《For Justice》 Chapter 0: Pilot She¡¯s late¡­ she¡¯s late¡­ she¡¯s late¡­! A young male was seated near a window, hands firmly pressed together and resting against his lap. I told her to be here at exactly 1:00! It¡¯s¡­ it¡¯s¡­. It was 1:05¡­ he couldn¡¯t believe just how late she was. Matter of fact he had made sure to come thirty minutes earlier. The fact that she couldn¡¯t consider this was so rude! ¡°What can I get you, sir?¡± The waiter stood in fancy clothes staring at the man with a stern expression while holding onto a notepad. ¡°Uh, no.¡± He gulped loudly. ¡°Give me a little more time, please.¡± The waiter nodded, heading off to other tables. Now, there wasn¡¯t a problem per se, but to Higashi, he was not only embarrassed but on the verge of having a breakdown. Oh man¡­ I can¡¯t order any food yet¡­ when I do she¡¯ll come and get mad at me. He fidgeted, slowly reaching into his pants¡¯ pockets, pulling out his phone to check the time¡­ 1:07! It¡¯s 1:07! What¡¯s taking her so long!? Oh, forget it, I¡¯m just going to order! At the next chance, he got Higashi placed in his order, ordering a T-bone steak and a glass of pop. The waiter nodded before returning back to place in his order. Let me fill you in on who I am and what exactly it is that I do. See, my name is Higashi Tsuda and I¡¯m a superhero. I belong to a high ranked group of some of the best heroes Japan has to offer. Guess what? I¡¯m their leader! That¡¯s right, me! I lead the team known as¡­ Justice! Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a pocket mirror, holding it up to his face as he examined his hair. His brown colored locks were evenly combed, not a single strand out of place. Just the way he liked it. His tie was a little crooked from the walk here, so he decided to fix that. The male quickly excused himself from his seat as he walked past a few tables on his way towards the bathroom. There¡¯s a lot of couples here¡­ to believe I¡¯m still single at the age of 22. Well, that¡¯s going to change today. Higashi¡¯s past relationships had a repeated history of ending badly¡­ his last ex-girlfriend shaved his head bald and it took him awhile to recover from the shock. But, now he was putting himself back out there. Once in the restroom, he stared at the mirror, adjusting his black tie against his freshly dry-cleaned white suit. A lot of people don¡¯t get my obsession with being neat. But, I just can¡¯t stand being unorganized and messy. I try to beat this into my team¡¯s skulls, but they''re just so stubborn! When his tie was perfectly even, he smiled at himself in the mirror at how handsome he¡¯s grown. He then proceeded to wash his hands, making sure to get in between the nails and the back of his hands. It was always rude to not wash your hands after exiting a bathroom even if you didn¡¯t pee. ¡°Here you go sir, here¡¯s a towel.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± The towel was dry, quickly absorbing the water which lathered his hands. When he was finished he threw it in the trash and proceeded to head off until¡­ Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°Don¡¯t forget my tip, sir.¡± ¡°Tip¡­? For what¡­?¡± ¡°Well¡­ I gave you a towel.¡± ¡°And that warrants you to get a tip?¡± ¡°Well, yeah.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not giving you a tip, buddy.¡± ¡°Ok.¡± With this the leader of Justice walked back to his table, leaving the old man to think about his life¡¯s choices. Once returning to his seat, he noticed his food was already placed on the table. Everything was so fresh¡­ the smell was so exotic. The T-bone steak was truly cooked to perfection. Just the right texture¡­ not overly cooked, but not raw either. A perfect balance of heated perfection. ¡°Is there anything more beautiful?¡± This was what Higashi lived for. Balance¡­ not just in food, but in all ways of life. His mouth drooled, but he quickly wiped it with his trusty handkerchief. He grabbed his silverware before he cut a slice of the steak which was just the right color of pink. The juices dripped so easily from the body as he brought the meat to his mouth. ¡°Mmmm¡­¡± It was just so juicy. The way the meat melted in his mouth. This would be worth every penny, surely. . . . Time has passed, how much time? A lot. That¡¯s certain. Higashi checked his phone, before sighing. She wasn¡¯t coming. 1:40¡­ she stood me up¡­ this isn¡¯t the first time, but still, it hurts the same. He sighed, looking down at the table¡­ before he heard something drop. His head raised and his brown eyes noticed that¡­ it was the check. ¡°Your bill sir.¡± ¡°Bill¡­?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But¡­¡± ¡°But, what?¡± ¡°Nothing¡­ can I have dessert?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ alright, there¡¯s no rush.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take some key lime pie, please..¡± ¡°Coming right up.¡± Ok¡­ so, I didn¡¯t bring any money. I left my wallet at home¡­ I assumed my date would be paying for my meal. It¡¯s a new day! Why can¡¯t a man expect for a woman to pay for his meal on the first date!? Higashi waited until his pie came to the table¡­ he decided to eat it as slowly as possible before he decided it was time to call for back up. In one smooth motion, he whipped out his cell phone, quickly using the speed dial function as he called in¡­ Jesse¡­ the American Weeaboo! ¡°This is Jesse.¡± His superpower¡­ learning the language of Japan by watching anime. It was a feat that only a few of the most dedicated weebs could achieve. ¡°Jesse, I need your help.¡± ¡°What is it!?¡± ¡°I¡¯m¡­ at this restaurant and I forgot my wallet..¡± ¡°Hahahahaha! This again!? Higashi, dude! Bring your wallet man! Stop being cheap.¡± ¡°Jesse¡­! I need you to bring my wall-¡± The phone went dead¡­ ¡°Damn that freaking! Oh well. I still have¡­ my protege!¡± Being a leader of a superhero group meant that younglings were dying to be trained by him. She was a young Hispanic girl, but she didn¡¯t know a lick of Spanish. Can¡¯t place all the blame on her though, she came from an uninspiring family. ¡°Rebecca! I need your help!¡± ¡°What!? What do you need Higashi!?¡± ¡°I need¡­ my wallet.¡± ¡°Alright, where is it!?¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­ in my r-¡± Higashi paused¡­ remembering just how junky Rebecca¡¯s room was¡­ the walls were painted with Cheetos dust¡­ that was just too nasty¡­ did she even wash her hands since then? ¡°Nevermind¡­¡± He hung up and then looked at the last of his contacts¡­ Yun. She was his second in command¡­ someone who was always trying to steal the spotlight from him. After all of these years, she could never handle the fact of being second best and it affected her performance. To call her now¡­ would be a SIN! ¡°Sigh¡­¡± He decided to devour the rest of the pie¡­ elegantly mind you. Once he was finished he had to come to terms with what could happen.. ¡°You¡¯ve been here for awhile. Other people need this table, can you pay up?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t¡­ I don¡¯t have any money¡­¡± ¡°. . .¡± ¡°But¡­ I¡¯m the leader of Justice¡­ if you let me go I¡¯ll give you an autograph!¡± . . . Higashi never left that restaurant. He wasn¡¯t heard from again. Period. Chapter 1: Law It was an average day in Tokyo. People were just going on about their regular routine trying to live in peace as anyone would want. However, sometimes things in life just don¡¯t go as planned. The sun was shining brightly, enveloping the world in its warmth. It felt like 86 degrees out, but things were only about to get hotter. People were seen walking along the sidewalks, heading off to various destinations. Young students could be seen walking into a seven eleven hoping to get a snack after being dismissed from class. The boys were still in their school¡¯s respective uniform when they heard some strange noise blasting off in the distance. Tires screeched and left a stain on the road as a white beat up van was seen driving along the street and then forcing its way onto the sidewalk. Civilians were yelling and rushing to safety. ¡°Get the hell outta the way!¡± Shouted the driver of the vehicle. The driver then came to an abrupt park, the breaks producing a high pitched sound before doors were opened and slammed in a hurry. The students were seen running off with their bags being forgotten on the roadside. ¡°Aight, you ready to do this?¡± The driver sighed. A group of delinquents had exited the vehicle, there was four of them in total and each one of them had various tattoos etched into their skin. They wore baggy clothing and carried firearms and bags in separate hands. ¡°Yeah, bro, let¡¯s get in and get out.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t kill anyone. We¡¯re only after the money.¡± ¡°Well, he didn¡¯t say we couldn¡¯t kill those who slowed us down, heh.¡± The driver could be seen entering the establishment, the bell ringing as he entered. He looked around the shop, observing the various location of the people inside before he approached the cash register and the older man who worked there. ¡°Hey, old man! If you don¡¯t want to get hurt, then hand over all of the money!¡± The driver of the van shouted, aiming the gun at the man¡¯s face, just a few inches away from coming into contact with him. ¡°H-hold on, sonny, things don¡¯t have to go down like this!¡± Customers around the store were panicking after realizing what was going on. The store was being robbed and now their life could potentially be in danger. Fear struck the very depths of their hearts as they all thought that they could never be witnesses to a robbery. Or worse, a murder. ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear him, you old fuckin¡¯ fart? Put the money in the bag or we¡¯re going to paint this store in your blood!¡± One of the more aggressive thugs shouted. ¡°A-alright¡­ fine¡­ no one has to get hurt.¡± The old man muttered. Deep down he hated being in a situation like this He¡¯s run this little shop for about 20 years and he¡¯s never encountered armed robbery before. There was a first time for everything, but this was too much. He opened the cash register, slowly taking the money out before he handed it to the driver, but the aggressive thug wasn¡¯t pleased with how slow the old man was moving. ¡°Hurry it up, grandpa! We¡¯re in a rush!¡± ¡°I¡¯m going as fast as I can-¡± Before he could finish his sentence, the thug smashed his head with the back of his gun, sending the man onto the floor, stunned by the force of the impact. This caused the customers to instigate things as they screamed in fear. ¡°I told you to hurry your ass up, bitch!¡± The thug insulted the man before stuffing the bag with cash. ¡°We have the stacks now let¡¯s hit it!¡± The group rushed out of the store, leaving the people in a state of panic. Some of them went over to check on the older man while one wisely called in the cops. ¡°Hello... There¡¯s been a robbery!¡± A civilian raised up the older man slightly to reveal that there was a small cut oozing blood on the right side of his forehead. ¡°We need an ambulance too! Someone was injured!¡± Rushing to the still running van were the group of thugs, hopping in as they seemed pretty excited from the rush they got from stealing. The driver put the pedal to the metal as he drove off in a hurry. ¡°Wahhoooooooooooooooooo!!!¡± The passenger shouted, sticking his head out the window. ¡°We just robbed like 6 fucking banks! What a fucking rush!¡± To match the mood the driver turned on the radio listening to the rap song that was blasting through the speakers as he rowed down the window to the sound could leak out. ¡°Turn this shit up! This is getting me in the mood!¡± The driver does as he was told before the boys start to bob their head on tempo to the beat. The van was seen cutting pass cars and ignoring stoplights, forcing other cars to stop abruptly which caused various cars to crash into one another. A loud boom being heard, shattering glass and forcing some people to slam their head against the wheel. ¡°I¡¯m feelin¡¯ good! I think we can hit three more!¡± ¡°Nah, that¡¯s too risky. We¡¯re good. We have the money that he requested.¡± ¡°Fuck that guy, he¡¯s a pussy! I say we keep this money for ourselves and hang low.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to piss this guy off. You know he has powers.¡± ¡°So? Having powers can¡¯t protect you from a bullet. There¡¯s four of us and only one of him! What do you say, boys!?¡±Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Extra money does sound good.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s kill the bastard then!¡± The driver sighed before chuckling to himself. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s fucking do it!¡± Suddenly¡­ sirens could be heard and the gang groaned loudly. The cops were finally catching up to them. The driver looked in his rearview mirror to see two cops trailing behind. They had to lose these chumps before they backstabbed anyone. ¡°I¡¯m going to lose these fuckers, hang on.¡± His foot pressed firmly on the gas as the van started to speed up, the roads and other cars looking like blurs. The cops followed suit quickly matching speeds as one drove up to the side before speaking into their microphone. ¡°Turn yourself in! Make this easy on yourself!¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t listen to my momma, what makes you think I¡¯m going to listen to you, fucker!?¡± The aggressive thug shouted as he stuck his head out the window. In this position, he stuck his gun out the window and began shooting randomly. Stray bullets flew out randomly, striking the pavement and striking one poor civilian in the arm forcing him to spin around before crashing into the ground. ¡°How are you shooting everything, but the cop?¡± The cops weren¡¯t going to take this and decided to send their own shots, striking the vehicle''s back and shattering the glass. The boys in the back ducked and complained while the driver could be seen sweating his own bullets. ¡°I¡¯ll handle this shit!¡± One of the men said as he kicked the back door down. The speed they were going at made it hard for him to keep his balance. He stayed low to the ground as he loaded his pistol and began to fire at the cops¡¯ cars. His bullets struck the sides of their vehicle, before the van went over a bump, the force sending the thug out of the van. ¡°Oh, shit! Agghhh!¡± His screams were short-lived as he landed directly on the glass of the police cruiser, shattering the glass and scaring the driver. This forced the driver to steer off to the side, crashing into a nearby building with a loud thud. The police officer seemed to hurt as his bloodied head rested on the steering wheel, but the thug most definitely didn¡¯t survive, his body crushed by the front of the car. His arms limp and resting on the cold pavement with blood constantly leaking out. ¡°Fuck, I think he¡¯s dead.¡± The driver muttered. ¡°He¡¯ll be fine. Fucker even got rid of one of them.¡± The lone officer was determined to try and subdue the men, firing directly at the white van. Bullets bounced off the sides before one of the thugs had enough, quickly pulling the pin off from a grenade before tossing it out towards the officer¡¯s car. The car tried to avoid it, but the explosion caught it, the entire vehicle exploding in the process. ¡°Where the fuck did you have that hiding!?¡± ¡°I guess the boss had some pretty good equipment lying around!¡± ¡°Eat that you stupid fucker!¡± The passenger stuck his head out the window as he screamed. The group had lost a member, but they were able to escape the clutches of the law. Now it was smooth sailing from here. Things were looking up for them. Until¡­ ¡°Surprise!¡± The voice of a young woman could be heard yelling, and almost comparable to a meteorite, she¡¯d come falling onto the hood of the vehicle with a mighty crash, halting the van altogether. This leaves the back end of the getaway ride totaled, the entire front end crushed, the back end slightly lifted off of the ground. Life seemed to move in slow motion. Things were looking smooth for the criminals, but in instant things changed. Figuratively, they had come across a huge speed bump. The van was left a mess and inside the two with their seat belts on had some of the impact cushioned by the airbag. Thank god for those. In the back though, that man was lying on the floor as if he had been knocked out by a professional boxer. ¡°What the¡­ fuck..? Ugh¡­ Dude, we gotta get out¡­!¡± The driver was dreaming a little bit until he heard the voice of his partner. Hearing this, he unbuttoned his seatbelt as he dragged his heavy body out of the van. His partner in crime appeared to do the same. ¡°I didn¡¯t think we¡¯d run into¡­¡± ¡° Yun, leader of Justice! Here to hand out ass kickings!¡± She announces herself, stepping off of the ruined vehicle. Her legs seemed to be covered in a sort of armor, though there was no metal. It was a biological wonder. ¡°I hope you guys didn¡¯t think you¡¯d be in the clear, with all you¡¯ve done.¡± What was this!? Why was Justice here!? Normally they wouldn¡¯t appear for something like this. Their threat level couldn¡¯t have possibly reached that high. This was very bad for the thugs. All of those places they robbed was going to be for nothing and they¡¯d most likely be seeing a life behind bars. ¡°Fuck, it is Justice! I¡¯m not going down like this!¡± The thug yelled as he forced himself up against the pavement. Now that he was up it was time to attack! They couldn¡¯t be as strong as advertised, surely it was all a gimmick to strike fear into criminals hearts. Powers or not, a gun was all the power they needed. Having this in mind, the thug grabbed ahold of his pistol, slowly holding it out towards the woman named Yun before he pulled the trigger a few times.In the moments of him getting his weapon and aiming it, however, the woman¡¯s body would be completely covered in the bio-armor, from head to toe. BANG! BANG! BANG! The sound of the bullets ricocheting from the armor is the only thing that is heard, with no true impact. Annoyed by the simple fact that she was shot at, Yun retaliates with the quickest of roundhouse kicks to the side of the thug¡¯s head, the strength and force of the strike causing his jawline to ripple, and spittle to fly from his mouth. The kick is more than enough to knock him off of his feet and back to the ground. ¡°It¡¯s always guns with your type. But that makes it easier for me!¡± At this point, he didn¡¯t care if he was going to be called a pussy by fellow criminals. The driver was the only man left crouching and he was going to use his last ounce of strength to get the fuck out of there. Today wasn¡¯t the day for him to be getting an ass kicking. His body was still weak, but he crawled¡­ his fingers clawing at the pavement as he really thought he could get away. ¡°I-I¡¯m going to make it! I¡¯m going to make it!¡± His dreams were cut short as a thud was heard against his skull and it was off to sleep with him. A figure soon being revealed from nowhere. ¡°And that¡¯s the way the cookie crumbles. Jesse Howard, the brains and brawn behind Justice has arrived!¡± ¡°Okay, now you know I can¡¯t let you have that brawn title.¡± Jesse Howard was a Caucasian male in his prime who was speaking Japanese fluently thanks to his obsession with Japan and its anime. It was easily shown from his Hatsune Miku shirt he was wearing. ¡°Why not? Didn¡¯t you see me? I just knocked that guy out! Look!¡± However¡­ he noticed that the man wasn¡¯t where he had left him and was¡­ still crawling away at a snail¡¯s place. ¡°What the hell¡­ I swear he was knocked out¡­¡± ¡°Come on, Jesse. This is how you do it.¡± The armored woman remarks as she made her way over to the fleeing man. ¡°I-I¡¯m¡­ going to make it¡­ I¡¯m going to¡­¡± The man whispered his brown hair, stained with blood as escaping on his mind. WHAM! And with a single punt to the face, the dream was done for the thug, knocking him out for good this time. With this final action, the armor on the woman¡¯s body would begin to release a thick steam and soon begins to chip and fall to the ground, piece by piece. ¡°Alright, could you hand me those clothes I told you to bring, Jesse?¡± ¡°Clothes¡­?¡± Yun stares at her teammate though her decaying armor, with a look of pure disappointment and pain written on her face. It would not be long until all of the armor was stripped from her body, as well as the clothing she had previously worn, leaving her bare for any eyes to see. ¡°You¡­ You good-for-nothing idiot!¡± ¡°I¡¯m hurt, I was only kidding! I no longer have a need to pull perverted jokes like that with you. I have a girlfriend after all.¡± He snickers lightly before handing Yun a bag filled with clothes. ¡°The curses of being in a steady relationship¡­ in the past, I¡¯d have had a nosebleed from the presence of a naked woman. Sigh.¡± Snatching the bag from Jesse¡¯s clutches, the turquoise-haired China-born woman flees the scene of the action to make a bee-line for the nearest alleyway, to free herself from the public eye. ¡°I swear for her to be the leader it feels like I have to take care of all the boring stuff,¡± Jesse mentions as he pulls out his cellphone. ¡°Hello, this is Jesse calling in from Justice. Those armed robbers have been taken care of. I¡¯m requesting an ambulance as well¡­ they aren¡¯t in the best condition.¡± ¡°Job well done, they¡¯ll be on their way.¡± The operator states. It was another job well done for the members of Justice, but one question still remains... Were these goons hired? If so who hired them? Find out next time! Chapter 2: A Name? No matter how secure and organized a country is there will always be chaos within it. It didn¡¯t take much to plant the seeds of confusion to steer everything up and uproot it from the ground up. Everything that man has worked so hard for. Everything they strive the world to be. Even in the wake of so much disorder the paramedics quickly came and completed their job, securing both criminal and officer alike, making sure that they were well enough to survive the trip to the hospital. People still deserved that fairness as long as they acted like humans. The crime-fighting organization known as Justice earned cheers from the crowd of civilians who had watched their heroics firsthand. In the past, they were shunned for their unusual abilities and behavior, but as threats got larger they learned to appreciate people who were willing to fight for the good of the world. ¡°Justice, Justice, Justice!¡± The crowd chanted in unison. ¡°It seems as if this crowd has gone wild. After the display of heroics shown today by Justice, the people are sending in their thanks. I couldn¡¯t personally make here in time to interview the members themselves, but I have a few words from the men and women who saw it all!¡± The news reporter gave a bright smile to the camera, before she walked over to an older man, holding the mic close to his lips. ¡°Sir, you were here to witness what went down here earlier, correct?¡± ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am. I saw with my own two eyes¡­ there was a high-speed chase. Explosions¡­ and a real babe. I couldn¡¯t get a good look at her though thanks to all that weird armor. Aww, shucks.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be surprised that one of the members of Justice is a strong female warrior who is fearsome and attractive.¡± ¡°I personally think that there should only be female superheroes. It¡¯s more efficient that way.¡± The man begins to stroke his aging beard. ¡°Then again.. If they looked that good, I may be tempted to commit more crimes.¡± ¡°More crimes? Is that incrimination I hear?¡± ¡°No-no, of course not. The crimes I speak of¡­ are crimes of passion.¡± The older man gives off a creepy smile, raising his hand to remove his shades while wiggling his eyebrows. ¡°A-anyways¡­! This is Aika Nakamura from Tokyo World News, signing off!¡± The sound of a car¡¯s engine could be heard zipping down the street, of course minding the speed limit. Behind the wheel appeared to be Higashi who still appeared to be down from his previous date failing. But, that was a problem for his civilian persona. Right now he was working for Justice. After hearing about the arrest made by Yun and Jesse, Higashi had to make sure that he followed up on this after all he¡¯s the leader¡­ I am the leader¡­ so it¡¯s only fair that I am the one to do this. Yun and Jesse aren¡¯t suited for this kind of stuff. Heh, any dummy can see that these goons are working for someone else and I¡¯m going to be the one to find out who it is. It didn¡¯t take long for him to arrive at the hospital from where he was. Just a good thirty minutes, by this time the treatment should have already been finished or nearly completed, anyways. Before exiting the car, he made sure to grab his Justice badge. An object reminiscent of an officer¡¯s badge with the letter ¡°J¡± as the body¡¯s design. Without this tool, most people would only look at him as if he was stupid, but when they saw this they knew he meant business. Higashi entered through the front entrance of the hospital, the doors sliding open upon his arrival. He stopped as soon as he stepped on the tiled white floor before he started to twitch slightly. I was so caught up in the moment¡­ I forgot how disgusting hospitals are¡­ it¡¯s-it¡¯s like a bacterial breeding ground! I-I don¡¯t think I can do this¡­ what if I get sick and have to take off from work¡­ no, wait even worse! I¡¯ve heard stories of people dying just from inhaling someone¡¯s germs!Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Disgusting, disgusting, disgusting, disgusting!¡± ¡°Uh, sir? Are you alright?¡± A nurse asked with a very worried expression on her face. ¡°N-no¡­ I just need a surgical mask¡­ PLEASE, HURRY!¡± ¡°R-right away, sir. The masks are right this way¡­¡± She sighed softly, she was used to dealing with weirdos, but there was something odd with this guy. Higashi quickly tied the mask around his face, finally able to breathe comfortably. ¡°You saved my life. You¡¯re a good woman.¡± ¡°T-thank you?¡± ¡°I still need your help though. I¡¯m looking for a group of criminals. They were involved in a car chase.¡± ¡°Oh, those guys? Why do you need to see them?¡± I secretly love when they ask me questions like this. ¡°Because, I¡¯m a member of Justice, ma¡¯am.¡± As he says this, he shows her his badge with a confident expression on his face. ¡°Oh! I understand now. Right, this way then.¡± The nurse started to escort him through the halls of the hospital, the man glancing around to take in his surroundings. Everything seems normal here. That¡¯s good. The sound of the nurse¡¯s clicking red heels could be heard echoing throughout the halls. Random doctors could be seen entering and exiting operating rooms while desk receptionists looked quite bored. ¡°Running a hospital must be hard work.¡± ¡°It¡¯s recently picked up over the years. The stories revolving the injured has also gotten stranger.¡± ¡°How so?¡± ¡°Someone was recently checked in after being stuck in a wall.¡± ¡°Stuck in a wall? That sounds like an unpleasant experience. Is that even possible?¡± ¡°It is now apparently. Miraculously enough he wasn¡¯t injured.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± ¡°Physically. Mentally he has developed a fear of being stuck.¡± ¡°Claustrophobia?¡± ¡°To the point that he doesn¡¯t even like to live in houses.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± ¡°Here we are. Room 2- 05.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll take it from here. But, before you go, don¡¯t let anyone else enter while I¡¯m talking to him. I don¡¯t want to be interrupted.¡± Higashi mentioned with a serious expression. ¡°Understood.¡± The nurse nodded before walking off. Higashi took a deep breath before entering the room, surprised to find that the thug was handcuffed to the bed and he was being watched by an officer, supposedly. The officer was asleep on a chair near the plain white wall. ¡°Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.¡± How embarrassing¡­ he¡¯s sleeping on the job! I cannot stand for this! He¡¯s making a mockery out of law enforcers everywhere! This just burns me up inside! The officer¡¯s gasp could be heard as he hit the floor with a thud. Once his heart rate calmed down and he realized what happened he became angry. ¡°What the hell are you doing kid!? You think you¡¯re funny, huh?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the one who¡¯s funny. You¡¯re busy watching your eyelids when you¡¯re supposed to be keeping an eye on this guy.¡± ¡°Who are you!? To tell me how to do my job! Know your place you damn kid!¡± ¡°I believe my place is above you, officer. Otherwise, I wouldn¡¯t be needed here.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± The officer rubbed his chin before his eyes narrowed. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me¡­ you¡¯re one of those Justice punks?¡± ¡°I¡¯m exactly one of those, ¡°punks.¡± I¡¯m going to need you to leave the room while I talk to the prisoner here.¡± ¡°Good luck, you won¡¯t get a word from him. He¡¯s a stubborn one and I don¡¯t have the patience to deal with him.¡± The officer brushed past Higashi on his way out the door. With the nuisance out of the way, Higashi took control of his chair, sitting down in it as he inched closer towards the thug. He knew he was awake and was pretending to be asleep. It was a common trick to discourage officers from trying to interrogate them. ¡°Hey, look, I know you aren¡¯t still asleep. Though after what I heard Yun did, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Make this easy on me, alright? I just need a name. Who hired you?¡± ¡°...¡± He¡¯s not going to respond, huh? I didn¡¯t want to have to pressure him but looks like he¡¯s playing my hand. ¡°As you know, I have a lot of authority here. I also have a lot inside the prison you¡¯ll be attending. All it takes is one word to the right ear and what becomes a suggestion will be a reality. Even if you show pleasant behavior, your sentence will continue to be extended, month by month, year by year.¡± Hearing this the thug¡¯s eyes opened slowly, his head tilting to gaze at the man. He could see the seriousness in his eyes and simply sighed. ¡°I¡¯m just a driver, I didn¡¯t want to have to deal with all this shit, man. I have no real ties with this dude, but it just seemed like a quick way to make cash and an escape.¡± ¡°Get to the point, I really need to know who hired you.¡± ¡°The guy¡¯s name is Mumei. He¡¯s a real pussy, it¡¯s almost laughable at how he tries to take charge, but I can feel it deep within his soul¡­ a real pussy.¡¯ ¡°Mumei¡­. Hired you? That doesn¡¯t make any sense¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, he told us to rob a bunch of banks. We were like, how? With what heat? And he had all of these weapons stacked. I don¡¯t know the dealer, but they¡¯re some quality American made shit.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ did he tell you anything else?¡± ¡°No, he kept it real simple. I swear that¡¯s all I know man. We were only in it for the money we were stealing.¡± ¡°You gave me a great lead, thanks.¡± Higashi could be seen rushing out of the building, excited with the news he had heard. This was just the information he was looking for. Now he had a name of the man he¡¯d be looking for¡­ the man called Mumei. Chapter 3: Scheme ¡°I want an APB on Mumei. Spread his face too as many places as you can over Tokyo. This man is highly suspected to be the mastermind behind the sporadic robberies.¡± Higashi spoke into his Bluetooth device while keeping his eyes glued to the road. ¡°Understood sir. We¡¯ll make sure we get the word out.¡± The woman spoke through her headphones. She was busy at work at the intelligence quarters for Justice, the room surrounded by other middle-aged Japanese men and women, dressed to the tee in fancy suits. They went by Japan¡¯s brutal work conditions and spent most of their lives in these quarters surrounded by computers. All funded by Atsuo Tech. ¡°We¡¯re going to flush him out. We¡¯ve dealt with this guy for years. He¡¯s normally a henchman to other established criminals. I honestly can¡¯t see him doing something like this alone. I feel he¡¯s just a puppet.¡± ¡°Are you positive he just didn¡¯t switch up his MO?¡± ¡°No, I still remember when he told us that. It stuck with me to this day.¡± ¡°What did he tell you?¡± ¡°He said he was content with living life as a tool. A hired gun. He held so little value for his life that it was almost disturbing. I don¡¯t know what kind of upbringing he had as a child, but his parents failed him. Now he continues to fail himself.¡± ¡°From his file, it says he¡¯s just like you.¡± ¡°Yes, he¡¯s a person with an ability. Specifically the ability to manipulate glass. This can be very dangerous especially in areas where he has a lot of access to the material.¡± ¡°Shall I alert the other members about what¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°... Not yet, only if you catch his exact location. But, be a dear and give me a head¡¯s up first, alright?¡± ¡°Very well, sir.¡± A traffic light ended up catching Higashi as he tapped on the breaks. His vehicle was like a cross from a Toyota and a Nissan specifically made once Justice had bought into being the government¡¯s favorite tool to combat the forces of crime. You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. In the past Justice was mostly a freelance group, butting into nearby crimes that happened until they ran into bigger and bigger catches. Once they gained a mainstream status only then did people believe it was better to have them on their side, controlled, but on their side. ¡°Mumei¡­ where are you hiding?¡± Elsewhere¡­ Mumei was tired of hiding indeed. He was seen at one of his favorite clubs, a club dubbed Club Raanan. The young adult just hit the mark to be here but was very familiar with the antics that went down here. In his grip was an icy cold glass of beer, drunk down the brim. A young waitress quickly handed him another glass as he kept his gaze on the dancers. There were stories of crazy things happening at this club. One person believed that the demon of lust himself took over the club and had the world¡¯s biggest orgy here. Of course without proof that was simply a baseless rumor. ¡°The girls are beautiful today. It seems like every time I come here they improve.¡± The dancers in question were wrapped in skimpy lace outfits, shaking their bodies to add some bounce to their silicone enhanced tits. Some of the others girls were taking it a step further and started twerking with a clear giveaway of the implants she had added. It seems like the girls here were trying hard to mimic what went down in America. It may have been tasteless to some, but the people here were buying into it. Mumei¡¯s eyes were filled with lust as he saw this, but he was unable to enjoy himself as his friends had returned, slamming their hands on the table where he sat at. ¡°Hey, asshole. We heard about what happened to some of our boys. We don¡¯t want that to happen to us, so we¡¯re dropping out.¡± This was one of the thugs that he had problems with. He was always questioning his leadership and his goals. In order to get him to work quietly, he had to threaten him with his perks. ¡°It¡¯s unfortunate, but I knew it would happen eventually. They did their job though and now it¡¯s time you did yours.¡± ¡°That¡¯s some tough talk. But, can you back it up?¡± Mumei looked around the club, taking in the hypnotizing atmosphere with the various shades of cool lights that coated the room. No one seemed to be paying attention to them. He didn¡¯t want to ruin the vibe in here. ¡°You know what I am, right? Then you should know the answer.¡± ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re a freak. We get it. A mutated sack of DNA. But, can that protect you from a bullet to the head?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You¡¯re super, but you aren¡¯t superhuman. You¡¯re going to end up in jail someday. And¡­ one quick phone call to the right people¡­¡± The thug taunted, using his thumb and pinky to imitate a real phone. ¡°And you¡¯re dead and gone.¡± Hearing this caused Mumei to back down real quick, bringing his glass to his lips as he took a few sips. ¡°Fine, you can go. I¡¯ll handle everything myself then.¡± ¡°You¡¯re unfit to be some crime lord, man. I thought you knew that. Everyone has a place and your place... Is as a footstool.¡± The thug then grabbed the man¡¯s glass before pouring it over Mumei¡¯s black hair. ¡°...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go. This pussy is just going to take it.¡± After this, the thugs turned around and Mumei took a stand, staring at the glass bottle which was resting on the table. It wasn¡¯t long before screams were heard through the club. The thugs who were recently talking shit to Mumei were now lying in a pool of their own blood. Glass spearheads were logged within their throat forcing pain whenever they inhaled or not. They were choking on their own blood and tried their hardest to crawl to safety, forming a trail with their red fluids. BANG! In an instant, brain, blood, and skull were splattered about leaving the man without a good portion of his head as his limp body crashed into the tiled floor. There was panic, but not much throughout the club as this was a common occurrence here. ¡°It¡¯s time I accomplished my mission. Nothing is going to stand in my way, not even Justice.¡± Chapter 4: Plan ¡°I¡¯m so proud of you, Mari.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing dad, really.¡± ¡°Still to have good standings with your teachers, it¡¯s something to encourage. Your classmates look up to you as well.¡± ¡°I think we all like to look towards each other for inspiration.¡± The two were seated at a local burger joint, another attempt to bring in American culture. Although the restaurant was still new and thriving there was still plenty of people seated about, enjoying a nice combo of burgers and fries. The TV on the wall was discussing breaking news, alerting everyone that a man who goes by the name of Mumei had been revealed as responsible for the chain of robberies that happened earlier today in Tokyo. The screen was constantly showing a previous mug shot of the criminal. ¡°What a foolish young man. He doesn¡¯t look too old from you dear.¡± ¡°Dad, why do people commit these crimes?¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± The man looked down at the table, trying to think of the best way to inform his daughter. ¡°Well, some people aren¡¯t fortunate to have the same amount of resources as others. They get desperate and it influences them to do bad things.¡± ¡°Really? Do you think that¡¯s why he¡¯s doing these things?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t know for sure. Some people commit violent crimes for stupid reasons. People are very complexed creatures. Nobody is alike in this world.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know about that, haha, I think all boys seem pretty alike to me.¡± RING, RING, RING! The sound of the doorbell was heard as a new customer walked in, however, this wasn¡¯t just any customer. ¡°Hey, dad¡­ isn¡¯t that the boy on the news?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Listen up everyone. You are all my hostages. If any of you try anything funny, I won¡¯t hesitate to kill each and every single one of you.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s do what he says¡­ we don¡¯t want anyone to get hurt.¡± ¡°Ok, dad.¡± Mumei ordered everyone towards the back of the wall with their front facing towards the wall. The man dropped a brown bag that was strapped to his back, pulling out what appeared to be an Uzi. The man knew what he was doing. Walking out in broad deadlight with his face known to the public was the quickest way to earn attention. Attention was just what he wanted right now. He had to remember what he was doing all of this for. It wasn¡¯t for the money or the weapons, or to inflict fear in the hearts of people it was for himself. The man kept his eyes locked on the front door of the building of the local burger joint as he released a pant. His heart was beating against his chest as he soon saw the flashing lights of a few police cars. ¡°We have the building surrounded, please come out with your hands in the air, Mumei. No one has to die, but we won¡¯t hesitate to use brute force if we must.¡± The cop shouted over a megaphone. With this being said, he made sure that he revealed to the officers of the law that he had hostages, grabbing ahold of the girl named Mari. ¡°Leave my daughter out of this!¡± ¡°Dad!¡± ¡°Shut up! I¡¯ll give her back when I¡¯m finished with her. Until then, shut the hell up or I¡¯ll decorate this establishment in her blood!¡± Hearing this caused the man to go silent, his hands shaking fearfully as he realized that this was real and it was happening to him of all people. He couldn¡¯t even fathom this. ¡°Your move¡­ Justice.¡± Mumei muttered to himself. Outside the restaurant, the cops were stressing. Walking around while wondering what to do. At any moment Justice would be on the scene and hog their spotlight. Right now they still have jobs, but what¡¯s to say that they¡¯ll have one tomorrow? Being showed up one too many times will cause the people to lose faith in them. ¡°What do we do? We need to find an entry point.¡± ¡°No, we can¡¯t risk it. He can manipulate glass, remember? I won¡¯t risk any more men to these bastards!¡± ¡°But, captain! Who¡¯s to say he won¡¯t just kill those people in there? We know what this guy¡¯s capable of. He¡¯s merciless. He¡¯d kill a newborn baby just for the rush, he¡¯s a psychopath.¡± The police captain rubbed his temples before exhaled softly. They had every side littered with cop cruisers. Men were at the ready to deploy. Perhaps a swat team was needed for something like this¡­ but was it really? Was all of this required for one stupid kid? This was becoming a problem. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°We won¡¯t move until we¡¯re given a clean opportunity to. This guy is full of tricks, so we won¡¯t know what he¡¯ll do.¡± The captain picked up his megaphone once more as he shouted into it, trying to keep Mumei active and not able to think. ¡°Tell us what do you want? Why go to all of this trouble?¡± After speaking¡­ a flood of glass shards came raining out through the front entrance forcing the officers to hide behind their vehicles using it as if they were shields. ¡°This is crazy! See what I mean, captain!?¡± ¡°Damn it! When are those Justice punks going to get here already!?¡± When was a good question¡­ staying true to her word the operator informed Higashi first of when and where Mumei was spotted. He didn¡¯t waste any time driving off to the scene of the crime before parking in the parking lot. ¡°He¡¯s really inside¡­¡± He stated as he glanced at the cruisers, seeing how the shards of glass were impaled into it, he was certain that the man he wanted was here. ¡°Yeah, but we have hostages inside! We don¡¯t have a clear view of how many inside though.¡± ¡°Hostages? That¡¯s new.¡± In a situation like this, it¡¯ll be best to wait for the others to get here. Messing up here would lead to some serious repercussions. In a matter of just a few minutes, the roar of an engine could be heard coming from down the street. With a smooth drift into the lot of the restaurant, a Justice branded vehicle comes to a hard stop, leaving skid marks on the ground. The car soon stops running, and the driver''s door opens, out stepping the tall woman known as Yun. ¡°I hope we aren''t late to the party.¡± The passenger side swings open and springing to life was a young animated woman. She made sure to quickly scoop up her black curly hair and tie it behind her head into a ponytail. A bright smile engrossed her face, it was a beautiful day and now she was free to strut her stuff! Exiting from out the back was Jesse who was still wearing his Hatsune Miku top. This was the last person he wanted to deal with, but he was just glad that it was soon over. ¡°Let¡¯s end this. Mumei needs to be back in his cell pronto.¡± ¡°This''ll be a piece of cake,¡± Yun says aloud, moving her head from side to side, to crack her neck. Wanting to get started, she makes her way over to the many police on the scene, grabbing ahold of the megaphone to use for herself. ¡°Ahem. Mumei, come out with your hands up, or I''ll come in and put my foot up your ass! That is all.¡± That voice was all but familiar and nearly brought a smile to his face. That voice brought back a lot of memories for him along with his arousal. The time was finally here the moment that was needed to shake things up for this world. ¡°Listen up! You!¡± He pointed a finger at one of the hostages. ¡°Get up and go give them a message. Also, take this.¡± He says with a smirk. Seconds later, the door opened, revealing a shaky hostage as he was freed from Mumei¡¯s grasp. It caught the attention of everyone present, but when his captive disappeared he soon started to run as fast as he could to them. ¡°Help me, help me, help me, help me, help me!¡± ¡°What the fuck?¡± The captain said, but with a closer inspection, it was clear that the hostage had a grenade strapped to his left hand. ¡°Get down!¡± Higashi shouted. ¡°Oh shit, that''s not good.¡± Yun cursed, as her biological armor began to form from her front. She''d then run over towards the man, her armored hand reaching for the grenade, somehow hopeful enough to think she''d be able to stop the outcome. The hostage¡¯s face was tightened up so much that it was starting to resemble a prune. His speed increased as if he was trying out to be an Olympic runner. He only stopped when he came into contact with Yun. ¡°It¡¯s going to blow!¡± Without a second thought, the woman utilizes both of her hands, grabbing ahold of the grenade with one, which tears right through the tape, and pushing the man aside with the other. She takes a dive afterward, to shelter the explosion with her armored body. Everyone watched in awe¡­ tensions were rising¡­ but¡­ nothing happened¡­ the bomb didn¡¯t appear to go off looks like it was just a toy. Looking down at the toy grenade just made Yun¡¯s face turn sour due to being played in such a manner. She stands up from the concrete ground, chucking the bomb as far as she could. ¡°Oh yeah, now he''s really getting a foot in his rectum! I''m going stick it so far up his ass, he''s going to be tasting my toes for a fucking month!¡± Everyone could be seen wiping sweat from their heads. The moment caused quite the stir, but the officers and Justice were just grateful that the man didn¡¯t explode. Damn, all I was able to do was look down. At that moment I had already given up on that man¡¯s life. Yun, however, rushed in to save him She¡¯s outdone me again, damn it! Higashi crossed his arms, upset by the fact that Yun was the one to take action instead of him. It was a constant fight for the number one spot. But, he was the leader and he couldn¡¯t be outdone like that. ¡°Jesse. It¡¯s time we saved those hostages so we can give Mumei a run for his money.¡± ¡°How do we accomplish that?¡± ¡°You¡¯re smarter than this, Jesse! Go invisible and sneak in from the back.¡± ¡°What if I mess up? This guy doesn¡¯t seem like he¡¯s playing this time around.¡± ¡°You won¡¯t mess up, because, I, Higashi Tsuda, your leader will provide cover for you.¡± ¡°Uhh¡­ if you say so¡­ wait you do know that Yun is the lea-¡± ¡°I¡¯m the leader! Now go, Jesse!¡± He shoves him ahead with a little guiding push. Jesse made use of his invisibility ability, disappearing from sight. Everything will be fine. Jesse will sneak in through the back entrance and grab the civilians, but to keep Mumei guessing¡­ ¡°Rebecca give me a super strong one!¡± ¡°Oh, really? Can I really, Higashi!?¡± ¡°Yes, strong enough to break apart those windows!¡± ¡°Okay, don''t do something like that! That''s stupid!¡± Yun intervenes, making her way over to Higashi. ¡°What are you even thinking?¡± ¡°I hardly see how. I told Jesse we¡¯d lay down some cover fire. It¡¯ll be just enough to worry Mumei and keep him distracted.¡± Higashi defends his plan. ¡°I''m about halfway from being a hero, and letting you break those windows to let you find out why you''re an idiot.¡± He was a simple man and normally he didn¡¯t mind criticism, but when it came to Yun her insults always triggered him. ¡°And I suppose that you came up with a better plan in that pea sized brain of yours.¡± Yun facepalms her masked face, an audible growl being heard. Interactions between the two have almost always become some type of argument, and this was no different. ¡°This pea-sized brain can see how your absence of a brain at all is going to cause some problems!¡± Rebecca was unfortunately used to this happening and simple smiled awkwardly as her head started to move between Yun and Higashi as they spoke. Stomping his foot against the pavement, Higashi crosses his arms and looks away. ¡°I will not be insulted by someone who crawled their way into Japan. If it wasn¡¯t for Nogah¡¯s great kindness you wouldn¡¯t even be in this position!¡± Another tactic he used to insult people was to bring up a person¡¯s past. This was something special that he mostly used on two people. ¡°Are you saying you have a problem with me being from a different country, Higashi? What are we, racist now?¡± Yun responds, placing her hands on her hips and turning her head to face away from her rude teammate. ¡°You bring up Nogah, but even he knew I''d make the better leader.¡± Hearing the racist remarked caused the others to stare at Higashi, wondering if he truly was racist. The self-proclaimed leader of Justice knew this would ruin his reputation. ¡°What!? No, no, I¡¯m not racist!¡± He said as he looked at the others, but they only shook their heads. ¡°I¡¯m not racist! I have no problem with anyone who has a different shade than mine! Or are from other countries.¡± His teeth clenched, his expression becoming angry as he heard the end of what she said. ¡°It¡¯s ok, Higashi. I think you¡¯d make a great leader!¡± Rebecca chimed in. She didn¡¯t mean any harm, she was just trying to bring peace to the world, but Higashi was hard to work with. ¡°Stay out of this, Rebecca!¡± ¡°And now you''re yelling at Rebecca when she was trying to help you out. Wow, what a guy.¡± Yun laughs out loud, mostly at the fact that Higashi made it too easy to make him look bad. ¡°Now like I said, that previous idea is stupid. Why the hell would you break the windows when a glass manipulator is in there?!¡± Angry was only the beginning of what he was. Especially with the fact that he forgot that Mumei could manipulate glass. I-it was a mistake¡­ a MISTAKE! I made a mistake¡­? This can¡¯t be¡­ what about achieving perfection and excellence in everything that I do? Oh god no¡­ this can¡¯t be happening. Higashi now appeared to be out of his body as his eyes went blank for a moment. It appeared he was having another BSOD episode. ¡°Oh no, he¡¯s out!¡± Rebecca shouted. ¡°Ahh, there''s no helping him.¡± Yun shook her head. ¡°Give me a moment while I think of something to get Mumei¡¯s attention¡­¡± While the group was hard at work in the front, on the back end of things, Jesse was about to make the biggest mistake of his life¡­ opening the back door to the building. ¡°Wait¡­ if I remember correctly, this door could have a bell which would ring when I open it¡­ that¡¯d alert Mumei and he¡¯d then kill everyone. That¡¯d be game over. Instead¡­¡± He looked around his surroundings¡­ spotting a bush. ¡°Hmm..¡± He continued to look around until he saw the drive-through window which appeared to be open. Luckily, he was small enough to squeeze in. ¡°I¡¯ll use that and make my entrance. I¡¯m just praying that the others will lay some cover or¡­ it¡¯ll be a bloodbath.¡± He whined. Chapter 5: Teamwork Jesse snuck in through the drive-through window as he had planned, doing his best to make sure that he didn¡¯t make a sound. His breathing was noticeable lower as his body started to perspire. His head could be seen peeking out the corner, mentally marking the location of the hostages. He had them facing the wall away from the windows so the officers and Justice couldn¡¯t spot them. The fear of the unknown always kept law enforcers away as their top priority was the civilians. The question that needed to be asked was if Mumei was capable of killing these hostages? Unfortunately, there was much time to challenge him. There was only enough to stop him and free the hostages. Jesse saw that Mumei¡¯s main focus was outside the window, casually looking out the front window. What would a hero do in a situation like this? Yeah, he could go invisible and sneak over, but Mumei would notice the mass of people moving. If he tried to fight Mumei¡­ well, Jesse knew where he stood when it came to combat. Teamwork was the most important thing when it came to the formation of any team. Everyone had to know their roles and when to act in order to reach success. Right now, all Jesse could do was wait for his opportunity to save everyone. ¡°A plan¡­ a plan, a plan¡­¡± Yun pondered, pacing in a small area as she attempted to think up a viable option in this situation. She knew there were hostages, but she didn''t know their location. Though, she knows where the enemy was, at least. ¡°Maybe I should tackle my way through the glass and charge right for him! It''ll happen so fast, he might not be able to try something! What do you think, Rebecca?¡± Rebecca¡­ sweet Rebecca, she was always so positive even in the worst situations. At times she didn¡¯t even look like a superhero but more of a fangirl. ¡°I think if you believe and try hard enough anything is possible!¡± She says with a bright smile on her face. Hearing this response, Yun would make an annoyed face, the response giving her enough doubt for her to resort to Higashi. ¡°Alright Higashi, it''s time to stop being a little bitch and help us out here.¡± Higashi could be seen crossing his arms over his chest, his body turning away from his team as he entered his frustrated pouty mode. ¡°Hmph, I don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°Really?! Stop being such a child, there are lives on the line!¡± ¡°I know that! Which is why we¡¯re going to do things my way so they can live!¡± ¡°Stop making stipulations and stop being useless already!¡± Higashi¡¯s eyes narrow after hearing the word useless. He was certainly not useless! While Yun and Rebecca were out here looking pretty, Higashi had been thinking. ¡°I have an idea. A way to give Jesse enough time to secure the hostages.¡± ¡°Oh yeah, what is it then?¡± Yun asks, walking over to him with her hands placed on her hips. ¡°I¡¯m on a time limit, so hurry it up.¡± Ugh, who does she think she is? I still don¡¯t understand why she¡¯s the leader. I¡¯m the one who should be the leader, I have the qualifications for it. Life is so unfair. ¡°This is unlike Mumei, he¡¯s moving out of a pattern. Right now he doesn¡¯t know what to expect from us. All he knows is that we¡¯ll be cautious, which is why we¡¯re going to throw caution to the wind and charge right in.¡± ¡°So basically what I was already thinking of doing?¡¯ ¡°Don¡¯t compare my plan to yours! You couldn¡¯t even come up with something like this! It won¡¯t just be us recklessly charging in, but with the aid of the police we''ll cover the windows. I¡¯ll use my gravity manipulation to throw toss you inside.¡± ¡°So my plan, but with the police actually doing something?¡± Most of the officers there took offense to that, stepping up to the plate now that their name was being misused. ¡°Excuse me, miss, but we¡¯re trained for situations like these. We¡¯re going to show you why. If you think charging in is a good idea then we¡¯ll support it. But, we have an addition we¡¯d like to add to the plan.¡± The police captain added.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°Alright, what would you like to add then?¡± The woman questioned. The captain was a man of action, looking over at one of his men as they tossed a smoke grenade into the air. It didn¡¯t take long before it hit the floor and went off¡­ leaving a cloud of smoke to engulf the area. Looks like this would be the moment they¡¯d take action now that Mumei wouldn¡¯t be able to see their movement. ¡°Alright, let''s do this while we have the cover!¡± The men moved quickly, not letting even a second go to waste. Their bodies moved swiftly, intending to stand guard by every window to discourage Mumei¡¯s escape and to purposely corner him. That was one phase of the plan, the next was up to Higashi and Yun having to work together to save some lives. Even though Higashi was a stubborn man, he knew how important this situation was. ¡°Remember Yun, you only have one shot at this. Mess up and it¡¯ll be your fault alone.¡± It was a friendly reminder as his hand touched the shoulder of her armor. His hand was seen sparkling with purple energy as it appeared to transfer over to Yun¡¯s armor causing it to be imbued with the color of his ability. ¡°I¡¯ve decreased the effect gravity has on you. It¡¯ll be a lot easier to move now and when I say a lot, I mean a lot. Don¡¯t push it before you splat against the wall.¡± Yun begins to swing her limbs, throwing quick punches and kicks to test the new feeling, before she smirked beneath her mask. ¡°It''s your plan, remember? But as the leader, I''ll take responsibility no matter the result. Here I go!¡± Feeling lighter than her usual self, she sprints off towards the front window at a great speed, leaping for a shoulder tackle to crash through the restaurant''s glass! Mumei was getting nervous from losing his visibility on the group outside the restaurant and almost in an instant the window was crashed through, leaving glass pieces on the floor. More importantly, it startled the villain as he was forced to leap out of the way, landing roughly on his back. ¡°What the hell? Since when could Yun move that fast!? At least I think it was her.¡± His heart was racing now as he tried to pick himself up. Bursting through the window, Yun rolled across the floor, picking herself up to dart towards Mumei with enhanced speed. ¡°Mumei, you''re out of time!¡± What a rush he was feeling! Moments like these were exactly what he lived for. ¡°Out of time!? I¡¯m the one in control here!¡± The man retorted, gripping a hold of the uzi in hand before turning his focus on the hostages! The¡­ hostages? All he could see was a glimpse of a leg running out of the building thanks to the help of an undetectable hero. This served as a major blow, without the upper edge what else could he do against this team? It was either run or fight and from the enhanced speed of his foe, the only option was to fight. Feeling a bit fancy, Yun turned her high-speed dash into multiple handsprings, closing the distance between the two as she went for a smooth and swift dropkick. ¡°Take this!¡± It was hard enough keeping up with her without this little speed boost. Her movements were too hard to keep track of and it ended badly for him, the impact connecting directly against his chest, sending him flying back against the floor. His chest throbbed from the sudden shock, but he had to go on the defense, raising his gun as he prepared to pull the trigger. Recovering from the kick, Yun quickly picked herself up from the ground, her back turned to Mumei for the brief moment. Good, she was still recovering from that kick. There was no way in hell that these little bullets in this standard gun would cause any impending damage on her, but like a fool he had to try anyway, spraying a stream of bullets her way. The sound of gunfire and bullets ricocheting throughout the joint, as Yun remained unharmed and annoyed that he would even try to shoot her. Turning to face him, she began walking over to him, pounding her fist together. ¡°I''m about to beat you into next week!¡± Just as he thought, useless. Ammo of all kind was useless against this woman along with grenades. That armor truly was impenetrable. The only thing he had left up his sleeve was his manipulation over glass, but even that wouldn¡¯t be able to cut through. It didn¡¯t matter much to him anyway. This was fun. ¡°Aggressive as usual. You never change, do you? That¡¯s alright, the nostalgia act is really bringing me back.¡± Mumei slid his gun across the floor as he picked himself off the floor. In a blink of an eye, the man had formed a sheet of glass in front of him acting as a wall. Even though she was strong, force was still a universal law. All he had to do was push her back and make his retreat and so with a great mental push, he hurled the wall directly at her. ¡°Something new, I see?¡± The woman commented, drawing her fist back as she watched the wall come forth. Swinging her arm, she punched with all her might, attempting the shatter the sheet. Aggressive was the right word to describe her. She immediately punched his wall of glass, but thankfully, this glass wasn¡¯t like regular glass, it was reinforced to boot. So he thought, even with the reinforcements added it shattered to pieces much like this crime attempt. ¡°I hate to run and hide, but my time¡¯s up.¡± There was no way he could challenge the woman and if her friends joined the fray? Being a villain wasn¡¯t easy. ¡°Don''t think you can get away that easily, Mumei! Come back here!¡± Watching as he fled, Yun would follow after him, but she wasn''t in the biggest rush, knowing they had the building surrounded. Strange with her speed catching him wouldn''t be that hard. Perhaps there was a time limit to how long she could move with that enhanced speed. Did she borrow that from Higashi? His ability was the only one that added up. Approaching the back caused Mumei to freeze up as he realized there were armed men. This was his first solo attempt and it didn¡¯t amount to anything. This could go down in history as the most failest crime attempt. Even worse since he was a metahuman. If he couldn''t fight, nor run then all he could do was take a beating. His heart continued to slam against his chest, his arms shaking with an adrenaline rush. ¡°I was way out of my head here. But, can you blame me? Instead of being someone who took orders I tried to be one who gave them. After all¡­ if I¡¯m devoting my life to crime I might as well give it my all.¡± It would take no time at all before he is picked up from behind, and pinned to the ground by none other than Yun. ¡°End of the line, Mumei. Your ride¡¯s done.¡± The monologue wasn¡¯t the best way to go out, but there was no way out of this. His strength wasn¡¯t there physically and he knew this. He was smart enough to know when he was beaten. ¡°Damn it¡­ is this really it?¡± ¡°Obviously, what the fuck?¡± The Chinese woman managed to get out, before noticing her armor steaming and chipping apart. ¡°Oh shit, oh shit! Someone else come hold him, I need to go!¡± Hearing this before she could even finish speaking was none other than Higashi, hungry to take all the credit. ¡°Tsk, I¡¯ll take it from here! You go do what you need to do.¡± Was it bad that he praised this unfortunate event? It seems as though Higashi¡¯s words mattered not, however, as Yun was already on her way, fleeing the scene with a trail of smoking armor following behind her. With the combined efforts of the officers and Justice working in tandem, they were able to avoid a great tragedy. If only they could work together more often. Chapter 6: Captured Work was good today it was always a rush to take down a baddie and deliver him to the side of justice. Mumei was definitely a dangerous criminal who needed to be contained. It was the fate of aggressive metahumans. SNAP! The sound of the cuffs locked tightly around Mumei¡¯s wrist while the officers secured a silver collar around his neck. When it comes to dealing with people with gifts there had to be a way to deactivate their power. Even with intensive research, they couldn¡¯t make the connection on how it superpowers were used. What they did find out was how the brain reacts to using these abilities. The brainwaves changed whenever a person activated their powers and became more active. So through science, the officers were gifted with a device that could sense the stress that was put on the human brain when powers were activated and thus the collars injected a strong sedative into the body of the host. The drug was really potent it would immediately put the person asleep and keep them in that relaxed state for hours on end. It took a lot of regulation from the government to come up with this idea. Previous ones involved electrocution, poison, and straight up death devices. The government thought it was important to have people believe that metahumans were just as human as the rest as everybody else. They didn¡¯t want another surge of hate to imitate the things you see on shows. ¡°Toss him in. Watch his head.¡± The officer warned not really caring if he bumped his head against the roof of the car. ¡°Good work, Justice. Maybe you aren¡¯t as problematic as we all thought.¡± ¡°Of course not! We¡¯re heroes! Saving people, kissing babies, and beating up bad guys is in our job description. Haven¡¯t you checked out our business page?¡± Jesse asked. Jesse took being a hero as some sort of comic book interpretation. He constantly went on about his favorite heroes like Spider-Man, Batman, X-Men and so on. But, this was real life things weren¡¯t as cheesy as that. Once you died there was no coming back. ¡°Hopefully this changes the minds of a lot of people. We truly are acting out of our hearts. The people¡¯s safety will always be our main priority.¡± Higashi mentioned, talking to the officer. The man gave a nod, thanking them once more before heading to the squad car and almost in sync they all pull out, blasting their sirens as they sped off along the asphalt. ¡°Higashi that was really cool of you to put your differences aside to work with Yun.¡± Rebecca chimed. ¡°Please, let¡¯s not even discuss that.¡± Higashi moved his index finger and thumb to rub the bridge of his nose as he looked at the burger joint. This place would now be shut down for a little bit until the fear wore off. It was a shame how much lingering damage that people could cause. ¡°Just face it, man, Yun¡¯s the leader. You aren¡¯t. I mean, she¡¯s been the leader for years. Why are you still mad about that?¡± Jesse yawned, working with such strong personalities tired him out. The constant headbutting between the leader and the co-leader for a better word was stressful. ¡°I will never forget! Never! Nobody has worked harder than me! Nobody!¡± A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Oh no¡­ this was what the two were afraid of. It wasn¡¯t fair that they were forced to listen to this while Yun was MIA. This has been happening far too often. ¡°I was working my entire life for this before I even knew I was gifted. I came from an orderly, traditional Japanese family. Raised by a successful, orderly man and a rightfully supportive mother.¡± ¡°You mentioned orderly twice¡­¡± It was too late, once he started his rants there was no going back. ¡°I was taught from a young age on how to be a morally right individual and how to contribute to society. I went to school got good grades, befriended all of my teachers and got the recognition I needed to advance in this world. Then even though I could have continued my education, I decided to enroll in the Paladin Society. I don¡¯t talk about it often guys, but those were the days that shaped me into the person I am today.¡± Jesse covered his ears, trying to block off the rant while Rebecca listened in with awe. She couldn¡¯t help it she was too good-hearted. ¡°The training was brutal. I wasn¡¯t even that religious, I just wanted the training. I spent two years there¡­ waking up before the sun even rose, eating the slop they called food¡­ being whipped and paddled!¡± ¡°What kind of school was this?¡± ¡°Then when Justice became a thing I just knew that I was going to be the leader of this team. I just knew, but then I had to meet her.¡± ¡°Oh, oh! I remember this! This is the first time you met Yun all those years ago!¡± Rebecca shouted, raising her hand as if Higashi was a teacher. That moment was forever seared into his brain. He fought Yun not knowing who she was and how overpowered her ability was. Still, he stood his ground. The more he got to know her the more he started to understand just how one dimensional she was. She was like one of those Chinese characters cut out from a cereal box. It brought him to tears the more he thought about this. ¡°Then it was decided that Yun would be the leader¡­ an immigrant let me remind you. Someone who snuck into this wonderful, orderly, traditional country and was somehow awarded for it. Oh, I can¡¯t believe it! I still can¡¯t believe it!¡± The man was starting to cry, but on cue, Rebecca handed him a handkerchief. ¡°Thanks, Rebecca.¡± He wiped his tears before folding the fabric into a perfect square before handing it back. ¡°Now with that out of your system¡­ can we go? I¡¯m missing a tournament today! There¡¯s going to be a lot of loot!¡± Jesse became antsy. ¡°Just go back with Yun. She drove you.¡± ¡°She¡¯s gone, man. I don¡¯t feel like finding her. Come on, you don¡¯t have anywhere to be.¡± It was true. Higashi was somewhat of a workaholic. He put all of his energy and passion into his job, leaving little time for a social life. That was why he had so many dating apps on his phone. ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll drive you home.¡± The group was seen walking away from the empty burger joint with quite the considerable amount of damage to it. Wonder who¡¯d pay for that? The cast walked along the street, hopping into the vehicle and applying their seatbelts. They knew Higashi wouldn¡¯t leave until everyone was strapped in. It wasn¡¯t long before the gang was back at headquarters. A sight Higashi loved coming back home to. It was a secure area with a gated door and two armed guards protecting it at all times. The outside was a large yard with the grass so evenly cut it was reminiscent of a golf course. There was not one uneven blade of grass to be seen. The group walked along the stone path to the three-story-tall building. The construction process was aided by Atsuo Tech and so it had some built-in defenses to keep baddies out if they ever discovered this place. Inside the walls and tiled floor was white as snow. Lots of decorations hung up on the wall of various things from flowers, to oceans, and fields of snow. Jesse went his separate way once inside, heading up the flight of stairs which curled about. The lighting in here was very well done with various chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. It was nice living like this it made saving the world that much motivating when you got treated with favoritism. However, Higashi couldn¡¯t relax. He thought about something on the drive home which stuck with him. Mumei was acting differently, but what if he was working with someone? From all the year''s Justice fought him he was always a lackey. If he ignored this feeling it could mean lives. There was no harm in questioning him. Mumei was easy to read. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Something¡¯s bothering you, isn¡¯t it? You were quiet the whole ride home.¡± ¡°Rebecca. I believe that Mumei is indeed working for someone. Do you remember what I told you?¡± ¡°Yeah! You said always believe in yourself!¡± She shouted as her fists were raised into the air. ¡°That¡¯s right¡­ so we¡¯re going to interrogate him.¡± ¡°Oh sweet! Can I really tag along?¡± ¡°Yes. You should always be accompanied by at least one person. If something goes wrong you need someone to watch your back. Justice is also a bit low on manpower, so it¡¯s hard.¡± ¡°I understand. When you¡¯re ready! We¡¯ll interrogate the mighty Mumei!¡± This girl is so freaking weird¡­ what I wouldn¡¯t do for a better sidekick¡­ ¡°Right¡­.¡± It wouldn¡¯t take long for the two to get to the holding station. One of Higashi¡¯s rule as a hero was to never second guess yourself. It was important to be logical, but sometimes you had to let intuition take the lead. Was he doing the right thing? What could be the harm? He was collared so he couldn¡¯t do anything. Chapter 7: Return Things were going according to plan. The police were going about interrogating Mumei, using the classical good cop, bad cop act. No information was given even with all of the threats that went his way. This man was a tough egg to crack. All one had to do was look at his background in order to realize why he was so hard to scare. The man didn¡¯t fear death ever since he was young. He would have died if it wasn¡¯t for a kind girl saving his life. Could saving a life ever be considered a terrible action? How about when it brought the death of innocent lives? Even the system wasn¡¯t giving up on him. Instead of just putting a bullet between his eyes, they kept on putting him through rehabilitation. In the public eyes these people who would commonly be referred to as ¡°supervillains¡± were referred to as people who needed help. As if they suffered from mental illness. The officer¡¯s hand slammed against the table before he shouted once more at the young man. ¡°Keep playing around with us and we¡¯ll make sure you live a very harsh sentence. Do you like freedom, kid?¡± Mumei sat in the basic metal chair which was very uncomfortable especially with how long he was sitting in it. All of the interrogations wouldn¡¯t work on him, he¡¯s been through the process too many times and all the hard labor in the world couldn¡¯t get him to talk until it was necessary. He never uttered a word to them. ¡°Give it up for today. He¡¯s not going to talk. You know how stubborn he is.¡± ¡°Whatever. I¡¯m done.¡± The officer groaned, walking out of the little square box they called a room. It was very tight and compact, probably to make the prisoner felt as if the walls were truly closing in on them. Outside the there was a window where the officers could see inside to view the prisoner, but he wasn¡¯t able to see them. But, from how common he was with this room he knew they were watching him and it didn¡¯t bother him. As the officers headed to the front of their interrogation center they were met by two members from Justice much to their dismay. The prejudice against these individuals with powers was still very much present although better hidden. ¡°Can I help you?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m Higashi Tsuda and I¡¯m with Justice.¡± He showed his badge to the officers, reminding them of his authority much to their dismay. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°I want to see Mumei. I have some questions to ask him.¡± ¡°What makes you think he¡¯ll talk to you? We¡¯ve been trying to pry answers out of him for awhile now and he doesn¡¯t even whisper.¡± ¡°I know Mumei better than any of you here, I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll get some answers.¡± Once stating this, Higashi begins to enter the interrogation room, signaling for Rebecca to stay outside so he could get some privacy. Oh, Mumei. Too many times have they done battle with one another. But every time it ended the same way with Justice coming out on top. But, there was something strange this time. He had to be hiding something.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Surprised to see me?¡± Higashi asked, walking further into the room before taking a seat across from his old foe. ¡°Actually¡­ I was hoping you¡¯d come, Tsuda.¡± Mumei responded, resting his hands on the cold table. ¡°Hoping I¡¯d come? So you know I have questions for you then?¡± ¡°Yes. Let me take a guess¡­ you want to know if I truly am working on my own. Am I correct?¡± He showed a little smirk as he saw Higashi¡¯s reaction. ¡°You¡¯re right, so, since you already know you can make this easy on me. Are you really working alone?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t really say. Why should I tell you?¡± ¡°Because you know that I can have you stay in here for a very long time, right?¡± Higashi said in a cold tone, trying to frighten the man into talking. ¡°The officers said the same thing. You really need to work on your tough guy act, I really don¡¯t care how long I stay in here for.¡± ¡°Then I guess you don¡¯t want to leave early either?¡± ¡°I have no interest in that. I¡¯m content whether I¡¯m in here or out there. It¡¯s all the same really. When I¡¯m in here it¡¯s a rush trying to free myself. When I¡¯m out there it¡¯s a rush trying to avoid getting caught. I win no matter what.¡± ¡°I see there¡¯s no reasoning with a madman like you¡­¡± I really don¡¯t know what to do right now. He can¡¯t be reasoned with. ¡°Are you alone?¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°Did you come alone?¡± ¡°Why is that any of your business?¡± Mumei smiled at his old foe for a long while, creeping out Higashi before his right arm started to twitch strangely. Eventually, it ripped apart his shirt, revealing a strange silver like liquid which soon exploded forward in Higashi¡¯s direction sending the man crashing against the wall. The liquid appeared to hold him in place as it started to tighten against his body. ¡°W-what is this!?¡± Higashi struggled, trying to break free, but found that this material was fighting against him almost as if it was alive. The loud noise caused Rebecca to come barging in as she was startled by what was going on inside. Seeing her teacher attached to the wall and Mumei on the offense was frightening, but even so, before she could retaliate, the liquid rushed towards her snaring her in its grasp as she struggled and gasped. Mumei casually stood up as parts of the liquid detached from himself and the other two before he reached a hand inside of the liquid pinning Higashi onto the wall, reaching into it as he pulled out his phone before scrolling down his contact list. ¡°If you don¡¯t want to die. Then do me a favor and tell your team that you need help, Higashi.¡± Mumei didn¡¯t offer him a chance as he immediately called Yun¡¯s number and held the phone towards Higashi¡¯s lips. ¡°Yo, what is it?¡± Yun could be heard across the phone line, sounding nonchalant due to it being Higashi who called. ¡°Yun! Come quick this guy is working for the Madfather! We¡¯re at the interrogation center, hurry!¡± Higashi shouted, fearful of what could happen and for good reason. After he was finished Mumei ended the call before tossing the phone to the ground. ¡°You¡¯ve fallen for the plan perfectly, Tsuda. You thought you killed him off, huh? Well, now humanity will pay for Justice¡¯s biggest sin. She¡¯ll be the first one of course.¡± He tilts his head over to Rebecca who was still covered with the suit, but it shaped accordingly to her body as if she was possessed. ¡°Rebecca¡­ oh no.¡± Higashi felt partially responsible for bringing her along. ¡°And if your friends don¡¯t hurry you¡¯ll be taken over as well. Now have fun, I¡¯m going to turn this entire city into mindless slaves!¡± Mumei chuckles before he heads out of the building. Mumei had a very dangerous trick up his sleeve, it turns out the person he was working for was known as the Madfather, but just who was he? Chapter 8: Condition Higashi¡¯s hunch turned out to be a very dangerous one as he was now captured by the substance most often used by the Madfather. His body was encased against the wall like a fly being splattered by a flyswatter. His movements were completely nullified by the casing of metal. Could he even get out of this predicament on his own? Would he have to rely on the help of his friends? Even then he didn¡¯t know if they would be enough to save him. A sigh left Higashi¡¯s lips as his struggling came to an end. Right now he had made a very big mistake. Mistakes are normally fine and dandy, but this cost Rebecca her freedom. Now she was a brain-dead slave to Madfather¡¯s insane plan. A world where free will doesn¡¯t exist¡­ that is truly a frightening world and I won¡¯t let something so stupid become a reality! Anger coursed through his veins as he clenched his teeth, revealing the pinkness of his gums. He struggled as hard as he could, but that didn¡¯t seem to do much. It¡¯d be hard for even a superpowered individual to break through this metal. Sigh. He lowered his head as he knew now that all he could do was rely on help. Not even his manipulation of gravity could deal with this. Still, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to try at least. Higashi took a deep breath as he began to focus and channel his energy into the liquid allowing it to take on a purple hue, but as he did so the thing acted as if knew what he was planning to do and it gripped him tighter while a tendril went to wrap around his mouth. He knew what this meant¡­ if he wouldn¡¯t wait for back up it¡¯d take over his body the same way it did Rebecca. It¡¯d be too hasty for him to test this thing so he decided to just wait on his backup. The members of Justice were many of things, but whenever it came to one of its own beings in danger they¡¯d rush to the scene in a hurry, well most of the time thankfully this was included as one of those times. Yun and Jesse didn¡¯t waste any time arriving at the location of the scene. However, as they arrived it was a nightmare the entire police detention center was infected with the viral metallic living suit. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Shit. This does not look good at all.¡± Yun announced as she slammed her foot into the vehicle breaks, it coming to a hard stop. She turned her head to Jesse, with a look of pure seriousness written on her face. ¡°Alright, Jesse, this is a huge problem that we have to stop.¡± Seeing the former humans just walk out of the detention center was an ominous sign of things to come. Right now they were docile, but they had one goal in mind and that was to just infect as many people as they possibly could. That alone was frightening. ¡°Y-Yun I thought he was dead! I-I can¡¯t do this. This is next level shit!¡± Jesse covered his face with his hands as he whined. ¡°Dude, don''t chicken out now! We need to stop him before he starts spreading further than this! Look, I''ll even get you some armor.¡± Yun bargained with him, as she went back to looking at the metallic humans. Listen, my children. Remember what your purpose is. Our goal is for the advancement of mankind. In order to reach that we must infect every living human on this planet. Don¡¯t spare anyone. The metallic human¡¯s head started to twitch randomly as they heard the voice of their father resonate with their minds and with his words they knew what they were to do. In an instant, they all ran off in different directions. ¡°This is too much for just the two of us¡­ I don¡¯t think we can handle this¡­ we might as well call the army.¡± Jesse continued to try and weasel his way out of this predicament. ¡°They''re all going different directions now! Stop being a coward and come on before it''s too late!¡± Yun said before she opened her door, hopping out to get started with the action. ¡°I¡¯m getting too old for this crap.¡± He sighed deeply as he popped open the door and hopped out of the vehicle. How would they deal with these creatures? It¡¯s been awhile since they had to face these insidious monsters. ¡°What should we do, Yun? They¡¯re preparing to split up. We won¡¯t be able to stop them all.¡± ¡°True, but that doesn''t mean we can''t try and stop as many as we can.¡± She began to form her signature armor, covering the entirety of her body before she turned to Jesse with her hand outreached. ¡°I''ll give you armor. You go in and help the others, I''ll try to stop as many as I can out here.¡± The easy job, Jesse didn¡¯t mind at all. Right now he was thrilled that he didn¡¯t have to deal with these things. His hand stretched out as he was reaching for a goddess to protect him with her holy shield. ¡°Roger that.¡± As Yun touched his hand, the armor began to sprout and spread down his arm, and soon covered him from head to toe. ¡°Yours will die off quicker than mines, so be fast.¡± Hearing those words caused him to frown. She waited now to let him know that? Now he had to focus on saving anyone that could be saved and paying close attention to the limit of this thing. ¡°Why am I just now being told this!?¡± ¡°We''re in a rush, Jesse, just go!¡± This was too much. How did things go from victory to soul-crushing defeat? Who would have thought that the Madfather was behind this? Jesse ran over towards the detention center quickly fading off into the background while leaving Yun to fend for herself. ¡°Hey, iron assholes! Here''s a fresh human for you!¡± Yun called out, trying to coax them into coming for her instead of heading off, hoping to catch the attention of as many as she could. The living embodiment of metal wasn¡¯t stupid, through its eyes they knew exactly who Yun was as it wasn¡¯t just its eyes that were peering on her, but the eyes of the Madfather and he knew how dangerous Justice was, but he defeated them once, so he could most definitely do it again. Chapter 9: Idea Was it really all right to leave Yun to fend for herself out there? If she let her guard down and got possessed by those things then¡­ he¡¯d be the last hope of the world and that thought alone was enough to make him want to wet himself. Maybe he should have more faith in his leader, but in this situation, it was real easy to feel the despair. Still, right now he had to make sure everyone in here was safe and to see if Higashi was still alive. Jesse pushed opened the doors into the detention center, quickly looking around to see if there was anyone at the reception desk. The lady who normally sat there was nowhere to be seen. There wasn¡¯t even a soul around here. It was quiet¡­ too quiet. Was no one really in here? If so he¡¯d still stay in here for a little while longer. It beats going back outside. The floor was mildly clean, resonating with each footstep that he took. He passed a turn at the hall which led to the restroom, instead, he kept straight, following the signs on the wall that led him to the holding cells. Upon entering this area, he saw that the floor was covered with droppings of a silver liquid. He made sure not to step on it and quickly walked away from it. There were cases of that stuff still being alive even after detaching from the main body. He pressed his back against the wall as he came to the first door to one of the interrogation rooms and slowly peeked his head in. His eyes widened when he noticed that Higashi was stuck to the wall inside. It¡¯s a good thing that he was still alive. Feeling relieved Jesse quickly opened the door and entered the room with a smile on his face. ¡°Never in my life did I think I¡¯d be happy to see you.¡± ¡°Jesse, stay on your toes! This place has been taken over!¡± ¡°I know that captain obvious. There¡¯s like a whole army of those freaks running around.¡± ¡°They even got Rebecca¡­¡± Higashi¡¯s voice sounded down after remembering this. The girl who looked up to him had been captured under his watch. This was so embarrassing on his part. He¡¯d never live this down. ¡°Damn¡­ this is what I feared the most. At least you¡¯re still kicking. So.. how do we get this shit off?¡± Jesse peered at the suit that was still trying to latch on tighter to Higashi¡¯s body.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°I thought you¡¯d be able to at least come up with that. I truly must do everything myself?¡± A sigh left Higashi¡¯s mouth. ¡°Can¡¯t you use your gravity powers or something?¡± ¡°No, whenever I use it this thing gets a whole lot tighter and threatens to take me over.¡± Jesse placed his index finger against his chin while his thumb rested under it. If that was the case then what could Higashi do? What was the weakness this damn thing had again? Intense heat could melt it, but that wasn¡¯t an option right now. ¡°The only thing that I can think of in this situation is making this thing explode. You can do that with how much damage you can cause.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t be able to do that in this position, I can¡¯t even move my arms.¡± Jesse nodded, but then he had an idea. With this, he believed that he could truly save Higashi and then the three of them would be able to find Rebecca and save her too. ¡°Stay here, I¡¯ll be back and if I¡¯m not then just don¡¯t panic.¡± ¡°Jesse, hey! What¡¯s the plan here!?¡± Higashi screamed, a vein showing on his forehead. He hated whenever he was not fully informed of a plan. Higashi sulked against the wall, waiting for what felt like forever. Was Jesse even going to come back? Damn how he hated being left in the dark like this. It made him feel truly helpless. He shouldn¡¯t have to deal with things like this. It should have been the other way around. Was all that training for nothing? Jesse came rushing back, breathing heavily and was covered with minor scrapes and bruises. But, he held something in his hand. ¡°Jesse! What happened to you?¡± ¡°I was anxious and I fell off the ladder a few times, but I found the officers supply boxes and look what I found!¡± A taser? What the hell was Jesse thinking? Was he so afraid that he was going to taze himself so he wouldn¡¯t have to deal with this recent event? ¡°This might hurt a bit, but when I do this you need to give it everything you¡¯ve got.¡± ¡°Wait, hold on! Let¡¯s think of another plan! I know there¡¯s a better way to do this!¡± Higashi shouted to no avail. Jesse tested the taser out, watching as sparks of lightning spewed out before thrusting it quickly at the metal that held Higashi in place. Doing so caused stressed for the living metal and much stress for his partner who hollered out in pain as his body lit up like a Christmas tree. Like Jesse had predicted the metal started to soften and acted as if it wanted to retreat and even in tremendous amounts of pain, Higashi saw this opening and capitalized on it, generating his energy through the liquid. His manipulation over gravity was advanced and since it didn¡¯t want to latch onto him anymore, he used that chance to send it flying into the ceiling causing it to cause a nasty SPLAT sound. ¡°Let¡¯s head for the door, Jesse¡­ we can keep it trapped in here.¡± ¡°Right on!¡± The two quickly left the interrogation room, shutting the door behind them while Higashi relaxed allow the liquid to fall back onto the ground. One would think that it¡¯d be moving around, but instead, it remained still. ¡°Never do that again.¡± Higashi stared at Jesse as he said this. ¡°I had no other choice! We needed you free from that thing.¡± ¡°Of course you did.¡± ¡°Yun¡¯s probably still outside, you should go provide some backup.¡± ¡°As much as I¡¯d hate to admit it, but you¡¯re probably right.¡± He started to rub his temples. ¡°We can save as many people as we can here and then we can find Rebecca.¡± ¡°This is going to be a very long day. I really hope you¡¯re up for it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not, but it was in the job description.¡± Jesse chuckled nervously. Jesse could only imagine how Yun was doing out there. Knowing her she should be able to hold her own, but still, the person they were fighting knew them very well. He was their first enemy and the two had a long history together. Will the heroes be able to stop the Madfather¡¯s wrath? Find out next time. Chapter 10: Purpose The mind was a very powerful tool. It was an instrument that manipulated other parts of the body. It had all of the power, but that¡¯s what made it so vulnerable. The Madfather¡¯s organic metallic substance had the ability to override the mind and inject Oliver¡¯s consciousness into the victim. It forced Oliver¡¯s ideals and will onto the person and had them live out a dream. All they could see was total darkness. Yun¡¯s work would be cut out for her as she had to deal with the monsters that surrounded her. Oliver was very cautious with the former teenagers. In the past, they nearly cost him his life and there was no way that would happen again. They all moved together in unison like a group of muscles. Soon the tallest host took a step to see its target¡¯s reaction. Right now it just wanted to play with her. ¡°There might be a lot of you, but you don''t scare me,¡± Yun said as she watched them move closer, and with the tallest of the bunch taunting her, she''d take it upon herself to rush at them, as she leaped up to try to kick it in the chest. The host fell back onto the ground with a thud from the force of the kick. The other four surrounding her didn¡¯t take well to this approach but knew that was what she would do. They moved as a unit now, extending their arms as they extended their limbs with the metallic liquid as it attempted to attack Yun from nearly every side of her body. Watching the metal monsters attacked in unison, Yun decided to dodge by ducking down to avoid the limbs. Using this as a chance to strike, she sweeps her leg to try to trip them all. With their planned attack avoided, all of their limbs locked up with one another. Their hands became stuck which left them vulnerable from their opponent¡¯s sweep attack which quickly made them relocate with the asphalt. Soon their limbs liquify, becoming nothing but a pool of silver water. This revealed some of the officer¡¯s uniform from the sleeves as their clothes were shown, but their faces were still covered. All of this was a tease, a ploy to show that these people were still just doing their jobs. They were being possessed by a parasite. Oliver¡¯s will forced them to tighten their fist as the liquid ¡®crawled¡¯ back onto their bodies, reforming them, returning them to what Oliver wanted them to be: mindless. ¡°I really hate dealing with this shit. So I''ll be putting an end to this quick and fast.¡± Yun stated as she rose back to her feet, moving to remove herself from the center of the metallic zombies. That was a smart move for her to do, but it wouldn¡¯t be that easy. The tallest member of the group lunged out, not even attempting to strike the woman, but to latch onto her. It tried to reach for her waist and tried to lock onto her waist. Watching him lunge towards her, a raises her foot in anticipation, ready to kick the large metal monster away from her. The unfortunate living zombie was effectively kicked away by the leader of Justice, its body sliding against the pavement while the other lurkers remained vigilant. ¡°You know you¡¯re way in over your head this time.¡± The man muttered, his voice sounding a lot like the old American man from across seas. ¡°In over my head? Ha, we''ve beaten you before, we can do it again!¡± Yun commented, keeping a good distance away from the creatures as she took a defensive stance. ¡°We¡­ if I remember correctly your team has declined in numbers. Plus I¡¯ve already ensnared two of your members.¡± The zombie began to show a wide smile. ¡°You¡¯ve lost!¡± This time one of his goonies went in for the attack, leaping into the air above the opposing enemy before clasping its hands together to form some strange contraption. It took longer than anticipated, but it has been awhile since these creatures fought. Its arm formed a cannon like object from its own substance before it started to expel bullets at rapid fire as if it was a Gatling gun. ¡°Uh oh!¡± Seeing the sudden spray of bullets, Yun began to run to the side, moving quickly to avoid them as they came, even beginning to handspring and cartwheel, showing off her physical prowess. One of the guys behind stretched out his hand to grab onto the shooter¡¯s leg before using its strength and length to spin its comrade around a few times before throwing the shooter Yun¡¯s direction.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. At this time, a sudden driver could be seen passing by while seeing all of this and with them being in his way he opted to blow the horn as loud as he could to get them out of the way. ¡°Oh boy, this isn''t good!¡± Seeing the income vehicle, as well as the incoming enemy, Yun is stuck with a choice. She deciding the best way to keep the citizen out of harm''s way by charging towards the thrown enemy, hoping to be able to charge him backward. The living zombie¡¯s body was forced into the air, propelling like a shooting star as he crashed into the armored woman. The driver was taken back by this as his mouth just dropped open as if he was watching two monsters fight. The force was a bit too much for the metallic zombie to take not only was he pushed back but the material coating his body started to dissolve and fall off in chunks. It didn¡¯t even appear as if it could reconnect with it. ¡°Looks like with enough force it all comes falling apart!¡± Yun began to chuckle, stepping over the fresh metal chunks, and over to the injured being. ¡°If all I have to do is punch you all enough, that''s great for me.¡± The other zombies watched emotionless as one of their own started to break apart. Was the damage that high to render it defeated? That wasn¡¯t normal, it¡¯d take more force than that normally. The injured being soon rested its head back against the asphalt, revealing one of many officers who was possessed by this parasite. After seeing this, the driver sped off, causing his wheels to leave marks along the road as it nearly swerved and crashed into a building. ¡°Looks like there¡¯s still some drawbacks. They¡¯ll have to do unfortunately because of you.¡± The ringleader muttered. Two of the zombies charged in swiftly, clenching their fist to prepare to match the woman¡¯s strength. Her armor was troublesome even for the likes of him. Raising her fists in a defensive manner, she waited for the two to get close enough to her action plan. She''d first move to her left, to avoid at least one of their fists, before she raised her own to send a punch straight for one of their faces. Her fist collided with the metallic material, forcing the head back of the monster while having a ranging sound as if it was smacked by a frying pan. With it staggered its friend was going to take up where it had failed. Cutting through the space around them it appeared behind Yun, clenching its fist tightly as it swung for the center of the woman¡¯s back. Being staggered forward just a bit, Yun barely felt the effect of the swing to her back. She''d use the opportunity, however, to thrust a leg back for a kick to her attacker¡¯s stomach. The hit caused its body to arch forward slightly. Not because it ha nerves or anything, but from the sheer momentum that the kick influenced. However, with her leg up like this, the zombie moved to grab ahold of it to weaken her defense. ¡°Huh?¡± Getting her leg gripped, Yun quickly turns around, raising her other leg off of the ground, with a kick aimed towards the zombie''s head, with the goal of forcing it to release its grip. The kick rattled his head, almost literally knocking a few screws loose. Its grip was relinquished as it fell to the ground. He underestimated the quickness of her. It has been a few years, it was only natural for her to have improved with time. The zombie looked dazed from this attack as it remained on the ground. His friend, on the other hand, was preparing its next attack, slowly forming its hand into a drill as it thrust it forward. Its main focus was on weakening that armor and so it was going to drill through every layer if it had to. Hearing the sound of the newly formed drill which came her way, Yun turned herself to hold out her hands, attempting to use them hold on to the incoming weapon. Was she going to try and hold onto the drill? Hah, fat chance. The metallic zombie activated the drill, causing it to spin rapidly as she held it within her grasp. ¡°Let¡¯s see just how sturdy that armor truly is.¡± Sparks flew about as she held onto the drill, groaning as she tried to tighten her grip on the tool. Adding pressure, it''d begin to smoke, with the armor on her hand chipping little by little. ¡°You think this is enough to break my armor? Ha!¡± ¡°We¡¯ll find out, won¡¯t we?¡± The zombie had no expression, it wasn¡¯t even possible for it to show any. It simply watched as the drill continued to spin until¡­ It stopped rotating and just like that it broke apart and revealed the arm of the human inside of him. As she saw the drill fall apart, Yun took the opportunity to strike, spinning around to kick the metal zombie in the side to knock them away. ¡°Looks like my armor is tougher than your little metal!¡± The zombie was kicked away, feeling the rattling within its insides as it fell to the ground. It was hard to say if the kick damaged it to the point of breaking down on whether the drill had a chain reaction. Seeing the metal dissolve back into a pool of liquid the tall man shook his head. Now it was just him and another henchman. The odds were not in his favor it seems and to make matters worse¡­ ¡°Secret Otaku Move: Nutshot!¡± Appearing from behind the tall man was none other than Jesse who was seen raising his leg as hard as he could¡­ bringing his foot towards the man¡¯s soft and squishy parts, well they would be if they weren¡¯t covered in metal. All that was heard was a soft metallic PANG followed by girlish screaming. ¡°Oh shit! What the fuck!? That fucking hurts! I-I think my foot is broken! Fuck!¡± Jesse moaned in pain as he hopped on one leg while clutching his injured foot. ¡°Jesse, you goof! They''re covered in metal!¡± Seeing the outcome of Jesse''s sneak attack caused Yun to enter a fit of laughter, as she wrapped her arms around her armored stomach to chuckle away. Jesse noticed something was really wrong. There was no armor on his body¡­ where did it GO!? It was there when he went invisible! Damn it all, now he just looked like a goof troop! ¡°Yun you liar¡­ the armor disappeared!¡± ¡°Hey, I told you it wouldn''t last as long for you.¡± ¡°Ever the clown are you, Jesse Howard?¡± The tall man spoke. ¡°Oliver¡­ it really is you¡­¡± ¡°Yes, I take it you saved your friend?¡± ¡°You bet your ass he did!¡± Yun interrupted. ¡°... You did save him, didn''t you?¡± ¡°Heh, of course, I did, he¡¯s right here after all. Higashi? Higashi¡­? Where is he¡­?¡± ¡°Damn it, where did he go now?¡± Where was Higashi¡­? Inside of the detention center¡­ So disgusting¡­ I can¡¯t believe this¡­ what kind of cruel monster could do this? Higashi was seen sweeping glass into a dustpan, the small particles rustling together. There were a lot of fine pieces, but he had to make sure to get all of them. Not a single piece of glass will exist¡­. Not a single one. Did he get all of them? To make sure he used a magnifying glass to enhance his vision, scanning around to see if there was any extra fine pieces of glass, the stubborn pieces that were small enough to stick to your fingers. Did I do it¡­? Yes, it¡¯s perfect. Those damn monsters have no shame! They tore this place apart without hesitation! Speaking of which¡­ aren¡¯t I supposed to be somewhere¡­? ¡°Crap Jesse!¡± Chapter 11: Late All of this was essentially a distraction. Oliver didn¡¯t care if he won this battle or not. The percentage of winning against Justice with such low firepower was very low though. But, pretty soon he¡¯d have an army. It didn¡¯t matter how strong they were by that point. With the numbers, he was imagining he could take over an entire country with little to no problems. Then everything would make sense in the end and his master plan would come to fruition. ¡°Higashi hasn¡¯t changed one bit. That¡¯s what I like about him. He¡¯s so loyal to his convictions.¡± The tall man muttered. Standing beside him was his last henchmen. The two of them was preparing their next move right about now. Jesse, unfortunately, was nothing to worry about at this moment. ¡°Shit¡­ Yun can you handle these goons on your own, because I¡¯m about to hide!¡± Jesse had no shame. ¡°Wow, Jesse, just gonna leave me hanging?¡± Yun asked as she took a defensive stance, in preparation for the fight that would ensue. ¡°Fine, I''ll be able to kick their asses alone.¡± ¡°Every superhero has their specialty. Fighting just doesn¡¯t happen to be mine!¡± His voice sounded further away for some reason, oh that was because he was running away now. ¡°This makes things easier on me. Once I get rid of you things will be a lot easier.¡± The tall man shot a glance at his henchman who decided to move forward, slowly cutting the distance between him and the leader of Justice. Seeing the metallic henchmen close in on her, Yun squints her eyes and smirks, and dashes forward, sending the palm of her right hand towards its gut. ¡°GET BACK!¡± The force of her attack sends the metallic being back, sliding against the asphalt before catching itself. Her level of strength didn¡¯t decrease over the years, but if there was one thing that it remembered it was that she wasn¡¯t very bright. Its right arm inched up into the air before it started to morph into a tentacle. This metal was very malleable and could take the form of a lot of different shapes to its advantage. A whip was just one of those things. With one mighty swing, the soldier swung his arm and allowed the tentacle to stretch out towards its target, aiming for the woman¡¯s neck. With the fresh metal tentacle inbound, Yun simply reached her hand up to grab the weapon when it grew close enough, and in doing so, yanking it to force the enemy towards herself. It seems that he underestimated her reaction time. Now he was forced into the air, quickly flying towards her with great speed. Now all he could do was brace for impact. Previous incarnations of metallic soldiers could harden their body and he was no exception. He focused on the metallic shell acting as an exoskeleton and increased the durability of it as he put up his guard, an arm around his chest.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. But Yun wasn''t aiming for the chest, with her armored arm drawn back, fist clenched tightly. Swinging it upwards, she sent an uppercut straight for the zombie¡¯s face. The zombie¡¯s face was lifted straight up into the air by the concussive force that was produced from the strike. Pieces of hardened metal were seen chipping off before its body started to fall. With the metal minion''s descent, Yun would follow up with a flashy kick, spinning her body as she swung her leg for the zombie''s body in a final attack attempt. The kick not only staggers the enemy but it also sends him flying back through the air, landing on the ground with an uncomfortable thud. The upper half of its body started to lift up, but soon the metallic substance would fall off, leaving nothing but a thick puddle of mercury. ¡°Hmph, child''s play. You''re next, big ugly!¡± The Chinese woman teased, pointing at the last remaining enemy: the tall being. No, the former henchman was not defeated instead it was issued an order to resign. The tall man held out his hand as the pool of mercury latched onto his body, adding onto his mass and soon matching the rest of his ivory body. ¡°Looks like I¡¯m going to need more of me to take just one woman out. How trivial.¡± ¡°Can''t have more of you if I take you all out.¡± ¡°You and I know that it won¡¯t be that easy. Especially since you¡¯re missing someone.¡± The man who was very tall held out his left hand, wrapping his right against his wrist as his fingers morphed into sharpened daggers. They were then projected out from their sockets, propelling through the air as if they were jet rockets. ¡°Missing someone? Heh, don''t know what you''re talking about!¡± Yun retorted as she ignored the daggers, charging through and towards the man with the aid of her helpful armoring. With the amount of metal he had consumed it didn¡¯t take long for his fingers to reform, but it appears that she wasn¡¯t going to give him much time to do much else. If that was the case then he was going to meet her in return. He pressed his right foot against the ground as he caused a dent in it as he took off while forming his right hand into a blade. ¡°Let''s go!¡± yelled Yun, as she cocked back her arm to deliver a mighty punch towards the tall metal man, not holding back one bit. The tall man guarded against the punch with his left hand, stopping him dead in his track while allowing a brief pause. Once he confirmed that he had a grip on the woman¡¯s fist he raised his bladed arm. ¡°Huh? What''d you think you''re doing?¡± Questioned Yun, as the tall man held onto her fist. She simply looked up at him and his blade, waiting for it to be brought down. The man kept the blade up high, but this was all a diversion as the metal coating his fist returned into its liquid state, latching onto Yun¡¯s hand before the suit of metal started to break down slowly. ¡°I already have one of you on my side. This should have been expected.¡± ¡°Pfft, you think you''ve got me? I''m not stupid!¡± ¡°Recent history shows that you are indeed not very intelligent.¡± ¡°Ha!¡± Hearing this, Yun can''t help but laugh, as steam arose from her arm, as the armor stayed in the tall metal man''s grasp, but her real arm slid out from it cleanly, freeing her. The metal didn¡¯t see this as it continued to crawl up her arm, but once it made contact with the steam it started to leak onto the floor with the heat being a weakness of it which caused the tall man to second guess himself. ¡°What is this? This certainly wasn¡¯t listed about you¡­¡± ¡°Ohh¡­ interesting. So I''m hot enough to melt you, huh? Good to know!¡± Yun takes this chance for a swift attack, jumping and swinging her leg around to try and kick the enemy across the face. Heat was definitely a known weakness for him. The extreme temperature was enough to weaken the molecular structure and render it to its boiling point. This left it completely defenseless as the kick sent it against the ground. As it lied there, it realized that it couldn¡¯t beat her in this weakened state. It needed more control. Its left arm was starting to melt away, it was hard to keep its shape. Such damage in only a few seconds it was a shame how weak it was to heat. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. I have enough distance so I no longer need to entertain you. The world will soon become a paradise, just wait.¡± With this the liquid soon started to collapse, leaving an injured police officer in its wake. ¡°Running?! Don''t run from me, metal bastard!¡± Yun watches as the metal liquid subsided, stomping in the ground as her armor began to steam. After everything was handled only then did Higashi make his appearance, running out of the detention center as he seemed eager to provide support. ¡°I¡¯m here, where are they!?¡± ¡°What the hell took you so long? Jesse was out here before you!¡± ¡°I had to sweep all of the gla- There were a few injured people inside who needed help.¡± ¡°Oh come on, I caught that first part!¡±