Work Text:
“A body has been discovered!”
…
Kiyotaka Ishimaru was last seen at dinner the night before. Less than 12 hours ago, Taka was present and sharing his time with Mondo, Fujisaki and a few laughs along with Makoto, Asahina, Sakura and even Hagakure. The night itself was not different from the previous ones but a lot has changed since the beginning of the killing game. After the incident in the sauna, one could argue that strong improvements were blooming in Kiyotaka's character - he was allowing himself to open more to others…
Well, don’t let yourself be fooled! He remained the same strict hall monitor figure with high morals that we all care and love… still, his facial expressions once stiff had now soften to cute smiles and pure enjoyment when in the company of equals. The reason, you may ask? I believe the main reason was the acceptance and trust offered by Mondo that awaken him to a reality of friendship which he has never experienced before. Other reasons (however improbable), may include conveying the trust from others and study their behaviors to conduct an investigation in order to discover disguised dark feelings that could be the root to an eminent threat, a potential killer… However, only Ishimaru could tell you the answer to your doubts. I am not in a position to answer on his behalf but I do believe his intentions were the most pure and honest.
Even after 3 nights in the presence of a fun, relaxed Ishimaru, it was still strange to comprehend his personality changes although, he couldn’t forget to declare his favorite line whenever rules were bent. “Hey! That behavior is not welcome in a school environment!” To see him getting along easily with everyone left a feeling of unease. He could become more susceptible to a possible murder if his mind was set in trusting everyone. Kyoko even warned him of the same…
10 p.m. quickly arrived and the bedtime announcement played in the background. Immediately, Kiyotaka excused himself and wished everyone a good night's sleep. But before he and everyone else decided to leave the dining hall, Kyoko asked all to meet her in the bath house.
Once everyone was present, she began speaking “Does anyone hold a clue to where Alter Ego might be?” The silence amongst everyone indicated a round NO.
Alter Ego is an artificial intelligence program created by Chihiro. After the first trial, two floors were open to explore the school. In their research, they found a broken computer in the library on the second floor. Thinking of a way of communication with the outside world and recovery of any missing and important files that could be the key to the mastermind’s planned plot, Kyoko asked Chihiro to attempt to solve the problem in secrecy of the person behind the cameras. But Alter Ego was a problem by itself. Besides having to hide the computer in a bath house locker (where security cameras can’t reach), it was easily accessible by a potential mole and Hifumi, who has fallen in love with Alter Ego. “She is the first girl that ever got interested in what I had to say. She kept begging for more and more…” Kyoko was worried that the mastermind would unveil their cover and so their secret weapon. In order to protect the plan, she banished Hifumi from using the computer and set an alarm that would scream whenever it caught him nearby.
4 days ago, Alter Ego went missing and Hifumi didn’t handle the news very well. He entered a vicious cycle where he presented a highly depressed façade only to hide a rather aggressive conscious caused by a grim heart. Ishimaru didn’t swallow Hifumi’s innocence in the predicament at hand and continued to accuse him and stalk him to uncover the thief.
“I’ve told you!” Hifumi screamed “I have nothing to do with the disappearance of my beloved!! Remember! I couldn’t have got near her!!”
“Your statements cannot stand as proof in the attendance of a court. You are the- uh- MY prime suspect! That allegation alone won’t exculpate you from the crime you’ve committed! As vengeance towards Kirigiri, after taking away your benefits with Alter Ego, you stole it!… somehow… And hid it, afterwards!”
“I never kidnapped my princess!” He replied, furious. “You have no right to keep harassing me, Mr. Ishimaru!” The forehead furrowed and Hifumi’s eyes displayed a mixed show of anger as his gaze targeted Ishimaru alongside a wolfish single laugh.
“That’s enough!” Sakura’s voice echoed in the room and silence befell.
“Thank you.” Kyoko added. “Let’s not discuss this further. We will gather again tomorrow.”
All agreed to the suggestion and left the area. As the only 2 remain students, Mondo stared at Ishimaru and hastily placed his arm around Ishimaru’s neck, startling him.
“Ah- c'mon bro, it's still early! Stay with me longer!”
“We made a promise to our fellow colleagues to return to our rooms when the clocked reached 10 p.m.” Ishimaru freed himself from Mondo’s embrace and reached for the exit “I suggest you to follow the rules, kyoudai. “
“ehhhh- ya're no fun!” Mondo replied faintly annoyed at Ishimaru’s perseverance before walking after him.
Ishimaru cracked a soft smile and returned to his room.
-------------
We return to the present time. A lot of crazy situations had happen at this point but allow me to review the plot. Except for Naegi, Fujisaki, Mondo, Kyoko, Asahina and Sakura, no one had appeared for their usual routine in the dining hall. After an hour of waiting Kyoko confessed her concerns regarding the motive and Hifumi, so she suggested looking for everyone. Mondo was visibly worried as well. Ishimaru has never missed to meet with them for breakfast before. They divided the areas among themselves and started searching. Mondo and Chihiro searched the dormitories, no luck. Not 5 minutes had passed when Makoto heard Asahina’s pleading for help. She had spotted Celestia fainted on the floor of the rec room. Mondo, Fujisaki and Sakura reached them moments later.
Celestia’s body budged in turmoil of pain… “She is alive!” and the five students enclosed her to guarantee her safety. Celestia, anxious, requests them only to hurry.
“Running loose is a masked madman that attacked me with the mallet you find on the floorboards. This happened an hour ago… As I was losing consciousness, I witnessed Hifumi being dragged by force out of the room. By the exit they turned left. Care not about me, I am fine. I ask you to run and locate Hifumi promptly!”
“If they went left, that means he used the stairs to the second floor…”
“By the way, where is Kyoko? Wasn’t her in charge of the second floor?” Asahina added.
“LET’S GO! Kyok-ko might me in danger!!” Chihiro shouted.
The library seemed the most logic place to go next. Makoto found Byakuya and Toko walking carelessly on the second floor and asked them to join their quest.
“We saw nobody suspicious. Why? What’s this racket?” Makoto promised him that everything would be explained in its due time.
Inside the library, they detected Hifumi with a serious wound dripping blood from the skull. Drip. Drip. Drip. The carpet below his feet was drenched in a red soothing color and next to it was another but larger mallet. “I should go to the infirmary…”
Both Celestia and Hifumi claimed to have seen a robot (ROBO JUSTICE was his name!) that was trying to find its victim and assaulting everyone that would stand on its path. Both of them had become victims themselves. As previewed earlier, Celestia was attacked with a small wooden mallet, named Justice Hammer #1 which left her with mild injuries, while Hifumi was captured and hit vigorously with Justice Hammer #2, a bigger mallet which caused a serious damage on the head. Knowing that an assailant was lurking, (almost) every student scattered to track down this mysterious madman.
(Friendly reminder, Hagakure and Taka were last seen the night before. Kyoko has vanished.)
Just moments later, Celestia let out a cry for help and everyone gathered around her in the third floor. “I saw him… The costumed madman… When I shouted, he ran off. With me blocking the stairs, he turned at the corner at the end of the left hall.”
Mondo shouted “What are we waiting for? Let-“
A terrible scream interrupted him. “NGHAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!”
“Was th-that Hifumi?” Chihiro asked.
Divided in two parties, they were chasing this masked “ghost” with two different goals. After Hifumi's scream, Celestia along with Asahina, Makoto and Mondo run towards the first floor, where the infirmary room stood, while Byakuya, Chihiro, Fukawa and Sakura raced after the madman. Mondo wanted to go after the madman alongside Byakuya but Celestia asked him to be part of her group. He didn't flinch with the proposal and obliged to fight the assailant if necessary (obviously, Makoto was not the best suited for the task).
They opened the door and gasped at the sight of Hifumi's seemly-lifeless body covered in a bath of blood, next to the Justice Hammer #3.
DING! DONG! BING! BONG!
“ahem- A body has been discovered! After a certain amount of time, which you may use however you like, the class trial will begin…”
“That means… Yamada is-“
As he examined the corpse, Mondo couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. Ishimaru was still alive… still alive… still alive? Even with a lifeless body in front of him, he couldn't shake off the dark doubtful feeling that surrounded his spirit…
Celestia, sickened by the view, attempted to broke the silence. “We know need to… ahem- tell the others...”
But Asahina could not move. She was petrified. “I am sorry… I don't think I can follow you…”
“Someone has to.”
“That's alright. I will go by myself!” Makoto exclaimed.
Mondo, now crouched, walked away from Hifumi and placed himself between the girls “So, I probably should remain here. To protect the girls if that bastard decides to appear again.”
Shaking, Makoto sprinted to the third floor towards the end of hallway. In the end of the corridor was the Physics Laboratory. With the heart beating a thousand times in one second, his thoughts wandered through various possibilities: Did they catch the perpetuator? Was this nightmare over? Would this trial be an easy one to crack? Innumerous options flooded the attention of the lucky student. None of them were correct. Another outcome was yet to reveal.
He entered the back room. With a soulless expression in his eyes, he met the others cornered around Ishimaru… whom lay dead in a pool of his own blood, near a Justice Hammer #4.
“What? Hahahahaha! Why am I here? What was I supposed to do?” For a few brief moments, Makoto forgot everything as he was trying to absorb another death with a wry laugh. Not even a week has passed from the last trial. That trial left a mark on his soul. Now, two murders had occurred. At this instant he realized an obvious but unthinkable truth: this was not merely a nightmare… this was reality. Ishimaru was not amid us anymore.
Sakura was inspecting the dead body while Chihiro was sobbing in a corner and Toko passed out in another (she can’t handle the sight of blood gushed everywhere). Byakuya inquired Makoto about the events that succeeded: “Hey, Naegi! What event has taken place in the infirmary?”
For a split second, he paused. His memory was blank, foggy. He stuttered. “H-huh?”
“Why is this Justice Hammer #4?” Sakura mumbled.
“What do you mean?”
“First, Celestia was attacked with Hammer #1. Next was Yamada, with Hammer #2. Why has the attacker skipped a number?”
Finally, Makoto remembered what he had to do. “Oh, Right! About Hammer number 3-“
Byakuya interrupted him hastily, exasperated with his slow speech “What? Spit it out!”
“Ishimaru was not the only one who was killed… Yamada was killed too!”
“What?” Sakura yelled, enraged “Is that true?!”
“And so you’ve come to warn us, correct?” Chihiro added.
The four of them quickly left the physics prep room merely to find Celestia bumping into them in the hallway.
“Celestia? Weren’t you waiting in the-“
“there’s… trouble… It’s gone… Yamada’s corpse disappeared!”
“The corpse, disappeared? That’s impossible!” Celestia answered with a grim expression.
They ran… as fast as they could. Makoto was tripping over himself and Chihiro was almost left behind while trying to keep up with her fellow classmates.
Inside, what stayed behind was the puddle of blood where Hifumi’s body once stood and the murder weapon, Justice Hammer #3. Asahina’s body was paralyzed with horror “We were only out for one minute… H-How?”
“It’s my fault!! I was feeling rather nauseated and also scared. I requested Asahina and Mondo to accompany me to the bathroom for support and protection. We only left the site for a minute but… I guess it was time enough… It was stupid of me… I apologise.”
“God Dammit!” Mondo hiding in the corner of the room closest the door, infuriated with his failure. Eyebrows squeezed together, he closed his fist to punch the wall. “I’mma bloody idiot!”
Startled, Chihiro looks behind, at him, terrified. ‘Taka was dead. Mondo did not know that yet.
“Likely, this is the work of the culprit. He carried the body away… He wants to create chaos and play games with our sanity. He’s probably laughing in his hideout thinking about the way he managed to put run around in circles, making us feel pathetic, confused and afraid.” Celestia spoke with a defeat tone in her voice “At this rate we’ll be all killed… like them!”
“Unbelievable… Two successive murders and one of them vanished.” Byakuya felt perplexed.
“Ho-Hold on a second… what do you mean by two successive murders?” Asahina gasped.
Mondo raised his head once he heard those words “Two murders?” He thought. “Wait!” thump, thump. The heart beat accelerated exponentially. “Who was killed?” And he divided his agonized gaze between Byakuya and Makoto while waiting for a reply “FUCKIN’ ANSWER ME!!”
Chihiro was startled again, even more scared than before and replied to his question without hesitation “Ishimaru!” When, she realized what she had done, she covered her mouth with her hands, the eyes widened as well.
“No! Ishimaru, too?” Asahina screamed one last time.
Mondo turned white and his breathing became an effort - it was loud and panicked. He was panting to gasp for air. He clutched his white tank top in the area closest to his heart with his right hand. He left the infirmary room and started running towards nothing. He did not know where to run. Makoto followed after him.
“Mondo! Wait! Don’t run off to anywhere!”
Mondo stopped in the middle of the first floor “Leave me the fuck alone, Naegi. If ya’ know what’s the best for you! I am going to kill that motherfucker!”
“I won’t leave you alone so you’ll do something stupid and end up dead! You should not try to face off the murderer with that state of mind!”
“I don’t care! Why do you care?”
“I do care because you are my classmate and what would Ishimaru say if he saw doing something so reckless?!”
Mondo looked at the floor, unmotivated and with a hand covering a miserable expression. He imagined Ishimaru next to Naegi saying “Hey! That behavior is not welcome in a school environment!” He mumbled along.
“Please. Let’s go back to the infirmary and discuss what next step we must take.”
Mondo didn’t respond. He simply passed through Makoto and returned to the infirmary without forming a single word.
“Calm yourself, Asahina.” Sakura whispered when she pulled her to an embrace and began stroking her hair.
“At this rate… we’ll all be killed... every single one of us!”
“In any case, Fukawa is on the top of his list!” Byakuya grinned.
Everyone stared him, mystified but Sakura understood “I had forgotten! She is still unconscious in the physic’s back room!”
Celestia sighed. “You left her there, helpless?”
“What choice did we have? She was unconscious and would not wake up.”
“You were aware, Togami… But why?” Sakura asked.
“I would even appreciate the culprit if that nuisance was killed off!”
“Fuckin’ weasel!”
“Mondo, no!” Chihiro placed herself in front of Byakuya to block his advancements.
Mondo didn’t proceed to punch Togami due Chihiro’s imposition however seeing him not moving an inch even knowing he would be attacked bothered Mondo “Crazy bastard…”
“Togami, should any harm befall Fukawa, I will make you assume the responsibility.”
“Hah! You guys forgot about her too! You have no right to blame me!” the despicable look on Byakuya’s countenance made Mondo even angrier. To scare him, he was pushed him to a wall to see its reaction. Response: none.
“You really are one sick bastard…”
“I am not afraid of the likes of you… And it’s funny you speak of morals when you have none. Were you inspired by your dead boyfriend?”
“Don’t push me… Since the likes of me can easily kill you by snappin’ your neck!”
After this episode, Mondo opened his hands to set him free and exited to room to quickly sprint towards Fukawa’s location. Others were troubled about what just happened but decided not to share their opinions. The only ones left behind were Chihiro and Byakuya. Chihiro walked over to the exit of the infirmary and softly slide her fingers through the door’s metal frame, lost in thought. She glanced over her shoulder to see Byakuya, leaned in the opposite wall looking back at her, bitterly. “What are you looking at, Fujisaki?”
“To a desperate cry for attention and murder.”
And she left, running as fast as she could. They both left and tried to catch up to the rest.
Fatigued, they climbed the stairs and returned to physics laboratory. They found Fukawa safe and unharmed but still asleep! However, Ishimaru has disappeared too leaving a dragged bloody mark behind. Byakuya was actually mortified at this moment. He couldn’t visualize the technique the killer used to drag two heavy dead bodies in such a short period of time, without being seen once. Sakura took the opportunity to take Fukawa to a safer and warmer place to rest: her dormitory.
“What kind of fucked game are they playing with us?” Mondo muttered. He noticed the blood on the tiles, most of the blood was already dry but he passed his fingers through the wet part of it. He admired the blood streaming through his fingers. “Taka” Until he saw the body, he believed his brother was still alive, smiling, that this blood was from other person. Kigirigiri or Hagakure, perhaps? He went numb and displaced himself from the surrounding conversation.
“What reason does he have to hide the bodies? Doesn’t he wish to graduate?”
“In any case, there’s a madman committing crime after crime… We have to catch him… fast!”
“A needless concern!” Byakuya interrupted “Think!” Byakuya continued to explain about the two possible suspects: Kyoko and Hagakure. Makoto strongly believed in her innocence and displayed her alibi by assuring she could had not attacked Celestia or Yamada at 7 am if she was having breakfast along with the people that have shown up in the morning at that time. “Oh! Do we have another lovebird among our group?” He snickered. Although not completely buying her not-guilty status, he dismissed her from the list of suspects. If Hagakure’s the killer, well they should not worry about killing the rest because the rules are very clear. A single villain is only allowed to kill a maximum of two people. And if one breaks the rule, they are punished… permanently! It’s simply not worth it…
“Is that why you knew Fukawa was not in danger, Togami?” Sakura inquired.
“Tough I meant it when I said I was better off without her.” Did he? Did he show a hint of consideration? “Nevertheless… now we should focus in finding the dead bodies.”
They split up to search for the bodies. Asahina was still scared about the eminent killer that continued to circulate around the school, so Sakura decided to pair up with her. Mondo almost stayed behind astonished by the pool of blood left by the hall monitor. It was a lot of blood… bucket loads of blood. Chihiro noticed the motionless Mondo and asked him “Are you ok?” He did not react. Chihiro did not push for a response and set her mind on the task at hands but sustained worried thoughts about him. A few minutes later, he ambled out of the back room. He had lost faith in the lies he told himself.
Makoto was worried about Kyoko and her whereabouts. He dashed to nearest room to the physics lab, in this case, the art room. Sakura and Aoi were already there. They did not exchange conversation and he went straight to the storeroom. Rattle. Rattle. “Is this locked?” He found the situation peculiar but did not force the entry and moved on to another room. No time to waste. Rec room, nothing. Classroom 3-B, zero clues. As he left the classroom, two people were expecting him.
“Naegi, w-“
“Why are you standing looking stupid? To the art room, now!”
The two people were Celestia and Togami. Makoto ran after them but couldn’t keep up so he was left disregarded. Makoto was exhausted physically and emotionally making it difficult to accompany others’ energy. Inside the art room, there was nothing besides Byakuya waiting for him. Byakuya saw Naegi vigorously and clumsly looking for the bodies “Indeed, where could be the two bodies hidden?” He commented, sarcastically. That could only mean one thing. The bodies were hidden in the storage room that was once locked.
He turned the doorknob in front of him with Byakuya breathing beside him. Why did he felt petrified? He still felt hopeless when facing the veracity of death, it doesn’t matter how many times he witnessed, how many times he will witness. To observe a once alive human being with blood gushing out of it, you can feel your own body snivel in pain and nausea. It was like looking at any empty shell and no one ever gets used to the smell of a dead body. Waiting to find Ishimaru’s and Hifumi’s body laid spread to garnish the tile floor in the other side of the door is a reason to get nervous and upset. It was clear how the bodies were positioned: with open arms, Hifumi was closer to the exit while Ishimaru “slept” uncomfortably in the opposite corner.
DING! DONG! BING! BONG!
“ahem- A body has been discovered! After a certain amount of time, which you may use however you like, the class trial will begin…”
Everyone, except for Chihiro and Mondo (and of course, Kyoko and Hagakure) were inside the storage room, examining the two bodies.
“A body discovery?” Chihiro inquisited.
“Taka…”
“pupupu- I am so glad you guys are together! I have appeared before you to tell you the investigation has once again started in the rec ro-“
Mondo didn’t let Monokuma conclude his sentence; he sprinted his way from the second to the third floor.
“Mondo, Wait!”
“Pupupu! It’s so nice to see my students excited over the death of their sweet colleagues!”
Monokuma’s lies lead Mondo to a search in vain in the rec room. Obviously, nothing relevant but the Justice Hammer #1 was there. He even thought there was a hidden space where they deposited the corpses. He moved the furniture and whatever seemed to be easy to budge. Results: negative. Seven minutes later, Chihiro appears, breathless…
“Mondo, stop! In there is nothing! I have checked it after the bodies had disappeared!”
“What?”
“Hahaha! It is so fun to play with your feelings, Mr. Owada!”
“The real location is…“
Makoto felt a chill rising through his spine as he heard a familiar clomp of small heels getting louder and louder. The closer he got, the louder it became.
He pressed the door to open wide. In a close inspection, all the present classmates had a harsh and terrified look in their faces when they glared subtly towards Mondo, who took a pause to scan the room. He was sweating, wheezing and had a killing rage in his eyes. He saw Makoto kneeled down examining in what appeared to be a pair of legs dressed in blood-stained white fabric. Ruthlessly, he pushed Makoto to one side to get a better grasp of the picture. In fright, no one protested to the violence. There was completely silence apart from the sobbing coming from Asahina who had Hifumi’s head on top of her legs.
As he came across Ishimaru dead in front of him, the sense of reality falls on top of him. This despair consumed him and made him fall on his knees beside the body. He lifted the body in his arms. He positioned Ishimaru in a way so his brother could rest the weight of his body in Mondo’s legs and the head. Ishimaru was mysteriously smiling. As he was holding Ishimaru in his arms, he hugged him tightly one last time as flashbacks of the past rolled in his mind. “Brother… Brother! BROTHER!!” Now, it was Mondo that was painted with Ishimaru’s blood. And whatever glimpse of hope that had left has vanished…
“Why would someone do something like this? What drives them to commit such a dreadful act?” A stream of Asahina’s tears fell down through Hifumi’s face washing away the blood that covered an agonized look. If this was a children’s fairy tale, Hifumi would came back to life miraculously and continued to fight alongside the others. But, as you know, healing tears only happen in folk stori-
“Where am I?” Hifumi whispered “It’s very cold!”
“Yamada! Hang in there!!”
“Huh? Hahaha… I remember everything… This is Hope’s Peak Academy. I met everyone… before I met everyone.”
Byakuya walked closer and observed him “Looks like his memory’s fried… He’s done for…”
“Hifumi… Please tell us who the culprit is!”
“Cul…prit? I remember… the cul…prit’s name… T-… ak…Ya… Yasa… hiro…”
Hifumi closed his eyes for the second time and didn’t open them again. Yasahiro… the name echoed in the small storage room. With this type of development, everyone took the culprit’s name for granted and felt relieved. Asahina kept crying and shaking him in order to wake him up. It was heartbreaking to watch…
“Pitiful.” Byakuya was crouched near Hifumi to assist to the miraculous scene that unveiled before them. Once it finished, he stood up with an unsatisfactory tone. Emphasis on the word ‘unsatisfied’. “Frankly, I am pissed off! Why the hell did he had to come back from the dead and tell us that? Thanks to him, the whole damn game is ruined.”
The game seems to be settled… right? Still, it seems such a complex plan coming from someone like Yasahiro Hagakure… Could he actually possess an intelligence personality trait? Maybe deep at heart he’s a devilish mastermind hiding behind an oblivious cliché ordinary mask. It was time for yet another investigation…
Mondo wanted to turn the school upside down to hunt Hagakure and made him plead for his life, nevertheless he chose not to move and stay engulfed in sorrow. It was his last moment together with his brother. Frozen, the investigation developed around him. They found Hagakure sleeping, trapped in the Robo Justice costume inside a closet near the pool. Kyoko has also re-appeared and was now facing severe suspicions of Byakuya regarding her play in the role as puppet’s mastermind. That question matters little at the moment. Right now, she intended to play her role in the investigation and wished to see the deceased.
“Mondo, may I examine Ishimaru?” Silence, again… but a silence that meant as a yes. He barely shook his head to approve the request.
A few hours passed by and a different announcement came from the headmaster.
DING! DONG! BING! BONG!
“It’s time for the class trial! A blinding flash like fireworks in the night…born of a clash between life and death. You guys should know the drill by now so… ‘urry up an’ get your asses to the red door of the first floor!”
There is punishment if one decides to defy the orders of the headmaster and one of our protagonists was almost willing to…
“Mondo must still be holding on to Ishimaru.”
There is a room that waits after the giant bulky red gates that Monokuma mentioned which stands before an elevator that leads to the class trial grounds.
“That idiot is making us waste precious time! And you!” Byakuya pointed to Hagakure that was freaking out seated in a corner “I hope you’re prepared to defend your case in court!”
“I told you man! It wasn’t me!”
“Why should I take your word?”
Monokuma emerged, grinding his teeth “Is there a student that denies obeying my rules? Maybe a punishment is a good idea!!”
“I don’t think you wish to carry out such a definitive solution Monokuma… Bear in mind that two students died today! You’re running out of students to play with so I don’t believe you desire to cut short our appearances on a trial. So, I ask only to drop a warning with Mondo.”
“Puhuhuhu! You are such a smart and dangerous girl. I will be right baaaack! Hihi!”
“Kyoko…”
Knock. Knock. Mondo didn’t budge his stand and continued deep in reflection. “Ahem- Mr. Owada, I presume you’ve heard the earlier announcement. The time for a class trial has reached its peak and it’s time for you to confront the killer of your dear beloved… friend. Don’t you wish to make justice for Ishimaru and continue his legacy? It’s the perfect occasion for revenge and to vote for the murderer!! Want a tip? Not obeying your principal will grant you a free and binding request to join your dead friend!”
That… didn’t sound so bad but…
“I am sorry brother, I have let you down! I’ve promised to protect you… and we’d leave this hell hole together! Now, I feel like I’m abandoning you but I want to make one last manly promise which I want to carry out for you… Since ya’re not present, I will be the one to carry out the values and morals you believed in… Throughout this trial, you will be there in spirit because you were not killed! So, you will not be forgotten… I will not let them forget you!” Tears almost welled out of Mondo’s eyes “Shit! I have to go!” He looked at his ornamented long coat with regret because he remembered nostalgically memories of his gang. He decided to strip it in an attempt to move on from those good ol’ times. No! Now it was not the time to get nostalgic. He dressed Ishimaru with the same jacket and placed him gently on the floor away in a comfortable position to sleep in; arms crossed over the chest and cleaned any blood residue left on his friend face with his already drenched-in-red white tank top. “Keep the jacket until I decide to see you again, bro.”
He walked up to the elevator, bathed in Ishimaru’s blood, head to toes. They have been waiting for him almost 30 minutes and their demeanors expressed serious concern regarding their classmate. During one minute, the time the elevator took to reach the ground, everyone thought how easy and how complicated this trial will be to surpass and reach its victory.
Monokuma gave the initial speech. “Figure out who dunnit and only the culprit will be punished. Vote for the wrong person and everyone will receive the intended punishment besides the guilty party which will be allowed to graduate and receive 10 billion yen!”
“Less than 20 hours ago, Kiyotaka Ishimaru was alive and smiling next to us…” he muttered.
“Hum- Mondo? Are you ok?”
“Now he has died and his presence is merely marked by a fucking photo with a red cross over his face, like a shitty joke! What is the purpose of that bullshit? Is to mock his death or to mock his life? I am fucking ANGRY!” He raised his head and screamed with the top of his lungs “YOU WILL NOT FORGET ISHIMARU!” Mondo pulled out a white cloth out of a backpack. It was his long coat, the jacket that he generally wore in the daily basis, but white… with an extra add-on: a gold medal that used to hang close to the chest of Ishimaru’s uniform. “The last thing he said to me was to follow the rules so I will make sure the culprit gets caught. I will make sure my brother gets his revenge through a fair trial! So I will proceed with his work and make sure you little assholes don’t overlook things and bend the rules! He’ll continue to live through me! Ha-Ha!”
“Puhuhuhu- this is going to be a fun trial…” Monokuma added in a devilish tone.
This new form of Mondo was stressful and complicated the class trial even more. He would disagree to most of Makoto’s arguments and the others’ testimonies, making sure everyone was on the correct page. He was more aggressive, less patient. These were his clumsy attempts to be like Ishimaru. He did not know him well actually he just met him a few days ago. However, in Ishimaru, he saw a brother or a successful reflection of himself that had not given up on life.
But even taking longer than it should had, both Kirigiri and Makoto reached the same conclusion, the same culprit. “Celestia, do you mind telling me… your real name?”
“What are you talking about, Makoto? My real name IS Celestia Ludenberg.”
“Yamada tried to warn us of the killer’s last name – Yasuhiro” Kyoko added.
“If anyone here had that LAST name, it would have to be you, Celeste.”
“How many times do I have to tell you… My. Name. Is… CELESTIA LUDENBERG, god dammnit!”
“For how long will you continue to pretend?”
“Pretending? I am not pretending… And you have no way to contradict me! HAHAHAHA!”
Everyone looked at each other trying to arrange a solution. Makoto looked at Kyoko, she was smirking. “Is she on to something?” he thought.
“Show us your e-Handbook.” Chihiro said firmly “It shall contain your real name.”
“WHAAAAAAT?!”
Kyoko smirked harder. “I am glad someone recalled it too. Any time you turn your handbook on, the owner’s name flashes whenever it boots up. Did you forget about that?”
“I-I refuse to cooperate!” Celestia was on the edge. Her anger and composure were long gone. Now facing her neck in the guillotine, she stutters and denies evidence through tantrums and persistence “That is a violation of my privacy!”
“Fuck your privacy! If ya’ not cooperate, I’d be more than happy to retrieve your handbook!”
“Mondo… please.” Makoto asked nicely. “Celeste, just tell us what happened. Please, do...”
She grabbed her normal, princess-like composure back but spoke with panic in her voice “Even when I’m put in check, it’s just my nature not to give up! Because! Because, because, because, because, because, BECAUSE, BECAUSEE!!!” she lost her sanity again and babbled nonsense’s, fuming “Until the game’s over, you never know what might happen! The cards might turn in your favor!!” The feel of upcoming defeat boiled her blood, Celestia has never been defeat- Well, not until now.
“Makoto, go over the case one last time to prove her guilt!”
Makoto rolled his eyes at Byakuya’s obvious request “Very well… Before anything, the killer persuaded Hifumi to help carry out the plan. This was important! With an accomplice, the mastermind would be able to execute their plan; otherwise it was an impossible scheme. First step was to convince someone to join both of them at the rec room last night at 1 a.m. They aimed their plan at Hiro who showed up under false pretenses from a note at his dorm. The murderous duo intended to mask Hiro as their scapegoat. As soon as they met, they drugged him, knocked him out and stuffed him into the Justice Robo suit. Next, Hifumi positioned himself to give the impression that this mysterious robot was attacking him… while our killer took a photograph of the, and I quote, assault. When satisfied with the pictures, they shoved him, still unconscious, into to the pool room locker. At 6 a.m., they moved on to the murderous step of their plan. They called Kiyotaka to the equipment room at the Physics laboratory, again with a fake note that asked him for a meeting in that very room. That is where Hifumi killed him, making him the first murderer. The murder weapon was Justice Hammer #4, which was left next to Kiyotaka’s body. The hammer #4 was used in the first place to create confusion about the order of the crimes. So, during the morning, they falsified several incidents to pretend that our killers were actually victims to solidify Robo Justice as the prime suspect. The first fake incident was the attack in the rec room. The purpose was to present the Justice Hammer #1 and the Robo Justice pictures to make sure we bought the ‘mysterious assailant’ story. The second fake incident was the attack on the library, in which they planted a Justice Hammer #2 and a bloody Hifumi to sell the same phony story. With those events, both of the culprits managed to create a certain preconception in our minds that the suspect was increasing the size of the hammers as well as attacking people in the order expressed by the mallets numbers. And while we went looking for this imaginary assailant, we left Hifumi alone in the nurse’s office. He took a blood packet from the refrigerator and Justice Hammer #3 and turned the room into a crime scene to give the impression he had been brutally murdered. He let out a scream to draw half of us back to witness his fake death. Meanwhile, the other group found Ishimaru’s body at the same time. When the body discovery announcement played, I assumed it was due to Hifumi. When everybody left the infirmary, Hifumi took advantage to escape. When we learn his body had disappeared, we all rushed to nurse’s office. So, Hifumi snuck into the equipment room, wrapped Ishimaru in a tarp and used the dolly to move it to the art room’s repository. And this serves as an explanation to the disappearance of both bodies. But Hifumi did not know what was expecting him at the end of his deal. The other killer, the true culprit had the intentions of killing Hifumi since the beginning to get rid of the one person that could betray them. And they did it using an ordinary hammer found in that room that the killer cleaned later to make everyone believe he was killed with Justice Hammer #3. The only capable villain behind all of this is… you, Celeste.”
“Taka… Why were you so stupid?”
“You lost!” Byakuya announced
“I- lost? I… Lost?! Look at you… trying to run over me with utter words! I, Celestia Ludenberg- no. it’s fine. Just call me Taeko Yasuhiro.”
“So, you’ve finally accepted it. You even lost your western accent.” Byakuya replied.
“I am the kind of person, once I’ve lost, I don’t like things to drag on… Monokuma, go ahead! End this!”
“It is indeed the moment we have all been waiting for! Time to voooote! If you would, please locate your lever and cast the vote!”
Celestia Ludenberg was indeed found to be the correct blackened, or rather, Taeko Yasuhiro.
“I lost… well, that sucks!” She sighed, disappointed.
Tears finally managed to escape Mondo’s eyes while trying to hide away his face in shame. “Why… WHY?”
“Let me ask you one final question.” Kyoko “How did you manag him to agree to commit such a barbarian act?”
Byakuya could not let such a precious moment escape of his sarcastic words “I am sure she relied on her specialty – lying”
“Lying? Hehe! Don’t make me laugh. I didn’t have to lie to make him to agree. I just concealed certain truths and let him to weave the rest of the story”
“Does that mean that you- you know, used the-“
“I knew you’d figured that out! Yes, you are right! I used ‘her’! Don’t worry; I will avoid using her name. You know it was the only thing that Hifumi was super into and made it into a motive.”
“Wha- Wha- Wha- What are you guys talking about?” Monokuma asked, dumbfounded.
“Don’t interrupt! We are in the middle of a very important conversation here!”
“I am being left out! So sad for my students not to trust me…”
“Then you were the one to steal it to make Hifumi cooperate.”
“That is correct!” Celestia drop a condescending grin “3 nights ago, I paid Hifumi a visit. He acted suspicious facing my call but I cut off the chase and told him directly that I knew who had stolen the thing he loved most. I began to explain that Ishimaru was the one to conceal it and I was the one who caught him red-handed. I even showed him the proof that the prefect was guilty. I took a picture of ‘her’ sitting in my desk. He foolishly believed it, assuming it was Ishimaru’s room. So delightful… Of course, after I shown him the photographs, I deleted it them. To nourish the interest, I proceed to tell him that I was abused by Ishimaru and threatened after I caught him stealing. That he blackmailed me by taking pictures of me ‘defenseless’, ‘vulnerable’ and ‘abused’ and that he would show those same pictures to everyone if I didn’t cooperate with him. I exposed my beliefs of Ishimaru being the mastermind’s mole and knew for certain that he wanted to kill Hifumi. I explained that he thought Hifumi was weak, pathetic and disgraceful. I also added that the new sympathetic-character Ishimaru was showing to everyone was just an act, an act for him to succeed and win the killing game and he was using ‘her’ for that intention.” Her smile became more and more radiant “I can’t express how enjoyable was to watch him eat my every word! What a beautiful plan I devised! There is something almost… poetic about this situation. Witnessing Hifumi regret his decision of killing Ishimaru only to be killed by me and die laid next to his regrets. I bet he regret it so, so much! It’s beautiful!” That maniac laugh couldn’t deceive anyone. She was terrified for her life.
“I presume that Hifumi thought he was not to be killed in the end, correct?”
“Correct. The plan I told him involved him waking up of a sudden after the two had gone missing and I was planned to kill someone else.”
“He bought that bullshit?” Mondo’s expressions hardened.
“He was a stupid pig and to make matters worse, he was blindly in love and frustrated with the hall monitor accusations. I fed that rage and twisted love and my plan was almost flawless.”
“Shit! Is that why, while we were chasing the assailant, you made me go with you instead of Byakuya so I would mess up with your plan… Because if I went with Byakuya instead… I would have never left Taka’s side…”
“Bravo! You are actually smarter than you look!”
“But you were the one who said that we should accept this new lifestyle!” Hagakure recalled.
She screamed in disgust “OBVIOUSLY, I LIED WHEN I SAID THAT!” Hagakure winced at the disgust in her voice “I had dreams you know. I wanted to have my own european castle and beautiful male servants that would kiss my feet and glory the floor I walked over. The money I earn throughout these years plus the motive would have given me the most perfect, accommodating life and show the world the perfect aesthetic image of decadence. I followed my dreams to the very end. I regret nothing!”
Everyone was wondering the same but it was Asahina, tearing, that sounded the most quizzical “You sound too much passionate but I don’t understand how you were able to kill your own friends for money.”
“Friends? I use others to my own ends. Money is the oldest motive in the book, you shouldn’t be surprised! If that speech is to lead me to regret what I’ve done, it’s a meaningless endeavor. I had to attempt to play the game, because that is my nature and talent!”
“Ngh- Why… Why did you target my brother?”
“Why? Pffffff-“ Celestia laughed, laughed, laughed, laughed… loud, distorted, despaired and haunted. The laughter she produced was welcomed by the oval chamber they were sitting on and magnified in echoes to romanticize its madness.
“WHAT THE FUCK IS SO FUNNY?”
And then she gave him an answer. “He was boring and annoying, but essential to my escape. Besides, other than you, Mondo, no one is going to miss him.”
“Boring?! Who the fuck are you calling boring? MY BROTHER WAS NOT BORING! Is that why no one cried his death?? Is that why nobody will miss him?! Fuck you!! Even when he tried to open with everybody I saw the despicable looks on your faces. I know what ya’re all thinking! You were thinking that is bothersome. You didn’t even fuckin’ try to understand him. If you you’ve seen what I saw… I- I saw… I saw the second best person I’ve ever met.”
“No one is more marvelous and admirable than me…”
“Wrong answer, bitch. He’s more admirable than you! He would scoff on you and your talent! This was a man that worked his entire life, that built his talent from nothing… and because of that he failed to have a childhood, friends and appreciation and even affection from the people around him… fuck! What a way to go… To think all that hard work was in vain. He was born and educated to make up for other people’s mistakes. And he continued to follow that path when decided to be the pretty moral compass to emend the shit others made. Maybe to prove his worthy… or to compensate that he never had his parents present. He saw his parents as idols ‘cuz they worked their asses off to earn money to survive.”
“Regardless, I consider his rigid personality to be a cause of lack of love and he found a miserable way to receive gratitude and pompous words that he probably didn’t receive at home.”
“Heh- you are lucky, you know? I was taught to never hit weak girls but I think maybe even my brother would open the exception to hit ya’… heh! I will enjoy your punishment.”
“Enough chitchat. Monokuma please rescue me for this endless conversation. It was interesting to meet you all. Oh, by the way, Kyoko, here!” Celestia handed her a key “I presume you know what this key’s end…” Koyko shook her head in affirmation. “I hope it gives you the hope you are looking for… Very well, goodbye and take care. Perhaps, we’ll meet again, in another life.”
She smiled. But that smile was forced. She claimed no regrets but you could see fear in those red eyes and that weak, fainted smile is what betrayed her. She could not fool herself from what was expecting her.
“Finally! Let’s get rollin! The blackened disturbed the peace and now has to pay the price! I have prepared a very special for the Ultimate Gambler! Let’s give everything we’ve got! It’s PUNISHMENT TIME!!”
Mondo watched Celestia getting strapped to a pole and being engulfed by flames as the witch she was. And the unexpected end to her punishment painted vague satisfied smile on his face. So satisfying to see that she didn’t receive the graceful execution she desired. His brother had been revenged… He undressed the white coat and snatched Ishimaru’s gold medal to stare at it “It was nice to play as kyoudai but I want don’t wish to dishonor his image any longer.”
Hagakure was comically pounding the floor, screaming “Let me out of here!”
Chihiro fell on her knees weeping “This is my fault… I am sorry! If I knew creating that thing would have Hifumi go berserk- I would never— (sniff) created it.“
Kyoko sat next to her and placed her hands in Chihiro shoulders to calm her down. “It’s not your fault. She’d come up with other plan to escape. You heard her; she was determined to win.”
Makoto looked at both of them with a soft smile. If anything, the murders were making their bonds grow stronger. He remembered Mondo at this point and looked around but no signs of him. Maybe he should talk with him… Like Kyoko was soothing Chihiro.
“Kyoko… before you return to your dormitory meet me up in the bath house so I can talk with you about several important points. I may be late because I want to attend another issue first.
“I understand. Take all the time you need with Mondo. I will wait.” Her amazing logical deductions kept astonishing him.
Mondo was at the art’s storage room to meet with his brother but instead find nothing. He then recalled that after every murder, the places would be cleaned up… Any trace left of him was gone… it’s like Ishimaru never existed “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!” He truly started to wonder if Ishimaru had really existed. The whole plot was messing with his brain. He sat on his own knees, hid his face between his legs and covered the ears with his large hands. A list of emotions harried his perception and he experienced a hormonal mix of torture: guilt, loneliness, despair, anxiety, sorrow – just to name a few. Makoto appeared in front of him, extending an arm to offer aid. Mondo lifted his eyes only to the point to see what was happening and to refuse. He deviating Makoto’s hand with a slap. “I appreciate what ya’re doing kid but right now I want to be left alone.” Makoto nodded and did not force Mondo to accept his listening ear. He would try again tomorrow. Now he sprinted to a heartfelt conversation he needed to have with Kirigiri regarding her disappearance and her attitudes.
Now that the trial had accomplished its end, Mondo sighed to ease the sorrow… this pain wasn’t entirely dedicated solely to his friend but everything and everyone he had lost so far. Right now, what he missed the most was his gang - the small slice of “hope” that we could hang on. He recalled their misadventures and couldn’t help but grin in remembrance of some of them. But that smile quickly turned to concerns and soon to solitude. They were unreachable and he could merely question if they were ok without their leader. The gang needed him but I guess Mondo also required them… for consolation and company because there was no point to mourn for the ones who deceased… he tried to trick himself but it hurts! IT REALLY HURTS! The heart is aching for the amiss! He realized something obvious – he’ll never see the faces he loved never again! EVER! Those thoughts hunted him and brought some despair, a sensation of void and emptiness inside of him. The emotionally pain was so great that promptly translated into sickness, headaches and vomit.
This session of grief lasted two hours until his body started giving up on pain and started throwing it up! He imagined the death of Ishimaru unrolling in front of him: He watched Hifumi appearing behind a secret spot and cracking his head open. He falls miserably disoriented as his eyes watch the culprits happy dancing around his corpse celebrating a murder nicely committed. What was the last thing that Taka thought of? What was the thing he regretted the most upon closing his eyes for the last time? However Mondo remembered the smile he found on Ishimaru when he held his dead body. He died happy? Soon after, Mondo returned to his dorm with a bucket full of vomit and eyes full of tears. No one was watching so it was ok to cry…
-----------
The morning after appeared only like a strange illusion as if the day before had by no means take place. Makoto woke up, got dressed and exited the door of his room. In the lobby, he looked to his surroundings to check others’ dormitories. Just as he suspected, the existence of Ishimaru’s, Hifumi’s and Celestia’s plates indicated that the events he thought he had dreamed were the crazy and raw reality he had awoken to.
He went to the dining hall to realize he was the last one to appear. Makoto was surprise to even see this person present. The majority of his classmates were repeating their morning routines. I consider their oddly calm behavior to be a copying mechanism to deal (or not deal) with the situation they witnessed hours before… And who can blame them? The only ‘odd’ person that he met that morning was the most solitary one. Mondo was seated near a corner; the furthest he could from the others, in front of an untouched plate of fruit distracted looking at bolted window that was at his right side. Basically, he was looking at naught, just his distorted reflection on the metal.
“Hey, how are you?”
“I am ok. I guess Ishimaru’s death hit me harder than it should have.”
“It’s ok. You guys were awfully close. It’s only understandable!”
“Oi, oi. I hope you are not insinuating something!”
“What? No! NO!”
“Ha-ha-ha. I’m just messing with ya’ kiddo. And I apologise for my attitude last night. I just need time to process. “
“No need to apologise. If you ever need to talk-”
“Thanks.”
The same routine endured for two days. At breakfast he went to the same spot to remain in silent, look at his food and holding Ishimaru’s medal at all times. Makoto heard him spoke 2 words during that time.
At the third day, Monokuma presented a new, disgusting motive. Chihiro was found dead the morning after. Mondo was the culprit. The events which lead to the current verdict are pointless… at least that’s how Mondo felt. A side of him wanted him to raise his arm and admit his guilty conscious the instant everybody discovered his body. Yes, Chihiro was a boy. The other half wanted him to lie with all of his teeth. He cared about no one present and only wished to return to his gang. His eyes shifted of to the side, to avoid eye contact and hide his shame. What he did to Chihiro is unforgivable.
He fought his case on trial, presented false testimonies and attempted to pass the guilty veredict to the most convenient but in the end… like many others who tried before him, he failed and he accepted it. It was unusual to see the glorious and the ultimate gang leader so calm. Common was to listen to his crude and loud convictions, empty threats and screaming something ‘manly’. At all time, he had to perceive a ‘manly’ image to not let anyone consider him as unfit to be a chief. Now he let that image shatter in front of his classmates.
He resumed his crying. Not even he was longer sure about its cause for the uncontrollably crying. “Hahahah- how embarrassing…”
“Why… Mondo?”
“Puhuhuhu! It’s my time to shine since Mondo has decided to take a vow of silence! The foundation of this murder highlights the sad story of two men. There was once a young boy and his name was Chihiro Fujisaki. He had an extreme inferiority complex regarding his own lack of strength. He was bullied and abashed as long as he could remember and wasn’t able to overcome his weakness so he metaphorically drown in that weakness to take on the fragile form of a petite young girl. Once the killing game started, he saw that inferiority complex as a huge and easy target for murder plus the lovely and hattteeeefuuuuul Monokuma announced embarrassing secrets as the motive for the next trial. The revealed secret meant the fall of the cracked armor he wore. Surprisingly (and annoyingly), he used the threat as a motivation to become stronger! In that eventful day, he made the commitment to begin exercising in order to retrain his mind and body. Sadly, his opportunity did not concretize because he made a fatal mistake. He decided to confide his secret to one and worst person he could ask for help…”
“Yup, it was me…”
“HAHAHAHAHA! The biker fella has proven painfully clear to all of you how important his manly promises were! So Chihiro deposited his hopes on Mondo, knowing his honor would make him quiet. Mr. macho here was the idolized symbol of a strong man Chihiro aspired to be.”
In the end Mondo kept his promise when he moved his body to the girls’ locker room and stealing his handbook.
Asahina teared “Then I still don’t understand why…”
Mondo abstained to answer.
“Just because Mondo does not want anyone to know doesn’t mean I won’t tell you! You know what Mondo did in the past? He killed his own brother!”
“Ngh- fuckin’ idiot” he arched his back and clutched his fists in disgust of the memory.
“Mondo, the ultimate Biker Gang Leader, makes all the hoodlums and riff-raff across the country tremble… however, the only reason he had the chance to join a gang was due to a certain somebody, Mondo’s older brother – Daiya Owada. Mondo had nothing but respect for him. His was the ever sole motivation he had to Mondo ever got on a motorcycle. Daiya was his only family growing up. He was the only one Mondo could trust and respect. He desired to measure up to his big brother so he imitated everything he did. The charismatic older brother had put together a local motorcycle gang and before anyone could expect, it had grown into the biggest biker gang in the country. Daiya was the number one while Mondo became his right arm. In the beginning it was a font of happiness for both brothers but when Mondo started to think about how he’d have to take over someday; the expectations to grow to his brother’s reputation began to gnaw Mondo’s because the rest of the gang didn’t saw the little brother as great as Daiya. The rumours and gossips consumed him which is why he wanted to get stronger than Daiya. On the night of his amazing brother’s retirement ceremony, Mondo challenged him to a street race in which tragedy struck… In the rage of the race, the baby brother pushed ahead recklessly, eager for victory, dashed into oncoming traffic. But, in the right moment, Daiya saved Mondo from a meeting with a truck. Laying in his brother’s arms, the oldest never blamed him for what happened and the oldest and delivered his final words… ‘Hey, kid… The rest is up to you. No matter what, you gotta keep the gang together ‘cuz it’s the team you and me put together. It’s a promise… between men…’”
How? How did… you know?... that is exact-“
“Anyways, he decided to hide the truth of what happened from everyone else in the gang. He carried the heavy cross alone in honor to protect the promise he made and to never admit that it was his own weakness that caused the accident. ‘Daiya was afraid to lose to his younger brother so he got stupid and got himself killed!’ With that argument, the team became even stronger under the banner of the kid who had bested his big brother. He wanted to believe he was strong but, inside of him, his brother death was his biggest source of weakness and it haunted him. As soon as our killing game began, he realized no matter how tough he presented to be, he was another weakling that could die in an instant...”
“In the end, no matter what, I didn’t want anyone to know… I couldn’t let my gang members to know. If that happened, everything me and my brother had worked for woulda’ been ruined in mere seconds, me carrying the guilty… all fo’ nothing!! So that’s why I… I…!”
“Mondo…”
“When I saw the motive Monokuma had on me, ma head filled up with fuzzy uneasiness and started swirlin’ around. I didn’t know what to do about it. But quickly it turned into a rock-hard lump of anxiety, way down in my stomach! And that is when Chihiro asked me to start working out with him and told me his secret. Seeing he facing his demons made me embarrassed of myself! The greeeeeat gang leader who did not know how to deal with his. For a split second, I thought he was making fun of me when he asked me if I was strong, as if he was flaunting his courage at someone who didn’t have nothing but failure. I was not being able to deal with Daiya death or even Ishimaru’s. I was not stronger than either of them. I was jealous of Chihiro’s determination and I lost it. I don’t remember much after that. When I woke up, I saw Chihiro laying at my feet… and a dumbbell in my hand. Even after all this time, I’m just as weak and now I’ve done something I can never take it back.”
“Do you see hope anywhere in there? ‘Cuz I sure don’t! Puhuhuhu-”
“But the more I think about it the more I wonder if my weakness was the ultimate reason for my snap. Seeing Ishimaru dead made me want more to return to my gang and make sure they are ok… I am tired of feeling lonely. And if anything I do not longer care for any of ya’ but I still wish you good luck. Haha! I am just happy that Ishimaru wasn’t here to witness my fall… He’d be disappointed… I will now meet my brothers in heaven”
“Now then, I’ve prepared a very special punishment for the ultimate Biker Gang Leader! Let’s give it everything we’ve got! It’s… PUNISHMENT TIIIIIME”
Mondo was sent to an electrified cage of death, where his body was trapped to a motorcycle that didn’t stop accelerating. Delusional, his last words were… joyful.
“Hello Daiya, Ishimaru. Chihiro, have you forgiven me?”
THE END