Transformers MHA, Arc 2: Earthrise

by The Omni-Remnant

After a rather intense adventure and the U.A. Sports Festival approaching fast, Izuku and his friends have two important things to do; improve their Quirks in time for the festival… and hide a bunch of giant alien robots. That proves to be easier said than done, especially when enemies on Earth and from beyond the stars end up coming for them…

68. Crisscross

A/N: Hey there, everybody! Welcome back to Transformers MHA and… like clockwork, something major is happening, only this time, it's with the OTHER part of this crossover. As of tomorrow, My Hero Academia is back with its seventh season. Question is, though… will this be the FINAL season? Because while the manga might be close to ending, I still feel we're a LONG way off from reaching the anime's conclusion. And the incoming movie is only exacerbating that mindset. Eh, I guess we'll see what happens. But for now, let's shift focus back to THIS story, shall we? Time to formulate some plans of escape! This is…

Chapter 68: Crisscross

…..

~Unknown Location, Japan~

Momo's eyes fluttered open, only to be beholden to even more blackness. She gasped and sat up, her mind racing at a million miles an hour. Where was she? Why was it so dark? And what was she sitting on that was so cold and hard? But, as the questions flew by in her mind, her memory had come back to her just as quickly. 'Oh… that's right. I was forced to come here against my will.' Her eyes narrowing, Momo recalled the archer who had threatened her with the death of her mansion's staff if she didn't comply with his demands… and then he knocked her out with sleeping gas the moment she entered his flying vehicle. 'Likely to make sure I don't know the location of… wherever this is?'

"H-Huh?!" Just then, a voice cried out from the dark room, making her eyes darted up in shock. "W-Where are we?!" a man shouted out. "What is this pla—" *CLANG* "OUCH!"

"Hah! Kyotoku!" a woman's voice gasped as well. "A-Are you hurt?!"

Momo blinked as she heard the name. 'Kyotoku?'

"Gah… I-I'm fine, Mika. But I get the feeling we've been taken someplace REALLY bad…"

Going over the two names in her head, Momo deduced who they must have been in seconds. 'But… but that would mean…' She carefully stood up and extended her arm, being mindful of her surroundings and immediately feeling the flat roof over her head. Reaching out, Momo felt around and, sure enough, she felt cold, iron bars. She was in a cage, but that wouldn't deter her. "H-Hello?!"

"Ah! Th-There's someone else here!" Mika exclaimed. "Hello? Wh-Who's there?"

Even in the darkness, Momo somehow managed to see the reflective surface of a pair of glasses, which was somewhat reassuring to her. "M-My name is Momo Yaoyorozu. You two, who are you?"

Standing up—carefully this time—Kyotoku replied in a confused tone; "Yaoyorozu… wait, are you… oh my god." The slammed his hands around the bars and leaned his head through, calling out; "Y-You're one of Kyoka's friends, right?"

"Yes… a-are you…"

"We're her parents!" the Jirou mother affirmed. "Kyotoku and Mika Jirou. D-Do you have any idea what's happening here?"

Momo's expression hardened. "…I might have one, but if it's what I think it is… we're in for a lot of trouble."

Just then, another gasp rang out through the room, and a much more panicked voice jolted the conversation. "W-Wha—WAH! W-Where am I?! Izuku?! Anybody?! What's going on?!"

This time, though, Momo recognized the voice almost instantly. "M-Mrs. Midoriya?! You're here, too?!"

"W-Who's there?!" The woman shouted in panic. "K-Kyoka, is that—"

"N-No, it's Momo Yaoyorozu! Please, try to remain calm—" *CHOOM* "AH!" The four of them collectively gasped as the entire room was lit up all at once. It took a moment for their eyes to adjust, but once they did, they were able to see one another clearly.

Inko let out a gasp at the sight before her. She was in a cage, as was Momo and two other people. …And the woman in the cage just across from her looked astonishingly like Kyoka. It didn't take long for her to add things up from there. "Oh… oh my goodness."

Mika, for her part, was stunned as well. "Are… A-Are you… Inko Midoriya?"

"Y-Yes." the green-haired woman nodded. "And are you… the Jiros?"

"Yeah, that's right." the blonde man confirmed, resting a hand on his wife's shoulder. "This is my wife, Mika, and my name's Kyotoku. …This really isn't how I thought our first meeting would go."

Shaking her head, Inko agreed with him. "C-Certainly not! This is… what even IS this?" Her hands flew up to her head as she tried to remember what had happened. "One minute, I'm getting home with the groceries, the next minute, I see some… villain at my front door and he goes so fast that he funneled the air away."

"Sounds like a speedster." Momo noted. "And a smart one, too. He knocked you out just by taking away all of the breathable oxygen around you." She craned her head toward the Jiros. "What about you two? Do you recall what happened to you?"

Kyotoku let out a huff. "Hmph, how could I forget? A young girl appeared at our door, asked for directions, then knocked us out with her giant, flying robot horse." He received incredulous stares from Momo and Inko after they heard that, making him furrow his brow. "Oh, come on, don't act like that's weird, you KNOW there's stranger villains out there."

"I can back up my husband's story." Mika raised her fist, closing it over her chest. "And what's worse is that it's my fault that she got to us. Tch, I should've never opened the door."

"Sweetheart, no, don't blame yourself." her husband reassured. "If you didn't open the door, who's to say she wouldn't have had that robo-horse break it down?"

Momo nodded to Mika in agreement. "He's right, Mrs. Jiro. You still would've been in trouble either way." The heiress shifted her eyes down, thinking to herself out loud. "Still, this doesn't make any sense. What villains would just attack a home out in the open like that?"

A scoff passed Kyotoku's lips. "Psh, yeah in this day and age? There's heroes all around who would've taken notice, and anyone on the street surely would've called it in to the police…" But as he thought more about it, something clicked in the blonde man's mind. "…Unless she knocked out everyone on our block beforehand, making sure there were no witnesses."

That idea made Inko gasp in horror. "AH! S-So… do you think they could've done the same at my apartment complex?"

"Yes, perhaps." Folding her arms, Momo continued to ponder on everything. "Still, the fact that the archer just stormed my home and incapacitated the best workers at my mansion… these aren't just any NORMAL villains."

"How very perceptive, young lady." The trapped quartet gasped again as a new voice entered the room, bringing their attention outward as another light shined down from the ceiling. There, it revealed an older yet very muscular man with a scarred face, who wore a suit of black body armor. It also shed light upon… the very villains who had captured them. The speedster, the archer and the young woman—now in a princess-like outfit—all stood behind the man as he approached the cages. "You could say that it's very… unconventional villainy."

In an instant, Kyotoku snarled and grabbed hold of the bars, shouting at the man. "YOU! You must be the one behind this whole thing, right?! Who are you?!"

Mika stood with her husband, her eyes narrowing in anger. "And what do you want with us?!"

"Oh, it's not you that we're primarily after, Mr. and Mrs. Jiro." The older man replied. "Rather… it's your children and their special friends that are our targets." This managed to etch confusion and fear onto the Jiros and Inko's expressions as the man continued on. "As for myself, you may call me Silas. We are M.E.C.H., and this…" Silas gestured toward the group of villains. "Is the Society of Unconventional Villainy. Nanosec, Angry Archer, and Professor Penelope Sutton. A group of Quirkless supervillains given powers purely through technology."

The answer left all four of them stunned. "W-What?! That's outrageous!" Kyotoku exclaimed. "How can—GYAH!"

All of a sudden, Nanosec rushed up and leaned against the cage, giving Kyotoku a sneering smirk. "Seeing is believing, Mr. Iron Lung. Wanna see a demonstration?" He raised a fist to Kyotoku for emphasis.

"Nanosec, that'll be quite enough." Silas ordered, shoving the speedster away. "Our goal is to lure the children and Yaoyorozus here. We're not about to damage our goods!"

"I-I don't appreciate being referred to as "goods", sir!" Inko shouted, summoning whatever amount of courage she could.

Momo joined in as well. "Neither do I! Now what do you want with my friends and my parents?! What did we ever do to you?!"

But just then, another voice entered the conversation, and it was one that managed to leave Momo in stunned silence. "Oh, it's not THEM who you've wronged, Miss Yaoyorozu…" Her eyes widening in horror, Momo slowly craned her head around and saw a large, military Humvee come rolling forward through the darkness. It came to a halt directly in front of the cages, and then… *Whrr-tschzz-tschzz-tschzz-chkt* …it transformed. Within moments, Swindle stood before the trapped humans, zeroing his optics in on the Creation user. "Guess who's back?"

This… was probably the worst thing that could've happened. Momo's eyes drifted over to Kyoka's parents and Izuku's mother… who all stared up at the Decepticon in utter horror. '…Damn it all, can't we just go ONE WEEK without the secret being blown?! Still, I suppose the cat's out of the bag, so…' Her expression hardening, Momo slammed her hands against the bars and yelled up at the con-bot. "SWINDLE! You shanix-pinching, money grubbing aftshaft! I should've KNOWN you'd be the one to set this up!"

"Woah, woah, such language!" Swindle placed a hand over his chest, feigning being hurt by her words. "Never would've dreamed a young heiress like yourself would be using that kind of jargon… but I suppose being around that City Speaker friend of yours would lend you quite the mouth."

The adults were left understandably confused by EVERYTHING happening. "M-Momo, what is this?!" Inko exclaimed. "Who or… w-what IS this thing?!"

"Momo, do… do you know him?" Mika asked as well.

"Ah, yes, that's right!" Swindle squatted down, getting closer to the parents as they backed away from the bars. "You have absolutely NO idea what's been going on! Hehe, well, what if I told you…" He glanced over to Momo, wearing a malicious smirk. "…that Miss Yaoyorozu and her little friends from school have been getting into plenty of trouble? And yes, that includes your children as well."

Kyotoku's expression hardened at the giant robot in disbelief. He knew the daughter he'd raised, and she for sure wouldn't cause ANY sort of trouble. "Wh-Whoever you are, your bluffing! Our children are U.A. Students, they don't cause trouble!"

"Oh-hoho, I beg to differ." Swindle retorted, pressing down on his forearm to bring up a holographic image. What they saw there made the parents' jaws collectively drop… and Momo's heart stopped beating for a second. There, in the image, was her, Izuku, Kyoka, Itsuka and Ochako all escaping through the GroundBridge with their Autobot partners, no doubt taken on the day of their last encounter with Swindle. "I took this image with my very own optics… right after your children helped the Autobots DESTROY my ship and ALL of my merchandise!"

Needless to say, the adults were left astonished by what was presented. "No… n-no, this is impossible!" Inko's hands flew up to her cheeks, falling to her knees in shock. "Has… has my Izuku gotten in trouble with the government?!"

"FAR worse, ma'am." Swindle said as he rose back up, his gaze returning to Momo. "Your children have gotten involved with an intergalactic war that has lasted over centuries—millennia even! They've chosen to ally themselves with the Autobots, a ragtag group of rebels who somehow are STILL going even after the Decepticons have taken our home planet of Cybertron." A scoff escaped his vocal processor. "Hmph, seems like Optimus Prime still thinks they have a fighting chance if they can regroup on some OTHER planet… and lucky you, Earth was chosen to BE that planet."

"Hm… interesting." Silas noted, giving Swindle a questioning look. "Why IS that, then?"

The con-bot could only offer a shrug. "Heh, heck if I know. A bot like myself could only HOPE to understand the machinations of the mind of a Prime." His optics drifted back to the prisoners before him. "But my main point is; your kids have been risking their necks to help these Autobot rebels… and lemme just say, they're on the WRONG side of this conflict."

"DON'T LISTEN TO HIM!" Momo hollered, spooking the adults with just how grave her expression was. "He's a Decepticon, a rip-off artist, and for god's sake, his name is SWINDLE! You can trust him about as far as you can throw him!"

"…Again, very harsh words." Swindle noted before indicating his faction symbol. "But yes, I am a Decepticon myself, but only because it's fitting for me. I may have joined Megatron's coalition long ago, but trust me, I only did so for my self benefit. Selling weapons to either side to fuel the war's conflict was SUCH an easy job…" He narrowed his sights down to Momo. "But then you and your pals decided to ruin it all! Thus, when my paths crossed with M.E.C.H.'s, I saw an opportunity to get BACK at you all with THIS little operation. Which I personally like to call…" In a surprising gesture, Swindle raised his middle finger to the humans. "Operation FRAG You!"

The humans could only stare at Swindle in silent bewilderment, while Silas was grimacing at the crude name. "…Does "frag" in your language mean what I think it means?"

Swindle chuckled as returned his attention to his ally. "Haha, Silas, I've learned that humans have LOTS of curses that can be applied to our language. And let me just say, it is very satisfying to use them all in the way your people do."

"I understand, but would it stand you to be a bit more professional here? I'm not running a dog and pony show here, after all."

"I have NO idea what either of those are."

"ENOUGH!" Kyotoku belted out in a VERY loud voice, no doubt using his Quirk to amplify it. "I DEMAND an explanation! Both from YOU…" He snapped his head over to Momo, making her flinch. "AND you, Yaoyorozu. How in the HELL did you and Kyoka get dragged into this?! How many others are involved?! And what even made you THINK it was a good idea?!"

There were so many questions being stacked on top of her all at once, Momo had no idea how to respond. "I-I… I just—"

*chink* "AUGH!" All of a sudden, Kyotoku was jabbed in the neck by Mika's earphone jacks, bringing him to his knees as she gave him a hard look.

"That is enough, Kyotoku! You aren't helping this situation." The purplette's gaze went back to Momo, who could feel quite a bit of disappointment behind it. "It's true that we need answers, but now really isn't the time to discuss that. All I need to know is… is there a chance that we'll get out of here alive?"

The Angry Archer cleared his throat before letting out a brief chuckle. "Hmhm, why of course you will! …If thine allies allow it. Come the morrow, we send them instructions that they must follow to the letter! That being, in order of importance;" He pointed to Momo first. "A handsome ransom for the dear lady…" And next, he extended his hand out to the adults. "And in exchange for your life, we shall be recompensed with ONE Autobot."

Momo's brows knit together in worry. "You want… an Autobot?"

Silas gave a single nod. "Indeed. Specifically, we require their leader, Optimus Prime, in order to begin our experiments."

"What are you planning?!"

"I thought I made our mission statement clear." Silas emphasized, his features hardening. "We intend to do away with the status quo of Quirks dominating the social zeitgeist and shall instead bring about a new techno renaissance. The likes of which hasn't been seen for almost three hundred years! And to do that… we must vivisect a Cybertronian."

The mere notion left Momo disgusted. "You want to GUT a living being for the sake of technological advancement?!" She whipped her head up to Swindle. "And you're OKAY with that?!"

"Psh, not my body he's using." Swindle shrugged. "I made that very clear in our deal. And as a bonus, if I can get rid of Prime… think of how I'll be heralded as a hero by the Decepticons!" His smirk twisted into a nefarious grimace as he laughed. "Haha! I'll fly up so high on the food chain that I won't have to worry about Onslaught or the rest of those FOOLS bossing me around ever again! From there on, I'LL call the shots… w-with Megatron's blessing, of course."

Momo sneered at his quick change of character. "Hmph, I should've known. You're just like Starscream. Afraid of the bigger fish in the pond."

*STOMP* "SILENCE! I will NOT continue to be insulted like this!" He aimed his arm-mounted cannon down at her as it powered up, casting a purple light onto Momo as the Jiros and Inko reeled in horror. "Oh, how I would LOVE to destroy you while you stand… but our funding comes first." He lowered his weapon and nudged his head down to the others. "Come on, let's work on the next phase of the plan."

"Hm, agreed." Silas and the S.U.V. followed Swindle out, but not before the M.E.C.H. leader paused just before the door. "We will check up on you again shortly. You should have more visitors sometime soon." His focus moved over to Professor Sutton. "Has Agent Rhodes reported in yet?"

Penelope gave a thumbs up. "Totes. He said he was closing in on the Uraraka and Kendo families." Seeing Momo's jaw drop, the professor giggled and waved to her. "Haha! Yeah, you heard that right, girlie-pop! Oh, and he said that your FRIENDS were there with their parents, so we're gonna be getting a six-for-one deal!"

"Ah, interesting!" Swindle piped up, overhearing the conversation. "Perhaps then we should charge more on the ransom. U.A. Students sound like they'd fetch a pretty price! Hehehe!" With that, the large garage door slammed shut, leaving the four prisoners to reflect on what just happened.

"I… I-I feel like I'm going to be sick…" Inko uttered, trembling in place as she looked to Momo for answers. "…How? How could you children have been dragged into all of this?"

Kyotoku grimaced as he sat upon the cold floor of his cage. "And, more importantly, WILLINGLY gone through with it?! Fighting in a WAR?! Do you have ANY idea what would happen if the teachers at U.A. found out about this?! Or even the GOVERNMENT?!"

Momo shuffled awkwardly in place and coughed into her hand. "Ahem, uh… well… about that." She received several incredulous stares as she went on. "The teachers DO know. All Might and Izuku were the first ones to find out about the Cybertronians, after all. And from there, it spiraled out of control. W-We've also been getting help from a secret government agency called Sector Seven. They're the reason why this secret hasn't gotten out to the ENTIRE public yet."

The adults had no idea what to say, letting the information process for a moment. "…So you're telling me that not only HEROES, but GOVERNMENT AGENTS have been allowing you to aid these Autobots in their war effort?" Mika finally asked.

"N-Not without giving something in return!" Momo insisted. "The Autobots are the whole reason why we did so well in the Sports Festival! A-And your daughter even interned at another secret government agency called G.I. Joe, which is practically made up of heroes!" The Creation user wore a wistful smile as she remembered the internship. "It was honestly really great… we even got to go on a mission with them and the Autobots before it ended."

Inko could feel tears welling up in her eyes. They were ones of sadness… but also ones of pride. "…My baby, Izuku. I-I… I would've never thought he'd be doing anything like this."

Mika took a deep breath, leaning against the cell bars as Kyotoko and Inko just stared quietly. "…Our little girl… has been surviving in a secret war for… who knows HOW many months."

"…Heh, she's a tough one, I've always said it." Kyotoku smirked. "…She's still getting SUPER grounded, though."

"Oh, totally." Mika affirmed. "Lying to her parents? That CANNOT go unpunished." She raised a brow over to Momo. "And I doubt that yours will be all that impressed either, Momo."

Despite the situation, Momo couldn't help but give a breathy chortle. "Hmph, no, I imagine not. Still, we shouldn't worry too much." The adults perked their heads up at her words, only to see her give them a wink. "Because I left something at my house that should be able to help them AND the Autobots get us out of this mess. We just have to wait until they find it, and then, the trump card can be played."

…..

~Musutafu, Japan~

As he walked up a sidewalk along the coast, Toshinori Yagi took in a deep breath, enjoying the salty sea air. He often took these little strolls on nights where things weren't so hectic with hero work, and—so far, at least—tonight had been one of those. It was a habit he had formed ever since the beach had been cleared all those months ago, and every time he passed by, his first thought was always how proud he was of his pupil. 'A part of me still can't believe he did all of this by himself.' Toshinori thought to himself. 'Even before receiving One for All, that boy's been incredibly persistent, and look at him now! I can hardly recognize him after all this time.'

*BZZT-BZZT*

The Number One Hero paused in his stride and his hand reached down, procuring his cell phone from his pocket. "Hah, speak of the devil." he smiled, seeing his pupil's message pop up. "Wonder what he's got to—"

"AAAIIIIIEEEEE!" Before he could even open the message, though, Toshinori's head snapped up and he whirled around toward the beach. "MONSTER!" a woman shrieked. His eyes widened when, indeed, something quite monstrous came BURSTING out of the ocean and onto the beach. With its long body and snout, along with its green, leathery hide, the hero immediately recognized it as a crocodile… that was about thirty times its normal size.

The beast roared and immediately began terrorizing the locals, whipping its tail and snapping its jaws. "Gah…" He peered down at his phone, noting Izuku's message. '…It'll have to wait. Sorry, young Midoriya, but there's work to do!' Concentrating hard, the hero entered his Muscle Form and leapt right onto the beach, SLAMMING down into the sand and instantly calming the crowd with his signature phrase;

"Fear not, citizens! This catastrophic crocodilian will have NO PLACE to hide! Because I…" In a single bound, All Might was in front of the massive reptile, making its eyes widen. "AM…" Pulling back a fist, the Number One Hero gave it a single punch, which sent it flying down the beach. "HERE!" As the monster landed on its back and roared in pain, though, All Might couldn't help but note something after landing his blow. '…Weird. It appears to be flesh and bone, but that felt like metal.'

"All Might!" The pro lifted his head up in time to see Kamui Woods and Mount Lady come rushing onto the scene, the former swinging down from a nearby building while the latter grew to her immense size. "We heard the commotion from the streets!" Woods explained. "What's going—oh…" The two heroes were left surprised by the monstrous reptile getting back to its feet, roaring at them in challenge. "…Well, not every day you see something like that."

"What even IS it?" Mount Lady asked. "Think it's from Australia or something?"

All Might shook his head, though. "While I wouldn't be surprised by that, I think we're dealing with something else. I punched that thing and it felt more metal than flesh. Be on your guard, you two!" The duo nodded to him and they went in, ready to deal with the threat.

…..

Far away from the scene, a certain rich couple were coming to terms with everything they were being told and had seen. Their daughter and her friends had been interacting with giant, alien robots and aiding them in their war for at least the past four months. Basically since the start of the school year. It was quite the hard pill to swallow, but they couldn't deny what was in front of them; massive robotic organisms that peered down to them like they were ants. Though thankfully, the Autobots didn't VIEW them as such. Still, it was almost too incredible for words, and Taro and Yua had to take a seat to digest it all.

"That was… quite the story." the Yaoyorozu patriarch nodded.

Yua took a deep breath, placing a hand to her forehead. "Our daughter has been aiding alien refugees in a war to take back their planet from a cruel dictator. I don't know whether to be proud or raving mad."

Optimus, who was still knelt in front of them, bowed his head remorsefully. "Once again, I profusely apologize for my involvement in your daughter getting involved with us, Mrs. Yaoyorozu…"

"Zrkt—Hey, don't point fingers—zrkt—at yourself." Bumblebee interjected, stepping forward to place a hand on his chest while locking his optics on the family. "Zrkt—I'm the one—zrtk—that messed up at—zrkt—the USJ. Zrkt—I'm guilty as charged—zkrt—for getting her—zrkt—involved."

For as piecemealed as the mute Autobot's sentences were, the Yaoyorozus could still understand him. "…Does he usually speak like that?" Yua asked.

"Bumblebee's vocal processors were damaged a long time ago." Izuku answered. "He talks through the radio, but I'm sure he means every word he said."

All the same, Taro let out a sigh and shook his head. "Prime, Bumblebee, I'm not upset with either of you two." His gaze went straight to the teens, who lowered their heads in shame. "If anything, I'm more disappointed that you didn't let these kids trust any of us, their parents, with this secret."

Optimus bowed his own head once again. "And I am truly sorry about that. But we must keep our presence on this planet a secret to as much of the populace as possible." His visibly winced beneath his faceplant. "…Granted, lately that has not been very successful. However, even then, there is very likely little chance that our secret will remain that way forever."

Kyoka raised a brow up to the Autobot leader. "Wait… so even though we're keeping this secret, you expect it to get out to the world sooner or later?"

"I would prefer later, but yes, I do." Prime nodded. "After all, I don't expect Megatron to remain on Cybertron forever. And when he arrives… I also expect anticipate him to bring an incredible amount of ordinance with him."

"Yeah, but that's a problem for another day." Bulkhead piped up, clenching a fist with a wrathful expression. "Right now, we've gotta save Momo, along with Izuku and Kyoka's parents. Swindle's always been a piece of scrap, but he's gone WAY over the deep end." He let out a huff and his shoulders slumped forward. "After this, though… I wonder if us guardians should just constantly remain outside of our partners' homes, incase this ever happens again."

The large Autobot's words caught the attention of the Yaoyorozus, with Taro standing up and questioning him. "Guardians? What do you mean by that?"

Optimus wasted no time answering. "It is just as he says, Mr. Yaoyorozu. I have assigned specific Autobots on my team to watch over the children during the day and then escort them home by nightfall. In the event of a Decepticon attack, their job is to defend their charges, by any means necessary." His optics shifted down. "However… I did not anticipate a threat like this to be brought directly to their doorsteps. The Decepticons would not attempt such an operation, or else risk their own cover being blown. …But Swindle and M.E.C.H. have proven to not be beholden to the same hindrances."

Taro furrowed his brow to the Autobot leader. "Well then, tell me… who is Momo's guardian? Who here is responsible for her safety?"

Everyone fell silent at that, sharing downcast expressions before Optimus replied. "…I believe it is time you met her." He reached up to his helm and activated his commlink. "Airazor, bring Windblade in, please. They wish to meet her." Once the message was relayed, Prime set his gaze back down to the frustrated father. "Before you see her, please understand, Windblade has been utterly beside herself since we were given the news."

"Hm." Taro acknowledged. Not half a minute later and through the large entryway came two more bots, both female and with wings on their backs. …But those were literally the only similarities they shared. One was mainly brown and gold with hints of orange and… was oddly bird-like. The other, meanwhile, was red and black with gold and blue accents that resembled a geisha… and of the two, she appeared to be the most distraught. It didn't take Taro long to deduce that this one was Windblade.

"Airazor, thank you for being by her side." Optimus expressed his gratitude.

"It is my pleasure." Airazor assured, her hands secured across Windblade's shoulders in comfort. "After all, she has been helping me regain my memories. I owe her so much more…" The Maximal found the Yaoyorozus and nodded to them. "Sir, madame, I—"

"Air, i-if I could…" Windblade brought her hand up and put it over the bird bot's, gently removing it. "I… need to speak with them one-on-one. Please."

While she was hesitant to do so, she could tell by the tone in her voice that Windblade was set on this, and Airazor wasn't about to deny her. "Very well. But know that you have all of us here at your side." she smiled to her City-Speaking friend.

A brief smile could be seen on Windblade's features, though it didn't last long as her full attention went to the Yaoyorozus. Taro wore a more serious countenance while Yua seemed to look upon her with sympathy, though Windblade could tell that both of them were equally worried about their daughter. …As did she, and the sheer guilt from that fact alone was what made her drop to her hands and knees as she stepped up to the two, shamefully lowering her head in the process.

"…Mr. and Mrs. Yaoyorozu… words cannot express how sorry I am to the both of you." she started. "I failed you, the Autobots, and most importantly, your daughter. I wasn't there when she needed me most. I could've prevented ALL of this from happening, but my STUPID cover prevented me from that!" Windblade lifted a fist and SLAMMED it down into the floor, cracking the cement. "I… I'm a FAILURE, not just as your daughter's guardian, but as her friend! I should've… i-if only I could've—"

"ENOUGH." Taro spoke loud and firm, his arms crossed over his chest and scaring Windblade out of her stammering. He kept his serious expression as he stepped up to the City Speaker, and she could tell that she was under heavy scrutiny just by his unbreaking stare alone. But, much to her surprise… he didn't sound angry. His tone was strong, but distinctly not laced with rage. "I just want to know one thing. …How much do you value Momo?"

Windblade didn't even need to think twice. "Immensely, sir. Ever since we met, I could tell that she and I… our friendship was special. And it's always frustrated me that I could never do more to protect her, both because of my cover… and due to my alternate mode."

"Is that so?" Yua said, entering the conversation. "What do you transform into, then?"

In response, Windblade extended her wings out from her back, showing off her VTOL fans. "…A jet." she answered. "A VERY conspicuous jet."

"I see." Taro placed a hand upon his chin. "Well then, we're just going to have to fix that problem, won't we?"

Windblade blinked in confusion, wondering what he could mean. "I-I'm sorry, sir, but I don't think I understand."

But Taro extended a hand to her, his features finally shifting from a light glower to a grin. "I'd think that'd be obvious, wouldn't it? From here on out, you, Windblade, are permitted entry into our home." This, understandably, left everyone slack-jawed, all except for Yua who smiled in support. "I can tell, you have quite the strong friendship with Momo, and it's for that reason that you should be allowed to guard her from threats without hindrance."

There was a long pause as Windblade's processor tried to deal with the information, but she just couldn't fathom what she had just heard. "…I-I'm sorry, but what, sir?"

"You heard him correctly, dear." Yua smiled to her in reassurance. "From there on out, you'll be allowed on our mansion grounds, both in robot AND vehicle mode. If it means better security from our daughter once we get her out of this mess, then you are more than welcome. We'll even swear our staff to secrecy."

"B-But can they ALL be trusted?"

"Hah, of course, they can." Taro placed a fist over his chest. "I make sure to hire the most trustworthy people I can find, and my heads of staff are all government trained professionals. They know a thing or two about keeping secrets." His attention went back to the Autobot leader. "Of course, my permission will also require Optimus Prime's consent as well. What do you say, sir?"

Much to Windblade's surprise, Optimus gave a nod of approval. "I say it's a very good idea. Windblade, I believe that this move is the most prudent one to be taken after these events."

"I-I know, it's just…" Windblade set a hand to her forehead. "Oh, Primus, this is happening so fast." Her optics moved between Optimus and the Yaoyorozus, all while she finally came to grips with the offer. "But… you're right. If it'll allow me to better protect Momo, then I'll do it." She politely bowed to the married couple. "Thank you for allowing me into your home, Mr. and Mrs.—"

"Taro." the Yaoyorozu patriarch interrupted. "My name is Taro."

Bowing her head back, Yua properly introduced herself as well. "And feel free to call me Yua, dear. And if anything, we should be thanking you, for protecting our daughter from the Decepticons up until now. However, you now have a new mission." Putting on a determined face, Yua pointed up to the City Speaker. "You must get her back from these ruffians, and make sure they have hell to pay for stealing her away. Is that understood?"

Windblade didn't have to think twice before she saluted. "Crystal, ma'am! …And again, thank you so much."

"Hm. Of course. So, what's the plan?" Taro asked.

"…Er, that's the thing." Sideswipe rubbed the back of his neck.

"We kinda don't HAVE one yet." Sunstreaker admitted.

The humans all immediately facefaulted onto the floor, with Kyoka being the first to get up. "WHAT?! How do you guys not have a plan of attack yet?! Our PARENTS and MY best friend have been STOLEN!"

Jazz raised his hands defensively. "K-Kyo, slow your roll! Ya gotta remember here; we have NO clue where the heck they've been carted off to!"

"Correct." Optimus intervened, raising a calming hand. "Swindle and M.E.C.H. could be hiding out anywhere in any part of the world… though I suspect that they must be closer than we think. After all, I doubt they would bring their captives far from Japan if they intended on making their demands known in the morning." The Prime clenched his hand into a fist. "But rest assured; we WILL find—"

*BZZT* *BZZT* *BZZT*

At that moment, a loud alarm began blaring loudly, along with a bright red light that flashed throughout the room. "Ah! W-What's happening?" Yua exclaimed, drawing closer to her husband. "Are we under attack?"

"No, that's the urgent transmission alarm." Red Alert explained as he went over to the console, where Mei was still sitting. "We're receiving an emergency call." After typing in a command, the call was answered… and to the astonishment of everyone, it was none other than the Number One hero. "All Might?!"

"Gah! Red, good, you picked up." All Might replied as something was happening from off screen, sand being kicked up everywhere as yells and grunts of exertion could be heard in the background. "Apologies for the shaky camera, but this is the best I can do for now. We've got a situation here at Dagobah Beach. Is Prime there?"

"He is… as are Izuku, Kyoka and nearly every other Autobot." Red replied.

Izuku took that as his cue to run into the conversation, using Full Cowling to climb up onto Red Alert's shoulder. "All Might! W-What's going on?!"

The pro hero flinched and his signature smile turned sheepish at his pupil's presence. "Y-Young Midoriya! I didn't expect you to be there! I got your message, but it was right as all of THIS popped up and—GAUGH!" Without warning, something suddenly came swinging in from off screen, which All Might had to catch in his arms, making him disappear from the screen. "G-Give me a second! RRAAAGH!" He tossed whatever it was away, and the group were greeted with brief glimpses of Mount Lady and Kamui Woods as they went in to keep at it. "Hah, sorry, we've been dealing with THIS thing for several minutes now…"

All Might pointed his phone at what they were fighting… revealing it to be an absolutely MASSIVE crocodile, the beast snapping at Mount Lady's feet as Kamui tried in vain to restrain it in his Lacquered Chain Prison. But all of the branches were broken within seconds by the beast's powerful jaws… right as it bit down on the large woman's toe. "GYAAAAAAH!"

"M-Mount Lady!" Kamui leapt onto the beast's muzzle and grabbed it, his fingers planting deep and expending into its maw before he PULLED with all his might. But just as he thought he had the upper hand, the croc actually OPENED its mouth at an unexpected speed… which sent Woods flying back like he was launched from a catapult straight into the ocean. "AAAGH!"

"Owowowow OW!" Mount Lady rubbed her foot, now bleeding through the boot as she glowered at the croc. "Oh, NOW you're gonna get it, you little creep!" Propped up on her knees, the Growing Hero slammed her fists down repeatedly to crush the croc, but it was surprisingly speedy with its dodging.

Directing the camera back at himself, All Might continued as Prime entered the scene. "As you can see, it's been quite the struggle."

Izuku and the other humans were left perplexed by that. "Erm, All Might, can't you just… beat that thing in one punch?"

"That's what I'm hesitant on. The first time I punched it, I felt… something strange. This beast's hide didn't feel leathery like an organic crocodile, it felt metal." The hero's gaze went to Optimus in concern. "I can only assume that it may be a Predacon who's got a REALLY good disguise going for him."

Optimus' optics narrowed at that, quickly coming to the same conclusion. "You'd be correct, my friend. That is no doubt Skullcruncher, Swindle's right hand bot. He must be trying to divert your attention away from the TRUE problem at hand."

All Might's brow furrowed. "Problem? What's going on? …Young Midoriya, does this have to do with your message?"

"It does." Izuku answered solemnly. "All Might, my… my mom, Kyoka's parents AND Yaoyorozu were all kidnapped by Swindle. He's teamed up with M.E.C.H. to help his dirty work."

Within seconds, the smile on All Might's features disappeared, replace with a wrathful scowl. "…What?"

"It's the truth, All Might, sir." Taro piped up, leading Yua into frame so the hero could see. "We're Momo's parents, and… well, we were personally told by Silas that if we want her back, we'd have to pay him a significant ransom."

His teeth clenched and features etched with rage, All Might's glare went straight up toward Skullcruncher. "That is… deplorable!" He briefly glanced back at Optimus. "Do you want him brought in alive, my friend?"

"Of course, but allow me to send you some backup…" Optimus typed in a command into the console, bringing up a radar system that displayed an Autobot signal moving across Japan. "Just as I thought, Jetfire is approaching your location. I will have him divert his path and he will help you bring Skullcruncher down."

"Hah, excellent." All Might's grin briefly returned. "I don't think I've MET Jetfire yet. This should be fun. Once we wrap things up here, we'll join you as soon as we can!"

Optimus gave a single nod. "Understood. Best of luck, my friend. Prime out." Once the transmission was cut, the Autobot leader sighed and shook his head. "Hah, it seems that M.E.C.H. specifically planned to keep All Might preoccupied while they executed their scheme. They have obviously prepared for this ahead of time."

"Maybe, but we're going to bust their plan wide open." Strongarm vowed.

"Just as soon as we find out where they're hiding out." Springer reminded. "Which could take a LONG time if we have to search the entire country of Japan."

*Brrriiing* *Brrriiing*

All heads in the room flew up at the distinct sound of a phone ringing, to which Taro reached into his pocket and apologized. "O-Oh, sorry, that's me." He peered down to the caller ID on his phone and his eyebrows flew up. "…Jon?" Taro answered the call, his voice laced with hesitancy. He wasn't sure if this was good news or not, and that made him nervous. "Hello?"

"Sir, hah, thank god I got a hold of you." Agent Barker sighed.

"Jon, you're supposed to be resting—"

"Not when the young miss has been kidnapped, sir." the Lycanthrope user denied, clearly irritated by the notion. "As the head of security, it was my job to keep her safe… and I failed. I failed to see that this perpetrator was government trained, and because of that, Momo is gone! …So now, I must get her back, by any means necessary."

Taro's features were etched with frustration, but he knew there was no keeping his best agent down. "…You mean it's OUR job to get her back. Do you have a plan?"

"I'm working on it, but we've found something very interesting at the mansion that may help with that. How soon can you return?"

Glancing up to Optimus, the rich man was given a nod by the Autobot leader, who heard everything. "I'll be there in a few minutes. See you then." With that, the call ended, and Taro craned his head back to the Autobots. "I don't suppose you can whip up one of those GroundBridges to my home, can you?"

From the main console, Mei hopped up to her feet and sent him a salute. "Sure thing! Just need longitude and latitude and we can get ya there in a snap! Let's save Yaomomo!" Once the proper coordinates had been given, the GroundBridge was activated and a group of Autobots gathered up; Optimus, Windblade, Bumblebee, Jazz and Bulkhead, with Izuku and Kyoka going with their respective guardians. Taro and Yua, meanwhile, went with Optimus himself.

"We cannot wait." Prime declared, giving his medic a nod. "Red Alert, contact Jetfire and tell him to head straight for All Might's location. We will be back as soon as we can." He raised a hand to the portal. "Autobots, Transform and Roll Out!"

All at once, the bots did as he ordered, zooming through the vortex before it closed behind them. Sideswipe let out a huff and sat down, placing a hand on his helm. "Man… this whole thing sucks."

"For once, we agree." Strongarm empathized, leaning against the wall next to him. Her optics shifted to the ground sadly. "Poor Momo… and Windblade, too. I know what it feels like… to you've failed your partner."

"Hey, the whole thing with Ingenium WASN'T your fault, you know." Sideswipe argued.

"No… but failing to stop Stain before Tenya got to him was." the cadet contended. But before Sideswipe could counter her point…

*BZZT* *BZZT* *BZZT*

Another emergency alarm rang through the base, making Red Alert groan exasperatedly. "Oh, by Trion's beard, what NOW?!" He answered the call, though this time were wasn't any video feed with it. "This is Red Alert, who is—"

"RED!" From the other end of the call, Ochako and Itsuka practically screamed, taking all of them aback. "We need help!"

Mei did a doubletake at the double voices herself. "W-Woah! Pink Cheeks, Karate Girl, what's going on?!"

"We're being attacked by a giant old man!" Ochako answered.

"He's trying to catch us! A-And our parents!" Itsuka added. "Kyoka was right!"

The Autobots were immediately on high alert as Red typed into the console, bringing the radar up once again. "Scrap, scrap, SCRAP!" Thankfully, the map held a promising outcome, as two Autobot signals were closing in on the girls' location. "Girls, Arcee and Flare-Up are nearly there! Just hold out for a bit longer!"

…..

"Easy for you to say!" Ochako shrieked, only to be tackled to the ground by Itsuka as another table went flying over their heads. "Ah! We're sitting ducks out there! A-And we got separated from our families! Please, tell them to—" *CRASH* "HAH!" The girls gasped as Colossus Rhodes SLAMMED down in front of their hiding spot, slowly making his way toward the cornered duo.

The massive man slammed his fist into his palm with an insidious smirk. "Hehehe… oh, I'm gonna get a GREAT payday after this. First you, then your folks. This is gonna be—" *SMASH* "…Huh?" Wood splinters went flying off of Rhodes' back as he felt something break against his spine, causing him to turn around. There, he saw a rather fearful pair of men staring up at him, though they did their best to appear as angry as possible to mask their distress.

"L-Leave our daughters alone, you monster!" Ogura snapped.

Isamu held the remaining chair leg in his hand, ready to use the splintered end. "We've already called the police! The heroes will be on their way!"

Colossus Rhodes simply let out a laugh. "Hahaha! You think they can get here in time to stop me?" He reached down and batted away Isamu's weapon with ease, before then grabbing the two men by their necks and holding them up to choke them out. "Hehe, we'll be gone LONG before they arrive."

"DAD!" Itsuka shrieked.

"Daddy!" Getting to her feet, Ochako instinctively went in to touch Rhodes' back and make him float. 'I may get in trouble, but I'm not about to let them die!' But, just as her fingertips were about to make contact…

*CRASH* *SHOOM* *THUNK*

The girls cried out in shock as something flew in through a window and stuck itself into the wall between them and Rhodes, which made the large man spin back around in surprise. What they saw was… quite unusual. It was a spear. But not just any run-of-the-mill spear, but a VERY ornate one. Its handle was red and quite long, with a golden clasp at the very end. It had to have been made of some type of metal just at a glance, but the business end of it was where it really showed how stylized it was. It began with a golden dragon head with its mouth opened up, making the actual jagged spear head resemble flames spewing from its maw. The spear head was mostly black with red detail, and the edge of the blade was gold as well.

Neither Itsuka or Ochako had any idea what to make of it. "W-What the?!"

"Hm? The hell is this thing?" Rhodes grumbled.

Just then, the sound of the door being kicked open caught their attention. In the doorway was a lone Japanese man… who was standing on a red hoverboard that had four stabilizers sticking out of the front and back ends, making it resemble a drone. There was also a strange box that was attached to the underside of the board, which was cleverly hidden by decorative yellow cloud pieces on each side. If one was far away enough, they would've mistaken him to be riding on an actual cloud.

But, more importantly to Ochako and Itsuka… he was dressed like a hero. He wore a golden spandex suit with matching gloves and boots, with heavier armor across his body. He had a black chest piece, shoulder pads, arm bracers, shin guards and even three waist skirts hanging from his silver belt, all of them with red trimming. The man himself was quite handsome, with tanned skin and wild, blond hair that had a red streak in it. He also wore a rather cocky grin as he hopped off his hoverboard, allowing it to fly above him.

"Heh, sorry, that's mine." Reaching out, the man actually summoned his weapon back to him, and once it reached his hand… it played a techno tune and declared;

RYUKO NO GEKI!

Rhodes sneered, tossing Ogura and Isamu away. Their daughters and wives immediately went to check on them as the villain approached whoever this was. "And just who the hell are you s'posed to be?"

"A hero passing through." Without losing his smile, the man narrowed his eyes at Rhodes in irritation. "And I gotta say, you picked a BAD time to attack a restaurant, big guy." He began pacing the room, standing off against Rhodes as the bigger man remained in guard. "I was just on my way to my brother's place, got a call from him saying my niece has been kidnapped."

Overhearing this, both Ochako and Itsuka felt their jaws drop. "…Did he say "niece"?" the brunette asked. Itsuka could only nod silently.

The blond hero raised his weapon at the mercenary. "You wouldn't happen to have anything to DO with that, do ya? 'Cause it seems like you're focusing all your energy on these families only."

"Hmph, well, that's pretty presumptuous." Rhodes shrugged his large shoulders. "What's it matter anyways?"

A chuckle passed the man's lips… before reaching up to the dragon head on his spear. "It matters… because it'll depend on how hard I'll kick your butt." He opened the dragon head and then snapped it back down, causing the spear's black part to start glowing green. And along with it… came some cheery music and rhythmic chanting;

DORA! DORA! DORAGON!

DORA! DORA! DORAGON!

DORA! DORA! DORAGON!

Raising his spear up, the man pointed it straight at his hoverboard, setting his finger upon a hidden trigger near the base of the molded dragon head. "Dragon Armor… ON!"

He pressed the trigger down and sent a signal up to the board, causing the box underneath to burst open and send down two pieces of armor that clamped down over his chest. It was comprised of shimmering golden scale pieces, and had a circular red and black emblem in the center that was clearly based on the head of an Asian dragon. In addition, a black, open-face, Khitan war helmet with red trimming and a red feather sticking out the back hole came down and slid over his head, completing the overall aesthetic.

CHOU ICHIRYUU! ACHHOOOO!

The armored hero, with his staff in hand, STAMPED the butt-end of his weapon upon the ground, causing the entire room to shake. The Uraraka and Kendo families, along with Colossus Rhodes himself, stared slack-jawed at the staggering power he displayed. "Wh-Who… who the hell ARE you?!" Rhodes demanded.

Pressing the side of his helmet, a golden V-shaped visor came down over the man's eyes, his smile and glare unwavering. "My name… is Jiro Yaoyorozu! But most people know me as the Tora-Dora Hero…" He widened his stance and swung his spear out, ready for combat. "Jiro DORAGOKU!"

"…Did he just say what I think he did?" Ochako whispered.

"Jiro… Yaoyorozu." Despite the harrowing situation, Itsuka couldn't help but wear an amused grin. "Kyoka's gonna get a kick outta this when she finds out."

Doragoku nudged his chin to the others, shouting to them; "You people, get outta here and wait for the other heroes! I'll take this idiot down!"

Rhodes went to spin back around, intent on preventing their escape. "Oh no you—" *TONG* "GYAUGH!"

"Ah-ah, eyes on ME, buster!" Having knocked him upside the head with his spear handle, Doragoku leapt up on the massive man's shoulder, wearing a toothy smirk. "Your fight is with ME, remember? RRRAAH!" With a single flip kick, the smaller man sent Rhodes flying into the nearby bar, spilling several drinks across the floor while the two families fled through the open doorway. "Good, they're out. Now to wrap THIS up quickly so I can get home—"

"AUUGHH!" Bursting out of the wood, Rhodes shot up and back into battle, ignoring the fact that he was covered completely in wine and other beverages. "That's it! I don't care who you are! You're going down, little man!" He swung his arm up and landed an intense uppercut on Doragoku, sending him flying straight into the air. Rhodes followed up with a powerful leap and then brought both fists down HARD on Doragoku's back, propelling him into the floor boards. Once he landed, the larger man took Doragoku by the head and SLAMMED him repeatedly into the floor time and time again, until all that was left was splinters and little bits of debris from the cement foundation. Once he was done, Rhodes tossed his victim into bar, all while breathing hard following the successive attacks. But just as he was about to walk away…

"Heh… hehehe. Hahaha!" A loud, boisterous laugh made Rhodes snap back around… right on time to see Doragoku appear behind him. There wasn't a scratch on him, and his eyes were glowing with a golden aura as red lightning crackled around him. "Haha! That was fun! …My turn." Swinging his weapon, Doragoku struck Rhodes in the side, making the monster of a man fly straight through the wall to the outside.

…..

As that was happening, Ochako and Itsuka led their families out into the parking lot where many others had already escaped, the six of them trying to catch their breath. "Hah… hah… is everybody alright?" Akane asked, gripping to her husband's shirt as she glared up at him. "And what about you?! What in god's name made you think THAT was a good idea?!"

Isamu raised his hands defensively. "W-Well, what can I say?! I went into "Protective Dad" mode!" He thrust a hand out to his daughter. "What, did you expect me NOT to try and save Itsuka while there were no heroes around?"

"Mom, dad, please!" Itsuka implored. "Not in the parking lot. There's a lot of people here and we don't need to cause a scene in the middle of all this." She smiled softly to her parents. "And besides, I'm okay. WE'RE all okay."

Isamu and Akane looked to each other and calmed down, both reciprocating their daughter's smile. "Yes, you're right." Akane agreed before taking on a more serious countenance. "Still… it's troubling that this is all happening. First your friends' parents, then your friend, and now us?"

Ogura and Osuna were also left troubled as they hugged their own daughter. "Yeah, what could they possibly want with us?" the Uraraka patriarch asked. "I'm just a construction worker."

"Yeah, and I repair motorcycles for a living." Isamu voiced as well, only to hesitantly eye his daughter. "Unless… this has something to do with them being U.A. Students. Could this guy be part of those… "League of Villains" people who attacked the school at the beginning of the year?"

And just like that, Ochako and Itsuka's eyes lit up. They now had the perfect alibi. "Th-That must be it!" Ochako concurred. "Those guys have been after us practically since day one! Some of my classmates went on their work study and ended up in a city where the League attacked!"

Osuna gasped in realization. "Hah! That's right, Hosu! Your classmates were caught up in all of that with them and the Hero Killer, weren't they? Oh god… is this what being a U.A. student is like? Having to live in fear?"

"I… I-I don't think so." Itsuka denied. "This seems like a more recent—"

*BOOM*

All of a sudden, the wall of the restaurant exploded outward as Colossus Rhodes came flying through, landing in a heap on the ground. The crowd collectively gasped and shouted, backing away from the villain… only to then erupt into cheers as Doragoku came flying out on his cloud hoverboard. He jumped off and landed on the roof of the restaurant, smirking down to his opponent. "Ya know, I've dealt with your kind before. Strength-enhancing Quirks are pretty standard, and none of you ever learn that all your attacks do is feed me."

Rhodes stood up, stomping in defiance. "First off, my powers aren't a Quirk. They're tech-based. Secondly, what the hell do you mean I'm "feeding you"?"

"Ah, tech-based powers, eh? Well then, that doesn't make you so much a villain as it does a terrorist, then." Doragoku swung his weapon around and raised a hand, his body still crackling with red energy. "As for what I mean, MY Quirk is called "Kinetic Storm". I absorb the kinetic energy that my opponent dishes out and then absorb it into MY body to use. I can either have it enhance my own strength… or use it all in one big burst. On that note…" He pressed down on the dragon emblem in his chest… and it started up another round of music with an additional loud declaration;

DORAGON OUGI!

As the fast-paced music played, the kinetic energy around Doragoku began to surge even more, causing him to float up into the air. As this happened, the energy also began taking on a more distinct form, the bolts creating a serpentine shape with four legs and a large, horned head with long whiskers. Finishing with a tail that had energy "feathers" at the tip, the kinetic force around the hero had taken the form of a golden dragon, which reared back its head and opened its maw, amplifying his voice into a mighty roar; "GAAAOOOO!" The energy dragon then flew right down toward Colossus Rhodes, who was so stunned by the sight that he almost didn't move.

Rhodes did try to fight back… but when he pulled his arm back, he heard something go crack in his body. He looked down and saw that he was bleeding from the ribs, and no doubt a few of them were broken. '…Damn it.'

"LIGHTNING DRAGON FLASH!"

GEKIRYUUNOMAI!

AH-TATATATATATA!

With its mouth still wide open, the kinetic energy dragon bit down on Colossus Rhodes, with Doragoku landing in a crouch behind him while holding his spear out. The very next second, a MASSIVE explosion engulfed Rhodes, sending a huge concussive wave throughout the area. In the aftermath, the energy pilons in Rhodes' back short circuited, reverting him back into his skinny, frail form… right as he slammed into a car.

"…I have seen a LOT today, and yet somehow, ALLof what I just saw takes the cake." Itsuka stated, with the others silently nodding.

As Doragoku rose to his full height, he and the two families at the center of all this were taken aback by his true appearance. "Hah, wow." Jiro slung his spear over his shoulder. "Who woulda guessed this shorty could cause so much trouble?"

"How in the world could technology do THAT to a tiny old man?" Ochako wondered as well.

"No clue, but I'm about to find out…" However, Jiro only took a single step forward before… something happened. "URK! Augh!" His hands flew up to his head as he doubled over, his helmet falling off and spear clattering to the ground. "ACH! C-Come on! Really?! NOW?!"

At this point, Rhodes had come to and saw Jiro struggling in place, which he took as an opportunity to discreetly activate the commlink in his ear. "This is Rhodes, I've been incapacitated. I need an evac, I repeat; I NEED and evac…"

Despite his struggles, a certain voice in the back of Jiro's mind spoke to him… which was actually his own. 'This bastard KNOWS where Momo is! If we wanna find her…' In an instant, Jiro's eyes changed from gold to blue, and his hair went from blonde to silver, drooping down over his face. Even the streak in it changed from red to blue, all while his constant smile was replaced by a snarl… and a much more growly voice. "…We've gotta BEAT the answers outta him!"

The Uraraka and Kendo families were understandably concerned by what just happened. "Uh… sir?" Ogura reached out. "A-Are you okay—"

"BACK OFF!" Jiro snapped, picking up his weapon all while the golden dragon armor over his chest fell off. With the press of a button, the spear's handle shortened to only about a foot and a half long, while he manually grabbed hold of the spear head… and flipped it down to the side. In less than a second, the weapon had been transformed into a hand axe. Jiro opened and shut the dragon's head again, this time making the blade glow bright orange. "AWAKEN!"

TI-TI-TIGER!

TI-TI-TIGER!

TI-TI-TIGER!

Jiro's hoverboard flew over him again, right as he raised his axe up to the black box once more. "Tiger Armor… UP!" He pressed the trigger and the box opened up, releasing a different yet similar armor set. This chest piece was much more angular than the curved dragon one from before, and the pattern on this one reflected that with hard, silver tiles and white trim. Even the helmet was slightly different, still mostly black but with a set of white horns on the side instead of a feather, while the open face was surrounded by more white trim. A blue visor slide down over his eyes, completing the change.

EX-TORA! WACHAAAOOOO!

The hero took a more squatted position as he rested his axe on his shoulder, putting a hand to his chin before pushing it abruptly… resulting in a loud CRACK from his neck. "Grah… now, we can get to business."

"…M-Mr. Doragoku?" Isamu asked.

"Not here." Jiro denied as he stalked his way over to Colossus Rhodes. "Right now, you've got me…" He swung his axe down directly next to Rhodes' head, making the frail man quake with fear. "Jiro TORABOLT!"

"T-T-Torabolt?" the group uttered in fear.

Lowering his face down to the terror-struck man, Torabolt growled out; "Now LISTEN UP, ya four-eyed FREAK! You're gonna tell me EXACTLY what I wanna know! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU PEOPLE HIDING MY NEICE?!"

Rhodes flinched and raised his arms in surrender. "O-Okay, I'll talk, I'll talk! I-I'll tell you everything!" Torabolt grumbled eagerly, as if he wasn't completely satisfied with the answer but let him continue. "Th-The key to finding your niece is with one single word."

Torabolt narrowed his eyes. "And what's that?"

"…Bye." Right then, Rhodes' dread switched on a dime, flashing Torabolt a confident smirk before vanishing in a flash of light.

"W-WHAT?!" Whipping around in all directions, Torabolt was left dumbstruck and boiling mad. Gone. He was completely gone. "RRRRAAAAUUUGHHH!" Swinging his axe, the hero nearly cleaved it straight through a nearby streetlight… but he manually stopped himself with his other arm. "G-G-Goddamn it! …Ugh…" Standing still for a moment, the man seemed to calm down, taking his helmet off a few seconds later to reveal that he'd gone back into blond mode. "Hah… that sucked."

As the Urarakas and Kendos watched his armor fall away from his body, they almost didn't notice the sound of engines approaching from behind them. It wasn't until a certain pair of voices called out to the girls that they finally did. "OCHAKO!"

"ITSUKA!" Whirling around, the girls were met with instant relief as they saw Arcee and Flare-Up arrive, the femmes pulling to a stop alongside a black car with a siren on top of it. The two Cybertronians' holoforms left their vehicle modes and rushed up to them, the girls also running in to embrace their guardians. "Oh thank Pri—GOD that you're safe!" Tracey exclaimed.

"I'm sorry that we couldn't get here sooner." Sadie apologized as well. "…I knew we should've bridged here." she added under her breath.

"G-Girls, it's okay, we're fine." Ochako assured, craning her head back to the hero in the gold and black spandex. "That guy over there, he saved us all!"

Sadie's eyes widened in surprise. "Is that so?" But then, she noticed Ochako's parents nearby and gasped. "Ah! O-Ogura, Osana!"

"Oh, my goodness, Sadie!" The brunette woman approached the pink-haired girl, reaching out to grasp her hands. "It's so good to see a familiar face. You would not BELIEVE the night we've had. It was almost a disaster!"

"Almost is an understatement." Akane added. "But, at least everyone is safe…" She trailed off when her sights landed on Tracey, and it didn't take her long to greet her with a smile. "Ah, and you must be this Tracey girl that Itsuka's been going on about!"

Seeing the family resemblance, Tracey stood up straight and addressed the redheaded mother. "Y-Yes, ma'am! …Wait, you've been tellin' them about me?"

The Big Fist user only gave a shrug. "Well yeah, why wouldn't I?"

"Thank you for watching out for our daughter in the big city." Isamu said with a bow. "It means a lot to us."

Before the conversation could continue any further, however, a loud cough caught their attention. "Ahem, apologies for interrupting…" The group all turned to see a police detective in a long coat approaching them, along with an African-American man in a three-piece suit. There was also more police that had arrived and escorted the crowd away from the premises, leaving just them and Jiro in the parking lot. "I'm Detective Tsukauchi. And this is my associate…"

"Special Agent William Fowler." Fowler flashed a badge. "Sector Seven."

The four adults stared at the badge for a moment. "…Never heard of it." Ogura stated.

"And that's a good thing." Fowler put away his badge. "We have reason to believe that these recent reported kidnappings are connected with the man who attacked you here tonight."

Osuna placed a hand over her chest. "Oh dear… does that mean they really ARE a part of the League of Villains?"

Fowler shook his head. "No, they aren't. We're thinking they're part of a different organization entirely, one that's given my people problems in the past. We're not exactly sure WHY they're targeting you, but that's what we're intending on finding out." He briefly glanced to Ochako and Itsuka, flashing a quick smile before going back to the parents. "If it's okay with you all, we'd like to bring you and your girls in for a bit of questioning."

"Woah, woah, hold up there, Mr. Special Agent." Hearing Jiro's voice pipe up again, the group looked to him as he approached, his cloud hoverboard still following behind. "If these incidents are all connected, then I want in on this. I got a phone call from my brother saying that my niece was kidnapped, and I wanna help bring down whoever these people are."

"Your niece… she wouldn't happen to be one Momo Yaoyorozu, would she?" Tsukauchi asked.

The blond man nodded. "Yeah, that's right. I'm Jiro Yaoyorozu, Taro's younger brother. I was just on my way to the family mansion when THIS all happened."

Fowler scratched his chin, all while a smirk formed on his face. 'JIRO Yaoyorozu, eh? Oh, this'll be priceless.' He cleared that thought from his mind and gave him a nod. "Hm, I see. Well then, I think there may be a way that we can all help each other. Follow us, we'll get you hooked up with everything you're gonna need."

"…Oh, NOW you're speaking my language, sir." Jiro's lips curled into an eager grin, leaping up onto his board and propping his spear up on his shoulder. "Lead the way!"

…..

As all of that was happening, things were both in a panicked and somber state at the Yaoyorozu Mansion itself. The resident staff were all working hard to fix everything that had been wrecked by the archer, but it was hard for them to focus after the young lady of the household had been kidnapped. And that was exactly why Maurice, Toni and Takeru were all gathered in the heiress' room; they were waiting for their trusted friend and employer to return in hopes that they might be able to locate her.

For a long time, they simply sat in saddened silence, though a certain Oni Quirk user was getting antsy. Toni Vista had never been one for patience, but the situation she was in did NOT help. Not even reading her favorite manga was helping calm her nerves. "Gah! DAMMIT!" she threw the paperback across the room, grabbing her club with a harsh growl. "What the hell is taking so long?! I thought Taro said he'd be here soon!"

"All depends on what "soon" is defined as, Toni." Takeru reminded.

"Indeed." Maurice concurred, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Come, Toni, let's all take a deep breath and—"

"Do NOT tell me to calm down, Maurice!" Toni yelled with a harsh glare. "Don't you get it?! We… we… we failed." All at once, her anger dissipated into despair as she fell to her knees, slamming her fist on the floor in frustration. "It was OUR job to protect Momo… and we let some pointy-nosed, buck-toothed jerk with STICKS get the better of us! …We let her DOWN."

Maurice shared a look with Takeru, the two men feeling downtrodden themselves. "…I agree. It was FAR from one of our best moments." All the same, he offered Toni a smile and returned his hand to her shoulder. "But that's what we're gathering together for; to FIND the young miss and get her back."

Just then, the door opened, bringing everyone's attention to Agent Barker as he stepped in. "And that's exactly what we're going to do. …They're here, and they've brought friends of th young miss." The three of them stood at attention as Taro and Yua entered the room. In addition, behind them were a couple of teenagers who the staff assumed were Momo's friends. "Everyone, allow me to introduce Sir Midoriya and Miss Jiro."

Izuku did a doubletake at that. "S-Sir?!"

Kyoka, however, like the sound of that. "Ah, c'mon." She nudged her best friend in the arm. "Having formal titles around here ain't so bad."

"It's a pleasure to meet the both of you." Maurice greeted before setting his sights upon his employer, to which he and the others bowed their heads in shame. "Sir, ma'am… we profusely apologize for—"

But Taro quickly dismissed that. "Let's save the "I'm sorry's" for later, shall we? We have a much more important matter to settle." His brows furrowed to his chief of staff. "Tell me, Maurice, what did you find? And how will it help us locate my daughter?"

Takeru was the one to answer, retrieving an oddly-shaped device from the bed. "It's right here. We found it hidden in her closet… where we told her to hide."

"Hm…" Taro took hold of the device and inspected it, though it didn't take him long to figure out what it was. "This… this is a tracker." All at once, his and Yua's expressions changed to that of joyous smiles, along with everyone else in the room joining them. "Hahaha! Our little girl is a genius!"

"She always was a forward thinker." Kyoka noted. "Just took her a bit of time to realize that."

Activating the device, Yua and Taro waited with baited breath… but to say they weren't expecting the reading they got was an understatement. "O-Okinawa?!" the woman exclaimed. "That's so far from the mainland!"

"It makes sense, though." Taro deduced. "They probably didn't want to risk us finding their secret base, so they established it away from most prying eyes."

Raising a determined fist, Izuku beamed hopefully to the married couple. "Okay, so now that we know where they are, we can form an effective plan of attack. Once we—"

But Barker placed a firm hand on the boy's shoulder, furrowing his brow at him. "Ahem, I do not know what you're prattling on about, young man, but YOU are not going to do anything. Rather, WE will be going to retrieve the young miss and—"

"Hold it right there, Jon." Taro interrupted. "These kids have as much stake in this as we do. These same people kidnapped their own parents, after all. And besides… there's literally no way we can stop them from coming."

As the billionaire stepped over to the hole where the bedroom window once was, he received several confused looks from his staff. "Er… why, sir?" Toni inquired. But then… something started to happen. The room began shaking intermediately, as if heavy footfalls were slowly approaching from… outside?

Standing just beside the hole in the wall, Taro gestured out… right as something big stopped outside. "Because the kids and these guys are a package deal. And they're our best bet in rescuing Momo and their parents."

Leaning down so he could peer through the window, the visage of Optimus Prime left every single one of the mansion's top staff completely speechless. "Greetings, all." The Autobot leader waved. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance. So, what news do you have to share with us?"

"I'm hoping it's GOOD news." Windblade said as she practically climbed up and stuck her head in through the window, making everyone gasp. "Because we've gotta act fast to save Momo! So, what's going on?"

After gawking at the robots for a few seconds, Barker slowly craned his head toward his boss. "…Sir?"

"Yes, Jon?" Taro grinned.

"WHAT IN THE BLOODY HELL?!"

…..

A/N: And thus, the cat comes out of the bag to even MORE people now. But, in a situation like this, that seems to be unavoidable, especially in the case of those who were kidnapped. Now we've got Inko, Kyotoku, Mika, Taro, Yua AND the entire Yaoyorozu mansion's staff in on the secret… with probably a certain new hero to be added into the mix soon enough.

But before we get to Mr. Dragon-Tiger Man, let's go over what happened here, shall we? Of course, we get a confrontation between M.E.C.H. and their prisoners, with Swindle and Momo exchanging some rather pointed words of their own. …And as expected, some of the parents don't take to finding out they've been lied to over the past several months well. Sure, it's a pretty important secret, but still, their concern for their children involving themselves in a WAR is at least understandable. …Still, not exactly how Inko and the Jiros expected to meet one another, for sure.

Thankfully, it seems the Yaoyorozus are a bit more understanding, and are even forgiving of Windblade, knowing that it wasn't her fault that their daughter was kidnapped. And thankfully, it seems that Momo used that big brain of hers and left a tracer for them to locate her! …You can probably expect there to be quite the raid happening in the next chapter. And in the meantime, seems All Might's gonna partner up with the new guy soon! Skullcruncher's expecting a lot of things… but I doubt Jetfire's a part of that list.

But okay, let's get to the OTHER new guy who's made his debut in this chapter. But just to clarify a bit, if you couldn't tell from my notes in the last chapter, I based Momo's family and mansion staff off of the famous Japanese folktale of Momotaro, the boy born from a peach that recruits a dog, pheasant and monkey to go to an island to fight a fearsome oni army. …This tale was ALSO the inspiration for Avataro Sentai Donbrothers, which I also slightly incorporated into these side characters.

And of course, that leads us to Jiro Yaoyorozu, who is blatantly inspired by the sixth ranger of the Donbrothers; Don Doragoku/Torabolt… who is based on Sun Wukong and the concept of the Yin Tiger and Yang Dragon. Right down to the split personality. So, why do this? Well, aside from expanding Momo's family life, I just thought it'd be fun. I mean, heck, given the crazy stuff that happens in the world of MHA, Sentai-level shenanigans don't seem TOO out of place, even if Jiro isn't a true "Ranger". All the same, he DID save Ochako, Itsuka and their families, so he's definitely a good one… even if his OTHER self seems a bit violent. With that said, though…

And now, The Preview! With their plan locked into place and more allies recruited to help storm M.E.C.H.'s base of operations, it's time to rescue Momo and the others! That said, it seems that Taro's hesitant on something… of letting his own Quirk run wild! Will he make the ultimate move to save his daughter, or will he hold himself back?! Meanwhile, Swindle and Optimus Prime get into a scrap of their own, and… M.E.C.H.'s soldiers actually put up a better fight than expected?! Next Time; The Call to Rescue. The festival has arrived! Thanks for reading, everybody, and I'll see you all next time! Stay safe out there, and remember;

GO BEYOND! PLUS ULTRA!