Chapter 11: A little Side-Mission
Okay. Very sorry for all of you that have been dissatisfied with this story. I seem to be losing my touch a bit. I will do my best to be better for your eyes. I won't let you down.
Try to enjoy my pastime :)
The day seemed slow, evidently in the pace that the sun and the people under it are going. Except for Akihiro. His skateboard rolls on the pavement and he rushes between cars.
"From paper planes to hand grenades, I'm gonna take you out!" Akihiro sings along with the first verse of his song, "Paper Planes" by ONE OK ROCK. It was always his favorite song when he was skateboarding. The 15-year-old can always relate to it.
Akihiro turns to the left, changing lanes. He grins to himself as he slows down and rearranges the deliveries in his bag. His boss yelled at him again for being late. He always dismisses that everytime he comes into the delivery building in the morning.
"You come in late again and I'll have to cut your salary!"
He snickers at his boss's threats at his livelihood. He wouldn't care a rat's ass about that 400 yen per week. Okay, that was a lie. He wants to get his money by the week's end. But he never put money before his family.
Then, speak of the devil, his older sister, Akane Tachibana, calls his cellphone.
'Seriously? In the middle of skating?' He grinds his gears. It must be really important if she is calling in the morning.
He slows down to get behind a van. He positions himself by its headlights and out of the driver's sights. He is now on its tail and he commands his snakes to wrap themselves around the headlight.
His phone vibrates once more and with his hand on the back of the van, he takes the call with the other.
"Y'ello-" /WHERE WERE YOU?!/
The shout from his elder sister made his ears pop. He reels his phone back to his ears to listen what she has to say.
/Both of us were here but you weren't! Why?/ Akane yells on the other line, while she kneads on the morning dough. She was always the hardworking one in their house. And Akihiro… the complete opposite.
"I'm sorry, Akane. Things got so hectic lately, I just couldn't find the right time last night. But I might go there at…" He says as he kneels down to the van's rear and out of the driver's sights. He listens in on the sobbing suddenly happening in the call.
"… You okay?" He prods, starting to get worried. He hears a sniffle from the other end.
/Just come, okay? We're starting to miss you. You know how grumpy Dad can be when you're not here./ Her blonde sister pleads at the other end and it makes Akihiro's heart wrench. He always hated that, how his sister could use her pleads to get what she wants. But in this case, he can't refuse and feel annoyed.
Before answering, the van stops on a red light and he looks around, and people are looking at him. He sighs one time and speaks out to his elder sister.
"Okay. I'll clear my schedule then-"
/Great! I'll tell everyone that you're coming./ Akane interrupts her little bro, giggling on Akihiro's trustfulness. He curses at himself for falling for that trick. If he had a Quirk that can go through a call, he would strangle her right now.
"I hate you." Akihiro curses at her before the van starts up again and goes the wrong direction. His snakes let go of the van and he swerves down to the right direction, going down to Block 4A. His sister snickers, having outsmarted her little brother again.
/Oh, and while you're out, can you get some eggs? I'm aiming to make some omelet rice. Is that okay? /
"Fine. I'll see you later then. /See ya!/
He groans to himself and places his phone in his pocket. He looks inside his duffle bag and looks at the first delivery of the day. The address was set to a coffee shop, Daihaku Coffee. He's nearing the place and he leans to the right and by the street. He skids the board and hops off and walks into the shop.
'At the end of the day!' He shouts at himself to motivate, and he stomps onto the day.
While the morning went slowly for our four seekers, and especially for Alice Smith, Kimiko on the other hand, loved to go slow. In a society where everything changes quickly, she was one who leisurely takes her time in doing stuff.
As they stroll around and through the elegance of Musutafu in the day, Alice Smith and Connor Smith seem to be distressed about how they were going to find their lost friend.
Harumi, being the curious observer that she is, decides to make conversation with Alice about their investigation.
"Where could you be, Sokudo?" She mumbles to herself, looking at their picture together in America. Harumi slides in and peers at it.
Before seeing…
"OOOOHHHHH! It's the old Speedster Hero, Sokudo Satoshi! I used to see him around this district." She exclaims, seeing the picture in Alice's hands, making her jump in suddenness.
"You know him?" Harumi inquires curiously with a finger on her chin.
"Yeah. He's my friend and my teacher."
"Wait, you were taught by him?! That's so cool!" She praises Alice, and she looks at her dumbfounded that Alan, her friend, was a big hero in his day.
"Yeah. And we worked with each other for two years while he was in America." Alice explains her time with Sokudo. Harumi's eyes sparkle at the diamond-haired hero.
"You must be so lucky! He's been the people's hero around here. And to other places like Africa, France, England, etcetera." Harumi explains on Sokudo's exploits in his announcements of his travels. Alice's eyes begin to widen at the fact that he didn't share. And they begin to talk about the Speedster Hero.
"Really?" Alice asks as she walks into the crowd. And their wards shuffle behind them.
"What was he like?" Harumi's eyes sparkle at the question, and Alice's face becomes a frown as the memories washes over her like a waterfall. The good times gently seep into her mind and she remains silent as they walk.
"… He was… kind. Nice. Hard-working. He never stopped for anything. When we were in the face of danger, he spat at it. *giggle* We usually piss off the villains with our smirks and carefreeness." Alice giggles at those memories coming back, and Harumi smiles at her brightness.
A little bit of exposition, Alice and Sokudo loved to do hero work. Probably more than their own life. But Sokudo was a teacher, and she a student. Sokudo wanted to travel to every place in the world. She didn't. It broke her when her best friend left to teach more people. In the twelve years that he was gone, the student became a teacher, and she was very proud of it. If Sokudo were with her, they'd be neck deep in the hands of a mafia by now.
While the commotion seemed to be never-ending, Kimiko looks down onto her phone and looks at the reports of vigilantes prowlin' on the streets of Musutafu City. Turns out that there is a humanoid grey lizard and a boy that shoots out snakes from his arms, and oh so much more.
Connor slides beside her to look at the pictures and his eyes sparkle at them. Kimiko rolls his head at Connor, wierded out by him.
"This country is so cool! Back in our country, us heroes don't have any support from our government. We just do and they don't do anything. We basically mind our own business. They're just charged with cleaning stuff up." Connor chimes to Kimiko about their hero styles and that hooks her in.
"Wait, you still have your secret identities?" Kimiko inquires Connor, and their conversation starts.
"Oh yeah. Well we can, but it doesn't get circulated. We still want to be a secret. But you guys aren't much of a secret. You're even paid to do it! That's so cool!" Connor glints at their system, and Kimiko can only smile at that.
"Yeah. We have stricter rules though." Kimiko pans out as they come out of the crowd. Connor and Kimiko run up to their aunts.
"By the way, we're nearing the suburban district. We should eat some lunch before going on further." Harumi advises the Americans and they agree. Disregarding the praising crowd as they pass by to the Weather pro hero, Harumi Sakatoshi, the group goes to a restaurant, Calvin Kleine's.
Even though they were in their hero costumes, except for maybe Connor Smith-Sanders, they have a peaceful meal.
The food was glorious. All four had some tempura and sushi. The taste had nulled their tastebuds, and found it astounding. Connor finished eating and fiddled with his utensils and Kimiko drinks on her strawberry juice.
Connor can't quite get rid of the feeling that the woman at the bar he's been eyeing ever since they went in. She's been breaking a nervous sweat as she was drinking up some tequila. Connor can see that she was expecting someone.
The woman looks at the time on her watch and stands up, carrying her bag as she rushes out to the door. Unbeknownst to her, men follow her from behind. Connor sees this and makes a call. He turns to his aunt still eating dessert, chatting with Harumi.
"I'm just gonna find the restroom." Connor requests from Alice and she nods him off with a casual tone. Alice eyes at him, knowing that that was a sneak move. Harumi notices this and decides to motion for Kimiko.
"Kimiko, can you accompany him?" Harumi's request makes her flabbergasted.
"Ehh? Y-you mean, I should-." Her reply gets interrupted with a wink from her. She notices that that was a sneaky request, meaning that she should follow him. "Oh. Okay. Umm guard this for me then." Kimiko requests, pointing at her dessert. When the other child left, Harumi and Alice are given another topic to talk about.
"Should we accompany them?"
"No, my nephew's got those lackeys." Alice brags, and it makes Harumi gasp.
"I-I'll call the police then." Harumi says as she rummages her yellow weather coat's pockets for her phone. Alice continues to snack on her dessert and she starts to tap her forefinger on the table as she does.
The three lackeys follow the woman to an enclosed alley behind the restaurant. The woman waits in a fearful tone, her legs trembling as she holds onto the straps of her bag in front of the three lackeys expecting payment for protection.
The three men hold batons on guard of a certain vigilante with an ugly face. Connor kneels down and behind the side of a dumpster. 'This doesn't look good, but I shouldn't impose right away.' Connor considers the situation in his head and starts to observe first.
"I- I suspect that I'm still protected?" She asks with a shaky voice. The leader of their troop, Soman, just chuckles from her question.
"You kidding? The boss won't accept this, now that your boyfriend's going to jail!"
"H… He got arrested?" Her fright turned to hopelessness with news like that. She always knew that Takie would get caught. But now that it's happening, she can't express everything right.
"We'll take that money, but we'll have to kill you. No hard feelings." Soman remarks with a half-smile, and the other two guys follow his lead, turning on their Fireball and Elasticity Quirks. All the woman can do is whimper and step back.
Connor sees this as the time to go in. Then, Kimiko grabs him by the shoulder to stop him. Connor looks at her and she glares back at him.
"Don't cause a scene!" Kimiko stops him with her hand on him, and Connor stops to look at her in disbelief.
Kimiko lets go of him and sits down on her rear end. "Just get ready to get her out of the way!" Kimiko demands hushly as she hastily removes her contacts to reveal her peculiar heterochronic eyes. Connor stares at her as she scurries off to face the three thugs.
"If you don't scream, this'll be quick." Soman pleads before aiming his baton at her and the other two follow his lead.
"HEY!" Kimiko screams from the top of her lungs, attracting the three's attention. The thugs turn their heads to look at her, and Kimiko uses her Confuse Ray Quirk to keep them at bay. The three stare at her peculiar eyes and go deeper in the blue and purple colors of her eyes.
Connor peeps out to look at this boring face-off. But as Kimiko grunts consecutively, this staring contest turns into a death battle.
"Get… Her. Out of. The way." Kimiko gruntingly commands as her eyes rocket from one thug's eyes to the next. Connor notices that she can't hold on much longer. He runs to the poor woman and moves her out of the way.
Connor does not dare to look at Kimiko in the eye, clearly focusing on holding the thugs. For the thugs, they do not know what they're looking at. They don't even know what they're doing here either.
With Kimiko's eyes getting tired, she closes her eyes, blinking fast to get her contacts back. As the thugs come to, they stumble around and fall on their fronts. Soman grunts to get up again but can't for he was too nauseous to even stare at one place.
Connor sits down the woman and rushes over to get Kimiko away from the scene. She grabs her shoulders and looks at her plain eyes then she looks back at his black eyes. Then they hear groans coming from the thugs.
"We should go!" Connor demands quietly and he drags her up and behind the dumpster. Soman staggers on his knees and looks at his two companions, still not on their feet. He stares down to the ground, trying to remember what happened, how he got here.
Kimiko taps on Connor's shoulder and motions for them to leave with the woman, back to the restaurant. He nods at her before shuffling back into the restaurant with the woman still dazed.
Soman grunts on his knees looking at the ground, trying to recollect what happened just now. His companions stumble all over the place, and crash to the walls and garbage cans.
"Whaaaa…" Soman mutters as he breathes heavily. He looks down to his hands and to the baton he holds, and very tightly so. Then, he starts to remember why he was here.
He immediately stands up on his feet and looks at the two slowly standing up.
"Find. That. Woman!" Soman commands angrily at them, making their heads jerk before looking at him. The two slowly regain their memories and spread out. Soman and one lackey searches in the streets near the restaurant. One goes inside the restaurant.
Until a powerful swing of the door knocks him out cold. He falls down backward to the pavement.
Connor pops his head out to look at the unconscious grunt and quickly gets some bands to restrain him. He drags him into the restaurant and Kimiko oversees.
Kimiko, being a girl with anxiety, alerts the employees and tells them to call the police. And to keep an eye on the grunt Connor pulled in.
Akihiro knocks on the door lightly. He looks around the building and peers at the grounds around it. 'Hmm. Nice digs. If these are dormitories for students, then Yuuei must be getting big income.' Akihiro wonders as he looks at the dorm, and the dorms in line with it.
Then, the door opens up to reveal a spiky ash blonde individual, sending him an icy stare.
"Ohh Uhhhh. Katsuki Bakugo?
"That my shit?" Bakugo barks at the messenger, and Akihiro grins at the young boy, keeping composure. Bakugo grunts in annoyance, remembering a certain green-haired individual.
"Indeed, it is, young hero. I just need your signature." Akihiro chimes as he holds Bakugo's box, along with a notebook and pen.
Bakugo reaches out for the notebook and writes his name below the numerous others, along with his signature beside it.
"… You guys must be pretty rich to learn here."
"*scoff* Give me that, messenger." Bakugo hisses, dodging conversation. Akihiro plasters a small smile on his face to cover the hurt.
Akihiro gives the box to him and Bakugo places it on the ground to give payment. Akihiro glints at the 1200 yen and reaches out to grab it.
"Thanks, have a nice day, sir." Akihiro says as he grabs and goes to the exit. Bakugo looks at Akihiro one last time before being called upon by Kaminari.
"Dude, we're going to start reviewing. You need any help?"
"I don't need you to help me, shit-for-brains!"
Akihiro gets back on his board and zooms out of the school.
'Just a couple more hours before complete freedom!' Akihiro rejoices silently as he passes through the gate and back onto the street to finish the last shipments.
Couple of hours later, they were on the road again, off to Sokudo's house. Or at least, what's left of it.
The sun was preparing to dive to the horizon. For minutes, Connor can't shake off what Kimiko did. How she did. He grinds his gears on what her Gift might be, but he wouldn't push her.
"You've been staring at me a lot. Is there a problem?" Kimiko says with an icy stare and red ears. Connor staggers at that, mentally slapping himself.
"I… I was just wondering." Connor reasons, piquing her interest.
"About what?" She makes a ghost of smile on her face.
"About your… power… What can you do?" Connor asks out of curiousness, making Kimiko jerk her head back. She takes her eyes off of him and looks down as they walk. The four seekers stop in front of a red light before walking on a lane. A car passes by and the light turns to green again.
"Don't worry, tourists. We're almost there." Harumi assures with a grin still plastered on her face.
Kimiko twiddles with her eyes fixed on the road and on Connor. "M-My Quirk is called Confuse Waves." Kimiko's reply makes Connor's head spin at her, hopeful for a conversation.
"A~nd… What's that?" Connor asks, cluelessly.
"… When I look at people with my eyes, ... They become dazed." Kimiko simply explains her Quirk with a pause in her sentence.
Connor sees why those three stopped and drooled at her. "But now, you're not…"
"I wear contacts." Kimiko responded immediately.
"OOOhhhhh… That's so coo~l." Connor glints at her, making her ears red once again. And heat rises on her cheeks.
"Th-Thanks." Kimiko mumbles to Connor as they walk on the sidewalk in the suburban district.
"We should be com-." Harumi states but is interrupted by seeing Sokudo's house. 'Oh that's right~! He died in his housefire.' Harumi grinds her gears and Alice follows her line of sight and sees the broken house.
The roof seemed to have been broken, with most of it gone. The walls and floor were ashen with bits of it ready to crumble. The second floor had only the bedroom, with the room slowly breaking down to the floor. The kitchen was still intact, but with a broken cupboard and a hole in the floor, leading down to a tunnel to the subway. The entire house was leaning onto a tree growing all over the house. The entire place was police-taped.
"Wow. Whoever started the fire, he was really thorough." Harumi appreciates the firestarter's handiwork. It makes Alice groan out of frustration.
"Connor, you got something?" Alice asks as she looks back to the broken bedroom. Connor sniffs some more, sensing that someone was here. Or someones. 'Three guys. Maybe heroes. And someone else' Connor deducts as he sits on his hind legs.
Kimiko glints at the werewolf sniffing on the floor.
'C-Cute!' Kimiko silently compliments as she looks at the doggo. She always loved wolves. They thought that they were majestic, with their huffing chests as they howl. She walks over to him and looks at his mane as he looks at the ground.
Her hand goes down to it and she rubs his back. Connor feels it, and Kimiko strokes his spine. Her touch makes his shoulders sag and Connor lets it happen. 'Maybe a little bit.'
"Connor? Hey, Co-" Alice calls for him and comes to the back of the house, interrupting the scene. She sees Kimiko rubbing Connor's stomach and up to neck, saying "Who's a good boy?" repeatedly. Harumi enters the scene, dumbfounded by what she's seeing too.
Connor growls in a purr-like manner, like a. How would you say this… puppy?
Alice coughs for their attention. And they freeze, before going red from embarrassment. Alice giggles at them, becoming red all over.
The two teenagers shuffle as they stand up on their feet. Alice smirks at them for acting that way.
Connor huffs out the moment and turns back to his human form. Alice stifles her laughter before speaking to her nephew.
"So… You uhh Got something?" Alice gushes at Connor and Kimiko. Connor glares at his diamond-haired aunt. And Kimiko twiddles
"I smell three guys came here. And I… smell someone else. Very familiar… Can't put my finger on it." Connor states, and Alice suspects that someone else to be Sokudo. She can feel it. Since this is his house.
"Can you track it?" Alice inquires and Connor nods at her. Connor forms back to his Werewolf form and follows the stranger's scent.
He walks on all fours and the other three follow him to the kitchen.
His nose points to the table, then to the cupboard, and back to the door. The three back up to make way for Connor.
He sniffs his way over to the street and into the alleyway. Alice scurries beside him and looks at the footprint Connor is sniffing. Alice brings her head closer and peers at it.
Harumi looks at it behind them and furrows her brows. "Who would step like this?"
"It's him. This print is 10 inches long. It's a match with Sokudo's."
"… You must know a lot about him, do you?"
Connor looks ahead, agape by what he is seeing. The sunset shines on him, making him apparent and in the limelight. Alice looks at his face and asks, "What is it?" Connor doesn't answer.
Alice follows his line of sight and sees him. Sokudo, in his black-and-white suit. Without his helmet, Sokudo looks at Alice, and she looks back at him.
Harumi and Kimiko look at him, at long last.
"… Hi." Sokudo mutters at them and Alice walks up to him in the sunset's rays. Sokudo stays there, with his mind skyrocketing.
'Don't freak out. Don't freak out. Don't freak out.' He takes one sigh before speaking his mind.
"Alice, I-" Sokudo is interrupted by Alice's slap across his face.
"Sorry, I- I needed to make sure you were real." Alice apologizes, and Sokudo turns back to look at her.
"I know you have questions… But I can't answer them here." Sokudo states as she looks at his brown eyes and him to her golden eyes.
"… You've grown your hair!" Alice notices and touches his slender hair drawn to the back of his head. Sokudo chuckles at her kidding and smiles.
Connor Smith-Sanders looks at his aunt's friend. Harumi and Kimiko Sakatoshi stand frozen, still agape at what's happening before them.
Sokudo looks behind Alice and sees the three heroes.
"How are you, Connor?" Sokudo exclaims at him, and Connor sends a thumbs-up at him. His eyes trail to Harumi and Kimiko and his brows rise up with his smile.
"Harumi. How you doing? I see you brought your niece today.'
Harumi and Kimiko remain silent to the stranger. She's never met him before. So did Kimiko.
Sokudo smiles at the awkward tension and pats Alice on her shoulders. "Want to see how fast I can go?"
"… What?"
Sokudo carries her bridal-style and zooms out of the alleyway
And in a blink of an eye, they were gone.
"Sh… Shouldn't we follow them?"
Kimiko remains silent and is amazed by how fast their disappearance was.
"Let's go for a ride." Sokudo states behind them, making Harumi and Kimiko jump in surprise.
"Uhh No, thank you. I think we'll just waAOHHH!" Harumi exclaims as she is carried off to the warehouse Sokudo's staying in. Kimiko and Connor look at each other, with Kimiko's face showing fear.
Connor tries to reassure her with his palm pointed at her.
Then, Sokudo takes them both and zooms off back to the warehouse. In his eyes, Connor and Kimiko are floating in the air with his hands on their backs. The cars pass by at the pace of a turtle. Matter of fact, everything moved at the pace of a turtle. But not for long.
Sokudo jumps on the top of the cars and carefully jumps into the alley without hurting their heads.
Sokudo zooms through it and he stops in front of a crowd crossing the street. He feels his powers disappearing as only milliseconds pass by. He decides to push the two teenagers into the air. He speeds his way through the crowd.
He passes by heroes that he's worked with. He looks at one in particular. A woman in skimpy clothes holding groceries. It was Miss Midnight, and she was wearing her fashionable glasses as usual.
He remains silent as to keep his energy high, and he's running low on milliseconds. But she did look pretty. Though, she's always looked pretty.
He squeezes his way out of the crowd slowly stepping their way onto the sidewalk. Connor and Kimiko slowly float down above him, and he grabs them out of the air quick. Holding a tight grip on their shirts, He zooms to the end of the street and to the right.
His sight begins to go back to normal. And he can't see without the full capabilities of his Quirk: Speed.
'Better hurry!'
He sees sight of the warehouse and runs through the door. The dust mates slowly turn their pace faster and he decides to place them gently down the floor near the door. Their weight become slowly heavier and he adapts to make their landings soft.
And in a blink of an eye, Connor and Kimiko land on the floor, and Sokudo crashes down to it.
"Alan! Connor!" Alice exclaims in worry as she shuffles in front of him and Connor. Harumi runs to grab Kimiko up on her feet.
"You two alright?" Harumi asks in worry for her friend and nephew.
"… Let's not do that again." Kimiko groans as she is held up by her aunt.
"*chuckle* I'm sorry. But in these times, … I have to keep myself a secret." Sokudo chuckles before straining himself.
Alice looks around at four of them and she chuckles too.
"Looks like you have a good grasp over your plan." Alice chimes down at Sokudo, and Sokudo smiles back at her.
"*cough* This is all good and all but, what is your plan?" Connor asks after a cough, and the four seekers look to him for explanation. Sokudo glances at them all and is discombobulated.
Then, a tap on his shoulder's interrupts him. Sokudo looks at a white-haired girl with dark pink eyes. Ikari looks down on the floor, nervous about what's happened.
"Ummm… Mister Sokuu… Uhhh…"
"Well, … spit it out, girl." Sokudo snaps impatiently.
"… Sakii's gone."
2 hours earlier
"Hey, Sakii! I brought you some water!" Ikari chimes into Ryu's room with two glasses of water. Ryu clenches his fist in anger and annoyance.
Ikari places the other glass on the table and sits back on the bed with him. "What's wrong, Sakii?" Ikari asks in curiosity. Ryusake exhales strongly from frustration and ignores Ikari as he speaks out his mind.
"Sokudo's asked me to go back to school."
"What's that?" Ikari asks with her head slightly tilted at Ryu.
"… It's a place where you learn."
"Sounds boring."
Ikari's comment makes Ryu let out a little chuckle.
"You have no idea."
Ikari and Ryu sit in a bed, talking. Wait.
"YOU CAN TALK NOW!" Ikari exclaims, pointing at Ryu's mouth. Ryu shows the collar on his neck to her. She glints in amazement at it and reaches out to touch it.
She rubs on the piece and Ryu gets heated.
"Wooww~! So smooth!" She compliments as her fingers trail up to his neck, and Ryu gets flabbergasted from her smooth touch. Then, he pushes down her hand down to the blanket and glares at her. Ikari holds her hands up in defense.
"Sorry. Just checking."
"… anyway… I don't want to go to school, I said. And he says I'm not fit to be a hero yet."
Ikari furrows her brows in disbelief. "But… you are though."
"Right! And here I am, detained. Like some prisoner."
"…"
The both of them stay silent for a while, with Ikari staring at Ryu, glaring downward.
"… Well… If I were you… I wouldn't think that." Ikari speaks out her mind, piquing Ryu's interest as to why.
"When I told you about… my mom… I was telling the truth… For a long time, I was walking. And walking. And walking. At that time. I had a sick feeling in my stomach. I felt… uneasy. Like I want my walking around… But I couldn't.
So I was…"
"cursed?" Ryu slips in the word she was looking for
"Yeah. That. Even though I kept on going…
I wanted my life to end.
And then. You happened.
Seeing you saving me... makes me feel blessed somehow. That me, someone unimportant. Some stranger… was saved by someone so chivalrous… Righteous. Brave…
You were the guy that made me keep going. You…"
Ikari stops there to look at his golden eyes and to place her hands on his. Their staring grew intensely as their temperatures rise in their seats.
"You are my hero…I don't wanna lose you."
Ikari's pleading makes Ryusake feel a rollercoaster of emotions. The most prevalent ones are disgust, anger, betrayal, and some intent to hurt.
But, for this reason, he could not hurt her. Because of the people he's seen. The people he's worked with every now and then. Their beings shifted him and his sense of morality. It disturbs him deeply.
Ryu, with a cold icy glare, slowly places his hands on her shoulders and comforts her. She shudders from Ryu's rough hands, gently rubbing her. Ikari's face gets heated as the seconds go by.
"Ikari… Don't worry… I won't die… I've done this before many times." Ryu reminds her in a whisper.
Ikari scoffs lightly and holds his hand tighter. Ryu looks at her hand then back to her. Ikari moves her face closer to inspect his eyes. Ryu softens his glare to send her a questioning look as her face nears his. Their faces get dangerously close, and Ikari continues to inspect his eyes for the truth.
The sun's rays hit them softly through the window, and the room seemed completely silent as the staring went on.
"…"
"…"
After her inspection, she lays back on the bed and slumps her shoulders. "… If you say so." Ikari says as she gets off the bed and into the living room to continue watching this magic box.
She stops on her tracks beside the door and looks at Ryu once more.
"And uhh drink your water." Ikari suggests before closing the door. Ryu stares at it, and he expected more from her.
"Bye…" Ryu utters. His eyes trail to the window, seeing that it is not locked. "For now."
Back to the present
Soman and his remaining lackey run through an alleyway, with the Kamino Suburban district to their right. With the police gone, they stop on the street in front of a house. They pant on their knees and sweat out buckets.
Soman gets his cell out to call his new boss.
The cell continues to ring and it reaches out to the man. He's always liked Takie better. But circumstances arose and they lead him to Tejada Ken, but he goes by Raven.
/Hey, Soman. Is my money with you? And is she dead?/
"Not quite."
/What do you mean?/
"Well… for some reason, she's scarpered. Must have had a speedy quirk."
/Well, find her and get it. Otherwise, you won't get to have yours./ With that, the Crow ends the call.
Soman grunts as he shoves the cell back to his pocket. Unbeknownst to them, ears listen in on them both.
"So what do now?"
"… Now, we find that girl. And take the money."
Soman's lackey and him nod at each other and they walk ahead to the suburbs. The stalker sighs before taking his gloves and inserting his claws through its holes. He grabs his metal facemask and pulls it up onto his face to conceal his teeth.
Before the grunts could step out of the alley and into the empty street,
"Hey!"
Soman and Smidge, the thug with anger management issues, turn their heads around to see a gray humanoid boy with a borrowed metal respirator to hide his face.
"If you're gonna hurt somebody, hurt me!" Ryu shouts at them both, making Soman shudder in his boots. Smidge scoffs lightly at the sight he's seeing.
"This… Is the guy that took down your last boss?" Smidge mockingly bellows from his lungs. "You beat Takie? Your guy with the strengthening Quirk?" He laughs after barking at Ryu in disbelief. Ryu inches his way forward to the grunting dog with a scowl.
Soman walks backward slowly to the exit and the back of his head was met by a fist. Smidge glances backward and is then knocked out for taking his eyes off Ryu.
Ryu takes Smidge's face and throws him deeper into the alley. Smidge's back crashes down to the pavement and to a trash can. He rubs his spine and groans from the pain.
"Oy! Who hit-" Soman's demand is then interrupted by a fist to the chest. Soman rolls past Ryu, and hits Smidge, bringing them out of commission.
"You took down a mob boss, Ryu?" A brunet asks nonchalantly at Ryu. The vigilante looks up to the return of the Speedster Hero in a black and white suit (white colors on the body pads and black sleeves underneath). Sokudo Satoshi's Speed Quirk has returned at last.
The quirk surges through his body, with bolts coming out from its overflow. His eyes show no pupils, only the blue lightning that helps him see Mid-Flight.
Ryu gapes at the guy, triumphantly standing beside him.
"… This doesn't change anything." Ryu barks at him, still ungrateful for the things he's done. The two of them turn their heads back to Soman's groaning. Smidge stands up and wipes the blood off his nose.
Smidge gapes at the new guy to the scene, and finds him to be the one who's defeated multiple Nest bases around Japan. 'So this is the speedster. Then he has to die here.' Smidge pounds on his chest before screaming at them.
"*pant* C'mon, then! I'll take my vengeance for my brethren right here! For the Crow!" Smidge bellows for the biggest Yakuza
Sokudo and Ryu raise their brows to the name, finding it unfamiliar. Ryu disregards the name and dashes at Smidge. He shouts before slashing at Smidge. The thug blocks with his arms, but doesn't block his slashing.
Soman stands up from the trash, and Sokudo sees him. He speeds over to restrain him. Soman grunts before his neck is seized by Sokudo.
Smidge kicks down on Ryu's legs, making him stagger. Smidge hammer fists on Ryu's back and grabs him to throw him to the wall.
Ryu spouts blood from his mouth before Smidge gloms down on his belly, fistfully. Sokudo speeds over to punch his head, and it staggers Smidge. Ryu falls down on his rear, leaning back on the wall. He spits out more blood and looks at Soman, limping away.
He grunts back up and walks after him.
Sokudo continues to punch Smidge, with each punch increasing his speed. Multiple punches with each swing hit Smidge's chest, giving him no time to react. The last punch was done with an uppercut to his chin.
Smidge falls backward, and is knocked out cold. He strains his last breath as his fist tries to clench out his Quirk, but goes out before he could. Sokudo chuckles before he takes out some cables to restrain him.
Ryu grips on Soman's shirt and suplexes him down to the ground. Soman groans from the pain and Ryu grips the collars of his shirt and bashes him to the ground, knocking him out. He dusts off his shirt and Sokudo speeds off to restrain Soman with the thug back there.
"Little help, Ryu?" Sokudo says, turning off his Quirk for Ryu to see his brown eyes. Ryu growls internally before hoisting up Soman's legs. They tug it over to tie him with Smidge.
Ryu huffs after the carrying and Sokudo takes out more cables to tie them both up.
"I'll take care of this. And you are coming back with me."
"No! I want to stay out here! To protect people!" Ryu bellows angrily at Sokudo
"… Is this about coming back to school?" Sokudo guesses, making Ryu's scowl harder. Sokudo leans to peer at his face, seeing that he was right. "Well, you and I are gonna have a talk then." He says before speeding off with Soman and Smidge, unconscious.
Ryu huffs out of spite to the guy. He hasn't been a good father figure, for what he did four years ago. He hasn't been exactly the good caretaker before that either. He always had somewhere to go to.
He was always the chipper guy who took him out on walks. Given food, shelter, a bed, and some other stuff. He chuckles at those times. Those felt nice. But he always wanted to see his actual father. Oh where did he go?
Ikari taps her foot on the floor as she waits for her friend to come in, with her eyes peer at the door with the two new guests staring off into space. The other two heroes decided to leave Sokudo's secret alone, and moved on to other things.
"We've gotta get going. I have to send a report to the Kamino Branch Police."
Alice chuckles at the better aunt. Connor stares at Ikari, finding her very familiar. He grinds his gears to find out where he's seen her before. Ikari glances at Connor and jumps on the couch from his staring.
"You uhh got something?" Ikari asks awkwardly, and Connor is brought back to reality, and he realizes what he was doing. He shuffles back on his seat, fidgeting afterwards.
"Sorry. It's just that, I've seen you somewhere before." Connor mentions, and Ikari tries to remember. Then, her face grows red, remembering that he was the guy that caught her some days ago.
"M-my face must be generic." Ikari lies, making Connor fall for it. Though he doesn't know why her face grew red, regardless.
Then, zooming sounds burst through the door behind them. The wind blows their hair and Ikari turns her head to see Mr. Sokuu and Sakii standing there.
"Sakii!" Ikari exclaims, jumping over the couch and onto Ryu for a warm embrace. They both crash down to the floor, but Ikari constricts him tighter.
Sokudo glance down on the embrace and to the energy meter on his wrist to find it empty. "And right on time." He says before his legs go tingling. He trudges to his room to get his special syringes. Alice turns to look at him, clearly becoming worse.
His trudging turns to limping, and he leans on tables on his way to the corridor. Alice walks to his side and inserts her arm through his to support his back. Sokudo is surprised by Alice.
"Lean on me, Alan. Where to?" Alice asks, straining to carry Sokudo by the shoulders. Sokudo chuckles from this, seeing how he was always the one who was supporting Alice.
"To the room… at the end. I need. To get my meds." Sokudo says weakly, and they start walking their way to it.
Connor looks at the scene and is interrupted by a phone call. It was his mom. He starts panicking to answer it, before the woman on the other line goes to a rage fit.
"… H-Hel-"
/WHERE ARE YOU?!/ A worried middle-aged woman booms on the phone, making her son's ears explode.
"… We're in Japan right now." Connor's nervous voice makes her furious.
/GET YOUR AUNT ON THE PHONE! RIGHT NOW!/ She booms once again, and Connor shakily calls for Alice.
"A-Auntie. Mom's on the phone." Connor's shaky call makes Alice hasten.
"Just tell her I'm busy!"
/I HEARD THAT! YOU GET MY SON BACK HERE! NOW!/
Alice groans from the demand over the phone in speaker phone. "Sounds like a good mother." Sokudo snickers over that situation, making Alice groan once more.
"Get off." Ryu growls at Ikari, and she looks up at him, making kitty eyes. Ryu's glaring face says otherwise. She stands up in defeat, and Ryu stands up, dusting himself.
"Don't do that again." Ikari mumbles demandingly, and Ryu harrumphs to sit down, hiding the blush from his cheeks.
Connor starts drawing negotiation tactics to ease his mother's rage. "Mom, c-calm down. I'm fine. W-we're fine." Connor stutters as he paces around the couch. Ryu crosses his arms and Ikari looks up at Ryu, sitting upside-down beside him.
And the closet door bangs, making Connor jump. He hears muffled screaming behind it. Ryu looks at the door, ready to bang on it to stop the teen's screaming behind it.
"Y-You're keeping someone?"
"… No witnesses." Ryu reasons as Ikari rocks her feet back and forth. Connor looks back to the door and decides to let him out, but the woman on the phone interrupts him.
/CONNOR!/ His mother booms once again.
"Yeah? … No, I did not. She took me along, and I came along, obeying my aunt." Connor reasons with his mother on the phone, walking away from the door.
The teen inside huffs consecutively, and leans on the door to support his weight. 'Damn speedster!' He curses in his mind and he continues to knock the door over, with its hinges moving.
"Your nephew seems nice." Sokudo snickers as Alice sits him down on the bed. The comment makes Alice smile.
"He is." Alice says. The atmosphere in the room was cozy. But the room itself was empty, with used clothes hanging behind the door.
"Could you get the box under my bed?" Sokudo orders, and Alice hastily pulls out the box for the syringes. She takes one out and hands it to Sokudo. He aims the syringe over to his forearm and pierces it through his skin.
He injects Speed Quirk into his system and the energy meter rises as it goes through his veins.
"… that doesn't seem good." Alice peers and states Sokudo's condition. His face brightens up and his body livens up.
Sokudo glances up at Alice, very worried for him. "In the four years I was kept… they kept taking my power…
They… They used it for themselves… To make some… bioweapons." Sokudo explains how his health came to be. And for what.
He couldn't remember what it was for exactly. It started with an N or something.
"Let me help you, Alan… You look like you do." Alice advises the guy, and the room became silent. Only their breathing is heard as they converse. Sokudo grinds his teeth, thinking about the future.
"… I can't bring you along. I don't want you to get hurt." He protests as he leans on his knees.
Alice takes his face in her hands to glare at him. Sokudo drops a nervous sweat, looking at her yellow eyes directly. "I am not leaving you.
For years, I've waited for your letter. You made me wait for four years, Alan! I was worried that something had happened to you! I am not your student anymore! I am your friend!
And now, you obviously need me.
Again, I am not leaving you! Alright?" Alice insists on her stay, making him squeak from her response.
"… Okay." He says with his palm up to reassure her. Alice nods at him and feels his breathing and he feels hers. Alice realizes the situation she's in. She's holding his face, with her hands. Very closely to hers. She backs away to back Connor up, hiding the blush on her face.
She stops by the door to glare at Sokudo once more. "I expect you to explain the situation you're in. Clearly and completely." Alice scolds maturely at Sokudo, making him shudder on the bed.
He gulps his fear before saying, "Y-Yes, ma'am."
"Good." Alice replies.
"Good." Sokudo replies back. Alice tugs a smile on her face before closing the door. Sokudo is left with himself. He huffs out like a child before taking his long sleeves out to go along with jogging pants.
"Hey, sis. How's it going?... Don't worry. Connor's under my protection… We have a place to stay the night, don't worry."
/You are so despicable! I am coming over there! And I'll be taking Connor home! Today!/
"I understand. He'll be ready by then."
/He'd better be! Otherwise, there'll be hell to pay!/
With that, Sophie Smith-Sanders ends the call. Alice curses herself and at the situation she's in. Ryu, Ikari and Connor all sit on a couch, waiting for Sokudo. Ikari nibbles on the tips of her white hair in boredom.
Connor fidgets on his seat, and feels afraid as Alice sits beside him. "Well? What'd they say?"
"… Ummm… They're coming here."
The sunset is touching the horizon and the veil of night closes in. Outside of an old house, she stands on the porch watching the sun sink to oblivion, waiting for the youngest in the family. Then, the second youngest than her comes out to wait with her.
"… The yakisoba's ready. The only thing missing is Akihiro. Where could he be." Amano optimistically states, as Akane's dirty blonde hair flows with the wind.
And then, they both hear scrapes. "… What's that?" Amano asks out of the blue in light of the sound, coming closer and closer.
Then, Akihiro segues and shouts, "I'm here!" before he rockets past the entrance and to the wall he always crashes into. Akane and Amano run out to the street to help him out.
Akihiro groans as he hoists himself up to save the eggs he brought. "*grunt* I… Sorry I'm late." Akihiro apologizes as he rubs the pain on his back. "Here are the e-" Akihiro says before he is interrupted by Akane's embrace.
"What took you so long?!" She sniffles on Akihiro's shoulder and Akihiro is touched that her brother and sister would wait for him. Since they got separate homes, they kind of distanced themselves for work. Oh how it broke her and her parents' hearts.
"Seems like you're staying over for tonight." Amano scopes their embrace and Akihiro's face is filled with surprise.
"Nonononono! I am needed elsewhere!" Akihiro says as he wags his finger at him while Akane backs away from him to smile at the offer.
"Yes! You must! We have rolled up beds for me and Amano to sleep in! Mom and Dad are gonna love this!" Akane cheers, dragging him to the door.
Akihiro takes the defeat
The day was coming to a close, and with the Tartarus Prison closing up for the oncoming wall of night, police make sure that everyone is accounted for.
Stain, the Hero-Killer.
The young villain Mustard.
The small fry Takie Shinada.
The two infamous Brothers Grimm of Musutafu, Kasai and Nasai Fujimara.
The convicted Moonfish.
The fabulous yakuza boss, Chisaki Kai.
Their most important piece, All for One.
And their newest addition. Stele. AKA, Kamiya Junzo.
With metal boxes around his hands, he can't use his Quirk. Even more so with the daily surveillance around him. He steps closer to his jail cell with chains clinging to his feet and head, keeping him in line. The guards keeping things in line from the camera peer on the grinning man as he walks the hallway.
"Gahh this guy's so slow! I want to take my break already!" The officer complains, missing Stele's grin. Stain sees him passing his cell, and he notices the widening grin on his face, only becoming wider as his steps come closer and closer to his cell.
The bars open up and let Stele in for the night. He giggles to himself crazily. For he knows what's to come. 'This'll be fun to watch.'
Outside of the facility, Takumi Oshido uses his Quirk to scope the place. With the help of some X-ray Goggles. He places his sniper rifle on his back and reloads his Shotgun Bracers and walks back to Peter and the rest of the group.
Kabe, with a new set of Dragon Armor and a demon mask to conceal his identity.
Piko Takeo, A young midnight blue-haired woman, grinning excitedly at the prison.
A broad-shouldered baldy, mouthless.
Kazuma Yo, A hooded assassin, with hooks on his forearms.
And Peter, a retired Knight in his old white body pads and his Sword of Visions. He chuckles softly as he remembers all the pranks he has done to his opponents with it in the past.
"He's in there. Are we still going?" Takumi asks with coarseness in his voice, eager to leave.
"Of course. We're not leaving anyone behind. Right?" Peter reminds everyone of the mission. Kabe sees all this, and his face is still emotionless. He has to keep his cool for his Quirk to work. Peter smiles proudly on his little Pincer Squad.
"Well, then. What are we waiting for?" The bluenette turns into a ball of electricity and zips her way to the terrace behind Takumi and Peter. She peers at the prison, with her hand above her eyes. "Let's get this amazing guy you keep talking about, Pete!"
Peter smiles at the new addition in front of him.
And so, Operation Freedom-and-then-Some begins!
Hoof! That is a lot of pages! This is a long document to print out. I'm becoming very tired, but I shall go on, even if it ends me!
Thank you again to the people who have followed and favorited this story. You guys still make me keep going.
With school almost coming to its second climax, and my WiFi becoming limited, I might post new chapters a little late. So sorry if I seem to be slowing down to you. But I'll try to keep my chapters lengthy and easy to read.
No promises though. I just try.
Anyone noticing my references? Leave a review on how you like my stories. If you want. By the way~. Anyway, it's really late in the night. So I will be dipping out now. Leave what you think about it in reviews and such. BYBYE.