It was extremely early in the morning, somewhere around 2:30 or closer to 3:00. Whichever it was, Eri didn't care. She was having what some might call a bad day, though for her, a typical "bad" day was a typical "good" day for her. Her arms were sore, but that was to be expected. You couldn't get your arms cut up and bled for an hour a day without them typically being sore afterward.

Staring at her bandages, some still stained with the aftermath while other parts of the bandages were dry, she couldn't help but feel a unique sense of dread and frustration.

She just wanted to play with the other children outside. Uncle Kai had promised that she could play with the other kids, but not today. When that weird white-masked man in the strange white coat took her back to her room, she could hear Uncle Kai crying.

She knew why he was crying.

They were both starting to get sick of their situation. Uncle Kai only wanted what was best for her. Eri knew that. To an extent, Big Sis did as well, but Big Sis was getting frustrated.

She didn't blame Big Sis for being frustrated, but that didn't mean listening to her complain all day was a fun pastime.

Right now, Eri was sitting on her bed, playing something called "Super Smash Brothers Ultimate." Apparently, it was a classic game from the early 2000s. It was a classic, and she really liked playing as the red lady with the sword. Or was it the white lady with a sword? They could swap out, so was it both?

Were they two people in the same body?

Whatever the case was, Eri liked playing that character because she felt… happy when she did. It was either this or sleep.

Eri didn't like to sleep, as it meant the next day would come quicker. However, tomorrow and the week following it were one of her "off-weeks." It meant she didn't have to bleed for an hour a day to let her recover. Then the week following that would be when she had to give her blood.

Eri frowned, her tiny hands tensing around the controller. She didn't want to do this anymore. She didn't want to bleed anymore. She knew why she had to—Uncle Kai kept explaining it to her and kept telling her that if they "didn't please That Man, then bad things would happen," but she couldn't care less anymore.

If bad things happened, then so be it.

If it meant that she suddenly stopped breathing, then so be it.

If it meant getting out of this living hell, then so be it!

Suddenly, the controller in her hand broke apart, cracking under the pressure Eri had forced upon it. The device shattered into pieces as it fell to the ground. Eri frowned, staring at the controller as the character on the screen stopped moving, and the large monkey she was fighting against proceeded to beat the character senselessly.

Eri sighed, looking down at her hands.

"Big Sis… I need to fix the controller," Eri muttered. At that point, one would expect someone within the room to move. That someone would say something or do something. That someone would've been Noroi.

But, Noroi wasn't there.

Eri was alone in her room. There was no one else in the room with her. It was just her, the air, her bed, the TV and game consoles that Uncle Kai bought her, and the mountain of stuffed toys that the other members of The Family brought her when she was having a bad day.

There was no one in Eri's room.

So then, who was she talking to?

"Yeah, yeah. Alright, fine. You know the special words, right? The special words that will help you in your moment of need?" Noroi's voice echoed within Eri's head as Eri nodded.

"Right… I forgot. Feed The Machine."

The moment Eri said that, metallic hands pulled themselves like a ghosts out of Eri's small, tiny hands. They easily eclipsed her hands in size. They were almost the same size as Uncle Kai's hands. They were grown-up hands.

Each finger had a bright red jewel on the middle joints of the hand's fingers and on the knuckles of the hands. Behind Eri, as if it was pulling itself out of her back, a plague mask-wearing spectre appeared, with one of its eyes being a bright red and another eye being pink. Around its neck was a tattered cape. Its body looked kind of like the girl people of The Family, with those strange lumps that they had.

Eri had never seen Feed The Machine fully. It only ever came out when Noroi allowed her to bring it out or if she was in danger—which thankfully hadn't happened. Feed The Machine placed a hand on the broken controller, but before it did anything, Eri sighed.

"Right…" Eri muttered before raising her left hand over to the horn on her head. "You need payment…." Without hesitation, she slammed her hand down, palm first, on the horn. She didn't flinch. She didn't even gasp in pain. Her hand was skewered by the horn, and that was enough for Feed The Machine.

As soon as she impaled her hand on her horn and as soon as her blood stained her forehead, Feed The Machine did its job. The controller gained a golden hue that cracked and sparked with an electricity-like aura. Within less than a second, the controller repaired itself. At the same time, Eri removed her hand from her horn as the wound healed itself.

Feed The Machine, after taking a payment of Eri's blood, would "Rewind" what Eri wanted. After it was fixed, the wound would heal itself. It wouldn't replace the blood. That was what her heart was for.

Maybe it was because she had been cut some many times, but she didn't exactly respond to pain. If she bled, she bled. She didn't particularly care—she stopped caring about that sort of thing a year ago. Uncle Kai said that it was bad that she wasn't caring anymore. He had said that it was a bad omen. That she was becoming "distant" from herself.

The thing was, she had already been "distant" from herself.

When Otousan died.

Correction: When she killed Otousan.

She would never let herself forget what she had done. She would never forget that she had killed Otousan. When Kaasan slapped her for it. When Kaasan gave her to Uncle Kai.

Uncle Kai didn't say she was cursed like Kaasan had. Uncle Kai called her gifted. Special. That she could change the world. Uncle Kai told her that because she was special, she would make a good leader in the future.

Then, Uncle Kai met That Man, and Uncle Kai was black and blue all over once That Man finally agreed to spare him and the rest of The Family when he saw that she could see his scary ghost. That was before Feed The Machine had shown up, but she knew that Feed The Machine had always been with her.

Her memory blanked after that. Eri didn't remember what happened after that. All Eri knew was that, around this time, Noroi introduced herself. Noroi had said that she was her big sister, and it was a big sister's duty to help the little sibling.

That was when Uncle Kai explained what was going to happen. At first, she hated it. She hated Uncle Kai. She hated everyone and everything around her. She hated the fact that she was being cut, and she wanted to lash out—to make them die like Otousan.

But then, during one of her tantrums, That Man showed up.

That Man made sure she would never lash out again.

All of her hate had been directed to That Man from that point onward.

She vowed to make sure That Man disappeared.

Once That Man was gone, they would be free.

She would be free.

Uncle Kai would be free.

The Family would be free.

That was what Eri wanted. She wanted freedom. She wanted to be free from That Man. She and Uncle Kai were waiting for their golden opportunity. The next time That Man showed up, she would make sure That Man would disappear.

Eri didn't know when that would be, but she was waiting. Noroi thought that her plan was "reckless," as she had put it. Eri didn't care.

Eri was going to make That Man disappear.

No matter the cost.

Feed The Machine returned from where it came as Eri picked up the controller, skipped past a bunch of screens with words that she couldn't read, and started up a new match. She selected the big monkey again and selected the two red and white girl characters.

When she pressed play, she decided that she would imagine herself as the girl character and the big monkey as That Man. That way, she could feel just a little bit better.

[XXXX]

Yoshihara woke up far earlier than she had wanted to, and it was for two reasons. One was a good one, and the other was very, very stupid, though only to an outsider looking in. The first reason—the stupid one—was rather simple. It had less to do with waking up. Moreover, it was something else entirely, partially stemming from her childhood.

Simply put: she hated being alone.

Now, to some, that might sound weird. From eleven to fifteen years old, Yoshihara lived alone all her life. Excluding the times Akira stayed overnight at The Love Palace, she had always been alone, made even worse when she lived in that garbage apartment.

When she moved in with Kayama-san, that changed. Finally, she was with someone. She lived with someone and knew that someone wouldn't try and do any unjust things to her. Where she had her own space, sure, but she knew that someone was nearby. It gave her a sense of security that she lacked.

Now, it sort of escalated. She had shared a bed with Izuku. Felt his skin on her own, and for the briefest of moments, they were conjoined in love. They slept together, and she immediately grew addicted to the sensation of being with him.

But now, she woke up alone.

It was strange to be alone in bed without someone to wake up next to. She had only done it once, but she hated the fact that it was only once. She wanted to be with Izuku again, to hold him again, just like she did yesterday. Waking up in her room without him just felt wrong, and she hated it.

But it wasn't as if it was unreasonable to suggest that she shouldn't. Izuku had his own home and his own family to be with. She couldn't steal him away forever. Inko wouldn't exactly be too pleased with that, all things considered.

It was something new, and new things, at least lately, had been good. She wasn't being inundated with constant evil thoughts like she had been before all of this began. She knew she wasn't alone and that she could have people to fall back on now. The change in her life as of late was good and not bad.

Change had been horrible to her so many times in the past. Her experience with change had been traumatic. That was why she kept routines as much as she could, preferred to know what was going to happen and when, and liked trying to get a grasp on something before ever doing it.

So many times in her life, she had been forced to change her way of life for someone else's benefit. So many times in her life, she had been made a mockery of due to change. From going from an abused youth in an abusive household to an abused youth living on the streets, whoring herself out to pay for food and clothing, to a not-so-abused suicidal teenager who was still whoring herself out, but this time to pay for rent, food, clothing, and all necessary bills to live.

It wasn't exactly a surprise to know that Yoshihara was against change. But now, it was different. Now, she was healing. She was getting better. It was a long road ahead of her, and she knew that. But it would get better. She had to tell herself that because if she didn't, she wouldn't believe it. At least in the past, anyway. Nowadays, not so much.

And it was all because of change. It was funny how the very thing that ruined her life came back around to help her. It was both ironic and funny, as well as cripplingly depressing. There was nothing more karmic then that. Eleven years of suffering, balanced by one year of somewhat peace and prosperity. Sure, there were hiccups along the way, but it wasn't entirely bad.

Luck was on her side. She knew it was. If it wasn't after everything that had happened to her, then she'd accuse the world of hating her very existence. At some point, she had to catch a break. Maybe, just maybe, after this illness, she'd be able to.

Moving on, now that she thought about it, it had been almost a full year since she moved in with Kayama-san, and next month marks that anniversary for the betterment of her life. She'd have to thank Kayama-san for that and maybe do something for her.

But that was for later.

There was another reason as to why she wasn't all too pleased about being awake this early. For all intents and purposes, she hardly slept. Actually, it was proper to say that she hadn't slept at all. Aside from the one or two times she was able to actually rest, she couldn't actually fall asleep.

When she initially got up, Yoshihara looked at the time and found that it had been 4:30 a.m. Her flight was scheduled for 6:00 a.m., and the airport was an hour away. She had already packed a suitcase for her trip the night before.

It contained several changes of clothes, her hero costume, Volumes 1 through 10 of Demon Slayer, the stupid test that Aizawa-sensei purchased for her—which she shoved into a deep corner of her suitcase—and a few of those cheap instant ramen bowls, and that was mostly so that she could space out her meals from all of the American food she would no doubt be eating.

Don't get her wrong. She had tasted American food before, and even she would admit that it was okay at best, but that didn't mean she was going to eat it for two whole weeks. That was not happening. She'd soon rather die than eat stuff she was not familiar with for long periods of time. While Kayama-san made some American dishes, she didn't know if she could handle having a constant stream of American food without clogging her arteries.

Regardless of that, however, Yoshihara found herself once again not wanting to get up, even though she had to—even though she had to make it for her flight. Something was stopping her from getting up.

She was tired.

Dead tired, to be exact.

It wasn't as if she had no good reason to be tired. In fact, she did have a good reason. No matter how much she tried to fall asleep last night, she found it nearly impossible. Whenever she did find herself able to fall asleep, she was woken up later by the sensation of having to use the bathroom. It was quite infuriating, but she dealt with it, and that was all that mattered.

She even went to bed before her usual bedtime just so that she could have some extra sleep. Then again, if she hadn't, she probably would've passed out on the couch after dinner anyway, so there was that.

It had been the first time in a long time that she had been restless. The last time she felt restless was the first night she moved in with Kayama-san. But that was different. It had different circumstances around it. Back then, it was because she had an inherent distrust of her new location. But this? She couldn't pinpoint why she had been so restless, and it was pissing her off.

And then there was Kayama-san. When she had gotten home from school the night before, she had constantly asked questions, and random ones, too.

Questions like if she had been feeling fatigued all day, or if she had been having cramps or other things that made no real sense for someone to be asking her. She answered no to all of them, minus the whole being tired thing. When Kayama-san got the hint that she wasn't answering the questions properly, she urged her to see a doctor. She refused that almost immediately.

She was tired, maybe even sick with some sort of cold, but that was it. It was not worth wasting anyone's time. Not even Tooru's. So, just in case, Yoshihara packed some Tylenol into her suitcase to help with the off-and-on headaches she had been getting.

Aizawa was going to pick her up in twenty minutes. Kayama-san had received a call from him saying as such. So, that left Yoshihara some time to sit on the couch. She was tapping her foot impatiently against the floor as she slumped forward, hands on her legs as she stared absently at the wall. Kayama-san was sitting adjacent to her in the chair to her right, arms folded neatly on her legs with her hands clasped together.

The room was dead silent, with only the sound being that of a faint dripping of water from the sink tap to give the room any sort of atmosphere. The sun hadn't fully risen, so the sky outside was still pitch black. It gave the room a bit of a sombre feeling.

Yoshihara was nervous. This was going to be her first time away from Kayama-san for more than a day or two—this was two weeks. Two whole weeks without someone who she considered to be her mother figure was not a pleasant thought. It bothered Yoshihara a lot, and Kayama-san seemed to catch on to it if her concerned glances were anything to go by.

"Are you alright, Yoshihara?" Kayama-san asked, trying to break the silence. Yoshihara didn't respond. She continued to stare distantly out the window, watching the lights of the city flicker on and off, brushing off Kayama-san's question as if it were nothing. "Yoshihara… please talk to me. I'm sorry if I made you angry last night with my constant questions. I'm just worried about you…"

There was also that. She wasn't too happy with Kayama-san and her invasive questions. It really ticked her off. And who wouldn't be? Asking questions like that… just wasn't normal. It was also sudden, too. And they sounded more like demanding accusations than actual questions, almost like she was mad at her for some reason.

"I'm not talking to you," Yoshihara finally spoke after half an hour of full silence. "And yes, I'm still mad at you. Both you and Aizawa-sensei have been extremely pushy with me for the last twenty-four hours. So I have a right to be angry with you two. I need time to myself. This internship will give me that. Now shut up, and leave me alone."

That wasn't even remotely true, and she knew it. She wanted to talk, but she was being stubborn. Yoshihara was still mad at Kayama-san; truly, she was. But even angry people could sometimes say things that were wrong to get people off their backs.

Kayama-san, however, didn't take too kindly to the attitude that Yoshihara was giving her. She suddenly stood up from her chair, an annoyed gleam in her eyes as she began to speak. "Young lady, I—"

Kayama-san wasn't allowed to talk back as she felt something push her back down into the chair when she shot upward from it. It was hard enough to rock the chair backward, and the glare from Yoshihara didn't inspire any sort of confidence in trying to talk back, either. She wanted to say something, but she decided against it. It wasn't worth making the already angry Yoshihara even angrier, she supposed.

Yoshihara gripped the hem of her uniform skirt, her arms tensing, her knuckles popping, and her eyes narrowing. As per internship protocol, when first showing up to the internship, the person must be wearing the school uniform that they currently attended, if they had one. From there on, the clothing choice didn't matter. Henceforth she was wearing U.A's uniform in the comfort of her own home.

Yoshihara needed some peace and quiet, just for a little bit, so she could think and try to figure out what the hell was going on with her. She was confused, in pain, and not feeling good. Usually, whenever she was, it was only for a day or two or just after a fight.

While she was giving herself the benefit of the doubt, assuming it was the first option, she still didn't truly know what this was. But! She was going to push through. That's what she always did. Always. No matter what, that was what Yoshihara Kira did.

Kayama-san looked at Yoshihara, sighing. She had never seen Yoshihara so emotional before. She was always stoic and kept her feelings to herself. Hell, there were times when she questioned whether or not Yoshihara had any feelings to begin with. Even when she was on her period, she was never like this. Normally, she would just give glares more often than usual or lock herself in her room until it was over.

But this? Being tired almost all the time. Restlessness. Mood swings. Headaches. Whatever had been affecting her was bad, and Nemuri thought she knew what it was. But unless she got confirmation, she wasn't going to say anything. Sighing, she cleared her throat, then stood up, her phone vibrating in her pants pocket. It was no doubt Aizawa texted her saying that he was there, she didn't even need to look. She just knew.

"Go get your suitcase. Aizawa's here," Kayama-san said as Yoshihara stood up and headed for the staircase. Before she could actually go up the stairs, Kayama-san embraced her in a hug, catching the teen off guard. "I don't know what's going on with you, Yoshihara. But just know that whatever it is, even if you don't know yourself, I'll be there for you. Okay? I'll miss you. Treat your new teacher with politeness, and keep in touch. I love you," Nemuri said, kissing the top of Yoshihara's head before letting go.

Yoshihara's breath hitched, almost like she was choking back a sob. And then, as quiet as a mouse, Yoshihara spoke. "I'll miss you too… Mom…." It was enough to make Kayama-san smile warmly. It had been a long time since Yoshihara had called her "mom," but it was clear that she actually meant it this time. Last time, she said that out of the blue. This time, she said it and meant it. Yoshihara turned around and hugged her, burying her face underneath her chest, small, light sobs coming from her.

"Gods… I don't know what's going on Yoshihara… I wish I did….""I take it you're nervous. Being so far away…. It'll be different, but from what I heard from Kujo, you're meeting extended family…." Nemuri said, looking down at the crying Yoshihara. That was a sentence that made no sense. Yoshihara never cried, and yet here she was, crying. It hadn't been since Sayaka had died that cried. It was hard to look at, let alone hear. She sounded so vulnerable, scared even.

And that was when Nemuri understood. "Separation Anxiety. She keeps psyching herself out, and it's negatively affecting her…."Nemuri thought, feeling Yoshihara's arms wrap tightly around her as Nemuri rubbed her back soothingly. Out of the corner of her eye, Nemuri saw that a part of Yoshihara's shoulders had been exposed. The way she had been positioned, the nape of her neck was showing, and there, she saw a small, barely noticeable Star-Shaped Mark.

Nemuri's eyes widened. She knew that mark. She had seen it before on Kujo from time to time. She knew exactly what it meant. That was when she understood what Kujo had said by saying that Yoshihara was meeting some extended family during their shared internship overseas.

"Oh god…. She's a Joestar. That's what Kujo meant by meeting extended family…! That's why she wanted to go to the Speedwagon Foundation. I understand now…. And now… I have an idea." "It's okay, Yoshihara, don't be sad. Hey, you know what? I think I finally have a good nickname for you that isn't cringe-worthy. You want to hear it?" Nemuri asked as Yoshihara pulled herself away, wiping her eyes from the tears and looking up at Nemuri.

"You're my little star. Don't ever forget that. Okay? I might have only met you late last year, but… You really are like a daughter to me, well and truly. No matter what happens, that will always be the case. Okay?" Nemuri said, bopping her on the nose, annoyance appearing on Yoshihara's face for a split second before it quickly faded away and replaced with a sombre smile.

"Thanks… Mom. I… I love you, too…" Yoshihara said awkwardly, Nemuri smiling before ushering her up the stairs.

"Come on, you have a plane to catch, so hurry up. I'll come and see both you and Kujo-kun off, alright?" Nemuri said as Yoshihara nodded, turning and walking up the stairs. She was still tired, hurting, though not nearly as much as yesterday, and confused. But now she could add something positive to that list.

Something she never thought she would be able to even remotely feel. She had felt hints of it before, but nothing like this. For once in her life. She felt wanted. A sense of belonging. Something that she never had before. Yoshihara always felt like an outcast. But now, she felt as if she finally found where she belonged.

She belonged here. With everyone who loved her. From Izuku to Nemuri, to her friends who cared and respected her, to even some of her classmates who weren't still for some reason and were still against her. Now, she was flying out to the States to meet some extended family. Maybe… just maybe, she could branch out that list of people? Who knew, but she was about to find out.

Grabbing her suitcase from her bedroom, she hurriedly walked down the stairs, slipped on her black dress shoes, and then entered the elevator with Nemuri.

She had a plane to catch.

[XXXX]

A relatively lanky man wearing a black business suit with a white tie and red shirt underneath stalked the outside of an airport close to Musutafu. It was 5:25 a.m., and he was prepared to get to work on a mission his Boss had sent him on.

He took out a comb from his suit's breast pocket, brushing back his medium orange and black hair, before putting the comb back. His slanted red eyes stared at a private black jet guarded by two people in blue uniforms with hats that read S.W.F on the front.

He stood at around a height of six foot nine inches tall. Compared to most people in his unit, he was the tallest one there. It often made him stand out in a crowd, but then again, not many people knew what he was, even though he was considered an S-Class Villain. No one had ever seen his face, period. No one knew what he looked like because of the way he attacked his enemies.

That, and any reports on his crimes were only the leftovers—never eyewitness accounts—because he never left witnesses. He was a professional who had been working in the field for decades. He had gone by several names in the past, all of them fake and never real.

He was pretty sure he forgot his real name. He honestly didn't care, though. Whatever name he had at the time was what benefitted him the most. If that identity was forsaken, then it was, and he would cut ties with it. No matter what.

His list of previous names included the following:

Yosuke Munakata.

Senjuro Toriyama.

Hajime Asanuma.

Haruki Fujimoto.

Hideyoshi Haraguchi.

Hisashi Inada, later Hisashi Midoriya, after falling in love with, and marrying, then divorcing Inko Midoriya (he still pays her child support).

Ichirou Kanzaki.

And many, many more.

Somewhere down the line, a part of him became detached from reality, only thinking about his job as a professional assassin for Damnatio Ad Bestias. It was why, after his first and only marriage, he stopped trying to "woo the ladies," as Coco Loco would say. He couldn't afford to. That being said, he never looked back at his time with his past wife as a bad one. But, it did hinder his work, so they had to cut ties.

Especially when she became pregnant. He couldn't commit to something like that. Plus, if anyone knew his connection to her, it would put her in danger, even more so than her being an assassin herself. So divorcing her for her and his at the time soon-to-be son's safety was the best way to go. In fact, he was the one who suggested she retire, and she did just that after they divorced

Now he was hired to kill that kid. Izuku Midoriya. He couldn't bring himself to do it, so he opted for the two other options instead and let someone else do it—just because he couldn't do it himself didn't mean he was against the kid dying. He didn't know the boy, and he likely never would. Besides, it would be a great litmus test to see if he truly had what it took to become what the boy was trying to be if his Boss was to be believed, that being a hero.

The chances of him surviving weren't high, though, all things considered. Especially seeing as the person who was after him was not only someone who had a grudge but someone who had gotten significantly more powerful after their last supposed encounter.

If he did survive, however, he wished him the bestest of luck in whatever field he chose to be in. If he was anything like him, then that meant he would be the best in what he had chosen to be.

Whatever the case, he was assigned two other targets: Yoshihara Kira and Josefumi Kujo. Both were Stand Users, both Joestars, and both were dangerous. He was never opposed to taking out dangerous opponents, namely because of how his Stand worked.

He had a 100% success rate compared to most of his colleagues, who floated around 75% to 85%. They were still the best in their fields, but out of all of them, he was the best of the best. The crème of the crop, as his Boss put it. He never lost any battles, namely because he actively tried to avoid them. However, this time, he knew he couldn't. That alone brought down the success chance of this to 90%. It's not ideal, but it's still in his favour.

However, he also had to take into consideration that his targets were Joestars. That was the main reason why he was hired to kill them and not the others. Joestars, no matter what, always found a way to come out of their situations alive. It happened back at the USJ with Makoto, and The Boss wasn't going to take any more chances.

Still, though, he warned The Boss that he still had a margin of error. The Boss, however, was confident in his abilities, so at least he had that going for him. Seeing as his Boss saw that he had the best chance to kill Yoshihara Kira and Josefumi Kujo, he was going to do the best he could in order to make his Boss happy. After all, that was why he became an assassin in the first place.

Shifting his right hand underneath his shirt and into his pants, he pulled out an M1911. Attached to the barrel was a silencer. The basic sights had been replaced by an adjustable M1911 Novak LoMount White Bar-styled sight. The magazine was adjusted to carry 10 rounds per clip, with two extra clips in his utility belt that he strapped to his normal belt. He probably wouldn't need the extra ammo, but one could never be too sure. It was best to overprepare instead of underprepare.

Cocking back the slider on his gun, he waited for one of the guards to enter the plane. He only wanted to take out one of them and switch positions with them. The fewer the casualties, the better. That way he didn't have to deal with too many bodies once he was done.

And so, he waited. For the next four minutes, he stood around and waited for one of the guards to enter the plane. Eventually, one did. Once the coast was clear, he activated his communications dampener to block all radio waves for any nearby communications devices. Slinking behind a wall of the small building on the runway, he walked carefully around the plane to get underneath the loading stairs.

The whole time he did this, he made sure to stay in the person's blind spots, always quickening the pace when the guard moved so that he could continue to be in their blind spot, and never once leaving any chance for the guard to see him.

Once he was positioned underneath the stairs, he waited for the guard to get into position. Once they did, he put the ends of his silencer to the back of the guard's head and, before they could react, fired the gun. There was no sound, and the moment the guard fell, they did so in a way that allowed him to collect the body.

He got out of the suit and tie outfit and put on what the guard was wearing: a blue button-down shirt with the symbol for The Speedwagon Foundation, a pair of mahogany pants, black socks, black shoes, and a hat that he stuffed all of his hair into so as not to look any different. Just for the man's luck, they were the same height as him, so he must've had some sort of height-altering Quirk.

Positioning the body in such a fashion that it would never be found before it was too late, the man quickly got in place and looked at the name tag. "Ayuma Fukuzawa. That is my name now. "Ayuma thought, deactivating his communications dampener, pocketing his gun deep within his pants, attaching his belt, taking the guard's spot, and standing at attention as the other guard stepped out.

"Damn… I don't know why, but the radios were on the fritz. It's working now, but it's strange. Jonathon assured us that these were state-of-the-art! Tch, whatever. What about you, Fukuzawa-kun?" the other man asked as Ayuma read the man's name tag to know his name and to not break the immersion.

"Mine was acting weird, too, Satoshi. It could've been interference coming from the command tower. It happens sometimes," Ayuma replied, as Satoshi shrugged.

"Well, when you put it like that, it makes sense. Say, did you get new coloured contacts or something? Your eyes are usually blue and not red," Satoshi said, squinting at Ayuma, who frowned.

"Yes. I did. Is that an issue?" Ayuma asked, his tone harsh as Satoshi put his hands up in defence.

"Wow, dude. No need to be so sharp. I mean, I know it's early, but jeez. It was just a harmless question, who pissed in your cornflakes this morning."

Ayuma sighed, shaking his head. "My bad. You're right. It is too early for this," he replied as he crossed his arms. "When will the two passengers be here? I was distracted when we were debriefed about it, and I forgot."

"Ah! Well, Kira-san and Kujo-kun should be here any minute now. Kujo-kun has told us that Kira-san is a bit irritable right now, so it's best to give her some space for the time being," Satoshi explained as Ayuma nodded.

"So Kira is a bit jumpy right now. Good to know. I'll have to be extra cautious when interacting with her, "Ayuma thought as two figures appeared in the distance. Both of them were wearing U.A. uniforms, one male and one female.

The male on the right had shaven purple hair, purple eyes, and naturally tanned skin. He was a bit broad in the shoulders but otherwise lean. He stood at six foot four inches and carried a black suitcase behind him. That had to undoubtedly be Josefumi Kujo.

The female to his left had shoulder-length blonde hair, cerulean blue eyes, and a pale-ish tan complexion. She, too, was lean, though he could make out some musculature on her exposed legs. At five feet four inches, she was shorter than Josefumi Kujo by a whole foot. This had to be Yoshihara Kira.

Upon further inspection from the distance that he was at, he concluded that both were in shape, as to be expected for two hero course students. It wouldn't be a problem to take them out, especially given how his Stand worked.

Satoshi was the first to step out of the way, and so Ayuma followed by example. As the two approached, Satoshi greeted them with a friendly smile.

"Good morning, you two. Your luggage will be handled by the two stewards on the plane. We'll be taking off in just a few minutes, so get comfortable," Satoshi said as Josefumi Kujo nodded.

"Thank you, Satoshi," Josefumi said, turning to Ayuma. Good morning, Ayuma. How're the wife and kids?" Josefumi asked as Ayuma smiled, keeping in character.

"They're doing well. Thank you for asking," Ayuma replied as Josefumi nodded. The two Joestars began to go up the stairs and into the plane, but not before Kira gave Ayuma a quick glance. She stopped, narrowing her eyes at him. Ayuma simply gave her a neutral expression, not giving away any hint or reason for her to be suspicious of him.

"You're a Stand User. Aren't you," Yoshihara snapped, earning Satoshi's attention.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, Ayuma's been one for years. Don't worry. He's trusted by Jonathan. I promise. Actually, we have a few on board. We know you've been targeted by a few assassins lately, so we amped up security. I hope you don't mind," Satoshi explained as Yoshihara nodded.

"Ah… my bad. I'm sorry, Fukuzawa-san. I'm just a bit on edge today," Yoshihara said as Ayuma bowed his head.

"You have every right to be on edge, Kira-san. I can only imagine what you must've been put through in your short time at U.A. Rest assured that you will be protected on this flight and that no harm will come to you," Ayuma said as Yoshihara gave the man a firm nod and continued up the stairs. When he raised his head, Satoshi gave him a strange look.

"You're acting pretty professional today, Fukuzawa-kun. What's up?" Satoshi asked as the two began to board the plane with the two Joestars.

"We're escorting Jonathan's son and his niece. I should not have to explain why I am so uptight. We need to care for their safety and make them as comfortable as possible. The last thing we need is for Jonathan to get a complaint and end up chewing us out for not providing the correct service. We may be guards, but we should also strive to make them feel safe and relaxed. Assuring them is the best way to do that." As Ayuma explained that, Satoshi hummed, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Yeah… I suppose you're right," Satoshi said, moving out of the way for Ayuma to enter the plane, Satoshi shutting and locking the door behind him. As soon as the two boarded and made their way to where the staff were to hang out, the plane began to move.

And when it did so, the actual Ayuma Fukuzawa's body, wearing what the assassin had been wearing, was bisected by one of the wheels, the two halves of his body launching off to either side of the runway as the plane took off into the sky.

The assassin had successfully tricked his "fellow" bodyguard into believing that he was the real Ayuma Fukuzawa. Now, all he had to do was take out his targets. Walking into the small kitchenette of the private jet, he approached the breakfast food being prepared for the Joestars. The two chefs looked at him, confused, as he stared down at them.

"Uh… is something the matter?" One of the chefs asked.

"May I check their food for any poisons? It's not that I don't trust you; however, I am taking extra precautions with these two, seeing as they are who they are," Ayuma said as the two chefs looked at one another and shrugged.

"I don't see why not. Just call us over when you're done," the other chef said, the pair walking away as Ayuma stared down at the food. The food was two plates of scrabbled eggs, some bacon, and a glass of orange juice each. A highly acidic drink. "Perfect."

Taking a bite out of the eggs to make it look as if he was doing his job, he opened one of the pockets on his utility belt, pulling out two dissolvable zolpidem pills. These were fast-acting sleep medication that would knock both Kira and Kujo out, allowing them to fall victim to his Stand. He watched as the two pills turned into mist, mixing into their drinks seamlessly. All they would have to do was take a sip, and they would be rendered asleep.

Stepping away from the food, Ayuma looked at the two chefs and stuck his thumb up. "It's all clear. You may serve it now." With that, the two chefs did just that. They took the food, put it onto trays, and then carried it to the two V.I.P.s.

Ayuma sat in one of the chairs, clasping his hands together as he waited. He was perfectly calm and sound of mind. All he had to do now was to let his Stand do its job, and once it was finished, he would blend in as Ayuma for however long he needed to.

After all, he would do anything to please his Boss. Absolutely. Anything.

[XXXX]

Josefumi had been a little worried about Yoshihara. He couldn't get his mind off how she had been acting the day before, but considering what she had done with Izuku, it was hard not to see why she had been in pain. It even explained the tiredness of the day before.

The headaches could've been from the stress of the Sports Festival still waning on her, and as for the restlessness… well, travelling across the world to go meet someone you didn't even know was family until just recently was… well, it would make anyone feel restless and antsy. However, the paleness of the skin? Well, there was a chance she could be ill, but clearly, it was not enough to put her off going to America.

Still… it was a bit worrying. "Hey, Kira. How're you feeling? Any better from yesterday?" Josefumi asked as Yoshihara gave him a sideways glance.

"Pain's lessened… everything else is the same, though…." Yoshihara said, her tone low, her eyes already having trouble staying open as she absently stared at the floor. It was honestly concerning. He knew his Dad liked to push people when it came to training. So if she was going to be training with his Dad, and technically her Uncle, then that meant she couldn't afford to be this tired.

"Kira-san, Kujo-kun, your breakfast. We knew you didn't eat anything before boarding the plane, so we'd like to give you this as a complimentary bonus," the voice of one of Jonathon's private chefs said, one walking behind the other as the one talking carried a tray with two plates.

Where the two had been seated, there was a table in front of them, nailed down to the floor of the plane for obvious reasons. After all, they couldn't have the table sliding back and forth while in the air, now could they? The two chefs placed the plates of food and the glasses of orange juice down on the table, both teens looking at the food with eager eyes. Josefumi smiled, giving a thumbs up to the chefs.

"Thanks, guys," Josefumi said as the two chefs bowed before walking away. Immediately, Josefumi watched as Yoshihara shovelled eggs into her mouth with the provided fork, not wasting any time chowing down on the food in front of her. He chuckled, patting the girl on the back. "A little hungry, are we?"

She swallowed her food, giving the teen a deadpan expression. "I haven't eaten all day. I think that should be obvious, Kujo-kun," Yoshihara deadpanned, turning back to her food. Josefumi snickered, then started to eat his. Around halfway through their breakfast, the two took a sip of their orange juice at the exact same time. Afterward, they had a few more bites of their breakfast, and that was when Yoshihara started rocking back and forth.

"Ugh… I think I'm going to catch up on some sleep. Might as well, seeing as we have a 10-hour flight ahead of us," Yoshihara said, yawning. Josefumi also yawned, rubbing his eyes.

"Yeah, me too… catch you later… Kira… san…."

And just like that, Josefumi passed out, falling limp against the side of the wall of the aircraft. Yoshihara also fell asleep, though she just barely missed faceplanting into her breakfast. The two guards, watching them, shrugged. They honestly couldn't blame the two kids for falling asleep. Waking up at 4:00 in the morning, at the earliest, was tough for them, let alone for children their age.

But what they hadn't noticed was Ayuma watching them from a distance, arms crossed, and red eyes narrowed. Underneath that emotionless mask, he smirked, turning away as he entered back into the plane's staff room.

When Josefumi's eyes opened again, he found himself squinting. There was a bright light, a heavy contrast from the plane's passenger cabin, which had dimmer lights. He put his right hand above his eyes, trying to open them wider so he could figure out what had happened and where he had been. When he did come to, however, his eyes didn't just widen; they shot open.

Because he was no longer in the cabin of his plane but somewhere he hadn't been to since he last took Karera on a date. He was at Tonio's. He recognized the place for its white walls, wooden frame windows, circular tables and wide open dining room.

There was a wooden desk at the front where staff would make seating arrangements. Tonio's was often a very busy restaurant, and he used to frequent it when he went to school in Japan before moving back to the States.

But it was strangely empty. There was no one, not even a single waiter. And while that in itself was not right, there was another, more glaring problem.

Why the hell was he in Tonio's right now and not on a plane to go to his internship? He quickly scanned the area and noticed that Yoshihara was also there, slowly stirring awake as he lifted herself from the table, eyes squinted and unfocused. "Yoshihara, Yoshihara get up! Get up, now!" Josefumi urged, standing up quickly from the table, and grabbing her from underneath her arms, shocking her awake.

"W-What, what the hell is going on? Are we there already?" Yoshihara said, confusion in her tone as Josefumi frantically looked around.

"Nope. Not even close. We're in Tonio's, a restaurant located in…" he paused. "That place. The town-that-shall-not-be-named. And I think something bad happened. We might've crashed, and someone dragged us here or something like that. Point is, wake up and start investigating," Josefumi explained as Yoshihara shook her head, getting her bearings as she wiggled out of Josefumi's grasp, turning to look him dead in the eyes.

"What do you mean 'that place.' How is that even possible? We were—" she stopped, looking around her before her mouth slowly opened, eyes widening with disbelief. "What the…."

"I told you, now stop standing around and—" Josefumi was about to say something when Yoshihara stumbled backward, eyes wide and scanning the place as if it was hostile territory. Her breathing started picking up in speed, and her mouth straightened out into a more frightened expression. Her body language became more defensive, and she shut into herself as her body began to shake.

"Shit! A panic attack!? Now?! Of all times now, she has to have a panic attack!?"Josefumi thought, taking in a few deep breaths and calming himself before slowly approaching Yoshihara. "Kira… calm down. Take deep breaths, and look at me." Josefumi began as he closed the distance between him and her, putting his hands on her shoulders as she tensed.

"Kira. Look at me. Deep breaths. Do them with me. Okay?" Josefumi asked, his tone of voice soft and slow as he took in a deep breath. Yoshihara did the same, her eyes slowly but surely focusing on him. For the next minute, the two did a breathing exercise to calm her down, and after a minute, her body stopped tensing, and her body language became more relaxed along with it. "Good. Now tell me, where are we?"

"T-Tonio's… and you said it was in… M-Morioh… right?" Yoshihara asked, her voice still shaky.

"Yes. It is. Now, I need you to focus. We might be in that town, but we need to concentrate. Something's not right here. Do you think you can summon Killer Queen to have Sheer Heart Attack explore? I know it's an automatic Sub-Stand, with a range of at least 50 meters. So, if you could do that, we can figure out what's going on."

There was a moment of silence between the two as Josefumi let go of Yoshihara's shoulders, taking a step back to give her some breathing room. After one more deep breath, Yoshihara steeled herself and closed her eyes… only for nothing to happen, making Yoshihara's eyes widen. "I… I can't. I can't summon Killer Queen. I can feel it, but… nothing's happening…." Yoshihara said, looking around.

Little did she know, Killer Queen had been summoned and was floating around her unconscious body on the private jet. It was confused. It usually only got summoned when its user was in a tricky situation or when she needed to be defended by an enemy. She never summoned it when she was asleep.

Killer Queen knew something was up. But it couldn't pinpoint what it was. What it did know, however, was that its user was in danger. Something was going on, and it needed to get to the bottom of it.

Back in "Tonio's," Josefumi was confused. "What do you mean you feel it, but nothing's happening?" Josefumi said, his voice laced with concern and dread as Yoshihara stared at him with wide eyes of her own.

"I mean what I said. I know I summoned it, but… It's not here! I can feel it, but it's not here. That's what I mean, Kujo. I don't think I can get any simpler than that," Yoshihara explained as Josefumi tried summoning Soft & Wet. When he did, he felt Soft & Wet be summoned, but it didn't appear next to him. Josefumi narrowed his eyes and immediately put two and two together.

"Stand attack. This is the doing of an Enemy Stand," Josefumi said, earning a nod from Yoshihara.

"That makes sense. But… how? It's not like it could've transported us to Morioh, somehow stripping us of our Stands, all the while several other Stand Users are around us who are meant to protect us. They would've died trying," Yoshihara said as Josefumi hummed.

"Yes, but I don't think that's what's happening. Yoshihara, do you remember the last thing you were doing?" Josefumi asked as Yoshihara narrowed her eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it, Yoshihara. What were you last doing?" Josefumi urged as Yoshihara hummed, looking down at the floor. Then, her eyes widened.

"I fell asleep…. This is a dream!" Yoshihara exclaimed. Josefumi smirked, but that smirk immediately dropped and turned into a wide expression of panic as he pointed.

"BEHIND YOU!" Josefumi shouted as Yoshihara quickly dove out of the way. When she did, she narrowly escaped a white and purple striped fist from impaling her and watched as the chair that she had been right in front of shattered apart into tiny little wood chips.

Yoshihara hit the floor with a thud, groaning. Josefumi quickly grabbed her out of the way, narrowly avoiding being stomped in two by a white foot, which caused the floor beneath it to crack and shatter.

When they got a good distance between themselves and the Stand, they were able to get a good look at it. The Stand was snow white and appeared to be a masculine Humanoid of average build. It had purple stripes going down its arms, waist, and legs, and it wore a pointed helmet that covered its face up to its nose, blocking its eyes from view. The top portion of its chest was littered with golden lumps and indents in a 1,2,1,2-like pattern. Its upper body and waist were separated by two steel poles, revealing a massive gap in between them.

The Stand was tall, freakishly so, and it loomed over them with a presence like none other. "I see… you're very attentive, Kira Yoshihara," its unnaturally deep voice spoke to her, sending chills up the pair's spines. "That gives me even more incentive to kill you and your cousin. You Joestars are quite troublesome. You already saw through the ruse. No matter, without your Stands, you are defenceless. In Outrunning Karma's domain, you are powerless to stop me. You should accept your fates and die."

Without breaking a sweat, Outrunning Karma launched forward, aiming to impale either of the two on its right fist. Yoshihara and Josefumi jumped out of the way, watching as it slammed its fist into the wall. "Scatter! Split up, and find somewhere to hide! We'll figure out a way to wake up once we find a safe place to meet. Go, now!" Josefumi commanded as Kira nodded, the pair bolting for opposite ends of the building, exiting Tonio's from both exits.

Outrunning Karma dislodged its fist from the wall, frowning as it turned around. "Fools… I know my domain better than anyone else. There is no escape. Those two will die before they have a chance to wake up. Although it's troubling. I can usually kill my user's targets without having to hunt. The only time this happened was when I was new to this." Outrunning Karma said to itself, sighing. "It's just like he thought. The two Joestars are going to give me a run for my money. But, no matter. They will die before they reach America!"

Back on the plane, Killer Queen was absently minding its own business, still trying to figure out what was going on, when suddenly, Soft & Wet appeared beside its sleeping user. Killer Queen raised its non-existent eyebrow, staring at Soft & Wet with a hint of confusion.

[Shibo?](What's going on?)Killer Queen asked.

Soft & Wet shrugged.[Ora, Ora.](I have no idea, I just got here.)

Killer Queen cupped its chin, looking around the room. It knew there were, at the very least, 8 other Stand Users aboard the plane. The question was, where were they? Someone walked out from the storage room, a man with long black hair, seeing as his hair was sticking out from underneath his hat. The man's eyes widened at seeing it, so…

[Shibo, Shibo?](Hey you, are you a Stand User?)Killer Queen asked the man, only for him to tilt his head, confusion on his face as he spoke.

"Uh… are you talking to me?" That answered its question. Killer Queen nodded. It was rare that it had been summoned and allowed to act of its own free will. But, whenever that happened, that meant that its user was in serious danger, so it had to act fast in order to protect its user. "Uh… well, I don't understand "Standanese" or whatever the hell you things speak, so, can you like… write what you're saying down on a piece of paper or something? I can get you one if you'd like?" the man said as Killer Queen nodded.

The man disappeared back into the room as Soft & Wet looked at Killer Queen with disbelief in its eyes.[Ora!? Ora Ora?! Ora!](What the hell was that!? What if he was the reason why our users are in danger?! Idiot!)Soft & Wet scolded as Killer Queen crossed its arms.

[Shibo. Shibo Shibo Shibo. Shibo?](Well, it's better than not doing anything at all. Besides, it's better to take risks than to stand around picking our noses. Right?)Killer Queen retorted as Soft & Wet facepalmed. The man came back, this time with a pen and paper and a curious stewardess tailing him.

"Jack, there's nothing there. The passengers are asleep, so I don't know who else you'd be getting this for."

"Just watch this, Jessica. Here, take this and tell me what the issue is," the man, Jack, said as the woman, Jessica, looked at him as if he had gone insane. Nonetheless, Killer Queen took the pad of paper and pencil and began to write. Jessica's eyes widened, and she nearly screamed.

"GHOSTS! THIS PLANE IS HAUNT—"

Jack clasped a hand around Jessica's mouth, making her eyes widen even more. "Shut it, Jess! You're going to wake them up! I told you about Stands, did I not? Well, normal people can't see them, but Stand users like myself can. They can't speak to normal people, either, and speak their own language, I think. But they can write in their user's native language. You can read Japanese, so I need you to translate what it says."

Jack let go of Jessica's mouth, who blinked several times as Killer Queen finished writing down what it wanted to tell the other Stand user, passing the notepad to Jessica, who hesitantly took it. "Uh… wow, for a ghost entity, it has neat printing. Um, but… it says here: My user, Yoshihara Kira, and her cousin, Josefumi Kujo, are in danger. They summoned both myself, Killer Queen, and Soft & Wet, but they were not awake. That means they're being attacked by something that we can't fight against. I want you to gather all the other Stand Users on this plane and systematically, one by one, have them summon their Stands, explain their abilities, and what they can do. Whoever can't, or refuses to, dies. Because if they don't that means they're the ones who are causing the issue. You first, though."

Jack bit his lip, then nodded. "Alright. I can just say it now. My Stand's called American Idiot. The Stand itself is actually always active, and it's integrated into my body. Basically, it allows me to shift small aspects about myself around, increase my physical strength, or even contort my body in ways that most others can't, even with Quirks. As for the others… well, I'll see what I can do. I can't guarantee anything, though. Some of them might disagree on the sole principle of being exposed to other Stand users. You know what I mean?" Jack replied as Soft & Wet nodded. Killer Queen also nodded but had a smug smirk on its face.

[Shibo, Shibo Shibo.](I told you, taking risks is a good idea.)Killer Queen said, earning a slap up the back of the head from Soft & Wet, making it stumble forward, hitting its head on a wall. Soft & Wet "laughed" as Killer Queen rubbed the back of its head, glaring at the robotic humanoid.

Back in the dream world, Yoshihara was sprinting down the streets of "Morioh." It looked… different from the last time she had been there. But, she assumed that was because this was a dream version of Morioh, meaning it was bound to look different compared to how it looked in the real world.

She rubbed the back of her head, a sudden pain spiking from it. "Stupid headache…."Yoshihara thought, dipping into an alleyway and picking up a glass shard. Without access to Killer Queen, she had to use the environment around her. And luckily, or unluckily, for her, she had grown up on the streets for the majority of her life. She knew how to fight, so it wasn't as if she didn't know what to do in situations like these.

"Any damage, any at all, and it'll weaken the Stand considerably, "Yoshihara thought, gripping the glass shard as she stayed in wait. It was going to hunt her to the end of this little dream reality it cooked up, so she planned to use that to her advantage.

"Did you really think you could hide here?" The voice of Outrunning Karma spoke out to her as she looked around. A hand jutted out of the wall, but it did not destroy it, as it walked through the wall like a ghost. "I know how my domain works more than you two brats. I'll give you credit. Most people can't escape their first encounter with Outrunning Karma. But then again, you're not most people, are you? Joestar…."Outrunning Karma growled.

"I'm a Kira. Not a Joestar. I may be related to Kujo-san, but don't lump me in with them. We're not the same," Yoshihara snarled as Outrunning Karma laughed.

"That was the same thing that Giorno Giovanna said when he met his relatives! It didn't change the fact that he is a Joestar. He was arguably the strongest. It was a shame he died of a heart attack at the ripe age of 44. However, when he died, he refused to tie himself down by the Joestar name. He wanted to live for his own life. While he interacted with the Joestar family, he refused to be called one. Like him, you're different. Unlike him, however, you'll be dying even younger than he did!" Outrunning Karma shouted, lunging forward to tackle Yoshihara.

Yoshihara barely side-stepped out of the way, Outrunning Karma slamming into the wall beside her as it growled. "STAND STILL!" It shouted as it over-extended its arm backward to try and backhand Yoshihara. All it ended up doing was allowing Yoshihara to duck underneath its attack, and using her new advantage of being lower to the ground, she sprung up. Using her open palm, she shoved the sharp shard of glass into Outrunning Karma's chin, making it stagger backward, "blood" erupting from its chin.

"GAHHH?! HUH?! HOW DID YOU—"

"This is your Stand ability, is it not? Everything here is Stand Energy, meaning it'll affect you. We might not have access to our Stands, but that doesn't mean we can't use yours against you," Yoshihara spat, grabbing dust off of the floor and throwing it in the Stand's "eyes," blinding it as she ran out of the alleyway as fast as her legs could carry her.

Outrunning Karma took in a deep breath, calming himself down. "Damn brat… I don't know why I thought a direct confrontation would've worked. Joestars are creative and extremely analytical. She seems to know her way around these streets… or perhaps, she just fights dirty. I'll try my luck with Josefumi Kujo. Then I'll bounce back to Kira. Whittle both of them down, tire them out and make them vulnerable. They still don't stand a chance…. That is the way of the world. Skill and years of honing my trade are what made me this strong. I won't lose to some stupid fucking high schoolers!" And with that sentiment, Outrunning Karma slinked back into the wall, "blood" dripping from its chin.

Meanwhile, with Josefumi, he ran toward Morioh's central bus station, the one by the fountain. As he ran, he noticed the lack of people, only confirming to him that he was caught within a Stand's ability. The fact that he was stuck in one really set him off. However, that still didn't change the fact that he had to do something.

He knew that he was going to be hunted down by Outrunning Karma, which had been the name of this assassin's Stand. He already dealt with one in the form of Makoto Takiyama and her Die Very Rough. So it wasn't as if this would be any different. The only difference was that he didn't have Soft & Wet with him, and for that, he needed to improvise.

Picking up a smooth-looking rock, he decided to test something. He didn't have access to his Steel Balls, they were in his suitcase and not on his person, but if what Gyro said was true, someone who was inherently strong with The Spin could make anything into a vessel for it.

He tried to make the rock Spin, and after a few seconds, it did just that, golden sparks flickering off of it. He smirked. At least he knew he had a weapon now. The trouble now was wondering what Kira was going to do. She had no idea as to how to use The Spin, nor was she even aware of Hamon.

While someone with Hamon couldn't learn The Spin unless you happened to belong to the Zeppelli Bloodline. That being said, he did know that Yoshihara had some affinity for using The Spin. After all, her Killer Queen used it to create her bubble bombs.

Now that he thought about it, what if it wasn't just the bubble bombs that used The Spin? What if the bombs that she made were just explosions of pure, raw, unfiltered Infinity? It would explain why anything that blew from Killer Queen's bombs disappeared. It was using infinite energy to infinitely destroy something until there was nothing left.

That must've been why whenever it transfused energy into something, it blew up. If it was pumping things full of Infinite Energy to make them blow up, and specifically doing so in the form of spinning, constantly rotating bubbles, then that explained everything.

Like Soft & Wet, Killer Queen was a conduit for using The Spin.

It could even apply to Sheer Heart Attack. It was a Sub-Stand of Killer Queen, and it could be split up into separate smaller versions of itself. While it reduced the power of the explosions it omitted, it didn't destroy itself. It could infinitely detonate because it was being fueled by infinite energy.

"That might be something I should tell my Dad when we get to America," Josefumi thought, frowning as he looked around his surroundings. He kept his guard up, looking over his shoulder every few seconds. "Where are you, you piece of shit! I know you're around here somewhere…."Josefumi thought, keeping his mind divided between the enemy and focusing on The Spin.

After his fight with Bakugo during The Sports Festival, he used most of his time after school to train with Karera, helping him fight someone while he kept his mind divided between The Spin and his opponent.

It helped him continue his spin mastery, and it allowed him to get better at fighting with it. His eyes widened, hearing the sound of some sort of puddle being stepped in, and using that, he dodged to his right, avoiding an uppercut from the ground.

Using this to his advantage, he found the Golden Ratio in a perfectly square chunk of the road and focused on that to add to his Spin's power, and as soon as Outrunning Karma came out of the ground, Josefumi threw his Spin-infused rock at the Stand.

"Throwing rocks, Kujo? Oh, how far have the Joestars fallen, to be throwing stones—" Outrunning Karma started to taunt, catching the rock, only for it to dislocate his lower arm and twist it in the same fashion as a towel being drained of water, making the Stand shout in pain, throwing the rock at the ground. "What the fuck was that!? You can't use Stand abilities in my domain! How the hell did you activate something like that?!"It shouted, exhausted and in pain, as Josefumi smirked, picking up another smooth rock, making it Spin in his open palm.

"You can block Stand abilities, and I'll go ahead and assume you can block Quirks, too. You're an assassin, and I take it you've done this for years. Throwing wrenches into how you know your Stand works is going to frustrate you. So why should I tell you my secret?" Josefumi snapped back, preparing another Spin rock. He noticed the blood dripping from Outrunning Karma's chin and smirked. "Kira got you good, didn't she? You got sick of dealing with her or lost track of her, but you knew where I was. So you wanted to test your luck. And look where that got you?"

Outrunning Karma pulled the rest of itself out of the liquid-like ground, charging toward Josefumi with a sneer on its face. "You little shit! You'll pay for that!" Outrunning Karma shouted as it reached out with its good hand to grab Josefumi, only for the teen to throw the Spinning rock at its chest, causing the "skin" to twist and distort, ripping and tearing as "blood" erupted from the wound, just like the arm, making Outrunning Karma gasp in pain.

Seemingly knowing this was going nowhere, it slipped back into the ground, the rock harmlessly plinking off of the ground. Josefumi smirked. He loved pissing off his enemies. The enemy was weakened severely, and now it had to recuperate, meaning that now was the chance to either get rid of it completely or meet up with Kira and plan a counter-attack strong enough to either make it deactivate its ability or distract it long enough to escape the dream world.

"Our best option is the former one. I don't think this place is designed to be escaped from. The only way I can see this working is by killing Outrunning Karma. It seems that the user isn't feeling any pain from this, or at least the wounds aren't replicated on the user's body. If that had been the case, then the other Stand Users would've caught on by now. "Josefumi deduced, his guard still up, just in case Outrunning Karma tried anything funny. When nothing happened, he smirked. "Time to find Kira."

Back on the plane, Ayuma was starting to get annoyed. Outrunning Karma usually had finished the job by now. And yet, he hadn't felt its power return to him. That could either mean two things. One: The Joestars really were giving it a run for its money. Or two: It failed and had gone back to him, and it was just recharging to go back in for another round. But if that had been the case, then the two Joestars were awake.

Seeing as he wasn't hearing any commotion coming from the passenger side of the plane, he knew that the second option was not a possibility. Meaning that the Joestars, true to their family bloodline, were giving Outrunning Karma a run for its money. Which was not good.

"If they end up defeating it, they'll wake up. Granted, they don't know who I am or who the user is, but that would mean they'll stay vigilant and not eat anything they're given. They'll be too worried about who the user is and who on board is a traitor. This is my only opportunity." Ayuma thought as he looked around the room.

He couldn't go after them in their sleep. Such as pointing a gun to their head and blasting their brains out. Not only would be jumped by every other Stand User on the plane, but it also wouldn't work because of how his Outrunning Karma worked.

Whenever anyone was placed under the effect of his Outrunning Karma, they were protected from any outside violence. In other words, if he tried to shoot them from a distance, his Stand would pop out of them and knock the bullet away.

The same went for if someone tried to wake them up. Outrunning Karma, in that state, was intangible to anything and everything, so if it popped out, no other Stand could harm it. In other words, it wanted to its thing its way without interference. It was kind of like how he worked.

He never worked with partners and never collaborated with his colleagues. He would admit that it was out of stubbornness. That and Outrunning Karma didn't mesh well with the others. It practically made it so that he had to work alone, and with how Outrunning Karma behaved, it made sense. His Boss understood that most of his brethren understood except Nicholas, who was now the head of the debt collection department, so he had nothing to worry about.

That being said, there were times when he wished his Stand wouldn't fight against him. It would make his job that much easier. But, of course, nothing could ever be easy. And with the situation looking grim, he needed to believe in his Stand and how it behaved to finish the Job. After all, while he could see through his Stand, he knew he didn't have to. It wasn't as if he could control it, so he saw no purpose in doing so.

That was when the door burst open, and one of the other Stand users walked through, clapping his hands to get everyone's attention. "Alright, everyone, listen to me! Those who are Stand Users come to the main passenger cabin. We have a traitor in our midst! Someone is attacking the two V.I.P.s. So, if you want to deal with Jonathon peeling you off the wall for not cooperating, you should listen. Got it!"

Despite keeping his emotionless mask on, Ayuma's eyes widened within his subconscious. "Huh?! How did they find out!" Ayuma thought as one of the Stand users spoke up.

"How do we know that for sure?"

"Because, as hard as it is to believe, both of their Stands summoned themselves and are saying that their users summoned them unconsciously. That means they're being attacked by an ability that works within their user's minds. If we don't do something now, they might die. They requested for all Stand Users to come out and summon their Stand in front of them, and explain their ability. We'll do this one at a time so that privacy is kept and you don't have to reveal your secrets to others. Failure to comply will mean that you die. Got it?"

There was silence in the cabin, leaving Ayuma to think about the situation he was now put in. Outrunning Karma had to finish the job. Now. Otherwise, they were going to die, and there was nothing that he could do to stop it.

Back in the dream world, Yoshihara rounded a corner. Her breathing laboured from running as much as she had been, mixed with the tiredness she was feeling overall. Why was it that the dream world applied every affliction one had in the waking world? It made no sense to her, but! She couldn't fight it. It was just how things worked out for her.

During her run across "Morioh", she had found a metal pipe that was loosely hanging off the wall of one of the many buildings. She would use it as a weapon if Outrunning Karma came back around to her.

Yoshihara knew that Josefumi wasn't about to go down fighting, so whatever state Outrunning Karma was in before after she slammed that glass shard into its chin, it was probably in a worse state after its run-in with Kujo.

And speaking of Kujo, running toward the bridge over the pond by the high school-like building—the same place she was heading for—was Josefumi Kujo, no worse for wear minus a scrape on his cheek from probably dodging something or falling on his face. He waved her down, and when he did, she slowed down to catch her breath. He ran up to her, looking her over.

"You okay? You look exhausted," Josefumi said as Yoshihara narrowed her eyes.

"I just ran what is equivalent to a marathon with little to no sleep from last night. What do you think, Kujo-kun," Yoshihara said as Josefumi sighed.

"Yeah, alright, my bad. Look, here's the plan. I did a lot of damage to that thing, meaning it's weak. I think our only chance of waking up is to beat its teeth in. So, we wait here for it, then jump it. I doubt it's going to be nearly as fast as it was when we first encountered it together. With that pipe of yours and with my Spin, we can kill it."

As Josefumi explained that, Yoshihara raised an eyebrow. "The Spin? I thought that was linked to your Soft & Wet. How can you use it here if you can't use Soft & Wet?"

"Ah! No, it's not linked to Soft & Wet. The Spin just so happens to be incorporated into some of its abilities. The Spin is a fighting technique, often mistaken for a Quirk. Anyone who has an affinity for it can learn it, but right now, that's not important. We need to kill this thing, and now," Josefumi said as a pair of footsteps echoed throughout the area. The two turned around, and standing there, mangled and broken, was Outrunning Karma.

It looked like an absolute wreck. Its left arm was wrung out like a towel. Its chest was twisted and torn, and its lower jaw was damaged. "Blood" coated the Stand as it breathed heavily, glaring at the pair underneath its helmet the whole time.

"You two brats… have given me hell the whole time…. First, it was that Kira brat, who figured out that the environment could be used against me, something I didn't think to be possible until now. And then, it was you, Kujo, with that stupid spinning rock trick. Something I can see you're using again. But that won't matter. You're already dead. You died the moment you entered my realm, for I am the one who controls this place! I won't let two hormonal teenagers kill me!" Outrunning Karma shouted as it ranted. Both Kira and Josefumi got into a fighting stance, Josefumi readying himself to throw the spinning rock and Kira ready to bash the Stand's face in.

They stood there for a few seconds, and then they charged at one another. Outrunning Karma tackled Yoshihara to the ground, knocking the pipe out of her hand in the process as she hit the pavement with a thud. It raised its right arm, ready to punch her in the head, only for Josefumi to throw the spinning rock into its right shoulder, throwing off its accuracy as it punched the concrete instead and dislocated its right shoulder.

Outrunning Karma screamed as Yoshihara threw him off, picking up the pipe and rushing toward the downed Stand, raising the pipe and slamming it down. Outrunning Karma rolled out of the way, picking itself up as it rolled its shoulders, biting back a hiss of pain.

No words were exchanged as Outrunning rushed them again, this time going for a roundhouse kick. Its target was Josefumi, but it had overextended, allowing Yoshihara to bash it away with the pipe, making its leg bend inward.

Outrunning Karma hit the pavement face first, its helmet shattering in the process as Yoshihara slammed her foot down on its neck. She stared down at Outrunning Karma, a murderous glare locked behind it as it quivered, trying to get up, only for Yoshihara to apply more pressure, a sickening crack echoing throughout the streets as Josefumi smirked.

"Kiss our asses, you piece of shit! Don't mess with the Joestars!" Josefumi cheered as Yoshihara smirked. It was corny, it was lame, but it was true. She was related to them, which made her one of them. Yoshihara might've been cautious about associating with them, and she still was, but she wasn't going to ignore the fact that she was a Joestar, even if she had only met Josefumi. But if they were all like Josefumi….

"Yeah, don't mess with the Joestars…" Yoshihara said, a smirk on her face as she felt her vision begin to blur. I guess that meant she was waking up now. And just as she thought that her vision darkened, and was greeted with the colour of wood, Killer Queen was the one that was helping her up from being face first in the table.

"Oh! Shit, they're awake now!" An unknown voice that Yoshihara had never heard before echoed out to her as she slowly sat up, looking around to where it was she was. Much to her relief, she was back on the plane. To her immediate left was a man—Satoshi, if she remembered correctly. Next to him was an unknown and one of the stewardesses.

"We… beat it… the Stand, now… where's the—"

The sound of a gunshot came from the staff room, as well as the sound of screaming and shouting. Josefumi, who was just waking up, jumped to attention. "The assassin! He's in there!" Josefumi exclaimed, jumping onto the table and leaping off to the floor, Yoshihara following in his stead. As soon as they swung open the door to the staff room, Ayuma was dead on the floor, a gun next to his head and blood pooling around it, his hat off, exposing his orange and black hair. Satoshi stumbled in, along with the stewardess and the unknown, their eyes wide.

"I was right to suspect him. He was the assassin… bastard," Yoshihara spat as Josefumi shook his head.

"No. That's not Ayuma. I knew him. He was a family friend. He didn't have orange and black hair. He had brown hair with naturally yellow eyes but wore blue contacts. Chances are that he killed Ayuma, and then he took his place. He most likely killed himself because he didn't want to give any information away, meaning he was extremely loyal to his boss and knew things he couldn't say. A true Mafia man. We're lucky he decided to do that instead of going after us again."

Yoshihara looked at the body with a neutral expression, then kicked it for good measure. "Do you think this is linked to The Stand Bullets?"

Josefumi shrugged. "It's likely. We've been digging deeper into the issue than I think anyone else has. Whoever hired him knew who we were and knew we were digging into the Stand Bullets. However, they know we'll have to find out. But it's clear now. We have a hit out on us. Whether it's worldwide or localized to Japan, I have no idea," Josefumi said as he crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes down at the fake Ayuma's corpse.

"We should expect that Midoriya, Inko, and Karera have a hit out on them too. When we touch down in the land of the free, call your boyfriend and tell him to warn his mom. I'll call Karera, and that way, they should know not to let their guard down," Josefumi continued as he let out a disappointed sigh.

Yoshihara nodded, clenching her teeth as she thought about Izuku. If he also had a hit out on him, that meant Stand Users were going to be after him to claim the reward. Or perhaps, it's more personal, and whoever this guy's Boss is, perhaps he was a much stronger, much bigger criminal than what she had initially thought.

It was clear to her that they were going against a much larger organization than your simple low-tier Yakuza. But for someone to be this powerful… they would have to have the Underground under their complete control. Or worse, they were the preverbal kingpin.

"We'll dispose of the body," One of the other Stand Users said, a disgusted expression on their face. "You kids should go relax. We still have nine hours ahead of us. Maybe actually get some real sleep. You guys are going to need it. Someone will contact Jonathon and tell him about what happened. You won't have to worry anymore."

Both Kujo and Kira looked at one another and nodded. They were going to need some sleep, especially after what just happened. This time, they won't have to deal with some assassin trying to kill them in their dreams.

[XXXX]

!Stand Information Corner!

Stand User: The Nameless

Stand Name: Outrunning Karma

Localized Name: Outspeeding Justice

Appearance: Outrunning Karma appears as a humanoid with snow-white metallic skin of an average build. It has purple stripes going down its arms, waist, and legs. It wears a pointed helmet that covers its face up to its nose, blocking its eyes. Despite that, it can still see as if its eyes weren't covered at all. The top portion of its chest is littered with golden lumps and indents in a 1,2,1,2,1,2-like pattern. Its upper body and waist are separated by two steel poles, exposing a massive gap between its torso and waist.

Ability: Outrunning Karma can affect anyone within a 30-meter range of The Nameless so long as he wills it. If anyone falls asleep around The Nameless, he can send Outrunning Karma into their minds and construct a dream world based on their deepest, darkest fears and secrets, though it namely picks the place that represents the most pain and discomfort to their target. Within its dream world, Quirks and Stands are completely useless. Once you are dragged into Outrunning Karma's dream world, you cannot escape it unless you "kill" Outrunning Karma. Once "killed," Outrunning Karma has a cooldown of five minutes before it can sent back in to finish the job. If you die within the dream, you die in real life. However, the wounds you gain within the dream world do not transfer over. It would simply appear as if you died peacefully in your sleep.

Stand Stats:

Destructive Power: Grade C (Slightly Stronger than a regular human)

Effective Range: Grade C (30 meters)

General Speed: Grade B (can attack at subsonic speeds and can break the sound barrier with ease)

Persistent use of Ability: Grade A (So long as anyone is asleep and is within range, Outrunning Karma's ability does not stop until it has killed its target)

Precision: Grade C (Semi-Infrequently Misses)

Overall Potential: Grade C

[Status: Utterly Defeated]

[XXXX]

Kyoka groaned as she woke up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes as a quaint yawn followed afterwards. Sitting up in bed, she stared at her bedroom door and frowned. Her sleepwear was a simple black tank top and baggy purple pyjama pants. Nothing too special. She was sleeping with her covers off, mainly because her new apartment didn't have air conditioning.

If that was one of the things that she missed about her old house, it was the lack of air conditioning. "Oh well, nothing a simple box fan can't fix," Kyoka thought, looking over at the time. It was 6:45 am. She didn't want to be awake this early, but she had to be.

Why?

She had an internship to get to. Even though internships start on Monday, and today is Sunday, she had to start hers early. Why? Because the hero who she was interning with wanted her to be there early so he could show her the ropes. He was even going to pick her up in person.

She already had her suitcase packed, seeing as she was going to be staying in the on-grounds living quarters. She packed the essentials—clothes, her hero costume, and some books that she had picked up. What books? Philosophy books. Specifically, No Longer Human, The Art of War, and The Art of Living a Meaningless Existence.

She purchased those books because Cementoss recommended them to her when she asked what kind of philosophy books he read when he was first getting into literature. She had already started reading No Longer Human. It was very morbid but in a curious kind of way. Loathe as she was to admit it, she saw a lot of herself in Osamu Dazai, just minus the crippling depression.

Forcing herself out of bed, Kyoka quickly got changed into her school uniform as per internship rules. She had already cleared her early departure with Aizawa-sensei and Headmaster Nedzu. Aizawa-sensei had been impressed that she had caught the eye of someone like the hero who she was interning with.

Her mediocre performance in The Sports Festival had given her a lot of D-Class Heroes to intern with. Her sense of pride was marred because of it, and she felt almost insulted. Most of them hardly climbed the ranks and were, quite frankly, weak. How they managed to become heroes she didn't know. However, she supposed that everyone had the chance to become a hero.

Sometimes, even the weakest Quirk could be the strongest, given it was put into the right conditions. She wondered if Stands were the same way.

Once Kyoka finished getting dressed, she grabbed her suitcase and made her way out of her apartment. As she left, Kyoka just about nearly bumped into someone. It was Midoriya, who was dressed in a light green tracksuit. "Oh, good morning, Midoriya."

"M-Morning, Jirou-san! Um… where are you going?" Midoriya asked, looking at Kyoka with a confused gleam in his eyes.

"Oh, I'm going to my internship. I have to go early because of who I'm interning with. It wouldn't work out if I went tomorrow, so he's coming to pick me up today," Kyoka said as Midoriya nodded in understanding.

"A-Ah, okay," Midoriya said as Kyoka turned her back on Midoriya. Just as she was about to leave, he spoke up again. "W-Wait, um… I shouldn't say this, but… be careful. I-If you know about Stands, there's a good chance a Stand User might try and attack you!"

Kyoka raised an eyebrow, turning back to face Midoriya. "Why?"

"Just something I experienced first hand… I found out about Stands, and… well, I've been attacked by two in the last two months. Just… keep an eye on your surroundings. Stands leave imprints in the air when they attack. You can sense them happening before they actually hit. K-Kinda like precognition, just… less cool, I guess," Midoriya explained as Kyoka hummed.

That… was actually kind of useful. "Good to know…" Kyoka thought as she smiled. "Thanks, Midoriya. See you after internships!"

"B-Bye!"

With that, Kyoka left, walking down the stairs and making her way down to the parking lot. There, a black 2009 convertible car. One that she recognized. Standing outside of it was a man that she also recognized, though he wasn't in his typical hero attire. He was dressed in a black shirt with white buttons and dark brown slacks. His hair was spiked and black, and his eyes shone an electric purple. He was completely clean-shaven, and he was quite muscular.

"Ah, there you are," Blackwell spoke, smirking. "I got here a few minutes ago. You're a little late, but I can't blame you. I overheard you talking to someone. Now, c'mon. We have a bit of drive ahead of us. The Blackwell Agency is in Esuha, and that's a three-hour drive from here."

"Yikes. Did you at least get some sleep before coming here?" Kyoka asked as Blackwell snorted.

"Sleep? Kid, I'm running on five coffees, some fumes, and a dream. Now, hurry up and get in," Blackwell said as he opened the door to the passenger rear side door, which Kyoka quickly got into. After she stepped into the car, Blackwell got into the driver's side, closed his door, and switched the car on.

Just as they pulled out, Midoriya was already off on whatever jog he was going on. For a moment, she could've sworn that she saw Blackwell scowling at the sight of him. She wondered why, but she wasn't going to ask.

After twenty minutes of driving, she felt like she was on the verge of falling asleep. Blackwell noticed and chuckled. "You can sleep if you want to. I'll wake you up when we get to the agency," Blackwell said as Kyoka wanted to retort something about falling asleep in the back of a stranger's car.

But, she trusted Blackwell. After all, he was a Pro Hero—not just any random one, either. He was in the top 20 for a reason. He had virtually no scandals aside from the ones regarding him killing the villains he encountered rather than arresting them.

So, because of that, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

As Kyoka fell asleep, Taisuke couldn't help but let the mask slip for just a moment. He was annoyed. Namely, because The Nameless had failed. How did he know? It had to do with the fact that every member of Percussores Damnatorum had a chip in the back of their necks that would shut off once they died.

The chip in the back of The Nameless's neck turned off, meaning that he had died. Somehow, his second-best assassin had failed him. He said second best, because the head of Percussores Damnatorum, while not having the highest success rate, was the strongest there.

While this was the first of his Assassins to have died in combat since… actually, no, this was a first. A bunch of teenagers—granted, they were Joestars, but he digressed—had killed one of his top assassins. It pissed him off! But he had to keep cool, especially now that he had his intern in the back.

First, it was Makoto. Then, Asahina failed him and took her place as the head of The Debt Collection unit. Now, The Nameless had died, and he was starting to get more than a little peeved. Granted, he still had three other assassins he could work with, but that made his options limited.

That, and he didn't want to use them unless he had to. They were off killing more important people and those who would pose an immediate threat to his empire rather than the Joestar brats. While they were definitely a problem, they weren't his immediate problem. It was why he was haphazardly focusing on them and sending assassins after them when they had free time.

Right now, though, he was having the head of Percussores Damnatorum stalk the streets of Hosu. Rumours had it that The Hero Killer was lurking near there. A part of him wondered what would happen if he gave him a Stand or if it'd even work.

The head of Percussores Damnatorum was to either find Stain and give him a Stand or kill him trying, or, if he had the chance, kill anyone associated with the Joestars. He gave him a list and sent him on his way, and then after that, Taisuke dropped everything to pick up Jirou Kyoka under the pretense that he couldn't have her show up the next day.

Thankfully, that stupid rat Nedzu and her stupid homeless-looking teacher Eraserhead gave her the all-clear. Now that he had her in his possession, he was going to analyze her and get as much information out of her as possible. Once he had what he wanted, he was going to put her in an impossible situation and then?

Then, he would get what wanted.

The best part? Giran had reported that he was going to drop off the information he wanted within the coming days. He was just about done gathering all of the required information. Apparently, it required him to go overseas for a few days. That made Taisuke curious. Why would he need to go overseas?

Well, he was going to figure it out sometime this week. Regardless of what happened next, all Taisuke knew was that this was going to be a very, very interesting two weeks.

Very interesting indeed.

-To Be Continued-