Anguish & Desire/Chapter Seven

This is Chapter Seven of Danganronpa: Anguish &amp; Desire, Investigation Time!. In this chapter, the Ultimates are brought back to reality after they lose one of their own; and, with a class trial coming up, Ken's forced to investigate the death of a friend :~)

Author's Note: "Feeling sin is proof that you exist in a higher plane of being..." - Gundam Tanaka, the Ultimate Breeder.

The morning after the party I found myself back to my usual cycle with Nakata...and by that, I mean being crushed under her body weight during our training sessions.

She holds my arms apart, her face lies inches apart from mine, and her knee digs into my stomach. It doesn’t even hurt anymore. I just hate losing.

“I g-give up.”

She smirks to herself and lets go of me, rolling onto the mat next to me. “Are you going to give up if someone comes after you in the middle of the night?”

“I-If it’s you, yeah.” I say. My breathing is heavy, I bet I’m panting like a dog to her right now.

“Oh come on, Ken,” she sighs. “That’s not the spirit.”

“I don’t have any spirit left.”

Nakata smirks, turning onto her side to face me. I turn my head to face her, too.

“Oh come on, nothing?”

“Nothing.”

“Why don’t I believe that?”

“You hardly believe anything I say.”

“Yes, I do.” she says, chuckling lightly to herself. “Where’d you get that idea from?”

“Rumor has it.” I smirk back, taking a deep breath.

“You must know by now to never trust rumors. I mean, you’re relatively smart.”

“Relatively?!” I exclaim, and she chuckles again.

“Seems like you got your energy back, Ken.” she says, jumping to her feet. She quickly stands back over me and offers me her hand. “One more round.”

I sigh, but, I feel my lips slowly begin to curve upwards. “I’ll beat you this time.” I say, grabbing hold of her hand.

As she pulls me up, she leans her head closer to me. “Are you sure about that?”

...I ended up losing.

After walking Nakata back to her room, I went back to my own room and waited for the morning announcement to go off before taking my shower.

As I step into the shower, I get ambushed by some...unnaturally cold water.

Normally I’m the first one to shower in the morning so I get all the warm water I could possibly need, but this morning...why? Did MonoMech forget to pay the water bills?!

Whatever, I’ll power through it. I just worked out for the past hour or so, I’m not showing up to breakfast smelling like Nakamoto.

...was that mean? Poor Nakamoto.

After my shower, I did my usual and got dressed and went to the dining hall, where Yuka, Saishi, and Sasada were waiting for me.

Saishi sat next to Sasada, and Yuka sat across from the latter. I take a seat next to Yuka and in front of Saishi, whose bright smile only brightens. “Glad to see you awake and healthy, Ken!” he exclaims, and I nod my head.

“Right back at you, Saishi.” I turn to Yuka. “How did you sleep?”

“Super good, Big Brother Ken!” she exclaims, and as if on-cue, she stretches out her back and leans her head on my shoulder. “I’m still super tired, though.”

“It was a long night.” Sasada mumbles. “I just wanna get the morning meeting over with so I can go back to sleep.”

“That’s not very productive of you, Sasada!” Saishi exclaims.

Sasada doesn’t respond, instead she rests her head on the table as the empty seat next to me becomes occupied.

“Hey, Rabbit.” Tomori says, and I turn my head from Yuka to face her naturally bubbly smile. “Top of the mornin’ to ya, homies.”

“Homies?” Sasada asks, yawning. “Since when did we become your,” she pauses. “‘Homies’?”

“Relax, Sasada.” Tomori sighs, waving her off. “Just wanted to play a little, didn’t realize everyone was still super tired.”

Tani and Shiomi soon join us as well, Tani takes the spot in front of Tomori and Shiomi sits beside her. “I’m tellin’ ya, Tani, you were perfect last night.” Shiomi smiles, which only gets a shrug of the shoulders. “Tell her, Ken!”

What?

“Tell her what?” I ask, tilting my head.

“She’s sad because toward the end of the last couple of songs she started to lose her energy.” Shiomi says. “I’ve been trying to tell her that you couldn’t even notice there was anything going on.”

“What, really?” Yuka pouts. “You were great, Tani-chan.”

I nod my head, too. “Seriously, Tani, you were incredible.”

A small smile escapes her lips. “Thanks, guys, but I’m still disappointed.”

Saishi takes a breath, as if he is going to say something, but he stops when the seat next to him gets filled by Shiho, and Azama sits in front of him. “Good morning, everyone.” Shiho yawns, stretching his arms out. “No Yosano or Kitoaji this morning?”

Yuka lifts her head off my shoulder for a split-second to shake her head, and quickly places it back. “They’ll be here soon.”

“They’re normally two of the first though,” Sasada sighs. “They must be really tired.”

Now that they mention it, that’s a little weird. Rai and Yosano are normally here when I first get here. Yosano did stay back to help with Shiho’s piano, so her sleeping in wouldn’t be shocking, but Rai went back to bed as soon as the party ended...what’re they doing?

“Good morning, guys.” Satoshi greets, sitting in front of Tomori. “Are you ready to tackle another day in his hellhole?”

“Yessir.” Tani mumbles.

“Indeed!” Saishi exclaims.

Shimazaki, Nakamoto, and Obinata arrive next, around the usual time the three of them arrive. Shimazaki and Obinata sit next to one another, while Nakamoto third-wheels and sits in front of Obinata. “Saishi-chi, Ken-chi...everyone else,” Nakamoto greets. “Good morning.”

“Good morning to you as well!” Saishi exclaims.

“Good morning.” I wave at the trio, and Shimazaki enthusiastically waves back.

“Sorry I’m late.” the monotonous voice of Nakata greets, sitting next to Tomori. Her hair is wet, like she just got out of the shower and didn’t even bother to dry it. “The shower was extremely cold this morning, I was waiting for it to warm up but it never did.”

Ooh, so it wasn’t just me?

“Well, now all we’re missing is our two delinquents of the day!” Saishi exclaims, rubbing his temples. “What is taking these two so long?!”

Satoshi turns to Nakata. “You didn’t see them?”

She shakes her head. “Nope.”

“Well, I for one would like to get this meeting on the road.” Obinata sighs, leaning back in his seat. “Maybe one of you could go fetch them?”

“Sure!” Saishi exclaims, and almost immediately his finger is in my and Yuka’s face. “Ken! Come with me!”

...why didn’t I see this coming?

Yuka pouts again, lifting her head off of my shoulder. “There goes my pillow…”

“We’ll be fast, Yuka!” Saishi exclaims, placing his hands on his hips. “Your pillow will return in no time!”

Yuka throws her hands up in the air, smiling cheerfully. “Thank you, Saishi!”

I rise from my seat, and wait for Saishi to skip around the table before following him out of the dining hall.

I don’t see what the big deal is, honestly. So, Rai and Yosano wanted to sleep in a little after a long and eventful party...ugh, I kinda feel bad for them. Now they’re gonna be awoken by the loud and obnoxious Saishi...these people better let them go back to sleep.

“Can you go check on Yosano?” Saishi asks, as we stand in front of Rai and Yosano’s rooms, which are parallel to one another. Saishi looks away from me, and up to the ceiling. “I’m a little, uh...nervous, to go into a girl’s room while she might be sleeping. I’ll get Rai.” I nod my head, and he smiles at me.

Almost instantly he barges into Rai’s room, shutting the door behind him -- but just before the door closes, I hear Saishi yell. “Why aren’t you locking your doors at nig--”

I giggle to myself, before turning to Yosano’s door. I can only imagine the face Rai is making right now…

I lift my hand and go to knock on Yosano’s door...but I stop. I didn’t notice it at first, but her door is cracked open. That’s...not safe, for the same reason Saishi is scolding Rai probably.

Whatever.

I slowly push the door open and peek my head in her room. Her room is completely open. “Yosano…” I whisper. “...you in here?”

Maybe she’s in the bathroom?

From where I am I can see that her bathroom door is closed...oh, whatever, I’ll just give it a knock and tell her Saishi is mad. I’ll give her that warning.

So, I slip into Yosano’s room, closing the door gently behind me, leaving it open only a crack, and I go straight to the bathroom door. I am NOT going to look at her bed or her dresser for...obvious reasons, I don’t wanna see anything that’s too private.

When I get to the bathroom door, I hear it. The sound of the shower running.

That’s a...relief. I was getting a little worried for a second there.

I knock once. “Hey, Yosano, it’s Ken!” I call out. “I’m sorry for intruding, but, Saishi wanted me to come get you!”

No response.

Whatever, I’ll wait a few seconds.

And so, I wait a few seconds...no answer, still.

I knock again. “C’mon, at least answer me!”

I sigh to myself.

This is a little ridiculous, I mean I’d be mad too if some boy entered my room like this, but still, she could at least answer me.

I’ll just tell Saishi what happened and have him send Yuka or something…

...wait a minute, why am I…

I look to the floor, and, that’s when I first realized I was standing in a puddle of water.

H-How did I not notice this before?!

It doesn’t take much to figure out that the trail of water leads from under the doorframe, so I--I don’t know what came over me.

I threw my hand over the doorknob and pulled it open with all my might…

...and--and--and--and--and…

...I saw it.

Yosano sits upright in the shower, the water coming out of the showerhead and hitting her chest. She’s still in her dress from yesterday. Her eyes are glazed over...her body is so pale...she’s literally lifeless. Behind her on the wall is a ton of blood, and her throat looks torn up.

“Y-Yosano?”

Those were the only words that could escape my lips.

I don’t wanna believe this.

I can’t believe this.

I WON’T believe this.

“Y-YOSANOOOOO!”

I don’t know how long I was screaming her name for...was it seconds, minutes...who knows?

I just stood there, screaming Yosano’s name, hoping that my cries would somehow let her just spring back to life.

Of course, that didn’t happen though. Instead, I was suddenly pulled from behind away from her body by I don’t fucking know who.

“Yosano? Yosano? Yosano?”

I just...couldn’t stop saying her name.

Someone held me in their arms as I collapsed to the floor, mumbling her name over and over and over again. I did until...well, until I was pulled back into reality.

DING DONG BING BONG

“A body has been discovered! Now, after a certain amount of time, the class trial will begin, so use this time wisely in discovering clues which lead to the blackened! And may I remind you what happens if you don’t find out who the culprit is…? Hehehe, well anyways, I’ll see you soon!

A-A body has been discovered…?

So does-does that mean Yosano is really…?

“K-Ken, calm down, it’s fine,” they whisper in my ear. I should’ve known it was Rai. Rai turns my head away from the bathroom and to their face...Rai is crying, too. “Look at me, Ken, it’s okay, it’s okay.”

“W-What is this?!” Saishi asks. “S-So Yosano i-is…?”

Almost instantly after Saishi trails off, Yosano’s room slowly fills up with the other Ultimates, each trying to push past each other to see what was happening. I break my eye-contact with Rai to look back at the bathroom door, again.

Yuka screams once she sees the body, falling back into the arms of Tomori, who looks just about ready to fall over, too.

Obinata and Nakata both look disinterested...w-why do they look like they don’t even care!?

Satoshi winces once his eyes fall on her body, and he almost instantly backs up toward Shiomi, who covers his mouth with his hand.

Tani stands wide-eyed at the body...like she’d never seen anything like it before.

Nakamoto looks as white as a ghost, and, he almost immediately backs away to a corner in Yosano’s room, shaking his head repeatedly.

Azama and Shiho both look to the ground, only lifting their eyes to make brief eye-contact with one another.

Shimazaki tilts her head in confusion, watching everyone’s reactions to the body.

“Ken, look at me,” Rai says, turning my head in their direction again. Rai lifts his arm and immediately presses it to my cheek. “Are you unhurt?”

“Who did this?!” Saishi suddenly screams out, and Rai and I almost immediately turn to him. Saishi stands in the doorway to the bathroom. He has tears falling from his face now, and no amount of his frantic wiping does him any good. “W-Who killed Yosano?!”

“Y-Yeah!” Yuka cries out, pulling herself out of Tomori’s arms. “Who killed Big Sister Chie?! Tell me...right now!”

“Don’t be ridiculous, you guys.” Nakamoto says, putting his hands in the air. “It’s obvious w-who did it.” Nakamoto’s stutter and his shakiness sure doesn’t make anyone feel better. “It was that fucking robot.”

“ME?!”

MonoMech’s high-pitched tone blares throughout my head.

It...hurts.

“What do you mean me, buddy?!” MonoMech asks, emerging from whatever hole he was hiding in up until this point. He waddles to Nakamoto, whose pale face grows paler. “I wouldn’t even think about murdering one of my precious students!”

Nakamoto takes a couple of steps backward. “S-Shut up!” he exclaims. “No one would do such a thing!”

MonoMech sighs. “That’s the kind of attitude that’ll give you nothing but trouble the further along we go. But, alas, it was not me! Now, it’s time to get to investigating for the class trial!”

“I-Investigate?” Shiomi cries out. “Are y-you kidding me?!”

“Nope!” MonoMech exclaims. “One of you killed Chie Yosano, and as said in the rules, you will have a small amount of time allotted to investigating the murder and to try and find as many clues as possible! You don’t have to do it, of course, but you do remember what’ll happen if you don’t figure out who did it…?”

“We’ll be executed.” Azama mumbles.

“Perfect answer, Kiyo! Full marks!” MonoMech turns back to us, before pointing to the e-Handbook in Obinata’s hand. “Now, to help you with your investigation, I’d like to introduce to you the MonoMech File!”

The e-Handbook in my pockets begins to vibrate, and I quickly pull it out, and slide it open.

Victim: Chie Yosano

Cause of Death: Throat Slit; Blood Loss

W-What is this?!

“Handy, huh?” MonoMech smirks. “It’s to help you on your quest to solve the murder!”

“T-Thanks?” Nakamoto asks, tilting his head. “...whatever.”

“Now my precious little angels, good luck, and I’ll see you in the trial room!”

And with those parting words, MonoMech waddles out of Yosano’s bedroom, leaving the fifteen of us scared, confused...with no idea what to do next.

“I’m not the smartest…” Nakamoto suddenly says, shaking his head. “I’m not much help, I’m sorry.”

“There’s something you can do, if you wouldn’t mind.” Nakata says, and Nakamoto quickly trns to her. “Can you guard the body?”

“G-Guard the body?” he asks.

“If the blackened tries to return to the scene of the crime to hide any clues or to mess with it, it’d be helpful to have someone guard it.”

“Are you okay now?” Rai whispers in my ear, and I only slowly nod my head. Rai’s arms suddenly unwrap themselves from me.

“W-Wait just a minute!” Saishi exclaims, pointing his finger at Nakata. “Now what if Nakamoto is the blackened?! You’re giving him a free pass to do whatever he wants to the crime scene!”

“S-Seriously, Saishi-chi?!” Nakamoto asks. “You think I did it?”

“I do not, Nakamoto! I just want to be cautious!”

“I’m not stupid,” Nakata says, looking back to Saishi. “I’ll guard it with him.”

“Very good!” Saishi exclaims, before turning to the door. “In that case, I’ll start investigating!”

Saishi charges out of the room, and -- like clockwork -- everyone else went off to do their own thing. Within a minute, the only ones left in Yosano’s room were Nakamoto, Nakata, Obinata, and myself. Nakamoto and Nakata stand in front of the bathroom, where I left Yosano’s body.

I guess there’s no better place to start my investigation than with the scene of the crime, right?

I begin to walk toward them, but I don’t get very far. “Hey, Ken,” Obinata says, stepping in front of me. “Can you tell me what exactly happened when you discovered the body?”

“O-Oh, sure Obinata.” I say, stepping back away from him. “Well, both Rai and Yosano didn’t show for breakfast this morning, so, Saishi and I went to check up on them. Because Saishi felt uncomfortable with entering a girl’s room, he sent me to check on Yosano while he went to Rai’s room. When I got here I noticed her door was cracked open, so I knocked twice and entered. She was nowhere to be found though, and I heard the shower was on -- I was gonna leave but I noticed that the water was leaking from the bathroom. So-So, I opened the door and I-I-I s-sa-saw…”

“Hey, Ken, it’s okay.” Obinata says, patting me on the back. “That’s all I needed to know.”

My cheek f-feels wet. When did I start crying again?

I rub my sleeve over my eyes. “S-Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” he says, looking to the entrance of the room. “Okay, I feel like I can trust you to not go blabbering around, and I’m almost positive you’re not the killer, so I’ll give you a lead for whenever you finish up here.”

A lead?

I tilt my head, and Obinata smirks. “Interested? Well, go to my room when you’re done.”

I nod, and Obinata struts off, closing the door behind him.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous to step foot in that bathroom. Yosano...Yosano’s dead body rests in there...but, at the same time, I don’t wanna die. I don’t want anyone else to die; and, if I want to live--if I want to save everyone else, I need to find out who did this! I need to know who killed Yosano!

I try to wiggle my nerves out -- it doesn’t help.

“I just have to do it…” I mumble to myself. “...I just have to do it.”

I slowly walk into the bathroom, and, I feel Nakata and Nakamoto slowly walk in behind me. There, in the shower, Yosano remains. Her eyes are barely open, dried up blood surrounds her throat, and the water continuously hits her body.

“I’m sorry,” Nakamoto suddenly says. Almost immediately does my head turn to his direction, and, I see Nakata is doing the same. But, Nakamoto doesn’t notice us, instead his eyes are trained on the wall behind Yosano. “The blood.”

I spontaneously turn my head back, and, the blood that drips down from above Yosano that I saw when I first found her body actually...actually says something.

Crimson blood spells: “Im SoRRy”

“I’m sorry,” Nakamoto repeats. “What can it mean?”

“I wonder,” Nakata sarcastically says. I can practically feel her eyes roll. “Probably a dying message.”

“A dying message?” I repeat, looking back down at Yosano. “Y-Yosano…”

The water stops, and I can’t stop myself from stepping into the shower too. I bend down over her body, and, and, my eyes meet hers.

They’re so...empty. Her usual brown eyes look almost gray, and all of the life was just drained out of her. “You...have nothing to be sorry for, Yosano. I’m sorry. I’m sorry I wasn’t around to protect you like you’ve done for me. Did you die feeling guilty of something, I wonder?”

“Ken,” I hear Nakata say. Her voice is unusually tender. “We can mourn later, okay?”

…

She’s right.

“I know.” I croak out.

“So, judging from her external wounds,” Nakata says, bending down next to me, her head slowly coming into my field-of-vision. “It definitely looks like someone slashed her throat.”

“With what, do you think?” Nakamoto asks.

“If I had to guess it was probably a knife from the kitchen -- one of the steak knives.”

“That’d be the easiest answer.” Nakamoto responds. “Sometimes simplicity is better.”

“In this case, definitely.” the merc says, gently grabbing the back of Yosano’s head. “Ooh, weird.”

“What’s weird, Nakata-chi?” Nakamoto asks.

“Ken, would you mind feeling back here?” she asks, looking back to me.

Oh...she wants me to touch Yosano’s dead body?

...I’ll do it.

“Forgive me, Yosano.” I whisper, and I reach behind Yosano’s head, and place my hand where Nakata’s hand was--

--there’s a giant bump on her head.

“Oh.”

“See?” she asks as I retract my hand. “She musta been struck with something before they slashed her…”

“Like, a bat?” Nakamoto asks. “Or, did she hit her head on the wall as she fell?”

“Anything is possible right now.” Nakata says, shaking her head. “Keep those thoughts in the back of your mind for when we go to the trial.”

“Yes, ma’am!” the host exclaims. “You can count on me.”

“Thank you,” she says, before rising to her feet. “I think we’re about done here, aren’t we?”

“So, we can confirm the cause of death was blood loss from her throat being slashed?” Nakamoto asks...he sounds confused. I guess it’s better than how scared he was before. “But the question regarding the state of her body now is how she got the bruise on the back of her head?”

“Precisely.” Nakata says.

I can’t help but to just stare at Yosano’s body.

From her bloody throat to her hollow eyes to her hands that rest on her lap…

...her hands?

That’s weird...there’s no blood on her hands.

I look back up to the dying message above her head. How could she write that if her hands are now clean…?

Did the water wash the blood off…?

Or, is it really a dying message?

“I’m sorry, Yosano.” I whisper, before exiting the shower, and slowly exiting the bathroom.

Nakamoto is waiting for me when I exit, gently leaning up against the wall. “That Nakata is something, Ken-chi.” Nakamoto says, smiling to himself. “Being able to touch a dead body like that, I don’t know how she does it...this shit scares me.”

…

Me too, Nakamoto, me too.

“Well, I need to go look around.”

I can barely hear my own voice at this point. I’m really losing it.

“You sure you okay, man? If you wanna stay with Nakata and I, I’m sure no one would mind.”

I shake my head. “I can’t.”

He nods his head, and I wave goodbye to Nakamoto and Nakata, the latter of who is digging through Yosano’s trash...it’s for the investigation.

I leave Yosano’s room and look down the hall toward Obinata’s room, where, he stands with his arms crossed. Shimazaki stands next to him, mimicking his movements as he makes them.

I slowly walk toward them, and once Shimazaki notices me she instantly waves me over. “Hi!”

“H-Hey,” I say.

“Ah, Ken,” Obinata says, moving past Shimazaki. “About time.”

“Sorry, I got caught up with Nakamoto.”

“Ooh, how is he doing?” Shimazaki asks, tilting her head. “He seemed nervous.”

“Can you blame him?” Obinata shrugs. “Most people aren’t used to death.”

“Most people aren’t gonna make it very long here then.” she says, before turning to me. “No offense.”

What is that even supposed to mean?

“Anyways, about that lead,” Obinata continues, pointing to his silver doorknob. “What’s wrong with this?”

I walk to his door, tilting my head. “It’s not real gold?” I ask, and I hear Shimazaki chuckle loudly behind me. “O-Oh!”

“See it now?” he asks, and I nod.

His doorknob is hanging off from where it’s supposed to be; it’s like someone tried to rip it off and got a quarter way through before giving up.

“I wouldn’t have noticed if it weren’t for Shimazaki.” Obinata sighs, shaking his head. “This one is observant, I tell you.”

Shimazaki smirks, and jumps next to Obinata. “You think so, too?!”

“I do,” he says, nonchalantly waving her off. He looks back at me. “Still, Ken, what do you think this means?”

What do I think this means -- well, what could this mean?

The easiest answer would be that someone was trying to pin Yosano’s death on him, but even that is murky water to tread. That would mean that there’s evidence that was meant to be hidden.

The murder weapon? Bloody clothes?

“It’s evident someone tried to break into my room, however, I personally believe that this means whoever this blackened was going to kill me, too. Of course I have no more evidence to back up this claim, but, we’ll find out in due time.”

“Of course we will,” Shimazaki nods. “No one can kill you except me!”

O-Okay, then.

“Well, I’m gonna go see what else I can find.” I say, nervously stepping away from the giggling Shimazaki. “I’ll see you in a bit.”

“Good luck!” Shimazaki calls out, and I hear Obinata repeat that sentiment as I leave the dorm area.

Should I go to the dining hall, the gym, or check one of the classrooms out?

Logically speaking -- something which I should probably do more often -- one of the classrooms is more likely to have something hidden in them...but, I really want to check up on Yuka and Rai. Yuka looked absolutely distraught before.

What do I do?

“Hey, Ku-chan,” the voice of the lovely Azama interrupts my thoughts. “Have you seen Shiho around here?” I look in the direction of her voice, and, she walks closer to me with Tani & Shiomi on either side of her. “I can’t find him anywhere…”

“S-Shiho…?”

“Yeah, he up and disappeared while we were investigating,” Tani says, scratching the back of her neck. “He left us with no warning, we just turned and he was literally nowhere to be found.”

I-Is there a reason all four of you need to be together to investigate anyways…?

“He probably went off to find some clues,” I say, shrugging my shoulders. “Or, maybe, he just got nervous and went to his room?”

Shiomi suddenly snaps to attention and grabs my arm. “That reminds me, Ken!” he exclaims, and I nearly squeal.

“Don’t be so rough on him, Shiomi, he’s still shaken up from finding Yosano,” Tani scolds, before putting her arm between the two of us. “You can say it without hurting him, right?”

Thank you, Tani, you’re the real hero.

Shiomi takes a step back, nervously giggling to himself. “Sorry, Ken, I just had something to ask you.”

Ask...me?

“What is it?” I ask.

“This morning you and Nakata held your daily training exercises, right?”

“Oh, yeah, we did.”

“Nakata told me you walked her back to her room, and then -- now I’m just assuming -- you went back to your own room, right?”

“Y-Yes.”

“And did you shower?”

Is this an interrogation!?

“Yeah, right after the morning announcement,” I say. Come to think about it… “The water was extremely cold, though, which was weird because I should’ve been the first person to use it -- I always am.”

Shiomi smiles, crossing his arms. “So, Nakata’s testimony adds up then, thank you, Ken!”

…

“You were just questioning me to test Nakata’s alibi?”

“I mean, duh,” Shiomi says, a bit taken back now. “She’s the prime suspect, it’s only natural.”

I spring forward, grabbing Shiomi’s shoulders. “S-She is?!”

“Everyone’s talking about it, Ku-chan,” Azama says. “And, I’m sorry to say, but I think she did it, too.”

“...me too.” Tani sighs, looking away from me.

“N-No...she couldn’t have done it.” I whisper, letting go of Shiomi’s shirt.

“I know she’s your friend,” Azama continues. “But she’s the only one who could’ve possibly done it. I don’t see anyone who isn’t the Ultimate Mercenary to be the blackened.”

Nakata...it couldn’t have been her.

I was with her this morning...she was smiling. She seemed so normal -- well, for her standards. I just won’t believe it. I can’t.

Without another word, I turn from the three musicians, and stumble toward the dining hall.

...I’m getting tired...weak...I just...wanna...lie down...now…

...I’m sad...I wish Yosano was here...to...make me...feel...at ease…

...I just want this to end.

I slide into the dining hall, and, in front of me is a...uh, interesting scene.

Saishi & Sasada stand on one side of the dining hall, and they are facing the other side of the room where Satoshi & Tomori stand.

In the middle of them sits Yuka, who is covering her ears and resting her head on one of the tables.

I need to talk to her, like, now.

“What’s your problem, Saishi?” Tomori yells. She leans back against the wall, her arms crossed. Satoshi stands next to her, but he’s looking to me, his eyes are wide -- I think he’s scared. “Just because you’re the ‘Ultimate Motivational Speaker’ doesn’t mean you have to force Yuka to listen to you!”

“I-I know that!” he exclaims, scratching the back of his neck. “I just wanted to help!”

“And she doesn’t want your help, so, lay off!”

“I understand that now!”

“T-Then why don’t the two of you stop then?” Satoshi asks, stepping in front of Tomori, while Sasada does the same with Saishi. “Fighting amongst ourselves won’t help anything.”

“What Saoshi said,” Sasada mumbles, scolding Saishi. “Leave Yuka alone, and Tomori, stop antagonizing people.”

Tomori takes a step back. “A-Antagonizing people?!”

O-Oh, god.

“Ken!” Saishi exclaims, and, before I could even tell, he was in my face. He looks...super worried. “Please, I didn’t mean to hurt anyone! Please explain that to Tomori!”

“You don’t have to do what he says, Rabbit,” Tomori says, pushing Satoshi to the side and walking toward Saishi and myself now...are they gonna start swinging at each other? “Tell Saishi and his girlfriend that just because they’re honor students, they’re not always right!”

“G-Girlfriend?!” Saishi repeats, his cheeks turn rosy and he turns to Sasada, who only shrugs her shoulders in response. “Relationships like that are unholy!”

“Oh god,” Tomori sighs, rubbing her temples. “Of course they are.”

Oh god...is...right…

“Stop it, will you?”

Tomori takes a step back, and, Saishi tilts his head. “K-Ken…?” he asks.

M-My hands are shaking…I feel hot again…

“You t-two are being so inconsiderate right now...you know that?”

“What do you mean, Ken?!” Saishi asks.

I-I can’t even with these two right now.

Yosano was just murdered...and...they’re here fighting over Yuka. Yuka, who, was the closest to Yosano and who could barely walk when I last saw her, and they’re just yelling at each other.

And Yuka is still by herself…

...crying.

“...just, stop.”

I storm past Saishi and Tomori and I go toward the pink-haired DJ, who, I guess hears my footsteps because she’s suddenly turning to face me. Tears fall down her face, still, and her pink blush is completely ruined. She stands from her seat to greet me.

“..ther Ken?”

That’s all I hear Yuka say before I grab her wrist -- probably a little too hard -- and lead her out of the dining hall, shutting the doors behind us.

She’s trembling.

Not like me, no, not with anger or fear...she’s just sad.

“Y-Yuka...oh, I’m sorry!” I say, releasing her wrist. “Was I too rough?”

She solemnly shakes her head. “No,” she says, before suddenly jumping forward and wrapping her arms around my upper back. “T-Thank you!”

Ah, I see.

I hug her back. “Of course, Yuka…” I pause, letting her go and letting her back away. “...how are you holding up?”

She tries to smile -- you can tell she’s trying super hard -- but it doesn’t come. “Not okay,” she says, shaking her head. “I-I just can’t believe Big Sister Chie is...gone.” she pauses, sniffling. “W-Who would do such a thing?”

I sigh, looking to the checkered floor. “I don’t know.”

And, unfortunately, that’s the honest truth.

“But…”

“Big Brother Ken…?”

“But I’ll find out who did this.”

My shaky voice probably doesn’t give her any reassurance. I wish I could be like Nakata or Obinata in a time like this. Their emotions -- which they may or may not even show -- barely ever come through when they talk.

Yuka stops crying for a moment, and then…

...she laughs.

“W-What?!”

“Big Brother Ken,” she giggles. “You don’t have to act strong.”

“Act?!”

“Oh, come on,” she sticks her tongue out at me. “You can’t fool me!”

I stick my tongue out back at her. “Mean!”

The shorter girl stands on her tippy-toes to get to eye-level with me. “You’re still a nerd.” I frown and take a step away from her. “D-Don’t pout, Big Brother Ken!”

...at least she’s feeling better now...I think.

“If you don’t mind, I need a few moments with Big Sister’s body,” she says, biting her lower lip.

“Do you want me to come?” I ask, and she quickly shakes her head.

“This is something I just have to do...I need to say something to her.” she pauses, flashing a grin my way. “You find out who did this! You promised!”

She skips away…

...she’s a strong girl.

I don’t know how genuine that smile was, but, she’s clearly still in pain. She must be hurting so badly right now, but she continues to move forward.

I’ll make sure she’s okay once I -- no, once we -- figure this out.

“...I promised I’d figure this out...”

But, there are still so many more questions left than answers.

And who knows how much longer we have until MonoMech decides he wants to have the trial.

Okay! I need to hurry to the gymnasium then!

I half-walk, half-jog to the gymnasium, and, waiting for me are the only two people I haven’t spoken to or seen yet.

Rai sits by the entrance, and once they notice me, Rai immediately jumps to their feet and runs to me. “K-Ken!” they exclaim, wrapping their arms around my neck and...I wasn’t ready.

I fall backwards, and Rai falls on top of me, giggling. “S-Sorry!”

“A-Are you okay?” I ask, and they roll off of me, but don’t look away for a second.

“No, I’m fine, Ken,” Rai says, trying to suppress their laughter. “I’m sorry if I took you off-guard! I was just so happy to see you!”

“D-Did something happen?”

“Well, yes and no,” Rai says, scratching his forehead. “I was really worried about you, for starters, and then he kept me locked in here…”

K-Kept you locked in here?

W-Who did?

“...either way, I’m just really happy to see you’re not crying anymore, at least!”

“W-Wait, back up, Rai,” I say, sitting up, and Rai does the same. “What do you mean you were locked in here?”

“I locked the door so that no one in here can go out there.” a voice says.

It’s coming from the stage…

...I slowly turn my head from Rai to the stage, and Shiho sits on the stage, his feet dangling off, a mug in his hand which he brings to his lips.

“W-Why did you lock yourself in here?” I ask, rising to my feet, and out of the corner of my eye I see Rai doing the same. Shiho places his mug on the stage and jumps off, walking steadily toward us. “Were you nervous?”

“No,” Shiho faintly smiles, shaking his head. “I just needed to make sure that the blackened wouldn’t escape.”

“The blackened?” I ask, tilting my head, before looking to Rai, who nervously looks away. “You mean...Rai’s the blackened?” I shake my head. “But, that’s not possible!”

Shiho sighs. “It just...makes sense. Rai is normally one of the first people in the dining hall, and, today of all days Rai was late to the morning announcement?” Shiho looks back to Rai. “That doesn’t add up in my book...and it can’t be a coincidence. I just needed a way to ensure the blackened wouldn’t tamper with the crime scene, Ken, you understand, right?”

U-Understand…?

“Just because--Just because Rai was late doesn’t make him the killer!”

“That’s what I was trying to explain,” Rai pouts, crossing his arms. “Shiho won’t listen though; he says unless I give him a reason why I didn’t go, he won’t let me go.”

“He couldn’t even tell me why he was so late,” Shiho shakes his head. “Rai said Saishi knows, and, Rai is too embarrassed to tell me why he was...you understand my doubts, right?” he pauses. “From a logical standpoint, it’s what makes the most sense at this point.”

First Nakata…

...now Rai…

...why are the people who are being blamed all of my closest friends…?

As if losing Yosano wasn’t enough, they want to take Nakata from me? They want to take Rai?

Who’s next, Yuka?

“...I have a theory that there’s more to Yuka that she lets on, as well…”

…

I have to prove them all wrong.

I know it couldn’t have been Nakata or Rai or Yuka! It really couldn’t have!

I know they wouldn’t do anything so horrible.

There’s a tug on my sleeve. “K-Ken,” Rai mumbles. “You’re getting teary-eyed again.”

“O-Oh!” I shakily exclaim, wiping my eyes free of tears again. I lean my head in to Rai and whisper. “C-Can you at least tell me why?”

Rai shakes their head and looks down. “I’m sorry,”

P-Please, Rai, I just--I just don’t want you to be blamed for this.

DING DONG BING BONG

W-What?

“Is that another announcement?” Shiho asks, looking to the monitor on the stage.

Rai and I both look there as well, and, MonoMech comes on screen.

“Hello my little kiddies!” he exclaims. “Now, I’m bored of waiting, so I hope the investigation went well and I’ll see you in the gymnasium whenever you’re ready for the claaaassss trial!”

The trial…?

Oh no, oh no, oh no.

I’m not nearly ready enough yet...we don’t even have any evidence pointing to the blackened!

Soon enough, the rest of the Ultimates gathered in the gymnasium, and, I’m standing beside Rai and Tomori. Rai holds onto my hand...their hands are cold, shaking, although those could be mine too. I can just sense how nervous Rai is right now.

“Hey, Rabbit, I’m sorry about before.” Tomori whispers, shrugging her shoulders. “I shoulda noticed I was stressin’ Yuka out before you got there.”

“I-It’s okay,” I nod my head. “D-Did you tell Yuka that?”

She nods her head, too. “She said it was fine, but, I still feel bad, y’know?”

Well, um, no shit.

“Everyone, Everyone!” MonoMech yells out, jumping on the stage. “Please direct your attention to the doors at the front of the room, will you?!”

Like he was our boss, every single one of us complied. You could cut the tension with a knife. We were just waiting...with fear, nervousness, anticipation for what would happen when those doors opened.

...but they never did.

Instead, a voice yells out.

“T-The stage!” Satoshi exclaims.

The stage?

I spin around, and, the once-empty stage is now complete with a throne and sixteen stands, each one complete with a picture of that person’s stand...even Yosano has a stand, and, her picture is black & white compared to our colorful pictures, and she has a bloody ‘X’ running through her face.

It’s unsettling.

“Ooh, cool, right?!” MonoMech -- who sits on the throne -- asks. “I figured we needed more of a trial-esque vibe in here!”

“It’s...creepy.” Tani sighs, shaking her head.

“Now, please find your stand and take your spot! Let’s get this trial on the road!”

With a dejected sigh, I lead Rai up the stage and to our stands, which were coincidentally next to each other.

Satoshi takes the stand to my right, and, Shimazaki stands next to him.

Yosano would’ve been next to her, and, Tomori stands on the other end of it. Obinata is next, followed by Sasada, Azama, and Shiomi -- who stands directly across from me. Tani stands next to him, and Nakata next to her. Nakamoto stands next to Nakata, and Yuka, Saishi and Shiho round the circle out, standing next to Rai.

...well, here we go.

The trial to find out who killed Chie Yosano, the Ultimate Pitcher.

She was such a sweet girl...she really was like a big sister to everyone. Whether she was pestering me to eat my vegetables, do my laundry, or what-not, she always had a bright smile on her face and was always worrying about us. I remember when I first woke up in this hellhole...she was the first face I saw. She offered me warmth, strength...that was just the kind of person she was.

And the person who killed her...was one of us.

The Ultimate Host, The Ultimate Beatboxer, The Ultimate Fashion Designer, The Ultimate DJ, The Ultimate Songwriter, The Ultimate Screenplay Writer, The Ultimate Model, The Ultimate Mercenary, The Ultimate Survival Games Player, The Ultimate Archer, The Ultimate Pitcher, The Ultimate Violinist, The Ultimate Pianist, The Ultimate Arsonist, The Ultimate Gardener, The Ultimate Motivational Speaker...one of us killed her...I won't forgive whoever it was!

This trial of life and death, of truths and falsehoods, of hope and despair…

…

”Time to begin!”

...has officially begun.