Sora stared down at the phone. The same 'Unknown Number' signal as last time flashed in his face. What did Izumi need now? Was he calling him just to mock him? Or was there something more? He was almost afraid to answer.
"Is that Izumi?" Kota asked, sitting across from him with a worried expression. This earned a nod from Sora. Akihiko and Sumi stared at the phone as well.
"Are you gonna answer it?" Sumi asked, earning a nod from Sora.
After another moment of contemplation, he sighed. Throwing caution to the wind he pressed the answer button.
"What do you want Izumi-"
"Sorry for all this...Sora."
His eyes went wide, nearly dropping the phone as his breathing became more erratic. This was a sick joke. It had to be some sick joke!
"Yuki please tell me you just got a new number." He uttered. The faces in the room shifted accordingly. Confusion from Akihiko, shock from Sumi, and anger from Kota.
And as for Sora? Indecipherable.
"That would be the happy end to all of this huh?" Yuki laughed, though it held no humor. "Sorry, I'd love to just chat, but your old friend isn't all that patient right now."
Sora felt his breath catch in his throat.
"We're at the train yard. He didn't tell me which one, but he said that you would know." Yuki explained, not even an ounce of fear in her voice. "You have until Midnight to arrive. And that you should come alone."
"I-I'm sorry-"
"It's okay." She reassured him. "Everything's gonna be okay. I know you."
The line went dead. Dropping the phone on the ground, Sora buried his face in his palms. He breathed slowly and deliberately. Almost like he was afraid he would forget how.
Then suddenly, he slammed his fist against the table. Shaking it with the force.
"We should leave for Osaka right away-"
"No. I already have a plan." Sora cut him off. "Even if we leave by car right now, we'll only arrive minutes before the deadline."
He grabbed his phone of the floor. Quickly pressing a few buttons.
"What are you-"
Suddenly, Ritsu appeared on screen.
Her face was confused for a moment. But the moment she saw Sora she jumped for joy. "Sora!"
"Hey Ritsu." Sora greeted, his face blank as he spoke.
Akihiko stared at him. "Sora is now really the time to talk to your waifu-"
"She's an AI. Her real name is a mouthful, so we call her Ritsu." Sora shot back, glaring at Akihiko for even implying what he did.
"AI?" Kota asked.
Seemingly ignoring the other conversation. Ritsu kept cheering. "We've all been so worried about you!"
Sora shot Kota and the others a look. Which they all responded to by going silent.
"Yeah, sorry to run off like that." He explained. "Listen I need you to call everyone to the Old Campus Building. There's something they all need to know."
He gestured toward the others that it was time to leave. All three of them stood, making their way toward the car.
"Oh? Okay! I'm sure everyone will be happy to see you-"
"And don't bother with Yuki. She won't be able to answer." Sora ordered
"Huh?"
"Just trust me." Sora spoke, making his way after the other three.
One way or another. This was gonna be the end.
____________________
Sora stood at the front desk. All of Class 3-E sat before him, along with Karasuma-sensei, Bitch-sensei, and Koro-sensei.
"So...Sora-" Koro-sensei began. "I'm glad to see you're okay but...why have you brought 3 people unrelated to the class here? You are aware I'm supposed to be a secret right?"
"Yeah because you do a great job of that." Maehara quipped.
"Don't worry, they're tight-lipped. They won't say anything." Sors assured him, glancing at the trio. Each of them was horrified by the giant yellow octopus before them.
"Boss...what is that?" Sumi asked.
"I'll explain later. We don't have time for that right now...and don't call me boss." Sora stated, lowering his eyes to the floor. "I don't know how to say this delicately. But Yuki's been kidnapped."
...
All hell broke loose.
"What the hell are you talking about!?"
"What happened!?"
"How do you know about this!?"
Akihiko stamped his foot against the ground. The sound breaking everyone from their stupor, and turning their attention to him. "The boss isn't done."
"Don't call me boss."
Akihiko continued. "We only have limited time here. So let him explain."
Sora sighed.
"Teraseka, how much do they know?"
"As much as you told me."
Sora nodded. "Alright then. I can skip the preamble then."
And so he told them. Everything was laid out before them.
His friendship with Ren, Kaito's death and the corresponding promise he made, Asami's death, and how he had betrayed he his best friend.
The room was silent for a moment.
"And that same guy is the one who took Yuki. He's basically using her as bait to get me to confront him head-on." Sora explained.
"And what about Yuki? Do you think she's safe?" Kimura asked, earning a shrug from Sora.
"Hopefully. But he's never been overly violent. So she should be fine." He explained. "I only have another hour to get there is the issue. In case you all aren't aware, there isn't a land vehicle on this planet that can get to Osaka in an hour."
Koro-sensei went white. "Then how are we gonna get you there!?!?!?"
Everyone stared at him.
"Oh, Right." He muttered.
"Wait a second, doesn't that go against your deal to go alone," Isogai asked, earning a shrug from Sora.
"Maybe, but I don't have another option at this point. If he goes after Yuki when we arrive Koro-sensei should be able to save her." Sora explained, turning toward Koro-sensei. "But I don't want you to interfere outside of that. This is something that I need to do."
Koro-sensei was silent for a moment. "Very well."
Sora nodded.
"Then let's go."
____________________
"If he doesn't make it in time are you gonna kill me?" Yuki asked, looking up from the ground at Izumi. The black-haired man grunted at that.
"Of course not. My grudge isn't with you." He shot back, leaning against an old train car. "If anything, I feel bad I even needed to use you as bait."
"Well aren't you a charmer?" Yuki joked.
"Shut up." Izumi glared.
The two went silent for a moment. Yuki staring down at the ground. She had learned the whole truth at this point. Kaito, Asami, everything. She could see why Izumi was pissed, but was this really the only way?
"And you're sure this is how you wanna do this?" She asked.
"Huh?"
"I'm sure if you just wanted to talk he would listen. I don't get why you two need to kill each other. You two were friends right?" She pointed out.
Izumi sighed. "Yeah. He was my best friend."
"Then why don't you-"
"He was by best friend." Izumi stated. "But now...he's the person who stole my revenge, stabbed me in the back, and ruined my life."
Yuki frowned at that. "He thought he was helping you."
"He was wrong."
Izumi looked down at his watch. Midnight. Where was he? At that moment, something slammed into the ground in front of them. A whirlwind of dust was kicked up, and once the dust settled, Sora stood before them, along with Koro-sensei.
Izumi stood up straight. Sora took a step forward.
It was time to begin.