Chapter 13: His Story – Part One
This might be a bit hard to follow, but I managed to make it at least a bit understandable. I'm sorry for being this late, but it's almost to the arc's climax, with Peter being – SPOILERS. Read and Review to let me know what'chu think.
The warehouse seemed to be moving a lot tonight. Sokudo walks around the house, trying to get his files together. Alice Smith, along with her stepson, Ryusake Tahashi and Ikari all stare at him in his brown robe, tied up in a knot.
"Hey Ryu? Get the kid in the closet over there. Thanks." Sokudo requests as he peers into the files he's been gathering up for the past twelve years in the criminal underworld.
Ryu opens the door and a taped-up body crashes down to the floor. The boy's muffled snoring turns to muffles of waking moans, waking from the fall. His eyes open up to look at the floor, unmotivated to even move.
'Oh. Right. I've been captured…' The boy, Ichida Ipperi, thinks to himself. As his face feels the pain on his cheek, his brows furrow as he gains self-awareness as to where he is. His mind begins to come to, and his eyes become wide-eyed in an instant in realization that, "Wait! HOW LONG HAVE I BEEN HERE?" Ichida bellows, with urgency in his voice.
Sokudo ponders on how long he has. "Mmmm… must be about two nights from now." Sokudo's answer only makes Ichida groan. "Listen… I have somewhere to be, so, can't we just… forget about this night and call it?"
Sokudo and the rest of the group look at him with a brow raised to their forehead, only thinking about weird thoughts about the brunet in bonds. Then, he glances at the four children in the room.
Sokudo looks at the "What I am about to tell to all of you must be kept a secret."
"Oohh Storytime!" Ikari chirps as she crashes down to the couch. The other six went and sat down to listen to his story. Alice looks at her mentor and friend intently, ready to listen and so does Harumi Sakatoshi with her niece beside her.
Connor Smith-Sanders, Ryusake Tahashi sit beside the hostage, relatively eager to listen. One looking directly at him and the other's eyes drifting off to the door.
Sokudo exhales before going down memory lane.
Flashback – Eleven years ago
In a plane headed to Hokkaido, Satoshi Sokudo looks out into the window and his half-lidded brown eyes land onto the clouds. He gazes at them with a smile on his face as the sun rises. Its rays land lightly on his face, without a tinge of a sting.
His eyes drift over to the plane he's inside of and looks around with half-lidded eyes. His mouth opens for a yawn and he does so. He smacks his lips and scratches the bags under his eyes. Then, he sneers a prickly thing, weighing down sharply on his chest. He reaches down to it and takes it out and is hit with the nostalgia.
It was the yellow diamond necklace that his best friend and student, Alice Smith, had given to her. His face tugs for a small smile. He huffs out as he takes the necklace back inside his shirt and turns back to look around.
"Nice diamond." Sokudo's neighbor compliments after glancing on his necklace. Sokudo rolls his eyes to the brunette beside him. She wears a regular collared striped jacket on top of a regular shirt, with initials of her favorite band. She wears skinny jeans that reached just above her shoes.
"Oh. Thanks." Sokudo takes the compliment, making the brunette tug a small smile on her face.
"… I'm sorry. I uhh see that you're the Speedster Hero. I watched you on TV while I was overseas." She says, facing towards her favorite hero. Sokudo faces toward her, with his interest piqued. "What's your name again?" She asks with a bubbly voice, extending a pointer finger at him.
"Sokudo Satoshi." He says as he extends a hand, to introduce himself. The fanatic woman looks down at it and quickly grabs it, and hard.
"Harumi Sakatoshi." She says with a grin on her face, grasping his hand between her two hands. Sokudo smiles at her, with what, having a fan notice you in an airport. And not in a paparazzi sort of way. Her noticing was a nice change of pace, with him being very famous in key places of Asia and America, especially in Chicago.
"… Well, now we ain't strangers no more." Sokudo says with an animated grin. At least with what he can muster. It was early in the morning, and 18 hours of cramping made his back cramp the whole way. All he can do was smile, referencing to Robert Zemeckis' Forrest Gump.
Harumi giggles at him, imitating the voice he's referencing. "You're funny."
"Yeah, I hear that a lot."
Harumi tries to rack her brain for things to talk about. She was talking with her idol, of course she wants to hold a conversation with him.
She fidgets her fingers and pats them on her legs, trying to think of something to talk about. "Is this your first time in Hokkaido, Mr. Satoshi?"
The question makes his lip scrunch to the side as he ponders. "… Mmm not exactly, but I plan to stay there longer than just on a mission." The response makes Harumi raise her brows in surprise and dismisses it just as quickly. He is a pro hero, after all.
Sokudo's eyes drift over to the window and looks down, only to see a city below coming out of the cover. He nervously exhales out of his concerning face, really concerned for the people who live in Hokkaido. He's only heard rumors and reports of villain groups being too inconspicuous, the police can't handle their power.
Three months ago, there were stories of an insurgent group, calling themselves the Murders of Crows. They only showed up after the big fight with All for One, in a very similar way. An entire district in ruins, scarring hundreds of families and friendships. Simply, the insurgents must be stopped.
"Well~! This is where we part ways, miss!" Sokudo proclaims, making Harumi glance back at him, extending his hand to shake hers. The gesture makes Harumi earn a tint of red in her cheeks. She reaches out to grab his hand and shake on it.
"Good luck on your errands, Harumi."
"You too, Sokudo." Their starings reach deep into each other's eyes. Harumi notices the brown shades in them and almost mistakes them for black. 'He has the prettiest eyes.'
Simultaneously, they both let go of their tiring arms and walk away in opposite directions. Harumi looks back at him and hurries her pace, due to the adrenaline that ensues within her from meeting her idol.
A silly grin forms on her face as her heart skyrockets, pumping blood in all directions. 'He has gorgeous eyes!' Her thoughts mutter as she walks away so fleetly.
"Wait... You met Harumi?" Alice asks with shock patterned on her face. Sokudo raises a brow on his face, dumbfounded by her flustered expression. Harumi, on the other hand, remembers that time he met him. Her idol. And…
'I can't believe I forgot him! And he was this mysterious!' She curses at himself as she shoves her hands into her pockets. Connor and Kimiko look at their aunts then glance at each other, feeling relatable to each other's situation. Like, 'Aunts. Am I right?'
"Yeah. Keep listening because we're getting to the clincher." Sokudo shushes, assuring the four listening. Ichida, despite being a hostage, he feels really invested into the hero's story.
9 years ago
A thief jumps down into a sewer, with light escaping into it. He grunts at the landing, not waiting for his friend to catch up.
The second thief tags along and lands down into the sewer, panting. He looks back up to see the Speedster Hero, landing hammer fists down, knocking him unconscious.
The first thief hears the punch behind him and shrugs it off, not daring to face the pro hero behind him.
Sokudo turns on his thermal sensors in his mask to see where the thief went. His eyes drift down to see footprints, highlighted, going ahead then left. He then looks down to the dozing thief and checks him to see if he ingested any drug.
He checks his mouth and sees a black tongue, then to his pupils, their pupils dilated to the lids of his eyes. He then rummages the pockets of his jacket, revealing a sacket of white powder, sprinkled with green pebbles.
'Man! There are lots of Trigger drugs! I thought they'd be gone by now.' He thinks as he writes this up in his notepad and shoves it back into his belt and runs after the other thief.
He pants and from running left and right, hoping to lose his chaser. He opens a cage door and makes haste. He comes out and into a secluded room, walls overlayed with pipes, bricks turning to a mossy texture with slime flowing from their creases.
In the middle, stand a group of mercenaries, weapons drawn and Quirks aimed to the thief barging in.
"*pant* I... I got the stuff!" He barks with pants, throwing up the bag he was carrying. It lands in front of a man in a white suit. His hair is drawn back, though other people wouldn't consider his hair as... well. hair.
It is more like white feathers, pointed to the back of his head, forming a rocking sort of vibe. His nose is like a crow's, long and business-savvy.
He walks up to it and picks it up. With a blank face, he opens it up and inspects it. He sees a syringe, a blinking device, and a serum inside a bottle. It glows a gentle green and hits into his eyes, making the Crow grin and smile at it.
The three mercs in hoods and pads and ponchos watch their boss as he zips the bag back up and hands it over to one of them.
"Mordecai!" He calls with a barking throat, and a man with a crow's doctor mask wearing a poncho comes forward.
"Get this over to one of our ducks in Musutafu City. Get them to make what I want." He orders with an open palm and a crooked grin. He wears a poncho draping over his body with his black feathers, ruffling under his sonder hat.
At the side of his blank face lay a drooping feather, with pins and rink-a-dinks of his past. Under the mask, his blank face looks downward and he bows, obeying his command.
A yellow glow shines out of his mask's eyes, summoning a yellow portal behind him, showing the inside of a chemical lab of Steam Industries, making a scientist very startled.
The white-suited mob boss and his timid servants step over the portal and into the facility. Their presence sets the scientist shaking on the docile threat upon his life. The Crow grimaces down at the scientist in cuffs from the other side of the yellow portal.
"Well, Hakuu… Get to work." He orders throwing blueprints of a device, with meticulous detail. The blueprints land on the floor, startling the scientist.
Back on the other side, a speedster stops in front of the tunnel leading to the room they were in. Sokudo Satoshi looks down and through the portal and sees the alleged culprit, and he notices that the white-feather haired mob boss was is holding the stolen bag.
"Hey!" Sokudo shouts before he speeds down to the portal. Right before he can get through, Mordecai closes the portal, and it blinks away. Sokudo crashes on his chest and onto a puddle. He pushes down to the ground and pounds down on it, almost getting them.
"Damnit!" He curses at himself, getting up quickly to call the authorities. He takes out his cell phone and speed-dials the Hokkaido's police commissioner. The phone sounds in pixels as it connects to the phone.
/Hello?/
"Hey, Officer Malloyu… I saw your alleged culprits for the crater… But I only have facial confirmation."
"Soooo you found the Murders of Crows and their leader. Then what?" Alice asks crossing her feet and dangling her feet. Harumi taps her feet onto the floor, eager to listen to the story. Her niece, Kimiko, sips on a glass of water. As she listens on to the story in silence. Connor's hand drifts over to the picture he drew. In a drawing from pencil, there was a very accurate and clean figure, fitting the description of the Crow mob boss he's told.
Kimiko, however, was looking at Ryusake. To her, she peers at the grey-scaled teen, lounging on the couch. From her seat, of course. She tugs at her aunt, pointing her to Ryusake. Harumi, seeing her pointing, holds an open palm at her, saying "Later." Kimiko pouts as she takes another sip.
Then, Kimiko notices Ryusake's staring at her. His yellow eyes sending an icy stare her way. She adverts her eyes to the ceiling, in hopes that she won't confront him. He was a vigilante that took down two yakuza groups after all.
Ryusake's throat becomes parched as he stares at Kimiko's glass. He stands up abruptly, making Kimiko hold her breath. Ryu huffs before walking past beside her to get some water. "Where are you going?"
"Water." Ryu grumbles, not stopping. Sokudo shrugs it off
Kimiko sighs in relief, having dodged a bullet. Harumi notices relief of his passing, and she chuckles only a bit.
"Alright. Since then, the Murders of Crows have been latching onto major companies in Japan, mainly Steam Industries… Then, six months later, same year… I've found more and more drug users as the days go by. These drug users were really hard to jail.
…
… Then, Ryu's mom called."
Kira Tahashi. The light of Ryu's life. Sokudo's first love. Hearing her name makes Ryusake stagger, entering at the right time. He grips onto the glass of water, slightly shaking from the emotions he's feeling.
"… She… She called you?" Ryu asks with a shaky voice. Sokudo looks at the troubling teen, and tries to give it to him slowly.
"… Yeah. She's the reason why I came into your life, Ryu." Sokudo solemnly affirms, making him silent in his footing.
"This just gets interesting and interesting." Harumi whispers to her niece and she whispers back.
"More like stranger and stranger." Kimiko ridicules the author's story on paper. (I don't feel like this is wierd. Thanks a lot, man!)
9 years ago
Sokudo has a habit of running. He always wanted to be fast. When his Quirk came, it was all he wanted to do. This time, however, he thinks of all the things that's been happening for the past two months. Ut's been a nightmare for him, and the holes just keep getting deeper.
He turns left to the center of the city. Whilst speeding around, Sokudo thinks about what his old master heeded him.
'Expect for the worst. A lot of shit will head your way, kid… Why would he say that?'
He suddenly halts to a skidding stop just beside the pedestrian lanes, making people notice and point at him as they pass by. Sokudo saunters to a pole and lets the walkers pass.
He looks down to the cement and tries to stop the noise rumbling in his head.
'Okay. Let's recap. My crush just called me two days ago to come back home, there is this yakuza group I'll be finding, my old master just called out of nowhere saying that I have something of a bad future AND I am babysitting her child... Somanythingsarehappening!' His thoughts are practically fizzing out of his own mind as he grabs his head tightly out of madness.
Then, he feels something vibrating in his pocket. He checks his phone to see who it was. It's an unknown caller. He looks around and sees that he is exposed right now. He speeds to an alleyway and takes the call.
"Hello?"
/Hello there. I take it that you are the Speedster Hero?/
"Who is this?" Sokudo asks as he looks left and right of the alleyway
/My name is Yuri Tsukauchi. I am a detective from the Hokkaido Central Police Station./
"Ahh. Just the man I want to see. I'll answer all your questions but I prefer it to be in person. Do you have a preferable date?"
"Problem solved!" Sokudo checks one problem off his list, and that was to clean up the yakuza. Well, not alone, at least. The Hokkaido Police will be sweeping up after the mess. And they've got a lot to clean up after.
However, unbeknownst to him, in Hokkaido, a small troupe has been sent to make sure that that doesn't happen.
"I was stupid," Sokudo curses at himself as he looks at Peter's picture. You should've known he'd be there, he shouts at himself. He sighs inward as he remembers what happened next. ", I uhh… read some reports that Peter and his little squad decimated Hokkaido three days after my call." The frustration could be heard from the tone of his voice.
Alice and the other five went silent.
"Bottom line… They went and took over Hokkaido while I was here in Musutafu. For three weeks, they've squandered about in there." Sokudo says as he tells the story on. "But I wasn't going to just let them be, was I?"
Sokudo sprints across the cement and train tracks, trailing electricity that surges within him. "Gotta get there, gotta get there!" Sokudo says to himself as he passes by buildings, rice paddies, mountains and passersby.
His eyes filled with determination and initiative, only looking forward. Then, he skids to a halt in front of Hokkaido's edge, just seeing trailing smoke everywhere in the city with screams audible enough to hear.
"… Time to nut up or shut up." Sokudo hoists himself forward as he walks along the path to the City of Anarchy.