6/16

Mr. Ushimaru was about to teach when suddenly he got called into the faculty office. However, the one who called him was Kawakami. I recognized her voice. I smiled to myself before propping up a textbook on my desk and finishing up a book I had. He got back like 15 minutes later and said none of the other teachers found out who used the PA system.

After school, Ren and I went straight to Central Street to find the guy handing out the drugs. We didn't find the exact guy, but there was a man wearing a hat near the airsoft gun shop that told us to check out his friend over at the station so that was our next stop.

Beneath Station Square was the underground walkway and it was there that we saw a homeless man.

Man:"What's with the scary look on your face? If you have something to say to me, just say it."

"We're looking for a part-time job."

Man:"A part-time job? You're not talking about some ordinary job, huh? Take my advice: Don't do it. They'll squeeze every last penny out of you with threats and extortion. Some of my friends have fallen victim to their schemes.... The mafia is evil, I tell you."

Ren:"How do we meet them?"

Man:"They'll come to you eventually if you walk around this area around now. But just so you know who to avoid, I'll teach you how to tell them apart from normal people. They use some weird phrases. Code words, you know. That's how they communicate with each other. Anyway, watch out if you hear any of that stuff. They'll try to come for you even during the day. They're relentless when it comes to targeting teens."

We walked off as soon as we felt our phones vibrating. Ann messaged the group to see if any of us got anything. Ann, Ryuji, and Yusuke all had different pieces of intel to give. Yusuke's seemed the weirdest as he mentioned how he overheard some people talking about ice and vegetables in an alley near the arcade in Central Street. Ren and I bolted over there and walked to the alleyway that lead into the gym.

?:"Hello."

We heard someone's voice and turned to see Niijima-senpai.

Makoto:"Have you made any progress toward finding the boss?"

"I'd say things are going well."

Makoto:"...That's good to hear."

Man:"Hey, you three got some time? I have a great job for you."

Our attention was turned to a suspiciously sleazy guy.

Man:"It's real easy. Guess you could call it a delivery job."

"Hey, look at that. Talk about an easy search."

Man:"You're high schoolers, yeah? Don't you want something more than just your allowances?"

Makoto:"Hm... by delivery, do you mean that of suspicious materials?"

Man:"Hehe, you're a funny girl."

Makoto:"So you won't answer me? Then I was right...?"

The guy then got close to Niijima-senpai as he tilted his head in confusion.

"Easy there, bro, we wouldn't the cops involved, right?"

Niijima-senpai seemed a bit surprise by my slight intervention as it only served to piss the guy off and he was about to leave.

Makoto:"U-Um, if you don't want to deal with us, we could always go see your boss ourselves."

Man:"You're really gonna say that, knowing who he is? Heh, no way I believe that. Well, I'm outta here. You guys are annoying me."

He then walked off and when he was out of sight, Niijima-senpai looked over at us.

Makoto:"I'm pretty sure he's part of the mafia we're looking for."

Ren:"I'm amazed you figured it out."

Makoto:"I don't have any proof though. I tried to trick him into saying something, but he dodged all the traps I was laying down. And (L/n)... thanks for standing up for me.

I didn't say anything so I simply avoided eye contact with her.

Makoto:"I'm going to go now."

She walked off as Morgana then popped out of his bag.

Morgana:"That boss seems tricky... It looks like he taught his subordinates well, too. No wonder the police are having trouble catching him. Anyway, (Y/n) you have some serious guts. You didn't back down at all against that hooligan."

"Yeah... Sucks we didn't get any new info though. I think we should call it here."

Ren:"Agreed."

We texted the group and told them we wouldn't be meeting up after getting the info we needed. Ann suggested we head to karaoke tomorrow after school since it'd be happy hour then and we'd have a room to ourselves to talk.

Evening

I got home when I felt my phone buzzing. I fished it out and saw an unknown number calling me.

"Yo."

Makoto:"Hello, (L/n)-kun? This is Niijima. Makoto Niijima... Thanks. For earlier."

"How'd you get my number?"

Makoto:"...I dug it up. I realize I'm apologizing after the fact, but... It didn't feel right, keeping it from you, so... That's all. Bye."

She hung up the phone as I let out an exasperated groan and slid my hand down my face. I decided to text Ren.

Dude, Niijima-senpai got my number. I don't even know how!

That's weird. She sent me a text since she reached out to Sojiro. He also said she visited that clinic and asked about you.

God dammit... Alright, what's done is done. You cool if I come over?

Lemme check with Sojiro

I waited for about a minute before Ren gave me the greenlight. I got my things and an umbrella as it was raining out. I went to Leblanc as I chatted idly with Sojiro and Ren. Sojiro got a call before he had to jet so it was just Ren and I. Plus Morgana too, I guess.

Morgana:"Hey (Y/n), I thought you didn't like Makoto."

"I don't."

Ren:"Then why did you help her out?"

"Man... I don't know. I guess the whole "helping people out" thing doesn't seem to fade even if we aren't in our Phantom Thieves mode."

Morgana:"It's become second nature to you then?"

"I guess you could say that. I mean, outside of our line of work, I still find myself helping people out. There's Ann, Takemi, Kawakami, and during the cleanup I helped out this girl Kasumi."

Morgana:"Lady Ann needs help?! (Y/n), if you ever need to tag out, just let me know!"

Ren:"Is that really your main takeaway? Hey, it's good you're helping people out. Heh, you must be a gentlemanly thief."

We shared a laugh before I finished my drink and said bye to Ren and Mona.

6/17

After School

Ryuji:"Aw, for real?! We didn't get anything?!"

Before any of us could say anything, we heard the people in the karaoke room across from ours singing at the top of their lungs.

"God, they're trash..."

Ann:"Ugh, I know right?"

Ryuji:"Man, we're goin' nowhere with this... Hey, can't we ask Miss President to change it up?"

Ann:"You mean... change our target?"

Ryuji:"We just gotta show our justice to satisfy her, right? There are tons of shitty adults in this world. It's not like it matters who we're goin' after. She says this is for the students, but I bet it's just so she can go brag about it on college apps."

Ann:"But that mafia's stealing money from kids. We can't just accept that! It doesn't matter who the target came from anymore."

Yusuke:"Ann's right. We want to give courage to the weak. Isn't this the perfect target to accomplish that goal?"

We suddenly heard someone hitting a high note, but they were both off-key and essentially shrieking instead of singing. It caused Yusuke to cringe.

Ren:"Who would've thought it'd be this noisy?"

"I guess it doesn't help that none of us are singing."

Ryuji:"Anyways, I'm sure we'll shut Akechi up if we pull this off, but--"

Yusuke:"That's exactly why we should do it."

Morgana:"It all comes down to intel in the end... If we don't start finding tips on that front, we'll never get any further than this..."

Yusuke:"There has to be someone who has what we need."

Ren:"What about the media?"

Ann:"...That's right! What about that journalist?"

"You mean that lady who was hanging outside of Madarame's house?"

Ryuji:"Oh yeahhh. I completely forgot about her!"

"I don't blame you, the chapter she was introduced in was posted 2 months ago."

Ryuji:"Huh?"

"Huh?"

Ryuji:"Wait, didn't she give you her card, Ren?"

Ren:"Yeah. I think I still got it."

He searched through his bag before pulling out the business card.

Ren:"The business card says Ichiko Ohya of Maiasa Newspaper."

Yusuke:"...This is for a rather major publication."

Ryuji:"You think we can trust her?"

Morgana:"There's no other way."

Ann:"Okay, let's contact her!"

Ren used the contact info she had on the card to send an email as the staff called the room phone to let us know our allotted timed was finished. We all then parted ways.

Evening

I got home and saw that Kawakami texted me so I decided to order her services.

Kawakami:"Hey... you know how you listened to my story the other day? You listened to... my secret. I've been feeling more at ease since then. I've never been able to tell anyone about it, so... I figured I should actually do some housekeeping today, to say thanks..."

"I appreciate it."

Kawakami: *yawn* "Sorry... I need to take a break..."

"Want to rest a bit?"

Kawakami:"I'm so touched to hear that you care for my well-being, Master... Ughhh... I'm at my limit. Sooo exhausted..." *cough* *cough* "I'm beat... I can't stop coughing..."

"You should go home."

Kawakami:"Th-Thanks... but I can't..." *cough* *cough* "I have to work..."

I gave her a look of concern as she tried to laugh it off.

Kawakami:"Haha, just kidding! I just wanted to slack off a bit. I mean, there's nothing left for me to hide from you, so the truth comes out, you know? Now that I think about it... I'm glad you're the one who found out about me being a maid. Are YOU going to be alright alone at home during the evenings? And have you been eating well? You need to eat fresh vegetables, and none of that instant stuff. Vitamins are super important! You're going to turn out like me if you don't take care of yourself!"

"Don't worry, I'm pretty active when I get the chance to be."

Kawakami looked off to the side briefly and brought her arms up to her chest.

Kawakami:"I guess I should get more sleep. I feel all achy..."

"Why's that?"

Kawakami:"Takase-kun's guardians said they need more money, so... I had my boss give me more shifts. I had to beg him for them, but..."

"Don't overdo it."

Kawakami:"Oh, it's fine! Nothing you should worry about. I feel more at ease, now that I have someone who knows about what I'm going through. I'm talking about you of course."

I feel Kawakami's trust in me strengthening...

Kawakami:"Uh-oh, time's up..." *cough* *cough* "I have to get to my next job, so I'm going to head out."

I gave her a nod as I still felt concerned about her health. About 40 minutes after she left, she gave me a call.

Kawakami:"Oh, is this Master? Thank you for using our service today! So I guess it's a good thing I splurged at the doctor's. I finally got come cough medicine that works. Hey, you gotta do some cleaning and ventilating on your own even when I'm gone, okay? If you neglect stuff like that, it makes you more likely to get sick."

"I get that but how are you feeling, though?"

Kawakami:"Who, me? I mean, I'm tired, but that's nothing new... Wait a minute, we're supposed to be talking about you! Don't change the subject. Oh, but if you do get sick, I'll look after you aaanytime! So please don't forget to request me!"

"Sure thing."

Kawakami:"Urgh. I finally get rid of the cough, and now I get these headaches and shivers... Times like these are why we invented energy drinks... I just gotta chug one and push through! Okay, see you later..."

Niijima Residence

Makoto was currently talking to her older sister Sae Niijima.

Sae:"I received a call from your school today. They were asking if you've made any lifestyle changes recently."

Makoto:"Huh?"

Sae:"I gave them a suitable enough answer, but... is there some kind of issue at school?"

Makoto:"No... It's nothing. I'm sorry to worry you."

Sae closed her laptop before approaching her.

Sae:"...You've been coming home late these days. I doubt you would do such a thing, but try to avoid wandering around Shibuya late at night. I've heard stories of girls your age throwing their lives away out there. Getting wrapped up in shady deals, blackmailed into sex work..."

Makoto:"...I've heard rumors about that as well. People have been mentioning it at school."

Sae:"...These aren't mere rumors. I know of a few such cases."

Makoto:"..."

Sae:"Well, it should be nothing for you to worry about. Just concentrate on your studies for now."

Sae walked off which left Makoto to talk to herself.

Makoto:"They're unforgivable!"

6/18

After School

Student Council Room

Iida:"Niijima-senpai... Aren't you going to help me? You said you would keep it a secret, but rumors have started getting out... Wait... You didn't leak that information, did you?!"

Makoto:"Calm down... They're still targeting you?"

Iida:"Even that delinquent and his friend found out. He might try and threaten me too... Why is this happening to me? I can't afford to keep paying..."

Makoto:"...I've found some clues regarding your incident. I just need you to wait a bit longer."

Iida:"You're really gonna help? Everyone thinks you're just doing it for a letter of recommendation..."

Makoto:"That is not true. My goal here is to protect the students of this school..."

Iida:"Please... please hurry..."

Back With You

Yusuke texted the group as he managed to get the name for a target in Mementos.

Ren texted saying he was gonna go hang out with Yusuke. He then texted me soon after saying he and Yusuke were going to head into Mementos so Yusuke could get inspiration. Ren then mentioned that he'd like me to tag along just in case some Shadows pop up.

I went along with them and we encountered some Shadows that were easily disposed of. Soon after that, Yusuke's drawing became a skill card.

In the evening, Ren texted the group saying the reporter responded saying she was at the Crossroads Bar in Shinjuku. Ryuji and I decided we'd tag along with Ren.

We were at the station when Morgana saw Ryuji wearing his school uniform.

Morgana:"You're in your uniform!?"

Ryuji:"Huh? No choice. I didn't have the time to go home. People aren't gonna notice anyways with this t-shirt over it."

"Still dude, you're standing out."

Ren:"Yeah. He's got a point."

Ryuji:"Whaaat? I think this is normal..."

Morgana:"I'm surprised you were thinking anything... Look, it won't be my fault when the cops catch you."

Ryuji:"Don't worry about it. That place ain't so different from Shibuya. C'mon, I'll guide ya. If we're goin' to Shinjuku... we should prolly hop on the JL. Just get outta this building and then the ticket gate should be on the right. It's go time!"

"Someone's eager..."

We all left together and reached Shinjuku. It was definitely a far cry from Shibuya. The neon lights were flashy as hell and there were many different kinds of people I wouldn't normally see during the day.

Ryuji:"Alright, the bar is just straight ahead. Let's get goin'!"

We started to walk but several people stopped us to try and advertise their businesses. We declined and kept moving forward until a patrolling officer stopped us. We tried to play off as college students, but with Ryuji wearing school uniform pants it was hard to do so. So we immediately made a run for it. We hid from him and breathed a sigh of relief.

Morgana:"This is why I said wearing school uniforms was a bad idea!"

Ryuji:"Hey, it's not my fault we had to run. Our school's been gettin' famous!"

?:"E-Excuse me!"

We turned to see a fortune teller nearby. She had a crystal ball and everything.

?:"For the blonde one, I see impending woman troubles..."

Ryuji:"Aw what?!"

?:"For you..."

She glanced over at me.

?:"Your fate is... clouded. So strange. But your friend beside you... I sense great danger!"

"We appreciate the quick fortune telling but we need to go."

?:"Very well. But if you change your mind and want to know your fortune then I'll be here in this spot at night."

We nodded then left to finally reach the bar.

"This is the place. Well Ren, you got this."

Ren:"Huh? Me? You're not coming with?"

"You were the one to email the lady. Besides, it'd be enough of an issue if more than one minor popped into that bar. I'll wait out here with Ryuji."

Ryuji:"Man... I came all the way out here and I can't even do a damn thing..."

"You'll get 'em next time champ."

We walked around and waited on Ren before Ryuji texted him and let him know we would be waiting at the movie theater until he was done. Ren got back and gave us the name of our next target... Junya Kaneshiro. With that done, we left Shinjuku at least, after Ryuji started to get chased by some dudes who I believe were into drag.

When I got home, I decided to go do some at-home training.

6/19

I met up with the others at Station Square as Ryuji looked pissed.

Ryuji:"I can't believe you guys ditched me yesterday! I almost entered a world I want nothing to do with!"

Ann:"What are you talking about?"

Ryuji:"Nothing! Just start it up, Yusuke."

Yusuke:"Okay, I entered Kaneshiro's name into the Nav--and just as expected, it's a hit."

Morgana:"All we need now are the two other keywords: what he thinks of his Palace, and where it is. But we don't gave any clues other than people falling victim around here... We'll just have to try whatever keywords we can come up with."

Ryuji:"Urgh, that's gonna be impossible... How many buildings do you think there are in Shibuya?"

Ann:"No complaining."

Yusuke:"If we figure out where the Palace is, we may be able to guess where it is by association."

Ryuji:"Hmmm... It's prolly somewhere he's got complete control over... Maybe a garden?"

Nav:"No candidates found."

"Hang on, if he likes money then... A bank."

Nav:"Candidate found."

Ren:"Nice. We got a hit."

Yusuke:"So, he thinks of somewhere in this city as his own bank!"

Ann:"I didn't think it'd be something so realistic. That's all it is, huh?"

Morgana:"Now then, what location would Kaneshiro think of as his bank?"

Ryuji:"If we're talkin' about a place where he keeps his cash, maybe his own hideout?"

Ann:"How about... a real bank?"

Morgana:"His cognition wouldn't be distorted in that case."

Ryuji:"Dammit, we ain't gettin' anywhere..."

Yusuke:"This may be difficult to explain... but doesn't it seem we're thinking a little too inside the box? Palaces emanate a passionate madness... It feels as though we're missing that aspect."

Ryuji:"The hell are you talkin' about?"

Yusuke:"This Palace is a bank for someone who extorts money with criminal acts. It's something more..."

Ann:"But what other ways can we think about it? Oh, could it mean a place you withdraw money?"

Morgana:"Hold on! Do you think it might have something to do with the victims? He's taking money from his victims' wallets, right? That means his bank is wherever they are!"

Ann:"That's terrible... but you may just be right."

Ryuji:"Oh, come on! How many people do you think Kaneshiro's taken advantage of in all of Shibuya?"

Nav:"Candidate found."

Yusuke:"Wait a second! I have a hit."

Ryuji:"Huh...? Wait, what?! D-Did I say something right?"

Yusuke:"The place that Kaneshiro thinks of as a bank is... "All of Shibuya."

Ann:"What?! Like... the entire city?"

Morgana:"I see. That's certainly where his victims are... It turns out he really is a terrible criminal."

We then decided to head into the Palace right away and the whole city was affected by his cognition. The people walking along the streets were literal walking ATMs. We decided to run ahead to find the bank.

Around the area we found some broken ATMs and tried to get some intel and where the bank was. We soon got our answer as there was what I could only call a flying fortress in the air.

"Are you serious, bro?! Of course Kaneshiro wouldn't leave any tracks! The whole goddamn place is floating!"

Ann:"So, how do we get up there? Can you turn into a helicopter, Morgana?"

Morgana:"No... just a car."

Ryuji:"You're useless! C'mon, don't you have some kinda secret gadget or somethin'?!"

Morgana:"Shut it! I'm not some robot cat! I mean, I'm not a cat at all!"

"Alright, just chill out. If we can't go any further then no big deal. We'll find a way to get up there. So let's just think on it some more tomorrow."

Ren:"Good call. Let's get out of here."

We all returned home and I immediately crashed on my bed to sleep.

Niijima Residence

Makoto:"...I've been thinking lately. About those Phantom Thieves, I mean. If Dad were still alive..."

Sae glanced up from her dinner plate to look at Makoto.

Makoto:"Sorry, I... I shouldn't bring this up while we're eating."

Sae:"It's okay. Keep going."

Makoto:"I just wonder if he would've been on their side... That's all..."

Sae:"The only reason you have time to think about that is because you depend on someone else."

Makoto:"That's not--"

Sae:"You don't have to do a single thing, and you're provided with food, clothes, a home... I've had no tome to think on such ridiculous thoughts. Would Dad have been happy with them? I don't care. He died upholding some lofty sense of righteousness, leaving all his responsibilities on us."

Makoto:"A-All I was trying to say was--"

Sae:"Isn't it about time you grew up and acknowledged our situation?! Right now, you're useless to me. All you do is eat away at my life."

Makoto was at a loss for words upon hearing what her sister said about her.

Sae: *sigh* "Sorry, that was uncalled for. I'm just... really tired. I'll be eating dinner out from tomorrow on."

Makoto:"..."

To Be Continued...