Chapter 71
[97]
As Ryuji and Ann walked to school that morning, unaware of the events which had transpired a short time ago on the roof, they were surprised to find a familiar face waiting by the school’s gate. While he wore a large bandage over his nose, and had several visible bruises still healing on his face, the figure was unmistakably Yuuki Mishima.
“H-Hey guys.” The boy greeted awkwardly, unsure of how they would react to seeing him here.
“Mishima…” Ann said, subconsciously feeling the scar on her forehead.
Before she could get in closer, Ryuji stood in front of her defensively. “Whaddya want Mishima? Come back for revenge?”
“No! No nothing like that!” Mishima waved his hands nervously. “I just wanted to talk to you guys before…” He looked away, rubbing his arm.
“Before what?”
“I *sigh* I’m going to turn myself into the police.”
Ann and Ryuji were shocked by this. A villain willingly turning himself in? Even if he was their friend once, Mishima had killed people! Sure the deaths hadn’t been intentional, but he was still the direct cause.
“I saw the reports...The damage I did...The deaths.” Mishima’s voice cracked as tears rolled down his cheeks. “I-I never meant for any of this to happen! You’ve gotta believe me! I only *sniff* I only wanted to help my hero!”
The blonds watched as their former friend lost all of his composure, leaning against a pillar for support. Though she hadn’t forgiven him, Mishima needed someone right now, so Ann pushed past Ryuji, walked up to the boy and wrapped him in a hug.
“I’m so sorry!” Mishima cried into Ann’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry I hurt you and so many others!”
“Shhh it’s okay.” She spoke softly and patted him on the back. “You’re doing the right thing now Mishima. Making amends for what you’ve done.”
“Th-Thanks Ann.” Mishima wiped his face as he stood back up. “I just wanted to tell you both that I’m sorry, since I might not see you guys again for a long time.”
“Hey man, it’s alright.” Ryuji reassured him. “We’ll be there for you when you get out.”
“Thanks. Maybe juvie won’t be so bad, Ren went there after all and look at him! He’s dating one of the prettiest girls in school.”
“Yeah.” Ann said before pausing for a moment. “Wait, who’s Ren dating!?” That question might have come out louder than she had wanted.
“Oh, are you two not together? I heard a rumor that you were.”
“O-Of course we aren’t! We’re just friends!” Ann’s face was red now.
“My bad. There was also a rumor that he was with the student council president, and another about him and that girl with the fluffy hair, but who knows, right? Anyways, I’ll see you guys...in the future. I’m gonna go now.” He began to walk in the opposite direction of the school. “Oh and if you see Ren, can you thank him for me? He was the first person to really talk to me in school, I’m really grateful for that.”
“Sure thing man!” Ryuji called back. “We’ll meet again! Count on it!”
As the blue-haired boy disappeared into the crowd, the two teens turned to each other.
“I’m glad for him, he’s doing the right thing.” Ryuji said.
“Me too.” Ann replied, taking one more look into the street before walking into the school.
“So, concerned with who Ren’s dating hmm?” Ryuji said with a sly smirk.
“Shut up.” Ann said, cheeks pink as she slapped the back of Ryuji’s head.
Meanwhile, Ren and Haru were still on the school’s rooftop, sitting down now as Ren explained to Haru the events that led up to him discovering his powers. As he spoke, his ears picked up a dripping noise and he looked down to check it out.
“Haru you’re bleeding!” He said as he noticed the large nasty gash on her shin, no doubt caused by her fall from the roof.
“Oh! I didn’t even notice! I must’ve cut my leg on the ledge and not realized it.” She said, reaching for the wound.
“C’mon, let’s get you to the nurse’s office. Can you walk?” He asked, offering her his hand.
“It’s fine I should-agh!” She winced in pain as she placed weight on the leg.
Ren came in to help, allowing the girl to lean on him while she hopped to the door. As she moved, Ren noticed that a considerable amount of blood was pouring from the wound, and if they didn’t act soon, it might get infected. When they finally reached the entrance, they were faced with another problem, stairs.
“Umm okay...Haru I’m going to try something, so please don’t get mad at me.” Ren warned the girl.
“What are you-whoa!” She was suddenly lifted off of the ground and placed in Ren’s arms, being carried bridal style.
“Is this okay? Sorry if that freaked you out.”
“No it’s fine it’s just...I’ve never been carried like this before.” She said while blushing. “I kind of feel like a princess. I’m not too heavy, am I?”
“Not at all.” Ren said as he began to carefully descend the steps. “Feels like I’m carrying a feather pillow, or a baby lamb.”
Haru giggled at that, the situation’s inherent awkwardness being somewhat lightened by his humor. Hopefully school hadn’t begun yet, the last thing she wanted was to hear the whispers of her classmates as they watched the school delinquent carry her. Not that she thought of Ren as a delinquent at all, he was a perfect gentleman, student, friend, everything really. Maybe it was that perfectness that caused her to suspect him to be The Chameleon in disguise in the first place. Boy was she glad that she was wrong on that account.
As she thought more about the kind of person Ren was, she gazed up at his face. He was quite handsome really, not to mention the muscles that she could feel as she was pressed against his chest. And if all of that wasn’t enough, it turned out that in his spare time, he was a freaking superhero! This boy really was the whole package.
“Oh no.” Haru said quietly as she came to a realization.
“What’s up?” Ren asked as he looked down at her.
“N-Nothing! I’m fine! I um...I just remembered that I had homework due today!” She lied while trying to hide her embarrassed face.
“Oh, well then it’s a good thing we’re already here.” He said as they arrived at the door to the nurse’s office. “Hopefully you won’t be in here for too long.” As they stepped into the room, neither of the two noticed a first year girl who’d seen them from the other end of the hall.
“Anyone here? We’ve got an injured student.” Ren called into the seemingly empty office, suddenly the sound of clicking heels from the back room made their way to the front.
“Alright alright, hold your horses.” A woman’s voice called as she stepped into the room. “I’ve got a mountain of paperwork to sort through right now so I’m a little-” The woman paused as she and Ren made eye contact.
“T-Takemi!?”
“Hey there Guinea Pig.”
[98]
Minato was a free man now, though it wasn’t by the means he wanted. He had to accept Kingpin’s deal though, it was the kind of offer one ‘can’t refuse.’ The job was simple, and it paid well, enough to set him up for the rest of his life. And while Minazuki wasn’t his ideal partner, it would hopefully make the job easier.
The job he was given was simple, kill the new Spider-Man. It wasn’t something that he would particularly enjoy, after all, this wasn’t even the same Spider-Man that put him in prison. But now that he was on the outside and that alone afforded him an opportunity to right some wrongs in his life. As he walked down the streets of Tokyo, a briefcase with his equipment in his hand and a suit and tie to replace his orange jumpsuit, he recalled a conversation between him and his new ‘partner’ when they exited the limousine.
“Are you fuckin’ kiddin’ me!? 10 million yen for Spider-Man’s head? I would’ve done it for free! Dumbasses!” Minazuki laughed as he sorted through his reclaimed belongings.
The two of them were in an underground safehouse used by Kingpin and his goons, until the job was done, it would serve as their living quarters. The place was fully stocked with a miniature bar, along with a television and recliners. It was made clear to them however, that this was no vacation, if they didn’t complete their job within 10 days, they would wish they had stayed in prison.
The luxurious accommodations weren’t the only thing that came with the room, it was also packed with weapons, ammunition, and most importantly their ‘super villain’ gear. God how much Minato loathed that term.
“Hahaha hell yeah!” Minazuki said as he finished putting on his gear, giant stinger scraping large chunks out of the walls.
The large green mechanical suit with a sharp tail on the end seemed like overkill to Minato, but who was he to talk? He had a colorful suit and code name of his own.
“Do you need to do that in here?” Minato asked, annoyed more than anything.
“You got a problem?” Minazuki pointed the stinger inches from Minato’s face.
Not intimidated in the least, he pushed the stinger aside and gave Sho Minazuki a look that said he was completely done with this situation. As he finished straightening his tie, Minato grabbed his briefcase and headed toward the door.
“Hey, you wanna make things interesting?” Sho called after him. “Maybe make some more cash?” Intrigued, Minato stopped in the doorway but didn’t turn around. “First one to squash the spider gets half of the other’s money. Deal?”
“...Sure.” Minato said, leaving the room and heading up into the city.
And that brought him to where he was now. He, of course, had complete confidence that he would win the bet. Scorpion had a powerful suit and knew how to use it sure, but the man was an idiot, relying on rage and bloodlust when he fought rather than skill and cunning. The real question was whether or not the man would accept the bet when he inevitably lost.
But all of that wasn’t important right now, what was important was where he was headed right now. He still received letters in prison, from one member of his extended family in particular, though they had stopped coming as of late. When he finally found out why in a letter from his brother, he was incredibly disappointed and ashamed. It was time to set the record straight, and that’s why he was coming out here to the back alleys, where that family member was apparently staying in Tokyo.
When he arrived at the address he had been given, he examined the place closely. For a back alley, this place didn’t seem half bad. A cozy little cafe on the corner with some shops nearby, he had honestly expected worse. He walked into the cafe and spotted a middle-aged man with a beard and glasses brewing some coffee for his three customers sitting in the booths.
“Welcome to Leblanc. Haven’t seen you around before. You new in town?” The man asked.
“Just visiting actually. I was wondering if you could help me. I’m looking for Ren Amamiya, do you know him by chance?” Minato asked curiously.
The man squinted at him, looking him over once more. “I may, I may not. Who’s he to you?”
“Well you see, he’s my nephew.”