Here it is, the forty-ninth full chapter of Miraculous Quirks released early because of how ahead I am in my drafting of this story. Because of the length of one of the drafts I ended up breaking it up into two chapters and with another draft completed I will be able to release another early chapter for y'all to enjoy tomorrow once it is edited and complete this arc in the process. Plus it works a lot better as two chapters so y'all get to enjoy more this way without having to read a really long chapter (by my standards) in the process with the two main things that are in this arc getting their own chapters. Anyway, that is all the administrative stuff I have for now and as there are no review questions to answer or guest reviews to respond to I will end this note here. Do keep the reviews coming as I enjoy hearing from y'all. Now, though, it is time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the 49th full chapter of Miraculous Quirks.
Disclaimer: I do not own either of these great works of fiction.
Chapter 49: Searching Kamino Ward
"The coordinates indicate Kamino Ward, Yokohama City in the Kanagawa Prefecture." Momo said as she looked at her tracker on the train that they were on shortly after it left the station and set off towards their destination. "Our travel time will be about 2 hours from here, we should arrive around 10 o'clock tonight."
As soon as they'd gotten to the station Momo had gotten the tickets and directed them to the train that they need to take. Along the way Marinette and Todoroki had picked up bento boxes for dinner, Marinette actually got two and some protein snacks that she found as she hadn't eaten all day so she needed to refuel and stock up just in case, while Kirishima got rice balls, but the others didn't get anything before they boarded the train.
Once on the train they found a quiet area where they wouldn't be disturbed and sat down with Momo and Izuku on one side and Kirishima and Todoroki on the other in an area where there was a set of 4 chairs facing each other. Across the aisle was Ida and Marinette on either side so that they could all chat during the journey.
"So, um, did you guys tell the class about this?" Izuku asked Todoroki and Kirishima. "Do they know what we're doing tonight?"
"Yes and they tried their best to talk us out of it." Todoroki answered with a small nod. "Not that it was going to work with us."
"Yeah even Uraraka ganged up on is and tried to get us to change our minds because she doesn't think that Bakugo would want this." Kirishima said. "Though none of them know that Dupain-Cheng is part of this, Uraraka said she was with Agreste and to not disturb them."
"Clearly some didn't heed that advice well enough." Marinette said with a fake glare and Momo and Midoriya for how they'd interrupted her and Adrien's about to be very private moment causing both to go bright red at the memory of what they walked into. "But I actually didn't know that Ochaco had come to visit."
"She went to get you before we all went to see Midoriya so that we could all go see him as a class." Kirishima said through a mouthful of his food. "But you were asleep next to Agreste. She would have tried to wake you, but your legal guardian was there apparently and told her to leave you alone. He had a nice chat with Uraraka as well apparently and she just said that you'd be back once Agreste woke up."
"Oh ok." Marinette said surprised that both Ochaco had come to see her, and that Mage had decided to have a chat with her, that was unexpected, but she knew that the man would be professional and not blow his cover. "Yeah that was for the best, I needed to be with Adrien right then and I wouldn't have left his side for anything short of an emergency until he woke up."
"I was not informed of this." Momo said. "Hence why I went to find you and Agreste to ask you to join. That's when I ran into Midoriya on the way and as he was coming along for this we strategized and went for it figuring that with that expert's help Agreste would be up."
"We were right." Izuku said a little uncomfortably. "But yeah, sorry about that."
"No worries, just knock next time you are about to walk in when Adrien and I are alone." Marinette said dismissively causing Ida and Kirishima to look between them, but neither put it all together. "You might not be as lucky."
"Just to make sure." Todoroki said completely oblivious to what was going on and moving them back to the conversation at hand as he finished eating a bite of food. "You know we're going against the class's wishes and being completely selfish by doing this. We can call this off if we want to."
"Does it look like I want to turn back?" Kirishima asked rhetorically. "Bakugo wouldn't think twice about going after the villains if he were here."
"What about you Midoriya?" Todoroki asked.
"He's my friend." Izuku said thinking on it and why he was meddling because this was the essence of being a hero and all that he'd done so far to get to this point and his look hardened. "I refuse to turn back."
"I see." Todoroki said as they all looked around the group who just nodded their confirmation for this. "Alright then let's do this."
"We should at least plan for what to do when we rescue Bakugo." Marinette said. "I'll admit I don't know him well; our only interactions have been him yelling at me about something, but he is a bit like a friend of mine back home."
"You may not have interacted much with Kacchan, but he at least respects your abilities and the amount of power you have." Izuku said to her. "Kacchan doesn't bother with names unless their friends, or he has respect for them on some level. You may not have spoken much with him but your performance at the Sports Festival was enough to get his attention hence why he uses your name as he knows you're a worthy challenge for him should you fight. Agreste too proved that in their match while Todoroki proved it early on though he does change to a descriptor when he's mad."
"I noticed that." Todoroki said. "He switches between my name and Icy-Hot bastard depending on what is going on."
"Well Marinette's right, we need some sort of plan." Momo said looking at her. "How is he like your friend? I think you mentioned her once."
"Yes she's called Chloe and you could call her my rival in a lot of ways, we've known each other since kindergarten and our personalities have never quite jelled." Marinette said thinking back on Chloe who despite their problems she did actually miss as she missed everyone. "And friend is a lose word, our relationship was a bit like Midoriya and Bakugo's in a lot of ways. She's like him, loud, obnoxious, bossy, selfish, arrogant, and full of herself. Bakugo is just a louder, less manipulative, male version of that."
"That's not really him though." Izuku said as Kirishima nodded in agreement at that. "Sure, he's loud, he always has been, he gets it from his mom, and he's obnoxious for sure but his arrogance is usually backed up with his skills. That comes from his drive to be the best, something he works at just as hard as I do."
"He was top in the entrance exam." Kirishima added. "And that was without any rescue points."
"That was to be expected, he was aiming for U.A. and no doubt used something in the exam to his advantage." Izuku said. "He's smart, smarter than me in fact. Remember he was 4th in the midterms behind only Yaoyorozu, Agreste, and Ida, and he has to be because he wouldn't be as good with his Quirk if he wasn't. he needs to know angles, physics, advanced math, and what not. He's also got a tactical mind on par with mine and can figure things out fast. Remember, he realized what Agreste was doing in their match and changed tactics before he exhausted his Quirk the way Agreste made Kirishima do and forced Agreste to use his. He backs his stuff up."
"True Chloe isn't like that." Marinette admitted realizing that there was a lot more to Bakugo than she'd thought but if anyone knew him it would be Midoriya. "She only thinks of herself and her own needs and how to get them met from others around her. Anything that might seem selfless with her is actually selfish when you look deeper."
"I wouldn't say Bakugo's selfish." Kirishima said. "He helped me study for the finals, and I did well because of it, he didn't have to do that, but he did, and he got angry when I suggested studying with Yaoyorozu as a joke. He will also look out for his team in his own special way because he knows that to win he has to play well with others. He's just loud and annoying while doing it. You've got to put up with it to see the deeper meaning behind what Bakugo is doing. I first noticed it at the USJ when he showed his calm, tactical, mind when we were in that urban area. That's when I began trying to become his friend."
"Huh I never thought of that." Momo said putting her fingers on her chin at that. "I just hear him and see the aggression and distracts me as it's rather uncouth. I never thought about looking deeper."
"Kacchan is more than he seems, and the villains are in for it." Izuku said. "They just saw him at the Sports Festival and likely thought that he'd join them because of his violent tendencies without realizing that he was like that because Todoroki dishonored him in the final and tainted his victory in his eyes. Kacchan wants to be the best, so he has to beat the best to be that. Todoroki going in was the best in our class on paper and Bakugo got the shot at him if both made it to the final. Add in that both me and Dupain-Cheng made Todoroki use his flames, especially as I was one of them, which would have made him want that to prove that he alone could beat that."
"He did say as much before the final." Todoroki admitted. "He walked into my room where I was waiting and questioning everything by accident. I asked him about Midoriya because you two were childhood friends and whether Midoriya was always this helpful."
"That isn't wise." Izuku said. "Kacchan wouldn't have taken that well. Kacchan is like me in that he looks up to All Might because he's the best and always wins. That's what he wants and is why he'd never join the villains."
"No, he did, he slammed his palm on the table with an explosion and yelled at me to get my head in the final and stop thinking of you but focus on him." Todoroki admitted. "Told me that I'd better bring my all, that I'd better fight like I did against you and Dupain-Cheng and to use my flames on him so that no one could question his victory. I couldn't because of what they'd done to Dupain-Cheng, and I was still questioning everything so when I tried I couldn't use them and gave up. It was dishonorable of me, and Bakugo has every right to hate me for it. This won't make up for that, nor will it make up for my failure to protect him, but it's a start. I'll face him again one day and give him the fight that he deserves."
"When you put it all like that I can see how he's different to what I assumed based on a surface level impression." Marinette admitted as she realized that in this matter she'd have to defer to Izuku and Kirishima and that if there were to be any development with Bakugo it would be done by Midoriya and be related to their messed-up relationship. "Sorry, I made assumptions based off what I could compare Bakugo to as I'm not used to his kinda character. Most people I know back home aren't that deep, we're pretty much open books in France."
"I'm sure there's more even I'm missing or am unable to see because of our relationship and history." Izuku said. "But there are a lot of things to consider when we see the situation we are dealing with. However, there's a lot that won't be able to be done until we get to where the tracker is and see the situation on the ground."
"True and on that we should get some rest." Ida said seriously. "We must be sharp so as to not make mistakes or end up in combat."
"True." Marinette admitted as she turned to her second bento box, her first she'd eaten as soon as she sat down and began eating. "Though I should call Adrien soon to let him know more and see what suggestions he might have for when we get to Kamino Ward. He may not be here, but he can help through me, so I need to keep him in the loop. We aren't going to be in the dark with each other."
"A wise move, Agreste is experienced and skilled in a lot of ways." Ida said with a nod. "I assume you know the full details of what happened in Hosu."
"Now I do as he finally told me today when Momo and Midoriya explained what they were planning to do, but I'd guessed most of it beforehand." Marinette said. "Though I don't know how it all started and I won't ask. I just wanted to know Adrien's role in that incident and what he did. What he did is what he and I are trained for, what we are best at. You got a rare sight in seeing Adrien in action like that without me backing him up, don't forget it."
"I won't." Ida said as the others either dozed off, thought to themselves, or tried to distract themselves on the journey. "He said some things to me that night, things that I needed to hear from someone with experience, and I've never forgotten then. I saw just how great a hero he'll be in Hosu, and I know he's your equal even if few in the class have realized it yet."
"That's how Adrien likes it, makes people underestimate him to their own peril." Marinette said as she finished her meal and got up. "Now I'm going to call him and don't worry we will chat in French so no one will be able to understand us."
With that Marinette left to a deserted area and took out her phone to chat with her boyfriend and let him know what was going on and see what advice he might have for them. The rest did their own things and continued to after Marinette returned as they traveled in relative silence the rest of the way to Kamino Ward.
"So, this is Kamino Ward." Izuku said as they got out of the train station and into the crowded, rather hip, area that seemed to have the street closed to traffic so that the pedestrians could walk on it.
"So crowded." Todoroki said looking around the area and the young adult crowd it catered to.
"Those villains are hiding somewhere in this city, just tell me where to go." Kirishima said trying to run off in a random direction but going nowhere as Marinette grabbed the back of his shirt as he passed her and held him in place with ease as she looked to Momo.
"Wait a second." Momo scolded and as she had the tracker she was the one who dictated where they went so Kirishima stop moving. "From now on we're going to need to be extremely careful. These criminals already know what we look like so we have to consider that we could be attacked at any moment."
"Yeah your right." Izuku said before crossing his arms over his face in a way that made him even more obvious. "So, we're going to have to enter stealth mode."
"Your standing out even more Midoriya." Todoroki said bluntly as he pointed out the obvious as usual.
"We won't be able to scout effectively if we're recognizable." Ida said thinking on it. "Something that will be a factor even when we are pros."
"Ok so what should we do?" Kirishima asked.
"I have an idea though it is a bit old school." Momo said blushing a little as she pointed to a cheap clothing store behind her.
"Old school works with me." Marinette said though to her it was really old school. "And the best way to avoid being recognized is to change your fashion to a different style so that you can blend into the area, not that I've tried that to follow Adrien before we were together that is, nor did I have many disguises for all different kinds of situation."
"Alright lets go." Todoroki said missing what Marinette was saying and heading to the store followed by the other boys though Momo did get it.
"We need to pick their outfits." Marinette said breaking Momo from her thoughts as they followed them. "Unlike Adrien, those four know nothing about fashion."
"Agreed." Momo said with a nod as they went into the store though she was surprised that Marinette seemed to understand that but then again her boyfriend was a famous model back in France and the Agreste fashion line was one of the best in the world so it would make sense for Marinette to understand fashion. "Leave it all to me."
Marinette did as she didn't want to tip her fashion skills too much and because Momo would know this area and the fashion styles of Japan better than she did. She'd brushed up on the latest trends during their time before starting U.A. but Marinette had always been about paving the way with her own style and ideas so when it came to blending in she wasn't as good as she was at being a trailblazer.
In short order Momo had corralled the boys, grabbed items for each of them, and sent them into the dressing booths to change with instructions for everything and then some as all would be altering their hair. However, she wasn't done and as soon as the boys were away she turned, grabbed the perfect things she needed for herself and Marinette and then grabbed the French girl to take her to the women's changing room in the back. This was going to be fun, and she'd already thought of the perfect look for her friend.
"Ok Marinette, it's makeover time." Momo said grinning as she forced Marinette into the women's changing room of the store they were in carrying the clothes she'd picked out for them. "Unlike with the guys I'm going to actually have to make a few things to help with your disguise as there are some accessories you need that aren't here and I need to make a certain item for them."
"Um Momo, why do I have a bad feeling about this." Marinette said not liking the look in her friend's eyes. "You've never done this before, have you?"
"Not really but I've always wanted to, and I've got a great idea for you." Momo said. "Now first off I need you to let your hair down, that is a must as we are all changing our hair styles."
"Really?" Marinette asked raising a hand to one of her pigtails. "I, um, don't really let it down like ever."
"I know you even sleep and bathe in those things." Momo said recalling the training camp. "But they are basically a sign of who you are so to change your appearance your hair has to be down. Plus, it will show it off more and it is your most oriental feature given how black it is, it's basically the same shade as mine, and to help disguise you we're going to minimize or obscure your western features while highlighting your eastern ones."
"Well, it does come from my mother so the Chinese side of my family." Marinette said before sighing and accepting her fate and reaching for her hair ties. "But ok, to make it work and because it will be a big change I'll do it."
With that Marinette pulled out her hair ties and with a shake she let her hair down. Momo blinked at the sight. She'd only ever once seen Marinette without hair ties in and that had been when the left one had broken in her match against Todoroki and that had been from a distance. She'd had it down when she returned but with her head wound Momo couldn't really see it under the turban of bandages Marinette had on.
Now that she was seeing it in its entirety, well it was frankly adorably cute. With her hair down, Marinette's inky black hair fell to just past her shoulders, lightly touching them in a glossy, straight, sheet while completely covering her ears. Her fringe and parting over her right eye was unaffected by it though.
"Um Momo, you're staring." Marinette said feeling a little self-conscious.
"Sorry it's just looks really good on you." Momo said causing Marinette to blush a little at the compliment. "You should let it down more often."
"Maybe." Marinette said though she really wasn't planning on it. "But ok, it's down. What now?"
"Right, we are going to completely change your image to disguise you and we are going to use something that you have as the lynch pin for it." Momo said and Marinette had a bad feeling she knew where this was going. "So, top off please."
"Momo, I really don't trust you right now." Marinette said as she obeying regardless and taking the top that Momo had made her to replaced her ruined one from the training camp. "But this is to blend in so I can manage."
"Oh, come on you're going to look great." Momo said as she looked over Marinette's wrapped torso as she still had the bandages over her small breasts from the cut she'd taken from Toga before her eyes settle on the glint of silver at Marinette's navel. "Time to match everything to that accessory of yours."
"I knew it." Marinette said with a sigh. "Ok let's get this over with."
Momo just grinned as she set to work completely transforming Marinette. Marinette protested several times to Momo's various ideas, but they all fell on deaf ears as Momo got to work, her mother's old high school friend's style coming to mind as she worked.
The one exception was the shoes as Marinette pointed out that she couldn't wear heels or platforms as she was too clumsy and uncoordinated for them, plus they'd limit her agility which they might need, so she had to be in pumps or sneakers. Despite that one compromise, by the time Momo was done Marinette didn't even recognize herself.
"Let's go and show the boys." Momo said as she changed into her simpler outfit of an elegant and classy pink sleeveless dress with a bow on the back of the sash belt, gold necklace with pink stones in it, matching gold bracelets, a pink purse and boots that worked with it, shades, and a new hair style thanks to the very hair product she'd been tricked into advertising in a commercial during her internship. "And see how they've done with my choices for them."
"Somehow I feel like the worst of the bunch." Marinette grumbled as they left the dressing room to see the boys in their outfits. "But I may as well get into character for this."
The boys had gotten ready faster, and Momo had tailored theirs to each of them to both change them while also working with what they might be able to pull off. Midoriya was in a blue suit jacket and pants both one size too big to hide his bandages and give it a slightly crumpled look with a pink t-shirt under it, thick gold chain around his neck, white shades, and a fake soul patch on his chin matching his now even messier than usual hair. His look was clearly the sleezy scoundrel which was very different to his usual style and demeanor.
Then there was Ida in what might actually be what young adult Ida would wear minus the hair changes. He was in a formal, short sleeved, white dress shirt with a bright red bow tie, yellow suspenders and black slacks. His hair was slicked back into a sleezy look, his eyebrows styled, and he had an unconnected moustache that gave off a slightly creepy vibe.
Kirishima was enjoying his look as he grinned in a red jacked that was a size too small, so the sleeves didn't reach his wrists and the hem didn't reach his waist with matching pants, silver belt, a pair of gold belt chains on the left side, gold bracelet on his right wrist and matching necklace and a white shirt. To further change him his hair was now down, and he had a pair of fake horns that looked like metal coming from his head which in this day and age didn't look out of place at all.
Lastly, Todoroki had a look that if he used it normally would be great for getting girls. He wore an off-white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a few buttons undone, a black waist coat complete with a pocket square and black pants. To hide his most distinctive features he had a black wig on that covered almost all his two-tone hair other than a strip of white above his right eye in the deep fringe to make it look stylish. The wig also covered his bright blue left eye and the burn scar that was there leaving only the gray right one exposed.
They all had different feelings for their outfits from indifference for Todoroki, ridiculousness for Ida, character for Izuku and actually liking it in the case of Kirishima. They were waiting for the girls and Momo walked out with a determined look on her face looking like a more stylish version of herself before stepping to the side to reveal Marinette and the boys all gasped or in Todoroki's case blinked in surprise.
That was because Momo had gone all out to change Marinette. Her hair was now down to their surprise and mussed up to look deliberately messy while she wore a pair of trashy black shades to hide her bright blue, very western, eyes. That alone would have probably been enough, but Momo had decided to revolve the outfit around Marinette's navel piercing and turned her, well, into Momo's version of a goth/punk mix.
Marinette now wore a sleeveless black vest with multiple silver studs in it and a few silver chains on the back. The vest was done up by only the two middle buttons just below her breasts. Normally she'd be showing cleavage even with her small bust but because of the bandages around her breasts Momo had to put a jet-black tube top on her to cover them but the rest was exposed and with the lower upside-down V perfectly drawing the eye to the silver stud in her navel.
To complete it Marinette had on a very short black mini skirt that was slightly too low on her hips, a black belt with silver studs, deliberately ratty black tights, and black pumps with silver studs. It all fit so she didn't have to worry about a malfunction, but it was still a huge change for Marinette and that wasn't all Momo had done, there were also the accessories.
Momo had decided that Marinette needed more piercings to fit with her alternative style. So, using a literal piercing gun she'd made after looking up the specs she'd given Marinette a nose ring in her left nostril, three more piercings in her right ear with the one in the cartilage at the top connected to the one in her lobe by a small silver chain, and four in her left ear with the last set being a bar at the top. She'd also painted Marinette's nails jet black and given her matching black lipstick. She'd even Marinette's eye makeup, again black but well styled, just in case she lost her glasses.
To finish the look Marinette wore black fingerless gloves with a ring on the upper part of her middle fingers that was connected via a silver chain to a pair of silver cuffs on her forearms. The last thing they noticed was the black choker with silver studs in them around Marinette's neck. Momo had really gone all out with her look.
"Um…" Izuku said finally finding his voice. "Wow."
"Agreste has to see this." Kirishima said with a grin as he quickly snapped a picture of Dupain-Cheng. "He'll not recognize you."
"Good because this is a look that Kyoka can pull off, not me." Marinette said turning to Momo. "The ink was a little much, it's not the most acceptable thing in Japan. Even I know that."
"It suits you and is fitting with the alternative, rebel, vibe we're going with you." Momo said with a smile. "A subtle touch your heritage."
What Marinette was referring to was the black, realistic looking, stencil style tattoos that Marinette now had on her upper arms thanks to more items Momo had made. On her right was a large Gallic Rooster in black that went covered her whole outer bicep and was the national animal of France though only the girls knew that. On her left and just as large was the Chinese zodiac sign for dog which based on her age was Marinette's zodiac animal.
That was one of the few things that Marinette hadn't fought Momo on. That was because Marinette's actual zodiac animal was the monkey as she was born in 2004 not 2234 as her records said but that would cause too many uncomfortable questions with answers that the others wouldn't believe.
"Let's just get moving." Marinette said as Kirishima's phone pinged a text notification. "After you tell me Adrien's response."
"He's amazed that it is you, but he does say you pull it off." Kirishima said causing Marinette to blush and she knew she'd have a much more personal message from her boyfriend on her phone that was currently in Momo's purse so she couldn't check it. "Though he is wondering why you're in disguise."
"Just give him the answer and that we discussed this potential scenario so that we can get moving." Marinette said and Kirishima did just that. "Good lets go."
With that Marinette walked to the exit of the shop and soon the others joined her. Once they were out they were in a line as they walked into Camino Ward with the girls in the middle, Izuku and Ida on one side and Kirishima and Todoroki on the other as if they were the girls' bodyguards or protectors. With the new looks they actually did blend into the area, and no one batted an eye at them or thought that they were a bunch of kids. Course as they walked some of them began to get into character.
"Watch it you punks." Izuku said trying to act like his outfit said he acted.
"That's not it." Kirishima said helping his friend out. "You've got to stick your chin out more."
"You talking to meeee!" Izuku said doing as Kirishima suggested.
"That's more like it." Kirishima said with a grin.
"We're just a few scoundrels cruising for hot girls." Ida said loudly as always really getting into character and getting a few cheers from some similarly styled guys who were walking past at that moment.
"Close enough." Kirishima said.
"Great disguises." Momo added with a smile. "We'd stand out in this district dressed like kids."
"Speak for yourself." Marinette muttered in French. "I look like I should be at some alternative, counter culture, underground rave."
"Yaoyorozu, couldn't you have used your Quirk for this to save money?" Todoroki asked bluntly. "That seems like it would have been a better course of action."
"Well technically but that's against the rules." Momo said getting all upset and annoyed as she spoke before finding her justification and getting enthusiastically into it. "If I started making everything think of the impact on the economy. We must ensure the flow of commerce. That's right it's our civic duty as citizens to not oversaturate the market."
"Sure." Todoroki said unconvinced.
"Translation." Marinette said. "The rich girl just wanted to go shopping and apparently make me look like this."
"Everyone, our destination is this way." Momo said recovering and leading them in the direction her tracker said that the bug Awase had put on that Nomu was. "Shall we get moving?"
They all nodded and walked for a about 10 minutes as they made their way through Kamino Ward getting no looks as they just looked like a group of young adults looking for a good time in one of the slightly less than reputable establishments in the area. Midoriya and Ida's acting was a bit over the top, but it fit somehow. Marinette was amazed that they'd managed to pull it off, but they had and soon enough they were nearing the location.
It was off the beaten path a bit and in the backstreets of the ward where there weren't many places to go as it was mostly just residences and warehouses. The location itself was a warehouse that was around a corner, and they all pulled up to the corner with Momo and Kirishima looking around it.
"Alright, that's where the tracker says they're holding Bakugo." Momo said. "At least it's where the tracker is broadcasting from."
"So that's their hideout." Kirishima said looking at the warehouse with a wall just above head height around it and a gate before the entrance. "Not a bad one I guess."
"Maybe it is, maybe it isn't." Momo said as she turned back to the group. "According to the tracking history the villain hasn't left this location for the past day but that's all we know. One villain that attacked us is hiding here, there's no way they're getting the tracker off short of cutting the flesh that its welded to out, but that is all we can confirm. They could have Bakugo somewhere else. We're going into this operation completely blind for the most part. Please try to proceed logically."
"That does make sense." Marinette said with a nod. "You said it was a Nomu which means that it's not one of the villains with actual thought if it's anything like what we've seen before. Likely this could be where they keep those things for when they need them. Remember we now know of at least 5 Nomus and none seemed to be intelligent, at least the one at the USJ wasn't as it only acted on Shigaraki's commands."
"I don't like this." Ida said. "Almost none of us are good at sneaking around. Now I see why you wanted Agreste, he would be best followed by Jiro and Hagakure."
"Adrien's reflexes and balance are best for this, but I'm not far off him." Marinette said. "I just lack the finite touch and the enhanced senses that he has thanks to the traces of his mother. If needed I'll check, I am the best here for it."
If I think things are the least bit dangerous we're done." Ida said still worried. "I won't hesitate to call the police either to make sure that my friends are safe."
"Thank you Ida, Dupain-Cheng." Izuku said as he grabbed his chin and began to think. "So, what can we do? Let's see if we can't use our Quirks for combat that normally would be an issue, but we don't have to, we have Dupain-Cheng, and her balance and touch is one of the best in the class from what I've seen. Between that and her constitution she can check without using her Quirk though Lucky Charm is useful, probably the best Quirk our group has given how it's an item to accomplish a goal, plus it can now be changed as Dupain-Cheng's goals change and the time limit seems to have been extended. So…"
From there Izuku devolved into a mumble storm as he set his mind to figuring out the task at hand. It was just what they needed as given time there wasn't anyone in the class better than him at coming up with an opening strategy that could work.
"Been a while since we've seen this." Kirishima said impressed and a little creeped out by the old trait of Midoriya's.
"Yes this is peak Midoriya." Momo said.
Marinette was just thinking and looking to the warehouse where the tracker was. She was the best to get a look and in her current getup she was actually a lot stealthier now because of the black would let her blend into the shadows better, she'd be more like Adrien, and she could easily channel him. Add in her Lucky Charm and it would be easy for her to sort out.
He kept it up for a few more minutes before seeming to come to a conclusion regarding what to do. There was a vending machine, one of the many Japan was known for, nearby and they all went there to look like they were doing something and not just loitering in the area.
"We've gotten pretty close, but I haven't seen anything move inside." Momo said as Izuku looked at the vending machine as if trying to decide what to get. "That's not what I'd expect if they had Kacchan there."
"And not a single light is on." Kirishima said agreeing with Midoriya's assessment. "It doesn't look like anyone's home."
"They're hiding this lair in plain sight." Todoroki said. "It looks like an abandoned warehouse."
"The weeds around it are thick and undisturbed." Izuku pointed out. "There must be another way in. Maybe someone's Quirk is hiding it, or it could just be the Warp Villain that takes them to and from it, that would be best way to avoid detection seeing as he can avoid using an entrance. We also can't just enter carelessly. It could be a trap. If we could just see inside somehow."
"Which is why I'm going to have to go." Marinette said drawing all eyes to her as she voiced what she'd been thinking. "I'm the one with the agility and dexterity, not to mention the skills and training, to…"
"Hey." A crude male voice said cutting them off and causing them to all get nervous as they looked to see two drunk men in suits, completely red in the face eying Marinette and Momo lustily while laughing. "You girls, you looking for some real men darlings. Ditch these losers and come drink with us."
Marinette acted almost without thinking. She'd expected that there was a chance with Momo around, the girl was a classic Japanese beauty who was also tall and incredibly busty so naturally guys who were around actually trying to pick up chicks would try with her. As such Marinette had devised an emergency plan with Adrien when she'd called him for if this situation happened. The fact that it played into her current alternative look and got Momo back a bit for it was just a bonus to her.
"Excusé moi but please do not hit on my woman in front of me." Marinette said letting her French accent thicken more than usual as she put an arm around Momo's waist and pulled her close causing the other girl to let out a little eep of surprise.
Marinette used her height, which was a lot less than Momo's, at least a foot if she had to guess, to force Momo's left arm around her. At the same time, she moved her own left arm across and just went full Mineta as she grabbed and openly groped Momo's right breast, the act causing Momo's left hand to fall onto Marinette's left breast though Momo didn't reciprocate the act.
As Marinette did this to an absolutely stunned Momo she leant up and kissed the other girl's neck slowly to make the point before setting down her head in the crook of Momo's arm as she looked at the now stunned men and her equally stunned friends. All were openly gaping at her, but the drunks were too drunk and shocked to notice that the guys were just as shocked.
"Well, please leave us." Marinette said. "Me and my girlfriend here are out celebrating our one-year anniversary with some of our boys and helping them out. There's no better wing woman than a lesbian."
"See they're not into you, stop picking fights." The man's friend said recovering from his shock and slapping the other man's head before dragging him off. "Sorry for him."
"We understand." Marinette said with a smile as they left and she broke away from a now bright red Momo as all the guys, even Todoroki stared in shock at her. "What?"
"Um what was that?" Kirishima said recovering first.
"Battlefield adjustment to a new factor that I was ready for." Marinette said. "I realized that two girls and four guys might get some looks and that Momo would draw a lot of attention and that was before we dressed up and pretended like we were just a bunch of friends out on the town. That change only added to the need for it. Then, with my look I knew I'd give off a rather fluid sexuality to most so I planned to play into it should Momo would get attention from me. I figured it would be safest to pretend to be her girlfriend. That way guys would leave us alone if they tried and we could move on."
"I see, that is a clever tactic and one that would cause them to leave." Izuku said thinking. "Not sure Agreste would agree with it, but it does protect you two from that and we can avoid getting into a fight with some drunk guys who might be looking for one if they were rejected."
"Oh, Adrien knows that this was a potential plan." Marinette said surprising them. "When we spoke on the train we strategized, and he looked up Kamino Ward and said that there's no way that Momo doesn't get hit on after we got here. He suggested that I be the one to make sure nothing happens to her, and we had a few plans for how to play it. This was what worked when those two drunks showed up."
"I see that is a clever tactic." Ida said. "And something we should have thought off, not between us guys but for Yaoyorozu being with us as well as it is a bit lopsided on the gender ration. Plus, this could work in future undercover missions."
"Couples don't get the same attention a solo person does." Marinette said. "People don't give them a second glance most of the time."
"Well, we should get moving, we can't linger here." Todoroki said and the others nodded in agreement at that.
They moved away to and down the block but were still in front of the warehouse. Well, most of them did, Momo was still a bit stunned by all that had happened.
"Sorry." Marinette whispered in French to her friend. "I had to act; I should have told you that this was a possibility, but I was hoping that it wouldn't come up. That's my mistake and I'll learn from it."
"No, it's ok, I understand it just wasn't expecting it." Momo said shaking her head as it was a good strategy that she should have played into as well. "And it's fine because it was you and I know that you meant nothing by it. I'll be good just a little flustered."
"Good now let's get going." Marinette said as they hurried back to the guys who were discussing what to do about the warehouse seeing as there were still people around, but they looked up when the girls arrived. "You guys have an idea on how I can help?"
"Let's go around the back." Izuku said. "Less people and might be the only way to get some solid intel on this place without being noticed and reported for suspicious behavior."
The others nodded and they headed to the right side of the warehouse where there was a narrow alleyway between it and the building next to it that would allow them to access the back of it. It looked like it was going to be hard to get through for most of them. It was tight but they could fit. However, this was where Marinette stopped them.
"Stay here and act as lookouts." Marinette said looking down the alleyway. "I'll go alone as I can fit best and when it comes to it climb the wall. Momo, make some small receivers for us to communicate. I don't have Adrien's night vision but that's not a problem with Lucky Charm. I'll create and item to let me see thus not using it for combat and giving me a way to see into the warehouse. For ease, Momo just make us all receivers."
"Right, I'm on it." Momo said as she cupped her hands and began to work.
"You don't need to use your Quirk Dupain-Cheng, I actually brought a pair of night vision goggles just in case." Kirishima said surprising them as he pulled out a pair of high-quality night vision goggles. "I bought them when I was thinking of what we'd need for this, figured they'd come in handy."
"Woah but aren't those like super expensive?" Izuku asked amazed at the googles. "I thought about them when I was designing my costume but they're like 50,000 or something."
"Whatever man, drop it." Kirishima said clearly not wanting to talk about it as he handed the googles to Marinette who just nodded before she easily slipped into the alleyway after Momo handed her a receiver that she put in her ear.
With her small, narrow, lithe, frame she easily shuffled through while the others kept watch and tried, and failed, to be inconspicuous. Marinette didn't care as she kept looking at the back of the warehouse for a way in or at least a place to look through.
She found it as she was nearing the end of the alleyway where the space was a little roomier. It was a small, barred, window set just above the wall. It was perfect. Securing the googles in one hand, Marinette leapt up and placed her other hand on the edge of the wall at the same time to heave herself up.
Between the leap, the pull, and her own strength she easily cleared the wall from her standing position and landed lightly on it in a crouch, balancing on the top with only a slight wobble. She wasn't as good as she'd be in her costume, but she could manage it now that it was like her Miraculous was always active.
Once she was in position Marinette raised the googles to her eyes and turned them on. Everything inside was green through them as she looked and reported back what she could see.
"Right, it seems pretty empty." Marinette whispered. "Almost deserted but there is something in one of the corners that seems to be in use, one sec as I check it...oh merde."
"Merde?" Kirishima whispered back through the receiver. "What does that mean?"
"French for shit." Marinette said as she felt her heartrate increase. "And you lot had better get here because we have a problem. There's a reason why this is where the tracker led us and I'm pretty sure that Bakugo isn't here. This place is a gods damned Nomu factory."
The others just blinked at each other, all feeling nervous, but followed as instructed and shuffled through the tight alleyway to where Marinette was. It was tight and uncomfortable, but they managed it and she leapt off the wall to greet them and handed the googles back to Kirishima once they were in the roomier area she was in.
"Back corner, they're all in tanks." Marinette said. "Looks like this is the place they store them; not make as that I would guess would require more equipment and power and this place doesn't seem to be drawing much of that."
"Let me see." Kirishima said and Marinette nodded, moving behind him and hoisting him up to allow him to look through.
"Yup, she's right." Kirishima said as he confirmed what Marinette had seen before he was lowered down looking white at what he'd seen. "They're there for sure. What now?"
Before any of them could say anything a flatbed truck at the end of the alleyway suddenly lifted up with what looked like a large purple foot in it. The U.A. students only had a second to react before Mt. Lady, a rookie hero with a gigantification Quirk that made her grow to a large size, brought down her truck encased foot down right onto the front of the factory. The heroes were here.
The factory face was demolished by the blow and the force of the winds blew through the alley, almost knocking the students over and blowing away Kirishima's fake horns, Todoroki's wig, Midoriya's soul patch, and all the sunglasses the students were wearing in the process. They hunkered down to protect themselves and by the time they could stand it was already over.
Marinette was the first to recover and she leapt up to the wall again to look through though she was just holding herself up with her arms rather than standing on it so that she could fall back quickly if need be while Ida boosted Kirishima to join her. Before them they could see Mt. Lady, and Best Jeanist with all the Nomus restrained. There were cops and other heroes around outside and they could just make out a concerned Tiger carrying a limp Ragdoll in his arms as she must have been in the building as well and Gang Orca was with them to help check up on Ragdoll. There wasn't much left though.
"Gang Orca and Mt. Lady." Kirishima said to the others. "Woah even Best Jeanist. They're all here and have the Nomus."
"And Tiger, he's got Ragdoll and Gang Orca is with them, but something seems off about her, likely been through a lot and is in shock but I am pretty sure that she's still alive." Marinette said while they could hear Mt. Lady complaining about the Nomu as one struggled in her massive hand. "This must have been part of the operation. I bet the other heroes like All Might and Endeavor have found out where Bakugo is and hit that place. They wouldn't have hit like this if it wasn't a multi-pronged attack."
"I bet they do; he must have been held elsewhere." Kirishima said smiling while Beast Jeanist rebuked Mt. Lady and gave orders to the riot squads to take away the Nomu. "Good, he should be safe."
"See everything's fine, the heroes were on top of this way before us." Ida said smiling at the success of the heroes and the fact that they could now leave without any risks as Kirishima and Marinette came down from the wall to join them. "Now let's get back home, at least we won't have to explain ourselves."
"It sounds like All Might is somewhere else which means he's got to have Kacchan." Izuku said think on it. "They wouldn't have an operation of this size without him, and he'd be at the place he was most needed which has to be the League's headquarters."
"If All Might's on the scene it means that there is no reason for us to worry." Momo said smiling as she turned to leave out of the alley and away from the action. "Let's go, quick."
"Right." Todoroki said but Marinette was hesitant as she turned and left with the others.
Something didn't add up to her. She wasn't sure what the feeling was but somewhere in her gut she knew that it wasn't over. Call it intuition or years of dealing with Hawk Moth back in the day but she felt that it was too easy and in their line of work things were seldom easy. It was like defeating and purifying an akuma without using her Lucky Charm item, something was off.
She wasn't the only one who felt it, Izuku did too. He was at the back and suddenly stopped to look behind him causing Marinette and Todoroki to do the same. Soon the others did and that was when they heard it. Had Adrien been there he'd have noticed sooner and possibly gotten them away, but they didn't until it was clear and by then it was too late to leave. What they heard was the slow, methodical, walk of someone in the warehouse, his shoes making a distinctive noise as he walked.
"I'm sorry Tiger, but Ragdoll's Quirk was so useful that I just had to take it, how could I not?" An educated, calm, male voice with a slight mechanical twang to it said and instantly Marinette had a terrible feeling run through her entire body.
"Are you with the league?" Gang Orca called out to the voice as the students listened.
"Someone get a light in here." Tiger added.
"Since my body was mostly destroyed I haven't been able to stock up on Quirks for a while." The voice said. "But this one was too good to pass up and will serve us well in the future."
"Stop there, don't move." Gang Orca commanded and when the walking didn't stop they heard the sound of fabric ripping and something getting wrapped up to indicate that Beast Jeanist had used his own Quirk to restrain the person.
"Hey, you can't attack like that." Mt. Lady complained. "What if he's a bystander?"
"Think of the situation." Best Jeanist said his voice serious and reproachful at the same time. "A moment of hesitation could decide the fight. We can't let these villains try anything."
There was a sound of struggling and more ripping and then a massive explosion that destroyed almost all that was left of the warehouse. That did not sound good, and it sounded like Best Jeanist had taken the brunt of what had just happened.
As the smoke cleared the students felt it. They were ensconced and sitting on the ground behind the now ruined wall mere feet from the villain as the he began to speak about Shigaraki for some reason which indicated that he was the League's backer and mentor however that's not what the students were focused on.
No what they were focused on was much more primal. They couldn't stop it, couldn't move, couldn't prevent it if they wanted to. The man made them feel death with his mere presence. He was as close to evil incarnate as there could be in this world. Even Marinette was sitting, her eyes wide and shaking with fear at the presence. This was beyond Hawk Moth; this was something unlike anything she'd experience and there was only one person who it could be. This was All for One.
I just couldn't resist a cliffhanger like this one, it was too good to pass up but don't worry, the wait won't be too long. Initially this chapter was going to include Bakugo's rescue but when it was all done the draft was 13k words so the final product would be pushing 18k so I broke it up into two and with being able to draft chapter 51 as well y'all will get the conclusion soon. Otherwise, there's only one thing to note in case anyone was curious or confused, in the second School Briefs book one of the chapters deals with the studying for the finals, including an in-depth part about the group at Momo's house. While there, her mother was intrigued by Jiro's punk style and when asked she revealed that she had a friend back in high school who had a punk style, something Momo's mother tried but failed at, and Jiro reminded her of her friend. That's part of Momo's inspiration for Marinette's disguise. That is all I really have for y'all with this chapter so I will leave it off here for y'all. If you like it or have any questions please let me know in reviews or PMs, I will try to answer them as best I could and post any questions asked between uploads at the start of the next chapter and do follow and favorite this, so you are alerted to future uploads. Do keep the reviews coming as I like hearing from y'all as you enjoy my work, it motivates me to keep producing the best work I can for y'all to enjoy. Until next time.
Stringdog
