Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the last chapter, I know there was a lot of information towards the end, I apologize if all that bold text was a little annoying
I just wanna make sure everyone's on the same page as to what does and means what, and what Ryuko's skill level is at the moment. This won't be a Mary Sue, Ryuko will have a painfully slow climb ahead at times
I might also add a few more games, movies, or books to this crossover, we'll see how things go
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the franchises or stories in this fanfiction
/
It had been a week since Ryuko's and Izuna's close run in with the Joker, and neither had left the safety of Ryuko's apartment for that entire week. For the most part Ryuko had been resting, but she showed she was still fully capable of moving around with that metal leg brace supporting her quite often, though she never carried anything heavy. Izuna on the other hand, had started to physically change from when Ryuko had found her in that cage.
Her flat chest had begun to grow as days went by, going from barely there A-cups to a bouncy, round, and perky set of E-cups. Her butt had also gotten some extra padding, and bounced quite pleasantly when in comfy yoga pants, but when wearing normal pants the jiggle was significantly decreased because of the muscle still being there, and the tightness of said pants. Her hips had widened a bit and her thighs had plumped up as well, but all of that muscle in her legs kept her from looking like she was as soft as a marshmallow all around.
Today Ryuko woke up with Izuna in her bed, having invited the girl to join her so she wouldn't have any nightmares and wake up in the middle of the night, and saw that a notification had popped up.
You are no longer suffering from debuff "Knee Injury" and may now move around freely as you did before, congratulations!
Never had she been more happy to see a random pop-up than she was now, eagerly tossing the brace off of her leg and testing it out by bending her knee. It was a little weak, and kind of tender, but that was nothing a day or two of moving around on it again wouldn't fix. On top of resting, Ryuko had been putting her time at home to good use, having quickly found that a new website was bookmarked on her computer that only she could access, a shopping website related to her power.
Using this she had discreetly bought supplies, which arrived in only a day or two, to make an outfit to keep her identity hidden, and a voice modulator so nobody would be able to tell who she was just from hearing her voice. She also had the chain from when she escaped, a memento she would likely keep for the rest of her life, and at the moment both were sitting in her inventory. "Izuna, it's time to wake up, our recovery week is over, today's our first day back to school."
The blonde girl groaned and pulled her pillow over her head. "I don't wanna go to school, I know we got those special bras for me yesterday, but look at me now. Guys used to hit on me to be dicks when I was a guy, now they're actually gonna hit on me. I'm just happy I'll be able to keep running with those bras without slapping myself in the face constantly.." Ryuko sighed softly and gave Izuna a hug. "You'll be ok Izuna, we have the same schedule, just stick next to me and I'll handle any nuisances, ok? I know you don't really enjoy fighting."
Izuna was by no means a slouch in a fight, but she didn't enjoy getting into fights at all. Years and years of growing up around her abusive step-parents and their mafia business had done that to her, she refused to end up like them, and refused to enjoy hurting people in the slightest unless they truly deserved it. "If you say so.. Hey, after school, can you come with me? I have a place where I'm meeting some people that are really close to me, treated me like proper family.."
"Izuna, you don't even have to ask, you know I'm with you no matter what. Don't worry, once school's out I'll take you wherever you need to go." The blonde nodded and smiled happily at her friend, before climbing out of bed and beginning to dress herself in the clothes Ryuko had ordered for her, and Ryuko did the same. Once dressed, both girls headed into the kitchen of the apartment Ryuko and her mom were living in, greeted by the smell of breakfast.
Takeda was a beautiful woman, she still looked like she was on her mid 20's despite being 36 years old. She had jet black hair just as wild as Ryuko's, though it went half way down her back, unlike her daughter's hair. She was a few inches taller than her daughter, standing at 6' 5" and looking very imposing in her grey suit, despite not having a build as toned as Ryuko's. Right now she was wearing her suit, but was also taking off an apron while a delicious spread of food sat on the table.
The older woman set her apron off to the side and smiled at the teens. "I hope you two enjoy breakfast, I already had mine, the office called me in early today." This caused Ryuko to scowl a bit. "Come on mom, you need to put your foot down at some point, they keep calling you in early and on your days off, and they don't even pay you extra!" Takeda just ruffled her daughter's hair and kissed her forehead. "Hey, it's all we've got Ryuko, my job at the office, and your job at the Botanical Gardens, let's just make the most out of the hand we're dealt."
With that, Takeda grabbed her purse and headed out of the apartment, leaving the two friends to their own devices. "I wish she could find a better job, but it's Gotham, half of the easier and better paying work available to people like us is illegal.." Izuna just nodded sadly and sighed. "Yeah.. Come on, we should eat breakfast and get ready for school, I don't think they'll give us any more time to recover from what happened." Ryuko simply nodded in agreement and went over to the table with Izuna, sitting right next to her and enjoying her breakfast with her friend.
/
Location: Gotham High
/
Once they were done with that, they got into Ryuko's car, a black 1970's Dodge Charger with a blower sticking out of the hood, and headed off to school. Ryuko had originally found the car at the dump, rusty and unloved, but mostly intact, so she bought it for cheap and restored it to it's former glory and then some. She was proud of her work whenever she heard that engine roar, and was more proud whenever her fellow students would look at the car in awe or jealousy.
Right now though, most were focusing on the blonde girl Ryuko was walking into the school with, considering she looked so much like a certain blonde male that Ryuko was always seen with. That announcement to the entire school was an embarrassing one, even if they were both applauded for having survived an encounter with the Joker, neither Ryuko nor Izuna were comfortable with being in the spotlight, and a lot of the guys were looking at Izuna with lustful eyes..
A few classes went rather poorly for the pair of friends, but some went quite well like P.E with Ava McCarthy as their teacher. She was a Scottish woman with fiery orange hair and deep purple eyes, and always drew eyes with her young looks and amazing body. The 26 year old woman was also a mother to a sweet 10 year old girl named Megan, having been thrusted into a marriage to her current husband in order to keep up with school and taking care of the baby at the same time.
Things turned out well in the end though, and now Ava was a respected P.E teacher at the school while her husband was a businessman, often overseas or at meetings, and Ryuko often volunteered to babysit young Megan when she was needed. In return, Ava made sure Ryuko and Izuna wouldn't receive any trouble from their fellow students, and today was no exception. At least five male students had been given detention for blatantly ogling and harassing Izuna by the time the class was over, and that was just for that class by itself.
By the time the day was done Izuna was extremely uncomfortable, and Ryuko was wound tighter than a spring, but as they made their way over to Ryuko's car they found that their school day wasn't done yet. "Hey Nakamura! Don't go just yet, we haven't seen Gotham High's newest hot piece of ass yet!" That would be Brad Brookes, Gotham High's top jock, standing at 5' 11" and weighing 200 pounds, he was your stereotypical strong blonde asshole jock. You'd never believe he was cousins with a famous military veteran in Gotham.
Ryuko clenched her fists tightly as he walked closer with a few of his pals on the football team and a smug look on his face. "Go away Brad, shouldn't you be practicing to lose another game? Or did you finally smarten up and let a better player be quarterback?" That smug smile was quickly wiped from Brad's face and replaced by a scowl. "I think you need to learn to respect your superiors Nakamura." "Just because your dad's my boss doesn't mean I'm gonna take your shit."
Ryuko's job was caring for the plants at the Gotham City Botanical Gardens, and Brad also worked there since his father worked there. He often slacked off, leaving Ryuko to care for his assigned wing of the gardens as well as hers. Brad's father was fully aware of this, but ignored it, hoping his son would smarten up one day. "Then perhaps it's time to teach you a lesson." As Brad began walking closer, Ryuko got a pop-up message, another quest, but this one was different from the last quest she did.
Random Encounter: Brad I
Objective: Defeat Brad as he lashes out at you!
Objective Rewards: $300, 150 exp, +500 relationship with Izuna
Accept? Y/N
Once again the option to decline was greyed out. 'I guess things that are important can't be declined.. But why's this quest different?' She got her answer in the form of another pop-up.
In your adventures you will find different kinds of tasks to complete. Story Quests, Side Quests, and Random Encounters. This is a Random Encounter, and they can happen anywhere in the world at differing times and locations, and will have differing levels of difficulty depending on your level and stats. As these happen randomly and give no time to react, you have no choice but to follow through with the encounter, or run away.
'Like hell I'm running away from Brad!' Ryuko stood her ground and popped her knuckles, glaring angrily at the jock. "I've had some anger to vent all day, I suppose you showing up is actually lucky for me, now I have something to beat on." With that, Brad ran at Ryuko and threw a hard punch, one she narrowly leaned away from before throwing a punch to Brad's stomach in retaliation. This hadn't been the first time she and Brad had fought, but this was the first time she'd seen him recoil so much from one of her punches. 'I guess those stat upgrades meant more than I thought at this level..'
Once Brad had recovered, he rubbed the spot where he'd been punched, before throwing a kick at Ryuko's midsection. Ryuko caught his kick, but took a punch to the side of her chest instead, which surprisingly didn't hurt that much. 'My Endurance upgrades.. Oh hell yeah!' For the first time in the fight, Ryuko allowed herself to smirk, before quickly punching Brad's trapped leg several times. After the 9th punch Brad managed to pry his leg free, though it was hurting quite a bit afterwards. "Fuck you bitch! When my father hears about this he'll-!"
A right hook to the jaw silenced Bras and made him stumble a few steps back. "He'll what? You're losing the fight and now you're trying to hide behind your dad because he's my fucking boss? You're nothing but a joke!" Brad then yelled and charged at Ryuko, only for her to grab him and use his momentum to flip him over her and onto the ground, causing him to land hard on his back. Once he landed, she straddled his chest and began punching him over and over again.
Ryuko was hitting him everywhere, the arms, shoulders, chest, and head, and she kept punching for around 15 seconds before Brad's friends wrestled her off of him. The two that were currently grabbing her were then elbowed by her, before she grabbed their heads and smashed them together, sending them to the asphalt almost instantly. The third and final person, who'd wisely backed off once Brad had been freed, was simply slugged twice in the face and knocked out like the others.
When Brad got back up Ryuko was no longer angry, so she decided to end the fight with a powerful and decisive uppercut, sending the jock sprawling onto the ground like a sack of potatoes. "Now piss off, and don't come near Izuna ever again or I'll remove what little manhood you have." The angered teen then huffed and walked back over to her car, gesturing for Izuna to get in once she unlocked the doors. Then, once they were both buckled up, Ryuko drove off, leaving the jocks knocked out in the parking lot.
"Ok Izuna, where are we headed?" When Ryuko turned to her friend, she immediately noticed the extremely nervous look on her face. "T-that alleyway near my foster family's house, y-you know the one.." Ryuko nodded and turned her head towards the road, but the gears in her head were already turning. "Why do you wanna go there? Izuna-kun, who are you meeting in that alleyway of all places?" Ryuko didn't use Japanese honorifics often, but it made Izuna happy to hear 'kun' instead of 'chan' since she was still a long ways away from getting used to her new body.
"Y-you'll see when we get there.. They won't hurt us Ryuko, I promise, they're like family to me, they'll be nice to you." A silence filled the car for a few seconds, before Ryuko sighed softly. "That's not an answer I'm satisfied with, but I'll let it slide for now since it's you." Izuna just nodded with a smile on her face, visibly relaxing in the passenger seat as Ryuko drove them to their destination. Once they were there, Ryuko parked on the side of the road and locked her car once they got out, as well as activating metal shutters on the windows.
"There, now nobody's gonna steal my damn car.. Ok Izuna, where we headed?" The blonde just walked into the alley without a word, so Ryuko followed right behind her. She didn't think to use her Sense ability until it was a little too late, and she quickly found herself being held up against the wall by a single, massive arm. This man was the walking definition of strength, a little over 7 and a half feet tall and only just fitting into his black suit, but what worried Ryuko was his face. He was wearing a black and white luchador mask that exposed his eyes and mouth, but that was all she needed to see.
"B-bane?! Y-you wanted to meet Bane of all people?!" As Ryuko began running low on oxygen, she was questioning how her day could get worse, and then she saw another person descending a nearby fire escape. A blonde woman, highly flexible with some black facepaint around her eyes and sharper than normal canines, like fangs. She also seemed to have a slightly longer than average tongue, and something Ryuko noticed besides her tight clothes were the metal claws she was wearing over her fingers. "C-copperhead too?! Ack!"
As Ryuko began angrily kicking her legs, Izuna ran up to Bane and, much to Ryuko's shock, hugged him. "Padre, please stop, this is my friend! It's Ryuko, I told you about her!" Bane's eyes widened, but before he could let her go, Ryuko managed to kick her leg up high enough to smash her foot into his nose, causing him to drop her. "Agh! I see the zorro amistoso you talked to me about has some bite to her hijo, I must say, I like her already."
Now Ryuko was a little rattled by who was standing right in front of her, but due to a brief lack of oxygen, her brain wasn't quite firing on all cylinders yet. "You called me a... Friendly fox?" Bane chuckled when he heard that, it was a loud and booming sound, but not quite unpleasant. "Sí, Izuna has told me a lot about you, especially your fondness for foxes. You speak Spanish?" "I speak a lot of languages, there's a little bit of everything in America these days, it helps more than you think.."
Copperhead, who had remained silent so far, quietly walked over to Ryuko and put her hands under her arms, pulling the girl to her feet with little effort. "You're interesting, most people would've just run away after kicking Bane in the face, if anyone actually had the balls to do it... Wait, could it be that you were the black haired girl I heard about with a blonde girl last week? The one who shot 10 of Joker's goons and tried to kill the clown himself, before jumping off a 4 story building into a pile of garbage~?"
She then cackled a little and slugged Ryuko in the arm lightly... Well, lightly for her anyway, for Ryuko it was like a full force punch. "I like you already kid, ha! I can't believe it, if that gun had one more bullet, some nobody teenager would've ended the Joker rather than Batman, that's precious!" While this was going on, Ryuko decided to take the time to use Observe on Copperhead and Bane, wanting to know just how far she had to go before she'd be able to take on big time villains like them.
Bane
Level 60
STR - 85
DEX - 30
END - 85
WIS - 30
INT - 25
CHA - 35
LUK - 25
Copperhead
Level 60
STR - 35
DEX - 75
END - 45
WIS - 55
INT - 45
CHA - 50
LUK - 35
'Holy shit, they're both way out of my league.. Bane's a heavy hitter by far, while Copperhead focuses more on speed and flexibility, and better smarts and decision making... These two would be a dangerous team..' Ryuko released a quiet sigh as she finally recovered from being choked. "So you two are the people Izuna wanted to meet, huh? This is... Really unexpected." Bane nodded, understanding Ryuko's point of view quite well.
"I can see why you're so cautious, you're standing in front of two big time criminals while your friendsays everything is ok. Don't worry pequeño zorro, I will explain everything." Ryuko's eye twitched a bit from being called 'small fox,' but she let it slide in favor of an explanation. "When Izuna was around 13 years old, he ran away from his foster parents, wandering the entire city until he ended up cornered in an alleyway by a bunch of worthless thugs. I just so happened to be nearby and scared them off, before deciding to care for him for the day."
To say Ryuko was surprised was an understatement, a criminal like Bane, showing a soft side? "I gave him a phone number and told him to call it whenever he needed help, but the next day he called saying he needed to get away from his foster parents once again. He's visited me ever since, a few times a week, and we've developed a sort of father-son bond with one another. I would go after the Joker myself for what he did to my hijo, but he's a sneaky bastard, and would likely kill me with some underhanded tactic.."
Copperhead huffed off to the side, having decided to lean against a wall while Bane talked. "Same here, while I'm more for infiltration and stealth than Bane is, Joker would still likely find and kill me before I could get to him." While Joker wasn't excessively strong, flexible, or quick, and had no powers to speak of, he was still by far the most dangerous criminal in Gotham, and it was highly doubtful that anyone would ever take that title away from him.
"Sp, why're we here? We could've met anywhere else Izuna, why'd you pick somewhere so close to your foster family's house?" Izuna just looked at the ground, this was by far the most nervous Ryuko had ever seen Izuna become. "Ryuko.. I-I can't do it anymore, they're horrible people, they sold us both out to the Joker for his sick experiments and his stupid rivalry with Batman, they crossed a line.. W-we're here because... B-because I wanted Bane and Copperhead to kill them.."
Ryuko stared wide eyed at Izuna, trying to fully process what she'd just said. Izuna didn't like to fight people, so saying she wanted two well known criminals to kill someone was unheard of, even if her foster parents deserved it. The married couple were all business, though on the surface everything seemed legit, they were actually leading a new mafia family in Gotham, one that had only just started spreading it's wings a few months ago.
"Joker paid them enough money to cover all their expenses for months, if we don't take care of them now they could make their small mafia family a serious problem.." Ryuko now understood the situation, it wasn't just that they'd crossed a line, but Izuna was worried they'd be able to buy all the weapons and manpower they needed to make another powerful mafia family, and things were already hectic enough with the current ones at war with each other all over the city.
"...Izuna, a few years ago, when we first became true friends, I told you I'd follow you anywhere and have your back. Come on, let's get this over with and go home, your real home, with mom and I." Ryuko could see tears welling up in Izuna's eyes, before the blonde rubbed her eyes on her sleeve to hide it. "Yeah, let's go, the sooner this is done, the better." Nobody was out and about since it was almost dusk, so it was rather easy for the motley crew to make their way over to the two story house.
Izuna used her house key to unlock the door and led the way, with Ryuko following close behind, followed by Copperhead and Bane. Copperhead quietly went upstairs to Izuna's room to grab her things, while Izuna and Ryuko made their way to the living room, where they could hear laughter. "Oh Harold, this is wonderful! Now we'll soon be able to contend with the big mafia families in Gotham, and we don't even have to deal with that prissy blonde anymore!" "Ha ha, I know my dear, I believe this calls for some of that wine I've been saving for a good day! i believe I left it somewhere around here.."
Ryuko looked to her side and saw said wine bottle, an expensive looking brand that was most likely hard to find anywhere but in high end stores. Red began to tinge the borders of her vision as her body moved on it's own, grabbing the bottle in an angry grip and walking just past Izuna. "Ah, yes, it was just out here- You?!" "RAGH!" With a loud crash, Ryuko smashed the bottle against the side of Izuna's foster father's head, causing a few cuts to appear due to the glass shards, which were then covered in the wine. "AHHH!"
The man was also blonde, but a paler shade than Izuna's hair, and his was straight and swept neatly rather than semi-spiky. He was also a little on the thin side without much muscle definition, which worked out in Ryuko's favor when she kicked him back into the living room. A scream could be heard from the man's wife, a brunette with silky, wavy hair wearing an expensive dress and a little too much makeup. She wasn't as thin as her husband, but she still couldn't quite be called average or fat.
"Harold, Charlotte, how lovely to see you!" Ryuko ground out the word lovely with all the rage going through her body at the moment. "I believe we need to have a chat, I heard something about you selling Izuna and I out to the Joker." Harold scrambled to his feet and threw a desperate punch at Ryuko, who dodged and was about to swing back until Izuna gave the man a harsh uppercut. "Agh! You little fucking waste of space! We never should've adopted a pathetic femboy like-"
"SHUT UP!" Izuna suddenly punched him hard in the face, breaking his nose and sending him stumbling back into the couch, next to his wife. The pair were about to charge the two teens out of anger, until they felt all the warmth leaving their bodies as they saw the hulking mass that was Bane walking into the living room in his pristine black suit. "Yes, I would love to hear about your business with the Joker regarding my surrogate son and his best friend, pendejos!"
Now the pair were shivering in fear as they say the man become visibly enraged. "W-we only did it because we were forced to!" "Y-yes, we didn't want to hurt either of the-" "STOP LYING TO ME!" The large man bellowed out with enough force for his voice to resonate within Ryuko's chest. 'Fuck, he's on our side and he's still scaring me, I don't even think Batman's ever pissed Bane off this much..' "For what you have done to my boy and his friend, I will make sure you two never leave this house alive!"
Then Copperhead came downstairs with two very large rolling luggage bags. "Hey, I've got all of Izuna's stuff, let's get it over with." Charlotte stared at Copperhead with pure fear in her eyes. "W-what do you mean by that? What are you going to do?!" Instead of her answering, Bane cracked his knuckles and chuckled darkly. "You have crossed a line perra sin valor, and for that, you have earned yourselves a one way ticket to hell, nobody messes with mi familia."
The couple were shaking now as the large man began walking towards them. "G-get away from us!" "W-what will it take for you to leave us alone? W-we have the money that Joker gave us, you can take all of it!" As Bane kept walking towards them, Ryuko pulled Izuna in for a hug, before shaking her head. "Izuna, we shouldn't see something like this, let's wait in the breezeway and then go home." "But-" "No buts, my friend isn't someone who takes joy in watching people die."
Izuna looked down at the ground with a look of shame in her eyes, before nodding and walking with Ryuko to the front door of the house. Copperhead gave the blonde a small smile and patted her on the head while giving her the luggage bags, cheering her up a bit, before the two teens heard Harold's and Charlotte's grisly demise.
SNAP! CRACK!
"Oh god.. I-is it supposed to sound like that?" "I-I think I'm gonna be sick.." Ryuko and Izuna's expressions gained a slightly green tint, it was one thing to be in a gun fight, or listening to it, you couldn't hear the nasty noises of bullets going through people because of the loud noises of the guns, but in the quiet house they were able to hear every last miniscule pop and crack that the necks of the two former mafia bosses made as they were crushed in Bane's powerful grip.
Bane walked out of the living room a few seconds later as though nothing happened. "There we go, problem solved. Now then, Ryuko, since my boy trusts you so much, I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and trust you as well, this means no ratting me or Copperhead out to the cops, understand?" His tone was one that demanded all of Ryuko's attention, and the girl nodded rapidly. "Yes, I-I'm not exactly suicidal, it's not like I was gonna do that.."
Copperhead chuckled, as did Bane. "Heh, good, because I'm going to let you know where to find me should you ever need me. I've made a hidden hideout at the old abandoned airport at the edge of the city, it's quiet, out of the way, and nobody goes there. If you or Izuna need help, just head over there, I'll help with whatever you need so long as it's something I can do, or something I can get for you." Ryuko was shocked to hear this, a famous criminal had not only said he trusted her, but had given her the location to his hidden base.
"I... T-thank you, I won't violate your trust, I promise." Everyone then left the house, and Bane knelt down and gave Izuna a hug. "Hijo, stay with your friend, I can see she's good company and will keep you safe, understand? You can still visit as much as you want, but I'd prefer it if you stayed near her as much as you can." Izuna blushed softly and nodded. "P-padre, you're embarrassing me, come on.. R-ryuko and I need to go home before her mother begins to get suspicious."
Bane seemed to ponder this for a second, before looking at Ryuko with an intense gaze, looking over her entire body. "Hmm... Your mother will become suspicious of where you are? Does she have fiery red eyes and spiky hair like you do, but longer?" Ryuko tensed up and her eyes widened a bit. "...Y-yes, yes she does... Why do you ask?.." The big man simply laughed happily and smacked her on the back, nearly causing her to fall over.
"Ha ha ha! You're Takeda's hija, aren't you? I've met your mother before, she actually helped me one day when I'd taken too much Venom during a fight with Batman and, although she'd never done it before, drained enough Venom infused blood from my body so it would no longer be a lethal dose. When I came to however, she was gone, and I had to stumble back to my hideout while feeling woozy from my lack of blood. I never forgot what she did for me though, so I keep my boys from going anywhere near your neighborhood so neither of you will be hassled."
Ryuko was surprised to hear that her mom, a woman with little to no medical experienced, saved a notorious criminal in Gotham from an overdose of Venom. "That's... That's nuts, I didn't think mom would ever do something like that.." Bane could only laugh more at her mind blown expression, before he looked into the sky and noticed that the sun was getting low. "Well, I believe it's time that you two went home, the police will no doubt be coming to investigate this place soon."
As if on cue, everyone could hear sirens in the distance, so they all began running off. "Ah, before we leave! Izuna, as they were about to die, your foster parents mentioned your father forcing them to take you in, something about a 'masked man.'" Izuna had no time to ponder, she simply nodded and ran with Ryuko back to the car, and once they were in they quickly drove off just as the cops were rounding a corner.
"A man with a mask?... Ugh, that doesn't help at all!" Ryuko decided to pat her friend on the shoulder in a comforting manner, before a pop-up appeared in front of her.
Side Quest: Whispers of Family
Objective: Figure out who Izuna's father is
Objective Rewards: +1,000 relationship with Izuna
Accept? Y/N
Ryuko subtly tapped Yes and turned her focus back to the road, driving in silence until she'd parked outside of the apartment complex she lived at. "Come on Izuna, let's go rest, it's been a long day." The blonde just nodded without a word and walked up to the third floor, walking into the apartment with Ryuko, only for them both to be greeted with a note. "Called in to work, dinner's waiting to be reheated in the oven, Mom." Ryuko just sighed and shook her head, turning the oven on. "May as well just chill out on the couch for now.."
Timeskip: 4 hours later
Ryuko was in her room, alone, and quietly donning a black hoodie, pants, boots, and armored gloves, and under the hoodie was a ballistic vest she'd ordered with help of The Gamer, just to be safe. She'd also ordered a voice modulator, something she'd have to wear on her mouth under her fox mask so people wouldn't be able to tell who she was if they happened to pass by her in Gotham. once she'd made sure everything was all set, she quietly made her way out of the apartment, and began to make her way through Gotham's alleyways on foot.
The reason she was doing this, and not using her car, was because her car would've woken up Izuna and it was far too recognizable, it would be a quick way to get hunted down by Batman and arrested. That was something she couldn't allow, she was inexperienced, outnumbered, and outgunned by criminals, cops, and vigilantes alike, she would need to be very careful and very sneaky if she was to begin helping the people of Gotham. Not long after she'd set out, she got another pop-up, but this one was odd, it was another set of instructions.
Thanks to your choices, you are now able to fight crime in Gotham! You can open up your minimap to see what level recommendation certain areas have, the area around your home is considered a 'starter area' where criminals will be low enough level to not pose too much of an issue in small groups. You can also see areas under the control of the Mafia, Gangs, Triads, and Cartels.
The more you fight crime in these areas against specific criminal organizations, the more you will weaken their hold on the area, but at the same time they will fight back harder, so be very careful about how hard you start hitting these organizations. The entire city of Gotham is now a fighting zone for you, as it is overrun with crime, happy hunting!
Ryuko hummed to herself and checked the map, thinking to herself rather than talking aloud. 'The recommended level for this area is 2-7, so I should be fine for a while. Now, to go find someone that needs some help.' She wouldn't have to look too long either, a few minutes later she saw a blonde woman who'd taken a shortcut through one of Gotham's many alleys being held up by two sloppily dressed Mafia members, one armed with a knife, and one with a gun.
Ryuko turned on her voice modulator and went into her inventory, looking at the chain that she'd taken from the Joker's hideout. "Chain: This is the chain used to hold Ryuko Nakamura in place when she first got The Gamer's abilities. Nothing special, but it will never run out of chain to use, so you could bind someone or tie them up, and simply disconnect the used chain links and the chain will not shorten."
Ryuko nodded in satisfaction and slowly began creeping towards the two men through the shadows. "Ok lady, just give us everything in your purse and we won't hurt ya." "Oh, and perhaps a bit of your time of course, you know how hard it can be to find a decent lady in Gotham after all~" The woman scoffed and crossed her arms. "You two should get lost before I run out of patience." The man with a gun them jammed it against her throat, causing the woman to glare at him, with a bit of fear in her eyes. "Shut up bitch! Make another move and you'll have another hole to breathe through!"
As she got close enough to them, Ryuko used Observe on the two gangsters, wanting to see exactly who they were. 'Observe.'
Falcone Gunman
Level 6
STR - 8
DEX - 4
END - 7
WIS - 3
INT - 5
CHA - 3
LUK - 5
Falcone Grunt
Level 5
STR - 5
DEX - 3
END - 5
WIS - 4
INT - 3
CHA - 3
LUK - 5
'These guys are absolute chumps compared to Bane and Copperhead.. Time to help this lady out before these guys do something stupid.' Ryuko then made a growling noise in her throat, which sounded quite demonic when running through the voice modulator, and freaked out both the Falcone gangsters and the woman. "H-hey, who's there?! "Show yourself, or this bitch gets it!" There were a few seconds of silence, and just as the men were starting to turn back towards the woman, a chain shot out from the darkness and wrapped around their necks, before pulling them into the shadows as the single light in the alleyway turned off suddenly.
There were sounds of struggling and wheezing for a few minutes, before the alleyway became eerily silent. When the light came on however, the woman was surprised to see that she wasn't looking at Batman, but rather the two men that were hassling her, hanging by a fire escape with a chain wrapped around their necks. "Oh my god! W-what the fuck?!" Then she heard the noise of rattling metal not too far away from her, and pulled a pistol out of the waistband of her pants. "I know where you are, show yourself before I try putting a bullet in you!"
She was half expecting to get pulled into the darkness as well and killed, but she was surprised when someone actually stepped into the light so she could see them. It was a person, most likely a woman judging by their build, wearing completely black clothes and a black baggy hoodie, with a pitch black fox mask on their face with red lenses in the eyeholes. There was also a chain wrapped around her torso, the same one she'd used to kill the gangsters. "I was hoping you'd be at least a little grateful that I saved you ya know."
The blonde then sighed and put her pistol away, shaking her head. "N-no no, I'm grateful, I was just a little freaked out is all, I've never seen heroes.. Well, y'know, kill criminals." The mystery person shook her head. "I'm not a hero, just a vigilante who's just starting out. As for my methods, the Justice League are good people and all, but nothing's ever gonna change if they keep things up, criminals aren't scared for their lives, they just don't want broken bones, that's not enough incentive to stop for them."
They then turned and began walking back towards the darkness of the alleyway. "Just wait here and call the police, tell them what happened and give them your statement miss." "W-wait!" This caused the woman in black to stop immediately, and turn around towards the woman she'd saved. "My name is Sarah Brookes, you don't need to call me miss or anything, I'm only 24. I just wanted to know the name of the person that saved me is all, is that ok?"
A few moments of silence filled the alleyway, before the woman finally spoke again. "You can call me... Black Fox. I didn't think I'd be saving Gotham's favorite veteran for the first thing I did while wearing this mask, though it's certainly a good start. Once you give your statement to the police, be careful going home, no more alleyways." The next time Sarah blinked, Black Fox was gone, having disappeared into the darkness without so much as a single rattle from her chain.
/
Timeskip: 30 minutes later
/
Sarah had done exactly what Black Fox had told her and called the police once her savior had left, and had patiently waited for them to arrive. At first only one car had arrived, but now there were several, as well as a forensics team, Commissioner Gordon, and even Batman. Both the Commissioner and the Dark Knight were looking at the men who had been hung by Black Fox's chain, wondering exactly who this new vigilante was.
"So old friend, what exactly do you think about this?.. This Black Fox character swoops in out of nowhere, not a sound except for the growl that Miss Brookes mentioned, and just pulls them into the darkness. It's almost like there's a bit of inspiration from you in there." Batman just grunted quietly as he looked at the crime scene. "Perhaps, but she's killed people Jim, and that won't stand. It's our job to be better than the criminals, not stoop down to their level."
An officer then ran over to Gordon, a woman with very tan skin and brown hair. "Commissioner, we've just gotten reports of five separate muggings, the muggers were all strung up like this, stabbed, or shot, and all of them are dead." This made Gordon narrow his eyes. "Didn't Miss Brookes say something about these gangsters having a knife and gun between the two of them?.." Batman nodded and looked down at the ground in thought. "This woman must not have access to anything advanced, she's keeping it low tech and taking weapons off of criminals.. Smart, we won't be able to trace that."
The young officer then heard something from her radio. "Um, make that six, we just got another call, dead gangsters that tried mugging someone.." Gordon simply sighed and nodded in the officer's direction. "Thank you Officer Monterio, if I were you I'd go get some coffee after we're done here." The man then took out his pipe and a lighter, lighting the tobacco inside. "It seems we're all gonna have a long night ahead of us.."
Meanwhile, a few dozen blocks away, Ryuko was sitting on a roof, looking out at Gotham through the lenses in her mask. The city was beautiful in it's own way, but it could be better without the constant sight of police lights, and the occasional muzzle flash in a random alleyway. "There's no way I can just let this continue, I was given this power for a reason, so I'm gonna put it to good use, and save my home from crime.."
She then looked down at her fists and clenched them tightly, before standing up and making her way back down to the ground to continue her night. This would be a night Gotham remembered forever, the night someone finally put their foot down, and put forth effort to end crime in Gotham despite having next to nothing in terms of tech, skill, or even help. This would be the night that the fox finally bared her fangs towards the world of crime, and became something more.
A symbol of changing times.
/
Hey guys, it's Ryuko! I know, it's been forever since I did one of these end of chapter hellos, but I felt like doing it for a number of reasons. A big one would be that, for now, until I can find my spark again for my other stories, I'm gonna be focusing on this one for a while, because the idea is fresh and I've got a friend who's technically helping me, since this is actually based off of an rp we're doing, love you Nioh-chan~!
Another is that I want to put more effort into my stories, so I'm ditching my 2,000 word minimum per chapter and doubling it! Yep, 4,000 words per chapter at minimum, we actually beat that with the last chapter by almost 400, but we smashed that limit and almost hit 8,000 for this chapter! Also, there will be a lot of fighting in this story, with some fights being far worse than others, i just wanna warn you all beforehand.
I noticed that on a particularly gory chapter of Fox Sage of Konoha, someone who was previously enjoying the story completely abandoned it due to how much death was casually thrown in there, I don't want anyone to be surprised or anything, so keep this warning in mind, ok? That's all I've got for now, i hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, there'll be more on the way soon~!