OP 2 – Tough and Alone by MYTH & ROID

Chapter 24 – Gear up, 1-A!

It is said that man's greatest enemy is man himself.

After Tsukuyomi-sensei absolutely demolished us during the 'special lesson', there was a bitter realisation that dawned upon most of us. I had been too frustrated with myself to have figured it out on my own but when we were in the infirmary, Hara came to speak to us.

"You all are being too hard on yourselves." He shook his curls as he spoke, radiating wisdom despite his small appearance. "Sensei didn't fight all of you in order to demoralise you or anything. In fact . . . it was hard for him to do what he did but he went through with it because he believed in the lesson he was teaching."

As I looked around at everyone's faces, I saw all of them were as disbelieving as I was. But even though Hara saw the scepticism in our expressions and read the mistrust in our hearts, he went on.

"What sensei wanted to show yo- no, to everyone of us was . . .," he spoke the words with some difficulty.

". . . how weak we are."

I'm not weak, I wanted to say. I'm a member of Team TENSHI, once regarded as some of the strongest middle school students of Japan. We survived in battle with a dangerous, powerful Villain.

But the words refused to come out of my throat.

A sort of a sad smile floated onto his face as he leaned against one of the bed posts. "It sounds stupid, I know, but it's true. I know we're all students of UA, considered to be the best in Japan but . . ."

". . . compared to professionals, honestly speaking, we are nothing."

I wouldn't say it. I'd never say it. But just like everyone else-

Those words hurt more than the beating sensei had given us.

(1st June, Tuesday, 10:05 a.m. – UA)

"Today, disciples, we shall commence a conventional team-building exercise."

Eraserhead and Tsukuyomi pointedly ignored the disappointed scowls on the faces of some of the students. When the latter had realised just how much development their teamwork needed after seeing all the shoddy cooperation yesterday, they'd all been summoned in their PE uniforms for a second special lesson. Inori and the others were relieved to find out that this one did not involve them being brutally beaten up.

Once the murmurs died down after a single glare from Eraserhead, he said, "This will be a battle between two teams consisting of four people each." Everyone stood to attention. "I don't know how many of you are familiar with this game but we call it a cavalry battle. A game where three people stand in a triangle to form a horse and one person sits on top of them as the rider."

'This game . . . this is the one Tsukuyomi-sensei and his batch participated in during the UA sports festival when they were 1st years!' Akaname's eyes widened with excitement. Most of the other students seemed to have realised it too and began whispering in excited chatters.

"Although it is traditionally a game where several teams face-off against each other, we will have a direct showdown between two teams." The students stiffened as Tsukuyomi scoured the line-up, wondering which eight students would be the victims of the first trial.

The scouring was only for show, however, because the participants had been selected long ago.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"M-Me?!"

"Again, I ask, is there any other Jack Yuki in class?! Really, now!"

"Hey, Nishiya, stop being so hard on him! Confusion can happen to everyone!"

"~Ai-chi, Asu-chi, Jobu-chi, let's work hard together!~"

"Ssssssensssssei, I apologissssssse for being impolite but might I refussssssse?"

"But why, Enoshima?"

"Before you say anything, Kenshi-san, I had nothing to do with this."

". . . Shut the fuck up, Hara."

'Perfect.' The same thought passed through the minds of both teachers at the eight students they'd selected. Eraserhead lazily drawled, "Yuki, Nishiya, Jobu and Madou are in the first team." Nervousness, disdain, excitement and amusement flashed on each of their faces. "While Enoshima, Tetsuya, Hara and Kenshi are in the second team." A barely suppressed scowl, an obedient nod, a completely blatant scowl and a hesitant smile were visible on the other four. "The teams need to decide the position of the members in the cavalry horse."

"Understood?! NOW SHOO, YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TO DECIDE!" At the sight of a huge Dark Shadow screeching at them, the eight students quickly dispersed to opposite sides in their groups. The other twelve and the two teachers sat at a distance, watching.

Asuna, Jobu, Mashiro and Aisen formed a tight circle, talking in whispers. "Oi, shouldn't Nishiya be the head of the horse?" Jobu mumbled a little too loud. "Since she's the smallest and probably the lighte-Ouch!"

Stomping down hard on his foot, the brunette growled, "What do you mean 'probably'?! I'm definitely the lightest!" Coughing awkwardly, she added, "But that doesn't mean I'll be the head! There's no way I'm doing that!"

"But why, Nishiya?" Aisen blinked in confusion, both he and Jobu staring at her perplexedly. "Ah, if you're worried about us carrying you, don't worry! These guns may look small but they're plenty strong!" He smirked, flexing his biceps, which looked pathetic compared to the other boy's rippling arms.

However, the twin-tailed girl looked completely unamused at his joke – instead, a frustrated smile was tightening on her face. "You dumbass . . .," Both boys backed away from the poisonous aura surrounding her, her right fist shaking, ". . . Are you both really that stupid and tactless . . ."

Jobu and Aisen hugged each other, shaking wildly in fright before Mashiro popped up with a smile. "~Jobu-chi, Ai-chi, what Asu-chi means is that she doesn't want to be molested by us!~" The air between the four of them completely dropped in temperature but the snow-haired boy was clearly unaffected by it, as he continued babbling. "~She doesn't want us to touch her butt and thighs which is why she doesn't want to be carried! Although you could just be honest with us, Asu-chi!~"

Even though Aisen and Jobu were gesturing for him to shut up, pointing at a gradually darkening Asuna, Mashiro didn't notice. "~Don't worry, Asu-chi, we have no interest in touching you in a perverted way! Ai-chi has a girlfriend, Jobu-chi has Kaga-chi and tsunderes are not at all my type! So you're definitely in no dange-"

"GREATER TRUNK!"

Inori, Kazumi, Habiki and Ryo watched as a giant tree trunk popped out in the enemy camp, Asuna swinging at all three of her teammates. As they sweat-dropped, Inori commented in a grave tone, "We have strong opponents."

"Who are completely unable to control their sssssssstrengthsssss," the redhead hissed, disappointment in her eyes. "Although we have no time to enjoy their sssssstand-up comedy," she stated, looking at her three teammates. "We must decide our own possssssitionsssssss before time runsssssss out."

"I will be the horse head." Ryo's teeth were gritted and his eyes shone with bloodlust, punching a fist into his open palm to assert dominance. "I am going to be the one to completely destroy the other team." He still hadn't forgiven Asuna for interrupting his and Jobu's fight. And now he had finally received a chance where he could demolish both of them.

"That wouldn't work at all." Kazumi immediately interjected, unresponsive at the scowl he threw at her. "If you become the rider, the equilibrium of the horssssssse will suffer too greatly."

Ryo really wanted to retort but could find no counter argument – the snake bitch was right. "Damn you for being so fucking short, Hara," he spat at the curly-haired boy, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"My height isn't something I can control, I'm afraid, Kenshi-san," Habiki coolly replied, completely unaffected. And that was something that pissed off the emerald-haired boy even more.

But before Ryo could cuss at him again, Inori quickly broke in. "So that leaves me and Hara as rider candidates since Enoshima is too heavy and big for us to carry."

A taut smile broke out on Kazumi's face as she stared down at the black-haired girl. "My, my, Tetssssssuya-ssssssan, did your mother never teach you it is rude to comment on a lady'ssssss weight and ssssssize?"

Inori stared back at her and with complete seriousness, replied, "No, she did not."

As even Ryo backed away from the intense glare-down between the two girls, Habiki stepped towards them with placating smiles, "Now, now, let's hurry. The other team has already decided their positions." Turning back, both girls noticed that Asuna and the boys had formed a circle again. "And their positions are Nishiya-san in the lead with Jobu-san on the right and Yuki-san on the left. And the rider will be Madou-san."

"Hara, you-!" Ryo turned threateningly to him.

Habiki held his gaze with unwavering steel eyes. "None of the teachers forbade Quirk usage."

At the sight of those eyes, something inside the taller boy clicked.

( "Thank you, Kenshi-san!" )

"Tch . . . you're as despicable as ever, aren't you?" he muttered, backing off. Inori watched the exchange between the two with suppressed interest.

'Madou Mashiro . . . he's unarguably the wildest and most unpredictable member in their team.' Briefly musing through the remaining possible positions, Kazumi's eyes flickered to the shortest member of their team. "Hara-sssssssan, you'll be the rider."

Despite the aghast look on Ryo's face, Habiki nodded. "Yes, with our matchup, that would be the best choice."

"Oi, isn't Tetsuya clearly the best choice for the rider?!" All three turned to the confused boy as he pointed at Inori. "Hara neither has an offensive Quirk nor athletic abilities! Madou will squash him like a ripe banana!" 'And we'll be defeated by that dratted Nishiya and scrap metal idiot!'

Habiki did not let the hurt appear on his face but a sharp sting did stab at his heart. Because Ryo had a point – he did not have an offensive Quirk nor were his athletic abilities anything to speak of.

But still . . .

"I think Hara can defeat him."

Inori and Kazumi looked at Habiki with serious gazes, the former staring at the shorter boy with faith in her eyes. "After all, if not for Hara, Asagumo would not have survived and we would have never known about what happened to Fujita." Ryo looked as surprised as Habiki felt. "Hara is a dependable person."

"And he'ssssssss our bessssst ssssssshot at predicting Madou-ssssssan'ssssss movementsssss." The grin on Kazumi's face was virulent. "Although do not worry, I will take down all of them no matter what. Even if I have to do it alone."

The short boy let his gaze fall, trying to hide the widening of his eyes. 'Even Enoshima-san . . .'

"Tch."

He snapped back to reality as someone roughly pushed past his shoulder. And, as expected, it was Ryo, standing with his tall back to him as he glared at Kazumi. "You better not touch scrap metal or tree, Enoshima – they're mine. And Hara."

He turned to look down at the shorter boy, eyes narrowed, "If bony defeats you, I'll give you another beating myself. So don't you dare lose."

Stunned, Habiki stared at his back as the other three began walking towards the gymnasium's centre, hit by memories from the past.

( "If anyone ever tries to hurt you," the boy looked at him with earnest, burning deep blues, "you tell me, okay?" )

'Why am I remembering such things now?' He smiled softly to himself. "Don't worry, Kenshi-san."

And then he took off running after the other three with confident strides.

"We definitely won't lose!"

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

"Looks like you were completely right about Hara-san being the rider, Madou-san," Asuna rotated her shoulder blades, shooting a dry glare at Inori. Mashiro only smiled mysteriously at the statement, visible eye shining with excitement.

"Alright, team Madou and team Hara! Here's what this practice battle is about!"

Tsukuyomi and the rest of the class were seated outside the white-bordered area demarcated as the battleground. Both teams stood on opposing sides of the huge area, divided by a straight line that separated it into two halves. "Both riders will be wearing a headband that is the 'chaos crown' of each team – that is, lose it and your team loses!" Mashiro tightened the black headband around his bangs while Habiki adjusted the tie of his white one.

"Each team must try to snatch the headband of the opposing team's rider while making sure the headband of their rider is safe around their head!" Aisen gulped, looking anywhere but at Kazumi – the only reason he'd refused to be the team's rider. 'I know I'm a disappointment but . . . I'm still not ready to face her.'

As Tsukuyomi sat back down on a chair, Eraserhead announced, "You can use your Quirks but no destroying your surroundings. Or be prepared to pay for the damages incurred."

Most of the students immediately nodded to that, replying "Yes, sensei!" in unison.

Inori, however, looked deep in thought. "So we can damage things if we pay for them?" she murmured out loud.

"Tetsuya-san, we know your family is wealthy but please don't do something like that," Habiki awkwardly smiled as Kazumi and Ryo rolled their eyes, aware money wasn't the only thing they'd have to give if something like that happened. Fortunately, she nodded obediently to his request.

"Alright, then," Eraserhead collapsed against his chair, stifling a yawn. "You may start."

'What kind of lame starting line is that?!' Asuna thought in irritation but nevertheless, they had already started running towards the other team and jumped over the demarcation line. Although they had good speed, something scrambled and poked into the brunette's mind.

'A shirtless Shoto-san, water rippling down his toned abs, as he flexes under a waterfall, his gorgeous, dual-coloured hair sticking against his smooth nape in silky stran-'

"Ah!" The girl felt her face grow hot and eyes close in ecstasy at the thought, steps faltering.

"Nishiya!" Aisen looked at the perverted smile on her face and at Habiki, who was staring straight at the girl. "Snap out of it, Nishiya!" He yanked out his right hand and shot a spark towards the white rider. Habiki flinched at the fire ball thrown his way and lost his concentration but before it could reach him, a crystalline pillar erupted out of Ryo's shoulder and scattered the flames.

"Oi, watch out!"

Inori and Kazumi moved forward at the same time, the former attacking with a large claw and the latter whipping out her elongated tail to hit at Mashiro from both sides and topple him to the ground. Jobu and Asuna cried, "We won't let you!" and the silver-haired boy tried to grab Kazumi's tail with a flaming hot palm. But the girl was fast enough to whip it away from his hold, hissing as her scales slightly came into contact with the scalding temperature.

However, Inori's claw ended up crashing into a tree branch Asuna had summoned and manipulating the vines, she wrapped them around the raven-head's arm. Grinning maniacally, the brunette viciously pulled her forward. "I've finally caught you, Inori!"

"No, you don't!" Ryo fired a shard of small crystals to rip through the vines. However, without the support of his and Inori's hands, Habiki's whole weight pushed forward onto Kazumi. Noticing that, Jobu swerved his left fist forward, heating the metal enough to make the lamia back off. However, she was quicker and with her tail, managed to wrap onto his leg and pull him down.

"W-Woah!" And unable to hold himself against her raw strength, the boy toppled down to the ground, unbalancing the whole foundation of the group.

"YOU'RE MINE!" Seeing a chance for a rematch, Ryo broke away from his own group, leaving Habiki on both girls as he attacked Jobu.

"Kenssssssshi, you-!" However, Kazumi had no time to look away as a pointed bone struck against her; and she managed to block it with her tail just in time. Mashiro, gleefully smiling, crackled a bony blade out of his other palm and struck at Kazumi with it.

"Enoshima-san!" Habiki could only watch as the bone rammed into her shoulder and a hiss escaped her; but somehow, she freed her other hand and grabbed the bone.

"Hara-san, grab his band!" Even without Kazumi yelling, the boy was already reaching towards Mashiro. But a sudden surge of fire lightly burned his palm and he backed away.

"I-I won't let you!" Aisen cried, staring determinedly at him as small flames danced on his palm. But when his eyes clashed against Kazumi's enraged ones, he let out a small yelp and the flames died away.

Inori, meanwhile, finally succeeded in breaking away from Asuna's vines by tearing through the main branch. But before she could attack again, the opposing team was suddenly lit in a brilliant surge of flames, as golden as Aisen's hair. "Enoshima!" the raven-head yelled and the tall girl pushed Mashiro's bone constructs away as they immediately retreated to a distance.

"~Yay, I'm already feeling even more fired up!~" Mashiro squealed, breaking out several branches on his bone trunks.

"Alright, guys! It's time to turn them into roast!" Aisen cheered, grinning happily. "Kaz, Nori, Habi, we're coming to bake you into toast!"

"So he develops a split personality when lit up?" Asuna murmured, before yelling, "Doesn't matter! We're charging forward!" The boys yelled in unison and they began rushing towards the other team, brilliantly burnished in golden flames.

"You scrap metal! This time, I'll turn you into recyclable junk for sure!" Ryo and Jobu, meanwhile, were having their own battle a distance away. The former fired a round of crystal shards at the silver-haired boy but they bounced off his metal skin.

"Yeah, Crystallina?! I'll powder you into dust before that!" A heated Jobu rushed at him like a steel bull, charging with all his strength.

The audience stared with confused expressions at the change in events. "Is this even a cavalry battle anymore?" Kenio awkwardly laughed.

"~I don't know but this is fun~!" Hoshi giggled, cheering loudly. "~Go Asuna-chi! Go Enoshima-chan! Fiiiiiigggghhhhttt!~"

'How dare that chibi airhead publically embarrass me like this!' Frustrated beyond belief at the turn of events, Kazumi growled, "Hara, Tetssssssuya, we're winning this no matter what. If you lossssse, I'll persssssssonally sssssstrangle you both."

Inori stared at her for a few seconds before answering, "Okay then, Enoshima, Hara. I leave the rest to both of you." Before Habiki and Kazumi could even blink, she broke off from them and pulled out her wings, charging straight towards the other group. Aisen cried out, Mashiro laughed and Asuna cussed as she broke right into their formation, dragging the brunette away.

"Inori, I won't forgive you!" Asuna pulled out a branch from her pocket and rammed it into the girl, increasing its size and density to land a painful hit. But she managed to dodge just in time, flying upwards and throwing her on the ground. Landing painfully on her butt, Asuna screamed in rage and several branches jerked out off the trunk, popping out erratically to stab into Inori's flesh.

"Make sssssssure you grab it, Hara!" Habiki struggled to keep his hold as he clung to Kazumi's shoulders, the girl slithering forward with full speed. Meanwhile, it was taking Aisen his all to carry Mashiro on his back and the sight of the approaching lamia further weakened his legs, making him want to turn and run away.

"~Ai-chi! Throw me towards them with full force!~" The snow-haired boy's voice broke through his fear.

"M-Madou? Are you sure?!"

"~Yes!" The smile Mashiro gave him was brilliant and just a little insane. "Believe in me, Ai-chi~!"

"O-Okay then! Here . . . I . . . GO!" Using all of his strength, buffed up by Shine Burning's flames, Aisen launched the fire-embalmed boy into the air and spent him spinning towards Kazumi and Habiki, who somehow froze in her tracks.

The redhead's pupils narrowed as she watched the burning mass come towards her, focus not on Mashiro's sadistic grin or the bony weapons jutting out of his body but on the golden flames.

( "It burnsssssss, IT BURNSSSSSSS! HELP! HELP!" )

"Enoshima-san, what's the matter?!" Habiki shook her. "We've got to move!" But when he looked up, it was too late.

"~I've got you now, Habi-chi! Have a taste of my beautiful chaos!~" Mashiro swung a bladed bone right towards the raven-head. Squinting his eyes, Habiki made one last effort to disorientate him when-

"This is the worst teamwork I've ever seen between UA students."

The flames and Mashiro's bone weapons disappeared as he crash-landed on top of Kazumi and Habiki. Jobu's heated metallic body and Ryo's crystals vanished and both of them punched each other's jaws so hard that they knocked each other out. Asuna's trunk shrunk in size and her vines turned back into a tiny stem and when her wings retracted and claws disappeared, Inori fell down on top of the brunette.

"W-What . . .?" Aisen stared at his body, wondering how his flames vanished all of a sudden.

"I said, this is the worst teamwork I've ever seen between UA students." Eraserhead announced in a louder voice, arms crossed tightly across his chest as he glared down at everyone from the podium. "If all of you don't buckle up and improve within the next two weeks, I'm warning you, the UA Sports Festival is going to be hell."

Hero Name: Deku

Quirk: One For All

One For All gives Deku access to stockpiled power, granting him superhuman strength and greatly enhanced agility and mobility by spreading his power through his body.

P.S: Deku has been dominating the Number 1 spot in Hero rankings since the past six years.

(1st June, Tuesday, 2:17 p.m. – UA)

"Today hasn't been a good day at alllllllllll."

Exhausted, drenched in sweat and mentally drained, Aisen collapsed against his desk in the classroom, arms splayed straight and head resting between them.

"Well, at least we now know that the Sports Festival is definitely happening." If he were to be honest, Habiki could barely move any of the aching muscles in his body as he lay down on two joined chairs. After the surprising announcement from Eraserhead, all the students underwent intense physical training the whole day in order to prepare for the upcoming event.

"But this will definitely help us improve as Hero trainees!" Kenio tried to keep his voice cheerful as possible, even though he wanted nothing more to collapse on his bed. His long hair resembled the untidy nest of a lazy bird that had built a house in a hurry for breeding season. "Besides, we need to be able to impress Pros in order to get good internships!"

"I'm not too worried about that, actually." Kasai hummed under his breath as he packed his bag.

Jigoku playfully mused, "Don't tell me some Pro has already asked you, Hitori-san?"

"No but I know one that'll definitely take me as a trainee!" Kasai almost squealed, cerise eyes shining with admiration as he thought of Ground Zero. "And when that time comes I'll . . . I'll . . .!"

As everyone stared weirdly at the odd change in personality of the usually reserved boy, Hoshi cheered him on. "~Yay, I'm happy for you, Hitori-kun!~" Folding her hands behind her back, she wondered aloud, "~It sure would have been nice if I could mentor under Uravity!~"

"That's impossible, Fujita-san. She's in her third trimester." Asuna shook her head, sitting on her desk and swinging her legs. "But to be able train under Shoto-sama would be a true honour!" The brunette clasped her hands, drool almost dribbling down the corner of her mouth.

"I'm gonna do my all to impress Real Steel!" Jobu announced, bumping his metal fists together. "Oh yeah, we're gonna be the Steel duo! The coolest mentor-student pair ever!"

"Say that after I kick your ass in the one-on-one matches, pig iron brain," Ryo snorted, hands shoved in his baggy pants as he crossed in front of Jobu, heading towards the door. The silver-haired boy yelled at him for a fight, grabbed his own backpack and ran after the taller boy.

"Ah, Jobu, don't pick a fight again!" Kagami waved goodbye to Reiko and picked up her satchel before running off after him. However, Ryo's words had replaced the easygoing mood in class with a sombre atmosphere.

"Well, one-on-one battles have always been a tradition for the final round of UA's Sports Festival." Yasu calmly supplemented, arranging his notes for the day.

"Ehhhhhhhhhh but I really don't wanna fight any of you." Aisen whined, palms cupping his cheeks.

"Even I don't but it's not something we can avoid." Kenio patted the blond's head, a strained smile on his face. "Although, getting to that stage itself is going to be plenty difficult."

"Not only our class but the entire 1st year batch of UA is going to participate. That includes 1-B, the business department, the support department and the general education department." Habiki counted on his fingers, sighing at the thought of the competition they were going to face. "That's . . . a lot."

"Not really." Asuna jumped down from the desk and flipped a twin-tail over her shoulder. "The only threats I consider are the 1-B students. The other classes, after all, haven't undergone training as intense as ours." As the others pondered over her words, she picked her bag and walked away. "Well, anyway, I'm going to leave now. See you guys tomorrow."

"~Goodbye, everyone! Get home safely!~" Hoshi waved at all of them and Suzuran gave a meek bow, running after her two friends.

"1-B, she says." Jigoku had a tense smirk on his face as he watched the girls go. "As if there isn't plenty of competition in our own class."

"You have a point, Tejina-san," Akaname replied from the front of the classroom, in the process of thoroughly cleaning his glasses, "but what makes 1-B threatening isn't their supposed strength. It's the fact that we are unaware about the nature and weaknesses of their Quirks, unlike with our own classmates."

Everyone gasped in unison and exchanged glances at the class president's explanation. Aisen puffed out his chest and proudly grinned, "Well, you may be right but even without the surprise factor, my Lena is strong enough to rival anyone!"

'Still wonder how someone like her ended up dating him.' Although they hadn't interacted with the aloof girl much, the beautiful and cold-faced Helena Darkwood seemed to be a polar opposite compared to her childish, hyperactive boyfriend.

"~Even though we may end up fighting against each other . . .," Mashiro placed his chin on top of Habiki's head, wrapping the uneasy boy in his arms, ". . . let's give it our all, okay?~"

And even though everyone laughed at his words and cheered along, the trepidation of having to face-off in the near future shook them a little.

I turned away from them, the excited chatters fading into background noise as my mind zoned out.

The Sports Festival was two weeks away and after the two special lessons, I'd realised this wasn't going to be as easy as it had been in middle school. Erika, Hiro, Suzune, Tasuku . . . Nagi . . .

No one was with me.

But that didn't mean I had nothing to prove.

Even if I had to fight against Kenio . . . or Fuma . . . or Asuna . . .

I would make Deku look my way no matter what.

(5th June, Saturday, 11:47 p.m. – ?)

"Heh . . . so you're some kind of teenage prodigy?"

The jeep roughly tumbled over the rugged root trails that crowded the forest floor, the only lights in the thick jungle being the headlights of their car. She wondered how the man was able to drive amidst such dense foliage, where towering trees and thick bushes hung over them from all sides – but the penetrating gaze of the staring male beside her compelled her to answer. Even if only it was to push those infuriating emeralds away from her face.

". . . I was," the brunette quietly murmured, turning to stare out of the window, even though the darkness was too thick to see anything. She hoped that would satiate him but for some reason, she noticed him smirk from the corners of her eyes.

"Nice." The amusement in his tone really made her want to break his nose but unfortunately, her new organisation strictly prohibited any sort of violence between its members. "That must've been a fun teenage life."

But nevertheless, her fists tightly balled and she swerved to shoot him an icy look, white irises as chilling as hail. "If it'd been 'fun', I wouldn't be here, would I?" The taut words were almost drowned out by the loud roar of the jeep's engine and the screeches the large tires made as they toppled over branches, foliage and any unfortunate animal that might've come in their way.

"Calm down, calm down, lady." It was almost dramatic how effortlessly the cruel smirk on his face eased its way into one of the friendliest, most assuring smiles she'd ever seen. As Untouchable waved his hands in surrender, he sighed emphatically, "I didn't mean to rub you the wrong way, miss. Forgive me if I crossed the line."

Once upon a time, the young girl would've melted at the genial smile the handsome young male shot her.

'. . . But I'm not a young girl anymore. I'm Shi-Su . . . the merciless Horachimu Butcherer. And smiles like these are the ones I strive to destroy.'

As Shi-Su replied to Untouchable's smile with a poker faced glare, Gluttony turned back from the shotgun seat and gleefully clapped her hands. "It's so nice to see you two getting along so well!" Both brunettes shot her a gaze that screamed "Are you serious?" which she promptly ignored, turning to the driver instead. "Isn't it, Doumoto-san?! We're all getting along so well!"

The suited male sighed as he manoeuvred the jeep over another bush, shoulders slumped with exhaustion. "Just . . . shut up, please, woman." Gluttony pouted as much as she could with her lipless mouth and stuck her tongue out at him.

They had been driving deeper and deeper inside the forest since more than an hour, which itself was situated three hours away from some small village in Musutafu's outskirts. Leaning against the backseat, Shi-Su sighed as her shoulders ached from the rugged road and constant seating inside the car. She wondered just how much longer it would take to meet the new associate their 'Master' had told them about.

"So Doumoto-san and girlie here are the only ones who've personally met the leader, right?" Untouchable, bored out of his mind, decided to initiate some conversation. Despite having been a member of the Resurrected Villain League since his initiation almost a month ago, he knew nothing about the 'Master' Doumoto and the cannibal lady talked about. 'Heh . . . I wonder what kind of a person he is . . .'

"Yosh, as sad as I am to accept, that's true! Mou, I wish Master would be kind enough to grace me with his presence soon, too!" Gluttony whined, kicking her legs forward. "I want to see his skin texture, smell the odour of his sweat, observe the locks of his hair and so much more!"

'Which is precisely why he doesn't want to meet you, I suppose.' However, Untouchable was clever enough to not voice out these words. Instead, he asked a pressing question. "So how far is our new teammate, Doumoto-san?"

The man quietly mused for some time as he narrowly drove through a pass between two thick trees, before answering, "We'll be there soon enough."

Surprisingly, as soon as he's spoken, Shi-Su quietly whispered, "I've been noticing this for a while . . . but the deeper we're going in, the lesser I hear the sounds of the wild animals." When Untouchable and Gluttony shot her apathetic gazes, she added, "It should be the opposite . . . the deeper we embark inside a forest, the sighting and sounds of animals should increase."

The brunet mumbled, "Maybe they're all scared away by our jeep or something?"

The three riders flinched when a short chuckle escaped Doumoto. "Not really, Untouchable-san. It's because . . .

. . . this is her territory."

While a shudder of excitement whisked through Untouchable's spine, Shi-Su felt her skin begin to crawl from unease.

Only a few minutes after the statement Doumoto made, he stopped the jeep near a very thick-trunked banyan with roots that stretched everywhere and dark vines that twisted around each mangled branch. However, even as the other three stepped out of the car, they could see nothing in front of them except trees and bushes all around. But there was, however, one oddity they noticed.

Not a single insect could be heard in the dead of the night.

Switching on a powerful flashlight, Doumoto led the others towards a towering cluster of trees that seemed to be centred around the banyan. "This way, everyone. Although it looks like there's nothing but wild plants here-"

He pushed the densely leafed branches and thick vines out of the way, until they had essentially crossed through a blanket of leaves.

"-our potential recruit lives here."

And both Untouchable and Shi-Su couldn't help the widening of their eyes as they looked around at the vast clearing that spread out behind the opaque cluster. Gluttony squealed with excitement, dainty fingers covering her gasping mouth. "Oh wow! I would've never thought there would be a clearing in the middle of this giant forest! It's almost like in those fictional stories!"

Doumoto half-turned back and replied, "She created all of this herself, after all."

Shi-Su followed after the suited man, already having noticed the giant cave in the middle of the clearing. 'Just what kind of-'

'-beast created this?' Untouchable languidly tagged behind, hands shoved in his pockets as he warily checked the surroundings around him.

Although the cave already seemed huge from the forest edge, its magnanimous size was driven home as the quartet cautiously eyed it from up close, alert of what lay in the darkness inside. However, not wanting to waste anymore time, Doumoto was quick in calling out whoever they'd come for.

Cupping his hands over his mouth, he yelled, "Jormungand! We're here!"

Complete silence echoed after, only mediated by the rustling of distant leaves in the wind.

"Shouldn't you call once again?" Gluttony rocked back and forth on her heels, her impatience visible.

"No need." Doumoto's sombre expression left no room for arguing. "I'd prefer not to get on her bad side."

The lipless woman tilted her head. "Why would yo-"

And right at that moment, a great shaking reverberated through the earth below their feet, spreading its vibrating ripples in each direction. Untouchable and Shi-Su immediately went on guard, their bodies ready to kill at the slightest threat as the vibrations increased and a loud rumbling echoed from the impenetrable darkness of the cave.

Signs of the appearance of something powerful and monstrous, something that shook through the Earth itself.

Stabilising himself on his feet, Doumoto felt himself slightly tense. "I hope today wasn't her hibernating day."

As the rumbles grew louder and the vibrations more violent, Gluttony pointed towards the cave. "Guys, guys, look! IT'S A GIANT!"

A huge head full of short, black hair emerged out of the cave, revealing a beautifully tanned face underneath. And, as the Villains watched with mixtures of awe, unease and admiration, the giant woman's whole form was gradually fully exposed. Strong, muscular arms on either side of an incredibly endowed bust covered with white bandages that stopped over a strong stomach with washboard abs. The lower half of her body was inarguably not human but as she slithered forward, revealed a long, thick, powerfully muscular serpentine tail of black scales dotted by dark crimson rings.

'Just . . . how long is her freaking tail?!' Shi-Su was on the verge of activating her Quirk, every muscle in her body screaming that this was easily the most powerful person she'd ever encountered. And as the giant lamia pulled herself to a straight height, her shadow easily drowned out the illumination of the flashlight Doumoto was holding. Untouchable stared up at her and deduced she was easily the height of the three-floored apartment building he lived in as a child.

And when her eyes opened and gazed down at them, they felt momentarily paralysed by the animalistic gaze pooling in the red pupils.

"Does your Master not know how to take no for an answer, Doumoto?"

A voice thick with pride and authority, fitting for a creature whose battle scars and hard muscles served as trophies of her triumph. The confidence in her hypnotic eyes was unlike anything Shi-Su or Untouchable had seen before. She spoke like someone who was already assured that victory would always fall into her hands.

But despite that, Doumoto courageously stepped forward, combing back his short, dark hair. "I apologise for disturbing you, Jormungand. But, as our Master may have informed you, we come with a new offe-"

However, before he could complete his sentence, a giant black tail whipped towards the quartet from the side, giving them barely enough time to jump back. Shi-Su gritted her teeth as she tensed her muscles, about to activate her Quirk but Gluttony quickly grabbed her wrist. The brunette stared at her disapproving look before violently yanking her hand away, hissing, "Next time you do that, I'll break your arm." The black-haired woman only giggled cheerfully in reply.

"Looks like your new companions aren't as pathetic as they look." Cold, snow-coloured eyes turned wordlessly to the giant woman and Untouchable raised an eyebrow, amused at everything that was happening. Staring down at the teenager, the lamia hissed, "Control yourself, child . . . do you really think I would've missed if I didn't want to?" Shi-Su's fists balled at being addressed as 'child' but she kept herself restrained.

After all, she wasn't here on a demolition mission.

'No, this is . . . I'm here for Shibu.'

"Please calm down, both of you." Ever the mediator, Doumoto slowly approached the towering lamia, not a trace of nervousness or fear on his features. "Jormungand, our Master is aware of your ability as one of the finest warriors of our country. A Villain whose name incites fear in the hearts of even the bravest and whose feats are well-known in the underworld. One of Japan's most powerful mercenaries, having defeated even the monstrous Cutting Edge, and accompl-"

"Doumoto, I do not wish for you to tell me what I already know." The words were sharp and clear, threatening in their alacrity. "I yearn for slumber and am beginning to hunger for food . . . and you know how that is, right?"

'Can't think it is anything pleasant.' Untouchable fingered the thin blade in his trouser pockets, ready to pull it out at any moment.

Realising that she wanted to end things quickly, the sombre-faced man plunged his searching fingers into his inner shirt. "Jormungand . . . you may not remember but, one night, long ago in a shady bar in Musutafu, you'd told me about something you were searching for."

She went completely silent at the words, her lips tightening in a thin line. Her eyes were unreadable slits of crimson and onyx, resting upon the tinier man.

Doumoto pulled out a thinly rolled sheet from his inner coat and held it out to the woman. "And I am almost certain that I have found what you were looking for."

Jormungand's eyes flew completely wide at his words and she hesitantly forwarded the tip of her giant tail towards the man, reaching for the sheet.

But suddenly, she stopped midway.

As Doumoto blinked at her in confusion, she murmured with downcast eyes, "I apologise but I'm afraid . . . I can no longer let you live."

And before he could react, the giant tail was already reaching out towards him, coiling to crush his bones.

ED 2 – Superman by Crystal Kay