The Runningman players were thrilled to have successfully achieved in saving Gai, but Liu is still in immense shock and upset after meeting his presumed sister.

"Ahhhh~~~" The penguin let out a loud sigh as he lies down on the meeting lounge's seat. "That sure was a tough game, guys"

"Boy, you said it Popo" Said the Giraffe next to him, leaning his back on the seat rest. "I am wiped out..."

"But we still won and managed to succeed in bringing Gai back, right guys?" Said the Impala, hoping to bring an aura of positivity but the exact opposite only shrouded the area.

"Yes but this is no longer a game anymore... A lot of things doesn't seem right about this tournament..." The tiger exclaimed.

"Not to mention... They won't go easy on us in the next game. Since we defeated them, there's no doubt that they will go all out on us..." Said Miyo, sitting next to Gai. "We need a plan..."

"Yes... A plan... But Liu umm...." Pala halted in his reply as all of them slowly gazed over at the bug, who was sitting alone in the farthest corner of the room, with a look of sympathy towards him as Liu hugged his knees while he sulked in silence.

The bug shifted his head to lower it even more, letting the cheerful memories of his sister flow through his mind like a calm river. Despite the memories that occured were full of smiles and laughter, it only seemed to have worsen Liu's state.

His friends soon slowly approached him as Popo started off with a calm voice.

"Liu, are you okay...?" The penguin asked. "We can't think of a good plan without you... You are the brains of the team"

"Yeah..." Lonky agreed before going overboard with his "sympathetic" response. "Like how you ramble on about having a great plan even if most of it fails. Right now you're acting like a bab~"

Kuga held Lonky by the neck, preventing him from speaking further before throwing the idiotic giraffe on the back of the seat where he stumbles and fails to get up. The Running Men showed a look of annoyance from Lonky's words despite their eyes closed before moving on to feel concern at Liu once more.

"Liu, is it really through that your sister is a member of the Dv8...? The monitor in the elimination room was cut off so we didn't got to see what happened... It must have been shocking for you..." Said Pala to show his concern for him but his ignorance got the best of him. "But didn't you said that your sister died?"

Hearing that question, Liu quickly shifted his head to the side as a response to Pala's ignorant question. Kuga quickly held the ignorant Impala by the neck as well before Pala's scream was heard across the room as he was tossed away like Lonky.

Silence filled the room once more after that. The others only grew more annoyed at the idiotic Giraffe and the ignorant Impala until they finally heard Liu speak.

"I never believed my sister was dead... But that day... Haunted me every day"

"What... Do you mean?" Miyo asked softly as Liu proceeded.

"It happened a few years ago... I heard an explosion in my sister's room... I thought she was just inventing something but when I entered the room, all I could see were red smoke and her furnitures were destroyed... I screamed for her name but she was nowhere to be found. The people in my tribe said they didn't see anyone go out of the house but me... And they told me to assume the worst... That my sister is dead" Liu slowly clenched his fist as he tried his best not to let any of his tears fall down from his eyes. "She was the only family I have left... So I refused to believe she was gone. But everyone gave up for her search... Even the elders so after a month... I was convinced that she really was dead... I couldn't go to sleep every night, I missed her so much and her sudden lost only made it worst... Until today... Where she attacked us..."
When Liu finished his response, his friends were already showing great concern and sympathy towards him. None of them expected for the cheerful bug to have live such a dark life.

"So that's why... You took her place... And became the representative of your tribe" Said the giraffe but Liu remained silent. Having a stoic look before standing up and slowly leaving the area to enter his room.

On the other hand, Charming Gold is mad that his plans went wrong and pressed ahead with even more dangerous plans...

"Tell me, Dr. Mala, how could this have happened" Charming Gold asked while staring at chamber where Liu's sister was sleeping inside a bath of red liquid.

"I... I think it had something to do with her brother, I'm unsure sir" Dr. Mala responded with a nervous voice.

"You're unsure, are you? That's not helpful" The peacock glanced at Dr. Mala and sent him in a wave of fear before proceeding to walk forward towards the other chambers.
"It seems I underestimated the Running Man team... I was sure that without Yuu's presence, my plans will succeed without any complications but after what happened... There's no more room for mistakes. I will eradicate them all..."

Meanwhile, back at the meeting Lounge.

"Oh what should we do...? We can't leave Liu like this!" Said the penguin before pulling his hood up due to his frustration.

"Sure we can" Lonky replied, looking as if he didn't care. "Liu is in a bad~" Before he was allowed to finish, the giraffe immediately saw Kuga snarling aggressively at him. Having the "I dare you to say it" look. "Umm what I mean is... Umm... In times like these it's best to be left alone! R-right guys?"

"He's right..." Pala agreed. "Liu thought for so long that her sister had died but she didn't. That's terribly sad... None of us will get through to Liu..."

Silence slowly followed after Pala's response until Gai arrived in the area after leaving the kitchen, holding a glazed doughnut in his hand before sitting a few inches next to Miyo.

"How could you be eating at a time like this?" Miyo asked with a slightly irritated voice.

"Sorry!" Gai apologized with his mouth full. After gulping down the food, he began to speak clearly.

"It's my first time seeing a perfectly untouched glazed doughnut in the fridge. Normally, all of it would be gone by now because Yuu would have eaten them all" The Monkey laughed after his own remark. "Say, where is that guy anyways? I haven't seen him. Did he oversleep again?"
His question brought another silence upon the room as all of his friends slowly gazed down at the floor. Gai was filled with confusion after noticing their strange behaviors.
"What's wrong? Did something happen to him?"

Kuga and the rest then raised there head towards Miyo's direction, hoping to let her be the one to explain but her reaction Said otherwise.

All they could see was Miyo lightly biting her bottom lip as she gripped her right arm. Still unable to move on about Yuu's decision. Luckily, Kuga saved her from the pain by deciding to be the one to break down to Gai.

"Yuu... Yuu is gone..."

"What? Gone? What do you mean gone?" Gai asked, confusingly.

"He's gone, he's not here anymore. He left Tree City..."

Having to finally clarify his answer, Gai was immediately shocked as he stood up from his seat, still holding the doughnut though.

"What do you mean he left?! Why would he do that?!" Shouted Gai, disbelieving that one of his closest friends would suddenly leave them on their own.

"It's true..." Lonky said. "After receiving heavy and gruesome injuries from his battle with the Dv8 alone... He left in the following morning..."

"Yuu really left...? I... I didn't know... How bad was his injuries?"

"It was severe..." Kuga replied for everyone. "He was beaten up badly and to worsen things more... He was stabbed in the stomach by that white haired Dv8 member... But Pala managed to heal him... Well... Most of his injuries..."

"You should have seen him back there, Gai" Said the penguin with a slightly thrilled voice. "Even though he lost, he still went toe to toe with all of the Dv8 players! It was there he revealed to us he has the ability to copy other abilities!"

"Yuu can copy abilities...?" Gai muttered.

"Yes but that still wasn't enough... He was outnumbered..." Kuga spoke before taking a deep breath. "We also found something else about Yuu..." The others became silent when they realized what Kuga was referring while the Monkey was left in anticipation.

"What did you found out?" Gai asked, still standing up.

"When we removed his bandages... We found out that Yuu... Is actually a Human..."

"Wait... A human? You're serious? The one that people tell stories to teach us moral lessons? Haha alright guys, very funny. Seriously where is he? Is this part of a prank since I just got back?"

"This is not a joke!" Miyo suddenly shouted, making Gai jolt before staring at the feline. Miyo's were full of tears but none of them were talking down, as if she was trying hard not to let them fall which only covered her entire eyes to reflect the light of the room. "Yuu is a human... He didn't want to show us what he looks like because he was afraid of what we might think of him... Liu and I tried to talk some senses into him... To tell him it's okay and that we don't care about what he looks like... Because we really dont"

"Miyo..." Gai mumbled as the others were curious to listen.

"But... I said something I should have and... Angered him... He told us he was useless now because of his current state... Maybe that's why he left... Because he didn't wanted to be a burden" Miyo closed her eyes and exhaled calmly before putting up a straight face like she always does.

Gai slowly sat back down before staring at his half eaten doughnut. Just the sight of it made him think about Yuu and made him feel angry as well that he didn't got to thank Yuu after he helped him get through the biggest obstacle in his life.

"I'm sorry... I didn't know..."

"It's alright, Gai. We planned to tell you sooner but... We were all focused at Liu" Said the tiger before Miyo.

"Enough... This is not a time for us to sulk on the past. We must focus on making Liu feel better because without him... We'll surely fail..." The feline exclaimed before sighing once more and glancing over at Gai.
"Gai, what did you last remember when Charming Gold controlled you?"

Gai thought hard for a moment, rubbing the bottom of his chin before replying. "A red smoke... When Charming Gold took control of me, I remember a red smoke surrounding me. Just like what Liu said that happened to his sister..."

"Wait... Does that mean.." Lonky muttered before continuing his response. "Liu's sister and the other Dv8 are..."

"Like the Red Eyed Beast?" Kuga finished his sentence for him before all of them turned their attention to the tiger. Miyo already knew about the red smoke as a substance that controls people but the other still didn't know that much. "I figured out who he is... He's Makhan, Master Makhan..."

"Oh Master Makhan! I remember him" Lonky meddled in the sentence, remembering the time where he lies to Kuga to switch his heels for squeaky shoes.

Once Kuga remembered the memory as well, he immediately showed a look of anger towards Lonky, making the cheeky Giraffe fall into a silence.

"Then that means... Makhan and Liu's sister, Shawn, are victims of the Red smoke as well...?" Said the penguin.

"I'm unsure" The tiger replied before exhaling. "At the time, Master Makhan was the Bars Tribe's greatest and most powerful warrior... But he often clashed with the elders so they banished him from our land... Turning him into an Outcast... He spent years living in the forest, until a huge red explosion occured. All that was left were a huge radius of red smoke and an imprint of his paw... On the side of a mountain..."

"Now all of this makes sense..." Said Miyo, having a deep look embedded on her face. "The Bug Tribe's smartest inventor, the Bars Tribe's strongest warrior, and my tribe's greatest spy were kidnapped, along with the other members of Dv8 and was brainwashed by charming Gold to be his warrior puppets..." The group nodded in unison, all agreeing that Charming Gold is behind all of the sinister plot in the Running Man Tournament. "That means Charming Gold has full control of the Soul Tree. That's why he's using the Dv8 team..."

"He knew who would win. It was up to that peacock the whole time!!!" Gai muttered in anger.

"They're right, we can't let Charming Gold go away with that!" Lonky agreed. "We need a plan"

"But..." Pala replied for him. "But none of us can think of a good plan... That's Liu's territory..."

"Hey... I have a plan" Said the penguin's making all of them turn towards him as he chuckles. "Popo is smart too. Hehe..."

Meanwhile, back in the underground laboratory.

"What about the amplifier...?" Charming Gold asked a cornered Dr. Mala with an irritated tone in his voice.

"I'm afraid I c-cant do that sir... The amplifier will take long~" Charming Gold suddenly pinned the Dr. On the wall, frightening him as he was unable to finish his sentence.

"Are you saying you need more time? I'm done waiting!!! I'm tired of hearing your excuses!!!" Shouted the angered peacock. "Listen to me, you do know what happens to those who are useless to me... Right, Doctor?"

"Y-yes sir. I... I do sir. Please forgive me...!" Said the fear driven Doctor before charming Gold moved away from him and onto the control panel.
The old Impala was paralyzed in fear as he fell to his knees.

On the other hand, the group arrived at Liu's room where the bug was trying to sleep away his problems but was distracted when Miyo and the rest suddenly entered the room with a loud mouth.

"We don't need a plan! Let's just barge on in and tear all of them to shreds!" Shouted the tiger.

"Tear them to shreds? We can't even take out the Red Eyed Beast alone. Use your small, idiotic head Kuga" Replied Lonky before getting choked by Kuga.

"If you have a better idea then let's hear it!!!"

"W-wait, this wasn't part of the Pla~" Lonky tried to utter a sentence but Kuga tightened his grip and shook the giraffe back and forth.

Liu's who was facing away from them, grew slightly annoyed at the fuss they were making.

"Hey, don't worry about those two" Miyo whispered to the bug. "Just ignore it hem, they'll come up with a plan eventually"

"Hmmm, I was thinking I'd pretend to be Man x for charming Gold again" Gai proclaimed before Popo replied.

"That's a terrible idea. Come on guys, just let me handle all of this. After all, I am the master of cards"

"Those cards of yours are nothing but a fluke. You're just a clown doing card tricks to fool the audience" Said Miyo and angered the penguin.

"What?! Well then, Miyo. Why don't you make yourself useful and read charming Gold's mind?!"

"Oh well.... Bye guys" Said Pala as he attempted to leave the vicinity but was stopped by Gai when he grabbed him by his green scarf.

"Hey, where are you going?" Asked Gai.

"What does it look like?! I'm not going to win so I'm going back home!" Pala angrily replied as he tried to brush away Gai's grip.

"What?! You can't leave us like Yuu did?!"

"I don't care, so let me go!!!"

With their individual feud growing like a wild fire, Liu snapped and jolted up from his bed to shout at them.

"What the heck are you guys doing?!" Liu shouted, causing everyone to stop in their quarrels. "This is how you form a plan?! By arguing, fighting, and giving up?! What's happening with all of you?! This isn't us! We are the Running Men! Since this tournament changed, we promised ourselves we'd work together as a team! Sure Yuu is gone but that's because he didn't wanted to slow us down! We have to show to him we can win this battle so don't worsen our situation by fighting!"

"Looks like Liu's back" Said Miyo with a cheeky smile.

"Yes, yes I'm back. Wait... What?" Liu noticed that all of them were now smiling towards him. Having to realize their clever trick, he acknowledged their attempt and uttered a slight chuckle. "Good plan... I needed that"

Soon the Running Man team, out of pure joy and relief, hugged the bug to show their happiness, except for Kuga but his smile was enough as a reminder for Liu that he's glad to have him back as well.

After a few minutes of discussing their next move, the Running Man team came to a conclusion at the meeting lounge.

"We have to save the missing heroes that were turn into the Dv8..." Said the Bug with a determined look. "I know it'll be hard for us, considering there are 8 of them and only 7 of us... But we're all in this together because... We are their only hope to bring them back to the light of day"

"Agreed, and it's also the only way we can reveal the truth about charming Gold to the world" Miyo added as a brief announcement.

"I hope Yuu is watching, because we're going to show him that we will win this tournament, as a team" Liu said his final remark before Lonky shouted.

"Alright! Let's put our hands together and chant "Go team"

The Running Men did as what the giraffe said. All of them placed their hand on top of one another and chanted in unison.

"GO TEAM!"

But, on the other side of the scene. Charming Gold is already preparing his most sinister plan to have unfold.
With the red serum that the machine is extracting from the Dv8's unconscious body, all the peacock had to do was raise the lever to activate the amplifier but Dr. Mala sprung into action and stopped Charming Gold's attempt.

"Please Charming Gold, it's too early! The sould tree won't handle this much serum... Please sir. It might overload the system!"

Despite his plead, Charming Gold only saw him as a nuisance and slapped the Doctor away from his sight. "Shut up!!!"

With no one left to stop him, he raised the lever forward and started his sinister plan. Injecting the root of the soul tree with the Red Serum as all of the members of the Dv8 screamed in pain inside their chambers while the peacock showed no remorse. Only a wicked smile with a widened pair of eyes.