Lung sat on an elevated table and ran his fingers over the new scar in his chest. An old Asian lady healer had stitched the wound while describing how lucky Lung had been to avoid any serious injury. The scar would be permanent, however. He would ordinarily be enjoying the cathartic thrill of victory against any other cape but right now all he felt was pain and anger.
Oni Lee entered the room, wearing his demonic mask. He handed Lung's metallic dragon mask to the fellow cape. He spoke to Lung, "He is a ghost. He has no family or history. His power is listed as illusion control."
"His power was real." Lung pointed to his chest, "This was not done by an illusion."
"So the website lies."
"Perhaps. We do know he is capable of some illusions. I do not believe that is the extent of his powers," Lung growled in Chinese. He punched the table he sat on, shaking jars of herbs and needles on the shelves lining the walls. "Find him. Find what is close to his heart. Either he will work for me or he will die."
Haru stuffed the rest of her ice cream cone into her mouth. Currently female, she was wearing her usual white hoodie and jeans as she observed the bay along the boardwalk. Although she had to watch out for getting splashed with cold water, she wanted to take a break from being a heartless killing machine.
The sky was clear and sunny despite the chilling sea breeze. It was a beautiful winter day. Haru used her ki to keep her fingers warm. She wondered what Ino would have thought of the view.
Truthfully, it would have been beautiful if it weren't for the mass of sunken ships littering the old docks. Water and wind were her worst elemental nature manipulations. Chakra strings wouldn't be able to do much for tons of rusted metal. It would have to be the AT field.
She waved her arm and the wreckages of the Boat Graveyard were catapulted into the far horizon one at a time with frightening efficiency. Haru glanced behind her back at a blonde girl that had seen the spectacle. The girl fled in terror behind an abandoned building into an alley.
"Huh. I thought people would be used to seeing superpowers," Haru remarked to herself. In only a minute, all the derelicts across the bay had been flung into the deep waters of the sea miles away. "That's better. Now it looks like a proper port."
"Are you a cape?" the girl asked. The girl was clutching her head in pain.
"Kinda?" Haru answered. It was evident from the girl's aura that she had some sort of power. Haru had wanted to intimidate the cape that was following her with a show of power. She hadn't intended to hurt her.
The blonde winced and held both hands against her temples. "You're that new cape, Zetsu."
"Hey, I thought capes weren't supposed to be able to read minds," Haru replied.
The freckled blonde fell to her knees, "What are you?! …You're…you're not human…"
"I'm supposed to keep that a secret! Don't read my mind like that," Haru said, pouting slightly. "Are you okay? You don't look so good." Nearby, more capes were arriving. Looking at the wimpering girl, Haru decided she couldn't leave her there. She lifted the girl onto her shoulder like a sack of vegetables and noted that the girl's hair was much darker than Ino's platinum blonde.
"I can already tell you're going to be nothing but trouble," Haru muttered as she flickered away.
Haru stretched her arms behind her head as she asked, "So what's your deal, Girly?"
Within an abandoned office building, the mystery girl sat at a Japanese style table that was replete with mandarins and green tea. The girl sighed exhaustedly. "My name is Lisa, not Girly."
With a bubbly tone, Haru asked from the opposite side of the table, "So, Lisa, you can see the future or something?"
"Not quite," Lisa spoke after sipping the tea. "It would help my headache greatly if you would tell me what you intend to do with me."
Haru crawled around the table and peered into Lisa's eyes. "You're kind of cute. Maybe I just want someone to talk to."
"I'm sorry but I'm not into women," Lisa replied.
"Okay," Haru replied blankly. She pulled a water bottle out of her sleeve as if performing a magic trick. She upended the steel bottle over her head and suddenly grew a couple inches in stature and lost her generous chest. The bottle disappeared, the suddenly male Haru clapped his hands together once, and with a dim flash of light, he was clad in his traditional black vinyl zippered coat. Even one of his eyes changed colors from brown to green.
"You still look like a female," Lisa said as she again clutched her forehead with the base of her palm.
"Does it look like I care?"
While peeling a mandarin, Lisa asked, "So how long are you going to keep me here? My head feels fine now."
"That's because I'm not casting any illusions right now." To demonstrate, Haru shrouded the room in shadows along the walls and ceiling.
"Ow, I get it. Please stop," the girl complained. The room returned to normal and her headache ceased.
"So I take it that your power tells you the truth about things," Haru ventured.
"Something like that."
"So tell me," Haru spoke as he shifted to sit next to Lisa. "What do I want most of all?"
The girl rapidly scuttled around the low table. "I don't think I'm the right person to answer that question."
"Then tell me…what is it that you wish for in your soul?" Haru asked seriously, glaring at the girl.
"I…I don't know. I wish you'd just leave me alone," she spat out, no longer quite as sure about the situation she was in.
A bright light shone from the back of Haru's left hand. "That's kind of a lame wish but I guess I could do that." He shouted at the ceiling, "Did you hear that, Belldandy? That counts, right?"
"I think I'll just show myself out now…" Lisa said, backing away from the insane boy.
Haru appeared behind her and touched a hand to her temple. The girl felt a tingling sensation and jerked her head away as Haru spoke, "Now my illusions won't give you anymore headaches. Take care of yourself, Girly."
Lisa woke up a half-hour later in the Undersider's hideout. The only proof that anything had happened was a red spider lily next to her pillow. She decided to spend the rest of the day in bed and that nothing less than an endbringer would drag her away from the comfort of her sheets.
"Hey, Panacea, if you had one wish, what would it be?" Haru asked, as he watched the cape regrow an elderly man's liver.
"Hm. Probably world peace?" she answered half-heartedly. She felt as if she was growing used to having the weird cape around the hospital. For once in her life, it seemed like she could go home without having to worry about leaving people untreated.
"Ugh, so boring. Forget I asked," Haru muttered and he poofed away, leaving the girl to merely shrug and continue healing by herself.
