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Seta Souji, the infamous magnificent bastard	By : Rago_Dragovian Category: +S through Z > Shin Megami Tensei: Persona (all) > Shin Megami Tensei: Persona (all) Views: 7340 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: The Persona series is property of Atlus. I have no rights to it and do not intend to use this for profit.

Chapter List
- 4
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- 6
Rise took a deep breath and exhaled after leaving the Inaba precinct. It had been quite the ordeal and she had been there for over three hours answering questions, some of which were the same questions repeated over again. Fortunately, the police let her go without suspicion and promised her they would catch Namatame. She had quietly said her thanks and left. The precinct had a rather stifling air about it that she despised. It may have been due to all the craziness that Souji and the killer Namatame caused with the police constantly being one-step behind and humiliated by the media as a result.
Rise cleared her thoughts and began focusing on what was important. Mentally, she recalled her last conversation with Igor before being sent out of the Velvet room.
"Now then," began Igor after bestowing her Kanzeon, "You must be cautious around the vilest opponent in Inaba."
"His name is Seta Souji, he is a very dangerous and wretched human being who has succeeded in an assortment of criminal activity and escaped any measure of penalty or justice. This boy is capable of murder, rape, torture, and maiming. He will likely use his mind games when the time comes for you to face him. Do not waver. Hesitation or despondent emotions only invigorate him. He thrives from hurting and humiliating others."
Rise's expression tightened at that. She would do her best to take down such a monster. Criminals like that deserved to be in prison cells or burning in hell as they deserved!
"Remember, you have not completely defogged this mystery and there are other dangerous presences that you must become aware of to resolve the deteriorating situation of Inaba entirely," said Igor solemnly, but then he gave her a smile. "I believe you have what it takes Ms. Kujikawa, which is why you were chosen to face this task."
"Before you leave, I have a gift that may or may not help you on your journey."
He took out a deck of cards and plucked the shiniest among them. He handed it over to Rise with obvious care. Rise gently took it, immediately feeling the power within the card, she gazed at Igor quizzically.
"That is the wildcard," explained Igor, eyeing the card intently, "It bestows its user tremendous power. However, you must fulfill its predestined requirements to unlock its abilities. I am sad to say that you lack the potential to unleash it because you are not the fighting type like Seta Souji."
Rise looked sullen at that.
"However, companions you may make on your journey have the potential to unleash its power once they fully and completely deal with their inner struggles. Guide them, assist them, and understand them so that you may forge bonds that shall result in their potential being realized."
Rise nodded firmly and gave her thanks. She swore to herself that she would defeat this Seta Souji and do her best to find and help these apparent potential allies.
Seta Souji wouldn't know what hit him!
Rise took out the wildcard from her coat pocket and gazed at it. The power was just waiting for the right person to come along and unleash it. She would need to keep a careful eye on this card and have it on her person at all times so that it didn't fall into the wrong hands. She re-pocketed the card and headed home. She needed the rest so that her mind could better deal with all that had been thrust on her shoulders in such a short period of time.

Naoto was utterly disgusted with herself after watching the news.
Kanji Tatsumi, a boy whom she knew that Seta Souji had taken a keen interest in and had been one of the targets of Namatame's kidnapping spree, was dead.
Naoto was sickened by the fact that she could've done something to prevent the troubled teenager's tragic suicide. It was all over the news along with Rise Kujikawa's miraculous return from kidnapping. The suicide had trumped the news in this case because Kanji's story was juicier to the media due to its tragic ending. News stations got more viewers and ratings from tragic stories than happy endings. The gossip, mystery (in most cases, the 'mystery' of a tragedy story was due to the general ignorance of the populous on the real facts of the case), and sadness of the event was more lucrative to talk about. News reports could go on and on about psychological analyses or biased surveys to garner more views. The media loved talking about death.
Naoto hadn't taken the time to interview Kanji during his hospitalization; she had thought it best to speak with him after he had fully recovered from his tragic ordeal and it had honestly seemed like the best route to take at the time. Yet it proved to be a foolish sentiment on Naoto's part. Kanji was dead and any vital information he could've given was taken to the grave with him. Naoto viewed the media's description of Kanji's injuries during his hospitalization in disgust. The social worker who had failed to stop it had lost his license. Kanji had stopped being a person to the world and had begun to become a mere figurehead to spear political agendas regarding troublemaking students. People made use of his death to further their own motives. Such was the real tragedy of being a martyr. You didn't get to choose what you stood for after you died.
'I'm going to do everything I can to stop Seta Souji,' thought Naoto, determined to overcome her obstacles now more than ever. She promised that she wouldn't allow herself to fear anymore. 'He's sexually abusing Amagi-san and he definitely had something to do with Tatsumi's hospitalization. I have no proof yet, but I shall find it. He's partly responsible for Tatsumi-san's death.'
Seta Souji had murdered Hanamura, crippled Satonaka, abused Amagi, and Naoto knew that he had put Tatsumi in that critical condition. It was right up his alley. Naoto's own self-doubt had allowed Souji free reign to do as he pleased without fear. No more!
'Never again will I hesitate!' She swore self-righteously, anger festering inside her. She would do her best to ignore her feelings of self-pity from now on! She had to! Too much was clearly at stake! 'People's lives won't be lost to his disdainful criminal activities any longer if I can help it! I shall ensure that justice is served!'
'Seta Souji, prepare for a surprise comeuppance!'

Souji grinned as he read the letter from his parents.
'Finally!' thought Souji happily, there were no more obstructions to stop his plan from happening. 'Everything has finally come to place! I'll begin preparations immediately.'
He walked back to his house with the rest of the mail. Once inside, he took off his shoes at the door and went to the living room to hand Nanako and Yukiko the rest of the mail. They both checked it over as Souji sat down next to Yukiko and across from Nanako.
"Good news," said Souji smugly, showing Yukiko the letter. Yukiko skimmed it before breaking out into a grin and kissing Souji on the cheek. "You can tell your parents to begin preparations, Yukiko-chan."
Yukiko nodded enthusiastically. Nanako looked between them questioningly. She was curious to know what they were talking about.
"Is something special going to happen?" asked Nanako, looking at their smiling faces. She looked at both of them expectantly. They smiled warmly in response.
"Nanako," began Souji, making her face turn to him. "These are papers my parents have signed to consent to the marriage of Yukiko-chan and I."
Nanako smiled brightly because of her own misinterpretation.
"So… so Yukiko is going to be staying with us?" asked Nanako excitedly, Souji loathed himself for what he was going to have to explain to her. Her innocent face beaming at him in happiness… only to be crushed by his next words… Nanako prattled on in ignorance. "She can stay with us and maybe play with us or help with homework, it'll be like a sleepover that lasts forever!"
"Unfortunately, Nanako-chan, it'll actually be the other way around. I'm moving in with Yukiko-chan," said Souji solemnly, he inwardly cringed at Nanako's crestfallen look. "But, I'll visit a lot…, in fact we could come over to pick you up to stay with us if you wanted. I'm not about to just leave you alone by yourself."
"Actually," began Yukiko, thinking of something that could appease Nanako, "We've decided that you should be the Bridesmaid Nanako. I can't think of anyone better suited for it than you. If you would like… we could pick out dresses or go grocery shopping and make Souji-kun cook for us."
Nanako appeared to be surprised by that prospect before she beamed in happiness. Souji and Yukiko eased in relief. They were glad to have found something to cheer her up.
"Okay!" said Nanako happily, "That sounds like fun!"
The three resumed watching television after that. Souji was joyful over his success in convincing his parents and therefore never needing to return under their control again. He had simply said he got his girlfriend pregnant and needed them to take care of them or to sign the papers for the marriage and let them try on their own. His parents bought it. Their only concern in life had been money. They never once took the time to care for Souji or his feelings as a child. He had always been a means to an end for them or, more commonly, a burden both financially and just because his presence was there. Souji developed his sociopathic tendencies as a result of that upbringing.
Once he married Yukiko, he would make arrangements for his parents' immediate deaths. It would be simple enough with Bloody Izanagi. He already had plans for what to do with Sayoko. He knew Yukiko had grown fond and come to care for Nanako in the extremely short time that she had got to know her. It was hard not to fall for Nanako's charms. The girl was just too cute. He would allow Yukiko to take Nanako shopping. It appeased Nanako and Yukiko had only done it for his benefit so a reward was in order.

The next day, Yasogami High
Rise keenly watched Chie from a distance in school. She could already feel the potential to use Persona within the girl. Kanzeon had taken note of it within her. Rise didn't really know how to best approach the other girl. She was having trouble just getting close to her with gawkers and fans asking for 'Risette's' autograph. Part of her wished she had waited until the fan mania had died down a bit before registering and joining the school as a student but getting allies to take down Souji was imperative.
Chie was obviously bullied in school and it clenched Rise's heart to see the insults slung at the girl or how the teachers did absolutely nothing about it. This was not a friendly environment. Rise had vainly hoped that this high school would be different from the one she grew-up in but realized the folly in it all too quickly. People were always the same. The background never truly mattered. Everybody was an asshole to some degree.
What really pissed Rise off was that the girl was using crutches to support her injured leg and nobody cut the girl any slack.
'What the fuck are wrong with these people?' she thought, noting that Chie would even be jostled at times by the more daring students. 'It's like they've formed a hive-mind for the sole purpose of making that poor girl miserable…'
She had heard the rumors of course, apparently the girl had stolen and destroyed a TV from Junes the popular superstore during the time it was revealed that a classmate of hers, Yosuke Hanamura, had died. She had got looped in with the crazed doctor supposedly responsible for it thanks to the high school rumor mill. It didn't matter whether there was a shred of truth to it; all that mattered was that it was something exciting to talk about. The students found joy in torturing Chie and the teachers not lifting a finger to assist the poor girls woes had only made people grow bolder with their reprehensible actions. Chie had become more snappish because of this but that only served to give teachers the excuse of punishing her.
'This is abuse.' She concluded, 'And I won't allow it to continue anymore.'
"Senpei?" interrupted Rise from behind Chie, she realized that the approach virtually didn't matter. She was going to help. She couldn't allow Chie to wallow or fester in this lifestyle any longer. "Do you have a moment?"
Chie whirled around in annoyance. She was certain it was yet another bully coming to pick on her. Their class had been informed that Yukiko dropped out to pursue her destined career in running the Amagi inn but somehow the student body had translated that into being Chie's fault and had been picking on her even more than usual. She had learned to become a rather guarded person especially today. However, when she turned around to face whom it was, even she couldn't help but look in surprise. The Risette was smiling back at her.
"Wh - uh – can I help you?" she asked uncertainly, she was guarded but she didn't want to be rude.
"Well, I couldn't help but notice how everyone picked on you and…." Rise stopped upon seeing Chie glower at her words. She quickly continued. "Senpai, I can't stand bullies and I was wondering if I could help you with anything. I was bullied too before I became famous."
Chie stared at her. Rise felt a bit uncomfortable by the stare. It was an odd reaction. Chie, for her part, simply couldn't believe that this was really happening. After months of pain and misery, one of her favorite idols who had transferred only today was offering to be her friend. If she wasn't using crutches, she would pinch herself.
"I… uhh…" she continued to stare stupidly at Rise, not knowing what to say. "S-sure…"
Rise smiled in response.
Later, during lunch, they hung sat and ate together. By now, the student body was silently gawking at Chie's new friendship with the famous Risette. In just the span of a few hours, Chie had gone from the most hated to the second most popular girl now that Yukiko dropped out. Instead of glares, shoves, or insults, she received welcome greetings, invitations to parties, or free seats. Even the teachers had stopped picking on her. Chie would have loved the attention had it occurred back when she and Yukiko were still best friends but that all felt like a lifetime ago… All she felt now was disgust. She acknowledged the true nature of people now.
Humans were assholes. It was a simple fact of life. Chie and Rise had more than enough experience to realize this. Consequently, due to their poor opinion of humanity at large, they had grown close quite quickly. Chie found herself sharing her experiences with being bullied that ranged from embarrassing to humiliating and yet didn't once feel embarrassed by her admittances. She learned to distinguish the Rise from TV to the one speaking in front of her, surprised to learn that Rise had her experienced her fair share of bullying in life before she became an idol.
"I bet all those bullies were begging for forgiveness after that." said Chie jovially; she could just imagine all of Rise's bullies lining up outside her trailer during one of her shoots or during autograph signings. "Must've been nice getting back at them."
Rise shook her head ruefully. Chie's expression changed from one of surprise to confusion.
"No, most acted like it never happened, as if I could ever forget it." said Rise, contemplating her old life and how it all changed when she made it big. "In fact… I feel like it got worse. The bullies and those who were nice to me became the same… I felt like… they didn't see the real me. All they saw was Risette, the hot piece of ass, with all the half-naked photo shoots marketing various amounts of crap."
"People… people just wanted to use me. My name, fame, or my money just became something people wanted to take advantage of. Some even wanted to just brag that they had bedded me even though I'm still so young. Nobody was ever interested in seeing who I was. Nobody truly cared. I became numb to it all once my parents started using me for my money too. I felt like the real me wasn't worth anyone's time. All they wanted was Risette. It's why I decided not to stay with my parents after finally having enough and doing away with my career. I want to do something in life that'll make me feel happy and accomplished. I'm not going to bother just pleasing people for the sake of it anymore."
"Have you found something that can make you happy?" asked Chie curiously, she was enraptured by that speech. She could tell that Rise had meant every word.
"Yes," said Rise casting her friend a radiant smile. "And… I believe you can help me out in fulfilling it."

They had wanted to avoid a crowd so they waited until most of the students had left to leave the school themselves. Rise had been careful not to divulge any information about the shadow world in the school. She promised to tell Chie about it once they left and were in a more private location, saying that what she was going to be involved with would be personal and that she didn't want people overhearing her personal matters especially since she was attempting to leave her life as a celebrity. Chie understood and wisely kept quiet about it for most of the day. She was curious but was too afraid of losing the only companion she had in months to let her curiosity take over. To Chie, it truly felt like the last chance she would ever get having a friend. She would not squander such an opportunity.
As they left the school they found that there was still someone patiently waiting for them. Chie stared in surprise at meeting the famous young detective face-to-face.
"Good afternoon," said Naoto peering at both of them, "This is most fortuitous. I am Shirogane Naoto, I was hoping to speak to both of you, Kujikawa-san, Satonaka-san."
"You…." began Chie slowly, unsure of what to say for a moment, "You're the boy who asked me questions that time I was injured and helped pay for some of my families medical expenses. I… never got the chance to thank you…"
Naoto smiled gently. It was all going perfectly so far.
"There is no need for thanks," said Naoto kindly, "I wanted to help someone who was in dire need of it. I do not believe you were at fault for what happened. I cannot discern how that terrible event was caused but I do not believe you have any fault in it."
Chie smiled appreciatively. She held back the grimace she had nearly formed recalling the TV painfully falling on top of her body. She still didn't understand how she had survived that and the lightning strike before that. She had been too terrified of using her power after that to try. She had nearly died and didn't harbor any wishes to repeat the experience of being in an emergency room.
"Perhaps we can all get better acquainted more privately," said Rise attempting to divert the conversation to her favor, "Come over to my Aunt's Tofu shop and we can all speak without any unwanted attention. All three of us appear to have something to discuss with each other."
"Very well," replied Naoto, and fell in step behind them as they made their way to the Tofu shop, "Let's be off then."

"You what?" snarled Margaret, it took a lot to piss her off and Igor was really pushing it now. She idly wondered if it had been Igor that had caused her sister to forsake her duty and not some decision about helping bring back a dead boy. "Is this some sort of stupid joke?"
"I'm afraid not." said Igor somberly, "It appears even Philemon's strength wasn't enough to contain it all. He has sacrificed his life force to keep the seal at bay but even that was not enough. The Gods are awakening."
"If we do not do something immediately, we shall both perish into nothingness."
"Let me get this straight, our Master, Lord Philemon is now effectively dead," said Margaret attempting to regain her composure and failing, her fury lingered. "Because of you. Because of your stupidity! And now, you're asking me to sacrifice my powers to keep the seal at bay!"
Igor closed his eyes and bowed his head in shame. He acknowledged her piercing words without retort. He needed her compliance.
"Yes," admitted Igor gazing up at her furious visage once more, "It appears that by breaking the laws of neutrality twice has sped-up the dilemma. By giving the wildcard to Rise Kujikawa, the only one who didn't fulfill the contract, I broke the law that keeps this world neutral for a second time. As such, the seal was weakened severely and Philemon hastily sacrificed himself, after securing our existences until the seal breaks open."
"However, the seal wasn't secured completely. It'll only temporarily hold unless you are willing to forsake some of your powers. I cannot do it because I do not have the ability or strength."
Margaret closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself. The migraine she was getting as a result of all this wasn't helping matters. She opened her eyes to scowl at Igor. Igor didn't even blink in response.
"Fine!" spat Margaret, she didn't want her existence erased either. "But I swear Igor, if you do anything more. Anything at all. I will kill you. Understood?"
Igor nodded solemnly. He acknowledged the fact that he had fucked-up royally. His master was dead and now both of them would perish if the seal was broken open. The world would be doomed to follow a destructive chaotic or dominating lawful path that would ruin it. Igor honestly couldn't afford to make anymore blunders.
Before departing, Margaret had one last thing to say.
"I'm going to take a more hands-on approach to this. We need to ensure those three brats succeed in defeating Souji, Adachi, and Izanami. You've already screwed-up enough. I'm going to at least make it easier for those three when the time comes."
Igor rubbed the bridge of his nose as he closed his eyes attempting to hold in his own remorse. He had fucked-up and was guilty of so much. Because of him, Philemon was dead, Margaret would be relatively crippled compared to her natural strength, and the three most dangerous forces in Inaba were still at large. Even worse, four people were dead and one had been brutally raped because of his decision's far-reaching consequences… all because he hadn't given Seta Souji the goddamn wildcard.

"Now then," started Naoto having settled herself in Rise's room along with the other two occupants, "Who shall begin?"
Rise and Chie frowned. Neither one knew they would respectively bring up the whole 'shadow world inside a TV' aspect of their conversation. They both simultaneously gestured for Naoto to continue.
Naoto cleared her throat.
"I wished to speak with you both concerning a classmate of yours, Seta Souji." began Naoto, she made sure to carefully disguise her surprise upon seeing no reaction from either of them. "It is my belief that he is responsible for the tragic occurrences that have befallen yourselves and classmates of yours. Although he is not the kidnapper, he has conducted criminal activity. He bragged about one of them to me himself."
"At this time, I do not have the evidence I need to support any of my accusations and I'm hoping you both would be receptive to answering questions I have."
"What was the crime he bragged about?" Chie couldn't help but be curious, it seemed like the other two had some big secrets about Souji that they uncovered. She really only had guesswork and his insults towards her in school.
"He…" Naoto paused, not really knowing how to phrase it or if it even could be phrased gently. No… it couldn't. Naoto sighed as she looked downcast. "He's… been continually raping Amagi Yukiko around the time she was found in that doctor's closet. Seta works there and it is my belief he implicated that doctor for his own crimes and coerced Amagi-san into secrecy."
Chie's vision saw red. Hatred coursed throughout her entire body at that statement. That sick fuck had been raping her best friend the entire time? He had BRAGGED about it! Chie felt a measure of shame weave through her as well. She had come to hate Yukiko and thought that she had been wrong about her one-time friend all along. If she had more faith in their friendship, could she have uncovered that horrible secret? Could she have saved Yukiko early on? What was certain in Chie's mind was that she wouldn't give up until Yukiko was free and Souji was dead in a ditch where he belonged!
'The fucker is going to pay!' She swore venomously, 'I'll kill him if I have to! How could I have been so stupid all this time? I'll make him regret it!'
Rise shook her head of her morbid thoughts at Naoto's revelation. Rise noticed the dark looks the other two seemed to share before she cleared her throat to begin speaking. She needed them both focused on her because of what she was about to explain.
"Alright, what I'm about to explain is complicated and rather… surprising…" She got up and walked over to the brand new big-screen TV in her room before sticking her hand into it. Naoto's eyes flew up in surprise as she gasped. Chie looked mildly surprised but had known, on some level, Rise would have the power to go into that world as well. "What I'm about to explain to you are no lies. I'm about to tell you all of what I experienced after being kidnapped and how I really escaped."
"It may all sound like crap but it's really the truth."
Chie listened attentively as Rise explained her experience only a few days ago from being kidnapped, to waking up to meet her shadow, and her meeting with Igor. Naoto looked pensive at the explanation. Once she finished telling her story, there was an awkward silence. None of them really knew what to say by the end of it but all three of them knew that Souji needed to be brought down and they would need each other's help to do it.
"It makes sense," Naoto said, finally breaking the silence. "It correlates perfectly with Chie-san's explanation of what she experienced, it explains how both Namatame and Seta got away with the crimes they committed, and it explains what Amagi-san is being threatened by. Seta's powers may manifest in this world as well and he could be threatening her with an untimely death to have his way with her."
"May I see the wildcard?"
Rise came over to Naoto and quietly pulled out the brilliantly glittering blue card. She set it on the desk in front of them. Naoto reached in and took it. She observed it for a few moments but didn't find anything unnatural apart from the odd glittering. She handed it to Chie. Chie felt a tug of power but it swiftly went away. Chie passed it back to Rise who carefully placed it back in her pocket.
"Very intriguing," said Naoto, "All three of us must work hard to take care of its safety if we are to ensure that Seta doesn't get it."
"I believe its Chie's turn to tell us what she knows." said Rise, both of them turned their attention to Chie who couldn't help but flush. "Take your time. You've obviously been through the worst of it among us three so don't force yourself to say anything."
Chie nodded slowly before beginning her tale. She felt a lot more confident now than she did before. Naoto made sure to pay more close attention this time. She was kicking herself for not having given Chie's words any real thought before. If she had believed that fantastic story then could she have made measures to prevent Souji from hurting or killing others? Could she have stopped him in his tracks? She needed to make amends for her previous decision. Now that she knew the truth, she would make sure that she wasn't going to stand around and be useless while people were in danger. She would do whatever it took to take down Souji.
Chie told them of her experience in the weird hanging room of Miyumi Yamano's mind, Yosuke's mysterious disappearance from school after saying he and Souji would be exploring that mysterious world, and how she had been concerned for Yukiko after realizing that Yosuke was probably dead with Yukiko possibly becoming next. She painfully retold how she was injured and even the rest of her experience in school because of the rumor mill. Rise and Naoto were sick to the stomach by her explanations. They realized that Souji was, in all likelihood, a sadist.
"Do either of you wish to journey with me into the world inside the television?" asked Rise, looking at both of them to gauge their reactions. "I… I'm sorry to say that I can't promise your safety. Perhaps if both of you unlock your own powers within that world, you will be better suited to face the monsters there but…"
"To do that you must accept what the doppelganger of yourselves will say about you. If either of you reject inner selves when they show-up then all three of us will likely be killed by the monster that'll emerge due to that rejection. I can't even promise that wherever we'll end-up in within that world will be safe from the normal monsters that inhabit it."
Chie rose from where she sat. The faster she learned more about that world, the faster she would come to saving her best friend! Naoto, noting the resolve on the other two, followed suit. She would succeed in taking down Seta Souji! They needed to win. Losing was not an option.
Rise smiled and told them both to latch onto her as she made a dive into the television.

Souji puffed out a drag of his cigarette as he scoured the documents before him. He was attempting to discern the culprit who gave Namatame the brilliant idea of throwing people into televisions. He scowled as he recognized the fact that he wouldn't be able to apprehend the culprit for the police because Namatame was already considered guilty by the police. They were just trying to shut the case down due to the bad press they were garnering. He was well aware of the fact that Rise Kujikawa had made it out of the world unharmed and had a Persona but he didn't feel the need to confront her about it immediately. He was much to occupied in his investigation. Admittedly, even if he did find out who ever made that phone call, he honestly wouldn't be able to pinpoint if it was another killer or accomplice. Namatame's lunatic ravings could have made the police officer say something in gist that Namatame had stupidly taken seriously. The real killer, whether it was Namatame or not, couldn't have proven to have done any wrongdoing due to lack of any evidence especially the lack of any fingerprints on any of the bodies. He still felt it necessary to find out if there was more than one killer though.
He had skipped school that day and decided to stay home as he shooed both Nanako and Yukiko for their preparations for the bride part of the wedding. Earlier that day, Yukiko's parents had already agreed to pay for it all and were simply delighted to meet Souji. It didn't hurt that he had brought his delightful younger cousin with him to meet her new extended family. Souji had decided to return home to start his short investigation in Ryotaro's room as Yukiko and Nanako decided to go shopping. Somehow, their time together had brought about their respective girliness. He wasn't sure how or why but if Nanako was happy then he didn't care.
Souji was a bit concerned over not taking any precautions regarding Rise's return yet but he let it slide for the time being. It wasn't as if he had wronged her and she didn't even know who he was. Unless some magical being had swooped down and spilled all of Souji's dirty laundry then he had no reason to worry. He hadn't even sensed any strength or fighting ability from her which he should've been immediately alerted of upon her return so she didn't even have the power to fight with her Persona. She honestly didn't appear to be any threat at all. He would make sure to meet with her later but at the moment he was content with smoking his cigarettes and poring over Ryotaro's confidential police files to see who could have a motive or possibly know about the TV world.

Sayoko closed her eyes in frustration. This wasn't good. She opened her eyes to calmly observe what was in her hands. Her stomach twisted in a knot. She couldn't believe she had neglected to take her birth control pills. She had taken the test over and over to try and assuage her fears of a false positive but with no such luck...
Sayoko was pregnant with Souji's child. Sayoko quickly disposed of the test in her apartment as she contemplated what she could do. She and Souji had long agreed that it would just be sex with no attachments. Sayoko had assured him that she was always careful and they fucked often in the hospital. Sayoko had always been careful with all the other lovers and one-night stands she had before. Yet, she had lapsed this time and now she was pregnant. Should she abort it? Should she even tell Souji? What would he even say? She had been the one to promise him that she wouldn't get pregnant. She knew it would've been smarter if she had made him wear a condom but she just enjoyed the hardcore sex too much. She hated condoms, how they felt inside her, and opted to take birth control instead.
It had proven to be her folly now. She didn't make enough to support a baby. Souji was a high schooler. If word got out that she had been intimate with a high schooler…. She wouldn't be able to bear it. She took no notice of the silent trickle running down her cheeks. She had fucked-up big time and even now, at her mature age, she had absolutely no idea what the fuck to do about this situation.
She quickly grabbed her cellphone and dialed Souji's number.
"Souji-kun?" questioned Sayoko, after hearing the other line pick-up.
"Yeah?" asked Souji busily, assuming that she was calling him so he would do another favor in the hospital for sex.
"I…" she didn't know how to break the news to him. "I'm pregnant."
There was an awkward pause. She couldn't hear the shifting of what she guessed was paper any longer. She waited with bated breath for a few minutes.
"And?"
She frowned. Her heart had wretched in pain because of that one simple ambiguous word. Did he give a shit about her at all? Sayoko knew that he had figured out that she had fallen in love with him. She had always screamed him name as he pleased her nightly during their sexual escapades in the hospital. He had done her work for her and took the time to make her life easier for information on certain people. He had pleased her body so well too with messages before sex. The indifference from his voice now truly stung Sayoko.
"It's yours." replied Sayoko in a mixture of anxiety, apprehension, and fear. "I'm… pregnant with your child. I…"
She didn't know how to continue and flushed at her own stupidity. Did he truly not care for her? She closed her eyes and tried to settle herself. Becoming a crying fit now wouldn't help matters.
"Don't worry about it." He replied with finality in his voice. She opened her eyes in surprise by his comment. "I'll have it taken care of."
Sayoko felt strength instilled in her at just his scant few words. She wondered how he would take care of her and their child. She was well aware of the fact that Souji was publicly in a relationship and had even impregnated Yukiko Amagi. He had even told her, quite bluntly, that he intended to marry Amagi. So where did that leave her?
"I… uh… I love you." She added nervously, she immediately felt foolish for having said that.
There was a pregnant pause before he finally replied.
"Get some rest, you sound tired." He said over the receiver, "Like I said, don't worry about it. It'll be taken care of."
He hung up on her after that. She idly turned off her cellphone before going to her bed and falling asleep because of emotional exhaustion.

"What in the world happened here?"
The three stared at the huge crater inside the remains of the shop they went to. They had arrived near a castle and made their way to the twisted version of the Inaba shopping district upon Rise's warning that the castle monsters were too dangerous to venture into. Chie and Naoto could barely see anything because of the fog and only Rise's power allowed her to navigate through it and sense different areas from large distances. They had arrived at the shopping district to find one particular building practically razed to the ground with a giant hole taking space between the remains of the inside and outside of the shop. Something enormous had been here, that was for certain.
Rise turned to the table that had somehow remained unscathed throughout the damaged room to find a pair of glasses on them. She walked over and tentatively picked one of them up to inspect it. Chie noticed Rise's absence before turning to her.
"Hey, what do you have over there?" asked Chie, coming over on her crutches. "Are those glasses?"
"Yeah," said Rise, putting the one she was holding on. She was taken aback upon realizing what the glasses did. "WHOA!"
Naoto and Chie tensed.
"What's wrong?" asked Naoto, seeing the glasses on Rise. "Are they dangerous?"
"N-no," said Rise quickly, before taking it off and taking the other one before putting one on Chie. "See for yourself! They clear up the vision a lot and help see through the fog!"
Naoto excitedly came over and took the other one from Rise's outstretched hand. She put it on and was pleased by the effects. They had discovered an important tool to help them along with this mystery!
"What a joke!" came a snarky laugh from the remains of the entrance. The three swiftly turned around in fear. Chie flinched as she saw a doppelganger of herself. "Look at you, so pathetic without her!"
Chie flinched back yet again and seemed ready to say something. Naoto noted that the shadow wasn't carrying any crutches and seemed to have no injuries. Rise had fortunately prepared for this.
"Chie!" said Rise, drawing Chie's attention away from the shadow, "Calm down! Remember, this is your inner thoughts. You may not like what it has to say. I certainly didn't. But you have to accept it! You have to accept whatever it says is a part of you!"
"If you don't, it can and will kill us. We don't have any means of defending ourselves."
Chie was shaking but she nodded her resolve and turned back to face her inner self.
"What? You're listening to her now? You're just using her as a replacement for Yukiko!" sneered the shadow, chuckling as it saw Chie's fists clench around her crutches turning white. The anger inside the real Chie was building. "Rise and Yukiko are sooo good looking… sooo fair-skinned… sooo feminine! The only reason those fuckers in class were ever nice to me was because of them even before all the bullying!"
"When Yukiko looked at me with jealousy… Man, did I get a kick out of that. When I found out she was being sexually abused because she didn't have any strength without me? Man, was I relieved! It proved she really was nothing without me there for her!"
Chie's eyes widened in a mixture of disgust and surprise at those words. She shook her head in denial. That was not true! That was absolutely not true!
"Yukiko knows the score. She can't do anything if I'm not around…"
"CHIE!" Rise shouted quickly, she needed Chie to calm down! Naoto observed the persona in scorn. "Calm down! Listen, my shadow was just as bad. It insinuated that I was a slut! Please, just take a deep breath and try to digest all of this. None of us want to accept this part of ourselves but they do exist!"
"We all have a dark side of sorts! What matters is how we deal with it!"
Chie took a shaky breath before nodding and looking at her shadow.
"I… you're right. I do feel all those things," admitted Chie, closing her eyes in disgust before forcing them back open to look at her… self… "I… I hate to admit it but… I did feel some relief when I heard of Yukiko's situation. And I do get jealous of all the pretty girls at school, especially Yukiko. Maybe I am using Rise as a replacement because I've been so goddamn desperate for a friend since this nightmare began…"
"…But I'm here because I care. I really do care about Yukiko and taking down Souji! I… I really do want to help her. I want to help Rise and Naoto too with this investigation to take that bastard down. I… I'll probably be more of a burden than help because of my condition but I can't stand sitting around and doing nothing. I might as well try. I have to. I could never ever forgive myself if I didn't."
The shadow smiled solemnly before shimmering brightly and becoming a card that slowly made its way to Chie. Chie took it with a shaking hand and heard a voice speak to her about facing her own problems. Chie collapsed onto the floor and hissed in pain because of the pain of her broken leg. Rise and Naoto quickly came up behind her. Rise knelt down and looked her over.
"Are you alright?" she asked, Chie nodded in response. "You're sure?"
"I'm just tired… that took a lot out of me," said Chie, sighing softly, "Actually, I was wondering if you could answer something that I've been curious about…"
At Rise's gesture to go ahead with asking the question, Chie continued.
"Back when I dove in here to save Yukiko… I was hit by a bolt of lightning," began Chie, her face scrunching up in confusion. "Shouldn't that have killed me? I don't understand how I lived through that. I think that even the TV that fell on top of me and electrocuted me somewhat should've killed me but it didn't. I know I nearly died but the lighting strike itself should've killed me…"
"From what I understand of this shadow world," began Rise, using the namesake she had come-up with to describe the world inside the televisions, "Simply entering it strengthens a person's physical prowess and even gives them the ability to cast magic. Their endurance increases so much so that they're able to withstand attacks that would normally kill them in the real world. Our strength here will only continue to grow and progress as we train our bodies. Unlike us, though, Seta's powers seem to stay with him even when he's in the real world so we'll have to be careful. I have my sensing power in the real world too but that's only because Igor unleashed all of my potential. Once you unlock all your potential, you'll have your powers manifest in the real world like Seta and I."
"Also, about the supernatural abilities we gain here… it doesn't happen for all people. Some, like small children, don't get the boost of abilities in here. In fact, the atmosphere may make it harder for them to breathe because their bodies haven't fully matured and therefore they can't adapt properly to this environment. Their normal human strength will remain with them and they may suffocate or become poisoned supernaturally by the strong air around us."
Chie rose slowly with the help of Rise and Naoto. The two were careful not to put any pressure on Chie's broken leg. Once she could balance herself on her crutches once more the three froze upon hearing the distinct sound of a child crying. They slowly walked outside and followed the sound to the outskirts of the copycat district. They were stunned to find a crying Naoto in a lab coat.
"…This is my… inner self?" asked Naoto slowly, not liking the crying at all, upon seeing Rise's nod of confirmation Naoto had to hold back her anger. "I see…"
Naoto looked like she had swallowed something very sour. She didn't want to admit this was what she bottled up inside of herself. It was embarrassing to even think about.
"Why delude yourself?" said the Shadow version of Naoto, glaring harshly at the real Naoto. Naoto balled her fists in anger trying to hold herself back from shouting an angry retort. "I am you."
That one simple statement made Naoto's stomach twist as she felt self-disgust rise through her. It was shameful to even look at this… thing. To have her inner self bear to two people she didn't know very well.
"These childish gestures are no mere affectation… They're the truth."
The three stared apprehensively at the shadow. Rise could feel the power within it. It was stronger than Chie's. If the Shadow were to transform...
"The fools all say it, don't they…? 'You're only a child,' 'Keep out of our business, kid,' and so forth. No matter how many cases you spend hours cogitating over, no matter how many crimes you solve, you're a child in their eyes."
"Fine, you're correct," Naoto bit out harshly, forcing herself to admit to those words she refused to believe, "You can disappear and give me the power I need now."
Instead of disappearing however the shadow snorted.
"You haven't accepted it." said the Shadow, patronizingly. "Saying you do and actually admitting it inside your subconscious are two very different things. You have not even admitted to your secret in front of these two!"
"Secret?" questioned Rise, staring at Naoto with interest. "What is he talking about?"
"You haven't the means to deal with society's two-faced nature…" interrupted the Shadow, goading Naoto to snap at it. "You're just a lonely child. One who has felt increasingly useless and inferior in the dire situation that Inaba was situated in. You wanted to prove yourself capable of handling a more serious crime than the petty ones you dealt with nearly every week but all that resulted was the realization of your own fragility!"
The shadow made a mocking crying gesture.
"I wanna be a grown-up… I wanna be a big boy right now…" it cried, "Then they'll see who I am…"
"I… I want a reason for me to stay…"
"That's enough. I can find my own reason for living…" Bit back Naoto quietly, not wanting to let her anger show. Rise sensed that Naoto was about to lose it.
"Hah… I'm telling you that's impossible." chuckled the Shadow, an amused expression crossed it's face.
"Naoto-kun," said Rise, breaking Naoto out of focus with her shadow and making her turn around, "Please… if you will, tell us your secret."
"I…" Naoto's shoulders slumped in acceptance. She acknowledged that she could've made a big blunder their and unleashed her shadow without any means for the three of them to defend themselves. "I suppose it's necessary since we're working together… you see… I am a girl."
Chie and Rise looked at her in surprise at that. Naoto was not finished with her explanation. She turned back to face her inner feelings.
"It's true," admitted Naoto ruefully, "I feel useless because I wasn't able to stop those murders. I had hoped to confront and find enough evidence to put Seta Souji behind bars by myself or at least to find the real killer, Namatame, before the police did."
"I wanted the attention and respect of the adults. That's why I tried so hard to investigate both cases. If I managed to just pin one of them then I'd be more respected and acknowledged… but that didn't happen and even if it did it would've been the same. People are dead now and the situation has become even direr than I had initially anticipated. From here on out, however, I promised myself to do my best in taking down Seta for the safety of the community of Inaba at large. I know I can't do it by myself and that I'll require help which is why… I swear I'll assist as much as possible in taking down Seta-san."
The shadow smiled before the same event that happened to Chie repeated itself with Naoto. Naoto slumped down tiredly. She stopped Chie and Rise from coming towards her with a gesture from her right hand and got up slowly on her own.
"Alright," began Rise, thinking over what would be the best course of action to take next, "If you're both up for it, we could try strengthening our abilities at that castle. I'm sure Seta's much farther than us in his control and power which is why it's best to master our abilities as soon as possible."
"However, I know you're both exhausted from having just received these new powers. I was dead tired on my feet yesterday when I got my powers. So, what do you both wish to do?"
Naoto and Chie exchanged a look.
"We want to continue on." They both said at the same time.
Rise smiled appreciatively.
"Chie, you're probably far too injured to take any real hits so I'll stand in front and take them for you. I don't have much endurance but we can afford to let you get injured further than you already are in here. Besides, it'll build up my endurance."
Thanks to Kanzeon having the full ability to find enemy weaknesses, the group had very little trouble with the monsters in Yukiko's castle. They methodically and relentlessly tore through the monster hordes and stopped short of the chamber of the final room. Rise sensed a monster much stronger than the natural ones inhibiting the castle and informed the group that they would have to get stronger before they could take on the Contrarian King.
They left through the TV portal into Rise's room. Naoto questioned if the wildcard could be used by either her or Chie but was frustrated to find that, although they both felt a faint tug, neither could unlock the power of the wildcard. Rise informed them that they needed to be patient. They both nodded at her words. All three were satisfied with the progress so far and moreover that they were well on the way of being able to take down Seta Souji for their own reasons.
Naoto and Chie departed for their respective homes as Rise fell on her bed to rest. The day had taken its toll on her as she winced at some of the bruises she had been forced to endure to keep Chie safe. She was thankful that she had gone to Junes to purchase the new television and brought it home along with the necessary healing items from the shopping district. They had proven invaluable during the fighting in the shadow castle.
She slowly succumbed to a blissful slumber because of the exhaustion and triumph of the day's events. It had all gone better than she had expected. She had found the perfect allies to take down the vile high school student. Someone she hadn't even met yet.
The next day, Mooroka was confirmed dead by the police.

"You all think you can see me? You call think you know everything about me?" said the Mitsuo on television, Souji's curiosity was piqued. The boy on TV chuckled a little. "Then try and catch me."
'Wasn't this that kid who asked Yukiko on a date the first day of school?' mulled Souji thoughtfully, 'He must've killed Mooroka. The man's death was reported earlier on the news and now they're looking for an accomplice that supposedly was helping Namatame with the murders.'
'Since Mooroka didn't appear on the midnight channel, he had to have been killed by a copycat. But what is this kid doing in TV land? Are the police really so stupid that they can't fucking catch a simple child?'
Souji shook his head as he thought over the police and their varying displays of incompetence throughout his stay in Inaba.
'Ah well, on the plus side, it does make it easier for me to get away with my fun.'
He smiled as he thought over how they would never catch Namatame. The man was long dead. But how had this kid ended-up in the world inside the TV? Perhaps he did have something to do with Namatame's kidnappings…
Souji sighed in exasperation as he would once again have to venture forth into the other world to make sure the kid didn't end-up an upside down corpse on a flagpole or some such nonsense. He couldn't have the police thinking there were more suspects. That would cause paranoia in Inaba and a paranoid police was an abusive police department. He would likely be blamed just for being new to the city even if his uncle vouched for him.
Souji fell asleep alone in his bed. He had allowed Nanako to sleep over with Yukiko at Nanako's own request. Souji's marriage plans would work better the more those two got along and Yukiko's parents had no objections. Souji had been invited as well but declined due to the very real excuse of needing to work late at the hospital and the Dojima residence being much closer to get to. He also needed time to himself to contemplate how to best deal with Sayoko's little secret.

Upon having learned of Mitsuo killing Mooroka, the three members of the investigative team had pulled out all the stops into getting stronger. Rise and Naoto, with their surplus wealth, bought healing remedies and the best equipment they could from the shopping district to prepare for a long journey into the shadow world. Chie and Rise had informed their principal that they wouldn't be coming to school for the next two days before swiftly leaving to avoid Souji's detection. It had been easy enough with Rise's sensing ability. Naoto and Chie had even made the ruse of bringing sleeping bags and snacks.
They felt pressured for several reasons. First, Seta Souji was superior to them and they needed to play catch-up fast or they would face the very real possibility of death, second they weren't strong enough to even enter Mitsuo's video game lair and the potential clues he could offer would be wholly beneficial to their investigation on Seta, and finally although Mitsuo was a murderer since he had bragged about the killings and his DNA had confirmed him to have killed Mooroka, he was still a human being and they didn't want blood on their hands for being unable to rescue him.
There was so much at stake. It was with all that in mind that the triad set forth to vanquish the various strong shadows existing in the different areas of the shadow world. All to better themselves and prepare for the eventual confrontation they would have with Seta Souji. It was to do or die and they aimed to win!
They persistently carried on to face off and defeat various shadows inhabiting each of these areas and, with some luck and a lot of effort, eventually vanquished the Contrarian King of the Castle, the Intolerant Officer of the Bathhouse, and the Momentary Child of the Stripper house. They had come close to dying a number of times and were very nearly killed by the first of the strong boss-type shadows because it had no weakness they could exploit. However, Kanzeon's abilities proved invaluable and they were easily able to determine the weaknesses of any and all monsters they faced. It helped that the shadows were little better than animals that fought in a sort-of pattern. Rise had sensed they were too weak to survive the Heaven's area so they wisely decided not to venture there until they were ready.
They grinned at each other when at the end of it all, all three felt tremendously stronger than before. They were too tired to venture forth into Mitsuo's video game dungeon but promised themselves to come back the next day. Seta hadn't shown up for some odd reason. Rise knew this for a fact because she could sense his immense strength whenever he was around, even from far distances. She knew he sensed her powers in the real world too and she assumed that he hadn't deemed her enough of a threat yet to pursue her. She was only too happy because of that. It would lead to his downfall.

"Getting married?" said Ryotaro, looking at Souji in utter disbelief. "This isn't a joke, is it? Because if it is, I'll give you props on being so clever."
Souji wordlessly handed the letter of his parents acceptance of his marriage and the paperwork filed out with their signatures. Ryotaro carefully read it over before he sighed and handed them back.
"For what it's worth I'm sorry," said Ryotaro, Souji raised his eyebrow at his uncle. Ryotaro began to explain. "I knew… on some level… I knew that my sister and brother – in – law weren't treating you as well as they should've been. I don't know any of the details of how bad… but I had a hunch because of how my sister is with her… habits…"
"It's not your fault," said Souji honestly, "It's not like you could've done anything either. You were dealing with a loss and needed to take care of Nanako. There wouldn't have been any room to take care of me."
Ryotaro scratched the back of his head in a combination of shame and acceptance.
"That doesn't make it any better." said Ryotaro flatly, "But… you're right. I honestly didn't know how you were going to turn up because of how they raised you but you've done rather well for yourself and you've helped me out so much with Nanako."
Ryotaro and Souji shared a smile. They truly did share a strong family bond as uncle and nephew.
"You're a good kid, Souji. I'm sure you'll make Yukiko very happy."
Souji smiled and thanked him. Ryotaro had no objections to the marriage if Souji's parents didn't and he understood that Souji was making a very independent adult decision so he didn't feel it was right to make any punishments for Souji because of his decision on how to live his own life.
"Just one thing," said Ryotaro in a suspiciously calm voice, Souji felt a foreboding feeling as his uncle raised an eyebrow and looked at him speculatively, "Have you been stealing my smokes?"

Souji made his way into the Black Void.
The dungeon really pissed him off. It was pitch-black, it was maze-like meaning he could get lost easily, and the entire decorum reeked of a video game nerd that had never got laid in his life.
Mitsuo seemed like a sad-sack of an individual with a pathetic lifestyle. Souji was getting lost for nearly the millionth time as he continually needed to retrace his steps in the dungeon. The monsters were dealt with easily enough but they hardly provided any amusement from the dark and stifling atmosphere of this place. It was just so quiet and dark… it really spoke volumes about Mitsuo's pitiful mind. Yukiko, Kanji, and Namatame's areas had at least been distracting. He couldn't even properly trace Mitsuo with his heat-seeking eyesight. He could see him but he didn't know how to get to him. It was annoying as fuck.
Souji stood stupefied when he felt three more presences enter the dungeon. Persona users such as himself had come in. He closed his eyes to try to sense them. One of them was Rise… and the others… Souji's eyes snapped open in surprise. All three had become strong in a very, very, short amount of time just as he had. His quick-wit in facing Shadow Teddie had led to his superior strength in most confrontations and he had trained vigorously before facing the stronger enemies. These three had done the same… and he was well aware of the fact that Chie was one of the Persona users. Noting her aura from the time she briefly ventured into the TV land with him and Yosuke. Souji growled in frustration.
'One day,' He thought, 'One fucking day! I don't capitalize on someone for one fucking day AND THIS SHIT HAPPENS!'
First, he would deal with Mitsuo to assure that they didn't get even more powerful from potentially facing Mitsuo's shadow. After that, he would kill all four of them and blast their bodies to smithereens like he had done with Namatame. Either that or fuck all three before blasting their bodies to kingdom come. He hadn't fully decided yet.
'Maybe I'll decide on how they beg,' thought Souji with a lecherous grin, 'That will be so much fun.'
Finally, he had reached the final door of the place. Mitsuo had to be behind it. He reached in to open it… only to feel some sort of invisible barrier blocking his way. Vexation erupted through Souji as he prepared to dish out his next attack.
'Oh this motherfucking door WILL open up!'
A mighty blast resounded throughout the quiet dungeon just as Rise, Chie, and Naoto finished-up defeating the Killing Hand to obtain the orb of darkness to open the path to Mitsuo's door. A small quake started as the sound had resonated throughout the entire dungeon. The three of them had tripped and fallen to the ground as a result. They had discovered the Killing Hand upon entering the seventh floor. Rise had sensed the monster was blocking the path once and had the key to opening it once she was on the same floor as the monster.
They had hoped to get there and escape before Souji but realized that their enemy's head start had cost them. They hadn't expected Souji to come so early in the morning to scour the place for Mitsuo. More importantly, Rise finally had a chance at truly gauging Souji's power from the close proximity of being in the same dungeon and she trembled at what she realized.
"He's too strong…" said Rise after the mini-earthquake had subsided and the wave of nausea that all three of them experienced had passed. "We can't beat him like this… we'll have to leave immediately. I know this is frustrating to hear but its imperative we escape with our lives in check. We'll come back tomorrow and try to train enough to match his power."
The other two were disappointed but nodded in acceptance at Rise's wise decision. Naoto, in particular, had a look of frustration but held herself back. She knew it was a necessary evil. All three were trying to ignore the small amount of guilt they felt for leaving Kubo in Seta's merciless hands. They tried going back to find the exit to the dark maze. Even returning outside wouldn't be easy for them.
Souji grinned as he noted that his Vorpal Blade attack had literally shattered the doorway to billions of pieces. He noted the wisps of darkness protecting the door dissipate into nothing. He made his way inside to see Mitsuo facing his shadow.
"Everyone gets on my nerves…" said Mitsuo, his voice becoming a rather annoying high-pitch, Souji watched silently, "That's why I did it!"
Souji raised an eyebrow. He had killed Mooroka because everyone got on his nerves? Was this kid retarded? People were glad that Mooroka was dead though they wouldn't admit it outright.
"What do you think of that!" hollered Mitsuo on the top of his lungs, honestly this kid was giving Souji a fucking headache, "Say something, dammit!"
Souji's eyes were half-closed in boredom. This kid was an idiot. Souji wasn't interrupting or attacking partly because this kid's thinly disguised self-torture had piqued his interest due to the kid's similarities with Souji himself, and partly because he just wanted to kick some ass and fighting a shadow would fulfill that need. The shadow was far weaker than Namatame's odd transformed state thus Souji doubted he would have any trouble.
"Nobody even thought of me after the first two people." continued Mitsuo, in his pitiful self-depreciation, "That's why I went for the third one!"
"I killed them!"
Souji burst out laughing at that. He couldn't help himself. This kid was lying to his own shadow! It was fucking pathetic! At least the others had been unsure or denied thinking negative thoughts. This moron just screamed and whined his fabrications to live in his own world of falsehoods. As if screaming about it would make it the truth!
Mitsuo turned to see Souji standing there smugly.
"W-who are you?" shouted Mitsuo, looking at Souji in surprise, "What're you doing here!"
A positively brilliant idea struck Souji right then and there. Souji made his body go stiff. He pointed at Mitsuo with his right hand.
"You…" began Souji in a monotone voice, "are… a dipshit."
"W-what?" said Mitsuo, backing away as if physically struck, Souji knew it would work. This kid was nearly identical to how Souji's life had been before he moved to Inaba. "G-get outta my sight! I'm… I'm the killer! I'm the one who has been killing everyone!"
As if prompted by Mitsuo's words, his shadow began to speak.
"I… have nothing…" said the Shadow quietly, "I am nothing…"
"And you… are me…"
Mitsuo turned back to face his shadow.
"What…? What's that suppose to mean!" screeched Mitsuo at the top of his lungs, "I'm… I'm not nothing..."
Souji snorted finding the scene before him humorous. Mitsuo turned around angrily.
"You…" said Mitsuo startled upon recognizing Souji, "You're the one who stole Amagi from me! She was mine, damn it!"
Souji held back his laughter.
'What is this kid on and where can I get some?'
"Dipshit." was all Souji uttered in response.
Mitsuo seethed in rage.
"I'll… I'll kill you! I'm the guy who's been killing people!" snarled Mitsuo, "I… I almost killed that Tatsumi kid but went easy on him! That's how strong I am!"
If Souji had any doubts on Mitsuo's lies, they were erased from that statement. He was nearly in tears from his laughter at this point. He tried to hold back the laughter bubbling up throughout his body but couldn't hold back the smirk on his face.
"What's so funny!"
Souji shook his head happily as he gazed at Mitsuo with a look of superiority. Mitsuo's body coursed with hatred. Nobody should look down on him! He was dangerous! Everyone should acknowledge, fear, and respect him! HE WAS NOT NOTHING! That's why he had killed Mooroka! The man who bullied him throughout all of last year so much that he had dropped out of high school! He had killed Mooroka hoping to gain attention and prove he was the killer instead of that Namatame guy!
"What's funny is I distinctly remember making holes all over that dumbass's body after I chopped his arm off."
Mitsuo couldn't help but back away in fear. It felt as if he was physically struck by that casual admittance. Souji raised his sword and poised it gracefully near Mitsuo's neck.
"Give me one good reason," began Souji, pausing for a dramatic effect, "Not to chop your head clean off."
Mitsuo's eyes widened as he stupidly opened his mouth, unable to say anything because of his own fear caused by Souji's calm words. Souji loved every second of it.
"So you don't accept me…" said the Shadow quietly, interrupting the conversation. Mitsuo slumped into unconsciousness as the shadow manifested itself.
Souji burst out laughing upon seeing that Mitsuo's shadow self was a baby. This kid was truly pathetic. Even the others he faced had more respectable forms than this!
The battle was a cakewalk. Despite the shield armor of what looked reminiscent of the hero of the first Dragon Quest video game; Souji's sheer power and speed were too much for his opponent. He had been rather pissed at not finishing it off before it brought forth its shield soldier form to protect itself but the baby was quickly taken down regardless. Souji hadn't even needed to summon Bloody Izanagi into the fight. He only did so when it came time to consume the shadow. Bloody Izanagi did so before Mitsuo even fully awoke from his loss of strength.
Souji prepared to chase after Rise and the two others in an effort to kill them before they became a problem but soon felt a tugging sensation. Confused, he tried to leave through the destroyed doorway only to again feel the tug. Something was attempting to manipulate him… and it was becoming too hard for Souji to stop it. Souji turned to see Mitsuo slowly awaken. Souji grinned as he had another brilliant idea.
Using the ability he had gained back when Bloody Izanagi consumed Yukiko's shadow in a mixture with one of his two new abilities, he gave Mitsuo a little of his power and the control of the Persona he would've had. Souji mentally took note of the fact that had Mitsuo grown his power on his own then his Persona's ultimate form would've been Arahabaki. It was one of the strongest forms of the Hermit Arcana. It was somewhat of a pity that Souji had robbed him of that power… not that Mitsuo would ever be smart enough to properly use it.
Souji relented as the tug became too much for him to stop and he felt a beacon of light transport him elsewhere. Mitsuo's body raised as his eyes took the same yellow glow as his shadow had. He went after Rise, Chie, and Naoto just as his master ordered.

"What the…?" Souji looked around confused. "Why am I back here?"
It was the Heaven's feel. The place he had killed Namatame in. What had caused him to return here?
"Seta Souji!" echoed a strong feminine voice throughout the area, "If you wish to leave here, you must face me in battle!"
"Do not bother attempting to leave here. I assure you, it shall do you no good. The seal bounded upon this place is far superior to the weak one you broke down earlier from that fool of a boy!"
Souji actually didn't doubt that. If whoever this was had enough power to transport him here then he didn't doubt that they had enough power to keep him here. It seems he would have to face whomever this was to get out of here. Souji wondered if perhaps this person was stalling for something… the only thing he could think of that would need help stalling from him would be Rise, Chie, and who ever the last person among their group was. It made sense… but why?
Souji made his way to the top floor, annoyed with needing to walk up these steps again, and all the way from the first floor. He was really going to show the person who trapped him here what he was made of before killing, what he presumed to be, the woman.
Once he reached the top, he scowled at the beautiful woman before him.
"Who the fuck are you and what the fuck do you want?"
He had said it rather bluntly. The woman scowled at him in response. Souji took note of the fact that this woman's eyes resembled that of a shadow's… This definitely wasn't some ordinary human or even shadow from what he sensed. What was she?
"Insults shall get you nowhere." supplied Margaret; her tone was calm despite her annoyance with Souji, "I am here to test your mettle in battle. I wish to know the extent of your power."
"Bullshit," replied Souji snarling at the woman, "You would've come and faced me at Mitsuo's stupid toy dungeon. You specifically trapped me here to protect those three weaklings. If I had to guess, I'd say you have something at stake regarding them."
"Too bad for you, I brainwashed Mitsuo into going after them with my new power." He decided to brag about it to cause the lady before him distress. "Of the potential Persona users whose shadows I've consumed, I can give them some of my power and brainwash them into following my commands. I can alter what personas they use by mutating them as well. They're fucked."
"I have faith in them." said the blonde in a flat tone of voice, "Whatever the case may be, I've brought you here so that you may fight me."
"You will honor me by fighting as though you mean to kill. To hold back would be nothing short of insulting."
"And if I refuse then I remain trapped here and you go on your merry way with some bullshit portal only you can use, right?"
"That is correct."
Souji snarled scathingly.
"Fine, then let's fight." He bit out; he stared in surprise momentarily as the woman began floating in mid air along with some Persona cards and a book around her. Souji got into a fighting pose as Bloody Izanagi was summoned. "Let's see you withstand my newest attack! Megidola!"
The god-like power pulled into a small space resembling a pin exploded outward in a blast reminiscent of the big bang theory. Souji's smirk slowly wore off once he saw the smoke from the attack clear to see the woman was completely unharmed. She even had the gall to look bored.
"Pitiful." she said in a clipped tone, "If that's all you can do then even in the state I am in now, with less than half my overall power depleted, will be enough to kill you."
"What!" snarled Souji pissed at the jab. Ever since his struggle with Shadow Teddie, he had made it a point to never walk into a fight that he couldn't win. He would show her! She thought she could just toy with him? She would see the error of her ways! He would ensure that.
"Megadolian." said the woman summoning a Persona and surprising Souji.
An attack similar to Megidola but much, much stronger erupted near Souji and blasted him full force. Souji skidded as he cried in pain from the blast. His body felt like it was burning from the remnants of the blast. He glared at the woman.
"I never got your name." He asked out of curiosity, "You already know who I am and so much about me. It's rather creepy. You aren't a stalker, right?"
She ignored the jab. She didn't care for such idle chatter with him.
"My name is Margaret." She said simply, "That is all you need to know."
Souji, incorrectly assuming that Margaret said that purposefully to act haughty, took that statement as a personal insult. He vowed to make the bitch before him pay for her superiority complex. In truth, Margaret simply didn't want to risk damaging the seal holding the gods any further. While informing people who had never been in the Velvet room of her status and job description was more open to interpretation under the laws of the neutrality contract, the seal was teetering on the breaking point as it was and she absolutely did not want to risk that. What she was doing now didn't interfere with the contract because she was evaluating Souji's strength as a potential for the wildcard. She was allowed to do this despite the fact the wildcard was now under the possession of Rise Kujikawa.
"Ziodyne!" shouted Souji pointing his finger at Margaret and shooting a strong spark of electricity. The lightning attack aimed true as Margaret was struck dead-on. Bloody Izanagi assisted by using Garudyne for good measure.
Margaret floated there as if nothing had happened. She appeared mildly amused by the effort that Souji was putting in to defeat her. She shook her head and Souji noted there seemed to be a twinkle of laughter in her eyes.
"That is a rather pitiful lightning attack. It'll do you no good." stated Margaret matter-of-factly; Souji took it as another insult. He did not understand that Margaret harbored no ill will towards him. "This is a real lighting attack."
Margaret raised the palm of her right hand and poised it at Souji. She decided to demonstrate this without the use of Persona's to show Souji the difference in their abilities. Souji tensed on reflex. He was already having trouble with this fight. It maddened him that he was so weak compared to this mysterious woman.
"Thunder Reign!" she shouted, a large sphere of lightning appeared before the startled Souji. He didn't have time to block it. Bloody Izanagi fortunately had been prepared and guarded itself to decrease the damage that was to come.
The blast of lightning burned through Souji as he was blasted into the air and thrown to the floor like a ragdoll. He was dizzy for a few moments and got up once he had regained his bearings. He looked forward to see that Bloody Izanagi was protecting him from any further attacks by the powerful woman before them. Souji took out a pearl and crushed it. His shoulders sagged in relief as he felt the damage done being rejuvenated. He knew he would need Bloody Izanagi's help if he had any chance of winning against this fearsome opponent. Souji held back his anger. He hated being shown weakness and he hated the fact that this was a repeat experience of his fight with Shadow Teddie.
"You can't beat me." said Margaret with the same flat tone of voice, though there was no arrogance in her tone Souji was miffed by the comment nonetheless. "As you are now, you will likely die. I must request that you give-up. I do not wish to kill you. You're already relying on healing items because you cannot keep up with my attacks."
"Fuck you!" shouted Souji eloquently in return, "This fight hasn't started! You want to see what I'm capable of? I'll show you the full force of my power! Don't underestimate my capacity!"
Margaret summoned Yoshitsune in response. The Persona lunged at Souji with its sword. It slashed twice so fast that Souji didn't have time to block it. Pain reverberated through Souji's body as there were precise cuts on his abdomen. Yoshitsune struck at him again for two more strikes. Souji parried the first one but the second one nipped his shoulder. The Persona acted even faster than before and struck at Souji four more times. It slashed in a half-crescent around his sternum, struck him from his left shoulder down to his right hip, did the opposite of the previous strike, and then struck downward slashing his left shoulder to his hem. Souji backpedalled and hissed in response to the Hassou Tobi attack. He decided to use his trump cards. He would obviously need to go all out against her if he wanted a prayer of winning.
"Heat Riser!" bellowed Souji increasing his strength, speed, and defense.
Margaret appraised him for a moment at his smart thinking.
"A fair strategy but I'm afraid even that shall not be enough to-"
Bloody Izanagi followed suit in using Heat Riser. The results were immediately recognizable to the three beings in the fight. Due to the fact that Souji and Bloody Izanagi's strength were intermixed because Bloody Izanagi was his Persona and therefore they were the same, the effects of both Heat Risers blended unto one another. The effects of the power boosting ability were quadrupled as a result. Margaret couldn't hide her utter disbelief as her mouth hung open and her eyes widened once she recognized the effects. Souji and his Persona were momentarily stunned because their power had ascended to a point in which neither had known they were capable of. Souji let loose a sick grin once he fully processed what this meant. Bloody Izanagi used Power Charge to strengthen itself for its next attack. Souji was able to do the same thanks to his increased speed.
"Withstand this!" dared Margaret as she crushed another card to use a Persona. Margaret summoned Siegfried. "Ragnarok!"
Four overly large balls of fire flew straight towards them. They took the full brunt of it and Souji was once again blasted off his feet but this time without any struggle. Bloody Izanagi floated back to Souji's side after having been pushed afar because of the fiery attack.
Souji and Bloody Izanagi prepared to attack. Margaret looked on in frustration as Souji deftly came at her and struck harshly with his sword using the Vorpal Blade attack. She blocked his sword strike with her right arm, the impact created a sonic boom that shook between them, and she used the last of her might to push him away. She was about to tend to it but had to use her right arm again to block Bloody Izanagi's Vorpal Blade strike. She openly cried out in pain at the impact and fell to the floor. She already deduced her right arm's bones were shattered on the inside from the second resounding collision.
Souji, ever opportunistic, took advantage and struck again with an uncharged Vorpal Blade attack. Bloody Izanagi followed suit with his own Vorpal Blade. The downed Margaret cried out in pain at the critical blows she was afflicted with. She staggered back up. She was already near her limit.
If she was struck with one more charge attack from either of them then it was over and done with. The two critical blows had cost her the match. Margaret cursed her reduced power and ability. She had lost nearly all of her multi-target attacks save Megadolain, her charging attacks, her power overall had been reduced to a pitiful shadow of what it once was, and she lacked any sort of healing ability. She had sacrificed half her power into that seal to keep it from breaking open. If anymore Gods got out then they would start vying for power and threatening the world at large. One Goddess, Izanami, was enough for the world at the moment. Her multi-target attacks were nothing she couldn't work around especially in this battle. Her reduced power shouldn't have mattered if not for the fact she had been further sapped in making a temporary seal to keep Souji locked inside Heaven's Feel. Healing and charging attacks, however, were vital and it had definitely cost her this match.
'Even if I had Diarahan…' thought Margaret, 'As weakened as I am, I doubt that healing would've done much except stall my eventual loss.'
'I need to make an escape before he gets the idea of doing something untoward to me. I cannot allow that to happen. As a neutral being if I were to partake in such intimacy, even against my will, it would have irreprehensible consequences for me. I would have to face a terrifying punishment for committing sin. The stronger the intimacy is the worse the punishment will be. If master Philemon had found out about Elizabeth's sin of sleeping with that boy, he would have had no choice but to cast her into hell.'
In a last ditch effort of escape, Margaret summoned Loki to use Niflheim. The ice attack struck Souji harshly. Margaret heard a grunt of pain from the blow. She turned around to quickly leave only to stop in dismay as she found Souji's Persona, Magatsu Izanagi, behind her and ready to strike. Bloody Izanagi struck her with a ferocious Garudyne that pierced her body with several cuts and tore at her clothing a bit. Margaret fell backward harshly on her broken arm and cried out in pain. It was over. Margaret, feeling a bit of vertigo and nausea as a result of the battle, was doomed to Souji's whims.

Rise, Naoto, and Chie had finally managed to get out of the Black Void. Mitsuo's lair proved to be a conundrum as it had taken them several hours to leave. They breathed a sigh of relief and took a break outside the place. It truly had been grating to their minds how that place was designed.
Suddenly, they heard footsteps running toward them in a distance. They tensed and looked on in surprise to find that instead of a shadow or Souji having returned and followed them, it was the person they had came to save and seek information from. Mitsuo Kubo stood before them but all three noticed the glowing yellow eyes and Rise sensed Seta Souji's power within the boy.
"It's not a shadow," said Rise elaborating on what was going on. "It's the real Mitsuo… but he… he's being controlled. It feels like there is some of Seta's power within him."
"Get ready! He's going to attack!"
They tensed. Rise rushed over to Chie's side to make sure she took the blows meant for Chie when the time came. A Persona in paper white was summoned by Mitsuo. It didn't have the color it was supposed to because Mitsuo had never faced his fears to unlock the power on his own. The whiteness of the Persona was a figurative mirror representing the fact that although Mitsuo was using the Persona he would've obtained had he accepted himself… he could only use it under Souji's power.
The white Nebiros sprung forth. Rise used Kanzeon to look for its weaknesses. She then smiled in relief.
"It's weak against Light attacks!" she said happily, "Naoto-chan, you know what to do!"
Naoto summoned her Persona, Sukuna-Hikona, and instructed it to attack with Hamaon. The attack, which Rise assumed would kill their opponent instantaneously, only disappeared in a wisp when it struck Nebiros.
"Wh-what?" shouted Rise in surprise, Chie and Naoto's faces held surprise as well. Rise had never been wrong with pinpointing weaknesses. "No! It must have the innate ability of Nulling Light attacks! The only other weakness is wind attacks but none of us have that! We'll have to face it the hard way…"
The failed attack prompted their opponent to use Mind Charge to prepare for its next attack. It didn't bode well for the group. Chie carefully crushed the card she summoned between her crutches as she cried "Persona!" before directing Tomoe Gozen to cast a Bufula at Nebiros. It did very miniscule damage. Naoto quickly tried to make-up for her earlier blunder by having Sukuna-Hikona spring forth and use Deathbound on Nebiros. Nebiros showed visible pain when Sukuna-Hikona struck it harshly with the attack causing it to go down. Exploiting the vulnerable state of their enemy, Chie had Tomoe Gozen fly toward the fallen Nebiros and use Heat Wave. The attack hit three times and the enemy Persona clad in pure white screeched in pain.
It quickly rose and cast Mind Charge on itself once again. Chie and Naoto used the same attacks as before but unfortunately the opponent didn't fall over the second time. Nebiros cast Agidyne at Chie. The fireball rushed towards her at impressive speeds but Rise jumped in front of her and took the entire blow for her. Rise waved off the concerned looks of her friends and instructed them to continue using different physical attacks to wear down Nebiros.
Eventually, they succeeded and all three were about to apprehend Mitsuo when something strange occurred. Nebiros rose up once more and flew at Mitsuo. There was a blinding flash of light. The triad tensed at what they saw when the blinding light subsided.
A pristine white behemoth of a monster floated where Mitsuo once stood. They prepared themselves for a harsher battle.

He had stripped her entirely bare. He had even taken her hair band off and watched her blond hair spill messily on the floor. She had no strength to protest or fight back. She was weakened to the point that she couldn't physically protect herself. She begged him to stop his lust fueled actions. She absolutely did not desire this. Her quiet murmurs for him to cease his actions only made him grow hard. Upon seeing her body, he knew he had to have her. His lust was doubly driven by the fact that he would have such a strong woman begging and pleading under him. She may not have been human but her body was an hourglass figure of a woman's and that was good enough for him.
Souji spread Margaret's legs apart, ignoring her begging of "Please no", "don't do this", "I'm begging you, please don't" and so forth. She had no strength left in her to defend herself. He grinned lecherously as he observed her nude form before him. She truly was a beautiful specimen of femininity. He trailed his right hand around her bare belly feeling her soft skin. He poked and prodded her breasts and womanhood in order to discern if she was dangerous or human enough for him to go through with it. He delicately pinched her buttocks and tits to elicit a response from her. He was not disappointed. Margaret, to her own shame, couldn't stop herself from moaning as waves of pleasure flowed through her body because of Souji's curious touches. Souji grinned again wolfishly. He liked that response. He liked it very much. It seemed this mysterious and esoteric woman had a sensitive body more receptive to sensual touch than either Yukiko or Sayoko. He would never have guessed that a person with such a cold exterior of confidence would be quicker to arouse. He knew what he wanted from her then and there. He wanted her to beg for it.
He swiftly moved his head over to her womanhood. He had already spread her legs wide and taken his own clothes off neatly placing them to the side. They were both naked on the floor he had once scorched with Namatame's remains. It wasn't really ironic but it was sort of funny how he was fucking the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on in the same spot he had once violently murdered a crazed human being. Yes, humorous indeed.
He lightly plunged his tongue within her walls. He slowly did it to savor the sound of this woman's beautiful moaning. He really couldn't help but be in reverence of her. This wasn't angry sex like with Yukiko or sex under benefits and demands like with Sayoko. He wanted this woman to enjoy it. He would ensure that, like with the other two, he would leave a lasting impression. The difference being that unlike with Yukiko, this impression would be positive. He wanted this woman to come crawling back and begging him for more like with Sayoko. He wanted to break the independence and make her his.
When his tongue was in deep enough, he started tracing the letters of the alphabet inside her to arouse her more. She begged him to stop but the moans of pleasure managed to escape her too. She was loathed to admit it but she never hid from the truth. Part of her deeply wanted a break from the entire shit storm she had been experiencing since the beginning of Izanami's awakening and sex was one of the ways to relieve stress. She was too weak to fight him off. She didn't understand that her begging only made him yearn for her all the more.
Once he was finished tracing the alphabet, he started numbers before changing his mind and switching to tracing back to names of people he knew because tracing words inside her walls with his tongue made her moan her pleasure more loudly. Her rising arousal eventually came to the eventual crescendo as she came while his tongue still licked her insides. He didn't care in the slightest. He gently lapped up what he could from her sensitive area and the outside of her womanhood.
Souji could be gentle when he wanted to be. He had learned from his experiences with Yukiko and Sayoko the perfect way to pleasure a woman. He just didn't do it often because he selfishly indulged in what pleased him when it came to sex. This woman, however, earned his respect. He had sensed she was not at full strength and realized had circumstances been different then he would've died in his brutal fight against her. He wanted to taste her, to get inside her, and to make her scream his name.
He moved his face upward toward her chest. He nibbled, sucked, and teased her medium-sized bust. He started nibbling her neck, while one of his hands continued playing with her left breast, as he carefully entered her womanhood. He allowed his manhood to ease in slowly and smirked at the gasps of pleasure that she uttered from her rosy lips. He continued his delivering pleasure with his hands and mouth as he gradually quickened his pace inside her. Eventually, to Margaret's sheer humiliation, the varying cries to stop ceased in exchange for Margaret murmuring words such as "Ohhh", "More", and "Yes".
Hearing such words of encouragement from her made Souji quicken his pace to his usual swiftness. Margaret gasped heavily because of the intense increase in pleasure. She subconsciously closed her legs around Souji's hips. She desired for him to be even closer to her so the pleasure would intensify even further until they both reached their apex. Souji pumped in and out, faster, and harder. His mouth and arms still providing extra leverage on her neck and nipples. Finally, they climaxed together. His seed burst forth inside her unimpeded. He didn't even attempt to pull out as he ejaculated. He had no desire to. He enjoyed the sounds of her scream of pleasure for the second time as he echoed her pleasurable cry.
It was the best sex that either of them experienced.

A pure pale white Arahabaki floated majestically in front of them. It struck before any of them were prepared for the blow. It unleashed Vicious Strike upon all three. Chie cried out in pain as her injured body was hit before Rise could properly react. The monster had floated high into the air and crashed into all three of them. They were sprawled on the floor and downed as a result of the attack. Arahabaki took advantage and shot a beam of light from its eyes at Naoto. Naoto held back her cries by keeping her mouth closed and grunting at the powerful Agidyne that had erupted from around her after the eye beam had stopped.
All three got up and prepared a counteroffensive. Naoto tried to send a Mudoon to end the battle quickly but at Rise's cry of "No, don't!" realized her mistake. The attack was automatically blocked by Arahabaki's innate protection from Light and Dark spells.
Arahabaki twisted its neck and legs in a full circle as it powered itself up with Mind Charge. It had powered itself up to unleash a mighty blow that would likely knock either Chie or Naoto out if it struck. Chie was especially vulnerable and if Rise didn't take the brunt of it then Chie would be out of the fight.
"Chie, use Bufula! It's weak against Ice spells!" instructed Rise, "It'll take awhile but we'll be able to beat it this way."
Chie did as instructed by summoning Tomoe Gozen to cast Bufula. It didn't hurt that Chie's ice spells were powered-up by the passive ability of Ice boost. The ice spell hit Arahabaki dead-on. The damage caused by the attack forced Arahabaki to fall to the ground unguarded. Chie and Naoto were quick to take advantage of this strategy and eventually managed to deplete Arahabaki's health and win the face-off. The partial power of Souji's dispersed and returned to the host as Mitsuo fell to the floor unconscious. The triad had succeeded in apprehending Mitsuo.

Margaret was in complete mortification once the full realization of what had occurred slowly dawned on her. After he had completely pulled out of her, she had hastily grabbed the clothes that she could and ran to the edges of the spherical battleground from where they had both fought and fucked. A beacon of light teleported her away.
Souji smirked in satisfaction after taking the time to put his clothes back on. He knew she had enjoyed it. Her moans had proven that much. He knew that his time with her could almost be considered consensual in nature. If she got pregnant because of this? He wanted her to be. It would be a permanent reminder to her that she had been his. He looked around the room amused by the clothes she had left behind in her hasty retreat. He decided to take the black lacy panties she had forgotten on the floor.
It would be a reminder that this experience had been real and not a mere dream. It would be a testament to the woman he had conquered. He hoped to see her again someday.
He trekked back down to exit the TV world from his television at the Inaba municipal hospital in satisfaction.

The next day
The three members of the investigative team sat in Rise's room inside her home in frustration. Mitsuo hadn't been forthcoming with any information at all. He simply raved about having done all the killings. Naoto eventually gave-up questioning citing, accurately, that Mitsuo must've just been a copycat killer and wanted the attention that the murder mystery had drawn.
Naoto decided to do a background check just to make sure that she hadn't missed anything only to discover the frightening truth about Mitsuo's life before he had dropped out of Yasogami High School. The bullying endured in Yasogami High seemed reach extremes worse than what Chie endured because Mooroka specifically took his time to mentally torture the kid causing him to become a psychopath, the loneliness of his environment because of the lacking social skills and constant humiliating depravity at school, and the utter lack of care from his parents about their child's situation.
It deeply disturbed all three of them to know that Mitsuo had been a meek boy who accidentally spilled Mooroka's coffee one day causing the boy's life to spiral downward into the abyss. It was a small wonder that Mitsuo had killed Mooroka. From the information that Naoto divulged, it could have been considered a revenge killing. The problem with that was Mitsuo had truly believed Mooroka to be the real killer because of the torture he had suffered from the man. In fact, the targets of the murders, the news reporter, the schoolgirl, Yukiko, and Rise all fit in Mooroka's constant sexist complaints about women.
Mooroka had caused trouble for Kanji as well but because Kanji, from an early time in school, had bravely stood up and punched Mooroka in the face one day. It had broken the man's nose. Mooroka had been too fearful to pick on him since then. Kanji had been suspended a week from school but that had allowed him to cool off from the remarks that Mooroka had made about his mother. Mitsuo, by contrast, had been too shy to stand-up for himself. Despite his boastful exterior, he truly believed he had no value or meaning in the world. Mooroka had purposefully capitalized on that weakness.

Mitsuo Koba never had the chance at being a decent person. Due to his social circumstances, he had always been vilified an inferior person beneath anyone else's notice.
He was brimming with power. All his work had finally bred fruition.
It hadn't been easy; he had been at it for months. He bided his time. He would wait and ponder how to do it perfectly. He knew he needed power which was why he had taken measures that even he didn't like but it had all paid off in the end. When that bastard least suspected it, he would come out of the wood works and pounce. He would unleash his newly attained powers and kill that fucker.
That fucker would learn that this had become his world, that only he existed in this world because it was his to exist in, and to come here and interfere with that would require a steep price to pay.
He would gleefully rend that dumbass limb from fucking limb and enjoy the blood gushing in his hands. He pictured, dreamed, and imagined every day for the one exciting moment where he would kill Seta Souji.
The stench of death permeated the air around him.

The fog was thick in Inaba that night. If one were to walk out then they would barely see two feet in front of them.
She sedately walked around the cold night. The area was pitch-black. Even the lights couldn't penetrate through the thick fog that surrounded Inaba. She listened in the quiet – listened to the thoughts of the people in this town – the thoughts mainly consisted of such piss poor trivialities such as money, love, or work. The sensationalism of Inaba – the feelings of the people at large – no longer interested her at all.
She had changed. She had manifested. Her beliefs and ideas were no longer on such boring trite as what the world at large thought. People were the same regardless of what era they were living in. Being a deity had shown her how meaningless human life was. The little worlds that they lived with no longer interested her. Humanity's desires were an utter bore.
She thought she had known what she wanted. What she desired to do. Instead, seeing her three chosen, Namatame, Adachi, and Souji had taught her the incontrovertible truth of selfishness.
Her passion had changed. She didn't care for the world as it currently was and didn't care to free the other gods from the seals that bound them.
She wanted to usurp it all and reshape this world to her liking.

"What are we to do?" posed Naoto, a demure air hanging in the room. "If we don't think of something then he'll find a way to kill us. We got lucky this time since something interfered for our benefit and teleported him away from us…"
"However, the battle with Mitsuo has shown that he could possess us and control our actions. We can't simply avoid him forever in the real world because of his manifested powers. We must neutralize and bring him to justice posthaste."
The other two nodded in agreement at that sentiment.
"With Mitsuo not knowing anything," began Rise mulling over what they could do, "The only person we know of that can provide any assistance in bringing at least some of his crimes to light would be Yukiko Amagi. She's the only person left alive."
Naoto nodded in agreement as Chie frowned at that information.
"Even if Mitsuo had known what Seta had done to him," began Naoto, "It wouldn't help us with trying to arrest him for the crimes he's committed. Seta has control of the hospital so we cannot seek their help and the police would not willingly help us when one of their leading detectives is his uncle."
"I'll start a background check to see if he's had a record of criminal behavior or any odd actions he may have taken in Inaba when he arrived here or recently. I'm sure there is something."
Rise turned to Chie's direction.
"Chie-chan, you're the closest to Amagi-san." began Rise, as Chie felt dread build up inside her from where this conversation was leading. "Please, do you think you can talk to her and convince her to give us information on Seta's activities or convince her to tell the police what is really going on? She obviously needs help."
Chie sighed in resignation but nodded her agreement.
Truthfully, she was afraid of speaking to Yukiko again. It had been so long since they were actually friends and speaking to her after all this would be awkward. She had to though. She cared about Yukiko dearly and really did want to help her but knew it would be difficult. Yukiko would most likely outright reject her approach due to fear but Chie needed to try anyway. Yukiko would always be her best friend.
'Yukiko, I'm so sorry. You were hurting all this time and I wasn't around to help. I promise, I'll make everything right!'

"Hey Yukiko," greeted Chie, interrupting Yukiko from picking out food at the grocery store.
Yukiko jumped in surprise before whirling around. Chie was momentarily surprise when she noticed Yukiko's growing belly. Chie felt as if she would retch at the sight before her. Yukiko was pregnant with Souji's child… How could she have forgotten that detail from Naoto? She felt utterly sick to her stomach noticing the results of constant rape that Yukiko endured under Seta's vile hands. Her best friend had been enduring this all alone.
Yukiko, for her part, felt the same for Chie. She noticed the crutches and the leg that would be paralyzed forever. She couldn't help but feel a huge wave of loathing for herself because she had abandoned Chie in her time of need so cruelly. Chie had suffered bullying in school while dealing with a physical handicap for months and she had done nothing but follow Souji's instructions to the letter. She hated herself for not being there for Chie and Chie's wellbeing had been a constant torment for her these past months.
"Could we, please, talk?" asked Chie hopefully, Yukiko looked at her stone-faced. "I… I really want to talk… please?"
Yukiko nodded, not trusting her voice. Yukiko idly wondered why Chie wasn't in school but chalked it up as having prioritized that three-people team that Souji-kun had informed her of. Both Yukiko and Souji were busy preparing for the wedding since Souji and her parents wanted it as soon as possible. Yukiko, of course, went along with it. She had been tending to Nanako in Souji's absence and didn't mind the time alone with the bright young girl.
"Yukiko, you probably know from him but I'll tell you anyway," began Chie, trying to find the right words. "I'm… that is… rugh, myself, Rise Kujikawa, and Naoto Shirogane have formed an investigative squad of sorts… we want to bring down Seta Souji and the only way we can do that is through your help."
"You should know that I won't betray Souji-kun," replied Yukiko simply, she didn't want to be having this discussion in public with prying eyes everywhere. "I… Chie…san… please leave."
Chie's heart contorted in pain. It was back to the 'san' suffix. She wanted to reach out to Yukiko. She needed to. She couldn't live with herself and leave Yukiko in this state of depravity.
"Yukiko," began Chie, tears trickling down her cheeks as her body shook. Yukiko looked at her in alarm and spied around to see if any people were watching them in the grocery store. Chie had, thankfully, spoken quietly. "Yukiko, I… I want to say I'm sorry… I'm sorry for not being there for you. I'm sorry for not catching on quickly. I'm… I'm sorry for everything… I'm sorry for being so stupid… I…"
Yukiko looked at the floor. She didn't want to look at Chie. Chie's tears starting falling from her cheeks to the floor uncontrollably.
"Don't… don't be stupid, Chie." said Yukiko quietly, still not looking up at her. "You have nothing to apologize for. You had no idea what was going on and there was nothing you could've done regardless. You were dealing with hell on earth in school and your handicaps."
Yukiko slowly raised her head to look at her one-time friend in the eyes. No… Chie still cared after all this time… so perhaps they were still somehow friends? Yukiko wasn't sure and she knew it wouldn't matter because of Souji.
"Yukiko-chan," began Chie, using the suffix she had used a few times during their carefree days as friends. "We can… we can go back to those days from before. Before Seta ruined our lives. Before all these mysterious deaths ever happened. If you just help us then we can get him arrested. He won't use his powers in public. He knows that it'll cause a panic with Inaba's population becoming so paranoid over the mystery killings and all the hoaxes that have come-up about it even with Namatame being said to be the perp."
"We can enjoy our time together as friends again. Once Seta's out of the way, it'll be possible. We just need your help – your testimony – to arrest and convict him."
"This is going to sound stupid." Yukiko began, "Chie, you have to understand, the world I lived in then and the one I live in now… it feels like a lifetime apart. There isn't going to be any going back for me. You know that but I can understand why you wouldn't want to accept that. I'm sorry for the time we've lost too but it's done and in the past."
"I'm pregnant with his child, I've quit school to run my family's historic inn, and my wedding will probably take place in a month's time. My life has changed so much from the time we were friends at school. It probably feels like a short time to you but for me it feels like hundreds of years have gone by. I'm not the same person I once was."
"This will probably sound stupid… I've probably developed some type of Stockholm syndrome, but Souji-kun is an enormous part of my life now. I honestly can't back out of that. My life will never be happy again because of him… but I whined and was miserable even before he entered into it. I'm… content with how my life now because of him. I… I love you Chie, you're my best friend but… but… I've resolved myself to be with Souji-kun and… I guess… somewhere along the way, I've learned to love him."
Chie broke down at that point. The stream of tears increased tenfold. Chie let go of one of her crutches and let it fall to the floor before bear hugging Yukiko in a tight embrace. Yukiko hugged back, thankful Chie understood how she felt even though it didn't make any sense from a logical standpoint.
They were people though and people were more receptive to emotions than logic.
'Yukiko…' thought Chie, 'I'm so sorry for everything!'
'Goodbye Chie-chan,' thought Yukiko, acknowledging the fact that she would have to avoid Chie from now on so that Souji didn't get more incentive to kill Chie. 'You were one of the few people who really brought happiness into my life… I'm happy enough to know that you don't hate me for how much of a cold bitch I was to you during school.'
Once Chie let go she looked at her fallen crutch in a grimace. She would need to pick that up. Before she could however a young girl brought bags of apples and oranges into the shopping cart. Chie looked in surprise as the little girl noticed the fallen crutch and picked it up, holding half of it off the floor for Chie to grab. Chie took the crutches and made sure to balance herself properly on it.
"Th-thank you." said Chie to the little girl in surprise.
"You're welcome!" responded the little girl brightly, "I'm Nanako Dojima, it's nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too." replied Chie, something clicked in her mind. "Dojima, you say? Are you related to Seta Souji?"
Nanako was about to ask why the girl had tear marks on her face and her name before smiling at the question.
"Oh, you know my big bro!"
"Nanako, let's be on our way." said Yukiko, interrupting to make sure that Chie didn't see fit to start questioning the little girl just in case. She didn't give Chie another look. They both had said all that needed to be said. They had both chosen their paths. "I have to bring you back home today. Your father's finally got another break from work. Won't it be nice for you and Souji-kun to prepare something for him?"
Chie's blood ran cold. That girl was a relative of Souji's?

"Naoto-chan!" screeched Chie upon returning to Rise's house and entering her room. "We've got a problem, Seta has a young relative who-"
Chie was cut off.
"I know," said Naoto ignoring Chie's loud voice, she knew Chie was screaming out of concern. "I've done a thorough background check. All I could really manage to find is that Seta's parents have been dodging tax collectors and gave him a very poor upbringing. The boy likely never learned how to live in society normally like the rest of us but I learned that he had a younger female cousin staying with him during my investigation."
"Tell me, did the girl appear to show any signs of abuse?"
"Well, no… actually, she seemed happy when I asked about Seta."
"I see… and what of Yukiko Amagi?"
Chie sighed in despair before recanting what occurred at the grocery store she had tracked Yukiko in. Naoto nodded sullenly. Rise had went on to purchase more supplies for their next venture into the shadow world.
"While that girl may not have been abused yet, we can't guarantee that it'll be like that way forever," began Naoto, assessing the situation. Chie nodded in agreement. She didn't know what to say, really. "He's likely just bidding his time before he abuses that girl too. Perhaps he's just waiting for her to grow-up but I doubt it. It's more than likely that he's just securing his position as Amagi-san's husband and is too preoccupied to risk it under his uncle's nose yet."
Chie and Naoto failed to understand that Seta Souji would not harm his cousin Nanako. They were not Yukiko Amagi, they didn't see that Souji loved his cousin dearly. They didn't make the distinction that Souji only hated women who were haughty or self-centered and that, though Souji had many sexist tendencies, he didn't entirely hate women and he certainly wasn't ever going to harm Nanako.
To Naoto, Souji was just a chauvinistic sexual predator and serial rapist with no moral standards to live by or speak of. Her own experience with meeting Souji briefly and her subsequent investigation on Souji's actions in Inaba and upbringing led her to believe such a conclusion. Souji was just a monster that needed to be brought to trail and persecution of the fullest extent of the law.
Chie felt similar except she also pegged Souji as a sadist. She presumed that he would torture the girl, threaten her, and act in other nefarious ways towards the little girl to coax her into doing what he wanted her to do. He was a sick monster that needed to burn in hell for his crimes.
"I didn't want to do this…" started Naoto in a bitter tone of voice. "But it seems we have no other choice. We must make sure that girl is safely away from that monster. This is against my moral beliefs in our law system but…"
"I'm going to persecute him on false charges. Technically, most of them won't be false but without any evidence we won't be able to get him persecuted. Therefore, we must act on that small window of opportunity and convince Ryotaro to get his daughter away from him. If he doesn't comply… then we arrange for her safety ourselves."
"Do you mean kidnapping?" asked Chie in surprise, it sure sounded like Naoto was colorfully suggesting kidnapping…
"Unfortunately, yes. I understand if you have moral objections to this and wish to quit before this becomes too serious."
"No," said Chie firmly, "I'm with you one hundred and fifty percent! I was just a little surprised you would suggest this but we do have to get that poor little girl away from him no matter what."
When Rise returned, they discussed the plan with her and, after her affirmation and support; they made preparations necessary to start their plan into action.

"Souji, what is this?" asked his uncle, looking at the red letter he had opened up despite Souji's name being on it. "Stop killing people? What?"
Souji looked up with a confused expression on his face. Ryotaro handed him the letter. Souji scanned its contents before handing it back.
"Isn't that Adachi-san's handwriting?" He asked calmly, alarm bells were ringing on the inside. Why would Adachi have sent him this unless…
'No way… that dumbass is the killer? I wonder if it would've been more obvious to me sooner had I spent more time near the guy.'
Souji internally laughed at the prospect of Adachi showing up at some public place like Junes to reveal confidential police information in front of the Scooby-doo detective agency. Only a moron wouldn't figure out that Adachi was the killer if he kept showing up in the same public setting to reveal confidential police information every single month every time something came-up.
"Hey, you're right…" said Ryotaro pausing, he scrutinized the letter. How had he not noticed that earlier? "Why would he-?"
The doorbell rang. Ryotaro went to go get it. It was his fellow police officers.
"What!" shouted Ryotaro enraged, "Accused of murder and rape? What the hell are you guys playing at! These are bullshit accusations!"
"We're sorry, senpei!" said one of the officers quickly, "But he was accused by that famous young detective and two other girls. We couldn't just ignore it. Listen, as you know, you'll have to be there with him as his guardian."
Ryotaro sighed in frustration.
"Bring your daughter along. She can stay in the waiting area for the time being. We're certain this won't take long. There hasn't been any evidence given to us yet to support any of the accusations."

Nanako had been left in the waiting room of the precinct with only the guard near the door standing by for visitors. She sighed feeling lonely at her predicament.
She hoped her big brother wouldn't be penalized for those crimes. Her brother was the sweetest person she knew, she couldn't imagine her brother doing anything bad. Oh sure, there was the smoking but that was a bad habit and not a crime. Even her father smoked. She promised herself to stay away from that bad stuff, it smelled icky.
Nanako looked with interest at the door as three girls, one of them from the grocery store, showed up. Nanako perked up; surely one of them would be able to spend time with her. After the three had signed in with the police guard at the door, they walked towards her.
"Nanako Dojima, correct?" asked the boy… or was it girl? In blue. Nanako smiled and nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Shirogane Naoto."
"Oh don't be so formal," chuckled Rise, "Hello Nanako-chan! I'm Kujikawa Rise."
Nanako gasped in surprise. The idol from TV was here standing in front of her!
"Sorry, didn't give out my name before." said the girl in long sleeves and a miniskirt. "I'm Satonaka Chie."
"It's nice to meet you all." said Nanako brightly, the police guard by the reception desk near the door smiled as he saw Ryotaro's kid no longer sitting by herself alone.
"Why're you sitting by yourself?" asked Naoto in concern, "Where is your father?"
"Oh, he's with big bro answering some questions for the police."
"Ah," responded Naoto, realizing that Ryotaro would indeed need to be with Souji as he was the acting guardian for the boy. She turned to police at the reception desk. "Is there no one in the police force who can watch her for a bit? I understand you're busy with all the insanity that's been going on recently but surely someone can watch her…"
"Actually, what about that one police officer whom I met with briefly a few times. I believe his name was Tohru Adachi?"
"Adachi?" questioned the receptionist briefly before he seemed to think it over, "Yeah, he's probably free since good ol' Dojima-san does most of his work. I'll ring his desk and get him down here."
He made the call and Adachi came by with a look of boredom. His visage changed to surprise upon seeing at the four people in the waiting area.
"What're you all doing here?" he asked in surprise, "Has something happened?"
"Adachi-san," began Naoto in an annoyed tone, how could he not know what was going on when it involved his partner in a way? "Nanako-chan here needs looking after and we need someone who isn't occupied at the moment."
"I'm sure you're certainly not too busy to take care of her."
"Well, I am busy." bluffed Adachi, secretly getting pissed at Naoto's tone of voice. "So sorry but I can't do it."
"Adachi-san, enough." responded Naoto snippily, this man was incompetent but surely he could take care of a child for a few measly hours. "We both know that's not true. You're just trying to shirk responsibility again, just like the other times I've seen you. Surely you aren't too incompetent to look after one kid, right?"
The receptionist chuckled at Naoto's words. Adachi's face flushed. Naoto and the other two incorrectly assumed it was because of embarrassment. Adachi was seething on the inside. How dare this stupid bitch embarrass him like this!
"She's got you pegged just perfectly, Adachi." chortled the policeman at the receptionist desk. "Just do it."
Adachi closed his eyes and looked at the floor. He calmed himself from attacking Naoto outright. Nanako looked at the floor in sadness because of how the Naoto and Adachi were talking about her, acting as if she was just some burden to be thrown at people. She hoped her elder brother and father would be out soon so she could go home. The last time she had seen them, they had both looked very angry because of the charges being pressed on Souji. She sighed in depression over the situation she was in.
"Come on, Nanako-chan." said Adachi relenting. Nanako jumped down from her seat and followed after him.
Naoto smirked in satisfaction before making her way to where the receptionist instructed Souji would be so that she could bring the charges to the police.
'The girl should be safe for the time being,' thought Naoto, 'Even Adachi shouldn't be able to screw-up watching a child.'
Naoto didn't realize her own hypocrisy in thinking of Nanako as a child due to the girl's age and stature. All that she thought was that the girl was safe for the moment.

Adachi loaded his gun.
He had brought Nanako to the same room he had thrown both Saki Konishi and Mistuo Kubo into the television. Adachi mused that if Mitsuo was thin enough to fit inside and so could he.
"Um… Mr. Adachi," said Nanako, not quite knowing how to continue as Adachi's attention was brought from his musings and loading his gun to her. "What… what're you doing with that?"
"Oh nothing, Nanako-chan," said Adachi smiling to assuage any fears the little girl had, "Just keeping us protected to make sure nothing bad hurts you."
"Oh!" replied Nanako, looking at him with relief. "Well that's good… um… I think…"
Adachi chuckled heartily.
'What a sweet little thing… loved by everyone around her…' Adachi's eyes turned cold. 'Perfect little girl, can do no wrong in anyone's eyes. She's like a mary-sue from a bad anime.'
'She'll probably grow up to be a cold-ass bitch in the future… like that bitch Shirogane, I can just see little Nanako growing up to be bitchy little Shirogane. Heh.'

Naoto, Rise, and Chie finally came to the office that Souji was held in. The two anonymous detectives had waited for them patiently. Naoto brought forth a portfolio with information on what she gathered from her investigation on Souji held in her hands. She had kept it in her blue coat to make sure it didn't slip away or fall to the ground.
As the three settled themselves in the room and Naoto motioned to speak but before she got the chance the distinct sound of a gunshot was heard inside the precinct. Naoto and the other two left quickly to find out where that gunshot had come from. The officers had been charged by Ryotaro to look after Souji and were compelled to stay with him. Souji had wanted to bolt from the room to find out what happened but the two officers stopped him.
The triad left the room to follow the sound from where they heard the gunshot. The triad was the first in the room that Adachi and Nanako had been in to view had transpired.
There was a body bleeding on the floor from a gunshot wound.

"Adachi!" shouted Ryotaro, making Adachi whirl around. "What the HELL is this?"
He flung the red letter, from the case portfolio that he brought to show Adachi he was serious about arresting him for this, at Adachi. Adachi didn't try to catch it. He knew the jig was up when he saw the portfolio in Ryotaro's hands and the cuffs on his belt.
"What was what, Sir?" asked Adachi to annoy Ryotaro in an effort to distract him.
"That letter! I left Souji to take a better look at it and it matched your handwriting perfectly from what little paperwork you've done!" said the pissed Detective, "I want an explanation, NOW!"
"Dad?" questioned Nanako, not knowing what was going on.
Ryotaro hadn't noticed his daughter in the room or else he would have made sure she was safely away from Adachi. He was about to ask her to leave the room to seek out one of his colleagues but was stopped.
Adachi shot Ryotaro at pointblank range in the chest. Ryotaro fell over in pain.
"DADDY!" shouted Nanako in horror. Tears began trickling down her eyes.
Ryotaro watched helplessly as Adachi pulled Nanako to him by the collar of her shirt and brought her into a chokehold.
Before Ryotaro passed out from the loss of blood, he witnessed helplessly as Adachi threw Nanako into the television behind him and watched as Adachi jumped in after her.

Naoto and Rise looked at the room in shock. Chie followed quickly after them to see Ryotaro bleeding on the floor. They say circular motions on the television and realized what had happened. Naoto noticed the red piece of paper on the floor in a portfolio and picked up the contents.
"We need to-!" began Chie's panicked voice before Naoto cut in.
"We need to go after him, we've jeopardized Nanako-chan's safety." said Naoto in a mixture of bitterness and sadness. The guilt began to well-up inside her. She tried to remain calm but the guilt was boundless. "This was Adachi's doing. This is a case portfolio designating Adachi as the one who sent a letter to Seta in an effort to frame him. It seems it wasn't Namatame who murdered the first two, but Adachi. Ryotaro was in his office connecting the dots and went to confront him about it here."
"Which means… he shot Ryotaro and took Nanako hostage…"
They immediately sprang forth into action. Rise helped Chie get inside the moderately sized television set before getting inside it herself. Naoto left the contents of the portfolio on Ryotaro's body so it wouldn't be missed before jumping into the television as well. She dove in as if to dropkick the television and held on to the top of the screen and pulled so the TV would fall. It smashed to the floor after Naoto successfully got her hands inside through the portal. This way, Seta Souji couldn't follow after them.
If they shouted for help then they couldn't use their powers because of the people coming in and ushering them out to help Ryotaro. They felt guilty but rationalized that Ryotaro would prefer it if his daughter was safe and sound.
Souji came in after them with the two detectives.
"Oh shit!" shouted one of them, he went over to Ryotaro and tenderly woke him up. The other one grabbed the file on the floor to read it. "Dojima-san, hang in there! Please tell us what happened!"
Souji walked over to Ryotaro with concern etched on his face. Upon seeing Souji, Ryotaro bit out before passing out once more.
"A-adachi… he… shot… me…" said Ryotaro, struggling to breathe, "I… he…. the… the… television…"
Ryotaro calmed a bit when he saw understanding flash in Souji's eyes.
"Listen kid, the charges are dropped, we-"
"Please, let's get my uncle to the hospital." said Souji patiently.
Inside he was screaming in hatred. A hurricane of emotions was coursing through him. Those stupid fucking bitches and their bullshit accusation plan had ended-up putting his younger cousin in danger AND they had broken the television so he couldn't jump in after them and save her. FUCKING DIPSHITS WERE GOING TO FUCKING PAY! After he made certain that Nanako was safe.
Souji had no choice but to wait for the ambulance to come. The police station was in a panic searching for Adachi and he couldn't jump into one of the televisions inside without risk of discovery. He wasn't even entirely sure there was a TV that could fit his whole body like the one that was smashed. If he did jump in then it would do more harm than good as he would be ostracized as the killer thanks to superstition increasing throughout Inaba. He sincerely hoped Nanako would be safe and in once peace when he found her.

Rise had followed his trail and found his location inside the place Mayumi Yamano died easily enough by tracking Nanako's presence with him. They had fortunately had their glasses on them. Thankfully, they had brought their fog-seeing glasses that Naoto and Chie used. All three were deeply concerned. The prolonged exposure of the tough atmosphere of this world could kill Nanako. They needed to save her immediately!
They were too preoccupied to notice that they were being watched.

He had pushed her to the floor and stomped on the girl's head.
"SHUT THE FUCK UP, YOU LITTLE BITCH!" roared Adachi, furious with his hostage who had been whining about her father or 'big bro' coming to save her. Dumb little whore. He pressed his gun on her forehead.
She sobbed quietly. She tried not to make any further noise.
"Your whole life is a failure." spoke a voice that sounded familiar. Adachi turned around to see himself with yellow eyes. "No one ever gave you the time of day."
"You wanted to prove them all wrong… but all you proved was that they were right. It didn't matter what you did, how hard you tried in school, in clubs, or anywhere. You were always being shown-up. You were never acknowledged by your parents… they only acknowledged her, the daughter they always wanted. They never wanted you. They never wanted a son. You were worthless to them. Nothing you accomplished ever had any meaning because she was always better at everything. The prodigy child of the household."
"And she would never ever stop being an absolute bitch to you. Always coming into your room, using your stuff, acting all sweet and innocent with mom and dad always taking her side. She was their little angel, she could do no wrong. Hell, even when it came time for graduation. She became the number one student in high school and you as number two…. You were always number two. So what did you do to the precious little girl of the family? You barged into her room when your parents were away on a business trip one day, she shouted at you to leave or else she would inform the folks because her stuff was always private, but you lost your cool. You raped your own sister and you enjoyed making her your screaming, crying, whiny little bitch."
"But she ended-up saving you even then. The folks and she discovered she was pregnant and she up and left one day before your parents got the chance to force her to take a paternity test to figure out who she slept with. She never told them that you raped her. She's probably killed herself somewhere by now and the guilt eats even though you feel an intense satisfaction. After that, you thought your parents would acknowledge you with her out of the picture… did they? Nope. They kept their money and refused to pay for college tuition. You were forced to join the police. You never got to be what you wanted in life. You gave-up on your dream too early."
"The police business was fun for a time. You got a kick out of catching perps. It was a thrill to you… but then during a bank robbery, you dodged a bullet aimed for your head. It missed by inches but you were alive…. It ended-up hitting a civilian… and that civilian turned out to be the Mayor's wife of all people. They sent you to the boondocks of Inaba because of that. They didn't care you were alive. They didn't care about you. Nobody ever truly did. Everyone always judged you before they met you. You were always a failure to everyone around you before you ever had the chance to prove yourself to them. That's why you just gave-up when arriving to Inaba. You just admit to some stupid idea of fate that you were meant to suffer a boring desk job, doing shit like controlling traffic instead of fighting criminals. Nothing matters to you. You hate your life, you despise living… but you're too much of a coward to kill yourself. You're like a lot of other jackwads that exist in the mediocrity of this world. You're not even unique in this respect."
"Tell me something I don't know." snorted Adachi in response to his Shadow's constant torment. It didn't matter. Adachi, in his own way, had long accepted all of that.
At the acceptance of his life's failures, Adachi gained his Persona. A Persona not granted to him under Izanami's short list of Persona's she could grant to people. Adachi didn't fit the bill for the only other Persona she had left to grant so she merely watched as he faced his own shadow. Yet Adachi was one of her chosen so she decided to bestow him with a power like she had Namatame… but different in some respects. She elevated the power of Adachi's naturally created Persona to its ultimate form and watched with interest as the Persona's power was different but just as deadly as Seta Souji's Persona Magatsu Izanagi.

They had traversed the perilous area of Magatsu Inaba. Despite the harshness, they persevered to save Nanako. They had used up a lot of healing items but the three had managed to defeat both Chaos Fuzz and Envious Giant and opened the path to where Adachi was located.
They had just finished a particularly harsh battle with a random encounter.
"Alright, let's rest a bit and plan before we face him." said Rise wisely, thinking over strategies they could use to get Nanako out of there. "We should – WAIT NAOTO, WHAT'RE YOU DOING!"
Rise and Chie watched tiredly as Naoto made a break for it.
"I HAVE TO MAKE THIS RIGHT!" shouted Naoto, her subconscious guilt over the situation added with her frustration with how slow their progress was in reaching Adachi. Now that he was just through the portal in front of them, she couldn't just wait around. Nanako could die from just the overexposure of the atmosphere!
Rise stopped Chie from following and told her it was better to come-up with a plan. She couldn't believe that Naoto, the logical one, had flipped her lid and decided to run in without a plan and that she was the one saying to wait and prepare.
Then again, Naoto felt the most guilt over the situation because she had been the cause of it all. Guilt made people do stupid things.

"Yo," said the Shadow of Yosuke, blocking Souji's path to where he sensed Nanako, Adachi, and the other three. "Dumbass."
He was frustrated. He knew this thing had become stronger. He could just sense it. If he wasn't careful in battle he knew he could die. That just added to his frustration because all he could think about right now was saving Nanako from the danger she was in.
'Please be safe' was the constant thought that kept repeating itself in Souji's mind as Bloody Izanagi was summoned beside him to prepare for the fight.

The dense fog seemed to dissipate once Naoto was completely through, she ran up the run way to the isolated spot and saw Nanako on the floor with Adachi stepping on her head. His gun poised to shoot her on the ground. Adachi's face said it all. He dared Naoto to take another step.
Naoto calmed herself. She couldn't accurately predict his actions. She needed to make certain that Nanako was safe and sound first.
"Well, well…." chuckled Adachi amused, "Only one of you made it? What a pity. Hope the other two didn't die too painfully."
Naoto chose to observe before she spoke. Her tone of voice was calm. She couldn't afford to act self-righteous at a time like this. She wasn't going to ask him to confirm that he was the killer of the first two murders. What took priority was Nanako's safety.
"Let her go, Adachi-san." Intoned Naoto calmly, "She has nothing to do with this."
Adachi sneered. Naoto held back her frustration. Her calm words had only served to make him angrier.
"Now you show respect?" laughed Adachi finding Naoto's actions humorous. "Now that I have this little bitch under my heel, you show a modicum of respect for me? What happened to the insults? To the look on your face as you thought of me as beneath you? When you thought of me as an incompetent bumbling fool!"
"Only now that I've shown power, only when I have a gun, shot someone, and kidnapped this precious little 'innocent' do you recognize me with any sort of decency! You two-faced little bitch!"
His face changed from enraged to a disturbing smile as Rise ran toward Naoto with Chie coming by slowly. He pointed his gun in their direction.
"This is how we're gonna do things." began Adachi enjoying the hesitant and frightened faces of the three girls. He really loved seeing those faces. "You want this little tramp under me, right?"
For emphasis, he stomped harshly on Nanako's head. Nanako cried out in pain. The three of them tensed but wisely didn't move.
"What's wrong, don't you want to help her?" asked Adachi sadistically with his gun poised at them. He started laughing loudly as he stomped on Nanako's body as she cried out for help. The three of them shook in fear and anger but didn't move because of the gun poised at them, ready to end their lives. Adachi continued stomping and laughing before he eventually stopped.
"Alright then, you want this little brat of Dojima's then I demand a… trade." He said conspiringly, his grin having left as he viewed them in what could be considered disgust on his face. "One of you as a hostage, for her… I'll take the hot idol."
The three bristled at that demand but nodded. The guilt over not helping Nanako when Adachi was stomping on her body had increased a hundred fold. They needed to save her. Adachi was clearly insane. They didn't risk using Persona in case he brought his gun down to shoot Nanako. Something he could do very easily.
"Alright then, the idol first or else I shoot." He promised, "And if that bitch tries anything, I kill this little brat, got it?"
All three nodded. They didn't trust their voices. This situation was intense for them. They were merely high schoolers that had stumbled upon a dangerous game.
Rise walked over to Adachi silently. Adachi slowly let go of Nanako from under his foot.
"Get over there before I change my mind you little cunt!"
Nanako got up and ran over to Naoto's side of the circular area as fast as her little legs could go. She had tear stains in her eyes from having cried so much. Naoto's body sagged in relief as she saw Nanako come forward. Naoto encouraged her to move briskly by beaconing her. Rise walked towards Adachi without a word. She didn't try to double cross him. She didn't want to die and especially didn't want to risk Nanako's life.
Naoto and Chie's attention were solely on Nanako. Naoto smiled when Nanako was finally at arm's length near Naoto. She went to hug the girl to alleviate some of the girl's worries since she had obviously been through quite the ordeal.
A bang from a gunshot resounded through the area. It echoed in the silence that followed.
Rise had been too late in warning Naoto and Chie. Adachi had aimed his revolver quickly and shot in their direction.
Nanako's dead body fell limply to the floor face first. The shock stayed on her visage as she fell on the right side of her face. The blood and some of the brain matter from the gunshot had splattered all over Naoto's upper body. The three stared in disbelief wanting to deny the event that just occurred before any of them could stop it. The full realization of what happened hadn't come to them yet as they gazed upon Nanako's corpse in fright and shock.
Adachi grinned triumphantly.
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Seta Souji, the infamous magnificent bastard