so far. That's the deal. We don't need anything else."

"Feels good getting my hands on the real slimy ones." Zenkichi said with a faint chuckle. There was probably nothing that could beat the feeling of arresting Owada.

"You're the only one who can set your father straight." Haru said.

"Yeah, if there's a grown adult out there who lost their way, we're countin' on you to fix 'em up for us!" Ryuji grinned. "You've got Gramps too! So you don't got anything to worry about."

"...I..." Toshiro was stunned. "I swear I'll fulfill my promise! You have my word! Thank you, Phantom Thieves!"

"Then it's a deal!" Ann and Hifumi spoke at the same time.

At some point during this conversation, Yuki entered Leblanc once again. Hearing Toshiro so determined made her giggle. "Hehe..."

"Yuki-san, you came back!" Ann noticed her.

"Yes. Everyone we rescued appears to be fine now." Yuki responded in such a gentle tone. "It sounded as if you were talking about something important. I only heard bits and pieces of it, however."

"Toshiro here plans to stand up to daddy dearest!" Ichinose paraphrased.

"At least make it sound better than that!" Toshiro grunted in mild annoyance. Ichinose was totally selling him short! "I want to help the people of this Kingdom. And that means standing up to my father."

"See? You can do it if you try." Ichinose mused.

"She's having too much fun with this." Akechi rolled his eyes.

"I like her better when she's like this." Mika replied. The honesty was refreshing.

"So let's keep this momentum going." Ren told the team.

"We need to act while the Aizen Squad is still in disarray." Toshiro brought a hand to his chin. "That means we probably don't have much time..."

"Then we should hurry and figure out our next steps. I feel my brain tingling with new ideas! I've been inspired by this landscape!" Hifumi was definitely in a thinking mood now.

"Time to plan again? I love this part." Ichinose stood up from her seat.

"I'm sure you all are exhausted. Why don't we stop this talk of battle for now, and I'll make everyone some tea." Yuki said warmly. Nobody could say no to that. After a successful operation, the first step in the revolution against Yoshiki was underway. There were still a few mysteries lingering in the air, all about Toshiro's heart...

But at the moment, all the Phantom Thieves could do was do what they did best. Fight.

Fight until they returned home with all the answers they sought.