A/N: Finally—this chapter took forever to write. I planned to update weeks ago, but I already left for vacation before I can start of the chapter. I kept on changing the scenarios because I wasn't sure how to write the whole scene out lol

Thank you guys so much for waiting and thank you for your support!

Oh! I also changed the time start for the recon. Cuz who starts at 4 pm? lmao

Kiyohunter: thank you so much! And yeah, I do get that a lot lol! I try to keep it in past tense, but sometimes it confuses me if I should use present tense if that thing is still occurring in the story lolol, I'll try to fix them! ;)thank you for the feedback!

7: thank you for the reviews!

Guest 1: I do! It's Will of WIsteria.

Pagefield Excel: I plan for that to be covered in the future! So please look forward to that arc as well :DD

MetalQueen: he definitely would! He would need a lot more notebook to sketch all those keyblades

Guest 2: it will all be revealed soon! And I have something special planned for the Final Exam wink wink

Engenieer4Ever: I do want to put in some abilities! But I'll try to keep it spoiler free lol and that will be covered in another arc

HoneyPeachMilkTea: thank you for waiting! They would be quite shocked to know she and a few other teens had been through a war

SwanGirl24: Thank you!

Lulu9814: Thank you! I hope you're excited for this chapter too!

The Mail Carrier Mixael: sorry to keep you waiting lol! Thank you!

SnowAssassin217: Thank you! And lololol, I do too after that Valentine comic I drew, I didn't intend for it, but I guess I'll just go with the flow lol. And that's true about the whole explanation, cuz Hikari's gonna need Ansem and Ienzo to help her explain lmao.

ApatheticGamer: thank you! They would even be more curious/suspicious of her in the future chapters! It's not Nighteye she should be careful of lolol. It's Hawks

Guest 3: I'm back! And Nighteye does respect All Might's wishes.

TheIrishWriter: thank you! I try to follow some scenes, but that would just be a little boring since you all know what happens in the manga/anime.

Edragom46: Yup! Please look forward to the Final Exam arc! It would be a surprise lol

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Kiri Kaitou Clover: Thank you! I hope you ejoy this chapter too!

Chapter 15
Darkness Rising

-2 days ago, Hawks Hero Office-

Stain was in alliance with the League.

"Should we cancel tomorrow's meeting with Detective Tsukauchi?" Westwood asked.

Hawks hummed. "We're still not sure—"

Almost as if it was on cue, his cellphone rang. He took his phone from the table, lifting his visor up to look at the contact's id.

He whistled. Just the person he wanted to talk to.

"Hey~, Eraserhead! How are you doing?" Hawks greeted. His voice laced with a carefree tone. With all the things that happened in Hosu City, it was a surprise to hear from Aizawa so soon. He could hear all the noise from the background. A hospital, he assumed. "I heard from Tokoyami and Leonhart that their classmates are involved. Are your students okay?" He asked.

It wasn't just for formalities. He was genuinely concern.

Aizawa exhaled loudly. "They should be fine..."

"That's a relief!" Hawks said as he walked around the room, pacing back and forth. The pro hero has some questions for Aizawa concerning his two interns, but he was certain their teacher also has something to say. Otherwise it would be him to make the first call. "But anyways, why did you call me for? I also wanted to ask you something important, but you go on ahead first." He continued, stopping right beside his desk.

"You already heard the news. About Stain working for the League?" Aizawa jumped straight into the matter. Though Stain never gave a clear statement to the police, he was certain the villain mentioned the League before they were interrupted.

Hawks hummed. "Yeah, I heard, but he's going straight to Tartarus, so that's that." He leaned against his desk, placing his visor away. Of course, with Stain going to Tartarus, that doesn't mean Hikari's out of the danger zone yet. "It's about the League, isn't it? Don't worry, Eraserhead! Both of them are in good hands. You can trust this pro." He said, trying to reassure the kids' homeroom teacher.

"Says the one who let my student go on her own and got herself injured."

Hawks inhaled sharply, acting as if he has been stabbed with the words. "Oh, ouch—don't remind me of that. I admit, that was my mistake. I would never ever leave them alone intentionally." He laughed, trying to brush the insult off.

Aizawa pinched the bridge of his nose. When U.A. was informed of the incident involving his student injected by an unknown drug, he was pissed to know the number 3 hero didn't do a very good job to protect his students. He couldn't really blame it all on him, he heard the full story that it was also Leonhart's fault for acting on her own when Hawks told her to stay back. He knew he should trust the number 3 hero's abilities to protect his two students.

"Do your job right."

"Aye, aye~" Hawks replied in a sing-song voice. He cleared his throat when Aizawa didn't seem to have anything more to discuss with him. "Now that's out of the way, I need to ask you something. This involves to the previous case about the Trigger villain."

The man on the other line stayed quiet. Hawks took it as his cue to continue the conversation.

"We couldn't get a lot out of the villain, but turns out that drug was supposed to halt one's use of their quirk for a period of time." Hawks informed. He was there throughout the first interrogation and received the full report on the second one on the next day. He took a few papers from his desk, his eyes scanning over the copy of the documents he had sent to the hero commission. "You're an underground hero. Think you can do me a favor and look around what's going on under there?"

The Erasure Hero grunted in reply. "...fine."

Hawks snapped his fingers a few times. "Ah yeah! I also want to tell you that Tokoyami and Leonhart are coming along with me for a mission. I'll give you further details about it tomorrow." he placed the papers down and glanced over to Westwood who was waiting for a confirmation.

"A mission? As long as it doesn't violate the regulations—" Aizawa raised an eyebrow.

"It's a recon at Gunkanjima Island. We found rumors about the drugs being traded there." Hawks added before Aizawa could even finish. With his wide range of intel, it wasn't a surprise that he could gather information under two days. It also wasn't a surprise when the Hero Commission gave him their approval for the kids to use their quirks in this mission. "We sent an email concerning the matter to the school. I think you should be informed about it by tomorrow morning or so."

There was a moment of silence between the pro heroes.

Aizawa took a deep breath, trying to stop himself from yelling at the birdman. "You're telling me, you're taking first years to do a recon that has a high risk of combat?"

Hawks hummed. "Yeah." He answered simply. "I got the permission from the Commission. Just thought I should give you a heads up."

"Give me one good reason to allow you to take them."

"They're my interns. They go wherever I go." The red-winged hero said. "I didn't want to accept it, but... they got me wrapped around their finger."

It wasn't clear on who 'they' are, but Aizawa knows who Hawks was mentioning. The Hero Commission has their eyes on a new hero prodigy—namely Leonhart Hikari, who has the ability to heal and a few other abilities that could be categorized as individual quirks. Tokoyami on the other hand placed top three in the Sports Festival, enough to put him in the spotlight.

Since Hikari was already in the hero course, the Hero Committee weren't that persistent to push her to become a hero.

But that doesn't mean they wouldn't keep their eyes on her progress.

This mission was like an observation.

There was a deep sigh. "Alright... I expect a full report about the mission and your responsibility."

"Mark my words, they're in capable hands."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

— present day, Nagasaki, 7 am—

Hikari yawned loudly, covering her mouth with her hand.

When Hawks said early, he really meant early. There was a morning call for her and Tokoyami at five in the morning. They gathered around at the police station around six before they depart for Nagasaki Port. To be honest, she wasn't really a morning person. Togata and Tokoyami were wide-awake, along with everyone in the team. The only one who looked sleepy and dead-tired was her.

"What's the matter, Hikari? You look so tired!" Togata asked the brunette who was sitting on the dock. While everyone was busy preparing for the boat ride, she was told to stay back and rest when they noticed her dozing off once in a while. "You should always start the morning with a big smile! Like this~!" he pointed his fingers to the corners of his lips, a bright smile on his face.

"Y—Yeah," The corners' of Hikari's lips twitched up to a forced smile, trying to make her senior happy.

"Did you not get enough sleep?" Tokoyami asked as he approached the two. The one who was most excited to visit the battleship island was Hikari. She mentioned that it would be like an adventure and she looks forward to the mission.

Hikari blew a raspberry, "Psssh! Of course, I did. I'm just not a morning person." She gave a short laugh, admitting it.

From what little time she has, she searched all the information (basically reading the Knowpedia) she could get on the island. Located 20 km from Nagasaki port, it used to serve as a coal mine and there were even people living on the island—a small town. It was then closed down for some unknown reason and all residents have to leave, abandoning the island. Over the years, the facilities began to deteriorate making it dangerous for anyone to visit. It was recently open again for tourist because of the newly constructed dock, but it was then closed down because of last year's typhoon—just like what Tsukauchi said.

A lot of pictures of the island showed up when she searched for it, a haunting and eerie vibe seemed to radiate from the photos. The Haunted Mansion in Twilight Town was nothing compared to this abandoned battleship island.

"Hey, we're ready to leave. All aboard!" Hawks called from the boat and the three interns quickly made their way towards the boat. It wasn't big like a ferry, but enough to transport all of them to the battleship island. He waited for all three of the interns to board the boat before going inside himself. "I hope neither of you kids have seasickness." He joked, his hands inside his pockets as he made his way to an empty seat.

"Nope!" Togata answered cheerfully and Tokoyami shook his head. "We're good!"

Hikari puffed her chest out proudly, a fist placed on her heart. "I was born and raised in an island! I don't even know the word seasick." She grinned smugly. She loved the beach and the sea, especially doing activities such as swimming as a mermaid in Atlantica.

Hawks whistled. "Look who's finally awake!" He joked, pointing finger-guns at her. Truth be told, he himself didn't get a good rest, but he won't show that. With all of the things he has to take care of, he doubts he could get enough sleep for the next few days. Even though it was a direct order from the Hero Commission, U.A demands for him to take responsibility of their students' safety. He doesn't need anyone to tell him to do his job, he will protect his interns—no questions asked. "Good to see you up! We have a long day ahead of us!"

"I can tell..." Hikari laughed nervously, taking a seat beside Tokoyami. She looked around, finding all of the team members already on board. Nighteye sat beside Tsukauchi along with his team while the three of them sat on the opposite. There were also two more people on board, the helmsman and his helper. A total of 11 people on board, including herself.

The previous day, when they arrived at Nagasaki, they immediately went over to the police station to discuss the plan with the special team. Since Tokoyami and Hikari haven't got their license yet, they received a special briefing from the Chief police himself. Their role was to assist the special team and follow the pros' instruction. They weren't allowed to act by themselves and fighting was prohibited—except if either of the pros allow them to.

About the mission itself, it was pretty clear. They were to investigate a few buildings they suspect the villains have used for the trade.

They weren't allowed to tell anyone of their mission. While Hikari always tell Ienzo about what they're doing, this time she didn't tell him a single word. She didn't tell Sora or anyone either. She planned to keep it a secret until the mission was over—to respect the pros' wishes and rules.

"We'll arrive in about fifteen minutes." the helmsman announced, glancing over his shoulder to look at the team.

Just 15 more minutes until the mission begin.

"Do tell if there's something bothering you." Nighteye spoke, noticing the spaced out look across the brunette's face. The girl has been staring at the floor with a dazed look. Perhaps she hasn't been fully awake yet, but perhaps she was nervous dealing with her first recon.

"Ah, yeah..."

"You two look tense! Loosen up a little! This is just a recon." One of the police officers, Tanaka Hideki, joked after noticing both Tokoyami and Hikari having serious looks across their face. Truth be told, Tokoyami always looked serious while Hikari was just spacing off. "I heard you guys faced villains before, this mission should be a piece of cake for you guys!" he continued.

Nakamura Kenta gave a nod. "Not to mention the Sports Festival. I think the both of you did well."

"Just believe in yourself." Kobayashi Mao smiled.

Togata nodded his head in agreement, joining on the team to reassure the newbies. "Yeah! Don't worry guys! I'll help you through anything! Just leave it to your senpai!" he gave a wide grin, his eyes crinkling.

Tokoyami bowed his head. "I thank you for your generosity."

At first, Hikari thought the team's dynamics were a little off with their quirks and personality, but she learned that they all have great teamwork.

"Thank you. You're all too kind." Hikari placed her hand over her heart, wiping the invincible tear away.

There was a teasing grin across Tanaka's face. "Oh yeah, try not to get caught by the Shadows." he joked, to which both Kobayashi and Nakamura smiled, nodding their heads in agreement.

"Shadows?" Hikari parroted, pulling a face. Shadows? It sounded like the Shadow type Heartless, but she doubts there are any Heartless in the City of Heroes.

Tsukauchi blinked before realizing what they were talking about. "Ah! You're talking about the ghosts that haunt the island, right?"

Tokoyami hummed, showing interest in the conversation. "Is that so?"

Hikari gulped, turning to look at the man sharply. "Ghosts?! The island is haunted?!" she knows she shouldn't be afraid of ghosts and ghouls anymore, but she can't seem to handle horror stories. She visited Halloween Town quite a lot and the residents of Halloween Town were civil and nice—minus the three troublemakers, of course.

Togata placed his hand on the brunette's shoulder. "I didn't know you're afraid of ghosts, Hikari!" he laughed a little, giving a reassuring pat.

"I'm not! Honest!" Hikari tried to reassure.

Hawks snorted, sniggering behind his hand. "Doesn't seem like it."

The brunette turned to look at her mentor with a glare. He brushed it off with an amused laugh, his arms crossed over his chest.

Tanaka cleared his throat, lowering his voice to sound spooky. "Black like ink and eyes yellow like the Harvest Moon. It disappears into the shadow as if it was never there in the first place."

"Eh?"

What?

"Some say if you get your heart taken, you'll turn into one of the ghosts that haunt the island—looking for humans who still have hearts."

The brunette dropped her shoulders. Her fear of horror stories was gone and were replaced with a feeling of dread. Her eyes were wide as her whole body stiffened.

"Leonhart?" Tokoyami turned to look at the girl sitting beside him, curious at the sudden change. Just a second ago, she was shaking in fear because of a ghost story. Now, even though she looked surprised, there was no trace of fear in her eyes.

It was impossible.

The ghost Tanaka just described, it was a Heartless, she has no doubt.

She placed her hand over her mouth, eyebrows knitted in deep thought.

Why were there Heartless when the City of Heroes was never connected?

Was it connected? Or was it not? If it was, the world would've been swarming with Heartless and Nobodies. So why were there Heartless at Gunkanjima? Could this be the work of Xehanort—She doubts he was even there at that time.

Why—

"Alright, alright, I think that's enough ghost stories." Hawks' cheery voice broke her from her trail of thoughts. "Let's hold onto the stories until after the mission. As you see, one of my interns seem to be a bit of a scaredy-cat." he joked, a playful grin on his lips.

Hikari quickly reacted to the insult. "I am not. I just... don't like jump scares, that's all!" she defended, trying to come up with a quick excuse.

Hawks brushed off her comment. "Right." he drawled out.

"Sorry, kid. Never knew you were scared of these kinds of stories." Tanaka apologized, rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. Kobayashi nudged the man with her elbow, giving him a stern look for trying to scare the kids.

"Ah, no—it's okay!" Hikari laughed, trying to reassure it wasn't the man's fault.

"Don't worry. The ghosts aren't real. It's just something people made up."

"Yeah..."

Hawks stared at his intern's reaction. He wasn't the only one who noticed the slight change in her behavior. Nighteye seem to notice it as well. Even though Hikari was back to her cheerful self, she looked so surprised then. There was something in her eyes that they see in that brief moment. From their experience in the field, they could read someone's expression.

Something wasn't right.

Her reaction wasn't normal. It was as if she knew something from the story itself.

'What are you hiding, little sparrow?'

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

-Gunkanjima, 07:51 AM-

It was larger than Hikari expected. The island was surrounded by walls of concrete. It almost looks like a manmade island instead of a real one. Plants were growing over the buildings and ruins, making them look as if they would crumble the moment they step foot inside. The sound of waves hitting against the walls were the only noise they could hear—aside from the voices from the team. It was quiet and eerie.

Abandoned.

'There's no sign of Heartless...' The brunette stood on the pier along with the others, waiting for further instructions. She kept glancing around, trying to find traces of the black ant-like creatures. She wasn't sure if the Heartless here were pureblood or emblem, but it was certain they would show up sooner or later when there's hearts. 'Maybe... I'm over-thinking it...' she sighed.

Not everything has to be related to Heartless and Darkness, she thought.

"Hey," the brunette turned to look around, finding her mentor behind her. Hawks decided to approach her and ask her directly about what's wrong. He thought it would be best to ask instead of letting her ponder and deal with it on her own. "About earlier, are you really okay?"

Hikari smiled, crossing her hands behind her neck. "Yeah, of course! Why wouldn't I be?" she finished with a tilt of her head and a grin on her face. She knew how good Hawks is at reading people. The best way for her to make him not suspicious is to act normal. "Ghosts aren't real, so why should I be scared?" she laughed.

The pro hero stared at her with his hands shoved inside his pockets. "If you say so..." he turned to look at the others and everyone gathered around. He couldn't find out what was going inside Hikari's mind. She was good at trying to avoid the question. There was no use talking about it now. He decided to put his questions on hold, until after the mission. "Alright then, let the mission start!" he announced.

Tsukauchi gave a nod. "Are you ready?" he asked the two interns, who gave nods of their own.

They were positioned in the middle with him while Nighteye and Togata were positioned at the front and the police were positioned at the back. Hawks on the other hand would act as their eyes in the sky, alerting them if something were to happen. The pro would join in on the investigation once they reach each building.

"I'll see you all in a jiffy." Hawks gave a two finger-salute before he took off into the sky, leaving a gush of wind behind.

"Checking one, two, three—" Hawks' voice was heard from the radio. "Everything's clear. There's nothing out of the ordinary."

"Roger that." The detective replied.

Nighteye nodded his head. "Let's move everyone."

Since there weren't any cell towers, they couldn't use their phones to contact each other. Even though there was a low chance of them getting separated, they were all given a wireless radio for communication.

Their first destination was the General Office since it was the closest from the pier. Their plan was to finish the industrial area before moving onto the residential area. The red bricks stood out from the monochrome buildings. The area was almost nothing but ruins with only a few walls left standing.

The team quickly began to search the area for something suspicious.

"There's nothing here." Kobayashi said, regrouping with the rest.

Hawks spread his wings. "Let's move to the next area." he took off into the sky, leaving a few red feathers behind.

Hikari dusted her hands, getting rid of the dust on her gloves. She and Tokoyami helped Tsukauchi moved a few debris for him to check what's hidden behind it. There wasn't anything in the General Office area and they decided to move to investigate the buildings instead. There were a lot of buildings they have to go through, but they have already narrowed it down to 6. The General Office, Building No. 65, 69, 70, the fourth shaft and finally Shiofurimachi.

The keyblade wielder looked around, taking in her surroundings. They walked between the abandoned buildings. It was amazing that such a place still existed. It was quiet, really quiet. She was used to the city and noises, to be in such a silent and eerie place was a little uncomfortable for her. The place reminded her a lot of The World that Never Was—minus the neon lights and dark buildings, but the atmosphere seemed to match.

"Man, this place looks so... dead." Hikari commented, staring at one of the building.

"It has been abandoned for more than a few decades." Tokoyami replied. Truth be told, he enjoyed places like this—quiet and dark. Though he was displeased with the history behind the island. "It's natural for this place to look devoid of life." he continued.

"You're right—"

whoosh

The brunette caught something from the corner of her eyes. "Did... Did you see that?" she stopped, pointing her finger at the place she thought she saw something moving. It was dark, but she was sure she saw something.

"I'm sure it's nothing." Kobayashi reassured with a pat on the shoulder.

"I'm pretty sure I just saw something moving." Hikari shook her head, trying to convince everyone that something was fishy. Call it intuition, but she could feel the darkness around here. "I swear it's not a rat or anything. I really think there's something here besides us." she warned, pulling out her staff from her belt.

The radio buzzed. "Ey, what's the hold-up down there?" Hawks asked, noticing the whole team came to a stop.

"Hikari said that there's something hiding inside the building." Nighteye responded before walking towards the brunette who seemed more cautious than usual. He glanced over to look at the place Hikari was staring at and pushed his glasses up, his sharp and keen eyes looking around. "Stay here." he ordered, making his way inside.

"Sir?" Togata blinked before he and Nakamura decided to follow the pro hero.

Nighteye made his way towards the pillar. As a pro hero and a mentor, he has to reassure the interns that there was nothing to be afraid of. Ever since the ghost story Tanaka told, Leonhart has been a bit more cautious. She was looking for something, as if she believed the ghosts were real.

"Did you find something?" Hawks asked.

Nighteye scanned the area and took a look behind the pillar. He found nothing. "There's nothing. Just a false alarm." he reported back, talking into the wireless radio.

Tanaka laughed. He turned around to give a reassuring grin. "See, kid? There's nothing! It was just your imagination."

"Are you sure you're not scared, Hikari? You can always wait by the pier."

Hikari pulled a face, pursing her lower lip in a frown when Hawks decided to tease her paranoia. "Haha, very funny." she laughed dryly. "But I'm telling ya, there's something else besides us." she repeated once more.

Something, but not someone. Nighteye noted.

Togata smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, Hikari! Your senpai will protect you if we found any ghosts!" he raised his arm, giving a thumbs up and a big toothy grin.

Hikari didn't know if Togata was trying to cheer her up or made her feel more embarrassed.

"Let's move on, shall we?" Tsukauchi said and everyone agreed.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

-A few hours later-

The brunette huffed, wiping the sweat off her forehead. They were taking a break after searching inside Building No. 65, the building with the Nursery school on the 10th floor. Unfortunately, they found nothing inside the building. There wasn't a single clue that would lead them to the villains or to find the stored drugs.

"Hikari," said brunette raised her head to look at the bird boy. Tokoyami would only call her by her first name since she uses her first name as her hero alias. His friend would sometime look over her shoulder when they were investigating the rooms. Though the pros believed his friend was over-thinking it, he doesn't. It was rare to see Hikari this cautious. "Are you well?" he questioned.

"C'mon, Tsukuyomi, not you too!" Hikari groaned, covering her face in her hands. She has the whole team asking her if she was alright during the past few hours when they see her down and concern. She wondered if she should actually take acting lessons so no one could read her so easily. "I'm not sick or anything. I just have a bad feeling about this island." she sighed deeply propping her chin up with her hand as her elbow rested on her knee.

She couldn't say it was because she has a hunch about actual Heartless on the island.

Tokoyami stared at the girl. "I believe you."

"I'm not para—wait what?" Hikari turned to look at him, a surprised look across her face. Tokoyami believed her. He believed her. "You do?"

Tokoyami averted his gaze to look at the building behind them. "Dark Shadow has been a little agitated ever since we entered the island. There's a dark force lingering around." The wind blew softly, ruffling his feathers and cloak. The brunette knew of his interest in darkness and other related concepts. It was weird to konw he also felt uncomfortable. "I'm fond of darkness—but this type is rather unsettling." he admitted with his arms crossed.

Hikari crossed her own arms, mimicking him. "Hmm..." she nodded her head in agreement. With Tokoyami on her side, now she was positive the ghosts weren't just stories. "Those Shadows, they're—"

Click

"Tsukuyomi! Hikari!"

The look across their senior made Tokoyami and Hikari turn around. Behind them was an unknown man looming above them with an intimidating glare. Without thinking twice Hikari quickly casted barrier, blocking any incoming attack. The bullets the man fired were reflected. She shattered the barrier, sending it flying to counterattack. The force managed to push back the man.

"Tch!" Hawks quickly moved, dashing toward his interns. A flock of his red feathers shot out from his wings, making the man retreat from continuing his assault. He stood in front of his interns with his wings spread widely to shield them. His senses flared, his eyes glancing left and right to pinpoint all of the villain in the vicinity.

One.

Two.

Three.

Three villains in total.

Nothing he can't handle.

"Ah, it's an honor to meet you, number 3 hero." the second villain came into view. He stood on the second floor of the building, staring down at them all. The man's eyes were gold in color with vertical slits, like a snake's pupils. "And of course, the others too." he sneered.

"I appreciate if the welcoming committee doesn't try to put their hands on my kids." Hawks' sharp gaze stared at the snake-like villain. He wasn't going to let any villain hurt his interns again on his watch. The corner of Hawks' lips twitched up to a smirk. "So, I'm guessing you're the boss around here, Snake Man?"

"Close. The names Viper. That guy over there is Rhino and Rat." Viper pointed his gun to the large and muscular man on the heroes' left side before pointing his gun to the man who tried to attack Tokoyami and Hikari. He sat down on the edge with one of his legs folded. "Gotta say, it's a surprise to see the number 3 hero and All Might's ex-sidekick here." He tapped the muzzle of his gun on his temple a few times, a smirk playing on his lips.

"I've heard of your little group." Nighteye pushed his glasses up, looking at the snake man. Though it wasn't his case, he has heard of a group addressing themselves with animal aliases. He has been looking through lists and lists of villains' names to connect with the illegal drug. "You're a group of scoundrels who used to work for the Motomura Family. The family's underground business was discovered by the police. While most of your members were captured, you escaped."

Viper clapped his hands as a whistle passed his lips. "Brilliant! Now, if only you figured this out sooner, Sir Nighteye."

At that, Nighteye narrowed his eyes, glaring at the villain.

"Are you two alright?" Kobayashi asked, lowering her gun to check on the two teens.

They gave a nod. "We're good."

Tsukauchi pointed his gun at Viper. "You're outnumbered. Surrender now or we'll have to use force." he ordered. He was surprised to see villains around the island. Through Hawks' intel, they were informed the island was deserted.

Viper laughed. "Outnumbered? You really think we're outnumbered? Hah!" he snorted, throwing his head back as he mocked the heroes. He raised his hand and snapped his fingers. "Maybe you should look at your situation first." his face twisted up in a sinister sneer.

From the ground, a black ant-like creature emerged.

One by one. One after another.

Until they were completely surrounded.

"W—What are these?!"

"Could they be the ghosts?!"

Hikari lowered herself to a fighting stance, her eyes glancing left and right. She expected the appearance of Heartless after the story Tanaka told. Tokoyami's hunch was what made her certain, but she never expected the Heartless was controlled by the villains.

"Correct! They're the Shadows." Viper grinned. "I'll enlighten you with a little bit of a history lesson."

The keyblade wielder opened her ears, all the while keeping her eyes on the Heartless.

"Did you know, this island was used as a research facility for those creatures?

It was a parting gift from a generous man.

Since then, they began to experiment. They wanted to make the Shadows their weapon for war, but it backfired.

Their experiment started attacking everyone and one by one they turn into these little hideous creatures.

It was the main reason this place is abandoned."

"But you know what? The Shadows listened to us—we're their king now." Viper spread his arms wide, a smirk on his lips. "Can you imagine if we manage to get these babies out?"

"Like hell I'll let you do that." Hawks retorted, plucking his long feathers from each of his wings.

Hikari gritted her teeth, trying to stop herself from blowing up in anger. Her hands were balled up into fists, her knuckles turning white from the amount of pressure she gave. There were still so many unanswered questions about the reason behind the Heartless at Gunkanjima, but first she wanted to knock some senses into this villain.

"Tsukuyomi. Hikari." Hawks' usually cheerful tone was missing. It was less perky and more serious. Both of his interns turned to look at him, staring at his back. They were completely hidden from view with how his wings covered them. "Go back to the pier and call for backup." he ordered.

"Huh?! Why? We can help!" Hikari argued. She disagreed. Even though Hawks is the number 3 hero, she didn't want to leave him and the others behind. They were dealing with the Heartless—something she has encountered on a daily basis. She didn't care if everyone knew she has a keyblade. They're more important than keeping her keyblade wielder status as a secret.

"Hikari. I want no disagreement. That was an order." Hawks emphasized, glancing over his shoulder to look at his intern. She was a stubborn one for sure, but he wasn't going to let them battle something they're not ready. Even he has never faced anything like this before. "This time, I expect you to listen—!"

Just as the black creatures jumped into the air, a blur of white and a bright light seemed to appear—followed by what remains of the creatures, black smoke.

"Hikari?!"

The pro hero's eyes were wide when he turned his attention back to his front view. She disappeared from his eyesight and reappeared right in front of him, a strange weapon in hand. She was quick—just like that time when he was sparring with them.

"I'm sorry, Hawks! But I can't just sit and watch!" Hikari shouted as she lowered herself in her signature fighting stance. Her secret as a wielder would be questioned for sure, rather than let the entire squad get turn to Heartless.

As long as they're safe.

Nighteye's eyebrows furrowed. "Hikari, stand back! This is no game for you to be playing around with!" As surprised as he was, he couldn't help but scold her. She was acting on her own when they specifically told her not to. They weren't allowed to move on their own without orders from Hawks or himself.

No matter how well Hikari seemed to be dealing with the creatures.

"Don't worry. I know where my limits are." the keyblade wielder replied confidently, a smirk on her face. "Just leave these creatures to me! You can focus on capturing the bad guys!"

Viper cackled, "How confident you are, little girl!"

Tokoyami wished he could be as brave and outspoken as his friend.

He was the same as her, reluctant to leave their mentor behind. The difference was he didn't voice out his opinion while Leonhart did. There was a voice at the back of his voice saying that he should obey and avoid punishment, but his heart say he should do what he thinks is right.

His hands balled up into fists.

I won't fall behind

"Tsukuyomi!"

The boy stood beside the brunette as Dark Shadow came out. She turned to look at him, making eye contact. No words were needed to be exchanged. They understood each other and faced ahead.

Tokoyami spread his legs apart, positioning himself in a stance. "We'll take whatever punishment you'll bestow upon us."

Hawks stared at his interns' backs, a frown on his face. He closed his eyes.

"Alright." The winged hero flapped his wings, lifting his whole body up into the air. In one flap, he already zoomed across the field—aiming to reach Viper instead of the rest of the Heartless.

The battle began.

While the police and the two interns try to deal with the Heartless, the pros and Togata decided to go after the three villains.

The keyblade wielder summoned Kooma Panda along with Me Me Bunny to assist the police if she or Tokoyami couldn't make it in time to save them from a sneak attack. They were doing fine, but those bullets couldn't last forever.

Hikari thrust her keyblade forward and proceed to swing it to the right. At first glance, she noticed there wasn't only Shadow type Heartless around them. Darkballs, Flutterings, Earth Cores, Water Cores, Flame Cores, Neoshadows... They were all Purebloods. Fortunately, there aren't any Emblem Heartless—which means the research facility didn't go as far.

Her grip on the keyblade tightened.

She didn't want history to repeat itself.

"Look out!" Hikari was quick to teleport herself behind Tsukauchi, her keyblade positioned in front of her when the Flame Core burst into flames. The shield protected them from the blast of heat. She pointed her keyblade at the Heartless as the tip glowed an electric blue color, frost floating around it. "Blizzaga!" she casted.

When the Flame Core turned frozen, she swung her keyblade at it, breaking the ice as well as killing the heartless in one swoop.

"They're like ticking timebombs! If they sense they're in danger, they'll explode!" Hikari informed, her eyes glancing left and right.

Tsukauchi stared at her with wide eyes and bewilderment. "How did you kno—"

"Hoo! Looks like you have an expert!" Viper—even though he was up against Hawks—still managed to pay attention to the fight between his underlings and the normal hero-wannabes.

Hawks swooped down, his flock of feather coming after the snake man. "I'm hurt you can't even take me seriously!"

Viper slithered away, avoiding the attack. "Don't worry, Mr. No. 3 Hero! You'll meet your match soon!" he laughed.

Hawks clicked his tongue in annoyance. The snake was getting on his nerves and he was a man known with his patience. Now was not the case. The life of his interns on the line, he wanted nothing more to end this battle and call it a day. His eyes averted to look at how the others were doing. His interns along with the police—they were doing well. Nighteye and Togata seemed to have things handled.

Bam

"I'm sick of these kids playing hero—!" Rhino grunted as he blocked an attack from Togata. The simple-faced boy was all over the place. He kept popping from under the ground for a surprise attack. The man wouldn't want to admit it, but he was getting played by a teenage boy. He pulled something out from his pouch—a metal tube, a syringe to be exact.

Rhino injected it to himself.

"Is that—?!" Togata knew what was the content of the tube. "Trigger!" he exclaimed.

The villain's bulging muscles seemed to grow larger—as well as his form. His skin began to harden, similar to that of a rhino's. He towered over Togata's frame, though the boy didn't seem to be intimidated by the sudden growth spurt.

The Heartless around him began to move.

Not towards the heroes, but towards himself.

"WhaT?!"

"What's happening?" Togata moved a few feet back, preparing himself for another round.

Hikari pursed her lips, her eyebrows knitted together when she realized what was happening. The Shadow Heartless began to crowd around Rhino, pilling themselves on top of him as he tried to fight them off. His heart was being consumed by his own darkness. He couldn't control it. He'll turn into a Heartless—

Viper narrowed his eyes. "Oh." the smirk on his face seemed to widen. "Looks like he's going to fall as well."

Hawks could only stare in confusion and horror as the man tried to fight the ant-like creatures.

"That's what happens when you're weak."

The ground shook when a large Heartless emerged from the pile of Shadows. The man's Heartless took form as a giant rhino Heartless—just like the man's alias. Its' eyes were a bone-chilling yellow, bright and horrifying. It turned its head, staring at its prey.

The keyblade wielder.

A/N:

The chapter could go on longer, but I thought this would be the perfect ending for this chapter. This chapter was a lot harder to write with all the pov changes and the battles happening from different perspective, but I hope it's not too confusing haha. I'll try to fix up a few scenes when I find better wording to describe it.

Now, if only I could write what's going on in my head better into words lol

tell me what you guys think of this chapter :D