Fairy Worlds Book 1: The Beginning

by ANBUGaming21

Ayato Usagi Kaze, a Seventeen-year-old boy with problems just like any 17-year-old boy, has issues with high school, balancing his life in terms of studying and more so. But on the inside, he has many more things to worry about. In truth, he is a Superhero, and the more he fights, the deeper the rabbit hole goes, not just for him but for everyone around.

3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Hero

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"Talking"

"Thought"

"Inner/Demon Talking"

"Inner/Demon Thought"

"Move/Ability Talking"

"Move/Ability Thought"

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(Story Begins)

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The warehouse was burning at an alarming rate, as Nora from outside had watched the warehouse burn down.

"I can see things go as planned…" Nora gave a deadpan expression before it turned to worry. "I hope Ayato and Kayame are okay…" She added.

She looked at her iPhone and wondered, "When are the firemen coming here?".

Just then, she saw someone leaving the warehouse, wearing a black and white suit, like Nightshade's suit. He got on a parked motorcycle close to the warehouse and began hotwiring it.

Nora watched this and wondered, "He looks different than those other guys. Could he be someone special?".

The man hotwired the motorcycle before its engine finally kicked in, starting the vehicle. He was soon about to leave.

"Where is Ayato and Kayame?! They need to stop him!" Nora said to herself frantically.

"No. I need to stop him." She said, as she then began to run towards the man.

The man slowly started the motorcycle and began to move it. Nora ran as fast as she could, trying to catch up to the motorcycle. Even though the motorcycle had just started its engines, it was going at a pace relatively faster than Nora could run, probably even faster than the average human could run. Nora has a few seconds before the motorcycle reaches the average speed, which is too fast for a person to catch up to. Even though Nora is a fast runner in her school, she isn't fast enough.

"I'm not fast enough!" Nora thought to herself. "NO! I must be fast! I cannot slow down! I just just can't!" She thought to herself as she closed her eyes before opening them again.

She ran much faster, surprisingly faster than she had ever run before than an average human had run. Soon, she caught up to the motorcycle, grabbed the man by the back of his suit, and pulled him off. He yelled, and because he did not wear any headgear, he hit his head and was knocked out unconscious.

"I DID IT!" Nora cheered at her accomplishment. The motorcycle drove a distance away before eventually falling on its side, scraping the ground to an eventual stop.

With the man unconscious, Nora decided to watch over him if he ever attempted something.

BOOM! Nora looked up at the burning warehouse to see a ball of flames burning out as the fire intensified. She watched in worry for her friends, hoping they were okay.

Almost on cue, Ayato jumped out of the window with his mask on and holding Kayame in his arms; he landed on the ground before placing Kayame gently on the ground.

"KAYAME! KAYAME SPEAK TO ME! SPEAK TO ME!" Ayato yelled as he tried to wake Kayame up.

Nora watched in fear and ran towards her friends, and to her shock and sadness, she looked down to see Kayame with a stab wound in his chest, a pool of blood coming out, and his eyes closed. She looked in shock, placing her hands on her mouth, trying to prevent herself from becoming sick at the sight of the blood on her friend. Her knees gave away, and she fell on them, feeling a wave of sadness and heartache from watching her friend in this state.

Ayato was shaking Kayame and trying to wake him up, hoping his friend was somehow alright, but it seemed he wasn't. Like Nora, tears had formed in Ayato's eyes; he took his mask off, trying to get a better look at Kayame.

"No…" Ayato said. "No…" He repeated. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no…" Ayato said quietly as they continuously said. Nora crawled up to Kayame, trying to contain her tears, but she just let it out and sobbed.

"Kayame, no…" She said as she looked at her friend.

"This is all my fault…" Ayato said, temporarily placing his hands on his face before wiping it. "I never should have let you guys come with me… I knew this would happen; I knew something like this would happen…" Ayato said as he sobbed.

"I'm so sorry…" He said.

"KAYAME!" He yelled once more.

"Uhhhhhhhhh… WHAT?!" Just then, Kayame got up and yelled after waking up from hearing Ayato yell.

Both Ayato and Nora stopped crying and looked at the friend, who was now up, ignoring the injury he had taken.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Both Ayato and Nora screamed as they saw Kayame.

"KAYAME! YOU'RE ALIVE!" Ayato yelled in shock and slight fear. "You're alive, right…?" He asked for confirmation.

"Of course I'm alive!" Kayame growled at Ayato. "Why wouldn't I be?! All I did was fall and get knocked out slightly! It's not like-!" Kayame scratched his chest, only to feel the stab wound on him.

"Oh… Oh yeah, I forgot, there was something I wanted to tell the two of you…" Kayame said as he looked at his stab wound, which was already healed.

"I… Got some powers of my own." Kayame said.

"P-P-P-Powers?!" Ayato exclaimed, trying to recover from the shock, wiping his tears. "You got powers?!" Ayato exclaimed once again.

"But how?!" Nora exclaimed.

"I don't know," Kayame replied. "I just remember when I was thirteen, after my birthday, I just got some powers, like you, Ayato. I'm not so sure how, but I do have them." Kayame explained.

"I remember touching something sharp when I was thirteen. I bled, and the wound healed instantly. My mom knows about this but is not to tell anyone, not even you." Kayame explained.

"That's not all, and I also became very strong," Kayame explained further.

"What do you mean?" Ayato asked.

"Well, I got strong enough to lift things no one else could, like a crate or something," Kayame replied.

"W-What?!" Nora exclaimed. "So, you have superpowers, right?" Nora asked.

"Yes," Kayame replied.

"Is anyone else who wants to fess up if they have any superpowers?" Nora asked jokingly, although she was still shocked and morally in pain and disgust at Kayame's power.

Ayato sighed and said, "I'm just happy you're okay, Kayame. But why didn't you tell us while we came here?".

"I tried, but you guys cut me off, and I forgot to tell you," Kayame replied.

"YOU FORGOT?!" Ayato and Nora yelled in unison.

"We were in such a rush, and there was so much excitement that I forgot to tell you, and if you didn't cut me off, I would've told you then and there," Kayame said as he pointed at Nora.

"I made a breakthrough!" Nora argued.

Just then, sirens were heard; Ayato, Kayame and Nora looked out at the distance of the street to see an ambulance, fire engines, and police heading their way.

"We gotta hide!" Nora exclaimed.

"What about this guy?" Ayato asked, pointing towards the unconscious man on the ground, who Nora just accidentally knocked out while chasing him.

"Leave him! We must go now!" Nora said. Ayato, Kayame and Nora then rushed out, with Ayato swinging and his two friends running towards an alleyway.

Half an hour later, the fire is under control. The man Nora had knocked out had regained consciousness but was handcuffed with his arms behind his back, sitting in the back of a police cruiser, where the two detectives, Stevens and Dan, were talking to him. They eventually finished, closed the door and allowed the cruiser to return to the police station.

"Well, isn't this a fine mess our hero got himself into?" Stevens joked as he looked up at the warehouse.

"Detective!" Stevens and Dan turned their heads a little lower to see some police officers walking towards them. The group's main leader said, "We managed to recover some weapons, military-grade, the same hardware as that other warehouse had.".

"Any suspects?" Dan asked.

"No, we searched, but there seems to be no other suspects around the area besides the man we found on the ground when we came here. Security cameras are burnt, not that it would do any good; they weren't operating when the warehouse caught on fire." The officer replied.

"Alright, good job. Get back to searching." Stevens ordered.

"Yes, sir, let's move!" The man ordered his subordinates to search for more clues before joining them.

"More weapons of the exact make as the ones from that other warehouse that caught on fire…" Stevens said. "Can't be a coincidence?".

"Of course not," Dan said. "Not when the National Demon was involved.".

"So far, his track record isn't great; I wonder what the National Demon is doing?" Stevens asked, wondering.

"Why don't we ask him ourselves," Dan said as he walked up to his partner and whispered while looking at the buildings further up, seeing Ayato in the moonlight looking at them from the building rooftop before going into an alleyway. Both detectives decided to go to the alleyway, where Ayato stood waiting for them.

"Greetings, gentlemen," Ayato said in a deep voice, attempting to disguise himself from the detectives.

"Why do you sound like an old man?" Dan asked.

"I don't," Ayato said in his deep voice. "I am the worst nightmare every criminal dreads.".

"You sound like an idiot," Stevens said. "Alright, please lose the Batman voice and talk to us seriously," Stevens said, annoyed. (Author's Note: Batman is a character from DC comics who usually speaks in a deep voice, something Ayato attempted to imitate).

"I am being serious!" Ayato said, annoyed, now in his normal voice. Ayato realised he spoke usually and said, "Oh no…".

"Whatever…" Ayato added. "Look, I just want to help," Ayato said.

"Well, you are helping the fire department take out fires," Dan said as he pointed out the alleyway with his thumb, gesturing to the burning warehouse near them.

"I didn't mean to burn them down! I didn't burn them either! It was those mercenaries!" Ayato argued.

"Doesn't matter! What matters is that I found out where those weapons have been coming from; it's been coming from some dealer or something." Ayato explained.

"We know," Stevens said. "We just haven't been able to find the person responsible, and we haven't been able to locate all their warehouses. I'm not so sure how you managed to find out about this place. We have only discovered that there had to be another weapon depot around this location, but not the exact building." Stevens explained. "We would've eventually found out, raided the warehouse and collected any data or evidence that could help us find out about Nightshade, the man in charge and catch him…" Stevens said.

"But thanks to you, we lost a lead and evidence." Dan finished.

"Can't you guys just use your super smart gadgets to find out like they do in those TV shows?" Ayato asked.

"Yeah, we can do that. In fact, why don't I use my crystal ball and find out where those guys are holding up the rest of their stash so we can arrest them while we're at it." Dan replied sarcastically.

"Okay, I get the point; you don't have anything like that from CSI," Ayato said, as he groaned in annoyance. (Author's Note: CSI is a crime TV franchise about crime investigations, which gave people false belief that police equipment is highly advanced to find criminals)

"According to our investigation, we believe that Nightshade had not one or two, but three warehouses. Well, I guess it's one since you destroyed the other two." Stevens said.

"I was just trying to help. Look, after what happened at the bank today, I want to ensure those weapons are off the market for good! The last thing I want is for some crazy guys to shoot people and seriously hurt them or, worse, kill them! Is it wrong that I'm trying to help?" Ayato asked, looking at the detectives and trying to get through to them.

The two detectives looked at each other before looking at Ayato and coming closer while having their backs turned against the hero.

"I think we should tell him," Stevens whispered.

"Are you crazy?!" Whispered Dan. "We can't discuss an ongoing case with a citizen! You know protocol doesn't allow it!".

"I know, but still, he is just trying to help. I don't know about you. I don't consider this guy a civilian; he wants to help, and no matter what we say to him, he'll probably keep trying. Besides, this may be too big for the department to handle independently; we need help." Stevens whispered as he and Dan turned towards Ayato.

"Look, we're not supposed to tell you this…" Stevens sighed. "But, if you want to help, we have no choice. Besides, the last we need is another building burning to the ground." Stevens joked.

"Haha." Ayato laughed sarcastically.

"We have been investigating a man named Nightshade, an agent of the black market. His real name is Dave Davis, a former American military contractor who was discovered to be selling weapons to Soviet Russia and Iraq; however, all evidence was lost before his trial, but he was permanently terminated…" Stevens explained. "According to intel supplied to us by the FBI and CIA about this man, he went towards the Black Market and continued selling weapons to other countries.".

"This guy sounds big time. Why is he here on National Island?" Ayato asked curiously.

"One of his biggest clients gave him up after their arrest by the United States Government, several countries and the United Nations confiscated a majority of his supplies, and he's on the run," Stevens replied.

"Since most of his assets have been frozen and some agencies are catching up to him, he needs to make a big sale before he leaves. National Island has people from several countries, and he's probably trying to make a big sale to rebuild his business and spread the word to new clients worldwide; that's why he's doing this." Stevens explained.

"How do you know he's on the island? Wouldn't he be somewhere far, far away, like the other side of the world?" Ayato asked.

"Doubt it; a man like him likes to stay close to his business, especially since the last time he left it alone, he almost lost everything," Stevens explained.

"We also have security footage from airports and check-ins of his face. He went under a fake name and passport, and it took a while for us to find out where he was." Dan explained.

"We recently questioned an associate, a supervisor checking on this warehouse, the guy on the ground. We asked him questions, and he told us about Nightshade and the other warehouses. He only knew two warehouses, both of which are gone now." Stevens explained. "But he did tell us that there is a third warehouse. He doesn't know where it is, but he knows there's one more, with three times the stash and gear than this warehouse has, acting as the main warehouse," Stevens said.

"Why not just look at them until you find the right one?" Ayato asked.

"Do you know how many warehouses are on this island?" Stevens replied with a question. Ayato looked at Stevens and clearly understood his words.

"Besides, we don't have time for that. Not when we know there will be a war coming." Stevens said.

"War?" Ayato asked.

"Haven't you heard?" Dan asked. "There's a gang war going on, and things are escalating pretty bad.".

"He's right. Los Conquistadors and the Big Boys are getting more and more violent. No matter what we do, they won't stop, and it all started with the murder of their kids." Stevens said.

"I heard the same bullet of sniper killed them…" Ayato said. "Wait a minute!" Ayato gasped. "I think that guy I fought was responsible!" Ayato said.

"Guy?" Asked Stevens.

"Yeah, there was this silver-haired guy, and he was pretty good at fighting; he even had a sniper rifle, and he was a good shooter," Ayato said.

"Hmmm…" Hummed Stevens. "Sounds like you fought him, Masayoshi Nakamura, AKA Killshot," Stevens added.

"Who?" Ayato asked.

"A guy who's bad news," Dan replied.

"The man you fought was Masayoshi Nakamura, also known by his codename Killshot." Replied Stevens.

"Masayoshi, one day after he turned eighteen, immediately joined the Japanese military; two years after he joined, he became a career sniper. He wasn't just the best; he was the best of the best of snipers, the highest elite of his own accord, rarely misses his shots, earning him the nickname Killshot because almost every shot he fires is intended to kill." Stevens explained. "After three years of being in the military, he joined another division, one part of the United Nations.".

"And that was?" Ayato asked.

"Don't know; they said it was classified. But we know that he was selected and dismissed, and he also worked for this agency, Stevens explained.

"Dismissed?" Ayato asked again.

"More like kicked out. We were told that an operation to eliminate a dangerous warlord was underway then, and he would make the shot. But the agency received word that this warlord was with his family, and in a crowded part of a city, the operation was cancelled…" Stevens explained. "But Killshot, he took the shot anyway, even when he was told not to, and shot at the vehicle where the gas was held and blew it up in a fiery ball of flames. After that, he was dishonourably discharged for disobeying orders and killing innocent civilians in the crossfire; after that, hardly anyone heard of him." Stevens finished.

"Except where he was working as a mercenary to pay for his equipment and gear, but let's face it, he just wants to kill." Added Dan.

"That guy is a killed?" Ayato asked.

"Clearly," said Stevens. "Our investigation pointed out that he was responsible for killing those two kids of the gangs, instigating this war. Likely, he was hired by Nightshade to start the gang war in the first place.".

"Hang on a second; if Nightshade started this war, can't you just tell the gangs he was the one that caused it and make them stop fighting each other?" Ayato asked worriedly.

"Unfortunately, we tried, but they aren't listening." Said Dan. "They think it was their enemy that killed their kid, and we hardly have any evidence to prove it, mainly a few photos of the people we spoke about, and that's it, nothing about the assassinations themselves." Dan finished.

"In other words, there is nothing we can do…" Ayato said.

"I'm afraid the only thing we can do is locate Nightshade and the final warehouse before any more innocent lives are dragged into this fight. It won't be easy, and it might take weeks to find him." Stevens explained.

"Anything else?" Ayato asked.

"I'm afraid not. That's as far as our investigation has gone." Stevens said.

"I won't let anything happen, not to anybody or anyone," Ayato said.

"Detectives!" Stevens and Dan turned around to see a police officer rushing behind them. "We managed to recover some damaged goods; wanna have a look?".

Stevens and Dan turned back to look at Ayato, but Ayato had already disappeared and swung away. Both Stevens and Dan turned back around to the officer.

"Let's have a look," Stevens said. "Maybe we can find something to help us," Stevens added.

---

(Location: National Island School)

The afternoon of the next day, Ayato, Kayame and Nora were all in their book club, where Nora was typing on her laptop to research the weapons but had no luck.

Kayame was leaning on the table on his elbow while holding onto his head with the same arm next to Ayato, who was lying on the table from his chair holding onto his head.

"I spent hours looking for clues but couldn't find anything…" Ayato moaned tiresomely as he lifted his head while talking before placing it back on the desk.

"Could you moan quieter, please," Nora said while typing.

"Maybe those guys are scared or something? We did burn down their warehouse." Kayame said while shifting his eyes to Nora.

"Second warehouse. Don't forget, Ayato did burn down the first one." Nora added while typing.

"Those detectives told me that those guys have three warehouses since they lost two already; they only have one, one huge one with all the supplies you can imagine," Ayato added.

Ayato sat back on his chair and said, "We can't let those weapons get out into the public. If that happens, who knows how much damage those things will cause?".

Nora typed but stopped for a second before looking at Ayato and Kayame. "Guys…" Nora said. "I've been thinking, maybe we should just stop.".

"Stop?" Ayato and Kayame said in unison.

"Yeah, you're trying to help Ayato, but so much happened last night. You got shot, and Kayame got stabbed; I thought he was going to die…" She said sadly. "Maybe we should just let the police handle it, and they are more prepared than we are.".

Ayato looked at Nora and said, "Yeah, but I still think we should do something…".

"Like what?" Nora asked. "Like, what do you want to do? Even if we somehow found where they're hiding their last warehouse, they'll probably be more than prepared to fight back against us, and if something happens… I don't think we should do anything." Nora said sadly.

"You're…" Ayato said as he looked at Nora. "Probably right…" Ayato admitted sadly.

"No, she's not," Kayame said as he sat back on his chair and crossed his arms. "Yeah, we may have gotten hurt; we may destroy two warehouses, but that's a good thing," Kayame added. "Even though we didn't learn anything, we still stopped them from selling powerful and destructive weapons to bad guys, and if we didn't stop them, who knows how many more lives could've been lost? Every weapon we destroyed was one more person protected; that's nothing to scoff at." Kayame said, making Ayato and Nora surprised.

"I ain't got anything against police, but they usually act when a crime has been committed, not before. Because of that, people die; I'd rule as a win, so don't feel upset; we should be happy." Kayame added.

"We got hurt, but we knew this was going to happen. People get hurt, one way or another, but no matter how many times a person goes down, they always keep coming back up, no matter what. So why should we give up? What's that going to do?" Kayame asked. "I'll tell you…" Kayame added. "It'll just let someone die; that's what it's gonna do, and if you have anyone to blame for not stopping that, it's yourself." Kayame finished.

"Wow… Kayame, you're right." Nora said. "I guess if I think about it that way, I wouldn't be happy if someone died because I didn't do anything to help them…" Nora said with a soft smile.

Just then, her computer made a sound; a notification sounded like a DING! She returned her attention to her laptop and looked at it. She noticed it was an anonymous email.

"I just sent an email! An anonymous email!" Nora exclaimed; she clicked on it and read it.

"Guys…" She spoke. "This is bad! Very bad! Very, very bad!" She said repeatedly.

"According to this email, there has been a grown increase in violence between the Los Conquistadors and the Big Boys, and it's getting worse!" She informed. "And there's something else…" She took a better look at it and grew shocked. "They plan to finish things… Tonight…".

"That's good," Ayato said. "If they plan to end things tonight, that must mean they're making peace; how is that bad?".

"You idiot," Kayame said. "It doesn't mean they'll make peace; it means they'll end things once and for all in an all-out war.".

"What?" Ayato said in shock.

"It's true, and it gets worse as well," Nora said. "According to this email, it's planned that tonight; these mercenaries are planning to kill the gang leaders; it'll create a power vacuum that'll force more fights both within and outside of the ranks of these two gangs, and more gangs will be involved to attack to gain territory, there'll be chaos!" Nora exclaimed.

"Which means more sales and customers for those guys," Kayame said.

"And that means more innocent lives will be dragged into this, even in the crossfire. We can't let that happen." Ayato said. "Does the email tell us where this happened?" Ayato asked.

"Yeah, downtown; I have the address here as well. But who is sending us these emails?" Nora asked.

"Doesn't matter," Ayato said as he stood up from his seat and leaned on the table; he then walked towards the exit. "What matters is I have to stop these guys before they hurt or kill innocent people.".

"Hold on there!" Nora said harshly as she quickly got up from her seat. "There is no I in us, Ayato!".

"What?" Ayato said as he turned around in confusion.

"You heard…" Nora reminded. "You can't fight this alone; you need our help.".

"Help?" Ayato said. "I can't do that.".

"Why not?!" Nora said, annoyed.

"In case you forgot, Kayame was stabbed in the chest, and I thought he was dead last time you both helped me. I told you it was dangerous and can't let you get involved." Ayato said.

"You know, I do have powers, and while that stab hurt like crazy, that isn't enough to stop me from fighting," Kayame said.

"The answer is still no!" Ayato exclaimed.

"Ayato, you're probably dealing with more than just a bunch of mercenaries; you are fighting a whole army of gangs with military guns!" Nora argued. "Chances aren't in your favour; if you fight this alone, you'll have more holes in you than Swish-cheese!" Nora continued. "You can't fight this fight alone.".

Ayato sighed and sadly said, "I can't let my two best friends die; I just can't do that. I know you wanna help; I'm glad you do., But after last night, I can't forgive myself if anything happened to you or Kayame; I just can't.". "I'm sorry, guys, but this has to be me and me alone…" Ayato said sadly.

"Says who!" Ayato looked at Kayame in surprise. "You don't get to decide that on your own!" Kayame added. "Do your parents know what you're doing? Does anybody know that you're putting your life on the line?" Kayame asked.

"Let me tell you something: when we became friends, we always had each other's backs, no matter what! Because you've been doing this more than we have, don't you turn your back on your friends!" Kayame said. "Before I went in that warehouse, I knew it was dangerous, but I didn't care, I didn't care at all! All I wanted to do was kick some ass and help my friend out!" Kayame continued. "If you want us to stay safe, we should never have started this hero business! You should've just stayed at home and played video games instead!" Kayame said as he began to walk towards Ayato, but then he stopped face to face with him. "You don't get to decide whether we throw our lives away to help people! Trust is a two-way street and not one! Nora and I don't decide what you do, nor do you with us, so if we're going to help, We're going to help!".

Kayame then grabbed Ayato by the collar of his school uniform and held his fist close. "And if you have any complaints, I'm all ears! The only way you're going to stop me and Nora from helping is if you put us in a hospital bed! But I know you won't do that, so you have no choice!" Kayame said. "And if you try to stop us…" Kayame paused briefly. "I'll kick your ass!" He said finally.

Nora was entirely surprised by Kayame's words for the second time, and so was Ayato. Kayame then threw Ayato away, not hard but lightly hard.

"I guess… I don't have a choice." Ayato smiled. "Alright, I know when I'm beaten, you two can help.".

"Good," Nora said with a soft smile.

"But we're gonna need disguises, and I already have one, but not Kayame or you, Nora," Ayato said.

"I'll sit on the sidelines, be by the public. Since I don't have any powers, I'll help evacuate people from danger, so I don't need a disguise or costume." Nora said.

"I guess that means I'll need one. So far, I've never done any superhero business before, but there's a first time for everything, I guess?" Kayame said. "I have a few ideas on what to wear," Kayame added.

"In that case…" Nora said as she went back to her laptop. "We'll need a plan.".

---

(Location: Unknown)

Meanwhile, at a warehouse in an undisclosed location, in the office of Nightshade, Killshot was sitting on a chair, and his employer was sitting on another chair across a desk.

"I can't believe you would allow this!" Nightshade said harshly.

"Do you have any idea how much money we lost?!" Nightshade harshly said, but Killshot was unfazed and kept his calm expression.

"First, we lost four million dollars worth of product in the first warehouse, and now we lost Eight million dollars! EIGHT!" He yelled at the last part angrily.

Killshot then walked to the end of the room towards a water cooler, poured himself a drink from the machine into a white plastic cup and walked back.

"The whole reason I sent you to that warehouse was to protect our stock! And now it's gone, all of it!" Nightshade continued to say. "I put you there so you could protect our warehouse, but instead, we lost it; another chunk of our profits is gone!".

Killshot sat down and drank the cool water with an unnerved expression.

"For someone who failed, you sure seem calm of yourself!" Nightshade said harshly again.

Killshot stopped drinking and clicked his tongue to feel the refreshing water in his mouth.

"For a man who hardly misses his targets, I heard you missed quite a few shots!" Nightshade finished his speech.

"We still have one warehouse left." Said Killshot with a calm voice and a severe but emotionless expression.

"And besides, while most people of my skills may be upset or feel embarrassed to have missed a lot of shots against one person, I, on the other hand, feel… Happy." Said Killshot.

"Happy?" Questioned Nightshade. "For a man with an impeccable record such as yourself, I thought you'd be upset?".

"I should be upset, but I'm not," Killshot said as he looked at the now-empty plastic cup.

"When you develop the skills to the level as I have, competition becomes… Boring." Killshot, after giving a brief pause. "Challenges become dull, and the feeling of getting a perfect shot becomes too repetitive, until eventually, your work as a sniper becomes a chore rather than a skill to hone," Killshot added.

"My skills are unrivalled, which isn't as good as you believe. You understand where your skills sit and have no clue whether your skills are decaying or improving." Killshot said. "It's been a while since I missed as many shots as I had last night; I forgot how that felt…".

"However, this hero proved to be a… The unique challenge was one that I enjoyed quite well." Out of character, Killshot smirked as he threw the plastic cup over his shoulder, which flew across the room where the water cooler was; next to it was a trash bin, which the cup landed in at the centre—an example of his skills.

"I'm glad you find this enjoyable because I don't!" Nightshade said harshly again. "If you have wax as thick as grandma's homemade pie in your ears, you would've listened to me mentioning the part where we lost a chunk of our profit!" Argued Nightshade.

"Firstly, I did not start that fire; another of your hired guns did," Killshot said. "Second, calculating the supplies you have in this warehouse, it'll likely make more than triple the amount you lost in that fire from both warehouses, depending on how popular your supplies become after tonight.".

"Which is why we need to get rid of this guy-!".

"Kid.".

"What?".

"I believe the hero is a kid, not a man. His build is slimmer than that of a grown man and shorter." Killshot informed.

"I don't know if he's a child! If he keeps butting into my business, I will make a huge loss!" Nightshade argued.

"As I said, the supplies in this warehouse outweigh the ones lost from the previous two," Killshot argued.

"That's easy for you to say!" Nightshade argued again. "Since one of my clients gave me up, I have been on the run from the United Nations, wanted for smuggling and selling illegal weapons to hostile countries! My assets have been frozen; I only have the money I stashed on this island, in cash, that I had kept as an emergency fund in the worst-case scenario, and this is as bad as it gets!" Explained Nightshade.

Nightshade got up from his chair and looked out the window, "I need this operation to go through as planned. I need those bosses dead!". Nightshade turned and looked at Killshot, "If those bosses die, then a power vacuum will be made, and I can use it to make sales and rebuild my business from the ground up; if I lose this warehouse, then that's it for me!" said Nightshade. "I can't afford to lose this warehouse, especially since my back is against the wall!".

"Regardless of what happens, I need this sale to go through, and I want no one to stop!" Nightshade said.

"I'll make sure the next me and the hero meet; it will be the last time, and I'll have a trophy as a reminder, his mask." Said Killshot as he looked at his employer with his usual unnerved, expressionless, serious facial expression.

---

(Location: Kaze Residence)

The night was approaching, the time of combat was getting closer and closer. Ayato was changed into his hero outfit, but he wasn't wearing his mask; he was holding it.

Ayato approached a mirror, his body turned on its left side against it, and he viewed himself before looking at the face of his mask. He looked at his necklace and held it tight. "Aunt, I hope things will turn out for the best…" Ayato thought as he clenched the tooth of his necklace tightly.

---

(Location: Kenjiro Residence)

Kayame came out of his bedroom, now wearing his version of a hero suit. He wore white fingerless gloves, a sleeveless, high collar, tight white shirt, a pair of baggy grey and white combat pants, and a pair of white sneakers. He also wore combat goggles on his forehead, the dark blue screen, and around his neck, a grey mask to cover his mouth and nose, but it was loose right now and wasn't covering him at all.

Kayame clenched his hands to feel his gloves.

Kayame entered his family dining room, looking at a glass cabinet. Behind it was a pair of grey-coloured combat knives belonging to his father. He opened the cabinet, grabbed both knives and held them tightly.

"Sorry about this, Dad…" Kayame thought.

---

(Location: Shindo Residence)

Nora was currently wearing a tight red sports bra with white striping on the edge of the bust and bands going over her shoulders, and a pair of tight bicycle shorts matching the same colour and similar white stripe pattern as her sports bra, her naval and toned stomach was revealed. She wore a thin, tight jumper with an open zip. She was currently in her garage, looking at a sports helmet made for racing with a black screen, coloured red with white stripes.

"I'll protect innocent people, Mom…" Nora thought as she slid the helmet on her head, rode her bicycle, and cycled away.

---

(Location: Close To Downtown)

No more than an hour had passed since Ayato and his friends arrived, and as night had thoroughly approached, the streets were the same. Even though they were in a minor part of town, people were still walking up and down the sidewalks, cars were driving by the four-car wide intersection that looked like a giant plus, restaurants and small-time businesses were working as usual, and everybody was having a nice night.

Ayato arrived and gave his friends some drinks he got from a vending machine: one Pepsi, a bottle of water, and an energy drink. (Author's Note: Pepsi is a cola brand)

"So, anything?" Ayato asked as he opened the can of cola in his hand after handing the other two drinks to Nora and Kayame.

"Besides cars honking and people laughing and screaming for joy? Not much." Kayame replied as he drank his bottle of water.

"It'll take time; maybe they're on the way here as we speak?" Nora said as she drank her energy drink.

"Alright, so let's recap…" Ayato said. "If those guys arrive, me and Kayame will try to stop the fight; if things get out of hand, we'll use force…" Ayato explained so far. "Nora, you will be on the sidelines; anybody who's not out of the way of danger, you go and get them away," Ayato explained as he looked at Nora. "Kayame, you will knock them unconscious; since you don't use chains like I do, I'll wrap up the bad guys you knock down; you'll fight them be the main force," Ayato explained as he looked at Kayame.

"Any questions?" Ayato asked.

"Yeah, what about those mercenaries?" Kayame replied with a question.

"I don't know…" Ayato said as he thought to himself comically. "I guess after we deal with this, we deal with them, I think…" Ayato said.

"You think?" Kayame bluntly said in annoyance.

"Look, I forgot about them, and besides, we need to deal with the danger now than the danger then," Ayato said. "First, we stop this fight, then we deal with those guys; the police told me they are still investigating, so all we can hope for is that they find a location and tell us, and we can take them down," Ayato explained.

"My concern is what the detectives have already told us…" Nora said with concern on her face. "If you think about it, this sounds like this Nightshade guy is at his limits; he'll want this fight to go down no matter what," Nora explained. "This is just a guess, but I think he might send his goons to ensure no one interferes with his plan.".

"And how will they stop us?" Kayame asked. "As far as I'm concerned, this will be a fight between two of National Island's largest gangs; it would be stupid for them to get involved in person without getting shot," Kayame said. "And even if they did decide how they would do it, I'm sure the gangs will notice something off when they see men in military gear and hardware trying to shoot us down," Kayame said.

"I'm not sure of that…" Nora and Kayame looked at Ayato. "Those two detectives told me that the guy fought last night was an ex-military sniper," Ayato explained. "He was not just the elite; he was like, the elite of the elite, the very, very, very, very best. He was probably the one who killed those kids of the gang leaders, and if he was responsible for that, he might try to attack the gang leaders here and now." Ayato explained.

"Probably, I would be surprised if he wasn't…" Kayame added. "He sure gave you one heck of a time, powers or no powers." Kayame looked at Ayato.

"I know, he wasn't that strong, but he was skilled. Hopefully, he won't be a problem this time." Ayato said.

"Speaking of which, we haven't seen anybody coming here so far," Nora said as she looked at the street. "Maybe the warehouses spooked them; maybe they won't come over here at all; that's good!" Nora said with a smile and enthusiasm.

"I wouldn't go that far…" Kayame pointed out at the distance ahead of Nora.

Where Kayame was pointing, in the distance, there were a swarm of black cars, Sedans and SUVs driving directly towards the plus sign street.

"Oh no…" Nora said in worry as she saw the cars coming towards them.

"Over there, too!" Ayato pointed out the opposite direction from where Kayame had pointed, and the two friends saw what he was directing them to.

Another group of headlights were seen in the same colours and the same cars.

"And there…" Kayame pointed out in the direction right of the plus street to see more cars of the same models and colours coming in.

"And there, too!" Nora exclaimed as she saw the final street where more cars were coming.

"Well…" Ayato made a brief pause while sweat dropped in fear and nervousness. "If they wanted a war, then here it comes…".

"This is going to be difficult," Kayame added.

The cars drove together to the city's commercial district, where Ayato, Kayame and Nora were. The cars parked in lined groups blocked the north and west streets, while the others parked similarly to the south and east streets as though they had become barricades.

From the cars came an army, two armies of men and women. The ones from the South and East streets, where Ayato had pointed out, came men and women of different colours and races, wearing fedoras and suits that resembled American mafia-styled gangs from the 1900s, which were grey. In contrast, the group from the North and West streets, where Kayame had pointed out, were mainly Mexicans, wearing Mexican gang outfits consisting of tank shirts, open button shirts, some smarts suits, and some were hats and caps, caps were front and backwards. The army of gangs went behind their vehicles, pointing guns, AK rifles, and shotguns, and some even pointed out pistols at the other, scaring the locals into hiding and panicking in buildings, people rushing and taking their kids off the streets as they began whispering frantically to a hiding spot.

From an SUV of the American gang, a member opened a door for a 50-year-old man, who was wearing a grey outfit but looking more severe than the other members, holding a revolver in his right hand.

Meanwhile, from a Sedan, a Mexican man in his 40s came out, wearing a short-sleeved open-button yellow with orange strips going from up to down shirt, a white t-shirt underneath it, blue jeans, and white sneakers, with minor facial hair, short black hair, and serious look in his black eyes. He was holding a sawed-off shotgun and carrying it over his shoulder in his right hand.

"Looks like you came…" I spoke the Mexican. The Mexican and the man both walked towards each other, stopping two meters away from one another. "At least you brave enough to come face me!" He said with venom in his voice.

"Only deal with problems that are personal, especially with family…" The American man said in disgust.

"Family… Do you know anything about that? My boy was good, wanting to be happy, have a family, and even go out and be with his friends! His mama, she loved him, loved him so much, and so did his papa…" The Mexican said, briefly pausing before sniffing as tears formed in his eyes. "He made his papa proud; you want the best for your kids. And he was doing the best he could…" He gave a brief pause. "Until you and your boys killed him and drove a bullet through his head!" He angrily said.

"I told you before, I didn't tell one of the men to do it, not like it matters now…" The American said, giving a brief pause. "I can tell you this, though: I agree. I do want the best for my kids and my little ones; I wanted the life she wanted, a normal life. I know the risks this life gives you, but she didn't and shouldn't have to." The American said as he sniffed in sadness. "When I held her in my arms, I loved her at first sight. She was the most beautiful little girl in the world, and I was proud to be by her side. I never wanted to let her go, ever…" He gave a brief pause as he sniffed in sadness again. "But you killed her, and you killed her in cold blood!" He angrily said. "So, I'm gonna do what I should've done a long time ago, get rid of the problem…" He said. He then pointed his revolver at the Mexican leader, who then pointed his shotgun at the American leader.

Guns clicked, and both sides were ready to fire.

"This is bad!" Nora said as she looked at the scene before her from the rooftop, her hands on the side of the building's small wall that protected her from falling.

Ayato looked upset; he gave a serious face, put on his mask, and jumped.

"Ayato!" Nora exclaimed as she watched Ayato jump.

Ayato landed between the two gang leaders. Thud! He landed. Guns were now pointed at Ayato, but the gang leaders still had their guns pointed at each other.

"STOP!" Ayato yelled.

"What the?!" Exclaimed the Mexican leader.

"Who's that?" Questioned the American gang leader.

"Don't shoot! Don't shoot!" Ayato called out, spreading his arms and holding his palms up to tell everyone to stop. "You guys don't understand!".

"What is Ayato doing?!" Nora whispered in panic as she looked at Ayato with worry and a frantic look in her eyes.

"Don't know, but I'm sure we're gonna have to save his ass," Kayame said, with a foot on the ledge while leaning on his knee, where his foot was standing, looking at Ayato with an unpressed look.

"Get out of the way, and this has nothing to do with you!" Spoke the Mexican.

"For change, I agree with him; get out of the way," Spoke the American.

"Please, listen to me!" Ayato begged as he repeatedly turned towards one leader and the other. He looked at the Mexican and said, "I know this will sound crazy!" He turned his head to the American, "But there's someone else at play here, this man, and you did not kill the others' kid!".

"I saw it; there's a black-market guy named Nightshade; he's behind this! He killed your kids to get you to fight each other!" Ayato said frantically.

"I call that bull! Never met no Nightshade!" Spoke the Mexican.

"I don't remember meeting this guy." Spoke to the American.

"You guys must understand! Both of you are innocent!" Ayato said. "There's no reason to fight!".

Meanwhile, on the top floor of a four-story building was a sniper, and on the other end of that sniper was none other than Killshot, who was pointing his scope at Ayato. "That's it, keep talking, just kept talking…" Killshot said as he pointed his rifle at the Big Boys leader.

"You don't get to decide what the boss of the Big Boys gets to do." Spoke the Big Boys leader.

"You know we're called Los Conquistadors? Because we're conquerors, so stay out of our way or else!" Spoke the leader of the Conquistadors.

"Please, there's no reason to!" Ayato suddenly felt a chill down his spine, and immediately jumped and shot two chains, one from each hand and grabbing the legs of each of the leaders, pulling them towards him and causing them both to fall to the ground, as two shots came out of nowhere and missed the leaders narrowly.

"Missed? Clever guy…" Said Killshot as he spoke to his communicator next. "Wait for my orders.".

"THEY TRIED TO KILL THE BOSS, SHOOT THEM!" Spoke a member of the Big Boys.

"KILL THEM ALL!" Spoke a member of Los Conquistadors.

Everything went down… Shots were fired, and people were screaming. Ayato, who was now kneeling after almost getting shot in the crossfire, decided to take action. The Big Boys leader was dragged by two of his comrades, while only one of the Conquistador's leaders was dragged by one of his comrades, both now behind cover from the barrage of bullets that hit their vehicles.

"Well, at least he tried," Kayame said as he placed his goggles and mouth mask on, blocking his face to ensure no one saw him. He then took out his daggers.

"We gotta do something!" Nora exclaimed.

"Already on it," Kayam said as he jumped from the rooftop to the ground.

Thud! Kayame landed behind two members of the Big Boys, and they both looked behind themselves.

"Who are you?!" One of them demanded.

Kayame didn't answer, even though they were pointing an AK rifle and shotgun at him. Kayame looked through his goggles, and immediately, in the blink of an eye, he used his daggers to slice the guns into minced pieces. As the pieces of the guns fell to the ground, the gangsters both paled, as Kayame was now behind them, his back turned against them. He lifted his knives up and then hit the bottom of the handles on the heads, knocking them out instantly.

Meanwhile, Ayato jumped from car to car and used his chains to chain gang members one by one. Unfortunately, he could do this process three times because as soon as the Conquistadors realized Ayato was there, they began to shoot at him, making him dodge their bullets narrowly.

People who were not part of the fight, such as the civilians, were hiding in a diner restaurant and were now ducked inside, trying not to get shot by any of the gang members, tables turned and used as barriers. Unfortunately, too many shots were fired, and the tables slowly were riddled with holes.

A woman was holding her 4-year-old son in her arms, hiding behind a turned table as shots were; a bullet just 10 centimetres away from her and her son passed through the table, indicating how close the shots were.

"SOMEBODY SAVE US!" She screamed as her son held her tightly and cried. Four people were three: a teenage girl, a cook, an employee wearing a smart suit who works in an office, and an older man in his 60s wearing casual clothes.

BANG! "AGH!" The man in the intelligent suit had a bullet piercing through his leg while he was sitting. Blood came out, but the cook grabbed a few tissues from a knocked-down tissue holder, which was once on a table. Even though they weren't the best substitute for bandages, they did a good job cleaning and blocking the blood from spilling from the man's leg.

"W-We gotta get out of here!" Frantically spoke the girl at the cook.

"We can't! They're firing too many bullets. We can try and take the emergency fire exit in the back, but we have to get up and run, and if we do that, we'll die as soon as possible. THERE'S NOTHING WE CAN DO!" The cook yelled as he panicked about his life.

Just then, a barrage of more bullets were coming towards the civilians, and considering the damage done to the diner, this would be the final blow for all people inside.

Just as hope seemed lost, a large metal platform appeared before them, blocking the rogue bullets from hitting the people. Surprisingly enough, it was not Ayato or Kayame; the person who blocked the bullets was Nora. Nora was holding a metal platform belonging to a sewer drain and using it as a shield to block the bullets.

It was questionable how she could easily carry such a heavy object. And what was more surprising was that she ran from the stairs of the rooftop she was on and came downstairs very quickly! "I can't believe I made it!" Nora exclaimed in thought.

"I don't know how I did that, but it doesn't matter! I need to get these people to safety!" She said to herself.

"EVERYONE!" She yelled, not turning her head away from the violence. "GET READY TO RUN! I'LL BLOCK IT OFF! DON'T WORRY!" Nora yelled, not revealing her face to the others.

The woman with her kid stood up and ran while the other girl followed her; the elder and the cook picked up the injured employee with his arms over their necks, carrying him to safety.

"COME WITH US!" Yelled the cook.

"JUST GO! I'LL BE FINE!" Nora yelled. "GO!" She yelled again, and the cook complied and left.

As Nora was blocking the bullets, she dropped the object and left while ducking and running, avoiding the bullets. As she ran towards safety behind a car, she looked up at a four-story building to see the barrel of sniper pointing at Ayato's and Kayame's direction. The sniper then shot a bullet that grazed the shoulder of one of the Big Boys members.

"I found them!" Nora exclaimed.

Despite Ayato's and Kayame's best efforts to neutralize the enemy, it was all in vain as the violence kept getting more fierce. Ayato chained many of the members of both gangs up while Kayame sliced their weapons with his daggers, knocking them out at the same time. The issue was that their numbers seemed much more significant than they believed. They are thankful no one was killed… So far.

Ayato and Kayame hid behind a civilian car as the violence intensified.

"THEY'RE LIKE SNAKES! YOU CUT OFF ONE HEAD TWO MORE TAKES IT PLACE!" Kayame yelled.

Ayato looked at Kayame, who was next to him on his right and was shocked to see some bullet holes in Kayame. "Kayame, you're hurt!" Ayato exclaimed.

"It's alright, it'll heal…" As Kayame said, his wounds slowly healed, closing in before disappearing completely; only blood remained and the holes in his clothes. "Man, that hurts…" Kayame said.

"We need to stop this!" Ayato said frantically.

"How?! I don't know where those bullets came from; they were shot probably from the air, but I didn't see anything!" Kayam argued.

"GUYS!".

"AHHHHH!" Ayato and Kayame screamed, frightened, when they suddenly saw Nora beside Kayame.

"Nora?! Where did you come from?!" Ayato asked, his heart racing.

"I ran downstairs from the rooftop!" Nora said, raising her voice to make sure Ayato and Kayame could hear her and not just the sounds of bullets and glass breaking.

"You ran here?!" Ayato and Kayame shockingly said in unison.

"Of course I did!" Nora said. "But that's not important right now! What's important is that we have company!".

"Yeah, we know!" Kayame said as he pointed out the war happening behind them.

"Not them! We have snipers!" Nora said.

"Snipers?!" Ayato exclaimed. "Must be Killshot?!".

"I think there's more than one! The person who shot the first bullet came from a different angle than the one I saw before!" Nora spoke.

"Well, that's interesting and all! BUT WE GOTTA FIND THEM BEFORE THEY FIRE ANY MORE SHOOTS ON US!" Kayame yelled at his friends.

"I saw a sniper in that building!" Nora pointed towards four-story motels, showing the location of where the sniper she saw.

"Okay! That's one sniper, but where's the others?!" Ayato spoke.

Kayame clenched his fist against his palm, cracking and said with a smirk, "I think we might know already, right Ayato?".

"Huh?" Ayato gasped.

"Remember? You use your skills to avoid getting hit, something like a sixth sense, right?" Kayame asked.

"Yeah, I remember, but I don't understand how that's gonna help in a time like-!" Ayato was cut off as his head shot upwards, like an animal noticing something, and said. "There!" He pointed. "I think I can sense them!" Ayato said.

"Yeah, me too." Kayame also said. "I don't know how I can do that, but it doesn't matter now, does it," Kayame said. "Now we know how to find them, let's get them! All of them!" Kayame clenched his fists once more.

"Alright! I'll go after the guy I saw. Meanwhile, you two go after the others." Nora said.

"Alright!" Kayame said, and both Kayame and Nora were about to leave.

"WAIT!" Ayato yelled, stopping his friends. "Let's do this and come back here…" He said as he placed his hands over their shoulders. "Together!".

"Together!" Nora said with a smile.

"Together…" Kayame said with a smile.

"LET'S GO!" With that said, Ayato, Nora and Kayame all left their separate directions and began to attack the snipers.

Meanwhile, on the rooftop where Killshot was, he was still shooting down each of the gang members, mainly shooting at them by glazing their skin and legs on purpose, sometimes even shooting their hands and feet, as ordered by Nightshade, to intensify the action to make it look more like a war between gang members and to lower the guard of the bosses of the gangs.

"Almost time to finish this job…" He said as he pointed his rifle at the Mexican gang leader.

"K-KILLSHOT!" Killshot held his fire back as his radio spoke to him. He then pressed a button on his radio to return the call and talk.

"What is it?" Killshot asked.

"SIR! WE'RE UNDER ATTACK! WE'RE UNDER ATTACK BY-AGHHHH!" The radio then went silent.

"Attacked by who?" Killshot asked.

"WHO THE HECK IS THIS GUY!" Spoke another voice coming from Killshot's radio.

"IT'S THE HERO OF THE ISLAND!" I spoke in another voice.

"WE'RE UNDER ATTACK! WHERE DID THEY COME FROM! AND HOW DO THEY KNOW WHERE WE ARE!" I spoke in another voice.

"Seems like the hunt's getting interesting," Killshot said as he stood up and walked away from the edge.

"KILLSHOT! WHAT DO WE DO?!" One of the men asked on the radio.

"Nothing. From now on, I'll finish the mission, and your job has ended." Killshot said.

"WHAT?!" Exclaimed the man on the radio. "YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO US! YOU CAN'T-!" Click! Killshot turned his radio off.

"Such nuisances…" Killshot said as he turned around and held his rifle down, waiting for Ayato to show up. "Show yourself, Hero of the Island." Said Killshot as he waited.

Meanwhile, Nora had busted through the door of a hotel room.

"SURRENDER!" Nora yelled as she looked at the dark room. "YOU'RE UNDER ARREST! DROP YOUR WEAPON AND PUT YOUR HANDS BEHIND YOUR-!" Just then, a laser pointer from a sniper rifle pointed at Nora's forehead; she noticed it and lost all her courage. "Head…" Nora finished her sentence.

Luckily, the room was dark, and the sniper could on see her silhouette but not her face, thanks to the hallway lights still working.

"Y-You know… H-How about we have a cup of herbal tea and discuss our problems like normal human beings, heh…" Nora gave an awkward chuckle at the end of her sentence while sweating in fear but pretending to put a happy smile on her face, even closing her eyes politely and friendly.

"Don't move, or else I'll drop you dead." The mercenary said, kneeling on one knee.

"A-Are you sure y-you don't wanna m-maybe talk about this…" Nora said nervously.

"Sorry, girly, nothing personal; I just can't have you disturbing me on the job." The mercenary said. "Then again, I can't have you reporting to any police or government agency about me. So, I guess I have no choice but to kill you anyway. Again, it's nothing personal; it's just business." The mercenary said as he pulled the trigger.

Nora gasped as the man pulled the trigger.

"Remember honey, whenever you're in a pinch, always think fast…" A feminine voice spoke to Nora, a flashback of a distant past, all white and shining, only showing the woman's mouth and unidentifiable hair colour.

"Fast…" Nora thought to herself.

Nora ducked, barely dodging the bullet, and then rushed towards the sniper. The sniper shot another bullet at Nora, who then skidded to her left, dodging the bullet. Another shot, but she skidded to her right and dodged it again. The mercenary looked at her with shock, and she then jumped up and delivered a powerful kick against his face, sending him backwards against the wall beneath the window and knocking him out cold.

Nora heaved, still shocked at what happened. The question is, what is she shocked about? Shock about her near-death experience? Or shocked at how fast she moved?

Meanwhile, as Ayato jumped out of the motel's window near Nora's room, he closed his eyes and tried to use his senses.

"Nothing…" Ayato said. "Nothing except for…" He turned his head towards the direction of a building. "That guy." He then stopped his head, looking at the building where Killshot was.

Ayato swung himself and jumped onto the rooftop, where Killshot awaited him.

"Waiting for me?" Ayato asked.

"Yes, of course, I was," Killshot replied.

Ayato stood from Killshot, who was not pointing his weapon at him.

"I guess you're here to kill me?" Ayato asked, not surprised to hear the answer.

"Technically, I'm here to kill the leaders of the Big Boys and Los Conquistadors, but I'm given permission to kill anyone who gets in the way of my mission, which includes you," Killshot replied, showing his unnerved expression.

"Why? Why are you doing this?" Ayato asked.

"I have no time to explain to somebody like you," Killshot replied.

"Is it because it's fun, like that email I got said it was?" Ayato asked again.

"Email?" Killshot wondered. "Must be them…" Killshot whispered to himself, but Ayato heard it.

"What?" Ayato said, hearing Killshot.

"Never mind. But I'm guessing you already know some details, right?" Killshot asked.

"Yeah, of course, I do," Ayato replied. "I know you're a killer, and you love to kill. I also heard you used to be part of the Japanese military and some agency before you turned against them. You're just someone who likes to kill." Ayato said, feeling disgusted with Killshot.

"So, I do. I'll take that you also know what happened to their kids, right?" Killshot asked, knowing the answer.

"I do," Ayato replied. "How could you do that? They were innocent; they didn't deserve it?!" Ayato said, slightly angry.

"I did it because it was what I was hired to do," Killshot replied.

"You didn't have to! There're other ways for you too!".

"To what?" Killshot cut Ayato off. "To use my skills to help people? Like you?" Killshot asked.

"Listen, kid, I know you're strong, but beneath that mask, you're just a kid with a big imagination thinking the world is made up of unicorns and fairy tales. But the reality is that it's not. The world we live in is harsh and unforgivable. Eat or be eaten, survival of the fittest, that's how humans work, and life works." Killshot explained. "You stop this, then what? Someone else will die anyway, one way or another, and there's nothing you can do to stop it. I learned that a long time ago, to the point my time in the military became just a job I do to earn money, to hone my abilities for one person, myself.".

"So that's why you kill people?!" Ayato exclaimed in anger.

"Hey, you know what they say, you can't beat them; join them," Killshot replied, this time with a light smirk, making Ayato angrier.

"I can't believe someone like you would do this!" Ayato said.

"Get used to it," Killshot said. "Since you know about my past, then you know I was hired to kill those kids, and I was hired to kill those leaders. Which means you also know about the weapon business from my client." Killshot said. "This is upsetting, to say the least, because you are very dangerous if you have that information. I can't let someone like you walk away free knowing something that could hinder my client, so I have no choice but to kill you." Killshot said.

"I'm ready for you this time!" Ayato said, taking a fighting stance, lifting his fists close to him at Killshot.

"Oh, I don't think so…" Killshot said as he lifted a small trigger-like device from his pocket.

"What is that?" Ayato asked.

"This? This is a trigger, a remote detonator supplied by the military to activate and detonate bombs from long distances, just like the ones I shot." Killshot said.

"WHAT?!" Ayato exclaimed, but then something caught his eye, something blinking red below him. He looked down, only for his face to pale, as he saw what appeared to be a small circular, almost oval, black device with a tiny red blinking light on it, a device twice the size of a bottlecap. He wouldn't have noticed it if it weren't for his senses.

"W-What is that?!" Ayato exclaimed again.

"That is a special bomb created by the US military. It is still currently in production and classified at a high level. But some people are willing to sell that information to the right buyer, and my client is one of them." Killshot explained.

"The bomb you see before you may not look that dangerous, but it has a blast of 35 psi, known as blast pressure, but simply it has the same effect as a normal hand grenade," Killshot explained. (Author's Note: Psi is a unit of measure known as "Blast Pressure" that measures an explosive blast) "But as you can see, the device is smaller than a grenade because a sniper rifle can shoot it," Killshot said. Ayato's head immediately moved up at him, still looking in panic behind his mask. "Developed to get explosives behind enemy lines or destroy enemy vehicles without using an RPG from a far distance, this device is considered a major step in weapon technology development. My client gave me a few of these as a small taste of my bonus payment, which he managed to get before the United Nations found him." Killshot explained.

"I have been shooting a few of them in the surrounding buildings and streets. Just a precaution, in case I was cornered." Killshot said, holding the trigger hovering his thumb over the trigger button. "If I were to press this button, everyone within five meters per device would be blown up, so I don't have to explain how it'll look if all the ones I shot exploded simultaneously.".

"You would blow everyone up? Why?!" Ayato demanded in panic. "I'm sure that goes against some kind of promise or parameter of your job!" Ayato said.

"It does, it does," Killshot said. "But I am willing to sacrifice that for one reason and one reason only, you…".

"Me?".

"Yes, you," Killshot replied. "You see, I rarely miss my shots, and because of that, the challenge of combat for me was very scarce, but that's before you came here. So, I'll give you a fighting chance so that you can stop me." Killshot said as he lifted his sniper rifle at Ayato, who then gasped at its aim.

"If you can grab my rifle with your chains, then I'll press the trigger, blowing only you and everyone up. But if you grab the trigger, I'll shoot you dead in the head, but the trigger will leave my grasp, and if it falls off the roof, it'll smash into pieces, rendering those explosives useless. The choice is yours." Killshot explained, pointing the laser in his rifle at the centre between Ayato's eyes.

"Why are you doing this?!" Ayato argued.

"Because I want to see who's faster, I want to see which of us has a much faster trigger finger, who can fire first and how skilled we are. This is a test for me and you." Killshot explained. "I don't care if my client's operations will be ruined, and I don't care if I do not get paid; one job loss doesn't harm me much." Spoke Killshot.

Ayato looked at Killshot, trying to think of what to do. "I almost forgot to tell you…" Killshot said. "If you move yourself from that position or take a step in any direction, then I will immediately pull the trigger to activate the explosives in case you violate my rules." Killshot finished.

"Oh, man! What do I do?! If I grab the detonator, then it's curtains for me…" Ayato thought to himself. "But if I grab the gun, then he'll blow us up!" Ayato sweats in fear and confusion about what to do. "Either way, I'm dead meat! But if I move, then I'll blow up anyway, and this guy gets what he wants!" Ayato thought. "In other words, I am screwed!" He thought.

The violence on the ground became much, much louder. Shots were still firing, people were screaming, and some kids hiding were crying. Ayato could hear all of it, and he could do nothing.

"What do I do?!" Ayato thought frantically, but then his eyes widened as he saw something.

Ayato stood tall, making Killshot raise an eyebrow. "I have decided…" Ayato said. "I'll pick option…" He said. "C!" He smiled behind his mask as he then used his chains to grab hold of the bomb trigger while Killshot squeezed the trigger of his rifle.

Everything seemed to have slowed down in slow motion for Ayato, Killshot still pulling the trigger down before making the shot while the chains were wrapped around the detonator. Just as everything Killshot said was coming true, something happened…

Kayame suddenly appeared next to Killshot, which shocked the mercenary as he looked at Kayame, who then used his daggers and- SLICE! Sliced the sniper rifle just before Killshot pulled the trigger back, cutting it into three pieces and rendering the rifle useless.

Ayato caught the explosive trigger, dropped it, and crushed it with a stomp of his right foot. STOMP! He crushed the trigger into pieces. Kayame appeared next to Ayato, his daggers out, and took the stance while Ayato lifted his fists against Killshot.

"Looks like you're here. What's up with you?!" Ayato asked.

"What?! I saved your life, and this is the thanks I get?!" Kayame asked with a cocky smirk.

"Hmmm…" Killshot said, now standing straight. "There's two of you, interesting.".

"I would give up if I was you!" Ayato said with a smile behind his mask. "My friend isn't all that patient, especially since you stabbed him!".

"I still got to return the favour for you!" Kayame said, lifting his right arm with one of his knives and showing it to Killshot.

"I'd be careful if I was you…" Ayato said, still smiling.

"You do know it's a threat. We're not going to stab him." Ayato whispered to Kayame.

"OF COURSE I KNOW WE'RE NOT GONNA STAB IDIOT!" Kayame yelled. "I WAS ONLY TRYING TO MAKE THIS WHOLE THING LOOK ALL BADASS AND COOL! BUT NOW YOU RUINED IT!".

"Whoa, calm down!" Ayato said, defending himself from Kayame, who looked angry at him comically. "I didn't think you were joking; we're superheroes; we have a "No kill rule" you know?".

"OF COURSE I KNOW THAT! I WASN'T GOING TO STAB THIS GUY! MUCH!" Kayame yelled.

"MUCH?!" Ayato yelled. "Hold on now, there is no "Much", there is no stabbing at all! We're the good guys! Good guys don't stab people!".

"Well, this guy stabbed me! And even if I survived, that hurt like crazy! Don't how it feel to be stabbed in the chest like I have?!" Kayame argued, getting into Ayato's face.

"Of course not! I mean, you're if that is a common occurrence! I'm sure if someone was stabbed, they wouldn't be able to walk it off like you did!" Ayato argued.

"Walk it off?! Do you think it was easy to get that out of my system?! That hurt for like a whole hour! AN HOUR!" Kayame argued.

"Okay, dude, seriously! You need to chill! We're just threatening him, that's all!" Ayato said.

"OH MAN! YOU AND YOU'RE GOODY-GOODY-TWO SHOES ACT! DEADPOOL DOESN'T HOLD BACK LIKE SPIDER-MAN! THAT'S HE'S COOLER!" Kayame yelled at Ayato. (Author's Note: Deadpool is another character from Marvel comics and an ally to Spider-Man)

"YOU TAKE THAT BACK RIGHT NOW!" Ayato yelled, and his and Kayame's forehead touched as they glared at each other and growled.

"I guess I was right; you are just kids," Killshot said, still unnerved while watching Ayato and Kayame argue.

"OH, SHUT UP!" Ayato and Kayame yelled together as they both turned their heads at Killshot.

Kayame heaved a sigh before looking at Ayato and said, "Fine, no stabbing, but I'm still gonna beat the crap out of him.".

"Well, I don't think that's good either, but I guess I'll allow…" Ayato said, rubbing the back of his head while thinking.

"Anyway, you better come quietly with us and tell those guys down there the truth," Ayato said, looking at Killshot now.

"You think the two of you have an advantage over me?" Killshot asked.

"Of course we do; we have powers, and you don't," Kayame replied.

"Face it, you're outnumbered and outgunned." Ayato agreed.

"I'm outnumbered…" Killshot said as he closed his eyes. "But outgunned…" His eyes opened. "I don't think so.".

He then grabbed a pistol from his back pocket and shot. BANG! Ayato and Kayame immediately separated upon the bullet hitting the ground of the rooftop.

Ayato and Kayame charged towards Killshot, who quickly moved his pistol towards Ayato, but Kayame kicked it away from his hand. Killshot grabbed Kayame's leg and elbowed it, almost bending it the wrong way, making him yell in pain.

Ayato then tried to punch Killshot, but Killshot dodged the punch by lowering his knees; he grabbed Ayato's arm and punched Ayato twice in the face before throwing him towards Kayame, who let out an "Oof!" before punching his leg, bending it back into place.

Once Kayame's healing took effect and fixed his leg, he used his knives to attempt to cut down Killshot, but only either his leg, arm or torso, wherever the wound would not be fatal. But Killshot saw Kayame do this, and he moved into position and grabbed Kayame's wrists. Kayame attempted to use his super strength, but he was kneed in the stomach by Killshot, which forced Kayame to drop his knives.

Kayame looked at his fallen knives, and an image appeared in his mind, "Kayame, Kayame Kenjiro, that's my boy!" An image of a grown man, his hair and mouth were revealed, but his eyes were covered by the shadow of his hair, and he was in a bright background.

Kayame instantly then recovered; he later swooped down and recovered both knives, but as he did, Killshot attempted to use a knife he pulled out of his pocket, the same one he used to stab Kayame with, and attempted to swing at him, only for it to be blocked by Kayame's knife.

Kayame moved a light distance away, gripping his knives tightly, looking at Killshot.

Ayato then recovered as well, who then lunged for Killshot, even going as far as to use his chains to hook him up, but Killshot grabbed the chain and used it to pull Ayato towards him instead, who was then almost cut by Killshot's knife, tearing a small piece of his black hoodie.

Ayato let go of the chain and immediately jumped backwards, landing next to Kayame.

"He's too good! He is skilled, isn't he?!" Ayato said to Kayame.

"Well, duh! That's what the detectives said about him, right?!" Kayame argued.

"He must have some weakness! We need to keep trying!" With that said, Ayato and Kayame once again charged towards Killshot; Kayame swung his knife at Killshot while Ayato prepared to punch him.

Killshot blocked Kayame's knife with his own, and Ayato… BAM! He punched Killshot in the face, although it wasn't vital to knock him out since he wasn't expecting to hit him, but he grew shocked that he did.

The arm that was used to block Kayame's knife was then used to elbow Ayato in the face, breaking his mask slightly. Kayame then proceeded to punch Killshot, which he also managed to land a hit. Unfortunately, it also wasn't enough to knock him not able to control his strength yet perfectly.

Killshot took a few steps away from Ayato and Kayame; Kayame helped Ayato up, who was rubbing his face behind his cracked mask.

"You good?" Kayame asked, helping Ayato up.

"Yeah, yeah, just cheesy," Ayato replied.

"Did you see that?" Ayato asked.

"Yeah, your mask looks pretty bad," Kayame replied.

"Not that!" Ayato said harshly. "The fact that we managed to land a hit on him TWICE!" He spoke. "He is good but not good enough to fight us both simultaneously! We need to work together!" Ayato said.

"Really? Good." Kayame said. Kayame holstered his knives to his hips and clenched his fist against his palm. "Then I guess we better get started." He smirked.

Ayato and Kayame then charged towards Killshot, who then prepared to attack them with another handgun he kept on his left side holster. He then began shooting at Ayato, who dodged the shots, and as Ayato reached to attack Killshot, Killshot swung his knife, only for it to be blocked by Kayame.

Ayato delivered a downward kick against Killshot's torso, while Kayame punched Killshot. Ayato landed next to Killshot and punched him. Ayato tried to punch Killshot, who blocked it and used the back of his gun to hit Ayato in the back of the head, but that left him open for Kayame to punch him in the cheek. Kayame then tried to kick Killshot in the head, but the mercenary blocked it with his left forearm. But Ayato kicked in his leg, sending him to his knee before recovering.

Every time Killshot blocked an attack from either Ayato or Kayame, one of the two would attack him when he was open. The fight intensified as Killshot's bandana fell to the ground from a hit by Ayato. He dropped his gun and his knife, now fighting in fists, up until he couldn't take the damage anymore, as Ayato and Kayame together kicked him in the forearms, which he used to block his body from their attack. He fell to the ground.

"Well…" Ayato said. "Looks like you're finished?".

"I…" Killshot huffed, breathing heavily, bruises on his face and body, his nose slightly bleeding from the fighting. "I… Am not finished… Yet…".

"Not… The first time… I've been pushed to here… But it has… But it has been a while…" He heaved.

He then grabbed yet another pistol from his ankle boot, to which Kayame responded, "How many of these guns does he have on him?".

He pointed his gun towards the explosive planted on the ground and said, "Time to say goodbye." BANG! BOOM! He shot the gun at the explosive, which then reached Ayato, but Kayame got in the way and threw Ayato in the air as the shock of the explosive pushed him.

"KAYAME!" Ayato yelled.

"THAT'S IT! I HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!" Ayato yelled as he used his chains, which wrapped around Killshot's armpits and shoulders, before being pulled up to Ayato's height.

"Remember, always remember…" A voice rang in Ayato's head, remembering a female on a hospital bed.

"I'M GONNA USE MY SPECIAL MOVE!" Ayato yelled. Ayato's right hand formed a claw like finger with his index and middle finger joining together while his Pinky and fourth finger joined together his thumb and fingers bending 90 degress, black flames enveloped, and Ayato was prepared to use it.

"W-What is that?" Killshot asked, showing a shocked emotion in his eyes for the first time.

"THIS IS A MOVE I CREATED!" Ayato yelled.

"What?" Killshot said.

"NOW TIME TO USE IT!" Ayato yelled. "DEMON'S SHADOW CLAW!" Ayato's Demon's claw then moved in almost blinding speed as he attacked Killshot in the gut what felt like an empowered fist attack, knocking out unconscious from a fierce blow, leaving an atrial of black flames before disappearing into the air, along with the flames on his hands.

Soon, Ayato landed on his feet, catching Killshot over his shoulder before wrapping him up in black chains.

Ayato looked at Kayame, whose body was smoking from the intense heat. "KAYAME!" Ayato yelled as he rushed towards Kayame, who was lying front first, before pushing him to his back to look at him as he coughed.

"Don't wanna go through that again…" Kayame said as Ayato smiled in relief.

"GUYS!" Ayato and Kayame then moved, looking at the rooftop's edge and hearing Nora's voice, even though a battle was still happening.

"IT'S GETTING WORSE! THE POLICE WILL BE HERE SOON, BUT I DON'T KNOW IF THEY WILL MAKE IT IN TIME BEFORE PEOPLE START DYING!" Nora yelled, taking cover behind a car.

The fight intensified as both gangs had reinforcements arrived, more cars and more guns being shot now more violently.

"I'll try to stop this!" Ayato said to Kayame.

"How?!" Kayame said.

"I don't know, but I'll find a way!" Ayato jumped down to the street, leaving Kayame with Killshot.

"You idiot! You don't have a plan!" Kayame cursed under his breath, but then he heard the groans of Killshot; he turned around and looked at the mercenary before approaching him.

"Let's see if you have anything that could help us…" Kayame said as he began to search Killshot.

As Ayato landed on the street, he then looked at the two gangs shooting each other.

"STOP!" Ayato yelled, but his voice was unheard.

Ayato then ran towards the centre of the fight as the two gang leaders approached each other with their men behind them. He then jumped into a car parked at the centre of the battle.

"STOP!" Ayato yelled.

"STOP IT!" Ayato yelled again, but his words remained unheard.

"STOP!" Ayato yelled again, more despair in his voice this time.

"Nothing's working! They won't listen to me!" Ayato thought. "I HAVE TO STOP THIS! WHAT DO I DO?! WHAT DO I DO?!" Ayato yelled in thought.

"Release it…" A voice rang inside Ayato's head, and he didn't know why he heard it. It could be his imagination. Or he could be so desperate he's hearing things in his head?

But he felt something, something he never felt before. Almost like a surge of power flowing through his veins, he felt happy, thrilled, like he never felt before. He felt… Dark.

"I!" Ayato yelled. "SAID!" He then bent over, his head looking downwards.

"STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!" BWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

He spread his arms and legs, and from his body, as he shot his head upwards, a giant wall of black flames appeared around Ayato, so large it reached up to a three-story building. Everyone who was shooting stopped as the gang leaders and the men behind them fell on their butts to the ground, shocked and in fear at what they had seen.

The police and SWAT had finally arrived, but they grew shocked at what they saw. Both Detectives Stevens and Dan were now out of their police car, looking at the flames with shocked expressions on their faces. People watched the flames and were shocked at what they saw, as did Nora and Kayame. What scared people most was the fact they saw white eyes in the flames.

After what felt like hours, but it was almost a minute, the flames died down, and so did the eyes disappear, and as the eyes disappeared, the flames were gone. Some of them retracted into Ayato, who was now heaving heavily after releasing that number of flames.

"T-Th-Thank you…" Ayato said as his mask continued to crack; when his head slumped down, hair covering his eyes, the mask completely broke apart, only leaving a small section of the right eye.

Ayato passed out and fell forward, only for Nora and Kayame to rush and catch Ayato before falling to the ground.

"GOTCHA!" Kayame yelled.

"Ayato!" Nora exclaimed in worry.

The detectives were shocked at what they had seen but immediately returned to the issue as soon as the shock wore off. "ARREST THEM!" Yelled Stevens.

Immediately, the police and SWAT surrounded the gangs, forcing them to drop their weapons and go down to the ground, now getting handcuffed. Stevens arrested the Big Boys' leader, and the whole Dan arrested the Los Conquistadors leader.

"Well, well, well, looks like you are going away for a long time. Obstruction of private property, obstruction of public property, ownership of illegal weapons, using weapons without a permit, attempted murder, danger to surrounding civilians, and a whole lot of other charges we're yet to talk about." Said Dan.

"Who cares about that? The Big Boys are the ones you want! They killed my son!" Angrily spoke the Mexican leader.

"You killed daughter!" Angrily spoke the Big Boys leader.

"Wrong…" The two gang leaders, Dan and Stevens, turned their heads to see Kayame walking to them, showing a burner phone with the images of the Big Boys and Los Conquistadors leaders. "This is who did it," Kayame said as he stopped before them.

"What's this?! A trick!" Angrily, said the Mexican leader.

"Oh no, it's not a trick; this is the photo to get rid of you two to create a power vacuum, just so the guys who sold you the guns would make a profit." Explained Kayame.

"HE'S LYING!" Yelled the Mexican leader.

"No, he's not." Spoke Stevens. "He's not lying; he's telling the truth. We have evidence pointing out a black marketeer, codenamed Nightshade, and he's responsible for it; we just received an email regarding it from our informant in the United Nations." Spoke Stevens.

"An email? Probably the same person who emailed Nora?" Kayame thought to himself.

"You guys were the target of a bigger plot, and so were your kids," Dan said, agreeing with his partner. "And that photo…" He looked at the phone Kayame was holding. "Is proof of it.".

"Y-You mean our suppliers killed my daughter?".

"And my son?".

Both gang leaders questioned in shock and disbelief. Stevens looked at them and said, "Look, you two took this the wrong way, but if you wanna make up a little bit of what happened tonight, then tell us where the weapons came from, and we can find the people responsible for this, for your kids.".

Both gang leaders looked at each other before looking at the detective.

---

(Location: Eastern Docks, Specific Location: Abandoned Warehouse)

In the primary operations of Nightshade, who was in his office right now, he began to wonder about the job of the gangs. "Killshot should've called by now! What's taking him?!" Growled Nightshade to himself.

"BOSS!" BANG! A mercenary shot through the door as he yelled at his boss. "We got trouble; the fight between the Big Boys and Los Conquistadors stopped!".

"WHAT!" Yelled Nightshade.

"And that's not all; SWAT and the National Island Police are outside right now, ready to!".

BANG! The large doors of the warehouse opened as police officers and members of SWAT burst through, holding their weapons up against the workers and mercenaries.

"ON THE GROUND NOW!".

"YOU'RE UNDER ARREST! DO NOT RESIST OR WE WILL SHOOT!".

"SURRENDER!".

Some mercenaries grabbed AK rifles and shotguns and were ready to fire at the law enforcement officers until Kayame swooped in and cut their guns to pieces with his knives before knocking them down, leaving the officers to rush in and point their weapons and handcuff the mercenaries.

Back at the office, the mercenary watched this, and he looked behind him at his boss.

"W-What do we do?!" Spoke the mercenary to his boss.

"Go and handle it; I have an idea; try to hold them back!" I ordered Nightshade as the mercenary left and closed the door.

"I have an idea, alright, an idea to run away! I can't believe this!" Nightshade said as he went towards a safe underneath his desk, grabbing a large amount of cash and a handgun before leaving through an emergency exit.

"My plan is ruined!" Nightshade said.

"I need to leave; I'll worry about the law later! Right now, I gotta leave and-!".

POW! As Nightshade left through the emergency exit and began running through the platform to the stairs, Nora appeared and delivered a fierce punch to his face. He fell, and money was scattered, and so was his handgun; he was knocked unconscious.

"Oh no, you don't!" Nora said.

Just then, Kayame ran from the door and saw Nora. "You ask me to carry you here so that you can catch the bad guy?" Kayame said.

"Well, I wanted some action myself, Kayame," Nora said. Both Kayame and Nora then heard Stevens and Dan coming towards them.

"You better hide," Kayame said to Nora, who complied.

"Right," Nora said as she rushed down the stairs and hid.

Just then, Stevens and Dan went outside, their handguns drawn, before looking at Nightshade, who was slowly regaining consciousness.

"Where am I?" Nightshade asked while groaning in pain as Stevens and Dan lifted him, placing handcuffs behind his back.

"You're at the biggest bust in National Island's history, pal." Said Dan.

"You're going away for a long time," Stevens said.

Stevens then looked at Kayame and said, "Thank you, thank you and your friend so much. With this, we can finally end this weapon business once and for all.".

"Good, then that means things can return to normal differently," Kayame said as he began to walk away.

"Wait!" Spoke Stevens. "What's your name?" He asked.

"My name?" Kayame said. "My name is…" He thought to himself of a name, then he smiled behind his mask and said, "Call me Blood Demon.".

"Blood Demon?" Stevens said.

"Yes, that's my name." With that said, Kayame jumped and left.

---

(The Next Day, Location: School, Specific Location: Story Club)

"As you can see, we confiscated more than a thousand weapons ranging from handguns to AK rifles to RPGs and minor explosives such as grenades and C4s. Thanks to the help of our local heroes, police managed to arrive to stop the fighting between the Big Boys and Los Conquistadors." Spoke Stevens, wearing a suit that was his preferred attire, standing with police officers and Dan next to him, also in a suit, in front of the city hall of National Island, speaking on a speaker stand on TV in front of news crews. All of this came from the TV show of the story club.

"Both leaders of the gangs confessed to the purchase of illegal weapons, which bought them some in prison, but with a deal of a reduced sentence. As for the man known as Nightshade, a black marketeer, he has been arrested along with several of his men and workers, who are all facing prison sentences for their involvement." Stevens said. "Any questions?".

"Yes, detective!" Loudly spoke to a male news reporter. "What about the weapons that have already been sold to the public? What is your plan with them? Any leads or information?".

"Unfortunately, no. The weapons that were sold were sold with cash, not credit card, so tracking the people who already bought the weapons will be difficult, especially since the names and faces were never recorded to keep the secrecy of the black-market operation. But we have launched an investigation and a program working with civilians reporting weapons from any categories confiscated, owned by any individual being arrested, and the weapon getting confiscated. We have already had more than ten reports, and we are hopeful it won't be long before we confiscate them before anything bad happens." Said Stevens. "Any more questions?" Stevens asked.

"What about all of the mercenaries? Have they all been captured?" Asked a female reporter.

"No, there are still a few of them at large. Some of them were picking up more weapons in the docks from suppliers, but they were arrested on sight. But a few managed to get away from the police. but there is a record of their faces and names, so if you see any of them shared on social media websites from the police department, please contact us immediately and do not engage them; they are considered very dangerous." Stevens answered.

"I heard there were no fatalities in the fight. Is that true?" Asked a male reporter.

"Believe it or not, yes, it is true. Despite the violence, no one died, not a civilian or a gang member; thanks to the heroes at the scene, they have prevented the loss of any life; only injuries were reported but nothing that could be life-threatening." Said Stevens.

"As for the man known as Killshot, the person who started all of this, he was found on a rooftop and now has been processed, awaiting trial. It is believed with the crimes he committed here, and before he arrived, it is unlikely that he'll be given a light sentence and will probably spend the rest of his life behind bars." Stevens explained.

"Again, this whole operation wouldn't have been as successful as it has been now. Our heroes did not come and help us out of this trouble." Stevens said.

"Any more questions?" Stevens asked, and reporters immediately started to talk.

Ayato, Kayame and Nora were watching TV. Nora broke the silence and said, "Wow, what a week.". She then laid on her chair.

"I gotta say, I'm happy you guys helped me; I don't think I could ever have done this without you two; I mean it," Ayato said.

"I'm glad you do, Ayato." Nora smiled. "But what happened last night to you?" Nora asked.

"I don't know. I have never released that many flames before, and I guess it must've impacted me. I felt tired and everything," Ayato replied.

"Well, I'm glad you're okay; I am," Nora said softly.

"Yeah, so am I." Ayato agreed with a smile for himself as well.

"Hey, I gotta ask, who sent those emails? We never really found out who it was?" Kayame asked Nora.

"I don't know, and what's strange is that when I tried to check out those emails, they were gone," Nora replied.

"Gone?" Kayame asked. "Like, gone, as in deleted?".

"Yeah, like if it was never there before," Nora said.

"What about my laptop? You looked at it this morning, right?" Ayato asked Nora.

"Yeah, but that was gone too. Anything relating to the weapons was gone." Nora replied. "I wonder who it was?" Nora said.

"I guess we'll never know," Kayame said.

Unknown to Ayato, Nora, and Kayame, a female person looked at them through the door window before leaving.

"I guess it doesn't matter," Ayato said as he placed his arms behind his head, leaning on his chair.

"I mean, all's well that ends, right? We got rid of the weapons, saved the day, and even got ourselves a team." Ayato said. "What more could we want?".

"Nothing, I guess," Kayame said.

"I'll admit, being a hero is pretty good, so I guess it's okay if we continue this together," Nora said.

"You can say that again," Kayame said.

"Yep, and from this point on, everything should be smooth sailing," Ayato said, relaxing, as he looked at Kayame and Nora smiling at him while he returned the smile.

However, as one page ends, another begins.

The story has just begun…

---

To Be Continued.

(Opening song, brought to you by NICO Touches The Walls, Hologram, lyrics)

Masshiro na keshiki ni ima sasowarete

The scene opens with Ayato's back facing the audience, standing on a tower in his hero costume looking at the rising sun, blinding the views while the camera zooms in on him.

Boku wa yuku yo mada minu sekai e, whoa-oh-oh

Just as the camera zooms in on Ayato's back, it flies past his shoulder and turns to face him, but only his necklace and zooms in, where it shows Ayato holding his necklace with his right hand.

The title Fairy Worlds is shown.

[Verse 1]

Maigo no mama tabi shiteita

Nezumiiro no sora no shita

Higawari no chizu

Ikutsumo no yume ga nijiindeita

Itsuka wa sa

Chippoke na boku no kono hohaba demo

Ano kumo no mukou made ikeru ka na

Scenes of the story so far is revealed in chronological order, before eventually coming to the club.

[Pre-Chorus]

Tsuyogatte

Kizutsuita kokoro sukashita you ni

Furidashita amatsubutachi ga

Ranhansha kurikaesu

Nightshade, Killshot, Stevens and Dan scenes are showed.

[Chorus]

Massugu na hikari ga kousa shite

Ikusaki mo tsugenu mama

Dokomademo tsukinukeru

Awai zanzou

Ryoume ni yakitsukete

Todoku hazu nanda

Mada minu sekai e

The rest of the scenes are revealed as the chapter ended, now with the final scene being Ayato putting on his costume and swinging to action.

Not far from the window of the club, we see a figure of the same man seen before, looking at Ayato.

"Well, I guess it's time now." Spoke the man.

---

(OMAKE: Mask)

Ayato, who was at home looked at his broken mask, with Nora and Kayame behind him. "Ughhhh great," Ayato said annoyed.

"I'm sorry about your mask Ayato." Nora apologised.

"I know Nora, I know… I guess this is a sign… A sign to move on…" Ayato said.

"Ayato…" Nora said, believing what Ayato is referring to in shock.

Ayato dropped his mask in a dust bin, shocking Kayame and Nora, he walked towards his wardrobe, confusing them both as he then opened it, revealing more masks he made.

"I guess I'll have switch to a backup mask." Ayato said.

"YOU HAVE MORE?!" Both Nora and Kayame exclaimed.

"Of course I have more masks, these things break really easily you know, it's easier if I just make more of them and use them one by one." Ayato explained, as he looked at Kayame and Nora, he smiled comically as he held two masks.

"Which one do you guys think I should pick. This one has a nice smell to it." He left the mask in his right hand. "But this one looks a little shinier…" Ayato said looking at the one in his left hand. "Which one do you guys think I should pick?".

"THEY'RE BOTH THE SAME THING!" Both Kayame and Nora yelled.

---

Author's Note: Hey guys! I'm back! Now it's time I told you guys what have been going on with me? Well, here's what happened… College happened.

That's right for me (and also for you) the semester has ended which meant I had exams galore that I had to fulfil, which unfortunately meant I had to hold this story back.

I did say I'll upload in two weeks' time, but that was five weeks ago so I apologise for the wait, but now that my exams are over, I can get to a more concentrated timeline with my chapters.

As promised here is my announcement… The story Fall Of A Hero, a Naruto fanfic, will now have a reboot, called "Fall Of A Hero Reboot"! That's right I'm going to be rewriting the story properly this time since it is an in-universe story to this, set in the same universe and I am hoping to finish the first chapter by the end of this week so see you there.

I also have to tell you guys that after the first story of the Naruto fanfic is uploaded I'll be taking a two week break (which is actually a week break), so I can plan out my stories, I plan for this story to have about 24 chapters by the end of this year and I have already planned out chapter 5, but I realise I haven't gave much thought of National Island, so I'll be giving it some more thought to it.

Again I am thankful for the support you guys are giving me, here is a release date of my story chapters I like to put before uploading.

Chapter 1: 23/03/2024.

Chapter 2: 13/04/2024.

Chapter 3: 21/05/2024.

Please do not forget to READ AND REVIEW on Fanfic, or on Wattpad COMMENT or on Webnovel COMMENT on this story.

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed.

Thanks dudes😊.