Chapter Text
“You guys got any plans?”
Day 1 of their apocalypse.
Three weeks have passed, and thirty-one people are still taking shelter inside the school, waiting for any news about a rescue. The entire building has been barricaded, and now they guard the entrance in case any survivors arrive. No one knows whether newcomers might be bitten, so trust has become a big problem.
Naegi Makoto is the only boy left among thirty girls after everything that happened to the rest of the students. It seems the others were evacuated long before they even realized what was happening.
“You guys got any plans?” someone asked.
Asahina Aoi repeated the question, wondering if anyone had suggestions—should they leave, or stay and wait in case the military was on the way?
She walked toward the window, catching sight of a survivor running down the road, chased by a horde of infected. Before she could react, Ikusaba Mukuro grabbed her shoulder and quickly pulled her back, shutting the window firmly.
“Don’t look out the window,” the soldier warned. “If those infected see us, they’ll come right for the building.”
“S-Sorry… I just saw a survivor running by—” Asahina stammered.
“Zombie,” Nanami Chiaki corrected softly.
She spoke like someone who knew what she was talking about—her experience coming not from real life, but from all the zombie games she’d played… just not too many.
“Zombie?!” Kuzuryuu Natsumi yelped.
“Shh! Keep your voice down,” Koizumi Mahiru whispered sharply as she shushed her. “They can hear us—unless this building is actually soundproof.”
“I don’t think there’s any soundproofing at all…” Kirigiri Kyouko informed her.
“Well… ahem.” Yukizome Chisa cleared her throat as she stepped in front of everyone.
“I know the situation we’re in. We can’t go outside until rescue teams find us. But we still have plenty of supplies, as long as the power doesn’t run out.”
Her calm voice helped bring everyone back under control.
“So… do we have any weapons prepared?” Maizono Sayaka asked.
“There are some in my room,” Ikusaba replied. “And Iruma-san can make more.”
“You’re damn right bitch! I can make weapons!” Iruma Miu snapped, tossing her hair. “But hey—do we even have a vehicle?”
“There’s a bus in the parking lot with our school logo,” Usami informed them for Gekkogahara Miaya “It’s parked just outside.”
“But how?!” Tsumiki Mikan cried. “D-Do we just point our fingers…?”
“No, Senpai,” Ikusaba replied calmly. “I’ll take my sniper rifle and use my silencer mode.”
“Okay, so here’s the plan,” Yukizome began. “We’ll head to the mall and check for any supplies we can still get. Some of you will have to go, and I know you’re all scared—so are we. But no matter what’s happening to our world, we have to survive. That’s our goal.”
“You’re right… but who’s going out?” Akamatsu Kaede asked, looking around for volunteers.
“Hmmm… I suppose Ikusaba-san, Pekoyama-san…” the housekeeper said as she scanned the group. “Who else?”
Harukawa Maki sighed, knowing she had no choice. “I’ll go. You already know my true Ultimate, right?”
“Yeah… and I can’t even move my feet right now,” Yumeno Himiko murmured, exhausted. “We barricaded the entire building… I feel like I’ve lost all my mana…”
“I’ll get the weapons,” the soldier said before heading out.
“Sensei… can I go too? I—I’m not leaving them,” Naegi volunteered.
“What!?”
Several girls reacted at once.
“No way! Naegi-onii, you’re not going out! We can’t risk losing you!”
“Hell no, stud! If you die, I’ll kick your ass!”
“Bo-chan…”
“I know you don’t want me to die,” Naegi said softly, “but I want to help them. It’s my job—my responsibility—to be the Ultimate Hope. Once we get out of here, we can continue our journey together.”
“He’s right,” Ogami Sakura rumbled, “but even so… we cannot allow you to go outside.”
“I know, Ogami-san,” Naegi insisted, “but you can trust me on this!”
Yukizome let out a soft sigh. “All right… but do you even know how to fight back?”
“I’m not sure,” Naegi admitted, “but I’ll try.”
After they finally reached an agreement, Ikusaba returned with all the weapons. As expected, Pekoyama Peko chose her real katana instead of the bamboo one—she trusted steel more than anything else.
Everyone began gearing up, equipping whatever armor they could find from the rooms they had searched earlier. Thankfully, no zombies had managed to get inside the school, so they were still safe… for now.
Those who were going out were Ikusaba, Harukawa, Pekoyama, and Naegi.
The rest would stay behind to protect the school.
“Are you sure you’re going to be okay out there?” Kimura Seiko asked, worry in her voice.
“We’ll be fine, Sensei,” Ikusaba reassured her. “As long as we’re armed and prepared, we should be good.”
“You better not leave Naegi-kun behind!” Maizono warned.
“And don’t let Makoto-chan diiie!” Mioda Ibuki wailed dramatically.
“Raahhh, you guys are such babies,” Natsumi muttered. “He’ll be fine.”
“I’ll be fine,” Naegi told the girls with a small smile.
“Ready,” Pekoyama said, gripping her katana.
They began removing the barricades blocking the front doors. Once the last plank came loose, the four of them stepped outside—and the moment they did, the others inside quickly closed the doors and rebuilt the barricade behind them.
The outside world was worse than they imagined.
A few dead bodies lay scattered across the ground, and a starving dog was tearing into a half-eaten pigeon. When the dog noticed the group—one boy and three girls—it froze for a moment, then instantly turned and ran away.
“Be careful,” Ikusaba warned them.
The other three nodded, moving slowly down the road. Every vehicle they passed was wrecked—some smashed, some burned, and a few blown apart entirely.
Ikusaba suddenly raised her hand, signaling them to stop. Her eyes locked onto a lone zombie standing motionless in the middle of the road.
Without a word, she drew her silenced gun, aimed, and fired.
A clean headshot.
The zombie collapsed instantly.
They continued walking, their footsteps quiet, not making a single unnecessary sound.
“I’ve never seen my life turn upside down like this…” Naegi whispered.
“I know, Naegi-sama…” Pekoyama whispered back.
They continued down the road until they reached a gas station. Pekoyama stepped forward, grabbed a nearby shopping cart, and used it to smash the window—her katana ready just in case.
Luckily, the alarm didn’t go off.
Inside, the shelves were still stocked. They quickly spread out: grabbing food, bottled water, snacks—anything useful. Harukawa moved straight to the small pharmacy section, sweeping all the medicine into her bag with practiced efficiency.
Then—
A faint sound.
Someone—or something—moving in the staff area.
Without exchanging a single word, all four of them froze and readied their weapons.
They moved in slowly, ready to strike—
But instead of a zombie, a person stepped into view. A girl in a blue stadium jacket, dirt-stained but alive.
Naegi’s eyes widened as he recognized the long hair.
“W-Wait a second… Hagakure Hiroki-san?!” he exclaimed. She was alive. She’d actually survived.
“Naegi-chi? Is that you?” she said as she stepped out of the staff room, gripping a metal bat in her hand.
“Ain’t that the con artist’s son?” the assassin whispered.
“You know my son?” Hiroki blinked in surprise.
They slowly lowered their weapons.
“Hagakure-san,” Pekoyama asked cautiously, “may I ask… did you get bitten?”
“Nope,” Hiroki replied. “Those things didn’t bite me. But I did realize something—those zombies beat the crap out of me.”
The four of them stared at her, stunned.
Zombies that don’t bite…
but attack like people?
Ikusaba narrowed her eyes. “That’s… not normal behavior.”
Harukawa gripped her weapon tighter. “So they’re not just mindless biters.”
Naegi swallowed. “Then what are we dealing with?”
A sudden noise behind them—
A zombie lunged straight at Naegi, not to bite, but to punch with wild, aggressive force.
Naegi stumbled back, barely blocking the blow.
“Naegi-kun!” Ikusaba shouted in shock.
“Ahhh—!!” Naegi cried out as the creature swung again.
“Beeeehhh!!” the aggressive zombie roared, wearing what looked like a torn business suit. It raised its fist for another brutal strike
But before it could land the hit, Pekoyama’s katana flashed.
*SHNK!*
Her blade slammed into the zombie’s nose, slicing straight through the bridge. The creature’s arm went limp, hanging uselessly as its strength vanished.
Pekoyama stepped forward, kicked the collapsing zombie, and sent its body tumbling outside the broken entrance.
“You okay, Naegi-sama?” She asked as she checked him for injuries.
“I’m fine… I’ve never seen a zombie do that before,” Naegi said, still catching his breath. “These ones… it’s like the Green Flu. They still look like living humans, just… contaminated. I guess it’s not as bad as I thought.”
He let out a shaky sigh of relief, grateful he’d been saved by the Ultimate Swordswoman.
“See!” the former delinquent exclaimed, eyes wide with surprise.
“We should leave immediately, before more of them show up!” Harukawa warned.
The group nodded in agreement. Grabbing their supplies, they ran as fast as they could, quickly making their way back to the safety of the school.
After they left, a strange creature in a hoodie lingered nearby, growling softly. It had been spying on them at the gas station, and once they were gone, it silently melted back into the shadows, disappearing without a trace...
“Wait… you’re telling me those zombies just punch and kick people? That doesn’t make any sense!” Iruma exclaimed, confused after Hagakure’s explanation.
“I know you might not get it,” She said, shrugging, “but these zombies… they still look human, and they’re really aggressive.”
“I'm headed to the Laboratory!”
Tsumiki knelt to check Naegi’s injuries. “Beloved… I-I knew you should’ve been careful! I-I’m so surprised you’re alive!” Her voice wavered with relief; she had almost lost him to the zombies.
“Me too, Senpai… sorry for making you worry. I’ll be more careful,” he said, scratching the back of his head.
“Stupid Naegi-kun! I know you got attacked by a zombie!” Maizono elbowed him sharply.
“Ouch! Sorry! I’ll be very careful next time… I just didn’t see it coming from my side,” he admitted.
“You’re saying they’re aggressive toward humans?” Asahina asked, curious and concerned.
“Yes,” Hagakure replied. “It’s been happening for weeks.”
“Well, in that case, it’s a good thing they don’t bite us. That means we should leave ASAP… but where are we gonna go?” Ando Ruruka asked nervously.
“The mall,” Kirigiri replied. “It shouldn’t be far. From there, we could make our way toward Shibuya Crossing.”
She paused, thinking ahead.
“And eventually… we’ll need to find a yacht.”
“As a matter of fact, I possess a yacht,” Sonia Nevermind informed them.
That got everyone's attention.
“That’s great, Sonia-senpai! But how are we supposed to avoid those zombies?” Shirogane Tsumugi asked.
“Easy,” Chabashira Tenko said confidently. “Just fight and kick their asses! Those degenerate zombies are weak—as long as there aren’t any special ones with abilities or… some smarter type.”
“Well, that's case..”
“We do have Ogami-chan. She’s the strongest person on the planet,” Chabashira added proudly.
“Yes. I am still the strongest,” Ogami agreed, “but we should still wear some kind of armor—books, padding, anything that can help.”
“Everyone, grab whatever you can. Bring anything useful,” Yukizome instructed. “I need to check on Iruma-san.” With that, she headed toward the Ultimate Inventor’s laboratory.
“Hai, Sensei!” the group answered.
“C’mon, Naegi-kun, we need to pick up some things.” Maizono grabbed his wrist and pulled him down a different hallway.
“Yeah! Makoto-chan, help Ibuki find some instruments!” Mioda chimed in, hurrying after them.
“Me too, senpai! I’ll help!” Akamatsu added enthusiastically.
The four of them split off in different directions, while the rest of the group began searching for materials to build makeshift armor.
Their objectives were clear: first, reach the mall; second, make it to Shibuya Crossing; and finally, find the yacht. But as they split up and moved forward, none of them knew what kinds of special infected were lurking out there, waiting for them in the shadows…
This will become a battle for survival against the infection, and with thirty-one people in their group, every step forward will be a challenge.
We might find out later...