OKKO3 Requiem: There are several endings that I have planned, although I'm still not sure which one I'm going to pick. There are characters I'm considering killing off, but I'm afraid of bringing down the wrath of the fandoms.
As for Jotaro, I guess he is acting a bit out of character, but the Jotaro Araki was describing is the Part 3 iteration. By the time Part 6 came around, it was clear that Jotaro was putting on an act. He cares about his family more than anything, as evidenced by his interactions with Jolyne.
My version of Jotaro is a man who has seen how his reluctance to show affection has affected his family, and he is trying his best to change. Jotaro is actively trying to be softer, because he values the people around him. Hell, he still isn't very good at it, Johnny had to confront him in order to understand his father's reasoning for stopping time. If you don't like it, that's fine, it's just the direction I wanted to take him. Either way, thanks for your thoughts!
CoolK: Get ready, another one of your stands is in this chapter! I would just like to take a moment to thank you for your input, it's nice to see some other ideas and perspectives, and I love that I'm able to connect with my audience the way that I do!
ThatRandomWriter02: Pretty solid ideas! The issue is, I'm not quite sure how he would recover his mind. He has been floating for a long time, and he is no longer capable of thought. He might not be capable of physical death, but he died on the inside.
...
Kyoka yawned an stretched her limbs, rolling into her side. She stared at the poster covered wall of her room from her bed. It was weird, usually her father some her up in the morning, but now she woke up alone.
Well, not alone. She had her friends. Johnny, Gyro, and Momo were now there for her 24/7, so she was pretty content with her situation. Still, she missed having the old man hollering in the practice room, and her mother's light hearted teasing.
She rolled out of bed and onto the floor, groaning. Josuke had her working hard for the hero studies, he wanted to make sure that she would be at her best for it.
How can I be at my best of I'm constantly sore, ? Tell me that!
Kyoka's arms felt like lead as she changed out of her pajamas, pausing in front of her mirror. She briefly examined her body, before shaking her head and putting her shirt on.
No point in beating a dead horse.
She made her way into the common room, where her four best friends were all up to their usual shenanigans. Johnny and Izuku were busy studying together, clearly coming up with plans for their future hero agency. Gyro was with Momo, and Kyoka couldn't believe that her friend actually seemed to be falling for the Italian's advances.
Pizza Mozzarella
Pizza Mozzarella
Rella rella rella rella rella!
Dear God, he was singing her the song. Kyoka had to admit the Cheese Song was catchy, but singing it to the girl you were smitten with? Most guys would never think of such a thing, but Kyoka guessed that Gyro was just a different breed.
"Oi, Kyoka! Can you come over here a moment?" Johnny waved her over.
"What is it?"
"Izuku, says that All Might could beat Batman. I believe that Batman could easily outsmart All Might, and find a way to come out on top. What do you think?"
Kyoka scratched the back of her head. "Well, Batman is the world's greatest detective isn't he? He's already beat Superman a few times, why not All Might?"
"See? Kyoka gets it!"
"But Superman was holding back!" Izuku protested.
"And All Might wouldn't?"
"I-" Izuku faltered. "Well, he would, but All Might doesn't have a weakness like kryptonite."
" *cough* missing most of his organs *cough*. " Johnny replied.
"Actually, Midoryia has a point, which version of All Might are we talking about? Current or pre-injury?"
"Okay, Prime All Might could certainly beat Batman, but current All Might wouldn't stand a chance."
"Well of course current All Might would lose, he's retired!"
Johnny sighed. "Listen house arrest, all I'm saying is that you shouldn't underestimate Batman just because he would be quirkless. You of all people should understand that."
"Oh sure, pull the quirkless card. Oh, and I already have Iida calling me house arrest, I don't need you to do it too."
"Then don't go off and fight Katsuki like an idiot."
Kyoka chuckled. "I'll leave you two to sort this out, I'm going out."
"Okay, see you later Kyoka! OW! DID YOU JUS-"
The two childhood friends began scrapping on the floor. Huh, they really are like brothers.
Kyoka shook her head as she walked out the door into the street. She had a lot on her brain right now, and she needed to clear her head. There were so many things happening, with a Pillar Man running around, to being homesick, to trying to confess to Johnny, she just needed a little break.
She stopped at a ramen shop and got herself a small cup of noodles, humming to herself as her mind wandered back to the beginning of the year, before she even got into U.A. It took everything she had just to tell her parents that she wanted to be a hero, and now she had already conquered a few of her inner demons.
There was just the small issue of her lack of body positivity.
Honestly, that was the only thing that was holding her back from just asking Johnny out. Kyoka knew that she had to overcome her doubts, Josuke's fabulous Prince hair was at stake.
Kyoka stopped at a grocery store, and something immediately felt off.
Why did it look like nobody was inside? The store is usually open.
With recent events taken into account, Kyoka suspected that there was more to it than a lack of business, so, despite all of her instincts screaming that it was a trap, she went inside.
"Hello? Anybody there?"
Silence.
"Any serial killers waiting to stab me or something?"
Suddenly, the store went into lockdown, and a massive sheet of metal covered the automatic door behind her. Okay, I'm officially in shittown.
"Welcome Kyoka Jiro! Welcome to your doom!" A voice came in over the speakers.
"Okay man, what's the deal?!" Kyoka shouted into the darkened grocery store. "This grocery store is MY turf, and you are intruding! I was hoping for the Joestar kid, but stringing up his pretty little friend's corpse outside his window should draw him out!"
Kyoka grimaced. How the hell am I going to get out of this? I can't break through that gate, I don't have my support gear! She would have to play the tactical game.
She quickly ducked behind a crate of oranges, sending out her earphone jacks to listen for any footsteps or other suspicious sounds. Josuke trained her extensively for situations like this, she just never thought that she would have to be in one so soon.
"Come on, don't hide! I HATE waiting. Let's just get this over with!" A voice called out in the store, it sounded close.
Kyoka rushed over to the bakery section, and quickly grabbed a bag of flour. That will come in handy. She hid the flour behind the end of the aisle and waited in the middle to face her adversary. A man came around the corner, and a wicked smile came across his face as he met her eyes.
"Hello there."
His red hair fell over his face, but it did little to cover up the burn scars that plagued what would otherwise be a handsome visage. He had a red skintight suit on, and it was covered in a flame pattern. His yellow eyes had a sadistic glint as he slowly approached the hero-in-training.
"Who the hell are you?" Kyoka asked, backing up towards where she was hiding the flour.
"Call me...Hot Shot."
...
Richard Jameson had everything a cocky racecar driver with narcissism could want: money, glory, hot chicks at his side, everything.
He was the newest addition to the runway, and it was clear from the start that he had talent. He won the very first Grand Prix he ever participated in, and he gained instant fame.
Everyone was talking about how Richard, or Hot Shot as the press called him, was the Da Vinci of race car driving. He was a racing genius, popular, and he was living life to the fullest.
"I live life in the fast lane, I have no time to wait!" Hot Shot would always tell reporters. He had about five girls at his beck and call, he was never satisfied with just one. He was a playboy, through and through.
But his ambition would be met with a crushing defeat.
There was a crash, one in which he could not recover fully. His face was covered in skin graphs, ruining his handsome face, and suddenly he didn't have his girlfriends anymore. They only loved him for his looks, and his money, and he had just lost one of them.
His ankle was crushed during the incident, and they had to replace his entire foot with a prosthesis. He couldn't put the pedal to the metal like he used to.
He fell into disgrace. Racing was the only thing that kept people from mocking him for being quirkless, and now he was both that, and a deformed cripple. Richard became a miserable drunk, going from town to town muttering about the glory days.
He went from a man who had everything, to a man that had nothing.
That is, until he met Lord Santana.
This guy named Dabi had brought him to the man who Hot Shot would later worship as a god. Santana was hard at work, crafting what looked like a mask, when he first came to the man.
"You have met an unfortunate fate, human. However, I can give you something, something that can make you ten times as relevant as you were before, in exchange for your services."
"Please, I'll do anything! Anything to be in the spotlight again!"
Santana turned to Richard and smiled. "Ah humans, you are always motivated by such petty desires...very well. I will give you a gift, in order to do my bidding, and should you complete your mission... " Santana held up the stone mask. "I will give you the gift of eternity."
"Thank you! I will do anything you ask!"
Santana pulled out an ancient-looking bow and arrow. "I'm going to shoot you with this, and if you are worthy, you will survive and attain power behind that of quirks. After that...I want you to hunt down and kill any member of the Joestar family you can find, or someone associated with them."
"I will do as you ask, if it means reattaining my glory."
Santana pulled back the arrow, and fired.
...
Hot Shot sized Kyoka up, taking in her frame. "You're smaller than I imagined. Eh, small-breasted girls were never really my type, so I think I'll just kill you."
"Eat shit." Kyoka spat back, wincing at his assessment of her figure.
"Ooooh, a feisty one! Never mind, I like girls who bite back! Maybe I'll have some fun with you fir-" Hot Shot was cut off when flour was thrown directly into his eyes. He screamed in agony, when Kyoka rushed him, sending several well-timed punches straight into his abdomen, while sending her jacks towards his ears.
Suddenly, Kyoka was sent back by a powerful flurry of blows, her back slamming into the dairy section. Someone just attacked her, HARD. Kyoka slowly pried herself from the milk and eggs, and began limping away, her leg was injured, and she was pretty sure she had a cracked rib.
Shit...it hurts. What was that? A stand?...doesn't matter. Ignore the pain Kyoka...just focus on surviving this fight.
"Aww, sneaking around again? Just wait till I get this damn flour out of my eyes, you'll be deader than my fucking career!"
Kyoka tasted something metallic, probably blood. She grabbed a carton of eggs as she began to formulate a plan. That attack he pulled just now...it felt like I was hit by a dozen people, all at once. Either this guy has multiple stands...or his attacks are instantaneous.
"Hey you!" Kyoka called out. "You can attack without any gaps of time in between blows, can't you?!"
A loud laugh was heard across the store. "So...you figured it out. Smart girl! My stand, Don't Stop Me Now, allows for me to attack without pause! It's like how Jotaro Kujo stops time, except without the time thing! I'd say I hit you about fifteen times, you just felt them all at once!"
Okay...step one is complete. You know his ability. Now if what Mr. Josuke taught me is correct, step two is find a way to use it against him.
I can't let him close the distance between us. He has a short-ranged stand, otherwise he wouldn't be looking for me himself. Time to play a game of keep away.
Kyoka extended her jacks and listened intently. He was heading her way, so she ran, or hobbled, over to another aisle.
"I SEE YOU!" Kyoka heard him yell, so she quickly turned around and whipped an egg in that direction. A splat, and then a cry of anger was heard.
"STOP BLINDING ME WITH SHIT!"
Suddenly, a stand appeared over the top of the aisle, and Kyoka quickly ducked down to avoid being seen. The stand had eyes that resembled fast-forward buttons, and lightning bolts running up it's arms. It almost looked like a preying mantis.
So that's Don't Stop Me Now...
Don't Stop Me Now suddenly shoved the aisle over, and Kyoka had to roll out of the way to avoid being crushed. "THERE YOU ARE!" Hot Shot cried as his stand instantly smacked Kyoka away with a dozen more instantaneous blows.
Kyoka coughed out blood as she struggled to get to her feet, when the enemy stand suddenly appeared behind her, and clubbed her down to the ground.
Kyoka cried out in agony, the force of another dozen blows plowed into her back. Don't Stop Me Now grabbed her by the earphone jacks and slowly began to lift, Kyoka held onto her ears as the burning sensation of her jacks being pulled made her want to scream.
Her whole body was screaming at this point.
Was...was this kind of stuff...did Johnny and Gyro have to deal with fights like this every day?
If they can do it...if they could put up with punishment like this...WHY CAN'T I?!
Kyoka ignored her body's pleas for relief as she brought her leg up and kicked Hot Shot in the jaw, causing the enemy's head to snap back. Don't Stop Me Now let go of Kyoka's ears as it recoiled, and she quickly ran to her destination.
I need to get to that place! I saw it earlier, it might be my only chance! I can't let him get me!
Then Kyoka saw something, something that should've had cherubs surrounding it, and a choir singing Angels We Have Heard on High. A blessing.
That's perfect!
...
Hot Shot rubbed his chin, his neck was sore now, probably from the whiplash. He could hear Kyoka muttering, what was she doing?
"Just get here as soon as you can, I'll hold him off."
SHIT! Did she call for backup?! Doesn't matter, she'll be dead in seconds!
Hot Shot stepped into the aisle to find Kyoka Jiro waiting for him. Beaten, bruised, bloody...she looked more defiant than ever, and it really pissed him off. She isn't scared?! Even now, she refuses to take me seriously?! You fucking bitch, once I kill you, no one will ever look down on me again!
"You beat the hell out of me, Lightning Mcqueen, but I think I've won."
Hot Shot laughed, mockingly. "Oh really? All I see is that you're cornered. If you're religious, I would start praying if I were you, because I'm about to rip your guts out!"
"You won't hesitate? At all?"
"I live life in the fast lane sweetheart, taking things slowly is for the weak. I'll kill you and escape before your backup will get here."
Kyoka grinned and motioned with her finger. "Then what are you waiting for, Harvey Dent? Come and get me!"
Hot Shot screamed and charged at Kyoka, Don't Stop Me Now raised it's fist as it prepared to put a hole through her skull. Don't Stop Me Now, extended it's fist.
Only for Hot Shot's foot to start sliding across the floor.
Kyoka had covered the floor in ice cubes, and since Don't Stop Me Now was about to attack, the effect would be instantaneous, so he couldn't pull back his fist in time.
Kyoka dove out of the way as stand user and stand alone crashed straight into a fuse box.
Electricity crackled and buzzed as Hot Shot screamed bloody murder. The villain's body jerked around as electricity traveled through it. Finally, Hot Shot removed himself, and turned his face towards Kyoka, slowly raising his hand.
"Oh no you don't!"
"DORARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARARA!" Kyoka screamed as she hit her enemy with a Soundwhip Barrage. Hot Shot staggered back with every lash from Kyoka's whip-like appendages, until he finally collapsed, slamming his already ruined face into a frozen slab of meat.
Kyoka put her hands on her knees and took a few deep breaths, before returning her attention to her defeated opponent.
"Slow and steady...wins the race...jackass." Kyoka choked out through her labored breaths.
...
"There." Josuke said, removing Crazy Diamond's hand from Kyoka's face. She sighed and put her head in her hands. "I made a mess in there..."
"Nothing I can't clean up in two seconds, besides, you've officially taken down your second stand user! I'm so proud of you!" Her mentor patted her on the shoulder affectionately. "He's being taken away for questioning, if Jotaro can't get him to crack, I don't know who will."
"He was after Johnny."
"He was after a Joestar." Josuke leaned in and lowered his voice. "I think Santana is making some moves. Be VERY careful going forward Kyoka, you're involved in this war now."
Kyoka smiled. "Don't worry, I will. Besides, I have you!"
Josuke's eyes widened, before they started to fill with tears.
" ."
"I'm sorry...I'm sorry, I'm just so touched."
"Come on, are you actually crying? You're a grown man for God's sake."
Josuke took a Kleenex out of his pocket and blew his nose. "God I'm a mess."
...
Kyoka opened the door to her dorm room, ready to flop onto her bed and pass out, only to see Johnny and Gyro sitting on it.
"How did you two get in my room?"
"I picked the lock." Gyro said without a hint of regret. Kyoka sighed. "You know, if I didn't know you two, this would've been creepy."
"Wasn't my idea." Johnny muttered. "Anyway, my uncle called and told me what happened."
"Oh."
"Sooooo, we decided to treat our best friend after a hard day! Behold, my beautiful creation!" Gyro held out a plate.
"...it's a pizza bagel."
"It's the pizza bagel of friendship Kyoka!"
"I did not agree to that name, Gyro." Johnny muttered again.
Kyoka blinked, and then laughed. "You guys...thank you." She took the bagel from Gyro and took a bite. "Not bad, you guys want to watch a movie?"
Johnny smiled. "Why not?"
The three of them stayed in Kyoka's room until curfew, watching cheesy comedies and laughing their asses off. Sure, she missed home, and sure, she just went through a life-threatening experience.
But Kyoka was glad that she had such great friends.
...
Credit for Don't Stop Me Now goes to CoolK!