Prologue.

At Shin’s home. Shin and Philuffy were at his bedroom. There, Shin was lying down on his bed and very weak.

“…You understand, Philuffy…?”

She held Shin’s hand with worry.

“Shin!”

“I… leave the rest… to you…”

Shin closed his eyes slowly and stopped moving as she tear up when Shin wasn’t moving anymore.

“Shin? Shin!! Nooooo!”

Prologue End.

At their campus. Philuffy was at their classroom, talking to Dice and Anna.

“And… That’s what happen.”

Dice sighed with disappointment.

“Did you just made a tragedy story of what happen to Shin? I just can’t believe that the Poison Paralysis skill is still in effect. Now that it spread to his whole body, he won’t be moving for the next 3 days unless it was cured by a Gear Skill.”

Dice was surprised when Anna was tearing up from Philuffy's story.

“Uuu~ It’s because of me… Shin became like that and… such a wonderful tragedy story, Philuffy.”

“What!?”

Philuffy laughed a bit to Anna while Dice made a shock look.

“So… Phi will take the Rank examination in Shin’s place.”

Dice slam her desk and looked at Philuffy with worry.

“Are you out of your mind!? Shin was in a whole different league than you.”

Philuffy simply just shove it with a smile.

“It’s fine! Phi is smart in exams.”

Dice made a poker face from Philuffy's ethusiasm.

“Philuffy, the Rank examination isn’t a written exam. It’s a 3 on 3 match against the higher ups.”

She just realized it.

“Oh…”

She suddenly felt her whole body was panicking and suddenly went holding Dice while tearing up.

“Dice! Help Phi! Phi isn’t strong to beat other people.”

Dice scratches his head.

“You’re lucky that I am part of his team but who was the third one? Aw man… If only she was around. But at the same time, I won’t count on her if Shin wasn’t around.”

He tried to think of someone else who will be the third member of the team and Anna suddenly raised her hand a bit as she starts getting shy.

“I-I will join… I… wanna take responsibility for what happen to Shin.”

Philuffy jumped in joy when Anna volunteered to join.

“Anna is the best!”

Anna just happily catch me when I jumped at her.

“I just want to help my friend after all.”

Dice put both of his arm at his waist.

“Now that team searching is out of the way, we better strategize. So, Anna? Before you became a Nightmare Breaker, what is your Gear Ability?”

Anna was embarrassed and looked away.

“It’s… embarrassing. You might consider it very useless skill.”

Philuffy and Dice were waiting to hear about her Gear Skill. But Dice suddenly replied.

“Well to make you respond comfortably, my Gear Skill is Iron Fist. I can stand toe to toe with anyone in terms of fighting power but possess a very fragile body. Which is why, in my Status Breaker form, that fragile body was covered which made me unstoppable.”

Philuffy and Anna were very impressed with his very reliable ability.

“Overpowered… Phi will rely on Dice more!”

Dice scratches his head with a disappointment look.

“…Well the downside is, I am like a glass cannon when it comes in using skills. Once I used a Breaker skill or my Finisher skill, I revert back to normal state so I recommend that you two will do more stuff than me. I can only buy time which is why Shin finds me a very reliable ally to set up a good plan and win.”

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Philuffy think of what to say.

“To be honest… Phi’s Gear is Scan. Phi can look at other people’s stats without any restriction with the exception of locked passive skills. Shin said, Phi is a very reliable support Breaker. But Phi is very skilled in swordsmanship as Shin train Phi lots and lots!”

Dice smiled and looked away a bit and, in his mind, he knew it wasn’t just that is her Gear ability. He knew she still can’t control that other Gear Philuffy possess.

Then finally it’s Anna’s turn.

“Well it’s… Senbonzakura…”

Dice finds her skill interesting.

“What does it do?”

“J-just…”

Anna tried to say it with all her might.

“Just manipulating the cherry petals by dancing!”

Dice was shocked.

“That was a beautiful in entertainment but tactically useless in battle!”

Anna’s dignity was destroyed as she kneels down to the floor with depression.

“Ugh!”

Philuffy angrily looked at Dice.

“Dice! That’s bad!”

Dice just laughed a bit as he feels sorry about her.

“S-sorry…”

The atmosphere became quite tense to realize that our team was flat weaker than a leaf. Then suddenly a male’s voice was heard coming outside of their classroom.

“Why don’t you ask me then?”

It was Headmaster Sasword Superior wearing a butler suit. We went towards headmaster and do what he said. As Philuffy grabbed the Headmaster’s shirt as the rest of her friends panicked from Philuffy’s action.

“Then tell Phi, about strategy! Phi must know! Tell Phi!”

“Hey, hey! You’re not asking him, you’re interrogating him.”

Dice tried to calm me down. Then Grandmaster Sasword patted my head with a smile, he seems not angry yet he seemed enjoying it.

“From my point of view, I can tell that Ms. Philuffy is the key player of this exam and Mr. Dice is still on his same role when he was with Shin then that young girl… What was her Gear?”

Anna replied.

“Senbonzakura, a Gear that manipulates cherry blossom petals with a dance but the petals don’t bring any harm to anyone.”

“…Interesting combination…”

Headmaster Sasword started thinking and started to sigh easily.

“Unfortunately, I have no idea what strategy of what exactly you three can do… but I do know that Ms. Philuffy is on offense and Dice is on defense then that young girl is a support. Maybe Shin can help, he is the genius who thinks outside the box when it comes in strategy.”

They looked down and Dice replied.

“Shin was paralyzed from that last mission so we can’t rely on him much… Since he can’t move his body”

Headmaster Sasword replied calmly.

“He can’t move his body but he can speak clearly, isn’t that right? Ms. Philuffy? Shin may be under the Poison Paralysis effect but that doesn’t mean he won’t speak properly. He is like frozen on the thick ice with only his face out.”

Philuffy's eyes widen when she realized something so obvious that made her happily and nodded at him.

“Yes! Thank you, Headmaster Sasword!”

“I am sorry for wasting your time, I just believe my students are more capable than that… which is why I won’t do much help. Good luck on the exam.”

“It’s okay, Headmaster Sasword! Headmaster just gave a good hint for Phi to win!”

He nodded and leave them behind with both arms are at his back holding each other. As we watch him leave, Dice suddenly spoked.

“For some reason, he spoke like he is familiar with you, Philuffy.”

Dice and Anna both looked at Philuffy.

“Well… dunno… Phi knows Shin was Headmaster’s favorite, maybe that’s why.”

At Shin’s bedroom.

Shin explained the troublesome situation to Shin but the result was the same. Anna seems not capable in battle.

“So that’s the problem…?”

Shin looked at Dice.

“If you don’t mind. Can you carry me to the balcony?”

“Uh… Sure. But why? You’re sick.”

“I just… want to catch some fresh air and… I want to see Anna’s Gear, it's not like I can move anyway.”

Philuffy and the others went outside the balcony, Shin was lying at the beach chair where he used to sleep at with Anna infront of them.

“Gear skill, Activate.”

Petals gathered out of thin air and form a fan made of cherry blossom petals.

Anna spins around while swinging the fan left and right slowly and smoothly like she was following the tempo of the wind and acting as one with the petals. Every time she swings the fan. Cherry blossoms appeared from the fan and scattered around the sky.

It was a beautiful view; we were like in japan. Then Shin closed his eyes with a smile on his face.

“I finally figure it out… It was a beautiful Gear that can do more than dancing.”

Shin looked at Philuffy.

“Philuffy, go fetch our guest some dinner and prepare the sleeping bag for Dice… You will need to train here.”

She salute at Shin with a smile then went inside.

“I-I will help too.”

Anna followed her, leaving Shin and Dice behind. Shin was staring at the stars as Dice sighed happily.

“You’re really good at this, you should become a strategist to the army.”

“Don’t make me laugh… I don’t like war…”

“So? Is there any hope for us to win? Your scholarship is on the line ya know.”

“And this is where you make a move… I want you to go pay her visit.”

Dice was shocked as he looked at Shin.

“You’re kidding!? She will kill me! Didn’t you know that woman considered you her favorite!? And I am like her worst enemy!?”

Shin looked serious and closed his eyes.

“…I am afraid that, you have to do it. In the final match… Philuffy might get in deep trouble… So before final round, the Poison Paralysis should be removed my body. I should be the one who face them.”

Dice suddenly stopped and suddenly made an angry look.

“…I see. I understand… I should be able to make her convince that easily with that reason, what else?”

“…”

Meanwhile at the kitchen.

Anna was busy chopping vegetables while Philuffy was cooking.

“Phi will have a fun night with Anna! A sleepover!”

“Y-yeah…”

The atmosphere got quiet as they continued cooking. Anna seem she has something in her mind and started to break the quiet atmosphere.

“Shin… made me happy.”

“Hm?”

She looked at Anna when she said something that even Philuffy didn’t understand.

“I… can’t believe, he finds my Gear was reliable… It was the first time someone praise me like that. I… I will do my best to help you guys win! I won’t… let him down.”

Anna felt she found a resolve to fight as Philuffy smiled at Anna.

“Then, Phi will rely on Anna’s support! Just trust Shin…”

“Yeah!”

Philuffy and Anna laughed together and had so much fun all together with everyone until they went to sleep, except for Anna who seem can’t sleep from what Shin said.

She went outside the balcony to get some air. The breeze was nice, no wonder Shin was able to sleep here.

“…Trouble sleeping?”

Anna was surprised and looked at Shin who was wide awake all this time.

“O-oh! D-did I disturb you?”

“No, you’re not… I am just waiting for a certain magnet to come.”

“A… Magnet?”

Anna was confused of what he said.

“Anyway… what’s bothering you?”

Shin asked softly.

“Well… Y-you gave me something that I needed for all this time… Which got me… excited to help everyone. I… I’ll do my very best do help you pass this exam.”

Anna bowed politely

“I see… And here is the magnet. She is lucky that I am paralyzed, if not I will throw her at the pool.”

“…Shin…”

Philuffy went sleepwalking beside and slept beside Shin then hugged him which made Anna laughed a bit.

“She really adores you huh?”

“I guess so… It was really annoying though.”

Anna laughed a bit.

“Can I ask you a question?”

Shin looked at Anna hear her question.

“Do you think I can do more with my Gear?”

Shin closed his eyes and looked at Anna seriously.

“Then to tell you the truth your skill is actually… rather useless as hell… You’re just a pushover to them.”

“Eh?”

Anna felt her heart got crushed easily from the words of the guy who just praised him.