Confrontation with Smiling-Sama

A group of persona users would climb the stairs heading toward where the clowns meet once more. Ready to put an end to this invitation once and for all. It was the evening, and the damage caused by the previous incident was still very apparent. However, no one was ever around at this time, just like the previous battle with Scarlet Red, Smiling-Sama's assistant. Now the group came for the mastermind behind this invitation, Smiling-Sama himself. They hoped to capture him, and force him to tell what he knows about Limbo and where he has stowed some of his more recent captives. In a certain red head's mind he was thinking of mostly why Scarlet had gone through the trouble of kidnapping Marah, but he would get those answers soon enough.

Kahn would climb to the top of the stairs and move forward a few feet surveying the scars of the previous battle. Once the others all got up the stairs he would glance back towards them, before pointing toward the shrine. "Well assuming he is either too stupid or cocky he should be inside the shrine. That's where Scarlet came out before we fought her, so it would be reasonable to assume that it is also where he keeps his captives." He would say, it made logical sense...then again...Smiling-Sama did not seem like a logical person at all. For all he knew, Marah could be in Limbo right now, granted it did not seem right given Marah's somewhat unique circumstances of capture. Well....whatever! They were here, they would beat this crazed kidnapper, and call it a done day. No more...no less! They were here and they would win. If things went badly...then he would step up to the plate to ensure no one else fell. They could do this! They would just have to work together and cover each other's backs!

Tsurinai Naito stood before the shrine with his arms crossed and his eyes narrowed. He listened to Azame's words but did not respond. Apparently this Smiling Fool took shop in this shrine, had a few hostages, and was just rather ridiculous altogether. He wished to put an end to this, and to do that he would need to face this Smiling Mask fellow and end his reign here. With him out the way, there would be no more threat to interfere on his mission of taking care of the Gods hiding away in Limbo. Things were going all too well, and with him cornered, things were to become even easier. Waiting around was not his cup of tea, so as Kahn spoke he summoned his O-katana to hand in an azure light and sliced straight through the doorway leading into the shrine. He had no intention on waiting. Perhaps this was his cockiness, or his over all yearning to put this rivalry with the man to rest; but he did want it over. With blade in hand, he'd enter the shrine with a confident stride and scan the room with his keen silver eyes for any form of life.

Walking up the steps with Kahn, and the rest, she would face the shrine. Apart from practicing in Naito’s home, this was her first time in Nokawia in an actual landmark around the area. The shrine was so old-fashioned and nice-looking. It was almost a shame a battle had occurred there some time ago between Kahn, Hibiki, Naito, and the woman Scarlet, who they defeated and subsequently captured. She would not face the others for a brief moment as they walked up the steps to the top of the shrine, where Kahn would look around the area that the battle took place. Kahn had mentioned that the “Smiling Mask” was most likely in the shrine, to which Ruo nodded. “If he is trying to be found. Either way, this area is no doubt worth a search,” Ruo had said. Her right arm was lightly jittering in her jacket, which would be invisible to everyone except Ruo herself. She had to remain calm, as her worries were getting to her. But she had to be ready. This was the moment where she would be ready for battle. It was why she was built. She was there with the others, presumably the rest of the team. If Hibiki was there, she would give him a smile and nod. Naito Tsurinai was there, so she would nod to him as well. “I hope I can be of use. Forgive me not meeting with you sooner. I had not awakened to my true potential yet,” she would say. Though he apparently was very eager for battle, and went on ahead.

If Destiny was there, she would give her a bit of a larger smile. “Do not worry,” was all she would say. She would then move forward with Kahn, and soon follow Naito and the group inside the shrine, ready for anything that may occur next. She was ready. She was prepared. And in the few seconds of walking, she ceased to be scared.

    Destiny glanced around at the shrine, noting with an internal wince at the damage from the last fight that had gone on here. Kahn—the redhead leading the way—had explained what had gone on. A woman, Scarlet Red, was working for someone known as the Masked Man, a person who the others suspected of throwing people into Limbo. She’d even seen the DeepNight Deadline segment on him; his words made a shiver go up her spine. Was this the person who’d thrown her into Limbo, hoping she’d die? The only way to find out, she supposed, was to confront him. …Joy.

    She was quiet as Ruo and Kahn conversed about the area. Although they were literally barging in, she felt compelled to stay quiet, as if doing so would make the whole operation much easier. Sparing a glance at Naito, then at Ruo, her nerves settled down just slightly, thankful for some familiar faces. In a strange way, they were more comforting than picturing a member of her family there. Perhaps it was the fact that these people had personas and the rest of her family didn’t? Who knew.

    Destiny turned her head as she noticed Ruo turn to her. There was a smile on the other girl’s face, as she advised the blonde not to worry. Grateful for the attempt at calming her down, Destiny smiled, albeit shakily, trying to choke down the anxiety. Right. She might not be a fighter, but she could support. She could heal. She could help. Sucking in a trembling breath, Destiny followed behind Ruo. Oddly enough, her fears didn’t go away because of Ruo’s kind words, although they did help; it was the soft humming in her head, courtesy of her persona, Thalia, that set her at ease.

Kahn nodded back to Ruo, and Destiny. If anyone was going to get out it would be those two to say the very least. As Naito cut open the door to the shrine, meaning that those poor construction workers had even more work to do now. Oh well it is what it is. Smiling-Sama would only see four out of the five Persona users. The other had snuck off somewhere close by. The first thing Kahn noted was the golden gun The Smiling Man had pointed at Marah's head, so at least Marah was still here. That was the good news, but it had been a little while since he was kidnapped...why was Marah still in this world? Not that it mattered, he was safe.....kinda. Seeing Marah's current situation caused Kahn to pause seeing someone else life in immediate danger. This allowed The Smiling Man to give his speech uninterrupted, and he seemed to address Naito first. Asking why he was here and not completing the mission by killing the Gods in Limbo. Kahn had seen those requests in the Velvet Room. However,reshaping Limbo was not in Kahn's agenda of things to do. He would rather destroy it and be done that damn place that seemed ready to eliminate the reality that he knew.

Then he made a proposition to them, sweet talking them by saying that they would be able to fix all the things that went wrong and save the world....all they had to do was join him. Well that sounded nice and all, except he noted something that drew his attention. His language went from from "our image" to "I can do thatfor you. All you have to do is join me." Perhaps he was over thinking it, but it seems as those that join him have much less say then what he lets on. Hence, why Scarlet was hypnotized that day when she appeared at the school. The red haired young man was already analyzing the masked man before him. The more he could figure out from his language, his way of speaking, and his body language.  The better he could predict how he would react to certain questions or responses. Or so he hoped...the guy seemed more unpredictable than anything else.

"That's a very generous offer, no wonder people speak so highly of you, granted such an offer brings many questions. Especially when everything is complex and confusing like Limbo." There would be a brief pause, as he looked toward Marah, and pointed toward him, "My first question begins with this person you have here. What's he doing here? All the people you helped before were women...so is he just someone you're helping or is he a bit more important than that?" He would inquire, granted he did not expect a direct answer...but a cryptic answer one that would require a bit to decipher the true meaning behind the the clever tongue that the man before him seemed to possess.

The Tsurinai's eyes would narrow at the man's offer of using Limbo to reshape things as long as they joined him. Usual Naito was the first to speak up during situations such as this, but instead he remained quiet and stood towards the back of the small group without word. His eyes did look towards Marah for a few seconds before back towards the Smiling Mask, yet his usual stoic expression remained unphased. Of course he was thinking to himself at the moment, but he simply was not sharing what was on his mind with anyone in the room, including his "allies" that had joined him in confronting this man. So he'd let them all talk while remaining silent, not really giving a reason for those to put their attention on him. After all, he had some contemplation to go through, and alot of decision weighing to make inside that skull of his... Even those with brilliant minds needed to time deduce and decide the most logical course of action that would bring them to their final goals. Though even with logic, there was one thing a Tsurinai could never throw away, and that was pride. Something else to way in this decision he was making at the current moment.

Walking in, the Smiling Mask was an odd figure. Very slender, black of hair, and wearing a mask with an unsettling red smile. He was sitting in a chair and holding a blonde boy at gunpoint with a very noticeable golden pistol. So he had a hostage. It was known from Kahn that they had someone in their custody. So it was at that point Hibiki would take another role for the moment. It would be best to keep attention away from him. But what intrigued her more was when he spoke specifically to Naito and had told him how he was supposed to be killing the “Gods”. What did he mean by that? She would not be surprised if some existed given all she has seen, but she did not know all the details, which troubled her. But he would soon offer the group to join him, which fell on deaf ears for Ruo. The idea of changing Limbo and then the world seemed interesting enough. But the man most likely had either been lying, or planning to do something distorted if changing Limbo was even possible. The man did not seem entirely violent, at least not yet. But Ruo would not be ready to assume. They had all gone as a group for a reason: in case things went very poorly and they had to fight. Everyone was expecting one, and everyone was ready.

What may have not been the best way to start this off was Kahn making it like an interrogation. Granted he was clearly massaging this man’s ego, which very well could help. But to be fair it was worth asking about him. Or rather, getting that subject out of the way so he would be less focused on the boy, so for the moment, it would not matter. The boy seemed to be a high priority. Naito seemed to be silent for the moment, so perhaps Ruo would speak up as well. “I actually find it rather impressive you have the abilities to do all of this. To change the world, utilizing Limbo or not,” she began, with some impressed flattery. If this man truly had these powers, she had to be careful, or the thin ice she was treading would melt. “I take it you know why the world is ending like this? To go to all of these lengths takes some powerful will,” she said. She didn’t really propose it as a question save for the beginning of her statement. The last thing she needed was to make it worse. But it was worth talking about the world and why it was ending this way. For a man to get this kind of power, and to want to save people this way, he had to know a thing or two about why Limbo was leaking into this world. Was his power a Persona as well and he was just a very powerful User? Or was it something else? She could only speculate with no evidence. She would just have to wait and learn all she could before making a judgment call, or her next decisions may be her last.

    The first thing Destiny saw was the mask. In such a dreary setting, her thoughts couldn’t help but lean towards morbidity. Was that…blood? The thought made her stomach churn, and immediately her mind scrambled for a different idea. No, it couldn’t possibly be blood. Maybe marker or paint. Yes, that was it. Who in their right mind would put blood on a mask, anyways? …The shiver racing down her spine gave her all the answers she needed. This man certainly wasn’t sane. After all, he had a gun pointed at someone’s head! How sane was that?

    The man’s speech wasn’t reassuring at all. She didn’t know what to make of the whole “Gods” business; that was something she was never told about. But…control Limbo? Why would anyone want to control that awful place? People from this world didn’t mesh with that one; trying to unite the two or put one under the control of the other was just asking for chaos. Best to leave it all alone, separate them once and for all.

    She wanted to say something to that effect, but her voice wouldn’t work. Just as well, she supposed, since Kahn and Ruo seemed to have ideas of their own. Barging into their plan and ruining it would do no one any good, and for some odd reason, she wanted to walk out of this alive. So the blonde stayed quiet, trying to focus on keeping her breathing even and the jittering in her fingers down to a minimum, lest anyone notice.

So....he wasn't even paying attention. No wonder Naito hated this guy so much, or maybe it was because this guy was more arrogant than the Tsurinai. However, he indirectly answered his question in a very unexpected way. Apparently Marah was the wrong guy for him to take....well that did not make much sense. Why go through all the trouble of having Scarlet make a scene and capture Marah to give him away now. Heck, he was giving away a hostage at this point too. There was no doubt that the masked man before them liked to play games and tricks on people, but was he telling the truth about Marah or was it just another lie? Hard to tell really given his demeanor, and attitude. Perhaps, this was something to ask Marah about after they put the man down. Surely he heard something important or could at least confirm who he had tossed into Limbo, if anyone. The latter was more important than the former, after all once they put the Smiling Man behind bars...his motives for kidnapping Marah wouldn't matter.

"Friendly huh? Well if you're so friendly, mind telling us if you 'helped' anyone else recently?" Kahn would ask as the man pointed a gun at them claiming he was 'friendly'. 'Friendly' was not the word, he would have used...perhaps insane or deluded would be better word choices. The guy hypnotized the people who agreed to work with him, or forced the people he helped to fight others. He was as far from 'friendly' as one could be, one could call him 'manipulative', since that was a characteristic he could see clearly. After all he wanted Naito to kill these gods before confronting him again, perhaps there was quite the reason for that. Granted, Kahn doubted Naito would be working with the masked man before him, because he would not have agreed to come. No doubt the Tsurinai would have used his allies to his advantage and take down the gods before confronting this man.

Regardless of the man's answer, Kahn would answer the issue the Smiling Man had been pressing, "You know....I just don't think I can work with you. You hypnotize the ones that agree to work with you, and have them do your bidding. That's something I cannot agree with, nor do I agree with your way of 'helping' people. Since I have seen evidence that the Shadows do not help humans, but prey on them instead." With all that said he would summon his soul bound weapon and rest the zwiehander on his shoulder. His eyes would narrow at the Smiling Man, before he made one last remark, "But I like your smile.....gives me something to aim at."

Azame surely was the talkative type. Why was he even humoring this fool with a conversation? The Tsurinai did consider blasting his own teammates in the back and taking the offer for a split second, but thought against it. After all, they were fools, but useless enough to lead him to his final goal. This Masked Man could not be trusted, and that eerie smile made the Tsurinai's blood thin with annoyance and irritation. For once in this entire conversation, he would speak while taking a step forward from the back of the small crowd. "Enough talk. If you're going to kill us, please spare us the sound of your voice. It's time we ended this." With that said, he raised his scabbard infront of his body while grasping the handle of his blade. He would not draw the blade, but he did take the Iaido stance, ready for combat. There was not much else to say here, nor was he a fan of small talk like Azame. The Tsurinai was curious why Marah was there, and what connection he had with the Masked Man, but that was to be answered later. For now, the mission was before him, and with the Smiling Fool out of the way, things would calm down for awhile. Ueitawa was on high alert, and there would be no peace unless these kidnappings were ceased, even if the fool believed he was helping others. "Let's get this over with."

Ruo would remain silent throughout the Smiling Mask’s speaking. He seemed to be enjoying himself through all of this. Was he so sure he could convince one of them to join him? He might have convinced Ruo if he came to her first. But these people she had spoken to already. Perhaps her reasoning was subjective, but she did not know much about him anyway. The blonde boy did not seem particularly surprised at their coming to rescue him, which made Ruo a bit suspicious due to her nature. But at least he understood a fight was about to ensure, seeing as he moved to the side for them to fight. On the other hand, Kahn was still trying to speak to him, going from flattery to getting under his skin. Was that really the smartest thing to do when he could just point at the blonde boy and fire? If they were going to fight, he might as well say so. It was this moment that she understood Naito’s words, and put her hands in front of her, her equipment kick-starting, and her eye ready to begin burning once she needed it. But it was not aflame just yet. She would rather wait until the Masked Man made his first movement. “Indeed,” Ruo said. “Nothing left to do now.”

Ah, well, this definitely went from the starting point towards the endgame pretty quick. And here, Hibiki had thought they were planning to talk it out first, but from what he could hear as he sort of listened to them while he waited behind the Shrine as the others did their business, much of that didn’t get done. It seemed that the Smiling Man was far from interested in a chat, and would rather get an answer to his big question. Which was sort of controversial. Was he really expecting someone to join him happily, with the way he was just joking around? It was common sense that one would want to know at least some details about a situation before agreeing to come along. After all, trust wasn’t something that could be gained that easily in these times. And yet, this man continued to act as if he was a clown himself. It was really strange. Just what was his agenda?

Either way, from the recent ‘talk’, it appeared that it was coming towards a fight pretty fast. Patience, apparently wasn’t the virtue this time. Then again, the Smiling Man obviously didn’t feel like wasting time, so the battle was probably inevitable, no matter which path they’d take. Unless they’d agree to join him, which definitely wasn’t in the plan, at least not with the lack of info from his side. Which also meant it was time to make an entrance, as there wasn’t much he could do from the outside if it was down to a fight. Besides, it appeared that the man didn’t seem to be all that interested in Marah anyway. Unless that was a ploy too, but what was he to know at this point. ‘’I hope you don’t mind me joining the party. It looks like fun.’’, he’d say with a slight hint of sarcasm, as he made his way inside from the backdoor of the shrine. Hopefully, this ‘party’ wouldn’t be too explosive.