“Who’s there?” Usagi called out into the darkness. It was past midnight and she hated the fact that she had to be out here at the park at this time. But, this had to be done. She had no choice. Out of the thicket, one figure stepped out. Her long dark hair was unmistakable. Rei.
“You finally decided to show up?” Rei called out to her from within the darkness.
Another figure stepped out of the shadows beside Rei. Minako. “We didn’t think you’d actually have the guts to come.”
A tall, ponytailed figure appeared out apart from the two girls. Since the figure’s ponytail was at the top of the head, not to mention that the figure was definitely feminine, Usagi could tell that it was Makoto. “There is something that we want you to do for us.”
“And what’s that?” Usagi shot back indignantly.
A short-haired figure came out beside Makoto. Ami. “We want you to step down from being our leader and hand over your crystal and your wand.”
“If you don’t,” a male voice said threateningly from behind Usagi, “we’ll be forced to take them.” She spun around to see Ryoku looming over her, staring balefully down at her. As frightening as he was, she forced herself to appear calm and in control of her apprehension.
“Even you’re against me, Ryo-kun?” Usagi said, backing away from him. “I am your leader. The Silver Crystal and the Crescent Moon Wand belong to me. You can’t have them.”
“Then, we’ll have to take it from you,” Rei said and brought out her transformation pen. “Mars power, make up!”
“Venus power, make up!”
“Jupiter power, make up!”
“Mercury power, make up!”
“You shouldn’t have resisted,” Ryoku muttered and brought out his Knight swords. “I didn’t want to do this, but this is out of my hands now. Knight swords power!”
“Moon prism power, make up!”
“Prepare to die, Sailor Moon!” Mars shouted.
Sailor Knight glanced toward Mars and raised a questioning eyebrow. She just shrugged and gestured for him to go with it. If I didn’t know better, I’d think she was enjoying this.…
Sailor Moon turned and ran with everyone quick on her heels. They chased her for a while, but finally managed to surround her.
“There’s nowhere to run to now, Sailor Moon,” Jupiter stated.
“Give it up,” Venus added.
“No, I won’t,” Sailor Moon retorted.
“I see,” Mercury said reluctantly. “We’ve got no choice, then.”
“If you refuse to cooperate, Moon,” Knight said coldly, “then we will force you to.”
“Bye, little fool,” Mars declared. “On behalf of Mars, I’ll lynch you!”
“Isn’t that a little extreme?” Knight muttered quietly aside to Mars.
“Shut up, Knight!” she snapped back just as quietly. “I know what I’m doing!”
“If you insist…,” he replied skeptically.
“Fire soul!” she shouted, aiming her fireball directly for Sailor Moon. By accident, she had made her fireball a little too large and ended up roasting the feet of not only Sailor Moon, but all of the other Sailor Scouts except for herself and Knight, who was standing beside her.
“Hey, watch where you fire that thing!” Jupiter shouted angrily.
“Oopsie…,” Mars said sheepishly.
“Nice aim, Sureshot,” Knight commented dryly as he crossed his arms across his chest.
From up in the treetops, a dark, silent figure quietly watched for a while longer, then disappeared into the night. Only then did Knight turn in that direction and grin to himself.
The crystal in front of Beryl began to glow with a brilliant white light. As it increased in its intensity, Beryl and Kunzite had to shield their eyes from the bright emanation. Just as quickly as it flared up, the light died down back into nothing.
“Another strange energy surge,” Beryl muttered.
“That has to have been the fifth one now,” Kunzite added. “There may be something wrong with the Silver Crystal.”
“What?”
“We will find the answer very soon. Oniwabandara, are you there?” he called over his shoulder. At his summons, a light brown-haired figure in a black ninja outfit rose from within the floor. Her face was covered up to the eyes, and her hair was held away from her face by an orange bandanna.
“Here, sir,” she replied with a bow as she fully surfaced.
“So, have you found the cause of the abnormal energy fluctuations?”
As a reply, Oniwabandara produced a pair of photos from thin air and flung them toward Kunzite and Beryl. Each recipient took their copy and examined the picture: blank.
“What’s this?” Beryl demanded.
Oniwabandara brought her hands together and formed a rectangle with the thumbs and index fingers of both hands in front of her eyes. As she blinked, a picture then formed on the photos: Sailor Moon being attacked by all five of the other Sailor Scouts.
“The source of the energy fluctuations was the Sailor Scouts after all,” she explained. “It is caused by Sailor Moon fighting the other Scouts.”
“Sailor Moon and the other Scouts?” Beryl repeated thoughtfully. “Are they indeed fighting each other, or is this a trick? What do you make of this, Kunzite?”
Kunzite gave the photo a careful scrutiny. “May I have some time?”
“Very well,” she assented.
“Continue with your investigation,” he ordered. Oniwabandara bowed and sank into the floor.
A crash and a sounding alarm woke Naru and her mother from a sound sleep. They each grabbed a random object and rushed downstairs from their apartment and into their jewelry store, where Oniwabandara was busy rummaging through a jewelry drawer and pulling out random necklaces and rings.
“Who’s there?” Naru shouted, brandishing a frying pan while her mother held a golf club in her hands.
“A thief!” her mother exclaimed as Oniwabandara turned toward them. “Naru, call the police!”
“You aren’t going anywhere,” she stated as she flung several shuriken, pinning Naru and her mother to the wall behind them.
“Hold it!” Sailor Moon shouted, interrupting Oniwabandara as she turned to leave. “I’m the Sailor Warrior fighting for love and justice, Sailor Moon! On behalf of the Moon….”
“Hey, Sailor Moon, could I have a word with you?” Mars interrupted irritably with the other Scouts standing behind her.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Sailor Moon retorted.
“We’re supposed to be fighting as one, remember?” Mars snapped back.
“I am one!” Sailor Moon shot back.
“What are you doing here?” Jupiter growled, scowling.
“You’re in our way,” Venus added, frowning as well.
“I detected this incident first,” Mercury interjected.
“She probably eavesdropped on us,” Mars remarked.
“Stop treating me like a thief!” Sailor Moon shouted at Mars. Her gaze settled on Knight, who had remained aloof and silent while the others said their piece, just staring at her with his arms folded. “And you!” she shouted, poking at him. “Aren’t you going to say anything?” He continued to stare unblinkingly at her. “Well?” He continued his silent stare until she uneasily backed away from him.
“Will you stay quiet?” Mercury requested.
“Get out of our way!” Mars demanded.
“You get out of my way!” Sailor Moon ordered back, and the squabble began while the other Sailor Scouts ignored them. During the commotion, Oniwabandara slipped away and hid behind one of the pillars at the end of the room, just as a photographer came out from hiding and started taking pictures of Sailor Moon and Mars arguing.
“What’s going on here?” Mars demanded as the Scouts shielded their eyes from the bright light of the camera’s flash bulb.
“The Sailor Scouts quarrel at the scene of a crime,” she said almost excitedly to herself as she took one picture after another. “This’s gonna be a scoop!”
“Who are you, anyway?” Sailor Moon demanded irritably.
“I’m a freelance writer for the weekly Dokkiri,” she replied and continued to take pictures.
“Hey! Quit it!” Jupiter snapped angrily as the flashes continued to blind everyone.
“Weekly Dokkiri?” Venus repeated. “Isn’t that the tabloid magazine that makes up all those stories?”
“You got it,” the reporter agreed and brought out a tape recorder from her back pocket. “And what’s the cause of this fight?”
“We were just kidding!” Sailor Moon explained nervously as she gave a small laugh. “Why would the Sailor Scouts fight against each other?” As she turned toward the others, as if to get them to agree with her, they all turned away from her in indignation, except Sailor Knight, who continued to stare balefully at her.
“Why, indeed…,” she murmured to herself as Sailor Moon’s expression turned to one of mortification. “I know! Is it because Sailor Moon always fouls up?” she asked, turning her tape recorder toward the other Scouts. “Or, perhaps you girls are fighting over a boyfriend?”
“Now that’s really dumb,” Jupiter remarked as she and the others started to leave.
“Excuse me,” Venus added.
“Now I remember, where’s the youma?” Mars asked.
“It left while you were arguing with Sailor Moon,” Mercury pointed out.
“Wait!” the reporter exclaimed, catching Sailor Knight by the shoulder and pointing the tape recorder toward him. “What about you? As the only male Sailor Scout, don’t you have anything to say? About Sailor Moon and the other Scouts? You seem to be the only one not participating in this dispute between them.”
“I have something to say,” Knight said coldly as he pointed one of his swords under her chin. “You remove this thing from my face and I’ll remove this from yours.” She swallowed nervously as she promptly removed the recorder and backed away as he turned to leave.
“Hey, come on!” she continued persistently. “Can’t you give just one little statement?” she asked as she followed the others out of the jewelry store.
“Uh, Sailor Moon?” Naru called out as the door closed behind everyone. Sailor Moon turned around to see that Naru and her mother were still pinned to the wall. “A little help please?”
“Oh!” Sailor Moon replied sheepishly. “Sorry about that.”
From outside, the reporter watched Sailor Moon through the window.
From the roof across the street, Luna and Artemis watched the reporter.
“And they couldn’t even catch the thief,” Naru finished as she and Usagi were walking on their way home from school. “They were acting so weird.”
“What do you mean?” Usagi asked.
“Sailor Moon and the other Scouts seemed to be fighting,” Naru said in a slightly worried tone.
“No way,” Usagi replied dissemblingly. “I don’t know about the others, but Sailor Moon is pretty and kind. There’s no way she’d fight.”
“Really?”
Usagi gave a small laugh. “Trust me.”
“I want to hear more about that,” the reporter from last night interjected as she thrust her tape recorder toward her.
Oh boy…, Usagi thought to herself as she backed into the stone wall behind her.
“Let me introduce myself,” the reporter continued. “I’m Asahina Nana, freelance writer. Nice to meet you.
“So, you seem to be very close to Sailor Moon,” Nana continued.
“Sort of,” Usagi replied meekly.
“How do you know that Sailor Moon wouldn’t fight?” she inquired insistently. “Is there any reason behind that?”
“Um… Naru-chan!” Usagi said, pointing toward her friend. “I hear you were saved by Sailor Moon lots of times.”
Naru turned to her friend in surprise as Nana rounded on her. “Usagi-chan…,” she muttered under her breath as she noticed her tiptoeing away.
“Did you talk with Sailor Moon last night?” she asked quickly. “Was she talking badly about the other Scouts?”
“I’m in a hurry,” Naru replied as she inched her way past Nana. “Usagi-chan, you deserter!!!”
“Call me when you find out something!” Nana shouted out to them as they ran.
She’s too nosy…, Usagi thought to herself as she ran.
Nana gazed after them for a moment longer, then turned and left. As she turned the corner, Luna stepped out of the shadow of a part of the wall as Artemis leaped down off the top of the wall. Both cats exchanged a look, then followed the reporter.
Later that night, the other Sailor Scouts chased Sailor Moon onto the shrine grounds. Sailor Moon fled into the trees with the others close behind. She dashed around a cluster of trees, then leaped into a small clearing, pausing as she listened for her pursuers.
As she heard the bush rustle to her right, she leaped to her left, avoiding Jupiter’s kick to the head. Just as she landed, she had to jump back to avoid Venus’s attack, but stopped short to avoid Mercury trying to hit her over the head with a very thick book. She began to run away again, but was stopped short when a sword struck the ground in front of her, then behind her as she backed away from the first one. Knight then leaped out of the treetops and tried to punch her as she was recovering her balance, but missed as she dived forward and rolled out of the way. Mars was the last to attack as she leaped at Sailor Moon and kicked her in the behind, sending her flying a few feet and landing her on her face.
“That hurts!” Sailor Moon complained as she gingerly rubbed her behind where Mars kicked her. The others paused and looked at her with confused expressions on their faces. “Mars seriously kicked me!” she exclaimed as she stood up.
“What’s the point of practice if we don’t do it seriously?” Mars retorted, folding her arms indignantly.
“But, that kick was loaded with hatred,” Sailor Moon shot back. “Mars, are you trying….”
“What’re you talking about?” Mars cut her off. “You’re the one who started this plan. Quit whining!”
“I’m not whining!” Sailor Moon snapped. “I’m going to save Tuxedo Kamen-sama from the hands of the Dark Kingdom!”
“To do that, we’ve gotta make it look like we’re really fighting.”
“Yeah, but that last kick really hurt,” Sailor Moon whined.
“Stop that!” Mars retorted. “If you don’t take this seriously, then they won’t take you back to their hideout.”
“I know…,” Sailor Moon sighed.
“Mars is right,” Luna pointed out. “I personally wouldn’t take a risk like this, but you were the one that insisted.”
“All right, already!” Sailor Moon said impatiently and folded her arms. Everyone else just stared at her and sighed tiredly.
“Artemis, did you find out anything about the tabloid writer who showed up at the jewelry shop?” Minako asked after everyone gathered at the shrine the next day.
“She’s suspicious,” he replied. “I have a bad feeling about her….”
“No kidding?” Usagi asked.
“What?!?” Minako exclaimed as she examined the magazine in her hands. “It’s already in the magazine?” The others all looked over Minako’s shoulders as they looked at the picture: Sailor Moon and Sailor Mars in a shouting match as the other Sailor Scouts stood behind Mars, ignoring the two of them.
“She works fast,” Ryoku remarked dryly.
“I look so ugly in that picture,” Usagi commented.
“You looked that way from the start,” Rei remarked.
“Say what?” Usagi retorted indignantly.
“Stop that,” Ryoku ordered sternly, folding his arms and glaring at them. They reluctantly acquiesced and turned away from each other with an indignant snort.
“Could be the camera angle,” Minako added, trying to appease Usagi’s indignity so she’d be quiet.
“Her stories began to sell just a while ago,” Artemis continued. “She’s had scoops in politics, economy, and entertainment.”
“It makes you wonder why someone with a résumé full of big scoops would want with such a small thing as a jewelry store robbery and squabbling Sailor Scouts,” Ryoku mentioned pointedly.
“She might’ve been possessed by one of the Dark Kingdom’s youma,” Minako concluded.
“It’s a good possibility,” he agreed.
“All right!” Usagi cheered. “The Dark Kingdom approached me! That means my plan is working!”
“It could be coincidence,” Ami pointed out.
“Or, it could be a counterplot,” Ryoku added.
“A what?” Usagi asked, pausing in her cheer and glancing questioningly toward him.
“The enemy pretends to fall for your trap while trying to maneuver you into their trap,” he explained. “It’s a very subtle trap; you could walk right into it without realizing it until it’s too late. That kind of trap is very hard to spot, even if you’re looking for it.”
“Uh….”
“Anyway, it’s time for the finale,” Makoto declared.
“This’s going to be really dangerous,” Luna told Usagi. “Are you sure you want to continue?”
“I think so,” Usagi said nervously.
“Good,” Ryoku approved with a nod.
“We’ll be standing by, should you need us,” Makoto added.
“That should be guaranteed, since Usagi-chan’s involved,” Rei remarked snidely.
“And what exactly is that supposed to mean?” Usagi demanded angrily. “I’m beginning to think that you really do want me to give up being a Sailor Scout so you can take over the leadership!” Rei stared at Usagi in utter astonishment as the others wore chagrined expressions on their faces.
“Usagi-chan, I think that’s going a little too far…,” Minako replied.
“She’s always been hard on me,” Usagi continued. “And besides, it’s not like she hasn’t made it clear that she wanted to be leader.”
“I’m hard on you, because you deserve it!” Rei countered. “And I used to want to be the leader. That’s all in the past!”
“Oh, yeah?” Usagi said, glaring at Rei. She responded by sticking out her tongue and Usagi soon followed suit.
Everyone else just sighed in total vexation and sweatdropped. “Now we’ve got a real fight going on,” Ami muttered tiredly. “Anyone have any aspirin?”
“They haven’t developed aspirin strong enough for the headaches those two give us,” Ryoku remarked.
Later that day, Usagi and Luna set out to find Asahina Nana. After getting the address from Naru, who the tabloid writer had tried to talk to again, she arrived in front of a large, ostentatious apartment building. It was three stories tall and snowy white, with a tall brick wall surrounding the enormous building. The only entrance was the gate in front.
“Here it is,” Usagi said as she rechecked the address written on the paper Naru gave her, then glanced up at the building. “These apartments are like one huge mansion! I envy her, being able to live in a place like this.”
“Well, stop gawking and go inside,” Luna chided.
“Oh, yeah. Right,” Usagi agreed. She nervously glanced up toward the building, back down toward the entrance, and then over toward the gate. Just behind the gate, five heads popped into view: Ryoku at the top, then Makoto, Rei, Minako, and Ami on the bottom. Each one of them gave her a ‘V’ signal for encouragement. She sighed to herself, steeled her nerves, and went inside with Luna riding on her right shoulder.
After climbing a set of stairs, she headed down the hallway toward Nana’s apartment door and knocked.
“Hello?” Nana called out as she opened the door.
“Sailor Moon wanted me to give this to you,” Usagi said as she handed her a pink envelope with a small drawing of Sailor Moon on the back.
“From Sailor Moon?” she repeated as she accepted the envelope and opened it, taking out the note inside and reading it aloud as Usagi and Luna.
“As of today, I will quit being the Sailor Warrior fighting for love and justice. I don’t want to fight with the other Sailor Scouts. I want to make announcements, so please come to the Juuban Cemetery at eleven tonight.”
“But, why did you get this?” she asked as she finished reading the note.
Usagi started in surprise for a moment, then began to laugh nervously. “People tell me I’m so reliable,” she replied while still laughing.
Luna gave her a cynical look. What a liar.
“Thank you,” Nana said appreciatively. “Now, I’ll get another big scoop.”
“I’m happy for you,” Usagi replied, still laughing nervously. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll just be on my way. Bye!” With that she jogged down the hall and down the stairs. Nana watched her leave with a small, smug grin on her face.
“Oniwabandara, where are you?” Kunzite called. She instantly appeared behind and above him, hanging upside down with her arms crossed over her chest.
“You called?”
“Have you made any progress yet?” he asked, turning to face her.
She wordlessly produced Sailor Moon’s letter and flung it toward him. Kunzite grabbed the letter and read it. “I see,” he murmured to himself as he held up the letter and set it aflame in a blue blaze.
“It seems to be true that Sailor Moon has disagreements with the other Sailor Scouts,” she added.
Kunzite grinned sinisterly. I suppose it’s my turn to be up on stage.…
“It’s time,” Sailor Moon whispered to herself as she stood waiting underneath the small clock tower in the middle of Juuban Cemetery. A few dark clouds slowly passed overhead, occasionally blocking some of the moonlight and adding to the eerie scenery. Her eyes nervously darted left and right, searching for any sign of Nana.
Behind her, Oniwabandara rose from underneath the ground, unnoticed. “Thank you for the letter,” she said and quickly reverted back into Nana before Sailor Moon could turn toward her.
“How’d you get here?” she asked when she saw Nana standing behind her and turned to face her.
“Is it true that you’ll be splitting up with the other Scouts?” Nana asked back, not answering Sailor Moon’s question.
“You bet,” Sailor Moon replied. “I don’t want to see their faces again.”
“Oh, really?” Nana asked, grinning.
“That’s right.”
“Honestly?”
“Yes. I’ve made up my mind about that.”
Nana’s grin widened as it took on a dark tone. “I see. In that case….” Nana raised one hand and moved it horizontally in front of her face from right to left and dropped it to her side. The moment her hand dropped, her eyes started to glow with a red glow. She leaped into the air and reverted to Oniwabandara.
“The burglar from the jewelry store!” Sailor Moon exclaimed in surprise.
Oniwabandara floated back to the ground and glanced upward. Sailor Moon followed her gaze to the top of the clock tower just as Kunzite appeared at that very spot.
“You!” Sailor Moon shouted. “I never made any promise to see you! I’m supposed to have an interview.”
“It’s been canceled,” Oniwabandara replied.
“It has?”
“I’ve heard you have disagreements with the other Sailor Scouts,” Kunzite told her. “I have a proposition for you: If you join our side, you can see Endymion anytime you like.”
“You must be joking!” she retorted. “Just because I’ve quit the Sailor Scouts, it doesn’t mean that I’m gonna work for you!”
“I would’ve brought him, to show my sincerity,” Kunzite continued as if she had never spoken, “but he cannot be moved for certain reasons.”
Sailor Moon’s expression turned to one of concern. “Is he sick?”
“I wonder…,” he replied, grinning smugly and crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m sure he’ll feel much better if you were to join him, but I’m asking for the impossible in having you join our side. Do you wish to visit him?”
“Will you take me there?”
“Of course. But, there’s one condition.”
“Condition?”
Kunzite leaped down off the tower and landed beside Oniwabandara. “Hand over the Silver Crystal,” he told her. “If you miss this opportunity, then you may never see Endymion again.”
Tuxedo Kamen-sama must be sick, Sailor Moon thought worriedly to herself. What do I do?
“What is your answer?” Oniwabandara demanded.
Sailor Moon’s expression turned resolute as she made her decision. “I will. But, I want to see him first.”
From within the bushes a short distance away, the other Sailor Scouts watched for any sign that they would be needed. “So, it was a trap,” Knight muttered quietly.
Oniwabandara glanced behind her out of the corner of her eye to where the Scouts were hiding. Kunzite glanced behind him as well. “The plan is working,” he said aside to her.
“Now that it’s decided, let’s go,” Sailor Moon said determinedly. “Who cares about the other Sailor Scouts?”
“That is a very good attitude,” Kunzite replied and extended his right arm out in front of him. A gust of wind blew at Sailor Moon, causing her to cross her arms protectively in front of her. The moment the wind stopped, she lowered her arms and glanced behind her. Not only did she gasp in surprise, but so did the other hiding Sailor Scouts.
Behind Sailor Moon was a black portal. The very gateway to the Dark Kingdom that they had been searching for.
“That’s…,” Venus murmured softly.
“Mercury, can you get a reading on that?” Mars requested.
“I’m already on it,” Mercury replied as she brought out her minicomputer and began analyzing the dark gateway.
“This is the gateway to the Dark Kingdom,” Kunzite told Sailor Moon.
“It looks so creepy…,” Sailor Moon remarked apprehensively.
“Then, you will not go?” he taunted with a smirk.
“I will!” she retorted angrily. “You’re so mean, like Sailor Mars!”
“Why does she have to refer to me all the time?” Mars growled angrily.
“Calm down,” Jupiter said with an amused smirk similar to the ones the other Scouts were wearing. “It’s all part of the plan.”
“Just keep watching,” Knight told her. “There’s still a chance this could all go awry. She’ll need us then.”
Sailor Moon continued to stare uneasily at the black portal. According to Kunzite, on the other side of this gateway was the Dark Kingdom… and Mamoru. There was still a chance that he was lying about everything, but he could just as easily be telling the truth. Either way, there was only one way to be certain and either way, she would save him. Tuxedo Kamen-sama, I’ll be right there.
“Hand over the Silver Crystal,” Kunzite ordered.
“After I see Tuxedo Kamen-sama,” Sailor Moon replied.
“It’s too late for that. Now, die!” Oniwabandara told her as she whipped a long, orange ribbon at her, binding her hands to her neck. “We’ll look for the Silver Crystal afterwards.”
“I didn’t bring it,” Sailor Moon gasped as she fought to loosen the grip around her neck enough for her to breathe.
“What?”
Each of the Scouts began to shift restlessly. Knight began fingering the hilt of one of his Knight Swords, eager to use it. Mercury continued to scan the gateway, but her attention was split between her work and Sailor Moon’s plight. Jupiter leaned forward, as if she were about to leap out of the bushes and rush to Sailor Moon’s aid, but was halted by an arm stuck out in front of her.
“Hold it,” Mars said warningly. “If we go now, everything we’ve done until now will have been for nothing.”
“Fool,” Kunzite said smugly. “Once you die, nobody will be able to use the Silver Crystal. You have brought your own downfall, Sailor Moon.
The other Sailor Scouts were growing more tense. “Don’t do it, everybody,” Venus cautioned.
As Sailor Moon continued to struggle against the ribbon wrapped tightly around her neck, she noticed Kunzite glance behind him toward the bushes. He must be testing to see if Sailor Mars or any of the others might come rescue me, she realized. No. Don’t come.
The tension within the other Scouts was growing even stronger, along with the urge to save their leader.
“To hell with the plan!” Knight muttered as he and Jupiter rose to their feet simultaneously, as if they had the same thought at the same time.
Jupiter and her brother exchanged glances and nodded. “Let’s go,” she agreed, just as Mercury and Venus rose to join them.
“Don’t!” Mars asserted as she rose to her feet and barred the way with her arms outstretched to either side.
“You’re still at it?” Jupiter demanded angrily. “Outta my way!”
“Mars, please,” Mercury entreated, “the plan has failed. We’ve got to go help Sailor Moon!”
“Mars, do you really hate Sailor Moon so much as to let this happen?” Knight asked pointedly, giving her a questioning stare.
Mars turned her head away from his probing stare and wordlessly held up the Crescent Moon Wand with the Silver Crystal still attached to it.
“That’s…,” Venus breathed in a total shock mirrored by the other Scouts.
“I wouldn’t get something this important from somebody I hate,” Mars replied, still not meeting anyone’s gaze.
“Sailor Mars feels the same as we do,” Venus said apologetically.
“I’m sorry,” Jupiter apologized.
“So am I,” Knight added. “But, Mars, do you really think that this plan can actually be salvaged?”
“Die, Sailor Moon,” Oniwabandara sneered as she began to pull harder on the ribbon, causing Sailor Moon to fall to her knees.
Don’t come out, everybody, Sailor Moon pleaded mentally.
The other Scouts watched as their leader was slowly being strangled, desperately wanting to save her. Mars clutched the Crescent Moon Wand in her right hand, constantly reminding herself that Sailor Moon wouldn’t want her to come out of hiding. The longer Mars waited, the stronger the urge to help her friend grew. Her hand tightened on the handle of the wand as she fought the urge, her grip threatening to either crush the handle or sprain every muscle in her hand. The mental pressure built up until it finally broke her resolve.
“I can’t take it anymore!” Mars shouted desperately and jumped to her feet as she leapt to Sailor Moon’s aid. Mercury and Venus quickly followed suit.
“It’s about time,” Knight and Jupiter remarked in unison and leaped off after the others.
“Hold it right there!” five voices ordered in unison.
“No more playing around,” Mars declared.
“Say your prayers,” Jupiter added.
“We won’t let you harm Sailor Moon any further,” Knight stated.
“Everyone…,” Sailor Moon murmured in relief.
“You fools,” Kunzite scoffed. “I’ve already seen through your idiotic setup.”
Each of the Sailor Scouts sweatdropped in chagrin. “I guess you aren’t quite as stupid as we thought you were,” Knight answered back.
“At any rate, let go of Sailor Moon,” Mars ordered. “Fire soul!” The fireball headed straight for Oniwabandara and struck the ribbon, incinerating it instantly. Sailor Moon fell to the ground and coughed as she filled her lungs with air.
“Supreme….”
“Crescent….”
“Earth….”
“…thunder!”
“…beam!”
“…thrust!”
The three attacks combined into one blast aimed at Kunzite, who had taken to the air as Mars blasted Oniwabandara. He rapidly erected an energy shield in time to deflect the attack.
“If you wish to fool me, sharpen up your acting skills,” he shouted as he teleported away.
“And I thought we were pretty convincing,” Knight said indifferently.
“Get ready to die, Sailor Moon!” Oniwabandara shouted as she brought out a very long, curved dagger and slashed the air in front of her. “I’ll shred you to pieces!” she shouted and charged at her.
“No, you won’t!” Mars shouted as she flung the Crescent Moon Wand at Sailor Moon. She caught the wand and blocked the attack. A pulse of light flashed from the crystal on the wand, knocking the dagger out of Oniwabandara’s hand.
Undaunted, she brought her hands together in front of her and caused four extra images of her to appear at her sides. As one, all five raised their right hands, each with several shuriken held at the ready.
“Shabon spray!” Mercury shouted, raising a thick mist around the five Oniwabandaras.
“What is this?” they exclaimed in perfect unison.
“You’ll pay heftily for seeing through the setup I came up with after so many sleepless nights till I dropped!” Sailor Moon stated from within the fog.
“What are you blabbing about?” Mars asked.
“Anyway, on behalf of the Moon, I’ll punish you!”
“Infidel!” Oniwabandara shouted.
“Shut up!” Mars retorted. “Fire soul!” The fireball struck the ground under Oniwabandara, giving her a serious hot foot. Her concentration broken, the four extra images vanished.
“Now to finish you off,” Sailor Moon said, raising the Crescent Moon Wand overhead. “Moon healing escalation!” she shouted, rotating the wand in a large circle in front of her, ending above her head. As she held the wand above her head, a white glow emanated from the wand and covered the youma, returning her to her normal form. She then collapsed onto the ground.
“You did it,” Mars congratulated as she and the other Sailor Scouts gathered around their leader.
“Why did you come out?” Sailor Moon asked. “I could’ve handled everything by myself.”
“Because you were whining!” Mars retorted irritably.
“When did I whine?”
“Tonight, 11:16 and 28 seconds.”
“Hmm…. My watch must be three minutes slow,” Knight said thoughtfully to himself.
“You’re always so mean to me!” Sailor Moon shouted back. Mars stuck her tongue out at her and she quickly returned the gesture.
Each of the Scouts wore a similar expression of vexation on their faces.
“Don’t they ever get tired?” Jupiter muttered.
“Can somebody go stop them?” Venus pleaded.
“I did it last time,” Knight replied. “Whose turn is it now?”
Nana got to her feet and rushed over to the two tongue duelists, shoving between them. “I heard a rumor that the Sailor Scouts might split up?” she asked insistently. “Is it true?”
“Forget it!” Mars exclaimed.
“No comment,” Sailor Moon added.
To Chapter 41: The Past Returns