Overhaul and Mr. Compress would have preferred to keep things behind closed doors, silent and away from the unwanted attention of Heroes and the police.
But Rappa and the Nomu he was fighting had other plans in mind, which most likely involved hitting harder than the other.
The heaviest combatants became entangled in a high-speed festival of punches, with the Precept gaining ground over the lower-quality creature. Finally, Rappa saw fit to ram his opponent and slam it against the wall, but the Nomu, far from feeling pain, embraced the Yakuza and squeezed with all its might.
Rappa had no choice but to continue his charge. This ended with both combatants crashing through the wall and untangling on the other side, where they ignored the small crowd of workers who were startled by their appearance.
While the Yakuza was not recognized by anyone, the creature he was fighting was.
Someone notified the authorities of a Nomu sighting, and the word spread quickly until it reached the HPSC offices, and it was the HPSC who alerted Endeavor and urged him to act immediately.
The League of Villains was high on the priority list, and Endeavor needed to appear in the spotlight of a grand spectacle, or his credibility as the next Number 1 would never move past its current state.
The HPSC President also urged Hawks to move. Endeavor might be the public face, but she wanted her best operative in the field to ensure there were no uncontrollable incidents.
She had learned not to underestimate the League after Yokohama.
Meanwhile, things in Chiba were getting complicated for Compress and Kurogiri.
Overhaul turned out to be far more dangerous than they had estimated and forced them to keep their distance. Kurogiri was not fast enough to send him to another location with his gates, and Compress was limited by the Yakuza's manipulation of the terrain.
They were not the best opponents for Chisaki.
—You only had to hand over a bullet and this could have been avoided!— Compress recalled the purpose of his corporate espionage, moving out of Chisaki's reach with a flourish that was half-desperate, half-elegant.
—You talk too much— Chisaki retorted, quickly changing direction to avoid one of Kurogiri's gates.
—Leader of the Shie Hassaikai, your subordinate and mine will draw attention out there. We will soon have Heroes on our heels, and I am certain you do not want that— Kurogiri pointed out, still trying to reason with the Yakuza.
—And what would the problem be? We are merely honorable citizens defending our warehouse and our integrity from dangerous criminals like you. The use of our quirks is more than justified— Overhaul replied calmly, lunging at the magician once more.
The moment Compress tried to evade, his sense of balance was disturbed, and his graceful movement was completely ruined.
Overhaul was swift and precise, but also careful. He did not go for Compress directly, but for the ground surrounding him.
The earth split open and massive jaws formed, ready to snap shut over Compress and take his life in a gruesome manner.
Kurogiri did not allow it. He collapsed his physical form into a dark vortex and expanded his own mist beneath the masked man's feet, swallowing him despite the intoxicating sensation that affected him as well.
Overhaul's attack only struck the void of the shadow.
An instant later, Kurogiri dropped Compress's body a couple of meters higher up, interposing his collar to give the dizzy magician a point of support.
—Don't fall or you're lost!— Kurogiri warned, searching for whoever was responsible for this sensation that hindered his total concentration.
—T-that is terrible advice!— Compress complained, stumbling dangerously upon the surface of the collar.
Without warning, a dense rain of projectiles enveloped them from two directions. Crystalline spikes and spears of wood and metal from one side and the ground, courtesy of Hōjō and Chisaki.
The bald Yakuza had been able to finish off the Nomu without Compress and Kurogiri even noticing. Now the situation was less than ideal for both members of the League.
—Do you have any more Nomu hidden in your pocket!?— Compress whispered with a slight touch of desperation.
—Of course not!— Kurogiri replied, pushing his concentration to the limit to combat the instability caused by, most likely, another member of the Shie Hassaikai.
He opened two massive gates that swallowed the attacks, redirecting the projectiles back at Overhaul himself to gain a breather.
As expected, the agile Yakuza evaded without much trouble, but the objective was achieved by forcing him to cease his attack.
Kurogiri grew frustrated and decided it was time to leave. This follow-up mission had turned into another failure for the League.
********************************
Endeavor propelled himself at high speeds across the skies of Japan. The action drained his stamina, but the Flame Hero could not delay his intervention any longer.
It took him several minutes of hard pushing to reach Chiba and the specific port he needed to get to. Even from above, he could see the commotion.
He plummeted down, fixing his gaze on the combatants who had caused the initial scandal. A masked man of robust build and a Nomu, locked in a physical duel that the creature was losing.
Endeavor had been notified on the way that everyone involved was part of the criminal underworld and that the group fighting the Nomu was under Sir Nighteye's scrutiny. If he found incriminating evidence, he could act against the Precepts.
Otherwise, he had to pretend they did not exist.
—Out of the way!— the Hero roared in warning. Rappa looked over his shoulder and threw himself aside, clearing the path and leaving the bioengineered creature exposed.
A dense stream of fire bathed the Nomu from head to toe, charring it instantly and stripping the flesh from its bones. Classified as a non-living being, Endeavor had no reason to be gentle with the thing.
He landed heavily, verifying that the Nomu was definitely dead.
—I already had it, Hero!— Rappa complained with an aggressive stance, fired up by the unfairly interrupted fistfight. —You shouldn't be here, get lost!
A vein throbbed on Endeavor's forehead as he glared sullenly at the Yakuza. The individual's audacity tested his patience.
—Stay here and don't move!— he growled as he turned back toward the warehouse, where the sounds of battle continued. He only needed to find something to justify an attack against these Yakuza to make them fear his name.
—I wouldn't do that if I were you, Hero— Rappa approached too closely, grabbing his arm without a shred of respect. This is no place for you.
Endeavor took a deep breath and slowly turned his head, increasing the intensity of the flames surrounding him. —Get your hands off me, street scum, or I will have to arrest you for interfering with a Hero on duty— he said in a threatening tone.
—...You aren't very heroic. Japan will fall into ruin with a guy like you leading its Heroes— Rappa mocked, letting go and stepping back a few paces with his hands raised.
Endeavor's mood worsened, and he decided right then to give a beating to everyone he found here.