AN: What's this, an update 5 days after the last one? The 'Fuck it, we ball' Technique gives me the power to write a chapter in 5 days from scratch.
==========================VI==========================
The people of Russia hold no love for the former number three hero, Permafrost, following the WHA's ruling holding her responsible for the destruction of Moscow. She is blamed for the eight million deaths and subsequent decay of the country. On the anniversary of the tragedy, statues of her are burned in effigy.
Currently, Russia is slowly fragmenting, as the loss of a majority of its government and top heroes has led to mass civil unrest with some provinces threatening to secede. International heroes deployed following the "Dark Winter" incident were recalled less than a year later and currently only a small contingent of the government remains, supported by the United Nations and WHA. This has understandably left the people of Russia bitter toward those heroes, feeling as if they have been abandoned as the situation continues to worsen, the remaining Russian heroes stretched to their limit.
Those with ice-related quirks are recommended not to visit this country, as violent quirk-motivated hate crimes have been recorded against people possessing ice quirks. The perception of those quirks has worsened worldwide, but nowhere as badly as in Russia.
-CNN March 25, 2241 Evening special: [Dark Winter: 7 Years Later]
==========================VI==========================
[Musutafu, Shota Aizawa's Apartment, July 9th, 2242]
"Gods Nao, you look terrible," Shota stated dryly as he slid a cup of coffee to the detective.
Naomasa didn't look great. He'd gone from clean-shaven with a friendly smile to a stubble-covered disheveled mess with bags under his eyes in the few weeks since they'd last met.
"Yeah, I look just like you now." Naomasa shot back snarkily, taking a quick sip of the hot drink.
"Very funny. Seriously though, when was the last time you got a full night's sleep?"
Naomasa pinched his brow. "Probably a week ago? Maybe two? I haven't been able to sleep very well the past few months, and work has been pretty stressful."
"Where have you been? I've been by the station multiple times and haven't seen you. Sansa and Shikanoin said you've barely been in at all." He eyed Naomasa carefully to gauge his reaction.
"Shota, what is your World Heroes Association clearance level," Naomasa asked quietly, his voice nearly a whisper.
Shota narrowed his eyes. Generally, you didn't ask for people's clearance level unless you needed to check if they were allowed to know something. The WHA had eight levels of clearance, and Shota was level five purely because of his skills as an underground hero. He knew Nezu was at least a level seven or eight, and last he checked Nao was a level four. Police in general didn't have clearance, but given Naomasa's quirk and his close relationship with the Number One hero, he had an abnormally high ranking for a non-hero.
"Five…" He responded. They weren't at risk of anyone overhearing them. His apartment doubled as a safehouse with proper soundproofing and had no windows.
"Mine got raised." Naomasa's eyes darted around the room in paranoia. "To level Seven."
"Nao what the fu-"
==VI==
Naomasa had always thought of his quirk as a blessing as a child. When his parents told him they were proud of him, he could tell they meant it. He knew when the bullies said they only wanted to talk after school to avoid them. Thankfully, he could turn his quirk on and off.
As he got older he began to see it in a less positive light. He had to turn his quirk off most of the time because of the constant lies he would hear people tell each other. He didn't have a lot of friends growing up. The other kids didn't want to hang out because they thought he would snitch on them. He didn't really mind that because that meant the few friends he did have liked him for who he was.
Naomasa never wanted to be a hero. For one, his quirk wasn't suited for it and he found the celebrity status to be suffocating. While other kids watched heroes on the television, he watched police shows. He was always particularly interested in the interrogations where the cops would try to get a confession out of them. That was when he decided he would become a cop.
Almost no members of the police force were authorized to use their quirks. That was why they had pro heroes to fight the villains and leave any normal crimes to the police. The police force was there to arrest dangerous villains once the heroes had defeated them and taken all the credit. When he'd finally exited the academy and been promoted to detective, the Police Commissioner himself had sponsored his training to be licensed to use his quirk for police work.
Naomasa and his sister's quirks weren't like the lie-detecting machines of old. Those machines were easy to trick or unreliable at best and weren't admissible evidence. His quirk, Lie Detector, was nearly perfect in accuracy, only falling short against those so delusional they believed they were telling the truth. For his testimony to be used in court, the subject had to undergo a mental evaluation, and Naomasa had to be subjected to a quirk that forced him to tell the truth.
His quirk, along with his stellar detective skills had earned him a high place in the police force. He had an absurdly high solve rate when he was able to interrogate someone, and the feeling of exonerating an innocent always felt good to him.
Everything was normal, but all that changed when he met Toshinori.
Learning that the world's Number One Hero was crippled had been a shock. Doubly so as he found out that his quirk was transferable and that he'd killed the boogeyman of the underworld who could give and take quirks a few years prior. All of this, of course, was confirmed by his quirk. He could believe that.
What started as simply filling out All Might's paperwork for resolved cases turned into an official promotion to liaison to All Might, and many top heroes as a result. The pay was high, and he received a WHA security clearance of four despite some of the things he knew deserved a higher clearance. He was fine with knowing what he did and sticking with his for the most part uneventful (for a cop in a superhuman society) detective work.
Then, two months ago everything went to complete shit. It started as a simple investigation into some strangers with strange quirks who had seen All Might's true form. They couldn't speak any known language but were scarily fast learners. The fact that one of them displayed All Might levels of strength and that most of them possessed what seemed to be multiple quirks significantly complicated the situation. For a moment they even thought that these people were related to All For One.
Fortunately, they were wrong. Unfortunately, the reality was much, much worse.
One thing that Naomasa had never considered about his quirk was the fact that he couldn't afford to be skeptical. Whenever he'd heard some unhinged nutjob ranting about lizard people in the government, or that some monster ambushed them, he'd ignored them. Even if it had registered as true he'd always assumed they were crazy, which was backed up by the required psychological evaluation.
Interviewing Karris Ordan was one of the most stressful situations he'd ever been put in.
"I'm not sure. I stopped counting after four centuries."
Truth.
Then the bombshell that the man and the other four are from a different universe.
Truth.
The interview lasted a few hours, and throughout all of it Naomasa could hear his quirk confirming everything with a few half-truths and a small amount of lies.
Truth. Truth. Truth. Truth. Truth. Truth…
The constant confirmation that everything the scarred white-haired man was saying was true. Were it not for the extreme detail of the story and how it lined up perfectly with what they already knew he would've thought Karris to be completely delusional.
Gods he wished that was all it was. He missed it when the worst he had to worry about was One For All and knowing stand users existed.
Then he had to interrogate Tau Natah, who hadn't even been human in the first place! On top of that, her father wasn't just as strong as All Might. He was far stronger to the point where Naomasa could see the color drain from Nezu's stark white fur once he realized what he'd allowed to be imprisoned under his school.
Following the multiple-day existential gut punch, of course, Nezu and Toshinori had to follow up with another curveball by telling him that literal supernatural monsters also existed.
The first thing he'd done after work was crawl into bed and scream into a pillow for the next half hour before passing out.
And that wasn't even the end of it. God fucking damn it.
[Unregistered Tenryou Commission Compound, May 10th, 2242]
Yesterday the otherworlders at U.A had been escorted to their new home. It felt like a massive weight had been taken off Naomasa's chest. For the first time in two weeks, he actually got a decent sleep.
The first thing he noticed when he woke up was that he was no longer in his house. The second thing he noticed he was not wearing the same clothes he went to bed in. In hindsight, the first detail should've caused him more alarm. He was in some kind of briefing room, and he wasn't handcuffed.
At first, he assumed he was dreaming, and hey, at least it wasn't that dream where he was talking to Chief Tsuragamae in his underwear again. Then he noticed the emblem of the Tenryou Commission on the wall, along with the black and purple uniformed JSDF Special Forces units guarding the door, and realized that he was in over his head again.
With a groan, he slammed his face into the table—one day, one day of normalcy was all he asked for.
"Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa," He heard a male voice call out following the sound of footsteps. "Don't be alarmed, you aren't in any sort of trouble. We're here to talk about your promotion."
Naomasa looked up to see the bespectacled face of General Kujou Kamaji, Commissioner of the Tenryou Commission, who held out a cup to him. "Coffee?"
He took the offered cup and gave it a sniff. "My favorite blend."
"We did a background check on you."
"Ah." Cool, the government knew everything about him now. Well, considering it was the government they probably already knew that.
"So," Kamaji sat down across the table. "You've had an eventful past few weeks, haven't you?"
"I think that's a bit of an understatement." Naomasa snorted. Damn, this was good coffee.
"When word came down about people arriving from another universe, I thought they were pulling my leg for a minute. Though in this line of work, you have to learn to expect the unexpected." Kamaji chuckled. "I've looked over your files, and I have to say I'm impressed. High case resolution rate, licensed to use your quirk, and recommendations from the Chief of the Police Force, Principal Nezu, and All Might himself, not to mention several other heroes you've helped."
"I'm just doing my job," Naomasa stated humblely.
"I'm surprised you haven't tried to move further up from your position. I'm sure the World Heroes Association or Hero Public Safety Commission would love to have you as an investigator. I assume there's a reason for that?" Kamaji inquired.
"What I do, helping everyday people," Naomasa began, "It matters. I know I could move higher, with better pay and everything but it just isn't for me. You see all the heroes out there looking for fame to rise in the rankings, but that's not how police work is. Then you have people like All Might who still make an effort to help everyone, even if he's number one. Someone has to stick around for the little guy." The General nodded along.
"Very honorable. Too many people these days are obsessed with the idea of moving up in the world. Some compromise their morals because of that." He grimaced briefly, as if he were recalling a painful memory. "It's nice to see that we still have people like you working the streets."
"Thank you, sir."
"Now, down to business. Before we begin, do you want to do this?" He asked.
"Do I have a choice?" Naomasa replied hesitantly.
"Of course. We won't kill you if you say no or anything. We can make you forget this whole thing ever happened by wiping your memory of the past few weeks if you'd like." Kamaji offered.
"I'd like to decline that then. Given my work relationships, I'm sure I would be exposed to this sooner or later." Naomasa sighed.
"As you wish." the Commissioner snapped his fingers. "You two, out." He commanded the two soldiers guarding the door.
"Sir!" They saluted and exited swiftly, the door sealing shut behind them.
As soon as they left, the room shook, causing Naomasa to clench the arms of his seat. The room began to descend and he realized that the room was also an elevator. 'How far underground are we…' He thought as the elevator ground to a halt after about a minute.
The commissioner stood up. "Follow me, I'll explain while I give the tour." He motioned toward the door. "As you know, after the quirk wars Empress Raiden Mikoto established the Tri-Commission and imposed a Sakoku Decree barring entry and exit to the country while we re-established ourselves. That spared us from most of the international conflict." He stopped in front of a viewport where dozens of men and women, some with obvious mutation quirks but all dressed in purple and black kendo uniforms were training with Katanas below. Next to them, another group practiced shooting targets at a firing range.
"What is this place?" Naomasa wondered out loud.
"I'll get to that," Kamaji said, patting the detective on the back. "Of the three commissions, the Kanjou and Tenryou have protected Japan for centuries, both against villains and the monsters hidden from the public eye. A sacred duty passed down from the groups that existed before the Dawn of Quirks. My family has headed the Tenryou Commission for decades." They moved on further down the hallway. "Originally, the Kanjou Commission was in charge of the early heroes and the Hero Public Safety Commission. As time passed and heroes became more popular the Commission was absorbed by them."
"So do most heroes know about this then?"
The General shook his head. "As far as the extent of our operation, no. Only those with proper clearance are aware of the true purpose of our Commissions. Currently, the HPSC is the most powerful out of the three Commissions. With how peaceful the world is these days there isn't much need for a standing military presence. That said, we are by no means weaker than them, we just have our jurisdiction. We are both authorized by the Prime Minister and Empress Raiden to act in any way we see fit in handling supernatural threats."
"Handling?"
"The extermination of threats." He corrected. "Which is the HPSC's policy." Kamaji shook his head as they approached a large set of doors. "They leave the extermination up to their personal hero teams, and sometimes top-level heroes depending on the severity of the situation. It's not clean but they do their job, although I don't agree with many of their methods." Kamaji held out his hand, and a glowing tattoo matching the symbol on the door began to glow. "But unlike the HPSC, we strive to peacefully co-exist with many of the friendly demi-humans and monsters."
"Demi-humans? Monsters? Aren't they the same?" He asked, confusion evident.
"No, but that can be explained later." The door hissed open to reveal a glowing hallway. "Here," Kamaji tossed him a plastic bag. "You might need this."
"Wait, wha-?" Naomasa stammered.
"Barf bag. Follow me." He said with no further explanation, disappearing into the light of the hallway.
Naomasa shrugged in confusion and followed him in, shielding his eyes from the bright light. Suddenly, the ground shifted beneath his feet and his stomach lurched. Instinctively he closed his eyes as the light flickered and turned into a shower of color.
He understood why he had the barf bag now as he keeled over and emptied yesterday's dinner into it. "Augh," He coughed, blinking as he adjusted to the sunlight. "What the hell was-"
Wait.
Sunlight?
He shot to his feet and looked around franticly. There was no trace of the underground facility they were just in. Around him was a small military outpost guarded by a few soldiers. The sky was wide open and he could smell the fresh sea breeze. "Where the hell are we?" Naomasa saw the ocean and a small town further away.
"We're still in Japan, technically. This is a domain. Specifically, a permanent domain to hide non-humans who can't live openly in Japan. Think of it as a magically created artificial pocket dimension."
Ah, of course, magic exists too, because his quirk is telling him that the Commissioner is telling the truth.
Wonderful.
==VI==
[Domain: Isle of Eternal Sanctuary]
The Commissioner led him through the village to continue the tour. The village was filled with a variety of different creatures, some looked like animals or similar to those with full mutation quirks. Or just straight-up anthropomorphic animals. There was what he assumed was a Tanuki trying to sell something to a man with blue horns.
Then some were more outlandish. A giant humanoid made of rocks that he would've mistaken for a quirk if not for the fact they were floating to make the body. He stopped for a moment and a straight-up umbrella with a human foot instead of a handle hopped past him merrily.
What the fuck even was his life right now.
Seeing his somewhat shell-shocked look, General Kamaji turned around. "It's a lot to take in, isn't it." He stopped to wave to a bird-headed woman who called out in greeting. "But it's pretty peaceful here. It even has its own self-sustaining ecosystem and weather." He said, gesturing toward the sky.
"Uh… yeah." the detective responded, somewhat distracted and taking in the bizarre sights around him. "So is everyone here a monster or demi-human?"
"Most of the population is, but there are humans who live here as well with their families, like Mrs. Ishibashi over there." He pointed to a restaurant.
Naomasa looked over to see an elderly woman serving what seemed to be a giant spider, not like an Arachne, just a massive human-sized spider. His eyes widened as she pulled out a severed human arm and placed it in front of the creature's drooling mandibles. "Uh, s-sir, that woman just served that spider an arm." He stammered.
"Some creatures have specialized diets that require human flesh. With modern technology, we've been able to synthesize substitutes and through the use of donated parts from regeneration quirk users, we're able to feed them. In the past, we would've had to kill creatures with that type of diet. I don't blame them, not like they can control what their bodies can process."
That made Naomasa feel slightly better. Slightly. "Wait, did you say families?"
"Yes. All the details will be in the full debriefing later on, but the difference between demi-humans and monsters is that demi-humans are genetically compatible with humans." The general explained.
As he watched a group of children run down the street, he had a thought. "Wait, is that where quirks came from then?"
Kamaji shook his head. "That's what we thought at first, but no. Their population developed quirks at the same time as humans." His gaze darkened. "And that's what makes them dangerous because, on top of their higher affinity for magic than humans, they also possess quirks. Most of the time their quirks manifest in ways that enhance their pre-existing abilities, sometimes they are born with something unrelated."
Naomasa looked around uneasily, realizing what the man was implying. "Wait, this Domain… it's a prison, isn't it."
The Commissioner looked at him with alarm. "What? No! Of course not!" He remembered the military outpost at the edge of town that they entered from. "Oh, I see why you would think that. The people here are free to leave whenever they want, they just need to notify us in advance. There are several exit checkpoints they can depart from." They stopped in front of a park and the general sat down on the bench, motioning for Naomasa to join him. "It's true, a majority of Japan's non-human population lives in this domain, but there are many that live out in the open. Quirks make it easier for most of them to blend in."
"Why don't all of them?"
Kamaji gestured around. "Well, this place has been around since before the Dawn of Quirks. Before then, it was simply a village hidden away from humans by a tribe of Kitsune. Obviously, it's expanded a lot since then, but it's their home. More than that, have you noticed it?"
What did he mean? It was difficult to not notice things here. "No?"
"No villain attacks. Since they are under our protection, and the fact they self-police to keep the peace between species here, violent crime is extremely rare. Even if they can live comfortably outside of the domain, it's safer for them here. No villain attacks, no worrying about messing up and the HPSC eliminating them before we can get to them, or any other elements who want to hunt them for reagents. Villains high up in the underworld have a black market for that sort of thing, and it's not just human villains."
Naomasa felt his throat dry up. "Oh. I see."
"Still," he continued. "It's much better than it used to be. Before they had to stay hidden in domains or illusions, worried about humans hunting them or struggling to find food as humans grew more technologically advanced and able to fight back. Now though, a majority of them can walk the streets with no problem. A kitsune will look the same as someone with a minor mutation quirk. Hell, even a few of them are pro-heroes, not that the HPSC lets them get too much attention for security's sake." That, and the HPSC had always viewed non-humans as a potential national security threat, a sentiment shared by his mother-in-law, the current HPSC president.
"I suppose so." The two of them sat silently, enjoying the view of the park.
==VI==
[Musutafu, Shota Aizawa's Apartment, July 9th, 2242]
"What the hell did you do to get that kind of clearance?" Shota assumed it was Yagi's fault. Naomasa probably got caught up in something classified that required his quirk. "I haven't seen you for nearly two months and you have the second-highest security clearance?!" He nearly shouted.
"That's classified Shota, and even if I wanted to tell you I'm under a quirk that keeps me from telling unauthorized people." In truth, it was a mixture of a quirk and a complicated spell that depending on the situation would allow him to share information as the situation demanded.
"Fuck Nao, at least I know why you look so bad." Shota deadpanned, taking a long sip from his mug. "Hero Public Safety or Tenryou?" He asked after a brief pause. With Shota's security clearance and the amount of underground work he had done, he was aware of stand users and demi-humans to a certain extent. However, he did not know the full extent of either Commissions' operation, only so far as they handled those types of threats. Heroes in the know typically called one of the two Commissions whenever they encountered non-human threats. The others didn't because they were often dead before they realized what they were dealing with.
"Tenryou."
"Hmmm." the Erasure Hero frowned. They were certainly the better of the two since the HPSC didn't take non-human prisoners. "I know dealing with this is a lot, but it gets easier."
Naomasa looked at him with the face of a man whose sanity was being held together via duct tape and esoteric mysticism. "How does this get easier?"
"Do you know how many times I've had to deal with non-human or quirk threats in my career? Three, and that's only because I'm an underground hero." Shota leaned back, letting one of his cats leap into his lap. "The reality of it is that most heroes will never encounter these things in the field. The Commissions like to keep things in the dark, and they are damn good at keeping threats contained. Now, that's a different story if you're in the Top Ten or one of the weirdos who works for them."
Some heroes were retained by the HPSC and Tenryou Commission to deal with threats off the books. Some officially, like Manpower, Harken, and Resurface openly were underground heroes that worked for the commission. Then there was Hawks, who was the commission's golden boy.
The Tenryou Commission on the other hand mostly used elite squads of soldiers picked from the JSDF, SAT, and various hero school graduates that they recruited. In addition, they also retained a mysterious group of heroes who were skilled enough to be placed in the Top Ten if they were so inclined. The only one Shota was aware of was Kamisato Ayato, also known as the Elegant Hero: Suiyuu. Although the man's younger sister was his student and he respected the man's skills as a hero, he still disliked him for reasons he wouldn't get into at the moment.
Tsukauchi sighed. "It doesn't feel like that. I mean, the initial introduction was a shock… that wasn't an issue once it set in."
==VI==
[Unregistered Tenryou Commission Compound, May 10th, 2242]
Naomasa stared at the documents in front of him with wide eyes. "Level Seven? There must be some mistake." This was the second-highest security clearance level in the WHA.
"Fourth." Kamaji corrected. "Officially, there are eight. Most people don't know that the other two exist. "And there are under thirty people with level ten clearance." He didn't tell Tsukauchi his level. All the man needed to know was that it was higher.
'Are you serious? This is what a level seven gets access to?' Naomasa thought. "This is… a lot." He flipped to another page in the handbook he was expected to memorize.
"That's because of your connections. This isn't the clearance a normal Level Seven would receive.
This was the one time that Naomasa would regret his close ties to Nezu and All Might. "Of course." He slammed his face into the desk.
"Well, you're trusted with knowledge of One For All, and you do good work with the other heroes too." Kamaji shrugged casually. "Plus some of the higher-ups approved of it."
He nearly choked on air upon hearing the Commissioner mention Toshinori's quirk, jolting up to question it before realizing that it was a moot point. Instead, he slumped in his chair and continued reading.
==VI==
[Unregistered Tenryou Commission Compound, May 14th, 2242]
"I'm sorry, I think I misheard you." Naomasa blinked. "You to see if I can what?"
The green-haired woman in front of him hadn't given him a name, and her face was hidden by a fox-themed mask. She was dressed like a shrine maiden and the only indicator of what she was were the fluffy kitsune ears on her head.
"We are going to teach you a simple detection spell." The kitsune repeated. "If you do not possess the correct affinity, talismans will be provided."
Why is this his life now? "But I'm a human… can I even use magic?"
The woman giggled. "Oh, humans have been able to use magic for centuries, although it was extremely rare. Now though, all humans have the potential to use magic, though not everyone is suited to do it well. We don't go advertising that, for good reason."
Well, that made sense at least. Naomasa elected to ignore the… what was it, the twentieth existential crisis he'd had in the past week?
==VI==
He had a slight magic affinity, because nothing in his life could be normal anymore.
Goddammit.
==VI==
[Musutafu, Shota Aizawa's Apartment, July 9th, 2242]
"The HPSC has legal kill squads Shota!" Naomasa ranted as he paced back and forth across the room. "And not just for non-humans, but for anyone that threatens 'the masquerade'. He airquoted. "And that's the good option! FUCK!" The detective flopped down onto the couch.
Shota in the meantime poured one of his jelly packets into his drink and downed half the abomination of fruity coffee like a shot glass and stared at the ceiling with his signature emotionless stare. "Yeeeeep."
Naomasa slammed his fist into the cushions and let out a muffled indignant screech.
"Well, the alternative is having the civilians know there are monsters that go around eating people." Shota deadpanned.
The detective lifted his head over the back of the couch. "Oh, I know Shota, I fucking know."
==VI==
[Kamino Ward Police Station, May 24th, 2242]
Naomasa hated this. He hated this so much.
Today he was being introduced to the "dark" part of the Commissions' operations. That was saying something considering the whole thing was several levels of completely and utterly fucked up coverups and covert killings.
Karris Ordan was joining him, acting as a translator for one of the otherworlders that the Tenryou commission had brought in.
"Sup." The white-haired man waved at him. "Detective Tsukauchi, been a bit." Ordan squinted. "You uh, doing alright? You don't look so good." The man looked absolutely miserable. Bags under his eyes, slightly unshaven stubble from a week of stress.
"I'm fine." Naomasa lied, being very much not fucking fine. "What do we have?"
Naomasa flipped through the pad that one of the soldiers had given him. "Grineer, name unknown, female. Arrested on charges of villainy because she assaulted a police officer with her quirk who noticed her acting strangely at a store."
Ordan rubbed his face. "Fuck. How badly did she -brutalize- hurt him?"
The detective was so done with this he didn't even react to Karris's outburst. He knew the man had issues. "He'll live, but he'll never walk again."
Ordan looked at him sympathetically. "Damn." He clenched his fist. Even here the Grineer were ruining lives. "Let's… let's get this over with." Ordan sighed and they both entered the room.
From what Ordan could tell from her large build, she probably used to be a heavy gunner or officer. Like he'd been told, there wasn't a single trace of cybernetic replacements that he could see, nor any sign of clone rot. That didn't stop her from stinking to high heaven though. She wasn't wearing any armor, having either sold it or stolen some clothing to better fit in.
"The Grineer aren't the smartest bunch. Probably haven't learned much Japanese, even with whatever happened to improve their bodies." Ordan muttered to the detective. "She looks scared and confused."
"Who you, skoom?" The Grineer spat at him.
"My name isn't important." Ordan said. "I'm just here to translate for the detective."
The clone's eyes widened and she sat up, cuffs stopping her from moving further. "You, not Grineer. Are you from home?" Ordan responded with a curt nod. "What's your name and rank."
The Grineer's orange eyes nervously darted around the room as if expecting to be struck. "Egra-728, Kosma Crewship Kaptain."
"Her name is Egra-728," Ordan translated.
"Her name has numbers?" Naomasa asked.
"She was part of a batch, which means they all have the same name but different numbers." Ordan clarified. He continued to prod the clone, trying to get her to open up more. She was clearly fighting the urge to answer the questioning as she'd been trained to resist. Whenever she said something, Ordan would immediately convey it to Tsukaiuchi to confirm its validity.
"Why did you attack that police officer?" He finally asked.
"Hungry. Need food. No credits, don't know words, so take food. Man with gun stop so I hurt him. Try to take gun, got zapped by costume man." She admitted with seemingly no shame. "He say he is 'heeroh"? What does that mean?"
"They are like…" Ordan tried to come up with an explanation that she would understand. "They are like the Tenno. They stop criminals"
Her eyes widened with fear. "Tenno? Tenno skoom here?" Her eyes lit up with panic and she attempted to stand up and activate her quirk, the shock cuffs jolting her and preventing her from moving. Ordan would later find out she had a strength-enhancing quirk.
While Egra was recovering from the stun-cuffs Naomasa looked over to Ordan with concern. "She's afraid of your kid? Does she know that she's here?"
Ordan shrugged. "She's not 'my kid', and no, she doesn't. Most Grineer see the Tenno as a boogeyman or some monster, because most that encounter them don't survive."
Naomasa hadn't interacted with the Tenno girl, but he'd heard Natah and Ordan talk about their battle prowess. Whenever he thought of what he'd seen of the girl he couldn't imagine her being a killer. 'Fuck, she's just a kid too. How many people has she had to kill?'
==VI==
Eventually, they finished the questioning. Naomasa sighed and closed his notebook, peering through the one-way glass. "All that over some food."
"Well, it's to be expected from someone coming from a faction that has stuff like 'WEAKNESS IS SIN' and 'VIOLENCE IS JUSTICE' plastered on their ships…" Ordan rubbed his eyes. "She doesn't seem too bright. Probably didn't know any better, even if she is free of the Queens." He lamented.
It was true. Whenever the clone admitted to her crimes, she seemed confused about what she did wrong, which Naomasa didn't know where to even begin with how he felt about that. What really stuck out to him though was the last thing the Grineer had asked.
"When will I be executed."
He didn't know how to respond to that. Ordan had explained to him that the Grineer took criminal punishment seriously. The lucky ones were just executed by firing squad or a quick shot to the head. Since they were mass-produced they were just as expendable as the bullets they used. If they really wanted to prove a point, they would use something called the Atterax, which Ordan described as a 'blender on a rope', which was a whole different box of nightmare fuel.
Unlike the HPSC, the Tenryou Commission didn't have a zero-tolerance policy. If it were the HPSC, this woman wouldn't have made it to the interrogation room. Still, they weren't going to let her off the hook since she committed an act of villainy. A normal prison was out of the question given her status as an otherworlder.
"Pandoras Box."
"What, like in the Greek myth?" Naomasa remembered.
"A container said to contain all the evils of the world. It's where we send supernatural creatures to be imprisoned for life. Can't risk a security leak." Kamaji informed him. "It possesses a level of security even higher than Tartarus or I-Island. Magic enchantments, seals, living and mechanical guards, and it's also inside a domain. You can only enter with a Sigil of Permission as well."
That was what the Commissioner-General had told him. A magical prison that the Grineer officer would never be released from. Life in prison for an assault, just because they didn't want people to know where she came from.
Was that really any better than executing her?
"Detective, you you sure you're doing okay?" He turned to see Karris staring at him with concern. "I know that this is-"
"I'm fine," Naomasa replied through gritted teeth. This was just something he had to get used to. He didn't need pity from someone like Karris.
This was just part of the process. Another few weeks of onboarding and he'd be fully trained and back on the police force to resume his normal duties until he was needed.
How could it get any worse than this?
==VI==
[Calamari City Outskirts, July 4th, 2242]
Naomasa wasn't a homicide detective. Given his quirk and value, he specialized in assisting heroes in their investigations and apprehending villains. That didn't mean he'd some extraordinarily vile people who gleefully admitted their crimes with no remorse. The kind of villains who made him sick were those who chose to go into a lifestyle of violent crime for the sheer pleasure of doing so. He knew some people were driven by desperation, or having no control over the desires their quirks gave them, and he could sympathize with that.
But this…
This was something else.
This was the last straw. He couldn't keep doing this.
So many bodies, torn to shreds.
This is what happened when the commissions were too late, with no heroes around in the outskirts of town. Even if this was a 'rare occurrence' and a 'tragedy' like the soldiers on site told him.
==VI==
[Unregistered Tenryou Commission Compound, June 13th, 2242]
The head of the Commission was bowing to him in apology.
"We pushed you into this too quickly, given the urgency of the situation with the otherworlders." Commissioner Kujou said. "I will take full responsibility for my haste."
"What?" Naomasa nearly fell out of his seat.
"We don't normally push people into this kind of work this quickly. You're just a detective, not someone who was trained to do this. We should've made this more gradual rather than dumping all this on you." He stood up. "Please, take a vacation. You've done more than enough."
==VI==
[Musutafu, Shota Aizawa's Apartment, July 9th, 2242]
"So you saw a bunch of shit you can't tell me about, and then they ordered you to take a break?" Shota asked incredulously. Gods he wanted to strangle Yagi, seeing as it was probably his fault their mutual friend got caught up in this. That, or Nezu, but he was more afraid of the rat than Yagi.
He got what he assumed was a muffled "Uh huh." From Naomasa, who had his face buried in the couch cushions.
Sighing, he stood up and stalked over to Naomasa. "Alright, here's what we are going to do. I'm driving you home, you are going to shower and shave. Then I'm calling Nemuri, Tensei, and Hizashi so we can help you get your house straightened out." Plus they could give him some comfort from the stress he'd been going through. "And I'll have her use her quirk to get you a good night's rest."
Naomasa rolled over, shirt covered in cat hair. "The goddess of sleep thou blesseth me with slumber." He deadpanned with relief.
"Shut up Nao." At least his sense of humor was still intact.
==VI==
[Tenryou Commission Headquarters, Tokyo, July 9th, 2242]
"I don't like this. We ran him through three levels of security training in a month. I don't care who he has connections to, he's still just a cop." Kujou Kamaji hissed into the phone. "Yes, eugh." He scowled and pinched his nose. "Yes ma'am, I know."
Tsukauchi Naomasa wasn't like Kamaji. He'd been raised into his role in the commission. The work, however dirty and morally grey, was important. Tsukauchi was a good cop, with a good heart. Fine in the field he was in, but in work like this those kinds of morals would get you killed.
"She wanted a man close to Yagi and Nezu, and it's better if its someone they trust than one of our men." A vein popped out on his forehead. "Well, I don't get the enjoyment of toying with people like you do." 'This woman… she always gives me a headache.'
He sat and listened to the call for another minute. "Yes, I know, he's hiring them. Hiiragi is going to try and poach them or sabotage their exam. I don't think she'll let people this strong just waltz into Nezu's arms. She hates him enough as it is." Kamaji narrowed his eyes. "Listen, I pushed him through this because I trust you and whatever your and Nezu's arrangement is. Next time he needs an asset cleared, we do it my way. We need good agents, not psych patients." He growled. "Yes, I'll tell Chisato. We'll be over for dinner this weekend." With that, he hung up.
==========================VI==========================
AN: Every time there is a secret that someone has, the go-to is having Naomasa confirm it with his Fanon quirk (his quirk has never been confirmed in Canon, and is just based off speculation because of his sister's canon quirk and one of his ancestors that AFO stole a quirk from.) He's usually just treated as a plot device who confirms "Hey yeah, they are from another universe/not human/not a quirk power" and thats all.
So I went the route of how that is affecting his mental health.
In canon he gets introduced to All Might and learns about his state and quirk sometime between Vigilantes and MHA start. This is after AFO is presumed dead. All fairly believable especially since AFO is someone with urban legends.
Here, he knows that, and that stand users exist since he's high enough up the police ladder. Not where they come from, just that they are a power separate from quirks.
Now imagine how he feels when he gets called down to interrogate someone who might be one of AFO's former minions who saw All Might's true form, and then learns that its much, much worse than that. He got the worst parts of Warframe's story dumped on him, and his quirk tells him its true.
Then one of his best friends and the principal of one of the world's best schools tell him that monsters also exist right after that.
His quirk does not give him the option of being skeptical, because he knows that they aren't insane. It's not some conspiracy theorist telling him these things.
Then of course, he gets kidnapped by the government and shown these things in person and kinda just fumbles through it. Normally going from L4-L7 would be spread out the training more.
He will get better though.
Domains don't work like those from Jujutsu Kaisen, more like how the Teapot and other domains in Genshin work. They are far more customizable and variable, and can even be made permanent outside the user's control even past death.
Regarding Pandora's Box, they don't get a trial because if you are being sent there it is to preserve the masquerade and you've done something to deserve it. In Tartarus you do get a trial, but given the danger that people from Tartarus present, they are either tied in absentia or virtually. If you've read My Hero Playthrough by Xavon Wrentaile there is a similar system called The Napier Doctrine, although that is far more extreme than what appears in VI.
Anyways, Tennocon Tickets approach, I'm going to be going and I'm going to bring the Natah cover I got commissioned for Rebecca to sign hopefully. That will be neat. Next chapter will be Izuku's birthday party and it will be a long one, which i may split into two chapters if it gets too big.