Chapter 1 - The Dogs Among Us - Part II

It was cramped. There was barely enough legroom for herself, let alone for the other occupants within the vehicle. She was also pretty sure that If she'd moved her head even an inch to the side, she'd find it within the bosom of another female passenger.

The saccharine scent of perfume wafting throughout the automobile entered her nostrils, causing her to almost shiver in delight before she silently contained herself. The woman felt pressure on one side of her shoulder, right before her eyes fell upon the aquamarine-colored hair of her right-hand helper.

Though an enclosed environment with many other inhabitants filling such a vast amount of space would be bothersome and uncomfortable to anyone else, these same grievances didn't apply to Tsubara.

She smiled softly, fondly observing Demiji's sleepy expression of tranquility as she raised her hand to caress his head, pulling him closer to her. For her, nothing was comparable to this level of intimacy with her subordinates.

Tsubara winced to herself. Wait… Subordinates? Did she really just think that?

Never had she despised a word so much in her entire life. It was so meaningless and devoid of care, something that she'd never want to attach to her sweethearts. No, family… family was a much more accurate description for them. She mentally cursed herself for her mistake and took to staring outside of the windows, not wanting to remove her manicured hands from Demiji's velvety locks.

The cities seemed more crowded than usual. Most of its residents cautiously watched while her convoy passed along the streets. Tsubara smirked. Good. Contrary to popular belief, she wasn't a violent woman… without reason, of course. She considered herself to be a humble bee. On most days, she's merely trying to mind her own business, attend to her hive, and appease her family, more often than not. Sure, illegal activities are rather frequent on their behalf, but they had to do what they had to do!

But they never went out of their way to kill without reason. That went against everything she stood for.

Just like a bee, if you fiddled about and pestered it enough, it'll defend itself. And she figured that summed up her and all of her family members really well.

That being said, the wariness of the citizens in her area was quite delightful, from her viewpoint. The more they know of them, the less likely it'll be for them to cause her any problems. Problems were the last thing she needed right now after all. If Kunniya's little meeting scheduling was anything to go by, at least. She was just glad that they knew their place… for the most part, unfortunately. There was always that one fool that tried to rain on their parade and spoil their fun.

It was never a major issue though. Her family was united and strong, forming such a mountain that was immovable, especially not by low-rate peons. And like a mountain, too much movement caused avalanches, and many have fallen because they shot too high for the stars and pushed their luck, resulting in them getting crushed.

And as soon as someone pushed their luck once, that's it. You don't get a second chance.

But that was a topic for a later time. Right now, she simply wanted nothing more than to enjoy the little bit of quality time she can have with her wonderful family.

Tsubara whistled along to the tune emanating from the radio station, thoroughly enjoying the poppish tunes blasting from the speakers. At least, as much of it as she could hear. Exuberant chatter muddled the music ever so slightly, as most of the Hai-Hai members within her limousine consulted and bantered amongst themselves.

She didn't mind it, however. She never minded it! No music could compare to the sound of unification within her organization. The voices reminded her of the fact that they were alive and breathing… it was a reminder of what she had now as opposed to what she was deprived of throughout the entirety of her past life.

She was happy now. They made her happy. And she'd be damned if anyone or anything would ruin this for her ever again. She'd make sure of it.

"Tsubara-sama!"

Her heart fluttered at the sound of a familiar voice. The same chivalrous and excitable voice that she'd come to fall in love with since the young girl's integration within the gang. She spoke with such respect, such honor, and the level of conviction in her vocal inflection was enough to make her swoon on the spot. She kept herself in check, for she didn't wish to disrupt Demiji from his slumber before smiling at the individual.

"Why yeeees~? What is it, Suggi-chaaan, my precious samurai warrior?" Tsubara met the intricate eyes of another girl who sat across from her, beaming as she admired her exotically unique features. "Is something wrong?"

Tsubara's eyes never left her. The darkened horns that protruded from either side of her head, her wondrous eyes with golden swirls drowning in a sea of endless violet, and most importantly… her adorably serious expression… or at least, her attempt at one. One similar to that of a soldier, but she'd never be able to mask her true cuteness. And frankly, Tsubara had no complaints with that.

"Hmph!" Suga huffed confidently, happily savoring the attention of her empress as she sat across from her. "I would like to graciously inform you that we're reaching the end of our perilous journey through the concrete kingdom of Osaka! And we'll make it without ANY issues!" She then tossed her extremely long hair over her shoulder, unintentionally causing another member to sneeze by having her light lavender tips tickle their nose. "As expected! For what foolish imp would dare impose on such fearless warriors such as ourselves!?"

Tsubara giggled, placing her hand within her dress pocket to grasp an unwrapped sweet cake before tossing it to Suga, who happily caught it. "Oh as if our enemies would even dream of attacking us with you and the others aboard, Suggi-chi~! Your aura was enough to scare away the unrighteous rulers of the night and lead us to our destination!"

Though Suga kept her usual poker-faced expression, the color of her face betrayed her as she spoke with reddened cheeks. "It-It was my duty as your protector, my Empress!" She then unsheathed a long sword from her holster, carefully displaying it before her leader. "For I would not only carry myself through the realms of darkness for you, but I would also clash swords with the lord of evil, Akuma, himself if it meant that I'd ensure your safety in the process!"

God, words could not express how much Tsubara loved and treasured this girl.

"And you know that the same goes from me to yoooou, Suggi-chi!" Small hearts could practically be seen within Tsubara's eyes as she beamed towards the girl before her, who was now bowing as low as her body would allow her. "I won't let anything happen to any of you! In this meeting, I refuse for the same incident from last time to occur once again!"

Tsubara gestured for Suga to come closer, to which the taller girl happily complied. "Sit by senpai for me, yeah~?"

"Yes, Empress! Anything for you!" Suga announced before swiftly making her way over towards her leader, shifting between the smaller gaps of space, opposite of Demiji's side. She gasped at the feeling of Tsubara's head slightly leaning against her shoulder, blushing as the sounds of her leader's cooing could be heard. "M-My Empress?"

"You know, Suga, I'm really proud of you…" Tsubara whispered softly, as she smiled a tired smile towards the black-horned girl adoring smile. "Despite all that you've been through, you've still managed to be one of the best girls that I could ever ask for! The amount of passion that you have, the intensity of your love, and your loyalty means the world to me and all of the others!"

Suga took the time to look around the vehicle, noticing that all of the previous commotion from earlier had died down. She was greeted with stares from all around her, smiles as friendly as ever. No matter how much she saw it, she could never get used to it. The feeling of butterflies filled her stomach, further making her shrink inwardly with a bashful smile, and Suga then succumbed to nuzzling Tsubara back.

"It-It is my pleasure and duty as a part of your army, Tsubara-senpai! I would never allow myself to not pull my weight and disappoint you, my Empress, for you are my light and flame..." Suga's voice then transcended into a mere whisper, a melancholic expression etched onto her features. "Without you, I was lost… I wasn't quite sure what to believe in or who to fight for… but this enclave has given me new-found purpose! It is my honor to fight for my family, no matter the cause."

Without warning, Tsubara pecked the girl on the cheek at a rapid pace, feeling herself on the verge of tears as an abundance of "oh's" and "aw's" could be heard from the other members present. She then pressed her cheek against Suga's, getting as close to her as she possibly could without letting go of Demiji.

"You have… no idea how happy that makes me, Suggi-chi~!" Tsubara said, more so to herself than anyone else. Her eyes met Suga's before pressing her dainty finger against the samurai's small, pointed nose. "And I love that you've accepted us into your life as well!"

"Tsubara-senpai!" The chirpy voice of a familiar figure could be heard from the front seat of the limousine, on the opposite side of where the chauffeur was positioned. Sticking her head from behind the head of the seat, Junko had revealed herself. "W-We're coming closer to the meeting point! Once we get there, we'll provide a circle around the perimeter while Suga and Demiji accompany you within the building!"

'Okay… another five years, another get-together with these bozos…' A sigh escaped past Tsubara's lips before she turned to carefully peck both Suga and Demiji on their foreheads, effectively walking up the latter in the process. "Alright, everyone! Let's get this show on the road, you all know the drill! We can't have another incident like last time, yeah~?!"

"NO, SENPAI!" The entirety of the gang shouted in unison, all of them preparing their Quirks with innocent smiles on their mostly cherubic faces.

"If any of these meanies get out of line and think that they can hurt one of our own, what are we going to do!?" Tsubara exclaimed, positioning herself with her chest stuck forward and her fist in the air.

"SLAUGHTER THEM! DESTROY THEM! FILLET THEM! SHOW NO MERCY AND SPARE NO ONE!" The proclamations of the gang only increased in volume, being loud enough to even be heard from those taking up space on different sides of the street's sector. Within mere minutes, Tsubara looked outside and chuckled at the sight of all the pedestrians quickly leaving the vicinity at the blink of an eye.

"And that's what we'll do! For those that we love and protect because THAT is the Hai-Hai spirit!" Tsubara finished before rising her fist to the air, a pink shade of energy surrounding it in a menacing fashion. "Say it with me, you beautiful cuties, you! Hai-Hai!"

"HAI-HAAAAAAI!" As the bellowing of the gang's cheers echoed through the streets, the doors of the limousine smashed open and from there, a sea of colors flooded the both sides of the streets. A cacophony of excitable voices clashed together, sounding like music to Tsubara's ears as she grasped the frilly sems of her rose-colored dress before putting her shoes to the ground and walking towards the building's entrance. On both sides of her were Suga and Demiji.

"I'm sorry that you two had to be the ones to stay around for these stupid, annoying dummy-heads." Tsubara snickered, placing both of her hands on the shoulder blades of her two most trusted lieutenants, keeping a sympathetic expression. "But for these idiots, I trust you guys to let me know if anything remotely fishy is taking place while I'm focused on trying to speak stupid with them!"

Demiji chuckled, suppressing a yawn before bumping his fist against his chest, causing light-azure armor with futuristic details and neon-blue circuits to immediately cover his entire body. "It's no worry, Tsubara-senpai! We completely understand that you want to take extra precautions!"

"Yes, indeed, my armor-clad companion!" Suga exclaimed, pulling two twin-swords from holsters on either side of her waist and swinging them at blinding speeds, making sure not to nick Tsubara and Demiji in the process. She proudly admired her samurai-esque uniform, fondly pressing her gloved fingertips across the Hai-Hai engraving on her arm guard. "For with us present, they'll fail to mask their killing intent in an adequate fashion! And we shall immediately prepare for a battle to protect you, my Empress!"

Tsubara giggled, raising her hand to lightly caress the side of Suga's cheek, causing the girl to blush for a second. "Oh, you don't have to worry about little old me! I'll be just fine! You leave the bigger wienies to me, okay~? They can't do shit to me anyways, and I warned them that if any situation like last time happens, I'm going to skewer them and feed them to Haru-chi!"

As the entrance grew closer before the trio passed the threshold, bringing them into a room of immense tenebrosity, Tsubara's eyes narrowed and gleamed dangerously. An occurrence that wasn't lost on both Suga and Demiji, who looked towards one another and nodded.

'It's been a long time since I've had to kill… let's hope these bozos don't change that and get me all out of character…'

"Well… this is somewhat awkward, huh?"

No matter how much she tried, she failed to suppress the urge to roll her eyes in indignation at the sound of a common nuisance within the room. It was evident that he wouldn't keep himself quiet, she never expected him to, but she was so used to having comfortable silence with her subordinates that the incessant droning of his dull voice was beginning to drive her mad.

She merely side-eyed him, scrutinizingly observing his manner of dressing and wrinkling her nose upwards at how… distastefully causal it was. As opposed to wearing something that was becoming of a renowned kingpin, it seemed as if he'd been dumpster-diving in the back-alley of a thrift store-shop. With his messy, black leather jacket with a few tatters accompanying a pair of lazily-fitted denim jeans, and his dusted white sneakers.

Fighting the urge to gag was quite a difficult endeavor for Kichijōten. His sense of fashion was almost as revolting as his bothersome personality.

Meanwhile, Kurotsuki's cat-like smirk grew wider with every passing second as he paid close attention to Kichijōten's judgmental stare, fully reveling in her obvious distaste. While he considered her thoughts on him to be quite trifling and irrelevant, he could never hide his amusement to her disapprovals.

Kurotsuki raised a slender hand and ran it across his straight black-colored hair, tilting his head to the side as he raised his eyebrows. His golden eyes were fully locked onto Kichijōten, who was currently contemplating on arising from her chair and blackening both of them. "Hmmm~? You seem grumpy today, Kiyo… at least, more so than you usually are, of course."

Kichijōten rolled her eyes, "Well, considering the fact that I have several other matters that I could be attended to at the moment, but I'm stuck amidst the company of you and the rest of the mongrels," She flipped her long, amatharine hair to the side, avoiding the stare of Kurotsuki in the process. "I'd say that I have a valid reason to be displeased. Also, I don't remember giving you permission to call me by my first name, you heathen."

Kurotsuki snickered to him briefly before placing his feet on the table and closing his eyes. "Oh~? Is that right?" The Black Cats leader then mockingly bowed towards the girl, chuckling to himself before responding. "Then I'll be sure to keep that in mind, just for you… princess."

Her hands tightly gripped her end of the table, causing the sounds of wood splitting to echo throughout the room. Her purple gaze was placed dangerously upon Kurotsuki, who merely shrugged his shoulders in a nonchalant fashion.

"Alrighty! Then I suppose we'll settle for Kiyo~!" He carefully examined his fingernails before continuing, all while outright ignoring Kiyoko's death glare. "It took years, but I'm glad that we've finally established titles and such in this short amount of time, Kiyoko~!"

Kiyoko growled slowly, staring daggers towards the infuriating male before taking a series of deep breaths. Finally, she calmed herself before letting go of the table, ignoring the resounding pieces of wood clashing against the harsh, solid grounds below. Her glare persisted, nonetheless.

The fact that Kurotsuki didn't look intimidated in the slightest almost infuriated her even more.

"I'm surprised to see you here already," Kiyoko muttered bitterly, more so to herself than Kurotsuki. "Don't you usually do your whole stalking thing before you show yourself?"

Kurotsuki lightly chuckled, "Stalking, huh? Is that what you call it? Well, I suppose that you wouldn't be too far off, but the only other person I know that calls it that is—"

"I wouldn't finish that sentence if I were you, mongrel…" Kiyoko whispered, feeling rage returning at full-force and coursing through her veins. "Anyways, why don't you just save me and everyone else coming here the trouble and simply state why you called us here in the first place? Or at least, why you had your little helper do it instead..."

Kurotsuki boredly stared at Kiyoko before returning his attention to his nails, glancing cautiously towards the entrance while doing so. "You'll see."

Kiyoko grunted, holding an expression of frustration. Who exactly did he think he was, making her waste anymore of her precious time within the presence of non-believers and heretics?

"You must think that I'm some sort of fool, huh…" She angrily spat, entirely fed up with Kurotsuki's shenanigans. "You know that disgusting, filthy rat won't be here until at least thirty minutes from now, so you might as well save me the trouble of having to smell or converse with him by telling me what the trouble is at this very moment!"

Kurotsuki winced, perturbed by the increasing volume of her voice. She always was quite a demanding individual. And a hypocritical one as well, considering that she never truly practiced what she preached. For someone who was supposed to the embodiment of elegance, class and refinement, Kiyoko could be loud whenever she wanted to be. Last time he checked, having an inside voice was a pivotal part of being well-mannered.

A part of him really wanted to just toss the information into her face and call it a day, but where would be the fun in that? She was amusing when she was frustrated after all, and an annoyed Kiyoko would be even more fun to deal with when her nemesis showed up.

Kurotsuki then replaced his wince with a slight smirk, his cat-like eyes squinting all the while. "Sorry~! You might be one of my favorite girls, but I can't be too heavy on the favoritism with you, Kiyo." He shifted in his seat, wiggling his eyebrows to further irritate the young girl. "So you'll have to bear with me and wait until the rest show up, sweetheart."

'Sweetheart…?' Kiyoko grounded her teeth at a considerably loud magnitude, fully penetrating the thick silence that followed Kurotsuki's teasing statement. The audacity of this low-life peon to think he could speak to her as if she was his friend. As if he wasn't speaking to Kami's chosen one. If she could have it her way, Kurotsuki would've been impaled and skewered before being nailed to a cross, limb-by-limb.

And she'd be sure that it was in a humiliating fashion as well. It would've been a treat to see if his blatant disrespect was as humorous to him then.

"Hai-Haaaaaaai~! I'm so sorry for our late arrival, but the life of a second mother is never easy—!" Kiyoko was brought out of her stupor from a strangely familiar voice. One that was chirpy, light, and unnecessarily high-pitched.

In the corner of her eyes, she could see Kurotsuki shifting into a shadow while moving in the darker crevices of the room. Kiyoko clicked her tongue in annoyance as he playfully placed his finger over his mouth, shushing her before disappearing.

'Such an imbecile…' Kiyoko frowned before turning to greet the woman entering the room. "Greetings, Nishimoto, and it's quite alright… we weren't getting much of anywhere in the first place."

"I'll bet~!" Tsubara giggled, flipping her bubblegum-pink hair to the side before finding her place in a seat opposite of Kiyoko. "I could practically feel the annoyance wafting from you as soon as I entered the room, hence my pause in speaking." Her large, curious eyes scanned the room, noticing that at least one inhabitant was missing. "Wait, wasn't Yasue just in here with you? What happened to him—ah, he's doing the whole hiding thing again, isn't he?"

"As per usual, it's never him if he isn't acting like a brain-dead chimpanzee after all." Kiyoko rolled her eyes, placing her chin within the palm of her hand before boredly staring at the blackened walls around her. She frowned in deep distaste. Whoever was responsible for the interior design of this decrepit building should have been killed. Such an underwhelming spot, but considering the people that were overseeing such things, Kiyoko supposed that it was expected to a degree.

Tsubara blew a raspberry before shaking her head. "Wienie, a total wiener," she replied mockingly. "Though he can be entertaining in his own ways… occasionally."

"Oh yes," Kiyoko exclaimed in an obviously exaggerated manner. "A modern day jester of the likes that we've never seen before! One that could surely make a dying dog howl in laughter…"

"Oh, Kagurazaka, we both know that the only way a dog would ever howl from his antics is for someone to put it out of its misery." Tsubara snickered. She twirled one of her pink braids around her svelte fingers before looking at the opening, sighing affectionately while Suga and Demiji chatted at the entrance.

"And now, we wait for the overlord of edginess to, once again, arrive in a late fashion~!" Tsubara remarked, making sure to carefully observe Kiyoko's expression. "I guess we should've brought our masks, huh? Considering the fact that we can pretty much smell the stench of him from miles away… literally."

Kiyoko never responded verbally, merely letting her look of acrimony speak for her. Tsubara almost failed in hiding her amusement behind an adorable smile. She could never help herself in poking fun at their little rivalry with each other. They were both relatively young for their positions as leaders, so she'd like to think that their spite for one another was actually to mask their true feelings for one another.

Possibly… the feeling of love.

Of course, she knew that wasn't the case. Both Kiyoko and Kai just legitimately wanted to kill one another. But, she figured that it would never hurt to indulge within her own fantasies from time to time.

Suddenly, the air surrounding them became denser than before, signifying an obvious change in the atmosphere. Tsubara was the first to notice, closely followed by Kiyoko, who proceeded to stand from her seat. She eyed the entrance cautiously, her fist shaking with such intensity that a hazardous glow radiating from both hands, shrouding her arms in a golden aura.

A new smell was present, completely overwhelming the previous scent of paint and drywall within the room. The smell of rancid, rotting corpses encompassed the vicinity in a matter of seconds. A faint "ew" could be heard from Tsubara before she stuck her tongue outward, pretending to gag before enclosing herself within an incredibly bright orb made of pink, surging energy.

Kiyoko, on the other hand, growled underneath her breath before finding her seat once more, turning away from the entrance entirely as she raised her hand to conceal her nostrils.

"Pfffft… jokes on him, I can't smell a damn thing like this…" Said a whisper from a different corner of the room, who Tsubara and Kiyoko deciphered to be Kurotsuki.

Powerfully loud steps could be heard echoing within the room, coming from the direction that they'd all entered from previously. It was almost like a continuous loop to them, especially Kiyoko who knew that he was merely being overly dramatic for the sake of pissing her off. A child. That's all he'd ever be, unfortunately. The wish to run forward and drag him through the building, breaking every bone in his body within the process just so he could sit still... was quite tempting to her.

But she knew that she couldn't do that. For as much of a petulant child as he was, he was resilient… like a cockroach. An insect that he'd shared many similarities with, but above all else, he was dirty, preserving… and hard to get rid of.

Never in her young life on earth had she ever abhorred someone as much as she did him.

After what felt like days, which was only about three minutes in reality, a single black boot emerged from the darkness of the entrance before a figure followed afterwards.

"Waiting for me? I'm honored." Despite his breaking of the silence, his steps were still quite deliberate, calm and unshaken amidst the tension gripping the enclosed space that held all three of… the others.

Not a single word or greeting was exchanged as he reached the table, boredly looking upon the two girls positioned there as well. Finally, he found a seat, far away from the others as he raised his feet, perching them upon the top surface before leaning in his chair.

Without warning, a familiar shadow could be seen blitzing towards a seat closer to Kai before shifting into Kurotsuki once more, who then playfully waved at Kai with his trademark Cheshire-cat-like smile. "And hello to you, thy harbinger of death and destruction."

"Alright, and? You want to tell me why I had to come all the way across the map to get here, stalker?" Kai then turned and spat nonchalantly on the vinyl flooring below, inducing a look of disgust and revulsion from Kiyoko. "And if this is all for nothing, then I hope you got your little hamster behind the desk to pick you out a grave-site… if there even is anything left by the time I'm done with you."

Kurotsuki took a moment to observe Kai, staring deep within his dark blue eyes that were similar to an endless nebula of darkness and danger. His gaze was almost completely dead, as he possessed a stare that told a thousand tales, all of which were filled with complete despair and affliction… so much so that they'd place anyone within the doldrums of anguish and fear with a single glimpse.

But not Kurotsuki though. In fact, he'd considered them to be quite pretty… in their own twisted way.

"What are you looking at? Stare a little longer and I'll gouge out your eyes and feed them to your cats because they're clearly useless anyway. Well? Get to the point, I don't have all day, you know." Kai then removed his dictator-styled cap, revealing his blonde-hair before placing it on the table.

Kurotsuki raised his hands in a mischievously defensive manner. "Hey, calm down~! I'm just happy that you were able to make it without trouble, my guy."

Kai scoffed, "You say that like I ever have troubles."

Kai's eyes wandered towards the other two inhabitants once again, grinning a condescending smirk at Kiyoko, who seemed adamant on not acknowledging his existence.

Tsubara looked between the two before looking over to Kurotsuki, who was mimicking the facial of Kai, eliciting a giggle from Tsubara before she did the same with Kiyoko. Both immediately played coy when both Kai and Kiyoko shifted cold gazes towards both.

Rolling his eyes, Kai had decided that the extended silence had gone on far enough. The sooner that they got this over with, the better.

"Ribbons," He spoke, addressing Tsubara first, who maintained a smile despite the obvious tick mark on her forehead. Smirking, he then moved his attention to Kiyoko. "Princess. Did you miss me?"

"I certainly didn't miss your scent…" Kiyoko venomously spat, finally turning her hate-filled glare towards Kai for the first time since he'd entered the room. "You stink, and you look even more like a sick dog than you usually do. To think that someone could come out and present themselves the way you do and actually feel proud of it is… repulsive."

Kai stared back without a hint of intimidation present, raising his eyebrows while doing so. "Well, if you're really that adverse to it, I'd be more than happy to put you six feet under so that you can't smell anything at all."

Kiyoko grunted to herself, slightly amused by the prospect of him doing anything to her, let alone killing her. "Save the threats for your underlings if you haven't killed them all for merely hurting your sensitive little heart." She snapped her fingers rapidly, leading to a small, petite young girl with curly pig-tails and wings to materialize within the air, carrying a cup of tea.

"Besides, you tried the same thing last time, and you were utterly embarrassed. Do not let our audience see you make an even bigger fool of yourself once again." She mockingly stated, accepting the cup and patting the girl's head before sending her off.

A cruel chuckle erupted from Kai's throat, echoing within the room before responding. "You always were delusional, I'm not surprised to see that it's spread to other parts of your personality as well. In that case, it probably isn't even worth saying, but well I'll say it anyway." Kai then carefully examined his hat, rubbing smears off of the metallic embellishments on the front side.

Finally finishing, he placed it upon his head once more, keeping his eyes shadowed by the cap's tip. "The one who was embarrassed in that fight wasn't me. After all, you're the one who was hiding behind your little guardian like a coward, relying on your fucking nonsensical ramblings to a nonexistent being, and yet still couldn't put a single scratch on me."

Dark irises could be seen glowing through the darkened area of his eyes as he brutally addressed Kiyoko, who radiated a black-hearted essence. "You're just a little girl playing pretend in your own little bubble and corrupting those around you with your madness because you're too scared to face reality. Honestly, I really don't see why you think the desperate delusions of filth as low as yourself could possibly hold even a feather's weight against me. But well, whatever lets you sleep at night, Princess. Wouldn't want you going so mad you have to be put down like a rabid dog because you're lacking your beauty sleep now, would we?"

The room was completely inaudible, save for the ticking of Kurotsuki's wrist-watch as he and Tsubara cautiously darted their eyes towards Kiyoko. She seemed calm, albeit in a very eerily kind of way. However, Tsubara caught note of the fact that Kiyoko's arm shook violently as she raised her cup towards her lips.

Tsubara wasn't a fool by any stretch of the imagination. Kiyoko usually held a cup of green tea like her life depended on it, so her quivering like an earthquake in the middle of drinking was a rare sight.

A rare sight that usually ended with bloodshed and violence. And she'd be damned if she's let these bickering children endanger her family ever again.

"OKAAAAY~!" Tsubara exclaimed, speaking through clenched teeth as she looked over to Kurotsuki. "I think that we've all exchanged formalities by this point, so I don't really see much reason for us to stall any longer… right, Yasue-chi?" She growled in a subtle manner, while giving Kurotsuki an obviously fake smile.

Kurotsuki would be lying to himself if he said that he didn't want to push things a little further. In fact, the temptation was quickly overtaking his common sense. He could never get enough of how these two seemed to always be at each other's necks in an instant. Deep down, he knew that Tsubara did too.

He understood her reasoning for wanting things to be resolved quickly though. The last "meeting" between them ended up with a Hai-Hai member getting hurt… something that Tsubara did not take kindly to, considering that she turned Kai and Kiyoko's fight into a triple-threat immediately afterwards.

Kai and Kiyoko fighting, he could handle pretty well. Kai and Kiyoko AND a pissed off Tsubara was a nightmare that he didn't want to relive. For as cute as she was, Tsubara could be as scary as all of them combined when she wanted to be.

Kurotsuki sighed before clearing his throat, "Ah, yeah, you're right, Tsu. As fun as it is seeing these two rekindle their long-lost re—!"

"Think very carefully about what comes out of your filthy, disease-ridden mouth next, you horrendous, walking heap of back-alley trash," Kiyoko snapped, completely derailing Kurotsuki's train of thought. "And you, Ayashiki… you speak out of line to Kami-sama's chosen prophet like that again… and I'll see to it that I keep all of your savages in tattered suits and chains for your crucifixion, as your corpse is defiled by flames hotter than the underworld itself."

Kai never even passed Kiyoko a second glance, far more interested with his shiny, black boots than her threats, "You're more than welcome to try, of course~ But I doubt you'd be able to so much as scratch me even if I walked up to your little execution ring myself. Can you even light a match with those fragile fingers of yours, Princess? Oh wait, sorry, I forgot you have brainwashed servants to do everything for you because you're pathetically incapable of doing anything yourself, Your Royal Fucking Highness."

Tsubara clears her throat loudly, "Ne, Yasue-chi? Can we do this like… right now~?"

"Okay, fine, settle down, kiddos," Kurotsuki mumbled, unable to hide the obvious disappointment in his voice. "Alright… so we all know that the current Prime Minister of Japan no longer resides in Tokyo, courtesy of Ayashiki," he quipped.

"What can I say?" Kai shrugged. "It was being wasted on him, so I took it. I should've killed him while I was at it, but…well, it doesn't matter either way."

"...Yeah~! So anyways," Kurotsuki continued, deciding that it was truly for the best to say his peace before someone was at another's throat once more. "I was sniffing about, digging through records and picking up leads on where they could be stationed for the time being because it's always good to know where the enemies lay their heads, right? And.. lo and behold, I stumbled upon the big boss himself and his cute little assistant."

Kurotsuki then reached into his pockets and pulled out a mini-recorder before placing it on the table, tapping his finger against the play button before continuing. "And from the sound of things? It looks like they're finalizing a plan to take all of us out… something called the White Knights Initiative."

As each leader listened attentively to the recording, Tsubara was the first to speak, visibly confused. "Wait… White Knights? You mean the wieners from a few years back that thought they were going to boss us around? The same White Knights that folded when I literally only told them, "No, I don't want to?", That's what this is all about?"

"Bingo, Nishimoto!" Kurotsuki chirped before looking towards Kiyoko and Kai, who appeared to be as bored as ever. "Now… our two youngsters here aren't very familiar with the previous version of said "wieners", but we don't really have to say much about them at all, really because… well, they were boy scouts." He laughed, rolling his eyes at the memory of said group attempting to find him but failing miserably. "Heroic wannabes that wanted to chase an idea that no longer existed."

"Well then, judging by how you and Nishimoto have described them, they're no different from the other trash that we've disposed of in the past, correct?" Kiyoko sighed, finally regaining her composure and placing her empty tea cup upon a coaster. "I don't see what the issue is, if they want to deter Kami-sama's will, they'll be slaughtered much like everyone else has tried."

"And? Don't tell me this is all you had to say, Stalker," Kai said flatly, sounding completely unamused. "If it is, you may as well start running for your life now. Not that it would help you, even with your whole teleportation act. Death threats are hardly new, and especially not from cannon fodder."

"Oh, Ayashiki, come on, you got to have a little more faith in me," Kurotsuki gasped, feigning shock. "I don't call you guys up unless it's serious business!" His small smile then dropped, finally taking a serious expression for the first time since he'd entered the room. "These aren't the same inexperienced has-beens from before… and regardless of how capable we all think we are?"

He grabbed the recorder, slightly adjusting the volume enough so that all three of the other leaders could hear perfectly.

"I think we should take a listen to this and give it our undivided attention… because this isn't a reform deal, crackdown operation, or anything that we're used to… this is a purging notice."

The entire front lobby of the building was quite decrepit, much like the rest of the edifice. Damage done by time had effectively ruined any chances of the establishment being restored to its former glory. The echoing of rain slipping in through cracks within the ceiling reverberated within the inner chambers of the premises.

The damp draft blowing in from an opened window closest to a noticeably relaxed woman blew her long, silky black hair within the wind. Her golden eyes took in every orifice of the building while she waited alongside her companion, as they both listened intently to the whispers of their leader conducting business within the room behind them. Though it had been years since she had come upon such a dilapidated building, it wasn't anything that she hadn't seen before or wasn't used to.

She looked to the unconcealed window, noticing a small, black cat watching over them as they stood in place. While a bit of an eye-raiser, she decided that it wasn't entirely out of place. She smiled softly, playfully waving to the feline. In a strange way, the cat seemed to respond with a small meow before stretching out on the windowsill, eliciting a chuckle from the woman.

"Guh, It reeks of ammonia, mold, and sickness in here," She heard the deep voice of her fellow comrade whisper underneath his breath, obviously somewhat disgusted by where they'd have to remain stationary for the time being. "I do hope that Kichijōten-sama's discussions with those ruffians isn't prolonged. I can practically feel the sin of this place crawling all over me."

The woman giggled to herself. Though she supposed that she understood his sentiments and would also rather be anywhere else than where they were currently, she couldn't help but feel the man was being quite melodramatic, if she were to put it lightly. The woman placed one hand upon her curvy hips, pulling out a small pocket mirror with her other. "Ishiwari Watashi~! Surely something like this shouldn't perturb someone of your stature~ You're one of our leader's greatest lines of defense!"

Watashi grunted, brushing a calloused hand through his wavy golden locks. "For as true as that might be, I'd still rather not grotle amongst filth if I can help it, Hanakawa Etsuko." He said mockingly before releasing a sigh, rolling his shoulders and exposing his muscular arms in the process. "And no offense to you, but such conditions aren't what I'm used to, I can't say that my tolerance level is as high as yours…"

Etsuko smirked, closely admiring her beautifully pale skin with her mirror before applying a touch of red lipstick to her lips. "Oh, it's not so bad, all things considered." Upon finishing, she returned her attention to the male, softly patting his shoulder. "When you've lived a majority of your adolescence in the lowest of slums on the face of the earth, scraping for food and shelter with every chance you got, it tends to make someone like myself a little less judgmental of such environments."

Etsuko placed her finger upon her lip, feigning being lost in thought. "As a matter of fact, such a place would be the equivalent of a mansion for younger me~!"

Watashi deadpanned, slowly raising his eyebrows before responding, "I am… sorry."

Etsuko wheezed, letting a soft, airy laughter follow closely behind. "Oh, don't worry too much over it, it made me stronger in the long run," Etsuko twirled strands of her midnight-colored hair around her fingertips, thinking fondly of the more pleasant side of her struggles. "Plus, it's admittedly gifted me with a bit of happiness as well… a lot of those in my care came from such conditions, you know?"

Watashi hummed to himself, nodding in agreement with the woman. "Indeed… you've been a wonderful asset in increasing our numbers, and though Kichijōten-sama doesn't express it much, you are a very essential part of our cause." He leaned against the solid walls of the room, ignoring the solid clang that sounded off once his greek-style armor collided with its surface. "You teach those underneath you quite well."

While Etsuko was admittedly surprised by Watashi's praises, she couldn't stop a somber smile from coming to her features, looking towards the ground as flashes of a young boy's face haunted her mind, seemingly taunting her continuously. She closed her eyes to halt the feelings of slight tears welling up. 'Not… well enough, I'm afraid…'

"Hey! Hey! Wow, you look hella weird! Why are you dressed like that!? What exactly are you supposed to be?! Are you like, a samurai or something? I'm a little confused… it's not very cute though~! At least, well, I guess you're kinda cute or whatever, but the get-up certainly isn't!"

"Foolish girl, I am no mere ninja! I am a samurai and you shall address me as such, lest you wish to be skewered! Also, why must you speak so much? It's… incessant."

Both Etsuko and Watashi looked towards the commotion that had been transpiring from the opposite end of the room, the latter of the two glaring hatefully towards the loud girl with a high ponytail in the color of pink. "Ayashiki…. And his obnoxious purse dog… she is beyond the point of being an annoyance…" Watashi muttered. Etsuko, though outwardly indifferent, nodded in agreement.

"Manaka Yui," Etsuko sighed, looking away from the scene entirely, not caring to give the girl any attention. "For as dangerous as she can be, she's equally as insufferable, unfortunately… much like the rest of her gang, apparently."

"Hm?" Meanwhile, Yui tilted her head at Suga, seeming genuinely confused by her question. "Do I talk a lot? I don't think I talk that much, do I? Well, anyways, someone has to do the talking, right?" Yui huffed, pouting her lips at the slightly taller girl while crossing her arms across her chest. "You're about as much of a fucking turd as Kinya is, clearly—ara, well, I suppose that's too far. No reaches the killjoy levels that Kinya does after all~"

She then snapped her fingers, a look of realization on her oddly cartoonish features. "Oh! Except maybe that old fart, right over there!" She then pointed to a tall, domineering male with ashened-gray hair, who menacingly glared at her. "But! I can blame age for him, at least!"

"Do not test me, child." The man grumbled, his voice having an incredibly deep baritone filled with authority and malice as he held a sharpened sword with one hand. He carefully smoothed out a few wrinkles along his suit before fixing the cuffs. "And I'd take her advice if I were you, silence would be the most beneficial thing for you at the moment."

"Sorry, sorry~" Yui said flippantly, waving a hand at him absently and without taking her eyes off Suga. "Ah… what was your question again? Oh, right, right~! So I'll shut up whenever I wanna shut up, which… never happens, I love talking and only Kai-sama tells me to shut up, so you'll just have to deal with it, horns!"

Suga then growled, releasing her bloodlust gradually before unsheathing both katanas that were placed upon her hips. Her eyes shifted into an orange, fiery color, as blazing flames began to emanate from both swords. "Oh, I am sure that you're perfectly capable of being silent when a blade that's at least 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit bisects your lecherous tongue, fool! Do not annoy me further!" she barked, holding her sword to a slightly surprised Yui's throat, grazing her skin in the process. Had it been the wishes of my Empress, I would've slaughtered you already!"

Yui raised her eyebrows, with an expression that was a mix between confused and amused as she looked towards the sword increasingly becoming hotter and hotter. "Uh, wh—!"

"CEASE YOUR SPEAKING, FOR YOU SOUND UNLIKE THAT OF A CRAZED CANINE WITH FLEAS! Constantly yapping!" Suga exclaimed, bringing her swords away from the girl's throat slowly. "The only thing comparable to excrement is the waste that you spew from that abnormally large mouth, stretchy limbed one! I am as lively as the morning sun… but not for fools like you!"

Yui then tilted her head, keeping a curious smile on her face, "...What kind of fucking language are you speaking?"

A smaller, hooded figure standing closer to the tall male from before snickered, pointing a single bony finger at Yui. "She called you a rabid dog."

"Oh, is that right, Kinya?" Yui said boredly, "I mean, she's not wrong, and you call me that every other day. Is that all?"

Kinya tightened the strings of his hoodie, raising an eyebrow at Yui. "And she told you shut up again, in a nutshell."

Yui's eyes widened, a slightly goofy smile coming to her features. "Oh! Well, that's not happening~! Unless… you'd like to fight me!" A maniacal spark was present in her endlessly purple irises. "Wanna fight me!?"

Kinya then glowered, bristling the very moment that he'd seen Yui preparing to use her Quirk. "Don't. Make. A. Ruckus."

Pouting, Yui rolled her eyes, lowering her arms before sighing exaggeratedly. "Fiiiiine… what a party pooper, can you believe him—!"

Yui barely had enough time to dodge a hazardous slice that whistled through the air, forcing her to stretch her neck backwards. She grinned upon seeing the obvious rage in the eyes of Suga, widening her arms and growing them to a gargantuan size. "Oh! So you did wanna fight~! Why didn't you just say so?!"

However, before the duel could go on any further, Yui's impactful punch was blocked unceremoniously by solidified, blue light that now encompassed a battle-ready Suga. Confused, Yui looked over to see Demiji standing next to her, his eyes in threatening slits as his metallic armor illuminated brightly.

In the next few seconds, Yui's hairs on the back of her neck stood upwards, hearing someone charging from behind her. In a frenzy, she then rubberized her body before she immediately felt her bones shift and nearly punctured her skin before they returned to their normal position.

"Kinya~! I told you that you couldn't kill—!" Her words were halted by the feeling of Kinya's sharpened fist burrowing into her stomach, mewling as her rib-cage wildly twitch before breaking into two halves momentarily.

This only made her laugh maniacally though, as her ribs only came together once more instead of ripping through her elastic skin. Hastily, she grabbed her attacker's arm and stretched her own, tossing the lighter boy to the side violently before forming a large bazooka with her left arm and aiming it directly towards him. "You are too boring, you know that, right?"

"Enough!"

Before Yui could even have hoped to have fired a counterattack, however, a voluminous explosion surged throughout the lobby, completely separating Yui and Kinya from each other before crashing through the blackened drywall of the building's lobby. Silence followed afterwards, as all of the other lieutenants looked towards the grey-haired male from before, who menacingly moved to drag both Yui and Kinya from their landing points.

"I told Kai that it wasn't a good idea to bring the two of you along…" He grumbled coldly, right before practically tossing the two dazed teenagers outside."The two of you are supposed to be regarded as the Empire's finest and look at how you act… can't even go twenty seconds without being at each other's throats."

Suga, Etsuko, Watashi, and Demiji stared amongst themselves for a few seconds. Suga was the first to lower her guard, sheathing her swords and returning to her previous spot with a hate-filled glare. Demiji stood beside her, softly patting her shoulders before hugging her, which visibly calmed the girl.

Though Watashi's expression was quite judgmental throughout the entire exchange, Etsuko cackled underneath her breath, "Well, that certainly made this wait a little more worth it, wouldn't you agree?"

"Don't entertain them and their nonsense, Hanakawa…" Watashi grumbled, his eyes in slits as him and the grey-haired man exchanged heated gazes. "Though I am not a fan of him, nor his alignment, it's nice to see that Kobayashi at least has a little more class than the others."

"That is true…" Etsuko whispered, "Kobayashi Daichi… a man that even Ayashiki himself respects? As expected of someone of his caliber."

"What in the world is going on in here?!"

All of the inhabitants within the room looked behind them to see all of the leaders exiting the room that they were in previously.

"Well, I suppose that we'll be on our way," Kiyoko wasted no time in leaving, calmly waving for Etsuko and Watashi to both follow her out of the entrance, a command that the two of them gladly complied to. "I do not wish to stay here any longer than I have to, and the stench is starting to make me sicker and sicker."

"Demi-kun! Suggi-chi! What was going on out here!" Tsubara squealed, panickingly checking them for any injuries. "You all scared me half to death!"

"My deepest apologies, Tsubara-sama!" Suga said, bowing as Tsubara rubbed her head. "I was challenged by the stretchy limbed one, and my blazing temper had almost gotten the better of me. It will never happen again!"

"It isn't your fault, and it certainly will NOT!" Tsubara hastily grabbed both Suga and Demiji before pulling them into a hug. She then turned to glare at Kai, who seemed more amused by the chaos than anything else. "Mou, Ayashiki-kun! Control your damn mutts!"

Kai raised an eyebrow in response, "Or what? Is this your way of getting my attention, Ribbons? By telling me what to do?" He nodded to Daichi before continuing. "Because I'll gladly go at it with you, just give me the word. We can tear another hole in a city, and I'll make it your grave and bury you in it, what do you say?"

A switch was flickered. A malevolent aura surrounded Tusbara before she turned towards Kai with a poisonously crazed smile. "Hehehehe~ Well, child, if you actually manage to get me there, which is unlikely, it'll actually be a time of mourning for my family~!" She growled, her teeth clenching powerfully as she got closer to Kai. "But! When you die? There will be a party! And the air might stink a little less! Actually, your boys and gals need a little more excitement, so maybe I'll do them the favor of putting you there! Your grave would make a wonderful urinal for them to do their business, wouldn't it~!?"

The two of them stared at each other for a few minutes. Killing intent utterly spilled from the both of them as Suga and Demiji quickly stood bravely beside Tsubara, while Daichi was not far behind Kai.

After a while though, Kai merely laughed before dismissively waving the shorter girl off. "You say that as if I can die, ribbons~" Kai then looked towards Daichi. "Let's get out of here, I'm guessing the two ducklings were at it again, huh?"

Daichi grunted, fixing the charred sleeves of his tuxedo. "Unfortunately. They're outside, and they've most likely regained consciousness by now."

Kai snickered upon seeing the massively gaping crater left by Daichi's explosion, as it was smoldered with tiny flames and emanating a pitch black smoke that was quickly filling the room. "Damn, you really let them have it, didn't you?"

Meanwhile, Tsubara kept her gaze upon Kai as he exited the building, slowly losing her anger before taking a deep breath. Upon exhaling, she clapped her hands before turning to Suga and Demiji with a warm smile. "Let's get out of here, guys~! I'm glad that we got that out of the way, those tetanus shots we had a while back came in handy today!"

Kurotsuki waved as Tsubara and her team were the last to leave. He leaned against the threshold of the meeting room's entrance before looking towards the cat on the windowsill with a soft smirk. The cat nodded back before stretching it's hind quarters and exiting the window, jumping to the outside.

'I can always count on Micchi to observe and stay hidden,' Kurotsuki whispered , turning his eyes away from the window and looking towards the ground, his face slightly more serious than before. 'Guys… I really hope that you all took what I said seriously… because in the next weeks, they'll be watching as much as possible.'

White Knights Initiative Countdown: 28 days remaining.

Scarred bare-feet bled along the asphalt, limping with every step as she tried her hardest to escape the resounding gunshots and screams that followed her closely. Perspiration flooded down her forehead as she moved as fast as her injured state allowed her to. Was this all that life was going to be for her? A long, tumultuous dance with death? An eternal struggle for safety and preservation?

She couldn't understand how or even why things had gotten so bad in her neighborhood. It was a peaceful area for the most part. Everyone was willing to lend a helping hand to a neighbor in need, and they never had to worry about anything happening, purely because their neighborhood was once boring. It was simply your average cul-de-sac. At least… until they decided to flood their area.

But no, this wasn't the Empire's work, they operated in a completely different manner than this. No, these attackers seemed more amateurish and unseasoned. Almost as if they weren't used to such things. Their attack patterns were different as well. The Empire was usually never this sloppy with letting so many civilians escape. A new gang, perhaps?

If so, even in her injured state, she couldn't imagine that it was a wise decision on their part to try and make a move on Ayashiki territory.

But that was a thought that would have to wait for later. For now, she was focused on actually living to see that question be answered.

Her eyes watered from the pain surging throughout her body, feeling the skin on her left foot slowly opening, almost completely exposing her ankle bone before ducking behind a trash can. She couldn't find her sisters, they were completely closed off from her after the fulmination of the house. Though she didn't want to think about it for now, she was quite sure that they didn't make it. To think that her last memory of them could be her utterly snapping at them.

They… deserved it. That's what she tried to tell herself, at least. She slipped onto the ground, quivering as she was quite sure that most of the blood-curdling screams echoing amidst the carnage belonged to children. Children that she'd baby-sat. Children that she'd played all sorts of games with… all being taken before they could truly experience life.

Every single muscle in her body spasmed. It was becoming harder and harder to muffle her whimpers of immense agony, and she was sure that an infection was imminent after all of the dirt and granite slipping into her exposed wound. The pressure she applied to it while running certainly did her no favors. The girl hid among the shrubbery of a victim's backyard. She could see blood painting the interior half of their patio door and pieces of what she assumed to be brain matter sliding down the inner surface.

She barely paid attention to how much blood she'd lost, but the fact that keeping her eyes open was a struggle gave her a pretty good idea.

"Spread out, there's some blood over here by the fence! Someone's here!"

'Goddamn it…' She cursed underneath her breath, seeing that her ankle had left a clear path to her location. Her heart was practically trying to break through her chest as she tried to stand on both her legs again, but her efforts were quite pointless.

She fell to the ground once more after realizing that her foot wound rendered her ability to walk or run to nothingness. Her short, red hair was matted and unhinged, and her bangs blocked her vision, so she could hardly see much of anything without brushing them out of her way.

But by the sounds of the backyard's fence being broken down, she knew that it was only a matter of time before she was found. Desperately, she crawled towards the sliding door, praying to whatever god willing to listen to her that she wasn't caught in the crosshairs of those behind her, who were trying to get in.

Unfortunately, as always, her prayers were unanswered. They always were.

"Oi, guys! Ah, we've got a real cute one over here trying to get away!" Without warning, the girl felt the ground shake violently underneath the steps of someone closing in on her.

She screamed as her hair was yanked with so much force that her body sprawled backwards. The feeling of her heel hitting the ground brought a high squeal from her throat as she pitifully struggled against the grip of her attacker. "Found her over here in the backyard, trying to hide from us!"

"Aw, now that ain't too civil now!" She bristled, hearing an incredibly hoarse voice coming from the direction of where she was moving towards. "Ah, and she really is a looker, ain't she? Bring her here so that we can get a closer look at her!"

Her eyes fluttered, signaling that she was close to passing out. It was either from blood loss or the pain that wracked her entire body as she was tossed to the ground, directly in front of a gang of criminals. In her blurred vision, she could make out the looks of the main one and almost vomited as a result.

He was overweight. Very much so. His greenish skin and head was completely covered in what appeared to be warts instead of actual hairs, and they also seemed to pulsate with every move he took.

However, what sickened her the most was his fiendish smile as he looked down at her, fully exposing his increasingly decaying teeth and lengthened tongue. Even as he was approaching her, she could smell the disgusting scent that radiated from him. She panicked, igniting her wrist with flames and planning to use her Quirk as best as she could to hold them off.

"Aw, it looks like she's planning on rough-housing with us…" He croaked cruelly before snapping his fingers. "It's too bad that I'm not really in a mood for a struggle right now, isn't it?"

In an instance, she felt someone step on the back of her injured feet, eradicating her will to fight in the process and replacing it with unfathomable pain. As she screamed, she felt her limbs being held down by the man's companions, forcing her to the ground and leaving the front half of her body open to the disturbing male in front of her.

Tears flooded down her bruised face as he got closer to her, seemingly relishing over how vulnerable she was. His repulsive tongue slithered from his mouth in a rapid flicker as he violently ripped her tank-top in half, completely exposing the top-half of her body. "Ohhh yeah," He muttered in a low, resonant voice that caused her to quake like a leaf in immense horror. "She'll do just fine… let's have ourselves some fun, boys!"

"And what, exactly, is happening here?"

In an instant, despite there being so much commotion from earlier, it was gone in a matter of seconds as a lone figure stepped into the area. She couldn't make much sense of who was responsible for the interruption, mainly because her vision was blocked by the mountainous male in front of her.

But the sheer amount of authority in the way they spoke told her all that she needed to know. He wasn't a part of this gang. It was made even more evident once she felt her wrists and ankles being unrestrained, causing her to quickly cover her exposed chest.

The silence was eerie. Her breathing was the loudest thing to her at the moment. The large male turned around, giving her a better view of who had been her unlikely savior.

And her blood instantly ran cold as a result. It was him.

"Hmm… you're not any of mine," He calmly stated, sounding frighteningly unbothered despite the circumstances. "Do you realize who's territory you're on?"

Even if he wasn't speaking to her, she couldn't curb the fear that had overtake her as she crawled backwards in order to get as far from the confrontation as her body would allow. She'd heard so much about him, though never saw him in real life until now. Most of the men appeared to be in a state of both shock and horror, especially the overweight male who'd stripped her. However, his look of fear slowly faded away, instead being replaced by minor annoyance.

"What do you care?" The man growled, oozing an acidic liquid from the various warts that covered his body in a threatening manner. "They're all disposable to you either way, aren't they? You all are just a bunch of savages who kill one another off sooner or later, we're just doing you a favor, aren't we?!"

One of the man's henchmen roughly grabbed the man's sleeve, "Boss, please, I think we should just-ARGH!"

"But nothing, punk!" He yelled before slamming his fist into the man's chest, causing the sound of bones snapping to echo before his minion fell to the ground. "Everything I've said is the damn truth, and I'm not going to pussy out just because he's here!" The large male then turned his attention back to Kai. "You want us out of here? Make us leave!"

Kai boredly observed the male before finally sighing, "I was being merciful because your little misfits hadn't infringed on my territory, so it wasn't like it mattered that much to me," Kai then cracked his neck and knuckles, "But if you'd wanted to die that badly, you should've told me sooner."

She never even saw him coming, and neither did the rest of the henchman. In a split-second, all of them were sent flying in several directions as a blur slammed into them brutally, knocking all of them miles away in the process. Most of them crashed into surrounding buildings, creating human-sized craters and insurmountable damage to the perimeter.

Despite being too fast for her to even see, she heard every hit and the shattering sounds of bones caving inwardly underneath the screams of the men. Blood splashed within the air before painting the concrete grounds below until there was no one there other than herself, her attacker, and Kai, who merely stood in the same spot from before.

It was almost as if he'd never moved from that spot at all.

The large male's jaw fell open before he dropped to his knees in shock and overwhelming terror. He looked to the ground, finding it hard to so much as look at Kai as a shadow hovered over him.

Kai stood over him with a darkened expression, the silhouette from his dictator's cap casting a shadow over his eternally dark blue eyes. "Know your place, scum," he muttered as a midnight-black smoke festered from his palms in small wisps. Extending both of them towards the male, Kai wrinkled his nose in disgust as the overweight man breathed in the smoke and immediately hurled blood before his body deflated in the span of a few seconds. "And keep your filthy hands off my territory."

The girl watched in horror before covering her nose to barricade the scent of death coming from the scene in front of her. She scrambled to move further away, seeing the once utterly ginormous brute be reduced to no more than an empty husk before slowly disintegrating away with a single breeze.

In that instant, it was just Kai and her. He casted a look of disappointment towards her. The dark smoke that once shrouded him faded away into his body. After a while, he approached the girl, making her promptly panic before ducking her head and loudly whispering apologies. She expected to die or at least get hit, but instead, Kai passed right by her, waking in the same direction he'd been going before.

"You and everyone else here are pathetic." He whispered quietly, yet loud enough for her to hear it. "And you call yourselves part of the Empire? You're asking for death at this point, so at least be capable of defending yourselves from nuisances such as these fools." She stared incredulously at Kai's back as he walked out of her line of sight, his tattered cape casually blowing within the wind amidst his departure.

The girl's sight grew darker with every passing second as she fell against a nearby fence, panting heavily as she watched Kai leave. Despite the pain that she was in, she couldn't help but… admire his actions from earlier and how he'd actually… saved her. Granted, she wasn't a fool. It had less to do with her, of course. He was only defending his territory. Nothing more, and nothing less

And yet still… as she slipped into unconsciousness, her gratefulness overwhelmed the feeling of agony currently putting her out of commission. As her eyelids grew heavier and she drifted off into a deeper sleep, a single thought crossed her mind before it went blank entirely.

'Maybe… he isn't so bad, maybe he is… and yet… he saved me… my… savior…'

Okay, so…. This was supposed to be finished much earlier on? But! Ya boi caught pneumonia in the middle of March, right after posting the first chapter. I guess it just sucks to suck, huh? :0

Anyways, so… since this was so late, I'll do something right now…

I'm going to extend the deadline UwU It is now on April 20th, so if you guys need some extra time? You now have it!

I… don't have much else to say! :'3 I'll say that the submissions have been amazing so far though, and I can already tell that the choosing process will be incredibly difficult, urgh.

Also, here be the casting list for the leaders and such!

Hai-Hai Syndicate

Leader: Nishimoto Tsubara - VA: Uchida Maaya - Quirk: The Touch of Time

Black Cats

Leader: Yasue Kurotsuki - VA: Kamiya Hiroshi - Quirk: Shadow

Kichijōten: Messengers of Kami-sama

Leader: Kagurazaka Kiyoko - VA: Hayami Saori - Quirk: Kami no Kagura

Ayashiki Empire

Leader: Ayashiki Kaikōku - VA: Fukuyama Jun - Quirk: Last Man Standing

So yeah! Anyways, thanks for reading, and I'll see you all later!