(A/N: here is what I was listening to on repeat while writing. Yes, the song is ingrained in my brain now. Also LONG CHAPTER YAY :3)

We began our search for the bodies in the Art Room. Although, the repository was locked.

I guess we can check it later if we don't find them anywhere else.

Makoto and I went out on our own to look for the bodies. Classrooms and other rooms were flipped upside down during our search, but nothing came up. Just as we were making my way to check on the others, Celeste and Togami came to me.

"Kuno, Makoto...!", Celeste called.

"Why are you just standing there? We need to get to the repository.", Togami pointed.

"Huh? You mean...!?", Makoto gasped.

" ...I found them. Hifumi and Taka's bodies had both been hidden in the repository.", Celeste revealed.

"I see, do the others know?", I asked.

"I've already told Hina and Sakura. We'll go on ahead...", Togami stated as he and Celeste left.Makoto and I ran to the art room, making our way to the repository. We checked the doorknob to find it unlocked. We look at one another and turned back to the door. We opened it up, and we saw them; Hifumi and Taka's lifeless bodies were on the floor next to one another. I felt myself choke up with tears as I heard the body discovery announcement echo around us. Monokuma came up behind us with his sickening cheery voice.

"And so here we are! Without further ado, let me give you all the next Monokuma File! I was going to hand them out when you found the bodies the first time, but I thought something might happen. It was really hard to resist, but...turns out I was right!"

"Just hand it over already.", Togami scowled as he pulled the file out of his paws. I took mine silently as well.

"Now, make sure to investigate with all of your mental might and prepare for the class trial! Okay, see ya later!", Monokuma waved as he waddled away.

"Well then, now that we've found the bodies, all that's left is to uncover the culprit.", Togami stated. Hina stepped up in front of Togami, looking so crushed.

"H-Hold on... How can you be so...so calm...? I mean, they're *dead*, ya know!? Dead! Gone forever! They're never coming back! Awful... This is all just too awful!", Hina suddenly burst into tears. She turned and clutched at Hifumi's lifeless body with her tears running freely down her face."Wh-Who would do this...? Why...? WHYYY!?", Large, wet tears fell from her eyes. The tears landed on Hifumi's cheeks. If this were some world of make-believe, that might have been when Hifumi opened his eyes. But this wasn't a movie... Yet our reality did create some strange miracles indeed.

"Ng...", Hifumi's eyes opened slowly, as we all gasped. I ran to him and held his face.

"Hifumi! Y-You're alive!", I laughed with tears going down my face.

"He's alive again!?", Makoto gasped behind me.

"Where...am I? Cold...so cold... Is...winter coming?", Hifumi muttered.

"H-Hifumi! Wake up!", Hina urged.

"Yeah, stay with us!", I said as I kept doing my best to keep him conscious.

"...Huh? Ahh...that's right... I remember now... Hope's Peak...", Hifumi mumbled.

"Come on! You gotta wake up!", Hina kept urging Hifumi to stay focused.

"Before...I'd met you...all... I'd met...you all... except...", Hifumi looked at me with his unfocused eyes. "... You, Kuno. You... weren't there... for some reason... no matter... I-I'm... glad I met you."

"M-Me...?", I whispered.

"His memories are all blending together. He has nothing useful to offer us...", Togami scoffed. I turned to him with a scowl.

"Shut the fuck up, Togami! Give me something YOU offered to this case!", Togami made a surprised yet enraged noise, but turned away from me. I looked back at Hifumi to try to keep him focused.

"Ahh...the light... It's... reaching out...to me... Like...the tail...of a comet...", Hifumi whispered.

"Hey, Hifumi! Who was it? Who attacked you!? Who tried to kill you!?", Hina asked, desperate for answers.

"Who...killed me...? That's right... I remember...their name...", Hifumi's body was growing colder by the second, and his final words were uttered. "Y...Yasu...hi...ro...", His eyes closed. And they never opened again.

"Y-You think if we cry again, he'll wake up...?", I mumbled to Hina. She shook her head and pulled me into a hug. I began crying even harder, letting it all out.

"This isn't some stereotypical fantasy world. Tears can't restore a person's vitality.", Togami scoffed.

"You have no tears, do you? No blood in your veins, no calcium in your bones. At least you have your meat...", Celeste muttered, looking a little... off.

"You're just angry. Going out of his way to return, just to leave us with those unnecessary dying words. Now this game has become exceedingly boring.", Togami grumbled.

"He said...Yasuhiro, right?", Sakura confirmed.

"Yasuhiro Hagakure... That is the only person he could have been referring to.", Celeste pointed out.

"And with that, the case is solved.", Togami smirked.

Assaulting people, and even killing Taka and Hifumi... And then hide their bodies... Someone that hides their face behind a mask, and uses a bunch of giant hammers... Is that what Hiro is...? If it's true, I can't forgive him for what he's done...!

"Anyway, it's about time we tracked down the culprit in our little life-or-death game here. Although...this time it's not all that life-or-death. The trial will conclude without much trouble.", Togami sighed.

"Yes, it does look that way.", Celeste nodded.

It's time to do this again... Investigate again. I hate to do this again, to suspect the people I have been with for a while, but it had to be done... Although Hiro is a suspect, something about the things that happened seems... off. I need to find out what's going on, no matter what... Or else.

"Makoto, can you investigate with me?", I asked, rubbing away my tears.

"H-Huh? Yeah... I'll help.", Makoto nodded with a determined gaze.

"First we'd better check the Monokuma File... "The victims were Hifumi Yamada and Kiyotaka Ishimaru. The cause of death for each was a blow to the head . It is thought that they were both killed with a similar weapon .", I read out to Makoto.

"...That's it?", Makoto mumbled.

"I don't see anything else...", I sighed.

"Yeah, it's pretty strange. We got way less information this time than before.", Togami muttered.

"That is no problem. After all, the events of this case unfolded before our very eyes. We should know more about what happened than the Monokuma File could, anyway.", Celeste scoffed.

"Maybe...", Togami trailed off.

"There's something else that's bothering me... Someone else has been missing for quite a while...", Sakura pointed out.

"Are you talking about Kyoko?", Makoto asked.

"Without a doubt, she has an alibi for when Celeste and Hifumi were attacked. But what if the killer wasn't acting alone? What if they had...an accomplice ?", Togami pointed out.

"An accomplice!?", Makoto gasped. Monokuma came out of nowhere and gasped as well.

"An accomplice!?"

"...What are you doing here?", Celeste asked.

"Don't be rude! I'm here to answer your question!", Monokuma huffed.

"What question?", I asked.

"You're talking about accomplices, right? I'm pretty sure I explained it before, didn't I? During the first class trial!", Monokuma pointed out.

Yeah, he did mention accomplices before.

----

"Speaking of which, I'd like to ask the bear...if there *is* an accomplice, do they also become "blackened"?"

"So you ask, and so I shall answer! Each murder is allowed to have an accomplice, but only the one who does the killing will get to graduate."

"So in other words, two people can work together, but one of them has no chance of profiting from it..."

"Then there's no way anyone would work together, right...?"

----

"So basically...you can be an accomplice if you want, but there's no gratification in it!", Monokuma explained.

"So are you saying nobody worked together this time, either?", Sakura asked.

"Sorry, can't answer that! it would obstruct the free exchange of information between you guys. I just want to make sure you don't forget--no matter how much you assist in a murder only one blackened can graduate . An accomplice gets NOTHING!", Monokuma grinned.

"Then we only need to figure out who that one blackened is that did the killing, right? Just like normal?", Togami shrugged.

"Okay, okay, let me take this opportunity to clarify the whole shebang. In this class trial, what you need to determine is... the one true blackened who devised the murder plot and put it into action!", Monokuma laughed.

So just one person?

"Now it's down to the final battle between all of you, and the blackened! Good luck to all the contestants!", Monokuma left us with that.

So there can only be one blackened. An accomplice wouldn't benefit themselves by helping the killer... Unless they were forced to, I don't see why...

"Then I can't see any way Kyoko would be connected to this case, after all.", Makoto chimed in.

"You may be right...", Togami pointed out.

"If that's true then...Kyoko, where are you?", Hina sighed.

"As long as she's not connected to the case, it doesn't matter. Let's get back to the investigation.", Sakura sighed.

"I have absolutely no doubt that Hiro is responsible. But for the time being, I suppose it can't hurt to pursue further information.", Celeste said as she played with her nails.

"You know...don't you think we should consider a certain someone a suspect, just in case? I'm talking about the murderous fiend...Genocide Jack!", Hina whispered. Although it was quiet, said murderer came running in.

"Wha--!? I'm offended!", we all let out a gasp of surprise.

"You... When did you--?", Togami growled.

"I've been looking all over for you two, Master! Mistress! When I woke up, you were nowhere to be found!", Genocide Jack giggled.

"Um... Glad to see you're back?", I muttered, the murderer giving me a genuine smile. She turned to Hina with a growl.

"Anyway! You there, milk sack swimmer girl!"

"Milk sack...?", Hina muttered, looking offended.

"Why do I gotta be a suspect!?", Genocide Jack complained.

"Well, I mean...you *are* a serial killer.", Hina deadpanned.

"So what, I'm like a special guest suspect every time!? I have an alibi, you know!", Genocide Jack grumbled.

"She's right about that... When we heard Hifumi scream, she was with me. And when the bodies disappeared, she was still lying unconscious in the equipment room. Plus, Taka's body aside, I can't imagine any way she would have been able to move Hifumi's body.", Togami explained.

"Besides, I calculate every move I make! I'm not gonna kill someone when everyone knows what I look like! They don't call me the murderous fiend for nothing!", Genocide Jack laughed.

"That's not the kind of thing you should be bragging about!", Hina huffed.

"On another topic, should we post a guard by the bodies like before? We can't have them disappearing again...", Celeste suggested.

"Hina and I can handle that. You don't mind, do you Hina?", Sakura asked.

"Sure. I'd be totally useless on the investigation anyway...", Hina sighed.

"That's not true, but if you still want to stay, I won't force you.", I smiled.

"Then that's that. Let's begin.", Togami smirked. Makoto and I went through the whole thing with Sakura, making sure all of the events were in order before beginning our investigation. After the relay, we began to investigate.

-Monokuma File #3 has been added as evidence-

We walked up to the wall of dusty mallets, noticing some of them were missing.

The Justice Hammers may have been made using these mallets.

"Wait...", Makoto pointed at one of the mallets. "That one isn't dirty like the others, and it looks wet. Did someone wash this?"

"I don't know... but it's suspicious.", I muttered as I took out my polaroid camera and took the photo.

-Spotless Hammer has been added as evidence-

We walked up to Taka's lifeless body. His hair was back to its normal black color, the energy that he once had was gone.

"... According to the Monokuma File, Taka died from a blow to the head . We found Justice Hammer 4 near his body in the equipment room. Is that what was used to kill him...?", Makoto muttered.

"Most likely... And there's a tarp laid out under his body... Did the killer use this to move Taka's body? That way, there wouldn't be any blood left behind while the body was moved...", I pointed out, taking a photo of the bloody tarp.

-Blue Tarp has been added as evidence-

We then checked Hifumi's body. Hifumi's body is laying on the floor... His... big body.

"How was the killer able to move someone so big? From the nurse's office where he was discovered to here, the repository...", I mumbled.

"All the way from the 1st floor to the 3rd... And all without anyone noticing it. How the hell...?", Makoto sighed.

"Hifumi's fatal injury was also a blow to the head. Most likely from Justice Hammer 3, which is laying on the floor in the nurse's office...", I noted.

"Huh? Wait... Something's...off about his body.", Makoto muttered.

He is right... Why am I getting this feeling...? Something's...different. Something about Hifumi's body in the nurse's office, versus his body right now...

"...! His glasses! When his body was in the nurse's office, his glasses were covered with blood. they're completely clean right now... Did someone wipe it? And why...?", I pointed at Hifumi's glasses, Makoto looking closely and nodded. I took a picture of Hifumi's glasses and stepped back.

-Hifumi's Glasses has been added as evidence-

Makoto and I turned to find a dolly in the corner.

"It's a dolly. It doesn't have a handle... I saw this in the art room before. I guess it's used to move statues around. It's kinda awkward, but if you bend down, it's not too hard to use. Huh? But wait..." Makoto bent down and analyzed the dolly a bit before turning to me. "Wasn't this in the equipment room when we found Taka's body?"

"Yeah, now I remember...! And look at the wheel... There's a bloodstain on it. So there's blood on the wheel of the dolly that was moved from the equipment room to the repository ... What's that about...?", I asked as I snapped a shot of it.

-Repository Dolly has been added as evidence-

"Let's see what Byakuya has to say about the murders. He was sounding pretty disappointed earlier.", Makoto explained. I groaned.

"Do we have to...?", I whispered.

"Kuno, I know you don't like him--"

"That's an understatement.", I huffed.

"-- But... We need to get information from everyone.", Makoto pointed. I sighed and shrugged.

"Fine, let's go talk to Togami...", we walked up to Togami, who was looking down at Hifumi's body.

"Byakuya... Do you think Hiro really did it?", Makoto asked.

"I don't see how anyone could think otherwise. When the attacks and murders and disappearances all happened, every one of us had an alibi. And the last thing Hifumi said when he died...", Togami pointed out.

"Yeah...he said Hiro's name.", Makoto muttered.

"Then there is no room to suspect anyone else.", Togami stated with confidence.

"Okay, but if he did do it... Why would he hide his identity with that weird costume ?", Makoto asked.

"Maybe he thought that no matter what happened, he'd be safe as long as his face was covered. Because he's the fool of the century, you see.", Togami scoffed.

"I mean, he *is* kind of dense... But is that enough of an explanation? Something about this feels off...", I said with a skeptical tone.

"And is that it? That's all that bothers you about the case?", Togami raised a brow at me.

"That's not all... Why would the killer try to hide the bodies?", I asked.

"They probably figured that if we couldn't find the bodies, we couldn't complete out investigation.", Togami shrugged.

"But if that's the case, we found the bodies pretty easily, didn't we?", Makoto pointed at the bodies.

"Again, it comes back to the fact that the culprit was a moron.", Togami smirked.

"Is that really all there is to it...?", Makoto muttered. Togami went silent, seeming to think about Makoto's question more. "The other thing that bothers me is...why'd they bother killing two people ?"

"...What?", Togami raised a brow at Makoto's follow up question.

"Because all the rule says is, if you can kill someone and get away with it , you graduate. Right? So if you're the killer, your number one priority is not getting caught. But killing two people means more clues, more chances you'll get found out.", Makoto explained.

"Now that you mention it, that is true. Killing someone else really isn't necessary...", I trailed off.

"Hold on. Perhaps... I see... So that's what that means.", Togami smirked to himself.

"I-Is everything okay...?", Makoto asked.

"... Don't talk to me as if we're friends.", Togami made a full 180, but I honestly wasn't surprised.

"Huh? What's with the attitude?", Makoto scoffed lightly, looking hurt.

"Don't take it seriously, Makoto. Togami always wakes up with a stick up his ass.", I sassed. Togami let out a chuckle and leaned in to give me a look.

"But...you have my appreciation. Thanks to you, I might have some fun with this after all.", Togami straightened himself and left. I turned to Makoto with a confused look. He looked a little... upset?

"Something wrong, Makoto?", I asked. Makoto blinked and let out a nervous laugh.

"O-Oh, nothing! Let's continue...", he trailed off. I let it go since we were in the middle of something important.

But the way he spoke... He talked as if...he'd figured something out. But if he did, would it have killed him to tell us what it was!? Jerk...

"Let's go check on Hina then. She's a little shaken up from everything.", I suggested. We went to Hina, who looked at us as if she wanted to say something.

"Hey, um...guys? I've been thinking about something. It's about the repository..."

"Huh? What is it?", Makoto asked.

"After Hifumi and Taka's bodies disappeared, we split up to look around, right? I was really scared, so me and Sakura stuck together. And we came right to the repository to, y'know, look around. But when we got here, the repository was locked . We couldn't get inside...", Hina pointed out.

"Locked, huh?", I nodded along.

"And we came here as soon as the search started, so there's no way someone coulda beat us here... So if that's true, then...who locked it? And why is it unlocked now?", Hina asked.

"I wonder the same thing...", Makoto said, looking at me for some sort of explanation. I simply shrugged. Makoto and I walked out of the room and checked the door.

"There's only one way in and out of this room... There is a lock on the door, but it can only be locked from inside the repository.", I pointed at the lock.

"I don't see any way to lock it from in the art room... Hmm...", Makoto whispered to himself. "The door can only be locked from inside the repository. Which makes me wonder... Hina and Sakura confirmed that the door was locked after we started looking for the missing bodies. And the door is designed so that it can only be locked from inside the repository. In other words... When Hina checked it, someone had already gone in the repository and locked the door. When they were done, they unlocked it and left. Which is why it's unlocked now... But Hina claims that there's no way someone could have beaten them to the repository... So that certain someone... Hmm... There's gotta be a clue around here somewhere.", I took a photo of the lock as Makoto went on.

-Repository Door has been added as evidence-

"We should look around somewhere else. The nurse's office and the equipment are our top priority.", I stated. We both ran to the equipment room first since it was closer to us. We walked in to find Genocide Jack looking around, maybe not helping but still doing... something. I walked up to Justice Hammer on the ground, the 4th one.

"Justice Hammer 4... The weapon that was used to kill Taka... The body was moved, but the murder weapon was just left here...", Makoto mumbled. I turned to the blood stain on the ground and noticed strange tire marks in the pool of blood.

"There's some kind of tire mark going through the pool of blood in the middle of the room. That reminds me... About the dolly in the repository...the tires were covered in blood too...! Maybe the blood is from here?", I explained my logic to Makoto.

"Which could mean that Taka's body was moved from the equipment room to the repository using the dolly... Both rooms are on the 3rd floor, so that should definitely have been possible. But even if the dolly *was* used to move Taka's body...what about Hifumi? Hifumi's body was in the nurse's office on the 1st floor. Even with a dolly, there's no way to get it up to the 3rd floor... That's still a total mystery...", Makoto sighed as I took a photo of the blood.

-Equipment Room Bloodstain has been added as evidence-

Makoto then walked up to a pile of tarp near the blood.

"This looks like the same tarp from before...", I muttered. We talked to Genocide Jack, but the serial killer just said that they were passed out when the bodies moved. Makoto and I then decided to go to the nurse's office to investigate. We found Celeste there, looking around.

"What are you investigating, Celeste?", Makoto asked.

"I am not investigating anything, precisely speaking. I am simply going around, seeing if Hiro might be hiding somewhere. What about you two?"

"Oh, you know...We're just checking this and that... The main thing on our minds is how someone could have moved Hifumi's body.", Makoto explained.

"How Hifumi was moved, eh?", Celeste echoed.

"When it disappeared, you were supposed to be in the nurse's office, right?", Makoto interrogated Celeste.

"Correct. Hina was not feeling well, so I stayed behind to look after her. But she seemed to be getting worse, so I took her to the bathroom.", Celeste revealed.

"And the body was gone when you came back?", I asked.

"We could not have been gone for more than a minute or two, though.", Celeste muttered.

"Yeah, Hina said the same thing. So then, the killer was able to get in and move Hifumi's body in that short amount of time?", Makoto asked with a hint of suspicion in his voice.

"It would seem so..."Celeste trailed off.

To carry off someone as big as Hifumi in only a couple of minutes is... It just sounds impossible to me.

-Celeste's Account has been added as evidence-

Makoto walked up to the trash can, looking inside. He pulled out a piece of colorful cloth and held it out to me to look at.

"It's too small to be a handkerchief. It's...a glasses cleaning cloth . And it's got some kind of cartoon character on it... Augh, but it's also covered in blood...!", Makoto grimaced. Celeste walked up to us, curious.

"Ah, did you find something?"

"Yeah. There was a cleaning cloth in the trash can.", Makoto showed her. Celeste's face had a surprised look for a split second before she went back to her pocker face.

Strange...

"A cleaning cloth...?", Celeste questioned.

"And it's all bloody... Whoever this belonged to must have used it to wipe up some blood. But who would need to do something like that...?", Makoto mumbled while scratching his head.

"I haven't the slightest idea.", Celeste muttered as she turned away.

"Me either, but it look important.", I stated as I took a picture.

-Glasses Cleaning Cloth has been added as evidence-

"Justice Hammer 3 ... The one that was used to kill Hifumi... Someone moved the body, but left the weapon behind...", Makoto pointed at the hammer on the ground.

"It's strange... Why did the killer even leave these behind...? Were they in a hurry?", I asked, to which Makoto shrugged. I turned to check the fridge against the wall. I opened it to find blood packets stored for blood transfutions.

"We should go check other places now.", Makoto suggested. I nodded and we both left the nurse's office. We found Togami standing outside, tapping his foot on the ground.

"So this is where you were. I've been looking for you two."

"You have...?", Makoto muttered.

"I wanted to thank you for what you did. Not that you meant to, but you ended up making this little game of ours very interesting indeed.", Togami smirked.

"We don't care about your little game, so keep it to yourself...", I huffed.

"Never mind your sassy tone, You should go to Hiro's room. Oh, and let me give you this.", Togami put a piece of paper in my hands. I opened it to find the note Hiro wrote for us to "Meet in the dining hall!"

"What am I supposed to do with Hiro's note?", I asked, raising a brow at Togami.

"You remember well.", Togami said with an impressed tone.

Well, that's rare.

"Well, the penmanship was pretty remarkable, so it left an impression...", Makoto shrugged.

"Anyway, this makes it clear, right? This is a trap.", Togami said vaguely.

"A trap? What is?", I questioned.

"Hmhm. Things grow ever more exciting.", Togami chuckled.

"Can you answer my Goddamn question!?", I grumbled.

"I've already repaid my debt. I don't owe you any more explanation. Goodbye...", Togami turned and walked away. I huffed and took a photo of the note before giving it to Makoto to hold onto.

-Yasuhiro's Message has been added as evidence-

"Um...so he said to go to Hiro's room, but...what's in there?", Makoto asked.

"I don't know, but it won't hurt to check.", I shrugged. We made our way to Hiro's room, finding it unlocked. We went inside, finding it generally tidy, with a few pieces of spiritual memorabilia placed around the room. What stood out to me was a pile of boxes at the foot of his bed, so I opened them up. They were filled with blue, red, white and yellow pieces of cardboard, plaster and plastic. It also contained blueprints to make a suit.

"This look the stuff used to build the Robo Justice suit...!", I gasped.

Why is this in Hiro's room...?

Makoto pulled out the blueprints and squinted a bit.

"These blueprints... Something about them bothers me... Hmm...", Makoto hummed.

"Let me take a picture of it, it might come in handy later.", I said. Makoto handed me the blueprints and I took a picture of them.

-Robo Justice Blueprints has been added as evidence-

When Makoto and I left the room, we saw Hina running towards us at full speed.

"Makoto! Kuno! Big news! BIG NEWS!"

"...What's wrong?", Makoto asked.

"We found Kyoko !", Hina revealed.

"Is she okay? Where is she!?", I questioned, happy to hear they finally found the illusive girl.

"Wait, I wasn't done. There's more big news! Robo Justice showed up, too!", Hina stated. Makoto and I gasped in shock.

"Robo Justice!?", Makoto sputtered.

"Where are they!? Who's in the suit!?", I asked.

It's Hiro wearing the costume! Anyway! As soon as you can, head to the pool, on the 2nd floor!", Hina explained quickly and sprinted to the pool. I turned to Makoto and took a deep breathe in.

"To think Hiro and Kyoko would turn up at the same time...", I muttered.

"Yeah... A-Anyway, we have to head to the pool!", Makoto held my wrist as we began running to the 2nd floor. When we got to the pool, we found everyone gathered around... Robo Justice. They weren't attacking or doing anything odd, so we came up to them slowly. Thankfully, Kyoko looked okay, no injuries and looking as stoic as ever.

At least she's okay.

The suit spoke, and I bit my lip when I recognized who's voice was in there; Hiro was in the suit.

"Phew! Man, I have have had the WORST day!", Makoto gasped.

" ... Hiro...?"

"I found Hiro. He was jammed into the pool room locker. It looked like he was fast asleep, so I kicked him and woke him up.", Kyoko explained.

"I still can't believe you kicked me! You coulda been a little more gentle about it. Like, I dunno, caress my face or somethin'!", Hiro complained.

"...That's creepy.", Kyoko commented.

"Anyway... Kyoko, where have you been all this time? You just disappeared all of a sudden, without a trace...", Makoto asked.

"There was something I had to check up on.", Kyoko stated.

"What were you checking?", I questioned.

"Never mind.", Kyoko brushed me off, which pissed me off a little.

"This is serious, Kyoko. We need to know where were you!", I urged. Kyoko didn't even spare me a glance as she just turned to Hiro to interrogate him.

Does she not get this is making her suspicious...?

"First of all...Hiro, you need to explain to us why you're dressed like that.", Hiro seemed shrug in his suit.

"Oh, uh, well...I mean... I have no idea. One second I was asleep, don't even know how that happened, then I woke up, and then I was here..."

"I don't care. Do something about that costume. It pains me just to look at you.", Togami scoffed.

"Well, um... I dunno what's up with this thing, but I can't actually get it off...! A little help?", Hiro urged.

Wait, he can't take it off?

"Why would you make something that you can't take off by yourself?", Celeste asked.

"I didn't make the stupid friggin' thing!", Hiro retorted.

"There's a clasp on the back that's keeping you from getting it off. It looks pretty sturdy. I don't think you can get it off on your own. We don't really have a choice. Let's help him.", Kyoko pointed at the clasp.

Now why would he make a suit he couldn't get into by himself...? Does that mean someone here helped him *into* the suit? That suggests he had an accomplice, technically.

It took everyone's help, but slowly we were able to get Hiro out of the suit. It took a few minutes, but eventually we got all the pieces off. Hiro let out a sigh of relief once he was out of the bulky costume.

"Whew! Free at last!"

"Isn't it kinda weird how perfectly the suit fits Hiro...?", Hina muttered.

"More to the point, nobody but Hiro would be able to wear that costume.", Celeste smirked.

"Wait, what? H-Hold on a sec!", Hiro sputtered.

"Don't bother trying to act innocent. The blueprints were in your room, as well. In other words, it is obvious to everyone that you made this costume.", Celeste scoffed, looking like she was reveling in Hiro's defeat.

"That's true. I saw the blueprints myself.", Togami commented, Makoto and I backing him up.

"Then it's obvious... The one who put this costume on and went around attacking everyone was Hiro!", Hina declared.

"Shall we tie him up and gag him?", Celeste offered.

"Good idea! We wouldn't want him killing anyone else...", Hina nodded.

"T-Tie me up!?", Hiro took a step back from everyone with fear and confusion written on his face.

"H-Hold on, guys. I think that's going a little far...", Makoto interjected. Kyoko went to his side, agreeing.

"He may be a suspect, but he deserves fair treatment."

"Yeah! I mean...attacking? Blueprints? I have no idea what you guys are talking about!", Hiro shrugged again.

"You can't talk your way out of this. It's been decided... You killed them!", Hina accused. Hiro's face turned into a horrified expression.

"What? Killed who!? I have no idea what you're talking about! There must be a fake Hiro running around!"

"You're the only one who can wear this costume. So who else could possibly be the costumed attacker!?", Hina pointed out.

"How do you know I'm the only one!? Maybe you should try it on yourself before you convict me!", Hiro yelled angrily.

"Fine! If you're gonna be a jerk about it, I will!", Hina began putting on the suit, showing that it didn't actually fit her.

"Ahh! See, look! See how loose it is? I mean, come on... I'm blind as a bat in here! Can't see my feet at all. I'm surprised you got anywhere in this thing!", Hina said from inside the costume.

"I'm telling you, it wasn't me!", Hiro huffed.

"And not to mention--!", Hina tried to bend but couldn't. "You totally can't bend at the waist! Seems like a pretty obvious oversight..."

"That's not a very nice thing to say!", Hiro grumbled.

"That implies that you made it, Hiro.", I deadpanned.

"Er, I mean--it's not like I made it! I just got caught up in the moment...", Hiro stuttered.

"Well, either way...now we know for sure, right? I mean, it seems pretty clear that nobody but Hiro coulda fit into this dumb costume!", Hina stated as she took off the costume with our help. "Well? Now you're all out of excuses."

"N-No, see...it's cuz you're a girl! If it was another guy, then...", Hiro pointed out. Togami looked at Makoto, pointing at the discarded suit.

"Makoto, go ahead."

"O-Okay...", Against his will, Makoto picked up the pieces off the floor and tried putting them on. "It's no good... The arms are too long. There's no way I can wear this..."

"See!? I told you it was impossible!", Hina declared.

"You are absolutely right. It seems this costume was made to fit Hiro's body exactly.", Celeste accused.

Hiro sounds more guilty by the second...

"Th-Then...there's another costume! They must have one that looks the same, but...but fits them!", Hiro stated, but I wasn't having it at this point.

"If you think that's true, show us some evidence. Where is this other suit?"

"Evidence...?", Hiro muttered.

"You claim there is another suit, yes? Then you must find it and show it to us.", Celeste explained.

"Wh-What the heck!?", Hiro sputtered.

"Who cares!? Hiro's the only one without an alibi during this whole thing anyway! Which is how we know it was him!", Hina huffed, turning away from Hiro in disgust.

"I mean...is that really true? I have no idea what's been happening... Could someone, like...tell me? U-Umm...if you don't tell me what's going on, how am I supposed to understand? I think I've figured out that...someone's been killed, right? Hey, Makoto...who was it?", Hiro turned to Makoto with a desperate look on his face. I turned away from them as I took a photo of the costume.

-Robo Justice Costume has been added as evidence-

"W-Well... Two people were killed. Taka and Hifumi...", Makoto muttered.

"What!? TWO people!?", Hiro gasped.

"Why are you freaking out? You did it.", Hina accused once again.

"I did not!", Hiro looked so tired of retorting, but still going strong. "Wait, hold on... If those two are the ones that were killed... That's it! I know who did it!"

"You may as well tell us, then.", Kyoko let Hiro continue.

"Taka and Hifumi were fighting over Alter Ego, right? Which means! Alter Ego and/or Chihiro must have done it!", Hiro declared.

"Hiro, Chihiro is dead! Alter Ego is a program on a Goddamn computer! How would a program clock two people on the head with a bunch of hammers, then shuffle the bodies around like a game of freaking hot potato!?", I yelled. Hiro stepped away from me with fear in his eyes.

"Kuno's right! Stop trying to trick us! Just admit that you did it, okay!?", Hina joined me in yelling.

"I-I'm telling you, you got it all wrong!", Hiro then gasped and turned to everyone with realization in his eyes. "Ah, I know! That note!"

"Note...?", Makoto questioned.

"Last night, someone slipped a weird note under my door. And here's what it said... "I found a hole maybe we can use to escape. Monokuma can't find out, so don't tell anyone else for now. Let's meet in the rec room at 1 a.m. " But the last thing I remember is going to the rec room, then for some reason I fell asleep... The real killer probably drugged me or something!", Hiro recounted.

"...Not a chance.", Hina grumbled, but Kyoko interjected.

"No, hold on. He could be onto something. The nurse's office did have chemicals that could do that...", Kyoko revealed.

"Wh...Really?", Hina gasped.

"I told you. Someone's trying to set me up... A secret passage--a chance to escape... Someone wrote all that to trick me!", Hiro explained.

"Even if that's true, you must be one dumb fish to bit every piece of bait that floats in front of you.", Hina rolled her eyes at Hiro, who looked hurt.

"Well after being trapped here so long, even if you know it's a lie, you gotta check, right? Gyaho! They preyed on my desire to get out of here! They deceived me!"

"I still don't buy it...", Hina shrugged.

"Well you SHOULD buy it!", Hiro said in a complaining tone.

"Okay, then show us the note and we'll look into this more.", I asserted. Hiro grinned and started rummaging through his pockets.

"With pleasure! I have it right here in my..um, pocket... ...", Hiro went pale as he moaned "Looks like I lost it..."

"What a believable story...", I exhaled.

"P-P-Please, ya gotta believe me! I wouldn't hurt a fly!", Hiro defended.

"As I said before, if you want us to believe you, you must produce evidence. Can you show us the note? I have no particular issue with what you claim, but if you want us to believe you, give us a reason.", Celeste waved off Hiro's claim like it was nothing.

"Wh-What the heck!? For serious!", Hiro sobbed.

Something just... doesn't seem right. A lot of things point to Hiro, but how did he do it...? This just seems way too intricate for him to execute, unless he had someone on his side... Or someone else is the culprit and Hiro really was framed for the murders.

"Now then, shall we resume our investigation? There's no time to waste before the class trial begins.", Togami proposed.

"Why do we need to keep investigating? We already know who did it... Why...? Why did you kill them? Tell us, Hiro...!", Hina started to debate with Hiro again.

"No... It's like I said...!", Hina cut Hiro off once more.

"Was it really to get the money Monokuma offered us? Yeah, that must be it... You must be totally broke and that's why...!"

"W-Wait! That's a false accusation! Someone, help me!", Hiro begged.

"Just be thankful we haven't bound and gagged you!", Hina mocked.

"If you have time to yell and carry on, you have time to search for your evidence. Right?", Togami scorned.

"Ah! You're right! I need to look for the second suit and that note! Feet don't fail me now!", Hiro ran off as fast as he could, desperate to find the note.

"I guess I'd better get back to guard duty... I was gonna ask Toko--er, Genocide Jack to switch with me... But if she and Sakura got into a fight, we'd have a catastrophe on our hands. Well, bye...", Hina waved at us she left as well. Makoto, Kyoko and I were left, but Kyoko turned to me.

"Kuno, I want to speak with Makoto alone, do you mind?"

"Oh? I don't mind, I'll go back to checking for clues. Call me if you need anything.", I turned and made my way back to where the bodies were.

I didn't look into the bodies close enough, so I may as well do it now... it hurts doing this, but it has to be done.

As I first checked Taka's body, I noticed his wristwatch, the one that he always wore on his left hand.

... It's broken. The hands aren't moving. It may have broke when he had his encounter with his killer. And the hands are frozen at just past 6 o'clock . That must have been when it broke. It wasn't broken before that, if I recall correctly. He even scolded us yesterday as he pointed at his watch. Since it working around 10PM last night, it couldn't have been broken 6 p.m. Meaning it must have happened at 6 this morning .

I took a photo of Taka's wristwatch, making sure not to touch the blood.

-Broken Wristwatch has been added as evidence-

I was going to put his wrist down, but I noticed something in Taka's stiff fist.

Rigor mortis has already set in, but I might be able to pry it open if I try hard enough.

After some effort, I was finally able to free the object from his tightly clenched fist.

It looks like... A piece of paper? It's pretty small... I'll keep it in his fist just in case anyone else finds it, but I'll take a picture of it.

I took a picture of the piece of paper and put it back in his fist.

-Kiyotaka's Scrap Of Paper has been added as evidence-

I then turned to Hifumi's body. After a quick search, I noticed something was stuffed inside his pants. I lifted the band slightly and pulled out what was inside; a wad of paper. I opened it to find a note.

"I found a hole maybe we can use to escape. Monokuma can't find out, so don't tell anyone else for now. Let's meet in the equipment room at 6 a.m."

That sounds...very familiar. Hiro mentioned the note he had was very similar, but the time is different. Hiro told us that his note said to meet at 1 a.m. But the note they wrote to Hifumi asked him to meet at 6 a.m. But just because it's with Hifumi now, doesn't mean it was meant for him. Maybe he planned to give it to someone. Safe to assume whoever made this note was lying... Also, there's a small part of it torn off. Maybe the paper Taka has in his fist is part of this piece of paper... The tear marks are identical. I'll keep this in mind.

I took a photo of the note and put it back in it's place.

-The Note Hifumi Had has been added as evidence-

I left the room, going around the school to hear from everyone one more time. Nothing changed in their testimonies, but it was good to get a refresher. I leaned against the wall, holding the picture of my grandfather.

You were so smart... Maybe you would have found out pretty quickly who did it. I wouldn't have had to worry about risking my life and others over someone else's greed and sin...

I chuckled sadly. I was pulled out of my thoughts when I heard Monokuma from the speakers.

"Are you excited? Are you pumped!? It's time for the class trial to begin! Like the bright burst of fireworks, like the flash of a soul clashing with life and death...! And so, with no further ado...! Everyone please meet at the usual spot! Make your way to the red door on the first floor of the school! Puhuhu. See you soon!"

I sighed, steeled myself, then made my way to the dreaded red door. Everyone heard, so they were all there waiting. When I got there, I noticed there were more than one of the monochrome bear.

"Hello! (Hello...! Hello...)", the bears greeted.

"He's multiplied!?", Makoto gasped.

"Nope, not multiplication! It just looks that way cuz of an illuu~~usion! I'm moving so fast it only LOOKS like I've multiplied! Ke-heh-heh... Can you guys tell...which one is the real Monokuma!?", the bears cackled.

"Can we just get on the elevator already?", Kyoko asked with a slightly irritated tone.

"You're not playing along! (Along...! Along...)"

"We're not here to play with you!", Togami huffed bitterly.

"Okay, okay, fine!", the Monokumas waddled out of the room, then back with only one of themselves. "Then if everyone's here and ready to go, please board the pain train! Er...elevator. I'll see you guys down there!", Monokuma waved as he waddled towards the elevator. After a few moments, the elevator was back for us to go in.

"Okay then, shall we?", Togami announced.

"H-Hold on! I'm not mentally prepared yet...!", Hiro sputtered.

"You'll NEVER be mentally prepared! You can't run away anymore, Hiro. You're gonna pay for your sins...", Hina shouted.

"I told you already, I didn't do it! For SERIOUS!", Hiro shouted back. Celeste walked in between them and turned to Hiro.

"That reminds me... Did you ever find the other costume? Or the note?"

"Um, well...no, but--"

"How unfortunate. Then it would seem we have our culprit."

"N...ngh!"

"This isn't the place to talk about it. Save your accusations for when we get to the courtroom.", Kyoko interjected.

"She's right. Let's get down there first. Then the story can really begin...", Togami leered, his excitement showing.

Creep...

"Yeah, good idea.", Makoto nodded.

I let out a nervous sigh as we all walked into the elevator. The clunking of the elevator kept us company as we fell further and further down... There was no going back... Until we settled all this, we couldn't go anywhere. I'm not sure how long it was before the elevator finally came to a stop. The elevator doors slid open...opening up onto a cruel fate. Monokuma was waiting for us on his dumb throne, looking down at us all.

"Hmhmhm... When I see all of you gathered together like this...I realize just how few of you there are left! Your school life is slowly reaching its climax!"

"Only cuz of you!", Hina yelled.

"Why...? Why are you making us do such cruel things to each other!?", Hiro asked, desperate for answers.

"What what!? Do you really hate me so much? But I'm so cute!", Monokuma grinned.

"Stop goofing around and begin the trial...!", Togami growled.

"Don't rush me! Of course I'm gonna start it! I would never be like, "Stay tuned for the action-packed class trial after this commercial break!" I'd never hold out on you like that! ...Okay, let's begin! Get to your assigned seats!"

And so the curtain opened once again...A deadly judgment... A deadly deception... A deadly betrayal...A deadly riddle, a deadly defense, a deadly faith... A deadly...class trial...!

CHAPTER 24, END!

❄︎☟︎☜︎ 🏱︎✌︎✋︎☠︎ 👍︎⚐︎☠︎❄︎✋︎☠︎🕆︎☜︎💧︎📬︎📬︎📬︎