Chapter 13

.::Progress Towards the Future::.

Day three of searching Odawara for Tokoyami. By now, Shouto might feel very tempted to burn something down if he were more hot-headed and comfortable with the fire half of his Quirk. As it stood, he settled for shooting a frosty glare at his few meager remaining coins as he sat on a park bench contemplating his next move.

His search should have been simple. After thinking it over, Shouto had quickly realized that while Tokoyami might be part of a famous phantom thief duo, his cloak hid all his identifying features, meaning he wouldn't need to hide or disguise himself to go out in public. A boy with a black bird head stood out in a crowd, so theoretically, people should remember seeing him.

Unfortunately, Shouto had failed to take into account that while a bird head was unusual, large-scale mutations like that weren't exactly rare. People paid no particular attention to most unique mutations, used to seeing people coming in all sorts of shapes and colors every day. One of the local policemen he saw patrolling had a head shaped like a kappa for crying out loud, complete with green skin and a beak and a little dish for water on top of his head.

In short, in a world of bizarre mutations, Tokoyami really didn't stick out that much. Not unless he did something significant, which obviously he wouldn't seeing as he was likely trying to keep a low profile. Drawing attention to himself would probably go against the script for the sidekick of a nationally wanted villain.

At this point Shouto didn't even know if Tokoyami was actually in Odawara. His speculations could have been totally wrong, or they may have moved their base to another city. Gentle Criminal had a tendency to move on to a new area after so much time passed after all, and the latest string of thefts had been about the regular length. If that was the case he'd need to do some more research at a net cafe, but right now Shouto's funds had reached a critical low.

His stomach released a low growl, making his eyes narrow in irritation. Could he even afford actual food? The little change he had could probably buy him a cheap bento box at a convenience store or some pre-wrapped onigiri, but it wouldn't be too filling and would only last one meal. He needed to be careful about how he spent his remaining money, get something that could last a while. At least he had water handled thanks to his Quirk.

Sighing in quiet frustration, he shoved the change back into his pocket and tugged at the eye patch to make sure it fully covered his scar when he felt something prod his leg. Snapping a startled look downwards, he saw a small gray squirrel tugging at his pant leg, bushy tail curled like a question mark. As he stared at it blankly it seemed to perk up, and it quickly released its grip to nudge a wrapped onigiri towards his foot with its nose.

At that Shouto's eyes went wide, bolting upright as he stared down at the food. "What the," he muttered, bending forward to pick it up. As soon as he did the squirrel turned and scurried away, making Shouto jolt and quickly get to his feet. "Hey, wait—" He stopped himself short, his free hand still reaching for the fleeing rodent as his features contorted with confusion. His mouth thinned as he looked at the wrapped onigiri in his hand, his eyebrows furrowing.

Did... Did a squirrel just give him lunch?

No, he realized suddenly, it didn't give me lunch. It delivered it. An admittedly subtle distinction, but still key because if it merely delivered it, then someone had ordered it to do so. The realization had him jerking to stand ramrod straight, his head swiveling to look around the park. Not many people were around, only a woman jogging with a dog in the far distance, but then he saw movement behind a restroom facility across the path. There.

With speed honed from years of extensive training under his father Shouto surged forward, bolting around the corner almost as fast as lightning to find himself face to face with two people: a girl with green vines for hair and the other possessing a familiar pink, rock-shaped head. Kouda Kouji. Shouto had suspected it considering his Quirk, but seeing his quiet classmate still came as a surprise that left him freezing in place.

For a moment they just stared at each other, too shocked to react. Then Kouda released a surprised squeal as he jumped back, waving his hands wildly with frantic whines and whimpers. Shouto faltered at his classmate's reaction, desperately racking his brain on how to react when Kouda's companion spoke up. "Ah, so you noticed us," she commented. "We had hoped our act of charity would go unnoticed, but perhaps it is fate that we meet now."

"Fate?" Shouto repeated, turning to look at her with a puzzled look. As he did he realized that she wasn't actually a stranger, recognizing the vines that constituted her hair from the Sports Festival. She was in Class 1-B, wasn't she? The one who got to the tournament and beat Kaminari. Shiozaki, if I remember right.

"Pardon our rudeness," she said, offering a serene smile as she folded her hands as if in prayer. "We do not like showing ourselves to strangers openly. You may call me Maria, and my companion Rockfish." Fake names, Shouto noted, and she seemed to pick up on his thoughts as she added, "I apologize for using pseudonyms, but it is safer for us if we do not share our real names. You are the lost lamb Kuroe mentioned, are you not?"

"Kuroe?" The name made Shouto's gaze sharpen, focusing on her intently. He felt highly aware of the flip phone in his pocket, having barely touched it since he'd taken it on Sunday. He wasn't entirely sure why he'd taken it and then kept it, unsure if he could even trust the man. Kuroe had recognized him after all; it could be a trap to lower his guard.

Shiozaki nodded once. "Yes, he is one of our group's most benevolent patrons. He told us a boy with black hair and an eye patch had come to Odawara seeking some unknown goal, and that he would likely be in need of assistance. Rockfish and I have been watching you since early this morning, and we noticed you had not eaten yet today so we decided to anonymously gift you a small meal. We did not expect you to notice us."

"Right," Shouto muttered, eying them warily but letting some of the tension seep from his posture. Kouda's Quirk let him command animals and he remembered his classmate using birds as scouts in past exercises, so it wasn't too strange that he might have used some to follow him. The thought he'd been watched at all without noticing still unsettled him though, his eyes flicking towards the nearby tree line. Could someone be watching right now?

For the time being he pushed away the thought as he turned back to Shiozaki, offering a small nod. "I am... not comfortable that I was being watched," he admitted lowly, making Kouda wince and shrink back guiltily. Seeing that Shouto tried to keep his voice more gentle as he added, "But I do appreciate the food. I was just trying to figure out what I could afford, so... thank you." He dipped forward in a bow as he spoke, feeling a bit awkward.

"Please, you do not need to thank us," Shiozaki told him as he straightened, her hands folded in prayer once more. "Performing a good deed and helping a fellow troubled soul is reward enough." Kouda vigorously bobbed his head next to her, still looking nervous and slightly intimidated by Shouto's presence. In turn Shouto gave a single nod, turning his attention back to the onigiri.

"So are you two in the phone Kuroe gave me?" he asked as he tore at the wrapper, and Shiozaki nodded.

"Yes, we are. I am registered under the name 'Maria's Garden Care,' and Rockfish is 'Odawara Wildlife Rescue.' If you require any assistance feel free to call us, though I am more likely to answer than he is." Shouto hummed, taking a bite of the rice ball and chewing carefully for a moment before swallowing.

"Why would you help me?" He didn't mask the suspicion in his gaze as he stared at her, continuing bluntly, "We're strangers. You don't look like you're in good positions either." Both of them had on rather worn-looking clothes. Shiozaki wore a thick red sweater and a long wool skirt that frayed around the hem, along with dirty hiking boots. Kouda meanwhile had on a bulky mustard-colored sweatshirt with several small holes in it and dark jeans, paired with ratty-looking, heavy-duty boots that had mismatched laces.

The vine-haired girl's smile softened slightly, her expression never losing that sense of serenity and quiet dignity. "It is because we are in such poor conditions that we should help one another. We do not know what may haunt you, but we, too, know the difficulties of being cast from your home and forced to fend for yourself. This world is full of too much cruelty, and there is no reason to make it worse."

Her voice carried a note of such strong sincerity that Shouto found it difficult not to believe her, finally allowing himself to relax. No matter how he looked at it, he couldn't imagine this overly pious Shiozaki or the timid and kind Kouda to harbor any malevolent intentions, no matter what may have happened to them here.

They're just runaways, he thought. He'd seen some references online to kids with particularly powerful or useful Quirks running away from home in an attempt to protect their families, and Kouda's Anivoice and Shiozaki's Vines both fit those descriptions.

His thoughts wandered to the flip phone in his pocket, and the various unknown contacts it contained. "It's hard surviving alone out there," Kuroe had said cryptically. "Especially for a kid on the street. Having a network... helps." A network of runaways? It made sense. If Odawara had avoided a majority of organized villain activity like Kuroe suggested, it would be as good a place to hide as any.

His mind swarmed with the new information as he quietly nibbled at the onigiri, just... thinking. If this network was legitimate, then maybe he could use it to help find Tokoyami. But asking for something with nothing to offer in return—especially something so potentially dangerous—left a bad taste in his mouth. Swallowing the rice, he made up his mind and wrapped up the rest for later.

"Thank you, but I don't like leaving favors unpaid," he told Shiozaki. "If you're going to help me, then there should be something I can do to make it even." The least he could do was try to help this group somehow before asking for another favor.

Shiozaki smiled, kind and placid. "If you insist."

"Alright!" Hatsume said, clapping her hands together with what Kyouka had come to mentally dub her "default" manic smile, "We just need to do some quick last-minute testing, and then you'll be ready to go!"

At the moment the trio stood in the warehouse Hatsume used as her workshop, the pink-haired girl having finished the prototypes for their gear just minutes earlier. It had been surprisingly fast since she'd still had to go to school yesterday and today, but today she'd dragged Kaminari straight to the warehouse after classes with the declaration she'd be done within two hours. That suited Kyouka fine since she'd been dying of boredom while they were at school, having little to do after finishing her online classwork.

Right now the two future vigilantes were standing in front of a mirror, looking over their new costumes. "Wow, Hatsume, you got this done really fast," Kaminari commented as he grinned at his reflection. "I thought it'd take a lot longer, but this stuff looks really cool! You're awesome!"

"Yes, yes, I know, now let's test my babies out!" she said, pushing him towards a target range set near the back of the room.

"Yes ma'am!" he agreed with a bright grin, looking ecstatic as he bounced in his new costume. They'd prioritized sturdiness and speed with its design, getting a black hooded jacket that he wore over a long-sleeved white shirt and black pants and boots. To hide his face and distinctive hair he raised the hood and wore an opaque orange visor and black fabric mask over his mouth, though at the moment he had the mask resting around his neck.

He rounded out the look with bulky electronic gauntlets that doubled as gloves. They didn't work quite like his sharpshooting gear, designed to shoot out slender pins which Hatsume had dubbed "lightning rods" instead of discs to serve as a homing point for his electricity. Beyond that, the fingertips each had small openings for a more direct approach.

"So I just point at people and go 'bang'?" he asked, forming a gun-shape with his index finger and thumb pointed at a wooden board with a target painted on it.

"Pretty much!" Hatsume confirmed with a bob of the head. "They should shoot mostly straight, but without a lightning rod the aim probably won't be as accurate or precise. And this part," she tapped a small box-shaped protrusion on the back of his hands, "will store a charge long-term! Just press your thumb and middle finger together, and it'll prime your gauntlets so you can just slam your hands on someone and zap them without having to use your Quirk!"

"Oh good," Kyouka deadpanned, "Now he won't turn into an even bigger idiot in the middle of a fight."

"Hey!" Kaminari whined, shooting her an offended look. "I'm not that dumb!"

"Last place on finals," she reminded him with a smirk, and Kaminari clamped his mouth shut with a scowl.

Hatsume planted her hands on his shoulders and firmly turned him back towards the target range. "Less talking, more testing!" she sang. Kaminari nodded, his expression smoothing as he raised a hand in a gun-pose to point at the circular wooden board.

"Bang," he said, and then a stream of electricity shot out from his index finger and rippled across the room to hit the target. Its path was wobbly and shaky, arcing wildly as it surged forward, but it remained largely straight and hit the outer ring of the target with a resounding crack. The wood didn't break, but small cracks could be seen under scorch marks where the electricity hit. Kaminari huffed, shoulders sagging. "Dang it, I didn't get a bull's-eye."

"I told you, your aim won't be as good without the lightning rods!" Hatsume reminded him. "Those babies are expensive and hard to make though, so you can't just use them all the time! You need to work on your regular aim too!" As she continued lecturing Kaminari on how to best use his new gear Kyouka tuned them out, turning her attention to the mirror to examine her own costume.

Like Kaminari, she also wore a black hooded jacket, along with white amplifier jacks on her hands similar to the ones in her UA costume. Beneath it she wore a light violet dress with a puffy skirt that flared out around her knees to allow for increased mobility, along with dark denim jeans tucked into her chunky speaker boots. They kept with Kaminari's theme by giving her a black visor over her eyes and a white face mask with black starbursts drawn on the right corner below her eye.

The outfit had been designed for practicality first and foremost. Just as Kaminari had said on Saturday, her earphone jacks would be too distinct and identifiable to use openly, so they'd had to get more creative in how they concealed them. Her hood hid the earphone jacks and allow them to snake beneath the sleeves to the amplifier jacks unnoticed. The puffy skirt, meanwhile, would help hide their movement when they slid down to her boots to plug into them.

Overall, the design reminded her a good bit of her actual hero costume, and the same went for Kaminari's. She hoped that if any of their other classmates happened to be here after all, they'd recognize the costumes and track them down. Especially after they added the last touches.

As she stared at her reflection Hatsume suddenly appeared behind her, her yellow eyes seeming to glow as she grinned. "You!" she declared, grabbing Kyouka's shoulders. "It's your turn to show off my new babies!" She dragged Kyouka towards the target range without waiting for a response, and Kyouka frowned as she turned to face it.

Along with the (now-scorched) wooden targets, they'd also set up several stacks of cinder blocks. Kyouka focused on those, extending her earphone jacks to slither down the back of her dress. It felt more than a little weird moving them under clothing and having the fabric rub up against them. She felt a bit of relief when they reached the waist where the skirt flared out, no longer feeling smothered, and from there they plugged into the backs of her boots.

Five seconds later a violent shockwave surged from the speakers, blasting the cinder blocks and sending them toppling.

Next to her Hatsume let out a loud whoop and Kaminari cheered which Kyouka ignored. The range felt shorter than at UA, but the power was decent enough. Twisting her head to peer back at the mirror, she spied a flash of something pale against the backs of her boots and legs, making her frown. "Hey, guys, the jacks stick out against all the black. Any ideas?"

"Uh, maybe we could paint the ends black too?" Kaminari suggested with a frown. "Like, with nail polish or something...? But wait, how would that even work if you stretch them though?"

"This is just Version 1.1!" Hatsume offered enthusiastically. "I can modify it to make a pocket to hide it! In fact, hold on!" She spun around and darted off to a storage shelf next to her work table, rooting around noisily before returning with a small, black tube-shaped object. Crouching next to Kyouka's legs, she quickly stuck it on the back edge of her left boot using sticky tack to hold it in place so the top protruded above it. "Try sliding it in here!"

Kyouka nodded and moved the closest jack to enter the hollow tube, her head twisting to watch her reflection as she did so. It fit fine, the tube maybe a little more roomy than necessary, and its presence diminished the visible amount of skin between the skirt and her boot. She shook her leg a bit to see if the tube would hamper her mobility at all. "It fits, but there's not enough room for me to bend the end to actually plug it into the boot."

"That's because this tube will be the plug!" Hatsume explained as if it were obvious. "I'll add a jack in the bottom that you can plug into just like your gauntlets! And on that note, gauntlets!" She grabbed Kyouka's hands as she steered the vigilante back towards the target range, ordering, "Test them, now!"

"Yeah, yeah," Kyouka muttered, pulling her earphone jacks out of the boots and back up her dress. They slithered down the sleeves of her jacket next, the movement nearly imperceptible under the black fabric, and plugged into the jacks on the end of the gauntlets without ever showing. With that done, she marched up to a large boulder Hatsume had somehow dragged in (when, why and how, she didn't know and didn't want to know) and took a deep breath.

Channeling her heartbeat into the gauntlets, she slammed her palms against the boulder and felt the stone vibrate. Similar to how these boots had a shorter range, the reverberations from the gauntlets were weaker than her own amplifier jacks. The stone loudly cracked beneath her hands and a large dent quickly formed as it caved in, but other than a web of cracks stretching outwards from it, for the most part the boulder remained intact.

She frowned, a little frustrated by the decrease in power, but that was to be expected. They didn't have access to all of UA's resources anymore; she should be grateful Hatsume could even get her this much. Still, though, she felt a curl of unrest in her stomach as she distantly listened to Kaminari cheer and Hatsume prattle on excitedly about how well it worked.

Will it be enough?

Right now, wearing this costume and having tested the gear, it made everything feel more real. They were actually going to be vigilantes in this alternate world. The thought felt both exhilarating and nerve-wracking. Fighting villains was nothing totally new, they'd had bad luck at the USJ and went on the internships. However, fighting on their own? Without UA or even other Pro Heroes to back them up if things went wrong?

This was definitely a giant risk. One wrong move, and they were dead.

She swallowed, her hands clenching at her sides. No, that was a risk anyway. They were in another dimension far more messed up than their own with no idea how they got there or how to get back. For all they knew it could be the work of a villain, lurking somewhere in this reality waiting for an opening to attack them. If they wanted to go home, they needed to take the initiative themselves; they couldn't just sit around doing nothing.

Becoming vigilantes might paint a target on their backs that wouldn't exist otherwise, but at least they could now protect themselves... and others, too. This world was messed up, that was a fact, and Kyouka wouldn't have applied to the hero course if she didn't have some sense of justice. Leaving people to suffer and live in fear just went against her nature.

They'd been training to become heroes anyway, so being a vigilante wouldn't be that different. A bit riskier, sure, but it was better than sitting around watching the world burn. When they got back home, she wondered if Aizawa-sensei would be proud or upset at them for this decision.

The thought made her smile as she turned to face the others. "So, when should we go on our first patrol?" Hatsume's face lit up with a beaming grin even larger than before, while Kaminari's mouth thinned into a firm line full of determination.

I don't think anyone predicted Todoroki meeting Kouda or Shiozaki either. Lucky for him it's Shiozaki, since she's one of the only members of Class 1-B he remembers clearly. Now open to speculation on who else is in Odawara! Also, I need to draw Jirou and Kaminari's vigilante costumes soon. Since writing this chapter, I came up with one more detail for them to add before their first patrol that I think will have a HUGE impact on the story.

On an unrelated note, it's December 23. So Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Joyous Kwanzaa and Happy Holidays to all!