I own nothing. May contain Out of Character moments.
"We have arrived…" Eclipse said, parking the van in an empty lot. Mineta released himself from the upholstery as Fenghuang and her Heroes calmly left the vehicle. How were they not disorientated by Eclipse's driving? Especially when the man was invisible and speeding the entire time? And if the shorter boy was being perfectly honest, he thought they would crash multiple times.
But now that it was over… Mineta began regaining his bearings.
Right now, they were in Hosu City, the last place the Hero Killer was spotted. And, as one would expect, Mineta could see several extra Heroes, some in pairs, patrolling the streets. It seems like the Hero Association is done taking chances with Stain. And neither were the Heroes of the Heaven and Earth Temple.
Before leaving the Temple, Fenghuang had her Heroes wear stab vests and limb guards. Even Mineta had to wear a vest to supplement the forearm and lower leg guards added to his gloves and boots. But while more armor was suggested, the shorter boy declined as it might hinder his pitching. It was just crazy to think he can go into this mission without his signature skill.
Mineta got out of the van and went to the group that gathered at the back. The two vans that were tailing them finished parking and more of the Temple's Heroes exited it. They also gathered around Fenghuang as she opened the Van's trunk, all their weapons stored inside.
"Gather around; let's review the divisions and patrol areas. First, there's a detail that has recently come to light. The Hero Killer wears a blood red scarf. If you happen upon it, give chase but do not engage unless you have support. And do not forget the tracing beacon you've been given, it will allow us to collectively descend upon your location. Stain will not be escaping justice anymore." Fenghuang began.
"Thunder Team, search Hosu North Commercial. There are plenty of alleyways for the Hero Killer to hide in. Water Team, search the abandoned offices on the east end and stay alert of the shadows. Wind Team, I've heard the Flame Hero will be joining the hunt. Link up with him and share what we've discovered, fill in any information gaps he might have." Fenghuang instructed as she passed around their equipment.
As Mineta sat by and watched his teacher give instructions, a thought passed by him. "I wonder how everyone else is doing, hopefully better than me."
Has Midoriya discovered anything new with One for All? Did Uraraka become battle hardened? Has Bakugou finally learned some God damn manners? What about Todoroki? He was interning under his estranged father Endeavor. Here's hoping nothing happens to undo Midoriya's Sports Festival efforts. Was there anyone else?
And then it hit him, wasn't Iida interning under someone in this city? The Normal Hero Manual if he remembered right.
"Hold on…" Mineta muttered as he followed that line of thought. That's strange, why him specifically? While there was nothing wrong with him, being a well rounded Hero with a good water Quirk, there wasn't much he could teach Iida. Unless it was philosophy and attitude, then Manual could… No, any Hero can offer their insight and wisdom to him. If it's not for the Hero, could it be for the city?
But there wasn't much to Hosu City that Mineta was aware about. The only thing of note would be…
Mineta felt a tingling digging into his spine. His eyes started to go wide upon realizing the answer. He even went for his baton to draw some strength from it. However, nothing could calm the fear that now gripped his heart. He couldn't admit it to be true…
And yet, here he was, running to the only person who can help him.
"Shifu! We need to go! My friend's in trouble!" Mineta shouted. Fenghuang snapped her attention to the shorter boy and crouched down to him.
"Tell us what's wrong." She said, eyes unflinching and resolute. Mineta swallowed the lump in his throat, he was about to reveal Iida's personal problem. Here's hoping he understood that this was an emergency. That vengeance wasn't anything like the noble, by the book, class president Mineta knew. But if he didn't step up now, there will be an empty seat in Class 1A.
"My friend's name is Iida Tenya, his brother Ingenium was crippled by the Hero Killer and he wants revenge. Nothing's happened yet, but it's only a matter of time before Iida finds him! He'll get himself killed!" Mineta shouted. His blood was pumping just as his nerves were firing. The world seemed to be getting bigger and smaller at the same time. And soon enough, his breathing started to become fast and shallow.
This wasn't supposed to happen. He and Midoriya should've stopped it somehow…
Fenghuang, wordlessly put her hand on her student's shoulder and gently squeezed it. The panic that was coursing through Mineta began to settle. His heart slowed and his breathing became steady. Before long, he was back to normal. Well, as normal as discovering your friend is on a quest of vengeance against a notorious serial killer.
"Sorry… I panicked…" Mineta apologized. His teacher simply shook her head and gave him a calm smile. She then stood and resumed her position as Shifu of her Temple.
"Another objective, find Iida Tenya and bring him to safety. His costume should resemble his family's Ingenium design, so look for white armor with a dark blue under layer. Do what you must to stop him from making a terrible mistake." She instructed.
"YES SHIFU!" The all shouted before running off in various directions. The only ones left in the area were Fenghuang, Murakumo, and another Hero he doesn't recognize. Fenghuang then wordlessly gestured to the West before she began moving out. The group quickly followed with Mineta having to put a little more effort in his walk.
Block after block, street after street, they've briskly moved through Hosu's west end. But after 15 minutes of searching, there was no word from any of the teams. There was no sighting of Stain or Iida. And as more time passed, the anxiety in Mineta built up again. What if they were too late? What if, at the end of the night, he'll be finding his Class President's name on the news?
No, he couldn't think like that. There was still time. And with his Shifu and her Temple backing him, Mineta knew the worst won't come to pass. Or so he hoped…
"Grape Shot!"
The shorter boy was pulled quickly out of the way as something slammed into the nearby building. Snapping out of his thoughts, he looked behind him to see a mess of a Hero embedded in the concrete. Mineta paled as he stared at him, the relief of seeing him still alive dampened by a resurfacing memory. Aizawa was there, standing before a mass of muscle and horror. And then, in only a few seconds, his limbs were mangled and his face was smashed against the earth.
A screech of agony pierced his ears. Mineta slowly turned to the noise, bowels loosening themselves to it.
Standing there was a pale green skinned hulk of a beast. It was covered in bone like armor and had six spiked tentacles hovering over its broad back. Worse still was the fact that it had no jaw, eyes of pure madness, and most distinctly, an exposed and swollen brain.
"Nomu…" Mineta said as a desperate laugh escaped his throat. It was happening again. The creature's tentacles sprung forward, not even bothering to even take aim at anything. Mineta's brain, just aware enough, managed to move his body out of the path of one tentacle. Something was caught though, making the shorter boy almost afraid to check. He slowly looked down where the sensation was…
There was a mark across the side of his vest. And to his relief, the attack didn't pierce through. One of the tactical pouches was torn off however. But what it contained made Mineta wonder if he really was lucky. Quickly checking the ground as the Nomu roared, the shorter boy saw his broken tracing beacon.
Unlike the tracing beacons held by Fenghuang and her Heroes, his had two extra characteristics. The first was having the highest priority signal. The second was that, if damaged or destroyed, the other beacons would be immediately notified. This special beacon was meant to safeguard Mineta…
But now, it would save his teacher.
"Grape Shot! You need to go! Lead the civilians away from here!" Fenghuang shouted, her whirling staff redirecting the whipping tentacles. The Nomu roared as it charged forward, knuckles dragging across the asphalt. But the agility of the Temple's Heroes was much better, simply diving out of its way as it plowed into a storefront. While Mineta didn't want to leave, knowing just how much damage this thing can cause, there was nothing he could do.
The Nomu was practically a super weapon of the League of Villains. And though this one didn't seem as strong as the USJ attack one, it was still way above Mineta's level. So with all fear in his heart, he had to make a run for it. Though he hoped this won't be the last he would see of his teacher.
Mineta took off running, only looking back after several seconds of sprinting. Fenghuang and Murakumo were attacking the gaps in the beast's armor from differing angles as the third Hero with them kept its attention. The way they danced around the Nomu was like hornets swarming a man. But the shorter boy knew it was only a matter of time before the thing caught them.
And he didn't want to be around to see it when it does.
So he kept running away, screaming at people to not go that way. A nearby explosion incited more panic as everyone began to flee. It was absolute chaos and Mineta couldn't really make heads or tails of anything. And that only feed the long buried feelings of mediocrity within him. He was supposed to be better than this…
But something snapped him for those thoughts. Just for a brief moment, through the anarchy happening all around him, he saw a man with a finned, blue helmet running across his sight. That was Manual and he was going towards the source of the explosion. However, nowhere did Mineta see his friend in shining armor.
Oh no.
"No, no, no, no, no!" Mineta thought as he began running harder than before. This time, he was going where Manual just came from. If Iida wasn't with his mentor, then he most certainly separated himself to hunt for Stain on his own. Meaning Iida has no back up when he inevitably finds him. And what's to say he hasn't found him already?
What if Mineta was already too late?
"Fuck that! I'm not going to fail anyone again!" Mineta thought, footsteps lighter than ever before. For every alley that he came across, the shorter boy slowed and focused on it. If he even spotted a silhouette with the remote likeness of Iida, Mineta was going down that path. But after the seventh empty alley, a hope began to rise that maybe, just maybe, things will be alright.
"AARGGH!"
His blood turned cold as his heart beat even faster. That scream didn't come from too far away, perhaps just three alleys away. Mineta picked up speed, thanking Heaven that the roads cleared away real quick. Two alleyways left, he began to remove one of the special baseballs from his bandolier. Thinking about it, he never really practiced his pitching recently. And now is a really bad time to discover that his accuracy had gone down.
One alley… Here goes nothing.
Mineta turned the corner, ready to field the ball in his hand. And already did his eyes catch the sight of three things. The first was an injured Hero, Native, in the corner, unmoving but still alive. The second was an injured Iida on the ground, unmoving but still alive. And the third was a menacing figure standing over Iida, his katana's point poised to fall at any moment.
Stain.
The shorter boy's body twisted as his arm was pulled back, his target was picked. Mineta's arm slung forward, driving the ball between his fingers towards the Hero Killer. Stain's intense eyes snapped in his direction, katana swinging to intercept the attack. But upon seeing the blade move away from Iida, Mineta charged and threw hairballs at the Hero Killer. And after intercepting the baseball, Stain leapt away as he kept swinging to block the strange attack.
Mineta continued to throw a few more around Iida and the other Hero before stopping in front of them. He then drew his baton; entering the stance he became familiar with these past few days. The Hero Killer landed, his boots scraping against the pavement. He looked at his ball covered katana and gave it a quick flick. He frowned in irritation before discarding it.
"Another kid… Let me guess, you're here for revenge too." Stain said as he drew two long knives, both single edged and serrated. Mineta flinched at the pressure that the Hero Killer exuded. But he steeled himself; knees steadying as he resolutely stared back at the monster before him.
"No, I'm here to save an idiot from himself."
And that has been Chapter 46.
Here we go, the moment we've all been waiting for. I have a general idea of how I want this battle to go... Only issue is that some might find issue with the resolution. Personally, I find it reasonable as it serves as the culmination of everything Mineta has learned thus far. But only time will tell if it is truly an appropriate end to this segment of the story.
In other news, I've started writing some original works. So if you find some dips in quality, know that I'm splitting my efforts between the two. I'll update you if I'm planning to change my schedule in relation to this.
Other than that, I've got nothing. Next update, we'll get to see a rat fighting for his and Iida's life against the Hero Killer. The ending of it will surprise you. So...
Until Next Time, T1.
