Kaito Nakamura received the torn picture of himself with the familiar half DNA strand logo in red across his face. Angela Petrelli also received a similar image and met with Kaito to discuss it. Their respective pictures were once whole. With the two of them targeted, and several others already dead including Daniel Linderman and Charles Deveaux, only four remained. While standing alone atop the Deveaux building, he was approached by Adam Monroe.

Kaito appeared to recognize him, saying "Of all of them, I never expected that it would be you." Just as an unidentified man appeared on the street below, Adam tackled Kaito and pushed him off the building. As they fell time seemed to freeze for a few seconds, and Adam felt the familiar presence of someone watching him. When the unidentified man saw him down the alleyway, Adam quickly healed and disappeared into the shadows. Adam was now on his way to the "Sanctuary" as he searched for "the one who would help him" release the Shanti virus, Peter Petrelli . . .

--

Hiro Nakamura was a programmer at Yamagato Industries based in Tokyo, Japan who possesses the ability to bend space and time. Bored with the monotony and conformity of his job as a salaried employee, Hiro turned to his love of science fiction and fantasy as an escape. A bit of a dreamer, he loved the idea of possessing powers, but the reality of it all became more than what he expected. Initially a happy-go-lucky fellow with an innocent view of adventure, Hiro's experiences forced him to become more serious and determined. He possesses a very strong sense of purpose and a solid moral foundation, and the events in his life only strengthen them.

After the explosion in New York, Hiro helped Nathan Petrelli create The Sanctuary as a school. During the last two years, Hiro and his fellow teachers have been working to show the students how to control their abilities. Sadly though, Sylar was able to track them down and kill several of the students. After acquiring their powers before escaping, now Hiro's currently searching for Sylar to avenge their deaths. Leaving the school in care of Peter and Claire, he trusts them to do everything in their ability to help the students recover from their loss.

But before Hiro could continue on with his search through the city, he heard a great commotion that echoed down the street ahead . . .

--

As Hiro then quickly ran forward to the familiar Deveaux building, a few minutes passed when he saw something out of the corner of his eye. Now slowly walking down an abandoned alley, was a man who seemed to know where the school was as he headed toward it. Since Hiro wasn't exactly sure for who it must be, he then quietly followed the "unidentified man" through the shadows just in case. After approaching him as Hiro quickly drew Takezo Kensei's sword from its sheath, Hiro now carefully tried to find out what happened back there. "I'm sorry, but I need to know who you are before I can let you pass."

--

When the man jumped and quickly turned around, he then pleaded with Hiro as he lifted his hands. "Woa...calm down bud!" As the man slowly took a step back, Hiro now deeply regretted the feeling of "being a threat in someone else's eyes". But he was very grateful when the man decided not to run from him after all, by standing still and asking a question of his own. "Zach Hart...who might you be?" So then Hiro quickly lowered his weapon, as he now began to inform "Zach" of the situation.

"My name is Hiro Nakamura, and I only use my sword for protection of others. So when I heard something happen over there," slowly nodding his head in the direction that the man came from. "I just had to find out if anyone needed my help. Are you okay," now wondering if maybe Zach actually knew more than he did. "and did you see anything?"

--

After Hiro had finally decided to trust Zach in the end, he then quickly sheathed his weapon once more. Now as the man smiled to himself humorously, he slowly began to tell Hiro "exactly what he saw". "Well..besides watching two men fall to their deaths," Hiro was startled when he then heard what had happened next. "only to see one rise back up...nope did not see anything!" So now who were these "two men", and did the "one who survived" have the power of Rapid cell regeneration?

When quickly finishing up with his eye witness account, Zach then seemed to remember something else as he quietly added. "Claire," now confirming Hiro's theory that the man did indeed have a connection with the Sanctuary. As Zach then asked him, "do you know a Claire Bennet?" Now Hiro blankly stared into the man's eyes with all seriousness, and silently waited for himself to come up with a good answer to the question. So he only hesitated for a few seconds before asking his own, "May I ask how you know that name?"

--

Hiro now noticed that Zach's patience wore thin, as the man slowly shook his hand. "You need to really lighten up...or is everyone in New York like this?" Zach then sighed as he stepped forward, "Claire Bennet is an old friend...I'm trying to find her!" As the man now lifted his hands, "That's if it's ok with you?" Hiro then felt bad as he detected sarcasm in Zach's voice, so he finally let the man know where Claire was in the end.

"Well not everyone in this city would be willing to help you," Hiro now quickly avoided telling Zach about Sylar just yet. "but I trust you enough to show you where she is." So Hiro then slowly reached out his hand, and the man hesitantly shook it in their new partnership. It was now time for the heroes to make their stand, and show the world that "most" evolved humans are nothing to be feared. But first they would need to visit Claire and Peter at the school, so Hiro then quickly teleported himself along with Zach back to the Sanctuary . . .

Copyright ©2008 by Michael Copley. All Rights Reserved.