Part 1

"Let's check it out."

The sun that used to share its light brightly was yielding; giving off its last rays, slowly setting to give way to the night. The varied colors of yellow, orange, and a tint of pink were a reflection of the sunset on the clouds.

The evening was near, but the group stayed on their feet together and seemed to not have any intentions of going home yet. They still have an important matter in hand regarding the Master Artist who allegedly abused and plagiarized his students.

Earlier, they were just at his residence with the only student he had left. Every bit of their act and explanation was convincing, which caused most members of the group to believe what they said.

It was when the plot twist came.

The MetaNav they used to navigate people's palace began to react to the words that came out from their mouths. Such a sudden turn made it hard for them to process the entire situation.

But they had to do this.

"You mean like how Kamoshida thought the school was his castle?" Ann asked.

"Yeah. Say what comes to your mind." Morgana said.

"I've got nothin'." Ryuji shrugged.

"This is so sudden." Ann spoke, her gaze lowered to the ground. "My feelings are behind the curve."

"Anything is fine, I said!" Morgana reassured them after seeing through their worries. It was understandable for the two to feel that way.

"Traditional Japanese paintings... A building related to art..." Ren muttered, deep in thought in an attempt to fill the blank. "A museum."

"Jackpot," Kyoko suddenly blurted out, much to Ren's confusion. However, that confusion didn't last long when-

"Beginning navigation."

Part 2

"It really is here!"

And just that, the Museum of Vanity was right in front of them.

The dark skies were lit up brightly with spotlights in varied positions, each having its own path. However, it was not the only one that made the place dazzling. The entire building was brilliant gold, each room arranged in an odd way. The windows seemed to give a hint of what's inside, yet not enough to show them the twisted desires the man had.

The sight alone was enough for them to lock their eyes on it entirely.

"It's so extravagant... But to the point that it's gaudy." Panther spoke.

"A Palace is the scenery driven by desires. For Madarame, this is the true form of his shack." Mona explained.

"I still can't believe it..." Panther trailed.

"He's an artist, so it ain't weird for him to have a Palace." Skull commented, his gaze still focused on the museum. "Maybe in the pursuit of beauty?"

"I don't know, but..." Mona trailed, in hesitance.

'Seems like they still can't believe it,' Alice thought to herself, slightly disappointed.

"It's probably ain't related to plagiarism or abuse either." Skull added.

Mona closed his eyes, then snapped it open. "We'll find out by going inside and investigating."

"Let's go now!" Mona signaled, as he took the lead by running towards the palace. Knowing that it is the most reasonable action, the other members followed.

Part 3

The Phantoms began their infiltration to the museum. Like the 'thieves' that they are, they refrained from entering the museum through the entrance to prevent unnecessary battles that will only exhaust them. Their infiltration includes a few risky actions like jumping on the roof to avoid being caught by the guards. Soon enough, Joker found a secret passage that led them inside the museum by sliding within it.

Inside the museum, they did their best and made sneaky movements in order to hide from the shadows. They hid behind the corners, away from the sight of guards and snuck by everytime they saw an opening. Joker, leading the infiltration, observed the actions and patterns of the guards' movements with the help of Alice. Once the shadows turned their backs, the group ran along the hallways and slid under the detecting lasers on the door entrances until they reached a room filled with paintings hanging on the walls.

"There ain't any Shadows." Not used to the unusual setting, Skull remarked.

They let their eyes wander the entire area, seeing different portraits of a few unidentified teens. Their appearances were quite distorted, yet still clear to identify who they are.

"What is this? A portrait exhibition room?" Panther asked, still in the midst of scanning the area.

"Hey, look at this."

Mona called their attention, who stood in front of a certain painting among the portraits. It was a painting of a man who wore a formal attire, and had a memorable bowl haircut. A black-framed glasses were worn by him. In the painting, he wore a poker face, an unreadable expression.

Seeing it, Alice immediately narrowed her eyes.

"The guy we met in Mementos... Nakanohara?" Skull asked shockingly.

"It's definitely him. Natsuhiko Nakanohara." Mona confirmed, his brows furrowed at the thought. "Instead of the name of the work, his name and age are written down."

"Then, these are..." Panther trailed in shock, unable to believe her thoughts.

"Those are the students themselves." Alice said.

"Hahahaha!"

Interruption came when another voice was heard, it was loud and eerie that reverberated in the entire museum. Alerted, the group shifted their sight to the source of the sound.

In a certain room of the museum, a figure that seemed to wore a dress that was golden of sorts, stood, with two of his muscular guards behind him. The room was even brighter than the exterior of the palace.

"Did you see the faces of those brats earlier? One simple bow was enough to fool them! That's how you use the influential power of the media!" The figure spoke, his tone slowly showing his evil personality.

"That's why they call you Lord Madarame!" One of the guards exclaimed proudly, worshipping his Lord's actions.

"Plagiarism? Abuse? What's wrong with that?" The man spoke devilishly. "The works of my disciples is an offering to me in exchange for my care! It's merely an investment."

"But lately, the wretches are quick to rebel and flee. That's why they need to be broken in, so they don't defy their master!"

"Still, one good one remains. Yusuke has talent. And he feels indebted to me." The man sneered. "I'll work him until I tire of him... No, until he dies! If I didn't, his works would never see the light of day! This isn't just for his sake, it's for the sake of the art world!"

It was sickening.

"You're a genius, Lord Madarame!" The Shadow praised.

"Hahahahaha!" The figure exchanged hysterical laughs with his guards.

Skull gritted his teeth in frustration, frustrated that he couldn't do anything in this situation. He clearly wasted his worries and trust on the demon-like man. Unable to hold back his anger, he let out a 'tch', then attempted to leave their hiding spot, until--

"Skull!" Joker called as he held the blonde by his shoulders, giving him a nod as if trying to convince him that this was not the right time.

"I'm going to kill this bastard right on the spot,"

Alice suddenly blurted out, her eyebrows evidently furrowed in disgust. She made a shooting stance after pulling out her gun. Her actions brought shock and alerted the rest of the thieves.

"Alice! Not now!" Mona whisper-shouted as Alice only frowned at him.

Slowly, Joker held the tip of her gun, slowly guiding her arm to let it down and relax. Silently, Alice looked away as she slowly followed his lead.

"Don't worry, we'll be gettin' his ass next time for real." Skull declared, his voice low as he turned his back.

Part 4

"That bastard can't get away with it!" Outside the museum, Skull kicked the railing harshly. "He's gonna work Yusuke until he dies?! Are we gonna let that scumbag prey at him?!"

"You're right." Mona agreed to the blonde's statement, an unusual event.

"But why didn't he say anything? He has to know, right?" Panther asked in a worried manner.

"Perhaps, he believed that it'll be ungrateful for him to rebel against that ass." Alice commented, deep in thought.

"That doesn't matter!" Skull shouted, much to Panther's shock. "Changing that jackal's heart will solve everything!"

Deep inside her, she knew that the teen changed.

"It's not that simple." Mona spoke.

"What?!" Skull growled angrily as he met the cat's gaze.

Knowing that the situation can't get even worse, Panther shifted her sight to Joker who was quietly thinking. "Ideas?"

"Let's confirm it directly."

Part 5

The scratching sound of Yusuke's pencil on the canvas was what filled the room. Among the four was a piercing silence, waiting for each other's cue to speak and get to the point, their actual purpose of their visit.

The room was quite simple, and ancient at some point. Stacks of canvases of different sizes were kept and organized at the side of the room, near to where the trio sat.

Impatiently quiet, the three sat, with Ryuji in the middle of Ren and Kyoko. The three seemed to have shared unspoken thoughts, worries, and other sorts of feelings they couldn't help but feel in this situation.

Across the young artist, Ann was seated there, quite stiff. Regardless of the uncomfortable atmosphere, nothing broke Yusuke's concentration, until-

"S-sorry being here yesterday and today..." Ann spoke, her voice shaking. The blonde tried to relax her muscles and began to make slight movements. "Actually, Kitagawa-kun, I wanted to ask-"

"Don't move." Yusuke blurted out monotonously in a cold movement. His gaze never left the canvas, yet he still noticed the tiny movements the girl made.

"We don't have time for this!" Seeing that the situation doesn't seem to progress, Ryuji yelled as he stood from his chair.

"Quiet! You'll break my concentration." The young artist's words brought slight shock to the troublemaker. He couldn't help but go back to his seat, intimidated by the other.

"S-so, Kitagawa-kun..." Ann called.

His focus was to finish the painting immediately.

"You hear me?" Once again, the girl attempted to get the attention of the artist.

No answer.

"Hello~?"

Once again, she called but to no avail. Yusuke was completely concentrating on making his art and closed his ears to any outside interactions.

"He doesn't seem to be listening." Ryuji sighed impatiently.

By the looks of it, the blonde troublemaker was clearly bored and unamused. They were pretty much at a disadvantage in the current situation, considering the fact that they aren't going anywhere.

"Hey, are we gonna wait until he's done?" Ryuji glanced at his right, his sight on Ren. Then, he hopelessly asked, "And when will that be?"

"Who knows..." Ren sighed deeply.

"Maybe when killing becomes legal...?" Kyoko, too, seemed restless.

Their little conversation was interrupted when they noticed a change- Yusuke suddenly stopped scribbling, looking down. He seemed to be deep in thought, a hint of frustration in those pair of blue orbs.

"Are you done?" Ann exclaimed seeing Yusuke stopped scribbling.

"No good. I can't paint it." Yusuke said, regret lingering in his tone.

"Sorry. I guess I'm just not model material..." Seeing through his frustration, Ann awkwardly apologized as she averted her gaze. And that was when-

"I can't paint a perfect nude painting when you're wearing clothes."

Yusuke suddenly blurted out, slowly bringing astonishment to everyone in the room, disbelief in their eyes. Paint a perfect what?

"Eh?" Ann was still in the state of shock, unable to process the teen artist's ridiculously shocking statement. Her face grew pale before shouting while covering her chest while blushing madly. "N-Nude?!"

"Pervert!" Kyoko exclaimed, her jaw agape in shock.

"What are you thinkin', you perv?!" Ryuji perked up from his seat in anger, clicking his tongue in annoyance.

There was no way in hell he'd let him!

"You're still here?" Yusuke gave the most unexpected response, causing the three to break in a cold sweat.

"And it's a good thing we are!" Ryuji yelled loudly, anger dripping in his tone as he stood in front of Ann protectively. "I would've punched you in the face if I didn't know what you're goin' through!"

His statement alone caused the teen artist to narrow his eyes, "What I'm going through...?"

"There's no point in hidin' stuff away from us." The blonde asked, looking through his eyes intimidatingly. "Those rumors were true, weren't they?"

"This again?" Yusuke lowered his gaze, letting his blue locks shadow his eyes.

"I said it won't work! Your sensei's seriously messed up. He just thinks of his pupils as tools." Ryuji spoke, showing remorse against the teacher. "That's why he doesn't give a damn whether he steals their work or beats them. Right?!"

"I told you..." Yusuke was unable to bear to listen anymore, standing up from his chair.

"It's been bothering me since that day." Ann spoke, immediately catching the attention of the artist. "At the exhibit, you tried to steer me away from that one painting. I wonder why you spoke that way of a painting created by your respected teacher."

"But the truth is that you painted it, didn't you?" Ann continued, pity lingering in her voice.

A lump in his throat prevented him from talking. The teen artist gritted his teeth as he lowered his gaze, unable to construct a reply.

"You couldn't go against him, could you? Because you owe him. But..." Ann trailed.

"We can help you-" Ren spoke, only to be interrupted by Yusuke.

"Don't!" The teen stubbornly rejected. "It's just as you say. We're... our sensei's 'artwork.'"

The revelation.

The group couldn't believe that the boy just said the truth even if it was in a vague way. Nevertheless, the message he wanted to convey was clear to them.

"But don't misunderstand. I offered my ideas to him willingly. So it can't be called plagiarism." Yusuke lowered his head once more, tightening his fists.

"Huh?!" Ryuji gasped.

"Then..." Ann trailed.

"Sensei has... been in a slump. If he can just get past it, I'm sure he'll..." Yusuke trailed in hesitation.

Upon hearing the so-called Master Artist's excuse, Ryuji gritted his teeth. "That's probably the line he's been selling, while plagiarizing as he goes! All his other pupils ran off!"

"Aren't you the only one left?!" The blonde raised his voice at the end of his sentence.

"Kitagawa, he's taking you for granted! At this rate, you will never be recognized for your own skills!" Kyoko didn't stop herself from speaking anymore, raising her voice just like the others. Pity and worry was seen in her face, "You wanted to be helped...!"

"What's wrong with a pupil helping his master?! There are no victims here! Stop pushing your self-centred righteousness on me!" Yusuke yelled hysterically.

"What?!" Ryuji protested.

"Don't come back again." The young artist turned his back to them, his voice lowered as he clenched his teeth. "Leave me alone."

Another dead end, huh.

Part 6

"I don't think he's willing to talk to us anymore."

The four made their way out of the house after arriving into another stalemate. This particular event was quite challenging for them, but sure reminded them of a few cases when the volleyball team refused to speak... the situation was slightly different, as Yusuke couldn't speak because of the undying gratitude he had for his teacher, not because of a threat.

Frustration was seen in their faces. Just why was it so hard? They failed to express their emotions well upon the unfortunate scene, especially the fact that they were pretty much banned from the house.

"What's with that guy? Why is he so stubborn?" Ryuji looked down, frustration evident in his eyes. "He's a victim!"

"Maybe it's what he said before," Ann replied sorrowfully. "... that Madarame took him in when he had no relatives."

"Yeah, but still..." Ryuji tried to reason out, but ended up with no set of words to follow.

"Damn it. I should've listened to him then..." Kyoko muttered feeling a sense of regret.

"Listenin' to 'im wasn't gonna take a long time! Why didn't you?" Ryuji snapped.

"Hey, I make mistakes too y'know?" Kyoko rolled her eyes. "I never thought he'd be this persistent about succumbing to that damn teacher."

"Fighting now won't do anything good, rookies." Morgana spoke. "Let's call it a day."

Well... they've got no choice but to anyway. Upon watching the scene, Ren was thinking to himself of few ways to bring the situation to his favor. What crossed his mind was to show what it's like in Madarame's world, though it's less likely for the teen artist to believe them.

Still, he didn't cross out that choice. He was daring, after all.

Part 7

After ending the day on a frustrating note, Ren Amamiya, and so as the others, went straight to their homes trying to come up with different solutions. It was the same for Ren, who stayed awake on his bed, pondering on and on about today's events.

Yusuke's situation reminded him of what his late friend when he was still a child went through. That young boy who often had a smile on his face underwent different painful things... and he wasn't able to help him the way that boy did to him.

Soon, he drifted along his thoughts.

"Ren, Ren! My sister bought me a ton of books..." A boy with chestnut blonde hair walked towards the young Ren, struggling as he took a step with a few books in his arms.

"And you know I'm not really the book type." The boy shrugged after dropping the load on a nearby chair. "So, you like books, right?!"

His remark was rather cheerful. The fact that he casually declared Ren's taste made the ravenette to sweatdrop. He spoke, "I do read them..."

"Nice! Then, choose a book or two. After reading it, make sure to tell me what's it about!" The boy exclaimed eagerly.

"Some of them are for studies. Apparently, I'm more of an auditory person, so if you tell it to me, it's easier for me to understand!"

Ah, memories...

"Ren, what are you thinking about?" Ren didn't realize that all this time, Morgana locked his eyes on him with curiosity.

"Nothing." A reassuring smile was presented in his face before petting the cat.

Pi pi pi!

His actions were halted when his phone rang as he pulled it out to check what it was about.

Mishima: Remember that stalker, Nakanohara?

It was a message from Mishima, a seemingly fanboy of the Phantoms. Out of curiosity, Morgana peeked to see the message.

"Nakanohara." The cat repeated.

Mishima: He wants to meet up, about changing someone's heart. Apparently it's someone really terrible.

Mishima: He doesn't want to post their name onto the Phan-Site.

Ren: Why tell me?

Mishima: Because we're good friends, right? I just thought I'd share info with you.

Mishima: I told him to go to Shibuya after school. I also decided on the sign, so give regards to the Phantom Thieves.

Mishima: Bye!

There was a short period of silence, they immediately figured Mishima knew something. He wouldn't consider him as a threat though, he clearly supports the Phantoms fully.

"Sign?" Morgana asked Ren in the process of understanding the gesture.

Part 8

It was just another crowded day in Shibuya. A few groups of people went by living their life, and that includes the extraordinary routine the Phantoms exhibits.

Today, it was a risky yet important event.

This is the first time they will face a victim officially as the Phantoms, in order to directly hear their woes and the person they request to have a change of heart. Coincidentally, this investigation was crucial to their case in hand.

Natsuhiko Nakanohara stood across a wall, a drink with a star in the middle in his grip. His eyes darted left and right to check any sightings of the so-called Phantom Thieves, or anyone suspicious because who knows what might happen.

His expression was rather nervous, as a sweat rolled down his face.

"Nakanohara Natsuhiko-san?"

A notably deep voice suddenly called, and he almost jolted in shock. It came from behind the corner of the wall, which he instinctively tried to check out who it was, until-

"Don't move," The deep voice once again spoke, halting his movements. "Who's the person you want to have a change of heart?"

It was really happening... he was going to tell the name.

"I'm sure you've heard the name before." Nakanohara started. "A traditional Japanese artist... Ichiryusai Madarame."

On the other side of the corner was the Phantom; Ren Amamiya, listening carefully to his words. As expected, it was the person they had in their mind as well. Ren narrowed his eyes as he let out a low grunt, but stayed in his place to listen more.

Unbeknownst to Nakanohara's awareness, a few teens were passing by who blended well in the crowd. It was the rest of the members, observing as well and ready to back Ren up in case something happens.

"He plagiarized his disciples' work. He releases their paintings, but takes full credit for them. I used to be one of his disciples."

"There was another, a very talented senior of mine. But he was so miserable over the plagiarizing... that he committed suicide."

Right after he heard his words, Ren couldn't help but widen his eyes in shock. Things were clearly out of control, and there's no saying when Yusuke might follow his senior's path.

"I don't want the same tragedy to happen again." His voice was sincere. "Right now, he has one pupil. I asked him if he found it painful to stay with Madarame... And you know what he said?"

Nakanohara lowered his head. "'If I could leave, I would!'"

"So please! Please!" Driven by emotions, Nakanohara walked from his spot and bowed, his face evidently sincere and pleading.

There was no more response.

He lifted his gaze only to see the he pleaded to thin air, the Phantom thief already gone.

Well... he was a thief, after all

Part 9

A few days went by with hesitation and no leads, leaving the Phantoms in a dead end. But now, this sunset was different from the previous ones.

Upon hearing Natsuhiko Nakanohara's thoughts, a former pupil of Madarame, the well-known artist, they were able to think of their actions with certainty. There was no more ounce of guilt nor doubt, they knew they had to take action.

In their new hideout, the Phantoms have gathered while the sun was in the midst of setting. Its rays cast shadow on them, which only made the flicker of determination in their eyes were evident.

"Well, that settles it, right?" Ryuji confirmed with a serious expression on his face.

"No objections." Ann replied firmly. Then she added, her determined face never dropped, "We finally know how Kitagawa-kun really feels."

"We're gonna bring some sense in that plagiarist's corrupted mind." Kyoko added, the glimmer of sun made her cerulean orbs look even more bright.

"Then it's unanimous." Morgana spoke, then shifted his gaze to Ren. "What should we do, leader?"

"Our next target is..." A short pause as Ren began to speak, closing his eyes after organizing his thoughts. Snapping it back open, he continued-

"Madarame."

A/N: Finally, an update for y'all! ^^ Aaahhh, I'm so sorry for being late. I'm making progress to the future chapters now, so I only have to finalize it later. Imma try my best to make stable updates!

The book has been receiving a lot of support which motivated me to finally finish this. X3

Shout out to DarkRose--Chan ! (≧▽≦) She lent me her drafts so I didn't have to check the anime from time to time for the dialogues, then I'll modify it and add further description and dialogues.

Oh, and what do I see right there? Is that Ren's past about to be revealed?! O.o

By the way, I'll be organizing the announcement chapters and galleries because it seems so cluttered.

Sorry if my writing is a bit off. ;;

Anyways, don't forget to leave a vote and comment your thoughts!

xoxo,
Eth.