Tokyo Psychic

Page 263

Logically speaking... I'm her shadow, I should know her inside and out—

"I" is not "I", "you" is not "you"... This is the utterly absurd unfolding in the face of Sakura Futaba's shadow.

......

【Tokyo.】

【November 10th. 】

[10:26 AM.]

During lunch break, Ann Takamaki, who was queuing in front of a crepe shop outside the school, suddenly covered her forehead.

The long queue of people in front of me suddenly turned into one dark shadow after another, and the surrounding streets and tall buildings were covered with distorted lines, with a deep red color pouring down from the sky.

But soon the world she perceived returned to normal.

I just suddenly lost the will to queue up for crepes.

At this time, a boy should be smiling and waving his phone, then helping her queue up to buy a big bag of crepes, and they should be strolling together on campus, leisurely climbing the stairs, and sharing them with friends on the rooftop of the teaching building...

Ann Takamaki let out a cry of pain that was nothing short of a sob.

Memories that don't exist in this timeline begin to churn in her consciousness.

A passionate kiss on the rooftop, an embrace in the LeBlanc loft, screams on the roller coaster at the amusement park, laughter as they walked side by side in yukatas at a summer festival...

Those memories she had vowed to remember for a lifetime began to return to Takamaki Ann's mind, accompanied by wave after wave of stabbing pain in her heart.

Suddenly, a girl with short hair rushed over and grabbed her shoulder.

With teary eyes, Ann Takamaki looked at Makoto Niijima beside her, "Makoto-senpai...Queen..."

“Yes, Panther,” Niijima Makoto hugged Takamaki An tightly, comforting her as she struggled with her emotions, “we’re all back.”

......

Both are exquisite.

Third-grade student Haru Okumura inexplicably walked into that music classroom.

According to her agreement with this mysterious society, she could indeed use the space here at any time.

only......

Haru Okumura watched as the Yoshizawa sisters, who rarely returned to school to hand in their assignments, sat by the window pointing at a bento box with their chopsticks, and suddenly a nostalgic and touching smile appeared on his face.

Suddenly, I remembered everything.

They've really been through a lot.

No wonder my heart raced when I saw Akira Kurusu.

Every time I see him, I feel a surge of intense emotions that I desperately want to express.

Fang Zexia, who was using chopsticks to break open an egg pastry, froze instantly.

Then, a crystal tear slid down the corner of her eye.

The girl stood up, smiling, and opened her arms to Okumura Haru. "Welcome back, Noir!"

"Welcome back, Violet."

......

The playground on the other side.

Ryuji Sakamoto, who was participating in the track and field team's training camp, suddenly stumbled and almost fell to the ground.

Kamoshida, who was sitting on the grass playing on his phone, quickly picked up the whistle around his neck and blew it hard.

"Sakamoto! Are you going to trip and fall flat on your face?!"

Accompanied by a sharp whistle, Kamoshida shouted at Ryuji Sakamoto in surprise, "Aren't you the ace of the track and field team? I specifically stayed to watch over your training for a while for your coach, and you can't even run properly?!"

Ryuji Sakamoto was moving his perfectly healthy knees when he suddenly slapped himself hard.

......

A place a little far from Xiujin Academy.

Inside a luxurious villa called "Madame Dojo".

Yusuke Kitagawa, who was mixing paints in the magnificent hall, suddenly froze.

"Yusuke, what's wrong?" An elderly man in a kimono, with a refined demeanor, looked at his most prized disciple with some curiosity.

Yusuke Kitagawa suddenly burst into laughter and then lifted his bangs.

He looked at his mentor on the sofa beside him with eyes full of emotion and longing.

"I suddenly remembered something very happy."

"I see... It must be the inspiration for your new work, right?"

"Mr. Madarame, let's go eat tuna together tonight."

"Hmm?" Madarame, who had taught countless famous painters and was hailed as a "master" in the Japanese art world, was somewhat puzzled.

"I'm just so happy." Yusuke Kitagawa suddenly wiped his eyes with his sleeve.

However, the sleeves were constantly stained with dark watermarks from tears.

He finally understood what the emptiness and strangeness that had been seeping into his life all the time was.

Then the gaunt old man looked at Kitagawa Yusuke, who suddenly rushed over and hugged him, in astonishment, and could only smile helplessly, "Oh dear, you, did you secretly see my medical report? Although I always cough, my body is perfectly healthy without a single problem."

“Hahaha,” Kitagawa Yusuke laughed and pulled his arm back. “That’s right. I’m so happy to see you so healthy.”

(Without any notice or warning, a great silence began. The review standards are stricter now, and a bunch of chapters were flagged for inexplicable sensitive words. They won't be resolved until after the Dragon Boat Festival. It took almost two hours to finally manage to extract a "three-in-one" chapter from the "seven-in-one" chapter, which was free of sensitive words and still had intact content, and publish it first.)

237. The Savior of the Wicked (Three-in-One)

"Vanadis, use [Spatial Killing Technique]!"

A stunningly beautiful dancer flashed past Sakura Futaba, replaced by a massive slash that nearly sliced ​​the entire theater in half.

"Sakura Futaba" fled in panic.

The broken floor rose up behind her, and a fierce, razor-sharp wind spewed from the cracks in the concrete.

That was the highest level of damage-dealing move honed by the Persona called "Mercury," namely, [All Things Flow].

In an instant, the strong wind scraped dozens of fine wounds on "Sakura Futaba's" back, from which dark air currents flowed out.

Sakura Futaba's figure seemed to have dimmed somewhat.

She dared not look back, nor dared to stop, she simply fled in panic.

This enormous pyramid, originally a tomb for the deceased, is a palace that embodies Sakura Futaba's grief, self-blame, and remorse over her mother's death.

However, as Sakura Futaba gained knowledge beyond those times, the treasures that originally manifested based on her state of mind immediately lost their meaning.

This palace, too, is destined to collapse.

It is obvious that the "Sakura Futaba" of today is nothing more than a phantom that once remained in the world.

Her plan to replace the original body failed before it even truly began.

Logically speaking, faced with an attack from the main body, "Sakura Futaba," as the shadow and also the mistress of the palace, should have immediately retaliated...

"The Great Sage Equal to Heaven, use [Mahage Odyssein]!" The highest-level lightning damage attack was unleashed as the legendary hero from Chinese mythology, who rebelled against the Heavenly Court, glared angrily.

"Hecate, use [Great Burn]!" This was followed by the highest-level burning damage skill unleashed by the great goddess of Greek mythology.

A vortex of lightning and flames raged across the theater, which was on the verge of being reduced to ruins!

The theater completely collapsed, and all the traps set inside the pyramid were shattered by the terrifying power.

Wearing cartoon pajamas, Futaba Sakura floats almost in a way that defies the logic of physics, rapidly approaching her own shadow in the corridor where the pyramid is constantly crumbling.

"Sakura Futaba" fled for her life. As she listened to the names of the moves behind her, cold sweat poured down her forehead.

Counterattack? What a joke! Just listen to the names of the Personas that her suddenly "mutated" original is shouting out!

"Sakura Futaba" felt her existence on the verge of collapse and wanted to fight to the death.

But as soon as she turned around, she was met head-on by the skill that Sakura Futaba would unleash the next Persona.

"The God Susanoo, Buphdain!"

A strong, cold wind, carrying snow, swept towards "Sakura Futaba".

She was trying to reveal the evil form that the shadow symbolized in the sea of ​​the heart.

Before she could even complete her "transformation," she saw Futaba Sakura's finishing move.

All those personas disappeared.

The black flames in Sakura Futaba's eyes suddenly expanded, almost engulfing the upper half of her face, and then rapidly spread down her ears, covering her entire body to form a black combat suit.

She lifted her headphone-style goggles and smiled at her own shadow.

"This is my last resort, my unbearable past."

Sakura Futaba's cracked skin suddenly healed, interrupting her impending "transformation".

Under her horrified gaze.

The girl he should have eliminated kept pressing him.

Futaba Sakura whispered, "Persona."

A blood-red demon spread its jet-black wings behind her.

"Arsène, Megidolaon."

The demon raised his slender musket, and with an evil smile, he looked down at "Sakura Futaba" and pulled the trigger.

With a thunderous tremor, a stream of iridescent light poured out from the muzzle of the gun, instantly piercing through the phantom that had already lost its sense of existence.

......

at the same time.

The base of the pyramid.

Having just left the elevator, the Phantom Thieves all turned to look at Akira Kurusu and Morgana.

"Joker, Mona, what's wrong with you two?!"

When questioned by the phantom thieves, Akira Kurusu and Morgana exchanged a glance, noticing the strange look in each other's eyes.

“The plan has changed.” Akira Kurusu put his arms around his companions’ shoulders. “Navi should have resolved her crisis. Now we need to join her and start our counterattack against the evil gods in this fortress.”

"She awakened Persona on her own?!" Toyokawa Shoko was somewhat shocked.

As one of the earliest members to join the Mind Thieves, she knew very well what kind of personality that internet expert had.

One of the necessary conditions for awakening one's persona is the spirit of "rebellion".

Without someone to guide her, given Sakura Futaba's personality, it should have been very difficult for her to awaken her Persona...

Even as they were lost in thought, the Mind Thieves didn't stop moving forward.

As the entire pyramid-shaped fortress began to crumble, they met Sakura Futaba beside the collapsing ladder.

This was the first time the members of the Mind Thieves had met the genius hacker who had been assisting them online.

Surprisingly, she was a very cute girl.

Then, in full view of everyone, Sakura Futaba ran and rushed into Kurusu Akira's arms.

"Joker! I'm back!" The girl's voice trembled with tears as she expressed her longing that transcended time.

Akira Kurusu stroked her long, orange-red hair. "Welcome back, Navi."

"This place is about to collapse, let's hurry and take the elevator back!" Anhe Mao stared blankly to the side, she had a strange sense of foreboding.

It's as if, as soon as she returns to reality, her boyfriend will immediately be trapped in some terrible quagmire from which he can't escape.

But clearly, the current situation doesn't allow these young men and women to think too much.

A massive load-bearing column began to collapse, and the members of the Mind Thieves rushed towards the elevator.

Akira Kurusu could probably understand that those evil gods never intended to stop him from rescuing Futaba Sakura.