MPC! 08

'''Leave me alone! A missing student!' (私をほっといて！ 行方不明の学生！Watashi o hottoite! Yukue fumei no gakusei!'') is the 8th episode of [https://fandomofprettycure.wikia.com/wiki/Mighty%20Precure! Mighty Precure!].

Summary
Early in the morning, Wan-chan is ready to leave for his journey. Maeko asks if he's sure of his choice, and he points out he'd do anything for Themis' royal family, and promises he'll be back soon. As he leaves, Kosuke looks at Daisuke's worried expression and taps his shoulder gently.

At school, Kosuke notices the boys talking among each other, and Toshiro explains it's about the third time that month that Shun Akiyama was absent from class. He's remembered as a very quiet student, no one really knowing much about him. Meanwhile, in Daisuke's class, Yukio catches most of the classmates' attention and can't take that well. Reunited at the Precure Club, after hearing about Akiyama's apparent disappearance, Maeko thinks about the time she saw his father at school: Shun's parents had a very ugly divorce, and his father was apparently very harsh to him, giving him a very unhappy life. Daisuke asks if she's sure of that, and Kosuke suggest them visiting the Akiyama lair.

Toshiro and Kosuke are surprised to see around the Akiyama lair's location lots of missing portraits, placed by Shun's father himself. As they ask him what happened, he proclaims he doesn't know, and recalls the last time he saw Shun: after class, Shun entered home holding a card, and he slapped him for "getting things from a stranger". Toshiro gets triggered, asking how could he do that, and as he answer that he can teach his son the way he wants to, Kosuke disagrees with that, saying nothing justifies such an imprudent action. Speechless, Shuns father turn his back on them, grumbling. Toshiro and Kosuke decide going after Shun themselves.

Daisuke gets a call from Kosuke, and he explains what happened, leaving him really angry and wondering how can such a nice person as Shun have such a horrible father. Maeko calms him down, and explains that the important now is finding him. The Precure Club go around town, showing Shun's missing portrait to everyone they see, and with a few confirmations, they trace the day he was missing route. he escaped home by night, gave out some yens to a homeless person, passed by the library and rented a book, then made his way to the train station. Entering the Akiyama lair and Shun's room, they find a ripped photo on the ground with Shun's father's face destroyed and only his mother and him clear. Shun's father complain about their money box being empty, and Daisuke yells how Shun hates his father and blames him for his disappearance. As they drag him out of the Akiyama lair, Shun's father look at the empty room.

They make their way to the train station, while Daisuke regrets yelling like that, but Kosuke calms him down, saying he has a point: despite being his dad, Shun's father is a very bad influence on him, and wonders how he even got his son's guard after the divorce. Shun then appears to them, saying he didn't; he payed his mom's lawyer to make her lose his guard, and calls him a dirty monster. Maeko then tries telling him they can help him, but he doesn't believe them and tells them to leave him alone. As the sky changes color and he shows the mysterious card he got, the team recognize that tarot card as one of Unmei's cards. As he reveals himself and tells how Shun met him, by asking for a tarot reading, he say he's never saw such a powerful dark flame, born from such hatred and despair.

As a Crashju is born from Shun's dark flame, the team transform and while fighting the Crashju, they try reaching Shun and ask why haven't he told anyone about any of those horrible things. Unmei mocks how despite not even acknolowdging his existence, the Precure is worried about his wellbeing. Toshiro then say his own father isn't abusive and mean, but he understands Shun for not being able to talk back and defend himself, and that he could've been helped if he just asked for help. Tired of laughing at the drama, Unmei calls for Shun's card tarot creature: the Chariot. Splitting in two team, Kosuke and Toshiro fight the Chariot and Daisuke and Yukio still try reaching Shun inside the Crashju.

Joining their special attacks, they climb on top the Chariot and smash it, crushing Unmei in the process. Daisuke and Yukio then join their own attacks and make the Crashju fall. Conjuring the Themis Bow, with their final attack, the team defeat it and Shun returns to normal, while Unmei stands up and chuckles, saying they "can't pretend forever", and leaves. Shun then starts crying, saying he just wanted to be with his mother, showing the book he rented was about laws, and he wanted to have a new judgement for his guard. Maeko then finishes the livestreaming for the Precure Blog and smiles, knowing what to do.

A week later, in court, with both of Shun's parents present, and the Precure club watching everything, the judge decide that in virtue of the recently gathered proof, Shun's guard is passed to his mother, and his father is given a restraining order, meaning he has to stay away from Shun. The boy then turns to the club and smiles, Maeko sure of him being truly happy now.

Precure references

 * Wan-chan's bindle has a Sweets Pack (Kira Kira Precure a la Mode)-shaped lunch box inside.
 * While gathering info about Shun, Daisuke uses a Coco (Yes! Precure 5) backpack.
 * Daisuke's anger attack can be compared to Erika Kurumi (Cure Marine - Heartcatch Precure)'s anger attacks, with the cartoonish-styled expressions.