I am so excited to bring you all this chapter. I hope you all had a happy Easter this past weekend because I'm here to give you shock. I have had this chapter planned for months, and it will be the last one before we return to UA. Anything else from the Work-Studies will be mentioned in dialogue or seen in a flashback. I am simply tired of these chapters and I know many of you are, too. There will be no notes or questions at the end of this chapter either because I want your pure, unfiltered thoughts, no padding to soften the landing. As a result, I will say here that I renamed Saito Tatchi's Quirk to Hindsight. Yes, he's an OC mentioned only once before, and you'll see why I gave his Quirk that name soon.

Gamelover 41592: Here's another one.

LEGOBRICK13: Did someone say "depression"?

Monkey D. Conan: Frankly, I don't think Kendo really has any skills befitting an Assassin. I mean, sure, she's got hand-to-hand combat training, but she has no stealth skills to speak of and her Quirk: Big Fist is not suited to the Assassin style. Besides, the story's only compelling if you feel for both sides.

Pirohiko-Baltazar: No, I will not be including Hellsing in this story. Did I say something previously to imply anything to do with that show? Although, that would be a really cool story idea: Integra, Alucard, and Hellsing as Templars (not that Alucard would care) and Anderson and Iscariot as Assassins within the Vatican. As for Christianity, most of the "ok to kill" comes from Old Testament Deuteronomy and the Law of Moses, all of which was fulfilled that first Easter. No more stoning for heresy and the like nowadays.

Shadowwolf1997: Yeah, I figured over 150 years would change the Templars and Assassins a little, even with technology at a standstill because of Quirks. And you're right, Templar "mercy" is not something Assassins are willing to take.

stevenpiskunov2: This is the last Work-Study chapter, and it doesn't even follow a student, but it is important. Yes, this story will go past the Canon timeline (seriously, all that happening in one year is ridiculous), but Overhaul will return in Book 2. And, actually, this chapter should give you hints for my plans with All Might and One for All.

zakan: I'll be honest, I don't know what you mean by that.

Chapter 60:

Pasts Unveiled

"Sir," a voice said, the sounds of the pro Hero typing a report onto his ancient computer halting. He looked up as the door opened, a Heteromorph with the head of a brown centipede stepping into the room. "We had to outbid three rather-powerful companies but the acquisition of the Shie Hassaikai base is complete. It was… not cheap."

"Finally." Nighteye returned his attention to the screen of his boxy computer, one of the few pieces of internet-connected technology in the Nighteye Agency building. Having grown up without such things, Nighteye had never learned to fully trust the World Wide Web. Even now, with Sidekicks that would happily manage such things for him, neither Nighteye nor his agency had any social media of any kind. "I don't care what the cost was. Thank you, Centipeder. I know you don't enjoy dealing with such things."

"Auctions and acquisitions do bring up certain dark spots in our society," the man replied. Many found his mutations scary and/or disgusting and treated him accordingly despite his job as a Sidekick. Treatment like that was one of the primary reasons Centipeder went into the Hero field in the first place. "What now?"

"I'll send an email to my cousin," Nighteye answered, his fingers already moving across the keyboard. "I hope he's available tomorrow."

"What about Lemillion? Tomorrow will be your last chance to train him as a student."

Nighteye paused, the man taking a moment to breathe before he returned to his email. "I don't want him involved in this," he said. "Were it a simple capture mission of the Shie Hassaikai, that would be one thing, but investigating their murders is another. Please, take him on patrol and cover his training for the day while I take Bubble Girl with me. Send Lemillion off with a job offer for after his graduation. Should he return then, I will get him involved in this investigation, should it still be active."

"As you wish, Boss." Centipeder turned to leave only to pause, turning back to the pro Hero. "Say, Boss. What do you call a fish wearing a bowtie?"

Nighteye raised an eyebrow. Centipeder would have cracked a grin if he had a traditional mouth to do so with.

"SoFISHticated."

Nighteye cracked a grin, failing to fully stifle a snort at the lame joke. Centipeder chuckled and took his leave, the pro alone in his office once more. His fingertips rested uncomfortably on the keyboard, ready to finish his email, but his eyes drifted to the corkboard on the wall to his right.

They had tracked down Kendo Rappa in an underground fight club two weeks ago, the man nearly defeating Centipeder in the fight he'd demanded in exchange for the information he knew. Centipeder had had to tank several powerful punches to wrap himself around Rappa, nearly choking him out before the former Shie Hassaikai member conceded.

According to him, a hooded group had broken into their base and slaughtered most of his coworkers (whom, he claimed, he had only worked with because he wanted to beat Overhaul in a fight). This group rescued a little girl from somewhere in the base (again, something Rappa claimed ignorance about) drove away Mimic, and killed the Shie Hassaikai he'd been with before threatening him with a gun. He had agreed to their terms in exchange for his life.

"Templars…" Nighteye muttered, his eyes going to a section of the board dedicated to what he'd been able to find about the word. It was one of the mysteries Rappa's testimony had left them with, the man having said the hooded people had used it in reference to his late colleagues. Rappa hadn't heard it before nor did he seem to care, but it was something that he had remembered.

Remembering the man's story sent a shiver down Nighteye's spine, something people in hoods had caused for many years now. A part of him wondered if this was the connection he'd been searching for all this time, ever since the most important friendship of his life had been severed.

He shook his head, returning to his email. Worrying about the future would do nothing, it was the answers that he'd find tomorrow that would cement his path forward. If these hooded people were, indeed, the ones he'd been hoping to find, then he would be closer than ever before.

"Don't worry, my friend," he whispered to himself. "I'll save you. I'll change the future I saw. I swear it."

-AHC-

Saito Tatchi was plain man by choice, the only thing that stood out about him being his green-and-yellow hair, an inversion of Nighteye's. Unlike his heroic cousin, who was tall, lean, and wore glasses, Tatchi was on the shorter side with perfect vision and a little extra weight. Being just a little out of shape helped him better blend into crowds when following a mark as a Private Investigator, after all. He wore a simple office worker's outfit: a light-blue button-up with a black tie and black slacks. His eyes were green.

"Mirai," he said, greeting the pro with a quick hug. Nighteye returned it but pulled away quickly, as he always had. Tatchi held well longer than the Hero preferred, as he always had. "It's been too long."

"That it has, Saito," Nighteye replied with a small smile of his own. He gestured behind him. "You remember Bubble Girl."

"Of course," Tatchi replied, bowing slightly and offering a hand. "How could I forget your most beautiful Sidekick?"

Bubble Girl rolled her eyes. Tatchi's flirtatious attitude may have made her blush the first couple times she met her employer's cousin —even landed him a date— but she was long used to him by now.

"Hello to you too, Tatchi," she said, not offering her own hand. She didn't dislike the man, far from it, but the two of them hadn't clicked enough to overcome how awkward it would have been to date her employer's relative. They'd had one night together and that was it.

"Well, anyway," Tatchi continued, not letting Bubble Girl's silent denial faze him. "Mirai, what's this favor you needed? I guess it has something to do with this burnt ruin?"

"Indeed," Nighteye nodded, getting to business. He walked over to the metal gate that now blocking off the lot that held the husk of what had been the Shie Hassaikai hideout, the tunnels below having collapsed already. He'd asked Centipeder to do his best to get the lot before the building was destroyed and the man had delivered. "Before this place burned down, it had been the complex of a criminal organization we'd been tracking. It suddenly burned down, revealing the corpses of several members, but the causes of death didn't seem to line up with the fire and we couldn't account for all the known individuals."

"You want me to use my Quirk to learn what happened," Tatchi said.

"Please." The pro turned to the man who was like a brother to him. "We already interrogated a survivor, but he couldn't tell us much other than that a group infiltrated the base and killed the other members before setting the fire."

"How long ago was this?"

"The start of the summer."

"That's over three months ago. You know my Quirk's fuzzy after so long."

"We weren't able to acquire the property until now," Nighteye explained. "Plus, the police were quick to write off the investigation after the fire. Too quick, in my opinion. Between that and Kendo Rappa's confessions, it smells like a cover-up."

"Alright, I get it," Tatchi replied, shrugging with a chuckle. "I'm just making sure you remember you're not gonna get faces or sound outta this."

"Whatever you can give me will be helpful, Saito. I'll accept any clue to who these people are."

"Heh," the shorter man chuckled. "Who am I to refuse such a cry for help? Let's go."

Nighteye nodded to Bubble Girl, the woman pulling out a key to unlock the gate. Tatchi studied the surroundings more closely as the gate swung open, the professionals stepping to either side. Tatchi raised his hands, making a circle with his fingers that filled with a sort of clear film. As he did, his pupil extended upward until a line touched the top of his green iris. A beam extended from said eye, moving through the film and into the world beyond. The line of his pupil began to rotate counterclockwise, faster and faster, nothing seeming to happen until an image of a rainstorm appeared like a hologram. Such was the effect of Saito Tatchi's Hindsight. Time in this hologram reversed: a week, two weeks, a month, two months, three months. Suddenly, there was fire.

"Slow down!" Nighteye ordered, rather unnecessarily. Tatchi's hologram slowed but continued to reverse, the fire shrinking as the building put itself together in the vision. When the fire had disappeared, there was stillness for what Tatchi estimated to be about three hours —placing the fire at about 10 am and the current scene at 7— before two men walked backwards out of the building's doors. They wore black hazmat suits, each carrying two dead men that they, still in reverse, placed in the bushes at the edge of the courtyard. The image froze.

"Sorry, Mirai," Tatchi said as Nighteye and Bubble Girl approached the image for a closer look. The men looked like your average office workers. "That's three months and eight days. At this point, we're gonna get colors and outlines, not injuries on the bodies. Ain't gonna see cause of death until it happens."

"That we know these bodies were here means we will see who caused them, even if not their faces," Nighteye waved off. "Please continue, Saito."

"Yeah, sure." The clock mimicry in his eye rotated again, this time slower, as the trio stared at the hidden corpses for what Tatchi estimated was nearly two more hours before there was motion at the door. Five figures in robes backed out of the doorway, revealing that a man dressed similar to the dead men was gesturing for them.

Nighteye's breath hitched. There were five colors, each robe unique in their own way. Black-and-white, ragged tan, brown, purple, and red, but it was not these colors that caught Nighteye's attention. No, it was the make, the outline of the robes. He'd seen their kind before.

It was the same shape that haunted his nightmares.

The scene continued to reverse, the five in robes backing to the bushes where the bodies moved to their arms and were carried to —actually from— the center of the courtyard. The scene slowed further as, as a single unit, four of the five fell on the men from above, killing each instantly with blades on their wrists, with the fifth joining them afterward. Tatchi returned the scene to after the killings, the five robed individuals standing above their slain prey.

Bubble Girl didn't see her boss' reaction, too focused on the scene itself. As Tatchi had said, the faces were fuzzy, not nearly detailed enough to get more than a generic sketch of any of them. The most she could tell was that one was a woman and one possibly a Heteromorph, those being Purple and Brown respectively, the rest being men. None had defining features like one eye or anything of the like.

Nighteye swallowed heavily. "Play it from here," he ordered. Tatchi glanced at him but nodded, the clockwork in his eye beginning to turn naturally. The scene played out like a silent show, the five looting the bodies and hiding them before entering the building. Nighteye, Bubble Girl, and Tatchi followed.

The scene they watched in the entrance hall was no less brutal, the insider turning out to be another robed infiltrator who murdered the receptionist (after apparently having failed to do so properly) before discarding their appearance like a second skin, revealing her to be a young woman dressed in a mockery of a school uniform. Now a group of six, she led her companions to a hidden tunnel and down into the bowels of the building.

Nighteye, Bubble Girl, and Tatchi followed the echoes of the group, unable to hear what they said to each other as they traveled the halls. The group stopped, Tatchi pausing the scene as they reached what had been a cafeteria. Inside, sitting at a table, were two figures that got Nighteye's attention. Even without the faces, he suspected these were Yu Hojo and Toya Setsuno.

"That's them," he muttered, Bubble Girl turning to her boss. "Members of Shie Hassaikai's Eight Bullets."

"You can tell?" Bubble Girl asked. "They look like everyone else to me."

"I've memorized their outlines. It's them. Now, it's time we learn what happened that day." He nodded to Tatchi.

The scene continued, the woman in purple directing the group to break into three pairs. Two of them, those is red and black-and-white, stayed put while Purple and Brown went left and Tan and Schoolgirl went right.

"Which way do we go first?" Bubble Girl asked.

"We'll stay here," Nighteye decided. "Saito, fast-forward."

"Sure." The scene sped up for several seconds before Setsuno and Hojo stood, walking toward a doorway on the right. The pair of robed killers moved instantly, heading down the right hallway. The group followed as the pair of echoes traveled the halls, keeping to the shadows. They caught up to the pair of career criminals within minutes, finding them conversing with four underlings. The pair shared a look.

They charged without warning, having been just as silent in the moment based on the reactions of the Shie Hassaikai men. The man in red flicked his wrists, blades popping out under his hands which he used to spear two of the underlings in the back. The man in black reached for a Heteromorph underling, grabbing at the man's longer neck before snapping it like a twig, turning the head a full 180 degrees. He reached into his robes, pulling out a knife he threw not a second later. The projectile buried itself to the hilt in the forehead of the remaining grunt, the gun he'd pulled out clattering to the floor.

Setsuno —the blond— reached for it, the gun appearing in his hand as he aimed at Red, but the trained killer was faster. He shot forward, his left-hand blade stabbing into and through Setsuno's hand. The man cried out —or the viewers of his memory suspected he did considering there was no sound— the killer's other blade coming for his throat. Hojo —the bald one— extended his hand but nothing happened, the man apparently powerless as his coworker's neck was slashed. He didn't have a moment to run, the other robed man appearing behind him with an arm already wrapped around his throat. The viewers watched as he slowly, almost delicately, slid his own wrist-mounted blade into Hojo's back, red staining the inside of the yakuza's white mask. Something was said between the killers before they found a closet, stuffing the bodies inside. One raised his hand, presumably talking into a communicator of some sort.

"What ruthless efficiency," Bubble Girl commented, prompting Tatchi to pause the memory. "I… Why would they do this?"

"Gang war?" the P.I. suggested. "Maybe the Shie Hassaikai did something to piss them off."

"That's not helpful, Saito," Nighteye said. "Whomever this group is, they are clearly capable and methodical. They didn't hesitate for a moment. They are experienced killers. One can only wonder how many they have killed already."

"And if they're the only ones," Bubble Girl whispered.

"We know they aren't," Tatchi put in. "Remember, there were the ones that set the fire."

"Let us return and see what the other groups did," Nighteye grunted, They did as he ordered, returning to the moment when the robed figures separated before following Tan and Schoolgirl. They found someone asleep in one of the rooms and carefully pulled his mask off before the female of the pair poured something into his mouth. Tan held his arms down as the individual (Deidoro Sakaki, Nighteye suspected) convulsed slightly, leading the trio to believe they had poisoned him in some manner. Again, they reversed the image and followed a different pair, this time Purple and Brown.

"This is giving me the creeps," Bubble Girl commented with a shiver.

"It's not exactly pleasant for me, either," Tatchi added. "Ain't kept my Quirk active for so long so far back before."

"Apologies, Saito," Nighteye said. "With how quickly these killers move, we should be done reviewing what happened posthaste."

"I hope so."

Purple and Brown traveled the hallway until meeting two figures Nighteye recognized as Shin Nemoto and Mimic based on their full-covering black clothing, Purple following them secretly to a side entrance as Brown went ahead. It was here the trio had their first shocking surprise as the Shie Hassaikai's guest came down the ladder with a gun pointed at his back.

"That's—!" Bubble Girl gasped, taking a step closer to better study the image. "The face is fuzzy, but the hairstyle and those bracelets are too distinct to ignore. I think we're about to find out what happened to Death Arms."

"What do you mean 'what happened to Death Arms'?" Nighteye blinked.

"You didn't…?" Bubble Girl sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Of course, you don't keep up with news if it isn't All Might related. Death Arms has been missing since the early summer, but his agency has been trying —and failing— to keep a lid on it. If he's here on the day of this attack…" She let the sentence hang.

"Yes, I see what you mean now," her boss nodded. They trio continued to follow the visions to a doorway that no longer existed in the present, the Heroes and P.I. able to walk through the door when the robed killer in purple could not. The scene inside was rather dark, Nemoto and Mimic leading Death Arms to someone who must have been Kai Chisaki, the leader Overhaul. Purple cracked the door and snuck in during Overhaul's talk with Death Arms, the woman climbing up the pipes on the walls and settling in next to Brown.

The start of the killings was sudden, the image of the room shaking from something. Nemoto died instantly to a gunshot, Death Arms following him shortly but at the literal hands of another. The following battle was brutal, Overhaul surviving no less than two attacks that should have been lethal, him and Mimic putting the robed infiltrators on the defensive even as Schoolgirl arrived in time to kill another Shie Hassaikai member she'd been chasing, Chronostasis. Tatchi froze the vision as Overhaul ripped a hole in a wall with his Quirk, the trio moving to see what was inside.

Bubble Girl gasped, her hands flying to her mouth as the three in the present took in the fuzzy form of a child huddled on a small bed. They didn't need facial expressions to read her body language. With a glance to his companions, Tatchi slowly resumed the play function of Hindsight, the group watching as Overhaul survived a third fatal attack before Brown used the distraction to grab the girl.

"Perhaps this was a rescue mission?" Tatchi wondered aloud. "Could the Shie Hassaikai have stolen the gi—"

They watched Brown throw the child and turn, Overhaul splattering him with a single touch. Bubble Girl ran to the closest wall and vomited.

"If word of a vigilante group losing a member to rescue a little girl gets out, the media will have a field day at the HPSC's expense," Nighteye commented. Unlike Bubble Girl, he was far more used to such gore from his time working with All Might. It wasn't often, but sometimes there were Villains the Number One Hero had been unable to hold back against. "The public may even side with them. It'd be a PR nightmare for Heroes across the country."

"We need to hurry this up," Tatchi said. "I think I'm reaching my Quirk's limit."

"I always did tell you to train your stamina more, Saito."

"And you know I never did, Mirai. Hurry up."

They followed the memory as Mimic chased the surviving women and the child through the hallways until they encountered the fight between the remaining Eight Bullets and the other figures, Tan crashing through a wall.

"Oi, hold on," Tatchi blinked, pausing the image. "Is that the Hero Killer?"

"He'd gone silent at this point, hadn't he?" Bubble Girl asked, still looking a little green.

"There was the rumor floating around that he worked in a group."

"I thought you wanted to hurry this up, Saito," Nighteye prompted. His cousin continued the memory, the group watching the fight unfold until the death of a barrier-user. "Stop! Pause! Whatever!"

"Uh, what is it?" Tatchi asked, the image freezing.

"I've identified one of the robed men. The one in black, he used a scarf at the same time that man's barrier failed. Only one Hero uses a Capture Scarf and has a Quirk that can cancel other Quirks. The Underground Hero: Eraserhead."

"One of these guys is a pro?" Bubble Girl gasped. "Why's he with a group like that? How do you even know about an underground Hero like him?"

"He's a teacher at UA," Nighteye explained. "When All Might accepted a position there, I took the time to learn what I could about his new coworkers."

"He's a teacher on top of being a Hero and a murderer? What the hell?"

"I don't want to jump to conclusions too quickly. We will just have to find a time to confront him about this. He should be able to give us answers."

The rest of the fight played out similar to Rappa's testimony. The building was set ablaze shortly thereafter when all still-living parties had left. Nighteye moved to suggest they see what became of Overhaul when the image flickered and vanished, leaving them in the husk of the burned building.

"Sorry," Tatchi panted. "I guess I hit my daily limit. No gas left in the tank."

"Well," Nighteye muttered, disappointed. "I would say we've learned a lot today, at least."

"I'm going home to a drink," Tatchi announced, walking off before Nighteye could try to stop him with a backwards wave. "I'll take the usual payment anytime."

Nighteye sighed, turning to Bubble Girl. "Let us return to the agency. I have some files to sift through. Please, say nothing of this to Lemillion."

"Yes, sir." Bubble Girl cast a look around the burned ruins. "I'm ready to go when you are."

-AHC-

"Hah…" Nighteye breathed, leaning back as he tried to type a report of the day's activities before he forgot any important details. His mind had been scattered since he and Bubble Girl had returned, his thoughts constantly drifting to what they had learned from Tatchi's Hindsight.

The robed person from his vision so long ago was one of a group.

This group killed most of the Shie Hassaikai, but it seemed the leader and one lackey escaped. They rescued a child in the process.

Two members of this group were Shota Aizawa, a pro Hero and teacher at UA, and Chizome Akaguro, the Hero Killer.

It was this last one that Nighteye was still having trouble comprehending. What group could have the loyalty of both a pro Hero and an infamous Villain? If Eraserhead was a "Dirty Hero" how was it his position at UA had not yet been terminated for the safety of the students? Surely he could not fool Principal Nezu and the famous school's resources, could he?

He sighed, propping his elbows on his desk to rest his forehead in his hands. There was a knock on his door.

"Enter."

"Sir," Bubble Girl said, walking into the room with a massive stack of papers. "I brought what you wanted, but there's a lot to go through, most of it I'm pretty sure isn't relevant. I mean, 'robed killers' is way too generic a search term. There's even stuff from old video games in here."

"I will go through it once I finish my report. Put it on the desk over there." Bubble nodded at his words, carrying the stack to the specified place and gently setting it down so it didn't tip over. "Have you heard from Centipeder and Lemillion?"

"They seem to have had an eventful day," the Sidekick answered. "Four petty robberies, a bank robbery-slash-hostage situation, one child kidnapping, and an apartment fire. Lemillion seemed ecstatic from the background noise."

Nighteye smiled. "I do hope he hangs on to that joy of his."

"If that's all, I think I'll go pick us up some food from that American place you like before starting the next round of searching for that vigilante who died. You want your usual?"

"Please, Bubble Girl. And thank you. I know today hasn't been the best."

"Some days are just like that." She turned to leave only to pause. "Sir? Did you know there are starting requirements before founding a zoo?"

"Hmm?"

"Two pandas, a grizzly, and a polar. It's the bear minimum."

Nighteye cracked a grin with a chuckle, waving the woman off. He eyed the stack of pages for a second before returning to his report. He'd just set his fingers on the keyboard when his computer dinged, a notification popping up in the corner saying he had an email from "hd9wnf7sh20s8fj3." Confused, he clicked on it.

"Greetings, Sir Nighteye,

It has come to my attention that you have recently viewed the events of the Shie Hassaikai compound that caused their demise. I am sure you still have many questions. If you will agree to meet me, I am willing to explain. Find me on the Nabuu Beach in Shimane Prefecture at 11:30 tonight. If you do not come, the answers you seek will forever elude you. Bring only those you trust with your deepest secrets."

Sincerely,

An Unknown"

Nighteye stared at the email for far too long before making a decision. He tried to respond to the email but only received a message saying the recipient did not exist. Leaning back in his chair, the pro Hero pulled out his phone and dialed a well-memorized number.

"Centipeder, once you dismiss Lemillion, come to my office. You, me, and Bubble Girl have a long night ahead of us."

-AHC-

The sand was soft beneath his shoes, the warm sea air blowing in over the rolling waves fighting off the nightly chill. Nabuu Beach was unimpressive by many standards, the public property boasting only a pair of fishing piers —two dinghies floating, one at each— and a disappointing amount of litter. Music drifted from inland as a festival of some sort went on into the night, casting its colorful glow from beyond the beachside buildings. It was on the roofs of two of these buildings that Nighteye had stationed his Sidekicks to watch the coming meeting with orders to intervene if the individual tried to flee or attack.

The pro tapped his foot on the sand impatiently, checking his watch again. The three-way communicator in his ear was silent, the man having told Bubble Girl and Centipeder to only speak if they saw something amiss.

Finally, as his watch clicked to 11:32, a short figure wearing a blue hoodie appeared from between two buildings, said figure almost casually walking onto the beach. Under the hood, covering the individual's face, was a kabuki mask. The goddess Izanami, if Nighteye guessed correctly. Under the hoodie was evidence of a kimono, but it didn't look right tucked into the western-style overshirt, their hands resting in a pouch on the front. The bottom of the kimono hid the person's legs, giving Nighteye no hints to their appearance.

"Ah, you actually came," the person said with a feminine voice, revealing them to be a young woman. "I'll admit, I wasn't sure if you would."

"I care not for pleasantries," the pro waved off. "You're the one who sent that email?"

"I am," the woman confirmed, not removing her hands from the pouch of the hoodie. "Well, what do you want to know, Sir Nighteye?"

"The robed killers, the ones who killed most of the Shie Hassaiksai. Who are they?"

"Individually, I cannot say, but as a group, they are members of an organization called the Assassin Brotherhood."

Nighteye's eyes widened. It was a name he'd read in some of the pages Bubble Girl had found for him, but there was nothing concrete and most of it attributed to pre-Quirk games, some of which claimed to be 'memories of the past relived as you wished'. He'd waved it off as ridiculous marketing, but perhaps there had been more truth in the words than he'd believed. The Hero schooled his features.

"Are you one of these Assassins?" he asked.

"Oh, me?" she questioned. "I'm not a capital-A Assassin, no. I know about them because my great-grandfather was one. A rather famous one, too. He saved the world back in 2012."

"If you know of them," Nighteye pressed, ignoring the comment about 'saving the world', "then I trust you can tell me what they do. Other than kill people, I mean. Why?"

"The Assassins' mission is, or was, a sort of societal policing through scare tactics. Their targets for assassination were oppressors and warmongers, those who used their money and influence to perpetuate pain and war for their own benefit. The Assassins thought that, by creating a fearful whisper of death to those who used power the wrong way, they could pressure rulers and the like to act with honor else they fear for their lives. Around the 11th century, they came into contact with the Knights' Templar and the two became bitter enemies, their war continuing to this day. The Templars believe strength and control is the only way to peace, the opposite of the Assassins. The Shie Hassaikai were Templars."

Nighteye blinked. "Then their battle really was a skirmish in a gang war?"

The figure laughed, a full, hearty belly laugh. "I've never heard it said that way, but it's a pretty good comparison!" Nighteye could hear the grin in her words despite the mask. "Yes, a global gang war. The Assassins and Templars both believe their final goals are peace, but they don't agree on what that peace looks like or how to make it possible, so they're killing each other over it."

"How foolish," Nighteye sighed, a hand rising to his face. "Of all the reasons for crime and death, peace may be the most hypocritical."

"Not if it works." Nighteye turned his eye on the woman, her head tilted. Her body language seemed relaxed, but it was hard to tell under all the cloth.

"Then, if you are not one of these so-called Assassins, are you one of their enemies? A Templar?"

"Oh no. I'm so far above that." She stepped forward, her voice hardening. "I am a child of Symphony, an inheritor of the world."

"Symphony?"

"I did say my great-grandfather saved the world, right? He deserved so much more than he was given, yet he died so that everyone else may live. With his sacrifice, by the laws of the world, we are the true rulers of this planet and everyone on it. By saving the world, it belongs to him, and through the laws of inheritance, to us. Symphony is simply working to claim our birthright. And if we have to kill a few thousand to get there, well, that's just a drop to the billions of others that will benefit from our rule."

Nighteye dropped to a ready stance instantly, one of his cards coming to his hands. The masked woman on the other side didn't seem concerned in the least that she'd just admitted to conspiracy to commit mass murder to a pro Hero.

"Hm?" she wondered. "It seems you're not amicable to world peace. How disappointing. I guess you would be out of a job."

"I'm placing you under arrest. Cooperate and you will not be harmed."

"Well, I should have foreseen this," she sighed, spreading her arms. "At least listen to our grand plan."

"Why? I have the evidence I need to take you in now. Symphony won't last once the HPSC and the government get involved."

She laughed again, unable to hold back her mirth at the statement. ["Y-You… You think… th-that…!] she giggled in English, trying to wipe her tears only to remember she still had a mask on. She pulled it to the side, revealing blonde hair and blue eyes she wiped with the back of her hand. Nighteye recoiled; she was only a teen. "Ah, I really needed that. It's been so long since I got to tell someone they were such an idiot. The Templars already influence both of those pretty heavily. You'd be better off going to the Assassins, but you won't. Pretty soon, the Assassins and the Templars will both be gone. Only Symphony will remain, our family members placed in charge of the sections of the world, and everything will run like music. Immortal, invincible, worshiped as gods, the people will bow to us and play the tune as we direct them. And with all the leaders around the world as direct family with each other, there will be no war. Oh, we'll still have our rivalries, but we will have no need for armies or weapons. I've already claimed Japan and the Philippines for myself when that day comes, and I'll give China to my beloved once he's been broken into the family. Cesar wants America, Annabelle gets France, Buru can have Australia, so on so forth. Finally, the human race will find the peace of subservience they were always meant to have under us."

"And who are you to think you stand over humanity?" Nighteye demanded. Surely, if he stalled her long enough, Bubble Girl and Centipeder would get there. He'd rather take the girl alive, after all.

"We are the descendants of humanity's creators," she said, her mad grin now visible. "The descendants of The Quiet Savior, the Father of Understanding, and the Mother of Wisdom. Remember my name for the rest of your life, for I will be the Goddess of Eastern Islands." She tossed away the mask, revealing her mad grin in full.

"I am Pony Miles-Tsunotori, future god-empress of Japan. Bow before me."

"Bubble Girl!" Nighteye yelled. "Centipeder! Now!"

Nothing happened. The pro Hero looked around as quickly as he dared, not wanting to take his eyes off the clear threat before him.

"Oh, is your little army missing?" Pony asked. "Wait, no. Here they come."

"Sir… Nighteye…" Nighteye turned, his face twisting in horror. His top Sidekicks hung in the air from floating horns, the Quirk-borne weapons suspending them from punctures in their elbows and one each through the stomach. Centipeder appeared already dead, a fourth horn stabbed through his throat. Blood dripped from Bubble Girl's mouth, elbows, and stomach as she hung there as if crucified. She breathed weakly. "Sir… Run… She's too… strong…"

"I'll kill you!" Nighteye swore, spinning on his heel with fury in his eyes. He screamed as another floating horn stabbed through his hand, his weighted card falling to the sand. He jumped, barely avoiding two more horns as they stabbed into the beach where he'd been standing. "Hang in there, Bubble Girl. I'll get us out of this."

"No," Pony said. "You won't."

With a flick of her wrist, the horn in the Hero's hand shot up his arm, splitting his wrist and shattering the bone. He screamed in pain from the potentially-career-ending injury. His other hand, however, was still functional as he drew another two cards. He threw them without preamble, hoping to incapacitate the girl.

"How disappointing," Pony sighed, a horn stabbing through the airborne cards. "I have to say, I really expected more from All Might-sensei's star Sidekick, but I guess it can't be helped. I've been training for my destiny since I could walk with a power gifted from Grandmother herself, after all. A mere [near-Normie] is no match for me."

"Sir…" Bubble Girl rasped. "R-Run…"

Nighteye grit his teeth, the image of a demon rising over the girl in his mind.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, darting away toward the buildings. If he could lose her in the streets, call other Heroes and All Might…

A horn stabbed through his thigh, sending the man tumbling to the sand. Another pierced his left shoulder, yet another his knee on the opposite leg. Painfully, uncaring for his state, they dragged him into the air and pulled him back.

"You remind me so much of Izuku, I almost feel bad," Pony said as Nighteye came to a stop between what remained of his Sidekicks. "I mean, he's Quirkless and you're basically Quirkless, but you sure gave it the old college try. Of course, he's got Isu DNA where you don't, so he's obviously got more potential."

"You'll never get away with this," Nighteye swore. "You might kill us, but others will learn."

"Like your cousin?" she said, the terror returning to Nighteye's face. "Saito Tatchi is dead. Poor guy slipped on soap in the shower. A real tragic accident, that. As for you three, no one will ever find enough of you to identify you. Thanks, though. I really needed to vent and get some stuff off my chest, but I couldn't just talk to some shrink. You were a great listener, Nighteye."

The Hero struggled as Pony walked toward the pier, her horns carrying the two Heroes and one corpse behind her. She moved to one of the dinghies, pulling the tarp off to reveal that the inside was filled to the brim with explosives, the rims covered in fireworks. She moved Centipeder first, laying him on the left side. Bubble Girl was next, the woman gasping in pain as she was dropped on the right, horns pinning her wrists to the boat. Pony then laid Nighteye on his back in the center, more horns pinning him down.

"Normally, Assassins would wish their targets peace as they die," Pony said, checking her watch before pulling out a box of matches. One of her horns swooped down, picking up a fuse with more dexterity than they appeared capable of. She shed her hoodie and tossed it into the boat with the wadded cloth cover. "I don't really care if there's an afterlife or not, but if there is, I'm sure you'll reunite with your Sidekicks there. Goodbye, Sir Nighteye. Your curiosity got you killed, now die for sake of peace. On the bright side, Mirio-senpai will be devastated, so I can befriend him easily."

"N-No!"

She lit the fuse, some of her horns stabbing the stern of the dinghy and pushing it out to sea.

Nighteye stared at the stars above, the only sounds around being a dim ambiance from the festival happening inland, the lapping of the waves, and the quiet fizzling of the fuse. So, this was it. He was going to die. He looked to either side, the unmoving head of Centipeder at one shoulder and the now-empty eyes of Bubble Girl on the other.

"Moashi," he whispered, tears starting to leak from his eyes. "Awata. I'm so sorry. I refused to see your futures and lead you to your deaths as a result. Your deaths are on my hands." The starlight twinkled far above, muted slightly by the city light.

He had so many regrets, so many things he'd left undone. He'd never get to see Lemillion graduate, never get to pass his agency to another Hero, never find his answers. Worst of all, he wasn't able to make All Might pass on One for All.

That vision he'd seen so long ago, the one that had broken his most cherished friendship, flashed through his mind. All Might, weak and bleeding, in the arms of a robed Assassin, offering them his Quirk with his final breath. Nighteye now understood so much but was in no position to ever do anything about it. In his quest to render it impossible —to convince Toshinori to give up One for All and retire— all he'd done was ensure he wouldn't be there to see it.

"All Might…" he breathed as the fireworks shot off, whistling through the air. Everything went silent. "Toshinori… I'm sorry… Forgive me…"

BOOOOOOM!

"Tamayo!" Pony cheered from the shore as the fireworks and boat simultaneously detonated, the girl dressed in a beautiful white kimono interwoven with reds, blues, and purples. "Or is it tamaya? I can never remember. Oh well." She turned away from the flaming wreckage, her horns powdering before compacting into a shovel. She proceeded to collect all instances of blood on the sand she could find, shoveling that sand into the water. The bodies of the Hero and Sidekicks would be burned beyond instant recognition and sunk into the water, leaving the fish to eat everything left. Their bones would scatter, hiding in the rocks and coral. Even if they were found at some point, there would be no other evidence to implicate anyone.

The horn shovel powdered again, those particles scattering in the water as well. Pony turned to the festival in the distance as the fireworks continued, her horns regrowing from her head. She would be sure to have more festivals like this when she was empress.

Such was her right as Pony Miles-Tsunotori.

End of Chapter 60

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-SwordOfTheGods