A/N Just handed in my thesis. So now whether I graduate or not, got nothing in the way of Death for here on out. Love you guys. Hope you enjoy the chapter!
Disclaimer: I don't own Boku no Hero Academia
Chapter 152:
"No Dad, it's about Zach," Shoto stood in his dad's office at Endeavor's Tokyo agency, not too far from U.A. that it was out of Todoroki's way. His father had been spending more time at that agency for the off chance that Shoto would come by, and today was one of the days it was paying off spending his time there. Endeavor's masked excitement simmered at how his son responded to his gruff question asking if he was there to learn from him or go on a patrol together. Endeavor grunted in response and he looked back at a computer screen in front of him for a moment, and he minimized some windows as his son started walking his way.
Todoroki stepped right up in front of his father's desk and frowned deeper at the older man who had short but spiky crimson hair and flames around his eyes even as he sat in his office. "What about him?" Endeavor asked, looking over the top of his computer screen into his son's eyes.
"You stopped examining him too early," Shoto replied. His eyes narrowed back at his dad when Endeavor gave him a dismissive look.
"And how would you know?" Endeavor asked. Shoto paused before he could counter at his dad in annoyance at how dismissive Endeavor was still being. Endeavor stared at his son harshly and said, "I take it you still have yet to see him." Endeavor did not need to hear a response to read his son's face, and he looked back at his computer in a harsher way this time as he clearly was dismissing his son instead of just giving him that look. Todoroki's face filled with anger first but then frustration as his dad looked away, as if saying that he was letting his emotions get the best of him. If he had actually gone to see Zach before coming to his dad with this then Endeavor might have listened closer, and it would have given better evidence too for what Todoroki did have with him, but he had not gone to see him once.
"I don't need to," Shoto replied darkly after a few seconds. "Enough of my classmates have, and I've heard things." Todoroki paused, and his father rose his eyes back up with some interest as Shoto got to the point of why he was there. "Mark is dead."
Shoto stated it and watched his father's reaction. He stared at Endeavor's face as his father stayed staring back at him in silence for a second, before standing up out of his chair in a calm way. Endeavor turned towards the windows of his office, "What are you talking about?"
"Zach got a letter, saying that a man named Mark was dead," Todoroki continued, stepping towards the right side of Endeavor's desk on the side Endeavor turned. "You know that name?" Endeavor continued to stare at the windows, his eyes narrowing and his mind working fast. "Zach received a box with his costume in it, money, and a letter that did not give away much about him. The person who sent it claimed he had saved them and that was the reason they sent him the costume, but the other message about the man, Mark-"
"Mark is a very common name," Endeavor said. He frowned and looked back at his son who was staring at him with wide eyes at that response. Endeavor shook his head though and he stepped back for a second towards his seat before turning to his son with a skeptical and harsh look, "What are you trying to do with this small amount of information?"
Shoto put his hands down on the other side of Endeavor's desk. "This Mark, couldn't he be an Army of Death member?" Shoto asked.
"That's not enough evidence, based off what you said is on the letter," Endeavor paused and he looked straight into his son's eyes. "I do know a Mark though," Endeavor added. "In the Army of Death."
I knew it! "Then that's proof! You might not think it, but if the Marks are the same person then you can, track," Shoto slowed down, a more confused look on his face as he watched his father in front of him.
Endeavor had decided already that Zach was not Death. What he saw during the licensing exam, the way the two of them acted, it was too different and unbelievable that they were the same person. Spending his time in America, there are high chances he ran into a Mark there. If he was really Death would he, would he be so bold as to receive that knowing what we know? Mark… That man was killed? "This evidence, is not evidence," Endeavor started in a low voice, raising his eyes back up from his desk to stare into his son's with. "Did you really think, that your old classmate knowing someone named Mark would give any incentive to further an investigation? Your classmate who was in America-"
"But if they're the same Mark-" Todoroki started louder, but he stopped himself again as his father just frowned harder at his son's loud voice pushing the issue.
"I do not wish, them to be the same Mark," Endeavor said with a lower frown. His eyes narrowed at his son who he was explaining his look to as Shoto had given him that confused look as to how he must have been reacting. Endeavor looked towards the windows for a moment, thinking back on one of the most intense fights of his life. "The Mark I know, would not have died. I don't think…" Endeavor frowned again with a curled lip, then shook his head before just getting a more confused look on his face. Coincidence? Is it really? Mark is common, but how many times do I have to say that to myself before I believe it? Could they be the same, and yet Sazaki still not be Death? Is Mark really, dead?
"The Army of Death is your enemy," Todoroki told his father, his voice stern but also confused at his father's reaction to hearing this.
Endeavor frowned more at hearing that line from his own son. It is. But, they are… Endeavor rose his eyes and stared into his son's eyes before choosing to speak aloud instead of keep it to himself. "It is. Yet, the Mark I know, if he was the same person as the one in the letter, it does not make me happy to hear that he is dead. There are villains in this world who I would not bat an eye to hearing of their deaths; I am not saying that I would care if Shigaraki, Intanzo, All For One, and their ilk were to drop dead and just fade from memory." Endeavor frowned more at his son when Todoroki started to get an upset and deeper frown back at him, which had his son freeze at how his father was not backing down from what he was saying but instead standing by it.
"They're terrorists," Todoroki said. He thought back on their mission overseas together the year before, and he ground his teeth as he thought about the way his father acted back then too as they wound up capturing dozens of villains unrelated to Death. It was only through tracking Death that they found enough information to go after those other villains though, and Todoroki hated how clues were left for them almost like the Army of Death wanted them to take care of the villains they did not have the time for, or to lead them on a goose chase and distract them from their goal of getting Death. Todoroki thought back on his frustration then, which matched the way he felt now as his father continued to defend these people. "If this Mark was a strong member of their organization, then it is a good thing he is gone. The Army of Death will be weaker-"
"I've never told you about the League of Shadows, have I?" Endeavor asked, taking his seat again and continuing to stare at his son who steadied his own look. Todoroki shook his head at his father, a feeling of excitement stirring in him though he made no outward expression of it. He had never even asked his dad to tell him about it, but a piece of him always wanted Endeavor to just bring it up on his own, like he was doing right now. "No, I wouldn't have. Not many people know about the League and what they were," Endeavor said. "Do you understand the reason for that?"
"Because you don't want the League knowing how much you know about them," Shoto responded. "You don't want people knowing how much influence they had. Because there are things too sensitive for the public eye, and even among heroes, the fewer who know the less likely it is the information is released to the media or villains."
"All correct," Endeavor responded with a nod. "But there is another reason," Endeavor added. "If people were to know how much influence the L.o.S. truly had, how horrible their plans for the world really were, then how would people think of the man who stopped them all?" Endeavor paused and Todoroki stared at him with his eyes wide. He continued while his son was staring at him like that, "In the League of Shadows' headquarters, Death, was the one who took down Turbo. The first of the Shadow Bosses to fall. Then as I chased after King, as I failed," Endeavor paused and grit his teeth hard, "he was fighting Zolo, who I heard from the others in the Task Force was a monstrously powerful man, who killed several of our men and Death's with his lieutenants and the mercenaries following him. But Death beat him as well," Endeavor lowered his eyes to his desk, his flames around his eyes flaring in frustration. "Bolivar and King, I was not there to see their defeats. The Shadow Bosses who continued to reign after our raid, even as we pretended to have defeated their organization."
"Death took them both down?" Todoroki asked with wide eyes. Endeavor did not respond for a few moments, and his son started in confusion, "But, I heard that King was stopped by a Russian and Eastern European coalition of heroes. And Bolivar? I heard about a drug lord by that name being taken down in Brazil, but-"
"He was a Shadow Boss too," Endeavor said. "And although you may have heard that it was heroes who stopped them, make no mistake. I interrogated the heroes involved, and I know, Death, defeated all four of the Shadow Bosses."
Shoto Todoroki ground his teeth and lowered his gaze to the floor. Zach, did? Unless Dad's right- why am I thinking that now? Because I don't want to believe that, Zach…
"As for Mark," Endeavor continued, making his son's eyes lift back up to his father across the table. "There are several members of the Army of Death who the Anti-Death Task Force gathered information on. Mark," Endeavor paused and his eyes got colder, angrier for a moment. They returned to a calm look as he looked away though, saying in a low voice, "He saved my life." Shoto stared at his father in shock, and Endeavor bit down as he was expecting to say something else there more about the man, but that slipped out instead.
A Year Ago…
"King's escaping!" A man in a black costume roared at the others all around him. "We have to get through!"
Endeavor charged forward, and he slammed his right fist into the side of a spider-like man who had his fangs opened around the head of a younger Japanese hero near him. Tamaki Amajiki had fear covering his face as he lowered the tentacle arms he crossed in front of his face to try and protect from that attack. The cave illuminated brighter as Endeavor flared his flames, and Suneater could see his last opponent slumped against a wall on his right that had cracks covering it now.
The entire cave system shook, but the walls were not unstable yet. There were steel beams holding up sections, full rooms made of cement and what looked like actual buildings underneath the ground in the huge tunnel system of the League of Shadows' headquarters. The cave in front of them did not look much like a building though, and a figure in a dark costume had called out that it was Digger who was escaping with King. "Don't let him escape-"
"Endeavo-"
"AHH!" Two heroes who were ahead of Endeavor since he went back to help Suneater, came flying back towards him, blood splashing from their bodies that looked broken from how hard they flew back.
Endeavor stomped forward and glared furiously towards the enemy ahead of him in the dark cave. The man's body was shadowed over, and he was standing alone between Endeavor and where King escaped with his escort. Endeavor recognized the man, but he had no idea that The Tempest was one of King's top lieutenants. All he knew, was that this mob boss had powerful water powers, and the fact that he was not using them yet meant that the man bulkier than Endeavor himself had sent two heroes careening back, most likely dead, with his bare fists. The man's back opened up, and his left arm turned into a watery tentacle like the ones splashing out of his back. In the moment Endeavor spent thinking of calling one of his comrades over who could better deal with water, his enemy lifted his right hand towards his neck with a needle in it.
"Shit! TRIGGER!" A deep voice bellowed out of a black helmet on Endeavor's left.
"Mark! Water powers!"
"Charlie Squad, where are you?!"
"We're scattered all over the place!"
"We have two dead heroes down here! Coordinates 134.59 by…"
Endeavor heard the voice shouting behind him, and he ground his teeth in anger at the sound of his comrades and subordinates falling. Yet he also had hope because of what he just heard shouted, like there could be something done about their current condition. If this one gets past me though- and I need to get past him! King is just beyond this point! "Step aside, villain-"
The powerful lieutenant charged forward, attacking with massive amounts of water that Endeavor dodged and tried attacking back with flames. His flames heated up the water, but his opponent just laughed from within it and yelled out, "Do you think I can't raise the temperature on my own?!" The water started boiling without Endeavor doing a thing, and steam started filling the cave to make it harder to see his opponent. The Tempest was more powerful on Trigger, but he was already super strong, and had great control over his Quirk. He was the head of a mob and a member of the League of Shadows, and he had just killed two top rank heroes of their respective countries before facing off against Endeavor with a fearless smile on his face.
Endeavor forced out all his flames as he was caught off guard in the smoke. There was a hole in the wall near him, a secret door he did not know about that his opponent had gotten behind in the veil of steam. He fired all of his flames and roared out, "HELLFIRE AAGhhghg-" the water pushed through his flames and slammed Endeavor back. He went flying across the room in a surge of boiling water, slamming into another wall harder than he had punched the spider-like villain into the wall before.
Others tried fighting against the monstrous water-Quirk mobster as Endeavor fell, but their momentum pushing forward and hope was dwindling fast. Their forces were cut down, some of them were dragging other bodies or injured back, and the mobster had two comrades come up and gather on him. He sent them back into the tunnel after King, saying he could hold them all off here. Endeavor pushed his hands down on the ground at his sides, flames ripping through his wet gloves and all around his body to re-illuminate this section of the cave that did not have much lighting.
The entire cave shook again, and King's lieutenant turned from the terrified teenager in front of him who was suddenly on his own against the villain. Suneater stared behind his opponent in shock too, as Endeavor rose up and glared with such intensity that his gangster enemy hesitated for a moment, even on Trigger. That moment did not last, and water exploded out on all sides of the man whose body grew, and who flooded the cave around him while yelling out at Endeavor, "Is this your second wind?! SHOW ME ENDEAVOR!"
Endeavor jumped backwards and plugged his feet into the wall covering them in so much heat. He melted himself into it so he would not fall, bending his knees farther into it as he planted himself and the entire cave floor covered in water, and then he pushed off. Endeavor shot straight into the water surrounding his opponent, and he slammed his first forward through the outer protective veil of boiling water, straight into his opponent's chest with a punch so strong he knocked The Tempest out of his own water barrier.
The water slowed his punch though, and the villain rolled around in the water before jumping up and pushing his arms forward, firing a jet of water so hard that Endeavor got flipped backwards on his follow-up after his rolling enemy. Endeavor slammed head-first into the ground, where there was no more water so it was a hard collision. He heard Suneater's shout for him, only to hear a yell of agony as a jet of water knocked that teenager into a hard wall and pummeled him there for a few seconds.
The Tempest stepped towards Endeavor, his body huge, water flooding the cave around him as more and more poured out of his back and rose up as a huge wall of it blocking up the new cave King went through. The cave system shook again, and a hole opened up in the ceiling of a nearby room. "I'd love to stay, Endeavor," the villain began, as Endeavor lifted his head and glared at his enemy furiously. His hands curled into the ground and he started dragging himself up again, but his flames were low. He was soaking wet, and his enemy had more than half of the room completely flooded with water. All of it was lifted up and connected to the mobster's body, filling the exit of the long cave and back through the wide circular tunnel for several meters, and curling around the edges of the room looking ready to collapse in on everyone. Water continued to pour out of the man's back like an overflowing tub, a faucet stuck on the highest setting, and the man started laughing as his enemy saw death about to slam down on him. "But it's time to get out of here! Know, we will never be defeated! Not by this pathetic generation of heroes! Not by YOU! What resistance this world might have had against us, dies with you Endeavor!"
The walls of water came down, splashed hard on the ground all around the room, and bounced back up to where they were before reaching any of the heroes or wounded or dead. The huge man surrounded by his water got confused, but one of the Army of Death behind Endeavor shouted in the most relieved and yet still panicked voice, "MARK!"
Endeavor turned his head. He knew about this man already. They had prepared to fight him, and he had evaporated the snow he melted on the surface knowing that Mark could use it against him. He stared back over his shoulder while getting up to one foot, to see not just a single man had come to assist them. Behind Mark were five others in dark costumes, and Mark commanded in a steady voice, "Cluster, Skater, get the dead to Death." Mark had a hand lifted, and his enemy was yelling at him, shouting at him to stop whatever he was doing, while being unable to move at all. The villain started screaming in rage, water pulsing out of his body so much that the tunnel back behind him was flooding with it, and the overpowering amount made Mark lift up a second hand.
"Faye," Mark added. He nodded ahead, and Faye ran forward with two others at her sides who she swung her arms out at. She pressed her hands into her comrades, and then they dove into the water wall and shot forwards through it towards the tunnel King went down.
"LET GO OF ME!"
Mark swung his arms to the right, and then to the left. The huge mass of water which all seemed to have one consciousness attached to a more human-like body, got smashed in every direction. His human form slammed down into the ground and then up at the ceiling. His own water wrapped around him in the shape of a fist, then punched him straight into the wall on Mark's right. Five more huge fists rose up and came down on top of the mobster, pounding away so hard the cave shook violently around them. Water whips coiled around his ankles, and they lifted him up in the air swinging him around and around and around, then whipping him into the wall, whipping back the other way and up into the ceiling, and then straight down in front of Endeavor where finally all the water broke off and collapsed.
Water flooded out everywhere, coating the ground of several rooms and making a few people brace for a second to stay steady. "Everyone who can move, after King!" Mark yelled around him in all directions. "We can't let him escape!" He ran forward himself, but he stopped next to Endeavor even as others started gathering themselves and moving forward. He stared into Endeavor's eyes through his visor, "You with me?"
Endeavor opened his eyes wider at the question asked in Japanese. The concern in it, and the way the man's helmet looked him up and down as if checking if he was alright to continue. Here he was, the number one hero in Japan, supposed to be leading the ADTF full of the strongest heroes in the world, and this person was checking to make sure he was alright. "After King," Endeavor repeated, turning his head to look towards Suneater who was down on his knees with an exhausted look, but who pushed himself up and then got helped the rest of the way by a blond who had just arrived through a wall to help him.
Lemillion and Suneater rose, and two other heroes came by, and Mark ran forward yelling at them all, "The forward team is facing two enemies! We have to push through and get to King before he escapes!"
Present
"I wound up failing," Endeavor said, his voice low after he just told his son that Mark had saved his life. "In the end, King was smarter. He brought many forces with him, and left them at different intervals to slow us down. We fought small group after small group, while they continued to speed off until they reached a secret garage King had made far from the actual headquarters. When we cleared the debris, as King had collapsed the tunnel behind him after reaching it, we found the garage and a tunnel leading away to an exit point so far away that even the Army's search grid was too small."
Endeavor paused for a second, then he said, "But we never would have been able to continue after King in the first place, if Mark had not arrived when he had. I would have been killed by The Tempest, most likely," Endeavor ground his teeth at the thought of how few options he had in that moment, when the water was about to crash down and drown him. Only evaporating it all had crossed his mind, but the sheer amount that The Tempest kept pushing out made that idea seem like it would have been impossible.
"He was one of the strongest, in all the Army of Death," Endeavor continued. "The misty steam he controlled in that tunnel, swirled into the face of a demon to demoralize our enemies. His precision to turn liquid into weapons, to use it like extra appendages, to flood his opponent's throats and knock them out from loss of breath. And his blood control," Endeavor stopped and his expression got even darker as he stared straight into his son's harsh eyes for how Endeavor was speaking of this as a loss and not a victory while mentioning how strong Mark was.
"He's a villain," Todoroki said. "And if he could control people's blood, then that's definitely…"
"Just because you know what they told you, doesn't mean you know who I am, Endeavor…"
Endeavor stared at his son, a disapproving look and one that made Shoto feel like he actually was misunderstanding. His father's expression got darker, but also more upset and almost sad for a moment in a way that had Todoroki trail off. "I never saw him use that ability, but I knew about it because Mark was one of the few who we knew about before the raid on the League of Shadows. A former CIA operative, they told us his abilities… but shortly after the raid I did finally get the un-redacted versions of Mark's files I demanded through my power in the UN. The files the CIA initially attempted to hide from me. And the Americans fired their former CIA director when they saw what Mark had been forced to do by their government, the torture they asked him to commit for the sake of peace."
Shoto stared at his father in shock. He had not heard anything about this, and his eyes were huge and starting to shake in anger as he thought more about that. "And he was ordered to be hunted down when he fled, instead of continuing the blood-bending tortures for his government. A young man, recruited after accidentally killing a classmate at his hero school when he first discovered that his control extended to blood as well. I was, to offer him a pardon if we ever met again…" Endeavor bit down, then he stared at his son keeping his expression steady despite his anger, and frustration. "Why did you come here, Shoto?"
Shoto's shocked look shifted and an aggravated expression covered his face instead. The anger at what he just heard happened to this man, and what the guy had apparently done after fleeing from his country. Joining the Army of Death, saving his father, fighting the worst villains in the world… and he was here, trying to use his death to prove that Zach was Death. "I believe Mark could be the same as the one Lifebringer knew," Endeavor admitted. "Though if Lifebringer was in America, then there's no reason it couldn't be a different one, as Mark is a common name after all. It's why having this much, does not help me with anything accept give me a theory that I may be able to test the next time I have a run in with them. Even if he were dead though, and I received confirmation of it, many in the Army of Death have died since the last time I saw them."
Todoroki shifted his frustrated gaze down to the floor. Zach's not, a hero. He's a liar and I know he's Death. He's Death… But there isn't proof. There isn't proof, and Zach wouldn't leave proof. Getting him this way, isn't going to work. Not with Dad… Todoroki turned away, his eyes darkening as he looked back towards the door of his dad's office. He hesitated for a moment though before leaving. "At the end of that letter," Todoroki began mentioning. "I heard that it said that he was killed by EM."
Todoroki looked over his shoulder and caught his dad's eyes wide at what he just said. I knew, he would know. "It said he's after Zach now. The one it's talking about, is that Eziano Mozcaccio?"
Endeavor's expression darkened much more at his son's question. His eyes were cold as he stared at Shoto, and he just replied in a low voice, "Be careful, saying that name…" Shoto's eyes shot open wide at the response his father gave, the hint of a nervous tone in it, but nervous for him. Shoto's breathing sped up more though, as Endeavor continued, "I say Death defeated all four Shadow Bosses, but there's one who I never had any confirmation of his defeat. One, whose name is dangerous to even mention." Enji Todoroki gave his son a serious look, trying to hide the anxious feeling he felt for his young son asking such a dangerous question. "There is one Shadow Boss left in this world. If you believe the rumors about him-"
"Zach said his name once," Todoroki said in a low voice. "Back in the Enudora Forest."
He knew all the way back then? Endeavor thought in surprise. I didn't even believe it until we saw the League. If that could be real, then why not Eziano? Why not, a man who there has been mention of since I was… "I've never seen him myself," Endeavor admitted. "But, Shoto, the villains after Sazaki could be after his life solely because he knows the existence of Eziano. Maybe, he knows something more." I know, Sazaki was a member of the anti-heroes. And the League of Villains before it. "I will not tell you what to do, about the feelings you have towards Sazaki. But do watch yourself," Endeavor looked towards the windows of his office in a dark way. "Even being close to Sazaki is a very dangerous thing these days."
Always so dark when I wake up. It's weird, Zach moved around silent as a ghost through his apartment. The lights were off and there was barely any light coming in from outside. The prison lights were always on. Had to make sure they kept an eye on me at all times I suppose. Before that, I was never in the same hemisphere for more than a couple days in a row. Close to the equator where it's always light, or over China where our time-set was opposite the daytime. Morning just, lost meaning, Zach poured himself a bowl of cereal with some milk, and he ate quietly with his computer open in front of him.
The weekend started off quiet for Zach Sazaki. He finally heard birds start chirping outside, and he shut his computer and took out a pair of headphones he had in his ears at a low enough volume that he could hear all external noise. J'aime courir. I like to run. Zach walked up to his front door and he slid into his shoes. He grabbed a sweatshirt, his jacket, a black face-mask that covered the bottom half of his face, and a dark blue beanie over his head. Talking with Mina on the phone last night went on longer than I planned. No other plans for this weekend though getting in the way. Can't be any less productive than last weekend, and last weekend I got into Shiketsu and a hero license and my apartment. How to step it up?
Zach slid his hands into gloves to hide the fact that he would always have a black one over his right, and because of the cold. It was still well below freezing in early January, and the moment Zach opened his front door he let out a breath through his mask that hung visibly in the air in front of him. The sky was just starting to lighten so everything around him was the gray color of pre-dawn, not yet sunrise but bright enough that he could see everything around him. Automatic street lights were turning off, and a few cars were on the street though Zach could only hear them nearby.
His eyes scanned over the building across the street and the other three that had vantage points of his front door. There was the taller apartment to his left that was thinner too and doubled as an office on some of the floors. Another building next to that one which only part of it could see his door from, as the rest was blocked from the wide building across the street. To his right there was another building on an intersecting road that went diagonally into a more residential area, though that "building" was more a line of houses that were all connected and the same rectangular shape but looked less like apartments. Eyes, eyes. Who's watching me? Let's see if you can keep up. I'm going to be careful on my way back here, but you better not lead villains here after I was forced to give you my address in the first place.
Zach turned and started jogging down the outside hall of his apartment's second floor. Forty hours at least. I should get some rest before class. It'll look weird if I'm never at home. Get ready to get tired out though. I'm not changing my schedule for you, you fucking noob. Zach jumped down the stairs when he reached the end of the hall, and he dropped into a roll at the bottom of the flight before immediately darting left down the main road on the left side of his apartment from the perspective of exiting his room.
Does he know I'm watching him? He scanned the roofs nearby and did not seem to notice anyone. Lemillion backed up, then he sprinted at the wall in front of him and leapt at it. He passed through the wall and kept falling down to the building across the street that was lower down and he was able to land on. He did not have to roll on his landing, just crouching on the fall and then darting to the edge of the building but keeping low in case Sazaki was watching the roofs still. He's just being cautious that someone's following him. And he wants to get away from his apartment quickly, to spend as little time near it as possible and to be far from it by the time any potential assassins see him. His mask and heavy winter clothes should prevent him from being recognized, but someone hunting for him could figure him out just from the parts of him exposed.
Lemillion watched from a hidden location on the corner of a building, only the top half of his face sticking through the obstacle in his path so he could watch Sazaki run down the block. The scar under his right eye sticking out from the mask. His hazel eyes. His skin tone, his body size, the fact that he is hiding his face even though some might assume it's for the cold. Where's he going so early? Trains don't even start running for thirty minutes.
The tail is being smart. He or she was staking out my apartment, so it was easy to spot them knowing all the good stake-out spots as I do, but they're keeping a good distance. Zach jogged into an alleyway and he started doing stretches in the dark again. He pushed his arms out in front of him as he walked down the alley, then stretched them up over his head and to either side. He popped a foot up on a garbage can, and he extended his body over his leg to touch his toes. His fingertips brushed his toes but he oofed and then started the next leg. His stomach hurt as he stretched again, but he did not lower a hand to it nor to his right shoulder when he was stretching that arm. He did rub the connecting point on his left shoulder where his fake arm began though, I wish I could say I barely feel the difference. The nerves are all connected, but after popping it off so many times recently, and with Momo and the others, and now all of Shiketsu too, knowing about it, I can't even pretend. Going through all the effort of making the skin sleeve have the same scars they would expect, I could have just left it as is.
Zach jogged again and out of the alley on the other side as where he entered from. It was getting brighter, and in the reflection of a window up ahead Zach checked the roofs for tails. Whatever hero is following me, could use the excuse that they were looking out for people following me or coming to attack. I denied the police detail, left their protection of my own accord, and I have a license of my own now. Provisional as it is, is it really prudent to be trailing fellow heroes? Especially if someone catches me calling you out on it on camera. It could be a whole big fiasco. Zach hummed and frowned deeper to himself, ignoring some people on the sidewalk who were heading out for the day too. I don't know if your being there will increase or decrease the chances of someone coming after me. Admittedly, it could lower it as they'd have two people to deal with instead of just me who they'd plan for in advance. On the other hand, if they want to get rid of you first to make it easier, then I have to be worried about someone coming after you…
It's a hero. Of that I'm certain. Only a hero would give themself away so easily, because getting caught for them doesn't mean as much for everyone else. There is no consequence if they're caught right now. Only if I try to push a consequence will there be one. Zach continued a morning jog that barely drew any attention at all, and the attention he did draw was quickly averted by people not wanting to stare at a passerby who could catch them doing so. Their overconfidence is fine though. It's a strong hero. I don't need to worry about their safety. Villains will keep off my back today more than usual with this tail giving them second thoughts. Keep up the good work, Hero-san!
Zach smirked behind his mask, and he took a nice long jog towards a train station several stops from the one closest to his apartment. He jogged faster at one point in a steady sprint, taking side roads that were nearly empty, and darting through alleys that he did not even look down before running into. In the week since he moved in, Zach had done enough running around Yutapu, that he knew his way around the whole city without needing navigation. He augmented his own runs at night, checking maps online for new routes he should try the next day and doing them before school or just in his free time. To Lemillion above and back a block, it looked like Sazaki was a mouse in a maze, taking unnecessary turns over and over that would just slow him down on reaching his final destination for no reason.
I'm not losing him. Then again, he might not know anyone's following him yet. Each turn he makes, can make someone who just starts watching think he came from that direction. Misdirection. Is this a route he takes often? There isn't much hesitation behind his movements. Lemillion ran to the edge of the building and leapt up to the roof of another one, moving much faster right before the jump to prevent the people down below on the street from catching a glimpse of him. He was in his full hero costume, ready in case anything came up. The distance between him and Lifebringer was staying wide too, as he was not just watching Lifebringer but also trying to watch any ambush attempts that came for him. No one else is following him yet. There's a chance no one does today. Once he thinks he's in the clear, he'll start whatever he's up to.
Why are you out so early? Lemillion wondered. What's a high schooler without an internship with a hero doing running the streets? You could be looking for crimes to get close to and just say that you were in the area. That's the simplest answer. That, or a normal jog. Enjoying your freedom out of Tartaros. Easy responses for reporters who might catch you and ask what you're up to. Those would be your responses. What's the real reason? What lies below? What, are you thinking about right now?
Got about three minutes. Time to make a bee-line for it. Anyone who sees me in that time won't suspect anything as the zig-zagging's going to stop. Zach picked up his speed and took the most direct route to the closest train station. The first train was running in a minute after he arrived, and he made his way to the turnstiles that he swiped his train card in to go through. He ran to the train seconds before the door was closing, and he turned after getting inside to watch the empty platform behind him.
The train started going, and a hero watching from on top of the train station waited until the train was past him before dropping down onto the tracks and running after it. The train had just left the station so it was still speeding up, and the fourth ranked hero in the nation was fast enough to grab onto the back of it before it got too fast. He hoisted himself up but stayed low, his lower half stuck through the floor with only his head and arms over the surface as he used his Quirk: Permeation to hide.
Could be Lemillion. Zach sat on the train that was nearly empty, his mask still up so he did not draw the attention of the other three people who got on the first train with him in that car. To silently move between inside and outside like that. They didn't start on the roof, but they were suddenly moving building to building as soon as I started running. Let's say, eighty percent chance it's him. Matches his personality, he's seen Death, he'd be the best candidate anyway. I knew giving them my address would lead to this, but still, it sucks if they lead any villains to my place. If I guessed it would be Lemillion, others could guess it too and follow him, finding me. The only way I can get out of telling them my address is same way I get out of talking to the press, but I'd rather not be attacked at home and have to find a new place. For now I just have to deal with being watched.
Zach went halfway down the line, passing almost a dozen stops before getting off the train in a far part of Yutapu though one he had also jogged in twice since moving in. He left the train station without delay, and he went to a nearby library that opened minutes before Zach arrived.
Lemillion staked-out outside the Yutapu library to wait for Lifebringer to come back out, but his curiosity got the better of him. Why the library? He could have stayed on his computer and read most books. Is he meeting someone here? Is something in the library that got dropped off at a different date and he's picking it up now? He could have planned for it before returning, and told them to wait a certain amount of time once he was released before leaving it for him.
Lemillion snuck into the library. He was fast enough to avoid anyone near him, slipping through walls and bookshelves with ease so that he was like a phantom. There was barely anyone in the library anyway, but Togata still made sure to keep as silent as could be. If anyone could tell I was following them, it would be Sazaki. If he's Death, which I believe he is, then it's all the more likely he'll notice someone following him. I need to see what he's up to though…
Zach sat on a chair in the library, alone at a table with several files out in front of him. There was a thick book opened up on his left and a thinner one on his right but that looked much older. The files in front of him were in old folders, and there were lists and lots of numbers of the sheets he was going through. He had his wireless headphones in his ears, and his mask was pulled down just below his chin as he read while listening to music. So he is willing to follow me inside. That's risky, but it shows he takes this pretty seriously. He's not just following because he was told to keep tabs. This is likely his idea. Why would I be looking through public records? Building acquisitions, political payments and budget plans for recent years, layouts and original blueprints showing all the different rooms inside. Not just the streets of Yutapu, what if I'm trying to learn every inch of this city in case I need to run? I could slip into secret basements people have forgotten about because the old building's owners sold it and didn't tell the new owners about them. I could be planning a heist. So mysterious, aren't I?
What is he doing? Why's he smiling like that while going through all those documents? Did he find something in them? I'll have to keep track of them all and search for what he found later. Someone might have left him a message in- are those, blueprints? What is he… Public records. Was he searching for something? Did he find it?
Zach left everything out on the table, and he got up and walked away towards a different section than the one he was seated at because of the long tables there for people to work. He came back a minute later, as was clear he would do since his beanie and jacket and over-gloves were all still at the table with the materials he had not put away. Zach returned with more books, more records, and some more files that he looked at closely. Zach had not sat down yet, but he looked at the new file, then picked up one of the ones he had brought over initially, and he stared at them with his eyes opening wide. Oh my God! That's amazing! A miracle! This is mind-blowing!
What did he find?! Is there something in those files?
Zach steadied his expression and he sat down again at his table. He turned his head side to side, checking again for anyone watching him. This time though, he looked more suspicious as if what he had just discovered might be reason for someone trying to get close and stop him. He had to suppress a smirk as he did this, before looking back down at the files and taking in a deep breath. Not much to do until lunch. Breakfast could be fine, but I don't know for sure they'll be there yet. I never ran around this area during the morning. I checked out the library's website though, and saw all these records were here but haven't ever been digitalized. Strange they'd still have such an old system, unless someone's trying hard to hide something and doesn't want it to be easily accessible. This way, they can better check who comes in and out to read the files, so a librarian here might be specifically looking out for one of these records. Their job might be to notify whoever matters about anyone who looks at it. I'll have to keep the dates close in mind. They wouldn't destroy the record completely unless they want to draw more attention to that specific date. Then again, it would only draw attention for someone searching without knowing what they're looking for. For someone who's already trying to find that information, it could do the opposite and hinder their efforts…
Three hours after Zach arrived at the library, he leaned back in his seat and stretched his arms up over his head. Some interesting stuff, he thought, his expression relaxed as he started closing everything up. His eyes had stayed hazel through the morning, as he knew someone was watching and kept from letting his eyes go red which he suspected his nearby tail might take offense to. Someone going out of their way to watch me so closely, makes it difficult to even do the normal amount of Quirk use. Lemillion, you'd be surprised how much I'm using right now. If you stabbed a knife into my chest, you'd pierce about a centimeter deep before just plunging that knife into darkness. If I have to act like I don't notice you, it might make some others feel like I don't notice shit. Assassins who are better at you at hiding, and who might be watching me right now. Not that you're shit at this, but this has to be getting boring for you too, right? Take a break.
Lemillion got back to the roof of the library and waited for Zach to leave one of the exits. He pulled out a nutrition bar for some quick energy, all he was going to get as he was going to keep Zach in his sights all day. It was just some protein and fiber, but it was heavy enough to keep him from getting hungry. Almost as if to shove Lemillion's lunch in his face though, Zach immediately jogged to a Burger Lando. He had his mask up again, though he pulled it down once he got into the fast food place.
There was a bit of commotion inside the store as Zach said hi to some fans already in there eating. A couple of people pulled out phones, and after Zach ordered and paid, he had to smile and get in pictures with regular Japanese citizens. A couple others ran into the store when his food was almost out, as the people who pulled out their phones did not just take pictures, but sent those pictures with their location to their friends. Zach got his food brought up for him and left quickly, apologizing to a few people that he had to run and couldn't stay for any more photos. He reached a hand into his pocket and tossed a handful of something behind him though as he was about to leave the place.
A few people trying to run after Zach stopped instead and reached up, catching the cards he tossed out behind him. They were hero trading cards, all of them of Lifebringer whose card got reinstated during the election when liking Lifebringer reached a new popularity height. The cards were all signed by Lifebringer too, and Zach left everyone behind to argue over who got which card after someone finally shouted what they were.
Lemillion sweatdropped as he saw the smile on Zach's face as he jogged away from the fast food place. The younger man seemed to be laughing at his diversion tactic and how well it worked. Lemillion's expression re-hardened and he narrowed his eyes. He's luring me into a sense of security. I see it. The way he's been acting, is just about the least suspicious way… The library was a little, odd. He was studying. But that was just, carefree, and non-suspicious. He seems just like a normal person going about his day. As if the public Lifebringer he's shown is the real him. Lemillion's gaze was cautious and he watched carefully as Zach started looking around more often, checking his corners and seeing if anyone was watching him.
Where is he going now? This, is a bad part of the city. The worst part of town actually. Lemillion looked around as he noticed it. So back to the first prediction then? He's looking for crime to pretend to have just been walking around near it when it happens. Going on a jog, even so far from his home. He can use the excuse that he's running everywhere around the city, and that he needed to go to the library which was why he was running here. Lemillion hummed at how well-thought out that was, but his expression was still steady and suspicious. What is the reason for fighting crime though? Get more of the public eye on himself? To show everyone that this might be the part of Yutapu he lives in? Or to be a hero? To better convince everyone that he's back to fight crime as a hero, despite going in with a provisional license. He did the same with Killmore. Deku tells me it was all Sazaki's idea. He finds loopholes. I have to be careful going after him for many reasons. They reviewed him several times before his departure, and yet he had his provisional license through it all.
He's smooth with the way he speaks. He can convince anyone of his motives. Faith. I read all the files on him when I heard what Sazaki had done to him. The ability to crush a man like that, destroy him, someone like Faith! You're too dangerous. Every action he makes. Back there in the Burger Lando he was on camera doing that, seeming like a nice guy giving out autographs while people will also understand why he did it to get them all off his back and give him a chance to run off. He's the "Hero of the People." Going to regular fast food joints just like them and running off with a couple paper bags in his hands. Does he really eat fast food like that, and still keep that body… His medical records were sealed, but I was there the day he got shot. I saw… And the reports of the guards of his old cell, they all mention his scars but also the amount of time he spent training and working out. An intense training regimen mixed with fast food- what am I thinking about?
Lemillion sped up as Lifebringer was getting too far from him. Every action might be fake. Only focus on what's important though. Where is he going with that food? We're just heading deeper into the bad part of this city. It's not much worse, but I checked the crime rates earlier. If he came this way it was so he could fight crime. He could have gone to a different train station and taken a train this way, but he's just runn- this again? Lemillion slowed down, expecting Zach to pop out the other side of an alleyway he just went into.
Zach did not dart into the alley though. He slowed down his jog first, then he turned into the alley casually and still smiling. He looked over his shoulder as if checking to see if any of the people chasing him were catching up, even though he had shaken everyone way back at the Burger Lando. Zach turned back forward, looked over to the right where there was an old man leaning against the side of a building on his butt, and he nodded at the guy who nodded right back with still a bit of a surprised look on his face. "Lifebringer," the old guy said, seeing the scars on Zach's face that distinguished him from everyone else easily.
Zach had walked into an alley that was illuminated partially on the ends, but was pretty dark through most of it as the buildings were close to each other and cast a lot of shade down between them. There was a dumpster in front of Zach on his left, farther in than the old man who was close to the edge of the alley and had a cup next to him with a little change in it. He also had a pack on his other side farther in the alley. The cup looked to be in case anyone looked in and decided to give him some money because the cup was close to them already, while he kept the bag on the other side so it could not just get taken by passerbys. Zach saw another bag up ahead of him more in the darkness, but he ignored it for now and just stopped in front of the old man for a second.
He opened up one of the paper bags he was holding, pulled out one of the burgers he had bought, then he hesitated. "Cheese?" Zach asked, waving around the burger he lifted up and checking if the guy was for it or if he might have a lactose allergy, or if he might just prefer hamburgers. The homeless man in front of Zach gave him a surprised look, then Zach tossed him the burger since the man did not reply quick enough. He reached into the bag himself and pulled out another cheeseburger, then he stepped a couple feet farther into the alley and hopped up on top of the dumpster.
There were two lids of the dumpster, and the one next to where Zach landed suddenly popped up. Zach figured the man might have been in there considering the placement of the other bag across from the dumpster, just a little farther down the alley which made Zach think it was so it would be better hidden in the darkness and make it look less like there was another person in there. The guy who popped out fast spun to the other lid where that loud noise was. Zach had his burger lifted in his hand, just starting to unwrap it. He turned to the man next to him without flinching or jumping in surprise or anything. The man who came halfway out of the dumpster smelled, he had a brown beanie on over his head that had some dirt and garbage on it, messy silver hair below it, and dirt all over his tan skin much darker than the wrinkly older man's near the end of the alley.
Zach held out the burger to the smelly man staring at him in shock from only a couple of feet away. His mouth was still open as he got ready to shout at whoever just jumped on the dumpster he was dumpster-diving in, but he closed it and lowered his eyes from Zach's face to the burger being held out for him still in its wrapping. "Cheeseburger," Zach said. "Want it?" He shook the burger once to see if the guy would take it before he could start eating it himself.
The man he was talking to rose his eyes slowly up from the burger. His face twisted in rage, and Zach grimaced as he wondered if that was somehow insensitive despite how the older man had just started unwrapping his a second ago. The younger man, who was still over twice Zach's age, smacked a hand across his body and knocked the sandwich out of Zach's. Zach stopped himself from pulling back faster than the man could hit the sandwich, as he did feel bad about whatever he had done to make this homeless man so angry all of a sudden. Then he saw the glint, and his eyes widened more as the homeless guy used the hand he smacked the burger away with to grab Zach by his jacket.
"Give me all of it!" The man shout-whispered. His eyes darted past Lifebringer for a moment to the street where he did not want anyone hearing him, then to the old man who was staring towards them in shock. The silver-haired guy grabbing Zach by the jacket had a knife lifted in his other hand up close to Lifebringer's throat. He glared back straight into Lifebringer's eyes, "Give me everything you got actually."
He's not trying to kill me? Seemed strange someone could have been lying in wait for me. Zach lowered his eyes to the knife near his throat, surprisingly sharp for someone who did not seem to have much on him. Zach took the knife from the man. It took an instant, and the guy who just had the knife in his hand trembled nervously as Zach was holding his left arm by the wrist in what felt like a vice, while turning the knife over in his right hand examining the blade for blood. Doesn't look like he's stabbed anyone else with this. The old man seems surprised by this too. He knew the younger one was in here but didn't see this coming. Zach turned back to the man whose arm he lowered down with his left hand, keeping his hand gripped around the man's dirty sleeve which was getting his winter glove dirty too.
"Let me, go," the guy struggled to try and get out of Zach's grip. It was the first thing he needed to do to run, now that he was thoroughly terrified and knew he had to get out of there. "I'm sorry- just, fucking, let go!" Zach let go, but with a shove backwards knocking the man halfway out of the trash back down into the dumpster. Then Zach reached for the lid and he shut it on the man, and he pushed down with his left hand as the guy jumped up fast and tried to get the lid back off. "Hey! HEY! Please," the man's voice that he just rose cracked as he lowered back down quickly.
You think I'm calling the cops, and I'm going to trap you in here until they arrive. If that's what's happening, you won't want to make your voice too loud. Zach lifted his eyes up towards the top of the alley. And Lemillion's going to stay out of this too. Pretending to just be walking by right now would be a sure thing of me catching him following me. I'd call him out on it too. The whole nine yards, make a big deal of it. You know it Lemillion, so stay out of my business.
Zach turned the knife he was holding side to side in front of his face, then he spun it around, lifted his left arm, and slid the knife into his sleeve with a grin back towards the old man. "Hey, it's a nice knife," Zach said with a shrug. He took his left hand off the lid of the dumpster as he did this, but the man inside the dumpster was too busy pleading with him in a whisper that he not call the cops as the reality of what had happened was setting in. Alright, he seems to realize how fucked he is, Zach reached back to the lid with his left hand and lifted it up, making the man inside hesitate and get a dumbstruck look on his face. Was it because Lifebringer decided to let him go like he was asking? Were the police already there and about to drag him away for attempted assault on a hero? Was his life officially over, or was he being given a second chance? The unknowingness was unbearable, and the dirty guy in the dumpster nearly had a heart attack as Zach looked down at him.
"Stand up," Zach said. "I didn't call the cops on you," Zach pulled out a burger and he slid off the thicker glove on his right hand before unwrapping it. He ate his burger using his right hand with a tight black glove over it. He ate slowly, watching the man next to him while chewing on the hamburger he wished had some cheese on it. "I'm not giving you another one," Zach said. He motioned with his head to the floor of the alley where the burger had landed, somehow still in its wrapped though the wrapping was loose and needed to be picked up carefully so the cheeseburger would not fall out.
Zach took another bite of the burger, then he looked in the dumpster around the scared homeless person. "Is it really so cold in there that you have to bring all your layers in with you? Seems like it might be better to take some off first."
"Some people do not sort their garbage well," the old man began, making Zach turn his head which baffled the man next to him who considered running but was too nervous to do so. Zach met the older man's gaze, seeing the guy wearing as many heavy layers as his younger compatriot in the dumpster. They were dressed warmer than Zach was, which made sense since they had to carry everything either on their backs on in their packs, and it was safer to have it on their backs. The older guy who looked to be in his mid-sixties continued, "Often there are sharp objects and glass in the dumpsters. More layers are not just for protection from the cold."
"Ahh," Zach nodded in understanding. I thought about searching through dumpsters for food before. Might have been smarter- well, it was the Hunter coming after me. Whether or not I showed myself to get some food wasn't going to change… actually, maybe going into a dumpster would have thrown off the scent. Lucky I didn't do it then, or everything might've- "Anyway," Zach turned back to the man on his left who seemed like he might bolt. Turning like that had the guy's breath hitch in and become impossible to release, as Lifebringer's eyes bored into the side of his head in a serious way. "Why'd you choose this life?" Zach asked. He stared into the man's dark brown eyes, full of confusion as they stared back at Zach's. "Why are you so quick to pull a knife? On someone trying to help you no less-"
"I'm not so quick!" The man countered, his expression going from confused and surprised to angry. Anger covered his face, though also fear as he said, "I wouldn't for normal people, but you're the reason I'm in this place!" The homeless man yelling at the terrifying scar-faced person before him started tearing up, water filling his eyes as he leaned back but also pushed his face forward to give Zach his most angry look. "I lost my job because of you!" Zach's face looked confused, and the man yelling at him continued in an explanative while also still frustrated and angry voice, "Because other countries decided to follow Lifebrigner's plan, and allow everyone to use Quirks. Now their businesses are doing better as they produce more efficiently, and consumers here are importing more for cheaper than my company could sell, for the same products."
"I got laid-off from my job. I couldn't support my wife, who left me for it. Took the apartment too," the man closed his eyes and the tears in them pushed down his face as he shook his head. A part of him was still trying to convince Lifebringer not to send him to the police, but that was overtaken as this was all just pouring out. "And I got evicted after missing my rent payments twice in a row at my last place, so nowhere will have me now. Not that I could pay for it anyway without a job."
Damn. Zach stared at the grown man breaking down in front of him. That sucks. That was a lot too, just, a shit time. Shit luck. Guys at his job were probably talking about it as their sales went down more and more, blaming it on me. More blame went around, because they couldn't produce the same way and keep making money. They should have adapted, but that's not this guy's fault. Not even the company's really. Still, Zach shook his head with a sympathetic look on his face. "That's rough. But, robbing someone, even after all that," Zach gave the man next to him a disapproving, and disappointed look. "It's shit. You know it is."
Zach turned from the man staring at him with huge eyes, mostly in confusion though Zach saw a hint of shame on his expression too. He looked back towards the older man who was still just sitting there with his back against the opposite wall, looking over interestedly at what was going on. "What about you old man? Ever rob anyone?" The old guy was smaller than the man in the dumpster, and he looked like he had always been rather small and did not just shrink from a long time on the streets. He did look like he was on the streets for a while though, and Zach asked when the man shook his head no, "How long have you been out here?"
"Oh, just about seven years now," the man replied, some pride in his voice as he said it. The man on Zach's left felt more shame hearing that, considering how long it had been for himself. The shame he had felt earlier jumping into the dumpster to search for things he could sell or eat was replaced with a deeper, less vain level of shame over what he had just stooped to. Zach did not look back at that man though, still looking at the old guy who he also felt bad for after hearing that.
Zach sat there and asked the old man about what led him to be out there for so long. The hobo told Zach his life story, his voice steady and his tone not regretful, nor hopeful, just accepting of the circumstances he discussed. He was an only child, never had a family of his own, and his last living relative was a distant cousin who died in the SFI. Apparently there was a medical condition that ran in his family, making it so most of his relatives had died young. He thought he would die early too, but it turned out he was the exception and learned too late just how much time he had. "…We have nice welfare programs here. Get sick out on the streets, our hospitals still have to treat you. Different shelters every week, especially during the winter around now," the older man paused for a second and he rubbed his hands together, resting his half-eaten burger down on his lap. "They want us out during the day, looking for jobs and such. Isn't enough food to give us three meals either, but a nice dinner served by kind youngsters like yourself, a cot in a old church with the heat on-"
"You don't plan to live like that forever, do you?" Zach asked. He looked at the old guy skeptically, and the man telling all this in a somewhat jovial tone lowered his half smile. He looked back at Zach curiously, before leaning back a bit at Zach's disapproving look again. "You learned you had longer to live, so now you're just waiting to die?"
"You don't know how badly I screwed up my life," the man replied, shaking his head with a low chuckle at Zach and the other homeless man looking towards him. He lifted his burger and took a bite, turning and looking out of the alley and across the road to a group of three just walking down the sidewalk during the day. There was a man, his wife, and their daughter in between them. A woman's face appeared in his mind, and the old man looked older as he lowered his eyes down to the floor with a sigh. "It's too late. When you think you're going to die, sometimes you do things you can't come back from."
Zach lowered his eyes to the floor of the alley. A woman's face appeared in his own mind. Cuffed to a pole, a terrified look on her face, a gun aimed in between her eyes… "That's not true," Zach said. The old man frowned more and turned back, only to see a similar look as was just on his face still on Lifebringer's. He froze before telling the kid he did not know what he was talking about, his eyes growing wider as he decided that might not be true. "You can come back from anything," Zach said. He stared into the guy's old, sad eyes, that just got sadder for a second after hearing that like Zach did not know what he was saying. "I mean it. Anything," Zach repeated. He turned to his left, looked at the man who had just held a knife to his throat a few minutes ago.
Zach reached into a paper bag on his side on the dumpster's lid, and he reluctantly pulled out another burger that he placed down on the lid as he hopped off himself. He tossed the crumpled wrapper of the one he already ate into the open lid next to his would-be robber, then he reached down and picked up the other burger he knocked some dirt off the wrapping of. Zach started unwrapping that other burger the man knocked out of his hand before, a cheeseburger. "It's never too late to turn it around," Zach said. He looked to the older man again, then ahead at the one who grit his teeth and looked away, feeling his shame but also anger towards the teen telling him this despite being the reason he was in this situation in the first place.
"Japan will change its ways soon," Zach said. The man gritting his teeth in anger rose his eyes back up to Zach's, confused and then widening as the kid continued. "When the government realizes what you already have. Once enough people start yelling at the reps what's happening out here. They're slow to change, and they're slower when the people who need that change the most don't do anything to bring that change themselves." Zach frowned at the guy staring in sheer confusion back at him. "You think it's my fault? Other countries that are allowing Quirks are doing better now. Allowing wider use of Quirks has made those places safer, but the positives aren't just limited to crime, and when our government sees that, change will come. And if you want to make that happen quicker, then you should protest and lobby the government. Gather up all the other laid-off workers to have a bigger voice, and the companies that haven't gone under yet too but share the same concerns that they might soon fail like yours did. Go on social media and complain about what happened, people will share it. Find people who feel the same and your protests will get bigger, and they'll have to listen to you and change things, or you can vote them out of office in favor of someone who decides to run for you."
Zach paused for a second, then he said in a steady and strong voice as he stared into the laid-off worker's eyes, "In a democracy, everyone has one vote. It's fair. Some people think that means since they only have one vote, it doesn't matter. But democracy's more than that. Taking part in it, to change things the way you want them to change, it's not impossible." Zach shook his head like it was simple, making the man giving him a look that said 'It's not that simple' freeze and start to question his own belief on that matter. "Have you tried it yet?" Zach asked. "The things I'm telling you? You tried all these things, before pulling a knife on a teenager and trying to rob him? A hero, no less." Zach gave the guy a harsh glare, and he added as the man leaned back nervously, "And if while doing all that work to get your old job back, to get the government to change things so your job comes back, you need money, then go get a job! The Burger Lando I just went to had a job opening. I know it's not your career. It's not what you want to do for the rest of your life. But it's better than this," Zach motioned around him.
He turned towards the man near the end of the alley. "I'm Quirkless," the old man said when Zach turned to him. The guy sighed and despite being impressed with Zach's speech to his fellow hobo, he just shook his head at the aspect of going out and finding a job. "If things do go as you say, and Japan changes to allow Quirks to be used in the workplace, there will be fewer and fewer jobs for people like me."
"That's wrong," Zach countered back. The white-haired man looked at Zach in surprise, and Zach stepped towards him and gave him a harsh look too. "Jobs that don't require Quirks will still be out there. Not all of them will be replaced when things do change, as I think things will. A lot of new jobs are going to form, as new technology and entirely new lines of work and created when super powers become something people use in their daily lives. And yet as many niche jobs appear for people with specific Quirks, every job won't be assisted by the use of a Quirk. Even after Quirks become useful in the workplace, people aren't going to just decide as kids what job they want because that's the Quirk they were born with, so the majority of people's Quirks won't even be useful for whatever job they have." Zach stared at the man looking up at him with wide eyes and also a bit of frustration that Zach countered him. "You can do it. Finding a job, I know you can. And you can get back on your feet. You're right, Japan's health care is great. You have decades left, and what quality of life is this? Get out there, and get back on your feet."
"You say it like it's easy," the man in the dumpster said, keeping his voice low though Zach still heard it.
Zach paused with his eyes looking down, then he turned and rose them to the guy who just said that. "You're right," Zach said. He looked back at the old man and nodded, admitting it with his look. "It's hard. It's harder than sitting here, waiting for hand-outs, and taking the dinners offered to you, and sleeping in a warm building that changes each night, or might not even be available sometimes. Those nights must be cold," Zach looked to the old guy who had been out there for years, who got a darker and more knowing look on his face than the newly homeless man. "But life, isn't easy." Zach looked back and forth at the two he was standing between. "It's not easy for anyone. It's really… really hard sometimes," in Zach's voice slipped through some pain, experience and knowledge of the hardships he was talking about. The scars on his face, on his neck, and the look in his eyes, it had the two men feeling sorry for themselves and trying to argue their ways out of this unable to keep on saying he was wrong.
"So, this is it," Zach said. His voice was still low, but it sounded like he was offering something when he rose his head to the man in the dumpster. "Try the things I said, and maybe you can change things sooner. In the meantime, the Burger Lando job. You could be a Ryde driver or something, maybe a Ryde Eats and rent a bike if you can't get a car because your credit is low after your eviction." Zach reached down into a pocket, in his sweatshirt below his jacket, and he pulled his hand back out with a pair of bills in it. "Get yourself cleaned up. Go to a bathhouse, rent a suit or just get a clean pair of clothes," Zach stepped up in front of the dumpster, and he shoved the ten thousand yen bill into the man's chest, making him reach his hands up as the palm hit him pretty hard with that bill in it.
Zach stared into the man's eyes from up close, his hand still pressed into the guy's chest. "There's a lot you can do before robbing someone. Robbing someone is like giving up. Accepting you'll be thrown in jail. And that might seem like an easy time from outside, getting three meals a day and a feeling of security that you don't need to take care of yourself anymore. The easy way. But that's also the coward's way out, because you're afraid you'll fail if you try things the way I said. You've failed before." Zach curled his hand into the man's heavy jacket, then he let go, leaving the man holding a bill worth around $100 against his chest. "Try again. Try harder. Jail sucks, trust me," Zach said that with a half-joking smirk, but he continued in a serious voice. "You'll be thrown in with actual villains."
Zach turned and started back towards the end of the alley. He walked up to the man who had been leaning on the wall, but was now on his knees as he had been for a minute staring at Zach with huge shaking eyes. Zach got down on a knee in front of the old man who looked to be in his sixties, but who might have been younger now that Zach got a close look and saw how much the time on the street had worn him down. "I know trying is hard, especially after so many failures. I know," Zach repeated it, his eyes boring straight into the older man's as he reached down and grabbed one of the man's hands. He turned the guy's hand over and then curled it around the other ten thousand yen bill he had pulled out. "But look at me," Zach said, cracking a smile at the old guy after handing him money, while telling him to get back on his feet and do better in life. "Here I am trying to be a hero again," Zach stood up in front of the man and glanced back at the guy in the dumpster staring at Zach in shock, as that was absolutely true after all they had just heard.
"I never thought they'd let me. Never thought I'd get back to this place." Zach looked up and around him, a bright, hopeful smile on his face looking to the future. He looked back at either of the men in the alley with him, one who stood up just on his right and the other who finally climbed out of the dumpster. A hero listened too from just above, an ear through the wall just over a fire-escape above the dumpster. Zach looked confidently at the men in front of him who had stunned, disbelieving looks on their faces as they stared at Lifebringer at the edge of their alleyway. "I kept trying though," Zach said, "and sooner or later, things got better. That's what happens. But, only if you try."
"So try," Zach said. It was as simple as that, and that was the tone he used to get that message through as he turned away from them.
"Wh-What if it doesn't work-"
"Then you try again," Zach said. "It's why they call it 'trying,' because you don't know if it will work." Zach looked back over his shoulder, "But no one's ever succeeded at anything, without trying first."
A/N Thanks for reading. Had a different message down here the first time. My grammar and spelling might be off in the chapter as I changed more the first time around too. I finished editing completely, then I accidentally closed the tab and all my edits of 2 hours were deleted. It's happened to me maybe 12 times before and I thought I got better at this, but it always just catches you off guard when you're not thinking about it. Anyway, would've had this out a lot earlier today but needed to chill after getting real pissed. Some wise words from Zach at the end to the homeless, flashback to Endeavor and Mark, and we see Todoroki and Lemillion doing their best to get dirt on Lifebringer- a.k.a. Death. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Leave a review below telling me what you think, comments, questions, and predictions for what's to come!
diddles321 chapter 151 . Apr 20
Totally confused as to which girls have what description at this point. Dont worry though keep up the good work! Also I had a thought about Zach using Death to create Susanoo from Naruto and now I can't get it out my head lol.
Only been a couple chapters with them so no need to worry. Reika's the blond, strong, Tide girl, Himazuri's the mind-reading brunette, Manzo dark-red hair ninja, Muoko glasses and class rep, Bibi the gray hair with long bangs covering the eyes, Jaime is the American exchange girl (I think those are all the Shiketsu girls I've introduced so far). Just a refresher. And who knows, maybe Zach will be Susanoo-ing in the near futures... weirder things have happened. ;)
PHD in oof chapter 151 . Apr 21
I enjoyed the story, I like how to try to be creative with all the different possible powers and how they can be used. A slight problem I've noticed that was pretty frequent in the beginning (a little less so towards the end) is that you tend to put commas in dialogue when they don't really add anything and just end up making the dialogue sound stilted. Other than that I think it's fine. Zach's kind of a dick, but it's fun watching him interact with the others. Also how the hell do you get out chapters that fast? It takes me like a month to get 5k words down lmao.
Glad you've liked it so far! Commas in the dialogue I use when they're not grammatically correct to signify a pause in the character's speech instead. Reason it may have come up more in the past than now, might be because Zach's gained a lot of confidence since the early chapters and doesn't hesitate when he speaks as much anymore. The pauses aren't just for nerves, but also subtle things like emphasis, or if you read it aloud in the character's voice the comma could be a dramatic pause for a second. I also use ellipses (...) and hyphens a lot in the dialogue to try and show a more fluid way of how people would speak, long pauses and sudden cut-offs, (the dot dot dots are longer pauses than the commas, is really what I'm saying here). Just write really fast. That's the only real secret. Plus, my studies are really boring compared to my imagination and this story, so I just prefer to spend most of my time on this! XD Lol thanks for the review and I hope you continue to enjoy Death.
Guest chapter 151 . Apr 20
First Lifesaver and now All Slice. These new gen heroes are ridding on the nostalgia of their senpais.
Happens a lot: Red Riot, Ingenium... All Tight was another character I mentioned earlier in the story, figure if Crimson Riot can influence Kirishima's name, All Might's probably influenced a ton of other heroes to follow in his footsteps. Zeira and Dendo've got their heroes too... and they've got a lot to live up to riding on those names. Thanks for reviewing!
verse chapter 151 . Apr 20
Nexus héroes end ?
Someday I'll get back to it, once Death is finished. And there is an end in sight: (40-50 chapters from now).
Guest chapter 151 . Apr 21
I. NEED. MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRREEE.
More coming soon! Sorry not gonna do a lot of responses today guys- again, just edited this chapter for the 2nd time, and spent the last two days writing my thesis nonstop just to do this soon as I got it in. Graduation in 19 days! Looking forward to it and what's to come afterwards. Post the next chapter in the next few days! Cya!