Danganronpa: Painful Truth

Crucial Information

"Hmm..." Ayu played with her hair as she pondered the information she had gathered so far. "Okay, question eight. Is it pretty?"

"Come on, no opinion questions, duh," Shigeri scolded, shaking their head. "Most people probably wouldn't say so, but that's still an opinion."

Kokichi ignored their game as the three of them walked up the mountain. He couldn't stop wondering what would make Himiko want to go into town during such a dangerous time for them. Shuichi had been smart enough to disguise himself, but if Shigeri had spotted Himiko and Tenko from far away, then anyone who recognized them from the killing game could do the same.

No matter her reason, Himiko didn't seem like the type to seek out danger. Even Tenko, loud and impulsive as she could be, had a sense of self-preservation.

"Okay, does it smell good?"

"Oh, like a daisy?" Shigeri smirked.

"No!" Ayu pouted. "Like something that smells good. It's my turn to ask questions anyway!"

"Ask better ones then," Shigeri sighed, scratching their ear. "Fine, no, it doesn't smell good."

"Hmmm..." She continued musing for a few moments, then stopped with a sudden gasp. "Oh it's Kaito!"

"Wow." Shigeri snorted gleefully. "That's wrong, but I gotta give points for the burn."

"What? No!" Ayu shook her head vigorously and pointed to the left of the group. "I found Kaito! We can ask him if he's seen Himiko today!"

Kokichi blinked as the relevant topic pulled him from his thoughts. He could see the astronaut lounging beneath the canopy of a large tree, his eyes closed, enjoying the lazy sunshine.

"Damn," Shigeri's eyes lit up. "What an opportunity." A dark grin slowly split their face. They stopped a few paces ahead of Kokichi and Ayu and turned to face them. "Alright. Whoever can make him shit his pants first, I'll clean your room for a week."

"That is not a reward!" Ayu whined in protest. "You're not allowed in my room until you can clean your own!"

"Wow Shigeri, I didn't know you were this desperate to mess with Kaito," Kokichi observed. His eyes widened suddenly, and he sniffled. "Don't tell me Kaito is your new best friend? After everything we've been through..." His voice trailed off sadly as he summoned a few tears to his eyes.

Shigeri snickered and ruffled his hair as obnoxiously as possible. "You hear that, Ayu? This bitch thinks he can get rid of me that easy."

"You two are cute!" Ayu giggled and shook her head. "But please don't make the booger comparison this time..."

"But it's true," they argued. "Anyway, some people are just born wearin' targets. Kaito's easy to scare, but he's got the ego to handle it. Works out great."

"Well, you have a point, but it's not a good time for that," Kokichi insisted. "Needing a change of pants would give him an excuse to get out of talking to us, and we don't want that." He strode forward confidently and shook Kaito awake. "Wakey wakey, Spaceman~!"

"Huh?" Kaito snorted and sat up, stretching clumsily. "Oh hey! What are you guys out doin'?"

"Whoops! That's classified information," Kokichi assured him slyly. "All you need to know are the answers to our questions, so don't worry your spacey, hair-gelled head about it!"

Kaito frowned, struggling to process the information through his lingering veil of sleep. "Uh, sure dude, I'll try!"

"Good. Now, have you seen Himiko at all today? Or maybe Tenko?"