“I know you look for the hope in every situation, but you shouldn’t be so naive about this.” Nagito said. It wasn’t a criticism, but more of a warning.

“That’s what I don’t understand,” Hajime took a second to vocalise his thoughts. “We’re both looking for hope, yet I’m trying to find the innocence in this situation, while you decide on culprits. How is that hopeful?” by questioning hope, Hajime was attempting to stop Nagito’s scheming.

“Hope comes from more place than one, Hajime.” Nagito replied. “You look for hope by believing the best in people, I look for hope by believing the worst. Your ideal hope, is everyone leaving this island together. Mine, is the tragedies of this island creating one strong hope.”

“How is that hopeful? You want nine people dead!” Hajime was seriously questioning Nagito's morals.

“True hope does not shine through unless you face the most ultimate of despair.” Nagito commented. “Though we have been through a lot, it’s not nearly enough for true hope to arise. Until we have dealt with the worst of despair, we will not truly appreciate hope.”

“That doesn’t make sense at all.” Hajime scowled.

“Let me put it to you like this. There’s a man who lives an ordinary life, working a good job, he has a lovely wife, and three beautiful children. One day, his boss tells him the company he works for might be shutting down, and that he’ll lose his job.” Nagito launched into his example. “The man spends the night in fear, worrying about how he’ll support his family. However, the next day, his boss tells him that everything’s going to be okay, and the company aren’t shutting down after all.”

“The man is hopeful, right?” Hajime said.

“Right.” Nagito agreed. “But for no more than that day. By the next week, he’s already forgotten about it, and is carrying on with his life as normal.”

“What point are you trying to make?” Hajime asked, unsure where things were going.

“But let’s say something worse happens to the man. While he’s working late one night, an armed robber breaks into his family home. They steal everything, and brutally murder his entire family. With nothing left to live for, the man becomes dedicated to his job. It’s the only meaning in his life.” Nagito continued. “Then one day, his boss warns him that the company might be shutting down. The man sinks into the worst of despair, without his job, he’s nothing. So of course, the next day, when the man is told his job is safe, he feels the most hope he has ever felt. His purpose continues, and he feels forever grateful for his job. Not once forgetting what it means to feel that fear.”

“That…that’s so stupid.” Hajime scoffed, unimpressed with everything he’d just been told. “You’re saying we can’t appreciate anything in life unless everything has been stolen from us? No one is truly living, unless their whole family has been slaughtered?!”

“You misunderstood the story, Hajime.” Nagito shook his head. “What I’m saying is, hope is around us everywhere. But only true hope can be sought from the worst of despair.”

“Everyone on this island has been thrown into a mutual killing game, we’ve watched six of our friends die. You can’t tell me that we haven’t been through enough despair.” Hajime continued to disagree.

“And it’s thanks to the despair that you’ve experienced here, that you’re becoming stronger each day.” Nagito said, staring at Hajime like some sort of proud parent. “The class trials continue to grow your hope. Please know, Hajime, if you ever decide you want to leave here, use me as your pawn, make me your accomplice, murder me - it would be an honour. I want to see all the hope inside of you grow.”

It was at that point, Chiaki woke up. Probably a good thing too, or Hajime might have lost things a little with Nagito. It was clear they had two very different ways of thinking, a way of thinking Hajime would never understand.