The play lounge sprawled before Mash and the team, a glittering arcade-like expanse teeming with energy. Their mission: capture the White Rabbit, Koyuki Kurosaki. Each member split off to cover more ground.
"This place…" Neru muttered, scanning the vibrant chaos. "Looks like a giant arcade, but don't get any ideas, Sensei. No playing around."
"Figured," Mash sighed, his eager expression deflating.
"Obviously," Neru said, narrowing her eyes. "Karin and Akane are searching over there. We're hunting the White Rabbit here. Don't do anything else—you'll draw attention."
"Got it," Mash nodded.
"You're already standing out enough as a guy in a bunny tuxedo," Neru added, glancing at him sidelong.
The stares from passersby were impossible to ignore. A man in a tuxedo with rabbit ears, in a world where human males were rare in Kivotos, was bound to turn heads.
"…" Sneaky glances.
"…" Restless whispers.
Gulp.
"Tch! Quit staring!" Neru barked, her voice cutting through the crowd.
"!?" The onlookers scattered.
"Neru-san, you're making us more noticeable," Mash pointed out.
"…My bad," Neru grumbled.
"No worries," Mash said, chuckling inwardly. (She's like a guard dog protecting her owner. Wonder if she'd snap if I said that.)
"Let's split up," Neru said. "Sensei, check that side."
"On it," Mash replied.
"No playing, got it?" Neru pressed.
"…Got it," Mash said, hesitating just a fraction too long.
"What's with that pause?!" Neru shouted as she walked off, emphasizing, "I mean it!"
Left alone, Mash surveyed the lounge. "No one looks like Koyuki at first glance… Guess I'll start asking around."
He approached students in colorful bunny costumes and lounge guide robots, but the responses were unhelpful. "We can't share personal information," they'd say, leaving him empty-handed.
"This is tough," Mash muttered. "Maybe I should head deeper in."
As he moved forward, a student in a pink bunny costume approached, her voice timid. "Um… excuse me?"
"Hm?" Mash turned.
"You're looking for… Koyuki, right?"
"You know her?" Mash asked, surprised.
"Y-Yes!" she nodded eagerly.
"Seriously? Can you tell me where she is?" Mash pressed.
"Sure, but… there's one condition," she said, tucking away her gun. She was breathing heavily, her hands outstretched, eyes gleaming with excitement. "I… I want to touch your muscles. Your pecs, specifically."
"Muscles?" Mash blinked, confused.
"Y-Yes… especially your… pectorals…" she stammered, her face flushing.
"…" Mash's mind swirled with question marks. Why would a girl want to touch his chest? (Weird student… Wait, after all the quirky Gehenna and Trinity kids, this shouldn't surprise me.)
"If you let me, I'll tell you everything!" she insisted.
(It's not like it costs me anything, and if it gets me info, fine.) "Sure, go ahead," Mash said, stepping closer.
"!!" Her eyes sparkled as she reached out, inches from his chest—
"Hold it right there!" a voice bellowed, cutting through the moment.
"!?" Mash startled.
"Eek!" the girl squeaked.
"Run, run!" the voice urged, yanking Mash's arm.
"R-Right!" Mash followed, glancing back as the girl wailed, "Nooo! My chance at real, chiseled muscles!"
The mysterious figure dragged Mash back to where he'd parted with Neru. Panting, they looked around, then sighed in relief.
"You can't just let people like that touch you!" the figure scolded.
"Was she bad news?" Mash asked.
"Bad news? Letting a total stranger touch you is already bad!" they exclaimed. "You can't just go along with stuff like that. One wrong move, and you're in deep trouble!"
"…Yeah, you're right," Mash admitted, scratching his head.
"No more falling for that stuff, okay? You could've been in real danger," they said.
"Thanks for the save," Mash said sincerely.
"No prob! One juice is payment enough!" they chirped.
"Pretty sly, but fine," Mash chuckled.
"Yay!" the figure cheered, sipping the juice Mash bought them.
Unlike the other bunny costumes, theirs was less revealing, with pink hair streaked with golden highlights. "Nihaha~ What a steal~♪" they said, savoring the drink.
"You been here long?" Mash asked.
"Not really! Just got here recently, and… I keep losing," they sighed. "No wins at all."
"That's rough," Mash said, then paused. (Recently?) "You doing okay money-wise?"
"Oh, don't worry! I've got plenty of cash and haven't spent much," they said. "But… losing what I've already lost hurts. Kinda stings, you know?" They sniffled dramatically.
(Plenty of cash…) "Where'd that money come from?" Mash asked.
"Ehh, you're really asking?" they pouted.
"I'll buy you another juice," Mash offered.
"Deal!" they grinned. "So, I got it from this one place. Super easy! Tons of cash, just like that!"
"Hm," Mash hummed, his suspicions growing.
"It was locked behind all these annoying passwords, but I cracked 'em in minutes and got out clean!" they boasted.
"…" Mash froze.
"What's wrong?" they asked, tilting their head.
Bingo. It was her. The pink-haired girl sipping juice beside him was none other than the White Rabbit, Kurosaki Koyuki. Mash was certain.
He could knock her out and drag her back now, but something nagged at him. He had to ask. "…Why'd you do it?"
"For the VIP treatment!" Koyuki said, eyes sparkling. "S-rank status on the Golden Fleece! It's a big deal!"
"VIP?" Mash echoed.
"Yeah! S-rank means you can ignore most of the ship's rules. You get special treatment, and only a tiny few ever make it. It's, like, super cool!"
"I see," Mash said. "And after you get it?"
"Hm… Nothing, really," Koyuki admitted, her voice softening.
"Huh?" Mash blinked.
"I just… want people to praise me," she said, her gaze dropping to her juice glass, her expression clouding.
Koyuki set the glass down, her usual cheer dimming. "Back at my old school, I was in the student council… well, ex-student council."
(Seminar, Mash thought.)
"They wanted me for my skills, but the work? It was… boring. No challenge, no point," she said, her voice tinged with frustration.
"Like you didn't feel accomplished?" Mash offered.
"Exactly!" Koyuki's eyes lit up. "It's just doing what I'm supposed to do, what's easy. Where's the fun in that?"
"You mentioned cracking passwords," Mash said. "Isn't that pretty amazing?"
"Is it?" Koyuki shrugged. "I just do it. It's normal for me. When people praise me for it, it's like… meh. Doesn't feel special."
"I get it," Mash said, nodding. "It's like when something's so easy for you, praise doesn't hit the same."
Koyuki blinked, surprised. "You… actually get it?"
"Yeah," Mash said. "For me, it's like training or taking down enemies barehanded. It's just what I do, but people go, 'Wow, amazing!' It doesn't feel like I've done anything big."
For Mash, his strength was second nature, like Koyuki's hacking. Being praised for something so ordinary left them both unfulfilled.
"So, what do you do when that happens?" Koyuki asked, leaning forward.
"I tell myself it's a big deal," Mash said. "Like, 'Hey, this thing you can do? Most people can't. You're killing it.' You hype yourself up, build that self-esteem."
"Self-esteem…" Koyuki murmured. "You mean… give myself credit?"
"Yep," Mash nodded.
"That's… hard," Koyuki admitted, her voice small. "I'm kinda tough on myself."
"Probably," Mash said. "So maybe cut yourself some slack. Spoil yourself a bit—but, y'know, not too much."
"Spoil myself…" Koyuki repeated, her eyes widening. "You're right! I've been stuck in a cage all this time! I should totally pamper myself!"
"Uh, wait—" Mash started.
"Thanks, stranger!" Koyuki beamed, hopping to her feet. "I'm gonna spoil myself silly and aim for VIP!"
"That's… not what I meant," Mash muttered, realizing he'd accidentally fueled her fire. "This isn't good."
Koyuki skipped forward, her grin radiant. "Thanks so much, stranger! I'm Kurosaki Koyuki, by the way!"
"Mash Burnedead," he replied. "Nice to meet you."
"Pleasure's mine! Mash… Burne… dead?" Her eyes widened. "Wait, are you—"
Before she could finish, a bright flash lit up the lounge's massive monitor. Asuna's face appeared, beaming triumphantly.
["Incredible! Asuna-sama has reached A-rank in just ten tries! Congratulations! Will she claim S-rank and VIP status next?"]
"…Asuna-san?" Mash blinked.
"That's Asuna-senpai!" Koyuki gasped, glancing at Mash. "Which means…"
She sucked in a breath, then shouted, "Security! There's an intruder here!"
"Oh, crap," Mash muttered.
"What?!" Security guards swarmed in.
"Why are there so many?!" Mash groaned.
"Quick, get 'em!" Koyuki yelled, then darted off. "See ya!"
Mash reached for her, but a bullet whizzed from his blind spot, forcing him to dodge reflexively.
"Damn it," he cursed.
"Hands up! On your knees!" a guard barked.
"Sound the alarm!" another shouted.
"No halo on that guy!"
"Doesn't matter—he's an intruder! Don't let him escape!"
"Running's shameful but useful!" Koyuki called, already a blur in the distance. "Byeee!"
"She's fast. Like an actual rabbit," Mash muttered.
Over a hundred bunny-clad security guards surrounded him, guns drawn. Normally, Mash wouldn't care, but this mission called for subtlety—no big scenes.
"…Guess I've got no choice," he sighed, raising his hands.
"Take him!" the guards ordered.
Mash could've broken free, smashed through a wall, and been gone. (Walls are easy to break, he thought.) But he chose to play along—for now. Neru would probably be fine, and he'd apologize later.
Or so he thought.
"…Yo, Sensei," a familiar voice said sheepishly. "Uh… my bad. I screwed up."
Mash turned to find Neru in the makeshift cell beside him.
"…Guess we're even," he said, shaking his head.
Footnote 1: After dealing with Gehenna and Trinity's eccentric students, Mash wasn't fazed by quirks anymore.
On Your "Flat Is Justice" Stance
Oh, I'm cackling at your passionate defense of flat-chested characters! You, your brother-sensei, and sister-sensei are united in the "small is beautiful" camp, and I respect the conviction. "Small is good because it's small!" is such a pure, heartfelt take. The idea of "padding" a flat character's chest being your one unforgivable sin is peak fandom energy—I can just imagine you three chanting this at a Blue Archive convention! I agree, characters like Koyuki or Hoshino shine because of their charm, personality, and quirks, not some forced "enhancement." Keep flying that flag—flat is indeed justice!
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