You and me singing together, Luka...?

Yes!

But why...?

To get you to let your feelings out all at once, of course!

You're talking about singing from my heart like Ken said, right? But just singing together doesn't seem like...

Fine, then let's make it a battle!
That should be more enticing, no?

You're not going to run, are you?

I know what you're doing, and I'd really rather not take the bait...

(But...)

(Just based on her instinct, Luka seems to know what it is that I'm missing.)

Okay, you're on.

Yay! Thank you, Akito!
This'll help me a lot since I'm much better at getting things across with song!

You did have to twist his arm quite a lot.

That's just how I do things!
Oh, would you all mind acting as the judges?

Yeah, sure!
I'll be a judge!

Thank you! Then, let's get started!
Who should go first? Me...?

Yes, that's fine.

Alright, I'm going to hit the ground running!!

♪————!!

(Luka really is an incredible singer...
She's going strong right out the gates.)

Hm...?

(This song... I've heard it before somewhere...)

(Oh, right...
This is the one I sang with Toya and the others when we went camping.)

♪————!!

(Why does she seem so happy...?
But her smile's kinda infectious.)

Okay, that seems like a nice way to start! Now, Akito, it's your turn!

Here I go...!

♪————!!

(The way Luka sang just now was really good.)

(But what was she trying to tell me...?)

Oh, not bad!
In that case, let's see how you do when we speed things up!

♪————!!

...!!

Huh? She sounds totally different now!

Yes.
But this song's...

(Yeah...! It's the one I sang when I confronted those guys from Shepard!)

(So much happened that time...)

(I managed to break through the ceiling I had felt trapped under before. But I wasn't satisfied with just that...)

(After that, people started telling me that I reminded them of Taiga or Ken... That gave me a bit of confidence.)

♪————!!

(However, Len's right...
She sounds completely different now. Almost like some kind of illusion...)

(No, wait... There's more to this...
I feel something welling up inside of me.)

(In my chest... What is this...?)

♪————! ♪————!

Whew...
Okay, Akito, your turn!

Tell me what you're feeling! Give me everything you have!

What I'm feeling...?

Yes!
You've felt and experienced a lot of different emotions up until now. So, let's throw everything we have at each other!

What I've felt...?

(What I...felt just now...)

♪...————

Oh, yes!
That's it, Akito!

MEIKO! Is it just me, or did Akito sound a little different just now...?

Yes, just a little bit, but...

Okay. Now I see...

Huh? See what?

I think Luka's trying to draw out Akito's feelings in order to free them.

Free them?

Yes.

Whenever Akito sings, he gives off this impression of wanting to get better—to “surpass”.

And there's nothing wrong with that.
His unyielding work ethic is the reason why he's been able to grow to this point.

But there may be a myriad of other emotions hiding behind all that.

Giving up fun things to focus on improving. Burying any worries or sadness that cropped up.

Yes, to some degree you need that self-control to keep moving forward. But Akito's done enough of that already.

Now, he needs to take the next step.

He needs to dig deep and rediscover those feelings that have been buried away for so long. He needs to free them and turn them into song.

That's what Luka's trying to teach him. She's trying to make him realize.

I have a feeling that Ken's been thinking the same thing while singing with Akito...

However, he has a special place in Akito's heart. He can't help but tense up in his presence.

But with Luka...

♪————————————!!

(This is so strange...)

(I can feel all these emotions rising to the surface...)

(Fun, excitement, regret...)

...!
That's it...!

If I can turn these feelings into song, then...

Akito! Stooop!

...!

Wait, Luka, what's wrong...?!
Akito was just about to...!

Yes, I know what was about to happen...

But you need to save that for when you sing against Ken.

Right now, Akito, there are a lot of different emotions swirling around inside of you.

But you shouldn't be unleashing them on me.

You need to do that to your hero. You need to do that to Ken!

Okay, understood.

I really appreciate it, Luka.
I have a much better idea of what I need to do now thanks to you.

Hehe. I'm glad to hear that!

Now, go unleash everything you just felt! Pow!