Danganronpa: Goodbye Despair

Chapter 56: CULTURE SHOCK

After exploring the Final Island and agreeing to tie up Nagito as soon as Kazuichi comes up with a plan, everyone decided to return to the hotel for the time being. It was already dark by the time they returned to the hotel. They all separated and went to their respective cottages, the only thing they could do right now was sleep.

Sonia was still insisting that there's no traitor, but remembering Nagito's words and how he phrased them were still lingering in the back of her mind. But then there's the hurtful remark he made about Gundham and his sacrifice, that alone was enough to make Sonia want to shed some tears. Fuyuhiko and Hajime were practically on standby until Kazuichi could think of a plan, but that'll probably happen in the morning, when everyone meets at the restaurant. Nobody could tell what Chiaki was thinking just from looking at her blank expression, but she was also on standby, but a little hesitant on what kind of plan Kazuichi comes up with. Even though Akane agreed to tying up Nagito in Nekomaru's place, her slightly depressed expression since arriving on the Final Island still hasn't changed.

Akane was sitting on her bed inside her cottage, just looking at the Minimaru doll she held in her hands. Just looking at it made her want to smile, but it also made her want to cry. Remembering Nekomaru and what he did for her was really hitting her hard, so hard that she isolated herself while on the Final Island.

Hajime: "Akane? Are you in there?" Hajime's voice was heard on the other side of her cottage door, and she wasn't sure what to do. She honestly didn't feel like talking right now, but that didn't stop her from standing up and walking over to the door to unlock it. Akane opened the door and refused to make eye contact with him. She went back to her spot on her bed... which was just a mattress on the floor. Akane's cottage was pretty messy compared to Hajime's cottage. She had empty cans of food scattered all over the place, and even boxes full of useless junk. This was actually the second time she's had someone in her cottage, Nekomaru was the first, since Hajime and Kazuichi saw her getting a massage from him. Hesitantly, Hajime walked over to her and sat on her mattress, all while Akane was staring off into space, and blushing up a storm.

Akane: "Uh... um... Hajime? You made sure to forget what you saw... right?" She needed to say something in order to distract herself from how she was feeling right now, but the topic of conversation made Hajime turn red. Hajime nearly forgot about the storage room incident. After all, they did spend three days in the Funhouse. All their focus was on not starving to death or succumbing to murder, it felt like it happened so long ago.

Hajime: "What I saw? Oh, you mean when we were in the storage room-"

Akane: "I'll kill you." This anger is the real deal, she's clearly not just embarrassed about what happened. Hajime was actually here to try and make sure that Akane was okay after the events of the fourth trial, but it looks like she's more worried about opening up to him about the ordeal.

Hajime: "S-Still... I think everyone is scared of something. Plus... it's normal to be scared."

Akane: "Stop it! Just... stop it. Don't treat me like I'm weak..."

Hajime: "Huh?"

Akane: "I... I'm not weak, being weak is bad. If you get kicked around and beat up, or cry and scream that there's no food or medicine, no one will help you. And the next time I say someone's name... I might be talking about a dead body. That's... the kind of place I grew up in. Weak people die and there's nothing you can do about it! No matter what happens, you can't complain!"

Hajime: "What's... wrong with being weak?"

Akane: "..."

Hajime: "It's normal to be weak, humans feel overwhelmed sometimes and even cry. I know I do, so what's wrong with that?" The image of him sitting next to his mother's hospital bed came to mind in that moment, that was the last time he remembered crying over anything. "I don't think real strength means you don't accept your weaknesses... I think real strength means you overcome them."