Location: Tokyo Police Precinct, Secure Briefing Room
Time: A Few Days Ago
Detective Naomasa Tsukauchi stood at the front of a long wooden table. He held a classified folder in his hands.
The Police Chief, Kenji Tsuragamae stood right next to him.
Gran Torino sat in a folding chair nearby with his arms crossed over his yellow cape.
Makoto sat across the table. She stared directly at Tsukauchi.
A bizarre, awkward feeling settled in her stomach.
'He is my brother right?' Makoto thought. 'Just feels weird seeing an alternate version of him'
In her home reality, they grew up together. Right now, he was just a stressed police detective treating her like a random business associate.
She looked down at her digital tablet. She forced herself to stay strictly professional and ignore the weird situation.
Kaito sat next to her in his crisp white suit. Mirai sat on his left.
Tsukauchi opened the folder.
SLAP.
He dropped several blurry photographs onto the table.
"We got some fragmented clues from an inside source," Tsukauchi said.
Gran Torino leaned forward in his chair.
"The League of Villains and the Meta Liberation Army merged," Gran Torino grunted. "They built a terrorist army with over a hundred thousand bodies."
Kaito looked down at the scattered photos.
He saw a tall man with a prominent chin. A skinny man with long black hair covering his face. A man with long black hair with a small mustache.
'So strange..' Kaito blinked behind his gold glasses. 'Rikiya..Tomoyasu.. Koku.. Chitose? Wait where was she?'
In his reality, those guys were really changed because of him. Rikiya even ran his cult organization and Skeptic was part of it.
While Koku and Chitose were so busy that they even forgot what the MLA was supposed to be at the beginning.
How much more those guys and subordinates below.
With proper job and good bonuses, they won't think of revolution or rebellion at all.
Here, they were terrorist leaders trying to destroy Japan.
'...She died?'
Kaito kept his face completely blank.
"The people in these photos are local politicians, police chiefs, and corporate executives," Tsukauchi explained. "They are secretly funding the army."
Kenji Tsuragamae placed his hands flat on the table.
"We cannot just arrest them legally," he added. "The paperwork takes months. It will tip off the villains immediately, woof."
Tsukauchi looked directly at Kaito.
"...We need them taken quietly," Tsukauchi said. "We deduce that you can change cognition from others. After all we can't even read your real name no matter what we do. I hope your agency can cooperate with us..."
Kaito picked up the blurry photos.
"Give us the digital files," Kaito said. "We will handle the information gathering."
--<>--
Location: The X Agency
Time: Later That Evening
Kaito plugged a secure police flash drive into his smartphone.
"Eve," Kaito said.
[Running dimension-reduction protocols,] the AI voice chimed. [Cross-referencing financial records and local government databases.]
BEEP.
[Mapping in progress...]
"Ahem..." Mirai on the side coughed. "If you did that.. what am I supposed to do?"
"Well... you can command and give instructions to her." Kaito replied.
"..." Mirai.
--<>--
Location: Hosu Police Precinct, Garage
Time: Present Day
Tsukauchi loaded a magazine into his handgun.
Gran Torino stretched his legs near a parked cruiser.
The entire precinct was gearing up for a grueling, multi-month undercover operation.
Kaito, Makoto, and Mirai walked into the garage.
Kaito handed a tablet directly to Tsukauchi.
"The list is complete," Kaito said. "We mapped out the exact locations and identities of every single corrupt official in the country."
Tsukauchi stared at the screen. Kenji Tsuragamae walked over and looked over his shoulder.
"..."
"...
Both men stood completely stunned.
"...You did this in three days?" Kenji joked. "We couldn't even connect two names together, woof!"
Gran Torino strapped on his boots.
"Stop standing around!" Gran Torino was also surprised. "Mobilize the tactical teams! We have a lot of doors to kick down!"
--<>--
Location: Kyoto City Hall, Mayor's Office
Time: 9:15 AM
The corrupt mayor sat at his mahogany desk. He reviewed zoning permits for the Liberation Army.
His secretary stood nearby holding a clipboard.
SNAP.
Kaito appeared in the center of the office.
"Who?!"
The mayor dropped his pen. He recognized this man. After all, this guys was on the news for weeks.
"Hero X? What are you doin~"
SNAP.
The mayor flattened instantly. He folded up into a small paper square on the desk.
The secretary gasped. She dropped her clipboard in terror.
Kaito looked at her.
SNAP.
A colorful distortion rippled across her eyes. She blinked rapidly.
Kaito picked up the paper square.
"Have a good morning," Kaito said politely.
SNAP.
He vanished.
A minute later, Tsukauchi and a few police team entered the office doors.
BANG.
The secretary jumped in surprise. She was calmly watering a potted plant in the corner.
"Where is the mayor?!" Tsukauchi asked.
The secretary tilted her head in genuine confusion.
"...What mayor?" she asked.
"It seems that, Hero X quirk really works. Secure the paper." Tsukauchi commanded.
--<>--
Location: Osaka Highway
Time: 10:30 AM
A corrupt police chief sat in the back of his moving town car.
SNAP.
Kaito appeared in the backseat.
SNAP.
The chief turned into a paper ball.
SNAP.
The driver kept his eyes on the road. His cognition shifted instantly, completely forgetting his passenger existed.
SNAP.
Kaito vanished.
Police cruisers swarmed the town car a moment later. They found again a paper on the backseat and a very confused driver.
--<>--
Location: Corporate Boardroom, Tokyo
Time: 1:00 PM
Gran Torino and Tsukauchi stood inside an empty executive office.
They were panting heavily.
They kept arriving seconds too late to every single target.
Every time they breached a room, they only heard the fading echo of a snap.
Tsukauchi's phone buzzed. He pulled it out of his pocket and read the screen.
"Shin Kudo just sent an update," Tsukauchi read aloud. "One hundred and forty-one targets are already contained."
"..."
Gran Torino lowered his fists. He stayed completely silent.
The old hero stared at the empty desk.
A massive nationwide purge that required three months of legal maneuvering was cleared in a single morning.
'This kid breaks the rules of reality,' Gran Torino thought. 'This might be even more dangerous than All For One or One For All. We can't let his quirk be stolen. It will be a disaster.."
Kaito's voice suddenly crackled over Tsukauchi's radio.
"Detective," Kaito spoke calmly. "There is only one target left on the list."
Tsukauchi grabbed his radio.
"Where?" Tsukauchi asked.
"A logistics manager handling medical shipments," Kaito replied over the static. "He is hiding in an abandoned warehouse district near the mountains. I am heading there now."
CLICK.
The radio cut out.
--<>--
Location: Shizuoka Prefecture, Secluded Beach
Time: 6:45 PM
Ryukyu sat on a large piece of driftwood. She wiped some dirt off her cheek.
Selkie stretched his thick arms near the shoreline.
Uraraka Ochaco sat on the cool sand. She drank eagerly from a plastic water bottle.
Tsuyu Asui sat quietly on a rock next to her. Sirius stood nearby, wringing seawater out of her hair.
Nejire Hado floated a few feet in the air. She spun around happily.
"We did it!" Nejire cheered. "We actually stopped the smugglers!"
Uraraka lowered her water bottle. She rubbed her sore shoulders.
"I am so tired," Uraraka groaned. "...They really fought hard."
"Ribbit," Tsuyu croaked. "We handled it well though."
Nejire floated down. She hovered right in front of Uraraka.
"...Hey, did you guys see the news today?" Nejire asked. "Did you see the updates on that Hero X guy?"
Ryukyu crossed her legs on the driftwood.
"He is all anyone talks about lately," Ryukyu noted.
Selkie stopped stretching. He walked over to the girls.
"That guy is making waves everywhere," Selkie laughed loudly. "He isn't just arresting villains anymore."
Sirius tilted her head.
"What do you mean, Captain?" Sirius asked.
"I talked to the coast guard commander this morning," Selkie explained. "A marine hero agency down south just bought a brand-new, customized mobile company."
Sirius looked completely confused.
"...A company?" Sirius asked. "You mean warships."
Selkie grinned widely. He crossed his massive arms.
"Literal meaning," Selkie said. "They bought it from Canvas Construction."
Uraraka stopped rubbing her shoulders. She looked up at Selkie.
"Hero X sells like that?" Uraraka asked.
"He sells everything," Selkie laughed. "They said he just looked at the blueprint, snapped his fingers, and pulled the steel mobile agency warship right out of the paper."
Selkie pointed a thumb at the ocean.
"He just dropped it right into the harbor," Selkie added.
THUD.
Uraraka dropped her plastic water bottle onto the sand.
Her face went completely pale.
"...Wait, what does that actually mean?" Uraraka asked quietly.
Tsuyu looked down at the dropped water bottle.
"It means he has zero material costs," Tsuyu stated bluntly. "He doesn't need to buy steel or hire workers."
Tsuyu looked back at Uraraka.
"He just prints buildings and ships into reality," Tsuyu croaked.
Uraraka grabbed her forehead. She slumped forward and rested her elbows on her knees.
"My parents run a construction company," Uraraka muttered, staring blankly at the sand. "How are they supposed to compete with a hero who builds skyscrapers like that?"
Nejire floated in a tight circle above them.
"Oh, wow," Nejire said happily. "Can he draw a new agency headquarters for us? Can he draw a floating castle?"
Uraraka let out a long, heavy sigh.
"The market is going to change," Uraraka groaned. "You can't just spawn infrastructure."
Ryukyu laughed softly. She stood up from the driftwood.
"The hero industry is already feeling the shift," Ryukyu said. "Just look at Tokyo right now."
Selkie crossed his massive arms and grinned.
"It is a complete ghost town for heroes up there," Selkie laughed loudly. "I heard Endeavor and others are basically just directing traffic these days."
Sirius tilted her head and smiled.
"Are things really that quiet in the capital, Captain?" Sirius asked.
"It is ridiculous," Selkie nodded. "A villain shows up to rob a bank. The local pros rush over to fight."
Selkie raised his hand. He snapped his thick fingers.
SNAP.
"They just hear that sound echo down the block," Selkie chuckled. "By the time Endeavor turns the corner, the villain is already a folded piece of paper on the sidewalk."
Tsuyu placed a finger on her chin.
"That sounds very frustrating for the Number One Hero," Tsuyu pointed out.
Ryukyu smiled and brushed some sand off her hero costume.
"It just proves how much things are changing," Ryukyu noted.
Selkie walked over. He patted Uraraka heavily on the shoulder.
"Don't worry about the construction business," Selkie offered kindly. "People will always need regular crews for maintenance and plumbing."
Uraraka just buried her face in her hands.
--<>--
Location: Abandoned Warehouse District, Mountain Outskirts
Time: 9:15 PM
Tire treads marked the dry road.
SWOOSH.
Pro Hero Mirko jumped down from the top of a rusted shipping container. She landed perfectly on her feet.
Thud.
She looked at the heavy tire tracks leading toward the end of the road.
She had spent the last two weeks hunting these specific tracks.
Hawks gave the heroes a few vague clues about underground medical shipments.
She decided to stop waiting around and follow the supply trucks straight to the source.
The tracks stopped in front of a large corrugated steel warehouse.
"Now let's see..."
Crack. Crack.
Mirko cracked her neck. She walked directly up to the main loading doors.
She did not bother looking for a quiet way inside.
Instead.
"Haaah!"
She spun around and drove her heel directly into the center of the metal.
BOOM.
The heavy steel doors blew completely off their hinges.
They flew into the dark warehouse and crashed into a stack of wooden crates.
CLAANG. BAAM. THUD.
Thick dust kicked up into the air.
"What the hell?!" a voice yelled from inside.
"Someone is at the door!" another man panicked.
Mirko rushed into the warehouse. Several armed assailant scrambled to raise their weapons and activate their quirks.
"It's Mirko!"
Mirko did not give them a single second to aim.
She leaped forward. She brought her leg down hard on a thug's shoulder.
CRACK.
The man collapsed into the concrete floor.
Another thug tried to swing a metal pipe at her head.
"Hahaha!*
Mirko ducked under the swing.
She swept his legs out from under him and kicked him squarely in the chest.
BAAAM.
Down the dark gravel road outside, Kaito walked slowly toward the noise.
His hands rested deep in his pockets.
He was looking for the very last name on Eve's target list.
The target was a logistics manager handling medical shipments for the Liberation Army.
"Someone got first... And she's an acquaintance." Kaito stopped walking.
He looked at the warehouse at the end of the road.
Before Kaito could take another step, a loud crash echoed from inside the building.
A large thug flew backward out of the broken doorway.
THUD.
The man crashed hard into the gravel road.
"Ughh!"
He rolled several times and stopped right in front of Kaito's white boots.
The thug groaned in absolute agony. He twitched once and passed out completely.
Kaito looked down at the unconscious man. He did not pull his hands out of his pockets.
Heavy footsteps crunched over the broken metal doors.
Mirko stepped out of the dust cloud.
"Is their boss going to arrive next?"
She wore a white leotard with a crescent moon symbol on her chest.
Crack. Crack.
She cracked her knuckles. And casually wiped some concrete dust off her dark shoulder.
"...I haven't had enough fun yet"
Kaito stared at her.
'Oh.'
A very vivid memory flashed through his mind.
He remembered the Mirko from his reality. The time where she walked around the underground training room with absolutely no clothes on. She was completely unhinged.
He pushed the memory away instantly and forced his face to remain completely blank.
He stared back at her through his glasses.
"Hmm?"
Mirko stopped walking. She finally noticed the man standing on the dark road.
She looked Kaito up and down. She pointed a finger directly at his face.
"Hey," Mirko called out loudly. "I know you. You are the new guy making all that noise in Tokyo."
Kaito nodded slightly.
"I am Hero X," Kaito replied. "Good evening."
Mirko placed her hands on her hips. She stared hard at his pristine white suit and red tie.
"You look like a damn bartender," Mirko insulted him casually. "Who wears a white suit to a warehouse raid?"
"It is good for branding," Kaito said. "I appreciate the feedback."
Mirko narrowed her red eyes. She stepped forward.
Step. Step.
She walked right up to him and invaded his personal space.
Her battle aura flared up aggressively. She glared up at his face.
Most rookies backed away immediately. They always flinched when she got this close.
Kaito did not move a single inch. He just stared back down at her calmly.
Mirko grinned widely.
She showed her sharp teeth.
She absolutely loved his complete lack of fear.
"You didn't flinch," Mirko noted.
"There is no reason to," Kaito answered.
Mirko pointed her thumb at the unconscious thug bleeding on the gravel.
"Everyone on the news says you take out the trash quietly," Mirko said. "They say you just snap your fingers and the villains disappear. No property damage. Clean and fast"
She leaned in slightly.
"But I prefer doing things the old-fashioned way," Mirko grinned. "I kick heads in."
Kaito glanced at the destroyed steel doors hanging off the warehouse.
"I can see the results," Kaito agreed.
Mirko stepped back.
She dropped into a low combat stance right on the gravel road. Her powerful leg muscles tensed beneath her boots.
She slammed her fist into her open palm.
SMACK.
"They say nobody can touch you," Mirko challenged him. "Even that guy Edgeshot said you're strong."
Kaito looked at her fighting stance and knows what she was about to do.
"It is just so-so,"
"Haha.." Mirko barked. She dug her boots into the dirt. "I hate boring fights. Let's see if the Tokyo hype is actually real, X."
SWOOSH.
Mirko kicked off the ground. The gravel shattered behind her.
She launched herself directly at Kaito's chest.
--<>--
A/n: Was able to think well the other day but forget to upload it. Today, it started throbbing again. Hopefully this coming days the boil will burst.
--<>--
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(9 Advanced Chapters)