For the first time in years, Madam President sat at her desk with a smile. With utmost care, she poured herself a glass of rather expensive wine. It was a handpicked bottle, made with a mix of grapes grown in Italy and aged for over five years. She had spent years looking over this particular bottle, and today she decided would be the day she opened it. Lounging happily at her desk she turned to face a small TV in her room, hearing the reporters on the screen discussing her new favorite subject.

At the moment, everything was looking promising. The public was practically doing all of the work for her. The break-ins at UA had fostered a sense that the school was unsafe. That at any point the school's students ran the risk of dying. Sure the school had a nearly perfect security record, making the chance of another break-in almost impossible without a large force. But the public wouldn't see it that way.

Sadly that just meant the majority of people wanted increased security, and not Nezu being canned. Oh well, Madam President reasoned, a few disinformation campaigns should help with that issue. With a content smile, Madam President picked up the glass on her desk and savored the rich flavor of her drink. It was worth every yen. Oh if only she could see the rodent's face.

Just then Techno opened the door to her office, with Madam President turning to face him. She held out an extra glass of wine and motioned for the man to sit, noticing the files in his hands.

"Ah, Techno right on time. I trust you have that report ready?"

"I do. Just as requested, the Ocelot Unit's involvement at the USJ was covered up. Unfortunately, the monster, Nomu as they called it, was unable to be transferred." Techno replied, sitting down across from Madam President. He gratefully accepted the glass she offered, but set it off to the side.

"Were the police unwilling to hand it over?" Madam President inquired.

"Something like that. It's more so they can't." Techno answered, before bringing out a picture from one of the files. It displayed the beast being held down in a concrete box, with titanium cables designed to hold bridges keeping him restrained. If that wasn't enough they also buried Nomu in concrete inside the box. The only thing visible to anyone was the head.

"Normal restraints proved inefficient, and most officers are sure even this won't hold the creature," Techno told her, with Madam President going wide-eyed. She slowly slid the photo back to Techno before dropping the entire topic. That thing seemed ludicrously powerful, and she wanted it. But that want was defeated by common sense.

Something that strong could be difficult to control without the right procedures. And with the HPSC's current financial budget, attempting to recreate this monster, while ensuring it could be controlled, wouldn't be possible. Besides, these things didn't exactly scream brand-friendly when it came to heroics.

"Anything else?"

"The warlords have lost another batch of tanks-"

"Again!? We just sent them that shipment!"

"The ships transporting the materials were sunk before they could reach them,"

"Wait, sunk?" the question stuck in her mind. The MSF had sunk several dozen cargo ships. But how? All the ships were heading to the farthest fringes of Africa, to ensure the MSF would never have the range to strike them. Unless…

"Why is this the first I've heard the MSF has had a navy?" Madam President demanded, her once pleasant mood deteriorating rapidly.

"That… would be my department's fault. Layoffs have made intel gathering rather slow. The only reason I learned these ships were sunk, was from Igwe calling to ask why the shipments were taking so long to arrive," Techno explained, flinching back as Madam President slammed her desk.

"You have billion-dollar spy satellites at your disposal for years," she attempted to counter. You can't just hide a couple billion dollar warships for five years, without someone noticing. The keyword being someone.

"And I've had no one to manage those satellites for years," Techno quickly retorted, knowing he was walking near very thin ice. Yet the answer seemed to work for Madam President, as she took an annoyed breath.

"Fine, do we at least know how many ships the MSF has? Maybe we're lucky and this is a recent development," Madam President commented, with Techno looking down at his report. The moment it took longer than a minute to reply, was the moment she knew her answer.

"We do not," was Techno's only reply as Madam President brought a hand to her face. She breathed deeply before taking another sip from her wine glass. This was fine, an annoying obstacle, but one that could be dealt with. And besides, today was a good day.

"Is there anything else?" she asked, hoping there was nothing. Techno was quiet for a second, reading over the report he brought with him. He then held out a hand at Madam President's computer, its screen rapidly switching between tabs.

"No, that should be everything," Techno replied, standing up to leave. Madam President simply nodded, her smile coming back to fruition.

"Good," she told him, bringing her glass to her lips. But just as the wine was about to hit her tongue, the door opened again. This time, Night Owl walked in. He wore the same wide smile he always did, the grin stretching from ear to ear as he walked in.

"What do you want?" Madam President tiredly asked, already despising whatever reason the scientist had for walking in. He was the VP for fucks sake, he could handle whatever it is. A mere glance at Techno, made his smile somehow widen further.

"Oh, nothing really. Just thought I should let you know that a lovely cafe just opened up across the street. Truly lovely, they've just got some of the best coffee I've ever had. Also some unimportant nonsense about a mass of unidentified aircraft being spotted on radar, all heading towards the mainland," Night Owl answered casually, acting as if none of what he said had mattered at all. Yet the answer made Madam President turn pale. She slowly turned to face Techno, the man looking at Night Owl with a look of shock.

"W-what? No, I would have noticed that just now," Techno muttered, before scouring over Madam President's computer again. It caused Night Owl to chuckle though, as he walked over and picked up the other wine glass Madam President had poured.

"Seems you must be getting rusty," Night Owl smugly commented, before drinking the wine in his glass. After an agonizing wait, Techno managed to pull up the information Night Owl was talking about. Tapped into the Mustafu International Airport's radar, Madam President saw a large blob of approaching aircraft. There were so many of them, and no hero was scheduled for some kind of fly-by. And with that, a slow realization dawned on Madam President, as she angrily glared at the radar in front of her.

Uraraka didn't know what to do. Her apartment was dead quiet, and the silence felt like a massive weight holding her down. She knew she wanted to do something, but she didn't know what. Her first thought was to call up Asui, Iida, or really anyone else from class, just to check up on them. But she shot that idea down quickly. How could she ask if they were all right when she did nothing to help? When she was secluded in safety, while they were fighting for their lives.

That eliminated a lot of options. Getting breakfast was another idea, but Uraraka also dropped the idea the second she checked under her mattress. There was barely enough money for groceries, let alone breakfast. Her mind did go to the beach, and how full of trash it was. The thought of cleaning it came to mind, but that also required money she didn't have. She couldn't just carry a hundred-pound fridge to the scrapyard a dozen times. That would take hours, and that time would cut into her class schedule.

So Uraraka was back at square one, staring out at a blank wall in her scarcely decorated apartment. Her normal go-to option for things to do was sleep. Sleeping was free after all, and Uraraka had learned to fall asleep pretty much anywhere. Every time she closed her eyes, however, she dreaded the thought of some villain breaking down her door. They were out there, the police arrested the ones at the USJ, but there were so many of them.

There were more of them, they had to be. Were they watching her? They might be, they had the entire USJ attack planned out. But then, did they know where her parents were? No, no, no, no, no, no, no! They were fine! Sure that was a possibility, but all the villains were arrested. Her parents were safe, she was safe, no one was coming for her, and no one was watching her- Her phone lit up, indicating a text.

It pulled Uraraka out of her little spiel, but it left her anxious. It was fine, maybe it was another text from her parents wanting to know if she was ok. Yeah, that was it. Hesitantly she moved to pick her phone up and instead found something else. It wasn't her parents, but it wasn't the villains her imagination cooked up either.

"Good morning, this is Yaoyorozu Momo from 1A. After everything that happened two days ago, I thought it wise as Class Rep to create a group chat for the class. Both in case of an emergency and to talk. If you wish to not partake, that is perfectly fine." the text read. Uraraka lightly chuckled as she read through it. She knew Yaoyorozu was a recommended student, but it was just funny how formal the message was. It reminded her of Iida's texts in a way. Hesitantly though, Uraraka looked at her phone. Being able to talk to her classmates did sound nice, she did not know very little about all of them.

Why not, was Uraraka's thought as she opened the group chat. The very first thing she saw was the line Bakugo Katsuki has left 1A Group Chat. Uraraka wasn't surprised though. It was however shocking that Todoroki was still in the group chat. She assumed he would have left as well, like Bakugo. At the moment only three people were on, Yaoyorozu, Hagakure, and surprisingly Tokoyami. She didn't join in yet, unsure of what to type as she read through previous texts.

"When the Ocelots arrived at the storm zone, they told us to get in their vehicle. That they would drive us back to the entrance. Koda and I did so, grateful for the security they brought with them, but then the villains arrived." a text from Tokoyami said.

"They were unskilled like all the others at the USJ, but they had us surrounded and outnumbered. A few yelled out taunts through the pouring rain, and the Ocelots ordered them to stand down. The villains laughed at the notion and moved to attack. And…"

The newest text had yet to appear, with Tokoyami either typing up another or taking time to think. Considering how long it took for him to reply, Uraraka believed he was struggling somewhat. When the next text arrived though, Uraraka went pale.

"The Ocelots slaughtered them all. It was maddeningly dark and hard to see, but the light from their muzzle flash dragged the horrors they committed to light. No villain could get close. The weapon mounted on their vehicle, a fifty they called it… it tore the villains apart, in a horrifying explosion of gore. When it was all over, the villains' had no body to bury," the text read. It made Uraraka feel queasy as Tokoyami went to describe it more.

The shattered bones washed away by the torrential rains, the endless blood staining the waters red, the agonized looks the villains had in their last moments, and the eyes that simply stared out empty after their owners had been killed. Uraraka knew that Tokoyami was describing everything to help describe what had happened, to better help heal after the attack. But part of her wished that she never read the words.

"I can still see chunks of the villain's flesh on my floor or one of their eyes staring through my soul, even though I know it's not there," the final text read. That part had sapped away what breath Uraraka had. She very suddenly regretted joining the group chat. This was what one of her classmates saw, and Tokoyami always struck her as someone able to handle dark topics. But the time it took for him to respond showed how he was reacting to it.

"My apologies if that got too dark, but the event has been prancing through my mind like a ceaseless demon," a new text read. At this point Uraraka decided to make herself known, quickly typing up a response.

"That did get dark, but it's good to open up about these things," she wrote before hitting send. A few seconds after she did two messages arrived.

"Thank you for listening," the first read from Tokoyami. The second however was from Yaoyorozu.

"Uraraka, I see you've joined us," it read with a smiley face at the end.

"Yeah, I was waiting for a moment to join in, but well…" Uraraka texted back.

"Again, my apologies," Tokoyami texted.

"Anyways, how's everyone been?" Uraraka asked, hoping to switch to a more positive topic to get everyone's minds off the USJ. She'd read through the previous chats later though.

"It has been good here. However, my father has been a little overprotective as of recently," Yaoyorzu texted, with Hagakure quickly joining.

"Saaaaammmmmeeeee! My parents won't let me go anywhere without them! It's like I'm five again," Hagakure texted.

"It's not that I don't appreciate their concern, but we have a private security force for that reason," Yaoyorozu again texted, with Uraraka lingering over that last line in particular. Yaoyorozu has a private security force. Those three words immediately reeked of money. But Uraraka, and unknowingly to both Hagakure and Tokoyami, decided to put that topic aside for later.

"I do have to say though, their worries do have credence," Tokoyami then texted. Which Uraraka quietly agreed with. Not one but two break-ins had occurred a week apart from each other. Not to mention Fudaki's… death. The thought still ran through Uraraka's mind occasionally, which she always tried to ignore.

"I'm sure the school will do something to improve security," Yaoyorozu texted.

"Oh! What if they hire other heroes!" Hagakure replied quickly, with Uraraka thinking it over. She got a little excited at the idea though.

"Think they would hire Hawks? Or what about Mt Lady?" Uraraka asked. The moment she pressed send though, the sound of something came from outside her apartment. It quickly multiplied from one thing to several, possibly dozens. The chopping sound as the objects passed by told her they were helicopters. Confused, she walked out her front door, covering her ears as the helicopters loudly flew by.

Outside hundreds of other people did the same, all looking up at the sky in shock and confusion. Traffic had come to a complete stop as drivers stepped out of their cars to look up. Heroes gazed on confused, but standing ready for something to happen. From what Uraraka could see, there had to be dozens of helicopters flying by. It was hard to tell but the aircraft had a distinct difference from one another. Some were larger and carried vehicles with cables. Others had a more tilt-rotor design and were soaring ahead of the other aircraft.

Her eyes widened when she saw all the people looking out of the helicopters. There had to be hundreds of them, all dressed as soldiers. She thought she saw a teen standing in one of the helicopters, but shrugged it off as her eyes messing with her. Were they military though? They had to be, Uraraka reasoned as an attack helicopter flew by. But then she saw a skull logo on the helicopters and quickly thought otherwise. Who were they? They… They weren't heroes, were they? No, they couldn't be. Heroes don't use guns, let alone attack helicopters.

As they flew further away Uraraka's eyes followed them, trying to determine where they were heading. Something important was happening, but what? It wasn't the JSDF, it wasn't a hero agency, so who? And as the aircraft continued to fly forward, Uraraka's eyes followed their direction, before looking at UA.

Every part of All Might's being wanted to be wrong. To believe that his assumptions and thoughts had been mistaken. But… they couldn't be. With the multiple quirks Nomu possessed and the carnage during Shigaraki's breakout, it could only have been All for One. It made no sense how that man survived. All Might remembered the day they fought, his hand idly tracing over his injury. The subconscious move caused him to flinch as his nerves yelled out a signal of pain.

And as was always common, he coughed up blood into a handkerchief in his hand. He was lucky he was sitting on a couch in the teacher's lounge alone, where no one else could see him like this. His hands shook as he set the handkerchief down. Hesitantly he grabbed his phone from his pocket and rang up a number. Bringing it to his ear, he couldn't help but feel a mix of anger and fear. The phone on the other end would pick up seconds later.

"Hey Uncle Might, what's up?" Melissa asked on the other end, a slightly cheery tone in her voice. The sounds of welding filtered through the phone's microphone as well, bringing a small smile to All Might's face. She was just like her father.

"Nothing really, just checking up. Heard you made the news recently," All Might replied, trying his best to sound like how he did in his muscle form. He didn't know what it was, but the form always made him sound different. More boisterous was his best way of putting it.

"It's not that impressive, all I did was create a small drone," Melissa replied, the welding sounds coming to a slow halt.

"Please, they gave you an award for it! How could it not be impressive?" All Might asked, looking around the teacher's lounge. He debated making himself a cup of coffee as his eyes fell on the coffee maker. But he decided against it once he realized he had forgotten which mug was Aizawa's. All Might assumed it was the one with cat ears, but he wasn't sure. It could also be Midnights.

"Well… it cost twenty bucks to make," Melissa hesitantly answered. It caught All Might by surprise for a second, before breaking out laughing.

"Ha! That just makes it more impressive! You won an award with a drone that cost you twenty dollars," All Might told her, "Your dad did the same thing back when we were in college you know."

"You mean the time he made support equipment with nothing but scraps and a donut?" Melissa asked a slight chuckle in her tone. It was then the welding started up again. The more it went on, the more curious All Might became. But it would have to wait.

"Yes! Oh, those were the days," All Might said with a smile, the memories of younger years returning. They were quickly quashed as recent memories took hold. He took a deep breath and thought it over one last time. This, no matter how much he hated it, had to be done.

"You know, there was something else I wanted to talk to you about," All Might said with a somber tone. The sudden tone shift caught Melissa off guard, with the welding again coming to a stop.

"Is… something wrong?" she asked worried.

"No, no, everything is fine. It was just… actually, it would be better to explain this in person," All Might realized, bringing a hand to his face.

"Do you think you could come to Japan?" All Might asked, leaning back against the surprisingly comfy lounge couch.

"I'll check with Papa, but sure. But, nothing's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," All Might told her. With that, they both hung up, leaving All Might in the silence of the teacher's lounge. Slowly he tapped his finger on his phone, the weight of his choice catching up to him. He didn't like it, more so despised it. But what else was he supposed to do? All for One was alive, and it was his job to stop him. Were it not for Ocelot's help at the USJ, All Might believed he would have lost more time for his muscle form. But in his current state, All Might was sure he wouldn't survive another fight.

He needed a successor if it happened, and Mirio had already declined his offer. All Might didn't fault the boy though, his reasons for declining were rather practical. It was hard enough for Mirio to control Permeation, adding on One for All would make it ten times as difficult. And while All Might was sure the students of 1A and 1B would all make great heroes, he just couldn't determine if any of them were worthy.

They were all just missing something, something All Might couldn't figure out. It would be Melissa's choice, however, and if she said no then it was fine. Reluctantly he stood up from the lounge's couch and began to walk to his office. Even though school was out for the week, he still had paperwork to fill out. Not to mention dealing with the Commission. Why Nezu was so against them, he didn't know. But the rodent had a reason for everything, so he would back him.

That said, his reputation and UA's could only go so far. Still, All Might was sure Nezu had a plan… What was that sound? All Might faintly picked it up as he walked through the halls, the sounds of helicopters, possibly dozens of them. They got ever closer, leaving All Might confused. Then he spotted Present Mic running past him at a breakneck speed, followed by Snipe and Vlad King.

"What's going on!?" he called out, with only Present Mic turning to reply.

"We've got intruders flying in! At least a dozen military helicopters!" Mic replied, while still running out. It caused All Might to briefly pale, before quickly buffing up. Not again he decided. Two times was bad enough, a third time wouldn't happen again. In a split second, he ran forward, outrunning the other three teachers. Slamming into the campus's front exit, All Might gazed up at the helicopters hovering over the courtyard. Just as Present Mic had said, there were dozens. All Might's eyes quickly fell on the attack helicopters specifically, examining their main gun and missile pods.

He didn't attack yet, knowing that any attempt to eliminate the aircraft would result in collateral damage. It was also because of confusion however, why weren't the alarms ringing? Was it like the USJ again? Was one of the helicopters jamming them? Then again, what did UA have in terms of anti-air? Slowly a few began to land, and All Might stood ready.

At the same time, UA's other staff arrived outside, standing ready. Snipe had his revolver in hand, loading a few rounds into it. Midnight held a long whip ready, while Vlad King held a pair of blood swords. Dozens of clones surrounded Ectoplasm, while Cementoss stood atop a pair of concrete pillars. Mic adjusted the speaker around his neck, and Power Loader piloted a mech of some kind. Hound Dog angrily growled, while smelling the air quietly.

"There's… at least four hundred," Hound Dog told them still sniffing the air. After a few seconds, the attack helicopters broke off from the main group and began to fly off toward other parts of the campus.

"What are they up to?" Vlad King quietly muttered, watching as the attack helicopters left. All Might was curious too, but his eyes fell on one sole helicopter. This one was landing like a few others, but it was landing right in front of the campus's entrance. It was positioned where the side doors faced him, and All Might could see in. His eyes gazed over three distinct faces. One was a white male with a large brown beard and an eyepatch over his right eye. The second was also white with blond hair and wore a pair of aviators. The third was the most shocking, however. As inside sat a teen, no older than some of his students. The teen seemed to be of Asian descent, with messy brown hair.

The sight brought questions to All Might's mind. Who were these people? They flew onto the campus without a care in the world, with a child accompanying them. They weren't military, that much All Might was sure of. Regardless though, they were trespassing. All Might turned to Present Mic, with the hero walking over to him briskly. He didn't need to say a word for Mic to understand.

"YOU ARE TRESPASSING ON UA GROUNDS! LEAVE IMMEDIATELY!" Present Mic shouted, the sound overpowering the helicopter's noise. It also caused a few helicopters to swerve back a little, before briefly regaining control. They did not leave, however, instead continuing to land. Their doors opened, and dozens of men streamed out calmly. All Might raised his fists ready for a fight, when the helicopter he was originally focused on opened its doors.

"I'm afraid that won't be necessary!" a voice called out, with All Might quickly turning around. There in the helicopter as well, stood Nezu with a cup of tea in hand. He took a calming sip, before carefully stepping off the helicopter. A large husky in a military-looking harness, though it seemed more like a wolf, jumped out after him. The dog licked Nezu's face for a second as the rodent chuckled.

"Nezu, what is going on?" All Might asked, eyeing the Principal for a second before the other three occupants stepped out as well. The teen looked at him with a wide smile, and what could best be described as excitement. That was contrary to the suspicious glares he was getting from the other two.

"Well, it's quite simple really. Meet our new heads of security," Nezu told him, gesturing towards the two men with an open paw. The response caught All Might off guard for a second as he turned to face the two men.

"This is Snake," Nezu introduced pointing at the man with the eyepatch, "And his second in command, Kazuhira Miller."

While Nezu spoke Snake had turned to Miller, and pointed back at the other helicopters assembled.

"[You go get everything organized,]" Snake oreded in English. Miller nodded and started walking away from the group.

"[Got it. If all goes well, we'll get that runway up by tonight,]" Miller replied, giving Snake a small salute. The action slowly connected a few pieces of the puzzle for All Might, as the realization hit him.

"Nezu, you hired mercenaries," All Might said, it being more a comment than what had intended to be a question. But it all made sense. The military get-up they wore, the dozens of helicopters, and all the guns they carried. His statement though brought a wave of shock through the surrounding staff.

"Mercenaries? Oh heavens no, they're a private security contractor," Nezu replied, before taking another sip of his tea.

"Why the hell did you hire villains for security!?" Vlad King exclaimed while glaring at the mercs walking by.

"I can't stand by this," Midnight stated, "All these years we've stood by you and trusted you. And now you risk the students' lives by bringing villains here."

"They're not villains. I wouldn't have hired them if they were," Nezu quickly told them, though that did little to ease their worries.

"Why hire them in the first place? There are hundreds of heroes all across the country that could all keep UA safe," All Might pointed out.

"And all are under the control of the HPSC. And those that are not are too few to keep the school safe," Nezu countered, leaving All Might somewhat dumbstruck. It always boiled down to the Commission, why? He knew Nezu had a reason, but was it necessary to go to this extreme? To go out and hire mercenaries rather than heroes? All Might wasn't sure. Then he remembered another thing.

"What about the boy? " All Might asked, " Why is he here?"

"Glad you asked! This is our new teacher's assistant, Akatani Mikumo. Snake's son." Nezu introduced. With the answer All Might turned to face the teen, only to be caught off guard as he found him standing nearby. When had he… no matter. He didn't notice that Snake had a chuckle seeing the symbol of peace be caught off guard. Not to mention a proud look on his face.

"Hi! It's cool to finally meet you, I've been a big fan for years. Do you think I can get an autograph? I didn't think I'd get to work with you though. But I promise to try and do my best, and am I rambling, I feel like I'm rambling. I'm just going to stop talking now, sorry," Akatani said to him, a nervous smile on his face. He moved to bow but stopped and switched to a handshake, before stopping again. The teen's confused action brought a light-hearted chuckle to All Might's lips.

"Worry not Young Akatani, as much as I find this situation… strange, I'm sure you'll fit right in at UA," All Might boisterously proclaimed, Akatani's nervousness easing tensions a little. He did find it strange the teen admired him, especially with the death glares Snake was giving him. But if it was an act, then Akatani was one hell of an actor. That said…

"I'm still not sure about the mercenaries though," All Might stated looking back at Nezu. The rodent simply sighed, but ultimately didn't blame All Might.

"I've known Snake for years now. If he was as unscrupulous as you think he is, then I would have cut ties with him a long time ago."

"And how are we to be sure?" Snipe asked.

"You think they could have been lying to me for years?" Nezu asked in return, emphasizing the word me. That made all of the staff pause for a second, before silently agreeing, that it wouldn't have been possible. Almost nothing gets by Nezu.

"Now, any further questions?" Nezu asked, looking around at his staff. Not one said a word, instead looking back at the soldiers with suspicion. Not one of them liked it, but they were here to stay.

"No one? Good, now Cementoss I'm going to need you to help Miller build an airfield for his men," Nezu told him. Cementoss opened his mouth about to protest when Nezu continued talking.

"They've got more men coming in to secure the campus, and the Commission won't let them drive through town. So they're flying in, material, and we need it ready by today," Nezu said before slowly walking away, "Oh, and make sure to give Akatani a tour of the campus. I'd rather he not get lost when classes start up again."

With that, Nezu and Snake began to walk away, the latter with a cigar in his hand.

"How can you excuse hiring villains for security?" a reporter asked, with Madam President watching the TV in her office angrily. It had been hard to control the ravenous dog that was the media. A band of unknown mercenaries introduces themselves on the world stage and immediately sets up shop at UA of all places. She had told the press that the MSF were villains, but that came with an unfortunate problem.

"Well, that's a rather serious accusation. Surely you must have some evidence backing up your claims?" Nezu countered, leaving the reporter quiet for a second, with Madam President's blood boiling as she watched the rodent speak. They had no evidence of the MSF's activities. Well, that wasn't entirely true, they did have evidence, it's just that all of it was linked to the HPSC. Needless to say, the evidence painted the Commission in a negative light, even with some mild tampering. Not to mention the other problem.

The MSF never revealed the status of the world to the public and never shattered hero society. And Madam President knew they could, especially when almost two-thirds of the world was on their side. But they kept everything a secret, most likely because they knew what kind of chaos that would cause on a global scale. Yet they've always had that option available, something Madam President loathed.

If she were to "expose" the MSF as villains, then the MSF would expose the truth of hero society. It made her wish they stayed in Africa. At least then they were on another continent and not a first-world nation where everyone could see them, making censoring their actions ten times as difficult. With a quiet grumble, Madam President picked up her phone and dialed Ocelot's number. Once it picked up she wasted no time.

"How did you not figure out Nezu was working with the MSF?" she quickly demanded.

"I don't know. I placed trackers in his computer, cameras all over campus, hell I hid a microphone in his fur once. All to keep tabs on him, and nothing picked up on it." Ocelot replied. With his response, Madam President only glared at the TV. For years Ocelot had been acting as a sort of double agent at UA. He was the friendly rep that Nezu got along with while leaking information to the Commission. Now all of that information was possibly false.

"I'm pulling you out of UA. If Nezu knows Snake, then he knows who you really are," Madam President ordered, swinging her chair around to face away from the TV.

"Wouldn't he have tried something years earlier then?" Ocelot countered.

"No. He was using you to give us bad info. Now that the MSF is in Japan, I don't think he has a use for you anymore." Madam President reasoned. The other side of the phone went quiet for a second before an annoyed grumble arose from Ocelot.

"I'll round up my boys then," he said before Madam President hung up. With that she again turned back to face the TV, the press conference still going on strong. She was going to need damage control, something to deface both the MSF and UA. For right now, she could settle with drowning the internet with hit pieces, but that would only go so far. They needed some kind of plan. What that plan would be, Madam President wasn't sure.

"Orders from the top, we're being reassigned,"

The statement from Ape caught Iguchi off guard. He and the rest of his platoon, stood at a small clearing in the rainforest when the Lieutenant had gotten new orders. Orders that Iguchi thought were strange. They were just deployed out to the front, and now they were being pulled back. It was odd, and Iguchi didn't know how to feel about it. On the one hand, he felt kind of relieved. His first day involved hours of trekking through a hot humid jungle. Were it not for the exoskeleton assigned to him, he was sure he would have collapsed hours earlier.

That said, it was his first day. Most of the others had spent years on the front. To be taken away from it after one engagement, felt kinda of like cheating. Regardless though, orders were orders. Looking around he found a small spot to sit down, on top of a fallen tree. Their transport out wouldn't be arriving for half an hour at the least so Iguchi walked over to the tree. It wasn't comfortable, but it worked.

Taking a deep breath, Iguchi looked over the uniform he wore. Like all the others it was camouflage to match the scenery of the jungle. That camouflage had been ruined, however, but large chunks of mud sticking to him and his exoskeleton. It was a miracle the machine didn't get clogged up. Then again, Iguchi wasn't sure if it could get clogged up. Instead of joints, it had artificial muscles allowing the exoskeleton to move more naturally. It could bend and stretch to better mimic Iguchi's movements.

Which he honestly found impressive. There was, however, a question that formed. The MSF had dozens of these, and if what his squad mates were saying was true, then they were building more. But if the MSF had them, then why didn't other countries? Iguchi would have killed for something like this at his old job. It would have made loading up trucks easier, it would have made dozens of jobs easier.

Construction, firefighting, and other jobs involving heavy lifting could help those suffering from paralysis or muscle-related diseases. Why was it that the only place this technology existed was a random mercenary group? Before he could delve into those thoughts, he was dragged out of it when Grizzly walked up to him.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked, with Iguchi thinking it over for a second.

"... Sure," Iguchi hesitantly decided. With the response though, Grizzly sat down on the tree. Both were quiet for a second before Grizzly grabbed his canteen. He opened the lid and prepared to take a drink when he noticed a hole in the canteen. The corporal shook it slightly, before putting the lid back on.

"Damn it. Hey, mind if I borrow your water?" Grizzly asked turning toward Iguchi. Iguchi again hesitated, looking down at his canteen and back at Grizzly. Wordlessly he carefully passed it to him, with Grizzly giving him a polite nod. Iguchi just gave him a puzzled look though. There was something off, something Iguchi just couldn't place. Cautiously, he began to think of what he was going to do.

Part of him screamed not to open his mouth, but he just had to know.

"Sooo… back there, you tackled me out of the way," Iguchi commented.

"Ah, right. Sorry if it caught you off guard by the way. I'd say go talk to the medic if something feels off, but he'd just give you an ibuprofen," Grizzly replied in a somewhat joking manner.

"No, that wasn't it. It's just…" Iguchi stopped to think of the words, "Why did you?"

"What do you mean?" Grizzly asked confused.

"Why did you tackle me out of the way?" Iguchi asked, hoping it would get the message across.

"Why wouldn't I? There was a guy about to shoot you, I didn't want that to happen," Grizzly replied, unaware of Iguchi's real question.

"Why wouldn't you? Look at me!" Iguchi stated motioning at himself, "You expect me to believe you saved my ass, for no damn reason?"

"I don't get what's so hard to understand," Grizzly said, becoming ever more confused.

"It's so hard to understand because anytime anyone does something for someone like me, it's always for their own benefit. For crying out loud you had me open up to you in the middle of a firefight!"

"Look, I don't get what you're trying to say-"

"Why did you save a freak like me!?" Iguchi finally snapped, causing Grizzly to flinch back surprised, "I'm the dreaded mutie coming to snack on your kids or whatever the fuck it is they're saying now, and you're the normal one! All my life that's all it's been, so why, why did you save someone like me!?"

"Because I don't care," Grizzly answered, holding up his hands. I mean what else did he want him to say?

"I couldn't give two fucks if you are a mutant or not! Out here we're all just soldiers, and that's all I saw you as!" Grizzly exclaimed. The last statement had Iguchi pause for a second, as the words slowly registered.

"You… you don't care, about any of this?" Iguchi asked, again motioning at himself. Because all of this had been bothering him since day one. It had to be an act, a massive practical joke that would be revealed any day now. Yet Grizzly just looked at him seriously. No jokes, no lies hidden behind some mask he put on.

"Why would I? All I care about is if you've got my back. So long as you've got our backs," Grizzly told him, before motioning to the rest of the platoon the dozens of men sitting about doing random activities, "Then we've got yours."

Iguchi thought it over for a second. He was lying, he had to be, right? There'd be a brick with a dead lizard on it any day now. Maybe in his barracks or FOB quarters. This… this was an act, it had to be. But the hopeful part of his mind thought otherwise. No, it begged, it pleaded, for it to be otherwise.

"... Seriously?" Iguchi asked hesitantly, looking Grizzly dead in the eye.

"Seriously," Grizzly replied, before taking another drink from the canteen. If he was lying, Iguchi just couldn't see it. Once Grizzly finished drinking, he put the lid back on the canteen and passed it back to Iguchi.

"By the way, you mind settling an argument?" Grizzly asked while rummaging around in his bag. He pulled out a magazine then and flipped it open to a section in the middle.

"Well, what's the argument?" Iguchi asked as Grizzly passed him the magazine.

"Nothing big really, but Eagle over there is thinking of buying a Challenger-"

"It's a good car, and you can fuck off!" Eagle loudly interrupted. To which Grizzly quickly turned to face him, cupped his hands around his mouth, and shouted back.

"A Camaro's better and you know it!" Grizzly countered, hearing a loud scoff from Eagle.

"Bullshit it is!" Eagle replied, with Grizzly shaking his head and turning back to Iguchi.

"I think you've got the gist of it,"

"I'm pretty sure the entire forest got the gist of it," Iguchi muttered while looking over the magazine, "Not much I can say though. All my knowledge is on Japanese cars. That said I'm pretty sure they stopped making Challengers centuries ago. So it's going to be expensive."

"That is exactly what I told him. I mean if he's going to spend that much regardless at least get a better car," Grizzly told him exacerbated.

"True. Personally, I'd go for a GTR." Iguchi told him while flipping through the magazine.

"Never heard of that one, is it good?" Grizzly asked curiously.

"It is in my opinion," Iguchi answered, slowly forgetting all the previous thoughts he held before.