After having a coffee with her friend Miu, Kazuho got up, collecting her bag.
"Kazuho…" Miu suddenly said. "Did you hear anything from Koichi?"
Koichi Haimawari was at the front of the Naruhata Incident years ago, infamous as the poster boy of the Naruhata Vigilantes.
In those times, he had gone by the name of The Crawler.
In the few years they had spent together, Kazuho and he and one other had become close friends.
Remembering those days, Kazuho let out a smile.
After the citywide destruction that had resulted because of the fight between Koichi and the Villain, he had to go to America to escape the debt, becoming a Sidekick of a Pro Hero there.
"Why?" Kazuho asked, smiling. "You think I am hung up on him?"
Miu frowned. "No… I mean…"
Kazuho giggled. "I am messing with you. I get his texts from time to time. But, you know, he's busy…"
Miu had to let go of the topic with a nod.
"I am going, then," Kazuho said.
"Text me!" Miu shouted.
The café's bell tinkled, and the smile on Kazuho's face flattened as she walked out.
The entire world had gained an orange hue as the sun settled, her eyes going back to the edges of the skyscrapers.
[Does the world look gray to you, Ms. Kazuho?]
Kazuho's right eye widened, a chill running down her spine. "Who said that?"
She looked around, but there were people everywhere, and some were even giving her weird eyes, seeing her just standing there.
[Look up.]
Kazuho's head snapped up, searching for just about anything.
[Look at the sky, Ms. Kazuho. Tell me you don't remember how it felt. Tell me you don't remember the freedom. Tell me you don't imagine reaching up and turning the sky blue…]
Kazuho's face paled.
She began lifting her hand as the buried feelings erupted.
Suddenly, with a snap, she pulled back her hand, her gaze hardening. "Who — Are — You?"
Kazuho touched the eye patch on her left eye, fearing another parasite with Queen Bee-like Quirk had infiltrated her head.
[There's nothing wrong with you, Ms. Kazuho. Please relax. I am talking to you telepathically.]
Telepathically? Kazuho frowned, still looking around. Suddenly, her eye landed on a small alley just by the main road.
There, standing against the wall, was a man in a white lab coat, wearing a black mask.
The moment she saw him, he turned around and began walking away into the alley.
Kazuho didn't know what took over her.
Was it the Vigilante within her?
Was it the words that this man had said?
Was it the realization that the sky overhead wasn't gray, but blue in others' eyes?
Kazuho didn't know, couldn't know, and, perhaps, wouldn't know the answers. Not by herself. So, she rushed to catch that man before he disappeared without answering her questions.
The moment she stood at the mouth of the dark alley, she saw the man taking a turn, disappearing again.
"Humph!" Kazuho scoffed, walking inside. Does he think I am a helpless, little girl?
She reached into her bag, unlocked her mobile, and sent her location to a man who she knew would find her no matter where she was. All this with one tap and without looking down.
Then, she wrapped her fingers around the gun.
Ever since she had moved to Tokyo, and given her history, she had been keeping a licensed arm on herself. Never again Kazuho wanted to find herself helpless against a Villain. Never again did she want to be taken advantage of and get used against her own friends.
This time, when she took the turn, she found him staring right back at him… with a few meters of darkness between them.
His eyes were glowing red in the darkness, his white lab coat almost glistening in contrast.
"Who are you?" Kazuho asked again, her fingers tightening around the gun.
[Do you know that the Villains attacked UA High a few days ago?]
"What?" Kazuho was shocked. It wasn't like she followed the news much, but something like this big would have found its way to her, regardless.
Yet, she had heard no such thing.
Either what this man was saying was a lie… Or…
[Do you know that the Jaku Incident was nothing but a big cover-up?]
"What… are you trying to say?" Kazuho felt like she was being manipulated. Again.
The trauma of Queen Bee taking over her, using her to hurt her friends, had taken root in her heart. It was to the point that she rarely interacted with strangers without questioning every word coming out of their mouths.
Yet, the more this man talked, the more Kazuho felt that something was amiss — not with the man, but with the world.
[Do you know that they never revealed who was behind the Naruhata Incident years ago?]
Kazuho stumbled back, her grip around the gun loosening. "What…"
The man took out a bundle of documents and threw them at her.
Shocked, Kazuho warily picked the documents up and went through the titles in dim light, her right eye almost popping out.
The documents mentioned her, Koichi, and Master Knuckleduster, the last of the Naruhata Vigilantes' trio. It mentioned all the Villains in detail, including No. 6, the prime Villain who had fought with Koichi and had laid waste to the city.
It showed the Nomus' images as well.
But, there was one more name in the documents.
A name Kazuho had never heard coming up from the Pro Heroes.
All For One!
"What… is this?" Kazuho stuttered. No. This can't be true. Didn't they say that they dealt with all the Villains?!
[A war is coming, Ms. Kazuho. A war that will sweep through the entire country. It's up to you if you want to sit through it or…]
Kazuho looked up and stared at the man. "Or what?"
[Or fight.]
"Fight?" Kazuho let out a wry chuckle. "I am just a…"
[Quirks aren't what I offer, Ms. Kazuho. But, if you seek a fighting chance, that I can certainly provide.]
What does he mean?! Kazuho thought, her grip involuntarily crumpling the documents. Can I… Can I…
"Why me?" She ended up asking.
[Because…] The man pointed toward the sky, making Kazuho look up. [… I know what you will be fighting for.]
Kazuho's fingers balled into fists, uncaring of the documents.
[Think about it, Ms. Kazuho. I will find you in a few days. I hope… you will know what you truly want by then.]
As the man turned around, Kazuho blurted, "What's in it for you?"
The man stopped, the space parting in front of him, showing a blackness much darker than the alley.
He turned around and put the palm of his right hand on his left chest.
[All I do is in His service, Ms. Kazuho…]
The man bent his back.
Then, he stepped back into the blackness, leaving behind words.
[… Praise be to Mr. Fool.]
****************
AN: Original Image of Dr. Blessed as he mentions Mr. Fool is available
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