Chapter 36: The Spider Trying To Find A Web
It had been an hour or so after their talk with Himiko Toga. The conversation had come to a halt after the hug, but that was fine. It was followed by Inko making them some food, the two soon seeing that the girl was starving. She ate everything she could get her hands on, the sight making the mother and son grimace. The girl really was suffering. After this, Izuku went back into his room to check on a few things while Inko had Himiko sit down again for another talk, this one being the toughest one of them all.
"So...Himiko. Can I ask you a question?" Inko started, the girl turning to her as she was drinking another packet of blood Inko had got her. She blinked for a second before nodding. "Thank you. Now, let's start with the tough stuff first. You said you don't have a place to stay, yes?"
"Uh-huh." Toga replied, slowly nodding back.
"Alright. We have a spare room that you could stay in for now." Inko instantly responded, Himiko slightly gasping.
"Wait! You don't have to-"
"I'm going to, and that's final." Inko interrupted, making the girl flinch before Inko added, "Also, do you um..." She hesitated for a second, acting like she was trying to find the right words, "Do you have anything else to wear besides...that?" She gestured to the very dirty school uniform she was wearing.
Himiko blushed at this and glanced away, "No." She whispered out while twiddling her thumbs, "They...never got me many clothes."
The woman let out a long sigh at this, "I figured." Inko began scratching the back of her head, "We'll have to shop for some new clothes for you. In the meantime, we'll try to find something else for you to wear here." Toga went wide-eyed again, only for Inko to add, "Now let's talk about what we're gonna do tomorrow...or the next day depending on what happens."
"Wh-what do you mean?"
Inko stared directly into the girl's eyes, Toga noticing this was the first time she truly saw the woman get serious, "Himiko, I'm going to be straight with you: If everything you said about your parents is true, I want to start a case against them. I know an officer that can help us, as he...owes me a favor for saving his life at the hospital." Toga leaned back at this, her eyes still widened, "But if I do that, I need you to cooperate with me."
'Cooperate?' was the word that swam through her head, her mind now telling her to be cautious.
"You see Himiko...if I have the officer come here, he'll want to interrogate you." The girl flinched at this, Inko seeing this and reaching out to grab her shoulder. She shined that calm smile as she continued, "Don't worry, its nothing bad. Its just...you'll need to do that if we want to go against your parents."
"But...but..." Himiko shrunk back at this, soon pulling her legs up and wrapping her arms around them, her whole form shaking as she stared down at her legs, "If they find out where I am, they'll make everyone hate me again! They'll make the heroes hunt me down!"
Inko frowned at this, 'This poor girl. She really thinks the world is out to get her...just like Izuku.' She took a deep breath before saying, "I won't let that happen. I promise."
The girl slowly looked back up at Inko, that kind smile gone, now replaced by a look of pure determination. But not want of people determined to hunt her down. Not one of betrayal. Not anything the girl had ever seen before. The sight made her shiver, but in a good way. And before her brain could tell her otherwise, she instantly made up her mind. "Okay. I believe you."
Inko shined a big grin at this, "Good." She then pulled out a phone, "Now, I need to make a phone call." She tapped a few buttons, a ringing noise following this before she said, "Hey Naomasa, its been a while. You know that favor you owe me?"
The Next Day...
When it came to the staff at UA, Aizawa could only really tolerate being around half of them. One was Lunch Rush, who being a very professional chef, understood that when Aizawa approached him, it either meant a cup of coffee or a basic energy-filling food due to him not having a favorite. Second was Hound Dog, who due to being a believer in counselling, the two had a mutual understanding in their jobs. Same with Ectoplasm and Cementoss, as both were very professional, and Aizawa found Cementoss's light positive personality much more bearable than ones that live on being positive.
As for the rest, those were the ones he couldn't tolerate. This was Midnight, Snipe, Present Mic and All Might. All were too happy-go-lucky, though it could be argued that Midnight was also too...other adjectives he didn't want to think about. All existed to make his life miserable, and the bow on the present was Nezu. The stoat was too much for the hero, and he had plenty of days that he wished he had never met the rat.
Then there were the last four, Vlad, Thirteen, Recovery Girl and Power Loader. He found the first two to be fine, both were good heroes, and he had worked with them plenty of times. It was the last two that were the biggest sticking points. Recovery Girl, despite it being very obvious that she didn't approve Aizawa's methods over how he treated his own body and welfare, he respected solely due to her job. Otherwise, he would probably be less tolerable with her due to her constant nagging.
This was the same with Power Loader, as he found they both disagreed heavily over support equipment. Aizawa would gladly admit that the man was perfect for his job, but Aizawa found the equipment to be just that, equipment. In other words, if the equipment was broken or destroyed during a villain fight, that meant it probably served its purpose in Aizawa's mind. The other hero thought otherwise.
However, Aizawa now found himself in Power Loader's main lab, a room designed for the hero in mind, which was cut off from the workshops all the students used. Within it, he was standing alongside Nezu, the stoat happily wagging his tail as Power Loader did some final touches on some new device.
"I gotta say Nezu." Power Loader spoke up, making Aizawa glance back up at the man called Higari Maijima, getting Aizawa out of his much-needed sleep/trance he was just in, "This is a slightly different assignment than usual."
"Oh?" Nezu chuckled, "How so? Its helping a hero, so how is it different?"
"Eh, I wouldn't call it help." Maijima remarked as he spun around on a chair, facing the two as he held up a small handheld device that had a tiny screen. A blinking dot could be seen on it, along with a frown on the hero's face, "Sorry to say, but this is all I can do."
"What is it?" Aizawa asked, only for Maijima to sigh.
"A tracker...and a really bizarre one at that." He gestured for Aizawa to take the gadget, the hero grabbing it a second later.
"What do you mean?" Nezu added, Maijima responding by spinning around before coming back to the two with a small spider tracer in his hand.
"Cuz based on how this thing was made, it should have no signal power." He put it up to his face, "In fact, I can't imagine it getting much range at all. But, despite how its made, the signal is strong. If this is the tracker Spider-Man uses, whoever made it must be something else." He glanced back at Nezu, "This is for the Spider-Man case, right?"
Nezu nodded back, "It is. And as you can imagine, you are not allowed to talk about it in any compacity."
"I thought so." Maijima sighed as he looked back at the tracer, "Though I gotta say, I would like to meet who made this."
"Is it well designed?"
Maijima grimaced at that, "That depends on what you call...design." He spun it around in his fingers, "In terms of artistic touch and intricacy, yes. Whoever made this fully understands the basics, and it shows they have experience."
"I'm guessing there's a but here." Aizawa chimed in, Maijima nodding in response.
"Yeah..." The hero flipped the device over, "This thing is made entirely of scrap." The other two raised eyebrows at this, "I'm not joking. Like, whoever did this did it either with junkyard hunting or dumpster diving."
"I see." Nezu replied before glancing up at Aizawa, "I suppose that is something we could add to the profile."
"What do you mean?" Aizawa responded, though he had a feeling he shouldn't have asked that.
"Well, if it was made by Spider-Man, it shows where he is in terms of finances."
"You mean he's poor." Aizawa instantly grumbled, rolling his eyes, "Yeah, like that lowers the suspect pool." He then looked over the device Maijima had gave him, "So...will this help me find another one of those spider things that Spider-Man is using?"
"Yeah." Maijima nodded, "Unless he decides to make an entirely new signal, what I just gave you should respond to one of these spider-themed trackers. However, its range is extremely limited. So much so that its...well, its like its not useful in a certain viewpoint."
"I wouldn't say that." Nezu chuckled, the two turning to the stoat, "Our suspect has mobility options most don't have. According to reports, he can clear streets in an instant. Perhaps this is why some say he seems to be aimless at times."
"Cuz he's looking for these things' signals?" Aizawa asked, Nezu nodding back. "Huh. Makes sense." He glanced back at Power Loader and put the device into a hidden pocket on his costume. "Guess I gotta start looking for him. Thanks for making this."
"No problem." Maijima replied, "Just uh...when you catch Spider-Man, let me meet whoever made that. I would like to have them in the support lab. They could definitely help out."
Nezu and Aizawa shared a glance, the human shrugging before they spun around and walked out of the room. And as they left the support labs and into UA's hallways, Aizawa pulled out the tracker, "Good thing I delayed going into FEAST. This should help."
"I agree." Nezu added, "Will you be going there today?"
"After my classes, yes." Aizawa responded before letting out a yawn, "And a nap."
As the two walked down the hall, a certain pink-haired head leaned out from a corner. It was the support student Mei Hatsume, who was currently wearing a sly smirk on her face. Her eyes showed a pair of crosshairs, which quickly zoomed in on the gadget in Aizawa's hand. "So that's what Power Loader was working on." she whispered as a big grin appeared on her face. "Looks like a...tracker of some kind?"
She then whipped her head back around the corner, quickly zipping back into UA's support lab. The girl saw several students all working on projects, the sight making her smile as she silently snuck around them all. And as she got to the other side of the lab, she saw the door to Power Loader's lad just slightly ajar.
The hero inside let out a long sigh as he looked through a large magnifying device, grumbling a few words she couldn't hear. And as he did this, she zoomed in again, seeing what he was looking at: A tiny gadget that was shaped like a spider. She zoomed in a bit more, seeing the tiny details the hero was seeing through the magnifier, only to let out a hum.
"A spider...why does that seem familiar?" She rubbed her chin for a second before snapping her fingers, "Oh yeah! That new vigilante on the news, Spider-Man!" Her out loud thoughts came to a stop at that, making her glance back at Power Loader as he continued his work, "The heroes are after him? Hmm..."
Her grin returned at this, "That gives me an idea for a new baby."
And as she walked back to her desk, a skip now in her step, a pair of dark eyes watched her from a nearby desk before glancing at the door to Power Loader's room. It was a girl, one that was tugging on the purple jacket they were wearing before looking back at Mei, both eyes staring deeply at the pink-haired girl.
"She's a nut, isn't she?" said a voice to the person's left, making them glance up. Standing beside them was a black teen with jet black curly hair and a big grin on their face.
"She is." The girl growled, "What do you want Farrell?"
"No need to be snippy Mason." Farrell chuckled before pointing at the desk, "Whatcha working on?"
"My project. I have to get it done before the semester ends." Mason responded as she looked back at her work, "I have a lot left to do." Her eyes glanced back up at him again, "What do you want?"
"Just something small. Don't worry, you'll get your project done." Farrell commented as he put down a paper on her desk, "Its some tech I want a second opinion on." The girl stared at the sheet, seeing it was blueprint for a suit connecting to what looked like a skateboard.
"This is..." she whispered before glaring up at him, "Will this go with your quirk?"
"Yup. I finally figured it out. I just need some extra help with the tech." He replied, nodding. He then crossed his arms with a smirk, "So, how about you help me, and I don't reveal your little...tinkering secret." The teen leaned down as his grin grew, "Heck, I'll make the deal even better. I'll help you with the job you wanna do once you help me finish this." His smile now almost splitting his face, he presented his hand for a handshake. "Deal?"
She stared long and hard at his hand. She had known the teen for over a year now, both being second years at UA, working in the support labs. The sight made her snarl, a frown of disgust on her face before slowly lifting her hand and shaking his.
"Deal."
Meanwhile...
"No."
"But mom-" Izuku started.
"No." Inko repeated while crossing her arms, Toga watching the two stare at each other. She had just spent the night at the Midoriya's house, Inko having to roll out a futon for her, which the girl said was the best bed she's ever laid on. The notion shocked Inko, but that wasn't what was concerning the mother right now. It was her son's choices for today. "You're not going out as Spider-Man tonight."
Izuku let out a long sigh before taking out his tracker, "Mom, I placed a spider tracer on one of those thugs' bikes and two days have already passed! I need to follow this lead before its gone forever!"
"And you promised me that you would slow down after the...incident with Mister Li." Inko replied, "You can't just go out every night as Spider-Man."
"I...but..." Izuku tried to say, only to see his mother glare at him. The sight made him flinch, only to take a deep breath. "Mom...I need to do this."
"No, you don't." Inko pointed at Toga, "You're going to help me get Himiko situated. After all, Detective Naomasa agreed to come over tomorrow, and I need your help with the story."
Izuku shook his head at this, "I still need to go out."
"Izuku-"
"Mom-"
"Um..." squeaked out a voice, the two turning to Toga. The girl slightly flinched at this before saying, "You...you don't have to do all this for me."
Both faces turned to frowns as Inko shook her head, "Himiko, this isn't about you." She pointed at her son, "I've been trying to get him to stay home more and not hop into every firefight he can find before you got here." She then walked up to Toga and put a hand on her shoulder, shining a small smile, "Don't worry, none of this is your fault." Inko glared back at Izuku at this, "He just needs to stop jumping the gun every second."
"Mom, I am not jumping the gun! I'm following a lead!" Izuku yelped, his face going a tiny bit red.
"Izuku Midoriya, you are not-"
"Hee hee..." Toga giggled, making the two glance back at her, the girl now smiling. "Sorry. Its just you two are so...silly."
Izuku slightly flinched at that while Inko sighed and shook her head again, "I know." She then felt Izuku grab her shoulder, making her look back at him.
"Mom, I need to do this." She showed him that stare she always feared seeing. The one where it showed that fire, that will of wanting to be the greatest hero he could possibly ever be. That is, till he added, "Also, I need to do it because its part of what I found on Mister Li's stuff. He was going after Tombstone, and the tracker I used is one of his gang's bikes! I need to follow it!"
His mother flinched at this, Toga tilting her head at the names before Inko sighed again. She knew there was no convincing him. "Fine." Izuku smiled at this, only to feel Inko grab his shoulder, glaring at him straight in the eyes, "But don't go too far. If something goes wrong, call the heroes. Got it?"
Izuku felt her tighten her grip before nodding, "Got it."
"Good." Inko let go of him before poking his chest, "But before you go, help me setup a room for Himiko, okay?"
"Okay."
Himiko watched the two make up, putting a finger to her mouth as she thought, 'I wish I had that kind of family.'
Meanwhile again...
Naomasa flipped through the few pages of the report in front of him. Despite the lead that Nezu said he would create for them to catch Spider-Man, the detective believed he should try and find an alternate solution. After all, the vigilante had proven he could keep himself hidden from Nezu, a feat very difficult to achieve unless you were a certain...quirk stealing monster.
It also didn't help that he had to complete a favor that had been called in last night. It was Inko Midoriya, someone he hadn't talked to in a long time, that last time being when she had been his nurse in the hospital after a certain villain attack. That and when it happened, she was the one that had moved him to the emergency room, and had helped with him all his paperwork, along with helping the rest of his team that had been injured in the incident. As such, he told her he would owe her a favor and gave her a card, Inko taking it after a bit of prodding since she believed she was just doing her job...and his son had helped convince her since he came in to find out why she was so late that day.
However, her favor came at the toughest time. She wanted to help with what was reported as a minor villain, which she said her son had found. He made sure she wasn't lying with his quirk, which she wasn't, but she wouldn't give too many details without seeing him in person. He was fine with that, and scheduled to meet her later.
But despite this new situation, he now found himself sighing as he read the papers Jean Dewolff had given him. It was a report on a drug bust, one that was done by Spider-Man. It was over the more recent Tombstone gang and another faction. A faction that had been staying quiet for a long time, only to suddenly reappear: The Shie Hassaikai. The yakuza of old, something that had become obsolete in the now days of heroes.
Not only that, what they had recovered on the scene was worrying, as the deal seemed to be between the new brand of Trigger that kept appearing on the black market, and a briefcase of bullets. On paper, it didn't make sense to the detective, but once they gave it to the lab boys, they declared they'd need time to figure it out, but they knew one thing: The bullets were basically blood injectors. Very special ones, as they couldn't identify anything on the blood.
Naomasa wasn't a lab boy. He would leave that to the professionals, and would do what he was born to do: Interrogation. After all, Dewolff came in with a van full of thugs, and because this was part of the Spider-Man case, Naomasa was scheduled to talk to them all. That fact alone made him sigh again, as he knew it was going to be long, slow day of uncooperation. He knew his gang thugs, and Tombstone's were pretty loyal, and yakuza...well, yakuza were practically bred to be loyal. And even with a lie detector quirk, it didn't make the job any easier.
A knock on the door came next, Naomasa glancing up, "Come in."
It opened to reveal his boss, Chief Tsuragamae. The dog-headed man was showing his usual gruff demeanor, complete with a certain stomp in his step. "Naomasa." he said before letting out a woof.
"Is it time?" Naomasa replied, the dog man nodding back. "Got it. Let me just put away my notes-"
"Hold on." the chief interrupted, Naomasa raising an eyebrow at this, "My apologies, but the hero commission want an update."
The detective cringed at that, slightly biting his lip, "Sorry to say chief, but its slow going. Nezu has a lead that he believes should help us find Spider-Man, but-"
"They're threatening to put the entire department responsible." The chief interrupted again, Naomasa blinking at him in response.
"What?" Naomasa almost whispered, "Its just a vigilante! It can't be that bad!"
"To them, he is." Tsuragame responded, "They believe if Spider-Man continues to do good, people will begin to lose faith in the heroes due to seeing a vigilante do all their work."
"That's the dumbest-" Naomasa started before he saw the stare his boss was giving him. It was the one that meant the chief agreed with Naomasa, but also had no choice in the matter. Instead, Naomasa sighed for a third time as he put his notes away and ascended out of his chair. "They really only care about their looks, don't they?"
"They do." the dog man grumbled while shaking his head, "That is why we must do our jobs to the best of our abilities."
"Agreed." Naomasa replied as he grabbed a folder before the two left the room, soon pacing themselves to the hallway where the interrogation rooms were held. "Well, here's hoping Li is more...cooperative now that we got him a lawyer."
And as got to the interrogation room door, he slowly opened it to reveal...an empty room. Just a table and chairs and nothing else. "Huh?" Naomasa glanced down at his notes, "I thought he was in this room."
"Did they move him?" the chief asked, the two walking out and going to the room next door, only to find nothing again. "Hmm?"
"This is odd." Naomasa commented before turning his head to see Sansa walking by, "Hey, did Li get moved? We're supposed to be interrogating him."
"Not that I know of." the cat man replied, "I thought he was still in his bed."
Naomasa and the chief shared a glance before fast walking down the hallway, taking a few turns as they reached the room Li had been put in. But as they opened the door, they found nothing again. No sign of life whatsoever. "What in the name of-"
"Naomasa..." the chief started to growl, "Where is the suspect?" His next few words came out much slower than before, "Where. Is. Martin Li?"
The detective bit his lip at this, gulping as he said, "I...I don't know sir."
Later that night...
Izuku felt the wind smack him as he swung across the city, the night now covering the city. He had done another nap and was full of energy, ready to swing through the streets. And as he did this, he pulled out his tracker, only to get no signal. 'They gotta be around here somewhere...'
It had taken a bit, but he had convinced his mom to let him go out as Spider-Man tonight. He knew why she didn't want him too, mainly to help out with the whole Himiko situation, but he knew he needed to go. It was thanks to Himiko that he felt he needed to do this, to finish this case before switching to helping with her.
It was here he took a right, only for the tracker to ring out. His eyes darted back at the device, now seeing the signal change to his far left. The teen quickly zipped across another street, a determined glare appearing on his face. He zipped over a few buildings at this, only to glance down at the tracker and see it switch to behind him. Looking back, Izuku swung back to a building he zipped over, soon landing on it as the tracker came to a stop. He put the device away next, soon walking to the edge of the building, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary.
"Huh. It says the spider tracer is here..." He pulled out the tracker again to confirm it before putting it away. After that, he walked around the edge of the building, only to see a garage on one of its sides. Realizing what that meant, he began to crawl down the building's side, soon finding a small vent shaft. 'Nice. Glad these are conveniently around when I need one.' He slipped through at this, 'I hope that when I can take on the bigger bad villains that they don't think ahead and get rid of them...'
A minute later, he found an open vent and quietly removed it, slipping out of the shaft before crawling onto the building's ceiling. There, he glanced down and saw the place was just a big garage filled with motorcycles, but no thugs or criminals. 'Shoot. No one's here.' He fired a small web line on the ceiling and got into an upside-down position with his legs pointed out while the feet were holding onto the web line before slowly descending, 'That's so cool that I can do that.'
And as he got down to the ground, he flipped over and began to walk around the garage. He soon found his tracer on one of the vehicles, taking it off and putting it back in his hoodie, 'Might find a use for you again later.' he thought before shifting over to the side of the building, seeing a desk that was covered in auto repair equipment. 'Guess this is where they take care of their rides. Or just one of the places.'
He glanced around at this, only to find nothing. Just piles of equipment and the already parked bikes. 'Darn it. Guess my luck ran out tonight. I was hoping for some kind of clue on Tombstone.' And as he thought that, the sound of the garage door opening began to ring out, the noise sounding like a large scraping piece of chalk hitting the pavement. It made the teen go invisible, quickly leaping onto the wall as he glanced back and saw two men walk into place, one having a weasel head while the other had a head of a hyena.
"Can't believe the boss got us that kind of cash." The hyena man remarked as he fiddled with a roll of bills.
"No kidding. These new shipments are awesome!" the weasel man laughed.
"Yup. So, ready for a run?"
"Heck yeah!" the weasel man exclaimed before hopping onto a cycle, the hyena thug getting on the one right by him. The two soon moved out of the garage, Izuku invisibly following them as they left the building. And as they did this, he saw another mutant quirk walk out of an alleyway across the street.
'Maybe my luck hasn't run out yet.' He thought before firing a web line and swung over the street. As he did this, he saw two more coming out of the alleyway, the sight making him clench up before swinging over them. He then swung over two more streets, only to see another mutant thug, the sixth one he had seen tonight. But as he stared at the thug and glanced up at the building he was by, he saw a large open garage, one that a semi was coming out of. 'Bingo.'
Just a few minutes ago...
The sound of teeth biting into a set of wafers could barely be heard as a woman walked down a certain street. She let out a heaving sigh as she finished her treat, her eyes lazily glancing down at the box in her hands. It was a container full of kuzumochi, something her boss liked, and it was her turn to go buy some. The sight made her grumble, as she preferred spicier stuff, but she knew it would get the boss off her back.
And as she walked down the sidewalk, she pulled out her phone, tapping the screen a few times before putting it up to her ear. "Hey."
"Hey." replied a calm, balanced-like voice.
"I got the usual for the boss. Is there anything else you want me to get?"
"One moment please." The woman groaned at that, rolling her eyes before the voice came back a half-minute later, "No, we should be good."
"Good. Is the boss not happy tonight?"
"Mostly. He seems more angry than anything."
"So...the usual?"
"Indeed. I suggest you-"
"Hold that thought." The woman interrupted as she took a corner, only to see something in the corner of her eye. She then glanced straight up, only to see a figure hop over a rooftop and into an alleyway. "I'll call you right back."
The woman shut off the phone at this, cutting into a sprint as she tried to follow the figure. She ran up to the alleyway, only to see him seemingly go to the end of the alley and then leap over the next street. And as he did this, the moon's light shone down on him for a second, showing a certain dark green costume...only to vanish a second later.
The sight made the woman smirk as she pulled out her phone again, "Forget the sweets run. This'll get me a bonus on my paycheck."
Izuku was so glad for his invisibility power. It made infiltration so easy, allowing him to crawl down to the open garage and zipped into the building thanks to it. He slithered up to the ceiling, taking silent breaths as he crawled around the room. He felt a tinge of pain in his head, showing he needed to turn off the invisibility in a bit, but it was enough. He was on the ceiling, and no one inside knew.
And as he reappeared, he spun himself around, keeping his back to the ceiling as he glanced around inside the building. He found that the place was mainly a giant garage, thugs walking around as they were moving a mountain of boxes. The sight made Izuku blink, his eyes darting around as he began to count everyone inside the place. And as he got to twenty, the sound of a door opening rang out.
As Izuku's eyes went to that door, he went wide-eyed at the sight. Walking into the room was a large, bald chalk-colored man, complete with a dark colored jacket on and a low glare on his face. The very sight of him commanded a presence, one that Izuku saw as the thugs all quickly turned to him. He saw nothing but fear on their faces, the sight making Izuku slightly gulp before glancing back down at the man.
'Tombstone...h-h-he's actually here! I found where he works! And he looks even more scarier in person.' he thought, remembering the mugshot he had seen on the man's online villain profile. 'It said that they had to bring All Might in to stop him. Can I even do anything against him? I mean, he took on-'
"Alright boys, listen up!" Tombstone yelled, interrupting Izuku's thoughts as he saw the villain stomped through the room, "We got the first shipment going now, but that's just the beginning." He pointed to behind himself, "We're getting the next set done soon, so get ready."
Two thugs walked in at this, these two wearing what looked like yellow hazmat like suits with gas masks. In their hands were boxes of vials, the sight making Izuku go wide-eyed. 'Trigger! Wait...those suits. Does that mean there's a drug lab in here?'
"Yes boss!" Multiple thugs replied before helping the two with the boxes, soon more coming into the room. Izuku watched as they quickly transferred them to the open garage door, the teen suspecting that they were waiting for a semi-truck now. And as this happened, Izuku continued to glance around, seeing the thugs that weren't helping with the shipments working on some motorcycles.
'Hmm...how should I do this?' He looked back at Tombstone, seeing the man walk over to another door. He opened it only slightly before going in, the teen squinting his eyes as he saw what little he could through the door. It looked like a small office with a desk and a chair, the villain quickly shutting the door behind himself. The sight made Izuku take in a deep breath before glancing back at the thugs below him. 'Okay. Tombstone is back there, so...let's try some stealth. I haven't really done that since...actually, I don't know why I don't do more stealth. Maybe I should have done it more back when-' He shook his head, 'Focus Izuku! Just...focus.'
His eyes stared at the thugs, watching them stack several boxes before vanishing into the room that the hazmat suited guys had come from, overhearing that the room was okay to walk in without the masks. As such, there was only about seven thugs in the room now, Izuku smiling at the sight. 'That could work.'
He crawled over to three that were working on motorcycles, his eyes darting between the trio as he saw that two were under the cycles while another was digging into a box full of tools. Izuku put a webline on the ceiling and slowly descended himself down, soon hanging over the one looking through the crate. He then suspended above the thug, Izuku pointing two fingers at the thug's neck as a tiny bit of bio-electricity surged through his hand.
ZAP!
"Urgh!" The thug jerked at this, only to instantly slump over. And before he could make any noise, Izuku grabbed the back of the thug's jacket, slowly letting the man down, making it silent.
'One down.' He thought before turning to the other two, seeing both were still under the motorcycles. He tiptoed over, doing the same on the first unsuspecting thug. And as he zapped him, Izuku glanced back at the third thug, a crow-headed man, only to see him slide out from under the cycle...and look straight up at the teen.
"What the-mmph!" He muffled out as Izuku fired a glob of webbing over the thug's beak. He then grabbed the wrench he had just been using, getting up to attack the teen, only for Izuku to grab his shoulder and zap him. "Mmph!"
The thug slumped over, Izuku catching him and slowly putting him down. 'Three down.' He laid the thug on the floor before glancing back up, seeing he was actually in the open compared to the other two thugs he had taken out. However, the other four were all looking away and talking over a work desk. 'They haven't noticed me yet. Good.' He pointed his wrist at the ceiling, 'Now-'
"What the heck?!" yelled a voice, making Izuku turn to see Tombstone staring right at him before taking a swig of whiskey, "Who are you?!"
The awake thugs in the room spun around at this, all seeing the vigilante as Izuku muttered out, "Uh...hi?"
"It's Spider-Man!" one of the four exclaimed as he pointed at the teen.
"Uh-oh." Izuku whispered as his eyes darted between the thugs and Tombstone. However, the villain just took another swig of his drink, smacking his lips a second later.
"That's him?" He muttered before glaring at the four, the thugs seeing this and flinching back at his stare, "You've been losing to that?!"
"Well boss, it wasn't us..." one of them squeaked out.
"Whatever." Tombstone grumbled before pointing at the teen, "Kill 'em."
The thugs blinked at their boss for a second before turning to charge at the vigilante. Izuku flinched at this, only for his spider sense to ring out in his head. Causing him to switch back into focusing, he saw the first thug charging had a wolf mutant quirk, Izuku firing a blast a webbing at his face. The criminal yelped as the webbing hit his eyes, blinding him and making him tumble into a table to the right of Izuku.
But as this happened, the three others leapt at the teen, instantly tackling him to the ground. One tumbled over the other two and Izuku, flopping into the crate with the knocked out thug from earlier. As for the other two, Izuku saw it was a hyena and tiger mutant quirk, the tiger man's face right in front of his. The tiger man opened his mouth to bite into the teen, only for Izuku's spider sense to scream at him, making him turn on his electricity. He thrusted his hands up, zapping the tiger thug as the hyena one flinched and quickly leapt off them.
"Get off!" Izuku yelled as he thrust his legs upward on the just zapped tiger man, knocking him off. And as he did this, the hyena thug grabbed a wrench off a nearby table and charged at him, swinging it straight for the teen's head. Spider sense blaring, Izuku glanced up at him and began to backpedal, dodging the first attack. He then swung the wrench again, Izuku continuing to go backward, only for his back to hit something. Izuku looked down, seeing that he had hit a table before glancing back at the thug, a third wrench swing coming for him.
"Die!" the thug roared as the wrench came for Izuku's head again, spider sense yelling at him as the teen instantly ducked down. The wrench went over his head, Izuku then thrusting a leg upward, kicking the hyena man right in the face, knocking him off his feet and into a nearby motorcycle, both falling over in a heap.
And as this happened, the last thug charged at him, Izuku seeing his face was like a beetle. He thrust a jab at the teen, smacking Izuku's face. The thug then hit Izuku two more times, both punches pushing Izuku into the table. But as a fourth punch came in, Izuku swung a punch back, smacking the bug man aside. The thug backpedaled at this, stumbling for a second as Izuku readjusted himself.
"Say...we're both insects. Maybe we can talk it out?" Izuku quipped, surprised he thought up that one on the fly.
"Die!" this one also roared as he got his footing and tried to punch Izuku again. But as the fist came for the teen, Izuku caught it with his hand, electricity instantly coming out next as it zapped the thug. A scream came out next, the criminal slumping over a second later.
Izuku let out a breath at this, now seeing what he had just done. He rapidly blinked at this, soon turning back to Tombstone, only to see he had pressed a button to close the garage door Izuku had used to sneak in with. The man then walked over and took another swig of whiskey, a bored blank stare in his eyes, and yet Izuku felt like he wasn't even standing in front of the villain. 'This...this isn't killing intent like Stain.' Izuku's eyes refocused as he stared at the man, only for the teen to suddenly feel really small.
"So..." Tombstone muttered out as he took one last drink before setting down the flask on a nearby table, wiping his lip with his sleeve, "That's how you took out my boys." He then cricked his neck, the noise sounding like someone had made a loud crack in concrete. It made a shiver go down Izuku's spine, only for Tombstone to add, "I would call for the rest of my boys to take care of ya, but considering how stupid they are, I'm guessing you'll beat them as well."
Izuku opened his mouth to respond, only for the door from earlier to open, one of the thugs in a yellow hazmat suit to walk in. The criminal glanced between the two and said, "Uh...boss?"
Tombstone just pointed at him, "Tell the boys to take the rest of the night off. We'll do the shipment tomorrow." He glanced back at Izuku, the pupils in his eyes twitching, showing a little stumble thanks to the alcohol. "I got work to do."
"Got it boss!" the thug exclaimed before shutting the door, Izuku glancing at it for just a second before looking back at the villain.
Tombstone cricked his neck again, this noise being less loud than the previous one as he spoke up, "You know, I do this job for two reasons." He then cricked his knuckles, Izuku seeing that they were huge, and chalk colored as well. "The pay...and the chance for a good fight." He balled his hands into fists and gestured himself into a boxing-like stance.
Izuku just stared at the man, his whole body tensing up as he thought, 'Okay Izuku, this guy is an A Rank villain. That means I either run away right now and call the pros...or I hit him with everything I got right now.' He took a deep breath at this, and against his better judgment, he told himself, 'Let's try the second option.'
With that, he quickly jerked his wrists at the villain, webbing flying out of the shooters. Tombstone almost flinched as the webs struck him, Izuku firing it constantly until it covered the man from neck to toe. Seeing this, Tombstone just glanced down at the stuff and said, "And what's this supposed to do?"
"Uh...stop you?" Izuku replied, only to see Tombstone just yank his own webbed up arms, instantly breaking a bunch of the webbing. 'Uh-oh. Better act now!' Izuku clinched his right fist, electricity surging through it like crazy. A second later, he charged just as Tombstone ripped both of his arms free. "Venom Punch!"
The electrified fist hit the man's chest a split second later, lightning surging through and spreading all over Tombstone. But as it did this, the villain to just looked down at Izuku's fist, the teen glancing back up at him...and seeing a completely bored expression. The blow had done nothing.
"That all you got?" Tombstone remarked before thrusting a punch straight into Izuku's chest, instantly knocking him off his feet.
"Augh!" the teen yelped as he was sent flying across the room from the blow, his back slamming into a wall before slumping down, his bottom hitting a table. The sounds of snapping came next as Tombstone walked out of the webbing covering his feet, easily moving again as he jerked his arms around, removing the webbing as he strided up to Izuku. Seeing this, the teen glanced to his side, seeing a large wrench on the table he had just landed on. Firing a webline, he grabbed and slung it at Tombstone's head...only for it to bounce off of the villain with ease.
'Oh no...'
"Guess I was wrong." Tombstone commented as he got closer, "You're not gonna even give me a good workout."
Chapter 37: Between a Tomb and a Hot Place
"So this is the place?" asked a certain man as he stood on the street across from the building him and a group of others were staring at. "Spider-Man is in there?"
"Yup. Saw him go inside boss." a woman replied, "Though uh...it was more he landed on the rooftop, turned invisible and then snuck in."
"And considering the noise we're hearing, he's still inside." the man grunted before pointing to the rest surrounding the area. "Form a parameter. I want no one to escape, vigilante or villain."
"Got it. And you boss?"
"I'm going to catch a vigilante."
Izuku's mind wasn't exactly working at the moment, his thoughts muddled as he went over everything that had happened in the past few hours. Granted, it wasn't much since it was mainly just him trailing a few thugs before finding a full-on A-Rank Villain. One he now knew he wasn't ready for at all, especially due to how Tombstone had just shrugged off everything the teen threw at him.
"Hold still." the villain grumbled as he did a slight misstep, Izuku seeing the whiskey was still in effect on the man. He then thrust a punch, Izuku's spider sense screaming as he fired two weblines up to the ceiling and pulled, yanking himself away at the last second. What followed was the sound of bricks being smashed to bits, Izuku glancing back to see a hole in the wall where Tombstone had punched.
'That's not good.' Izuku mentally gulped as he landed a few feet away, only to see Tombstone spin around. The man cricked his neck at this, only to suddenly cut into a sprint.
Danger!
Izuku went wide-eyed before leaping to the side, barely dodging a swift kick from the villain. Tombstone then swung two more punches as he kept charging at Izuku, the teen backpedaling away from each blow. "I told you to stay still." Tombstone muttered out as he thrust another jab, Izuku tilting his head just in time. Izuku then fired another webline and yanked himself away, this time sticking his whole body to the ceiling.
'Holy cow...this guy is way faster than he looks. Just a misstep and I would have been really hurt.' Izuku thought as he saw Tombstone just stare up at him, sniffing for a second before the man spun around and walked to another part of the room. And as this happened, the teen's mind began to go a mile a minute, 'What do I do?! The Venom Punch did nothing, and he ripped through my webbing like tissue paper! Do I do a Venom Smash? But if I do that and it doesn't do anything, I'll be a sitting duck! There's gotta be some way I can beat him...'
He then saw Tombstone go to a desk and bend over, only to pull out a very long metal chain. Gripping the end, he turned around and stared up at Izuku. "Time's up."
"Uh..." Izuku muttered out, only to see Tombstone suddenly snap the chain like a whip.
Danger!
"Whoa!" Izuku yelped as he leapt off the ceiling, the chain's end smacking the ceiling and breaking a piece of it off with ease. Tombstone then pulled the chain back before snapping it again, this time swinging it in a horizontal arc. Izuku's spider sense screamed at him, his body reflexively doing a backflip at this, barely leaping over the chain.
"Not bad." Tombstone commented as he pulled the chain back, swinging it once around his wrist.
And as this happened, Izuku just stared at the villain, seeing the still bored face on the man. But it was more than that now. Izuku could feel fear filling his head, screaming at him to flee due to his best not working on the man. That is, till he saw that bored face, as if the villain was saying: 'You're not worth my time.'
'I'm still so weak. So worthless. Just a...Deku.' Izuku took a deep breath at this, closing his eyes as electricity surged through his fists, 'I'm still not there. I'm still not a hero yet.' He reopened his eyes as a fire appeared in them, 'But I can't run away! I...I gotta try!'
"Oh? Gonna try that again?" Tombstone remarked as he snapped the chain again, "Bring it then."
He swung the chain, the metal snake zipping through the air as Izuku's spider sense went into overdrive. He fired a webline to the ceiling and pulled, yanking himself over the attack as the teen yelled, "Venom Smash!" He flew down and slammed the electric punch into Tombstone's face, lightning surging everywhere in that one attack. And as the blow hit...the villain stumbled back just an inch.
Seeing this, Izuku quickly planted both feet on the villain and thrusted downward, hopping off the man as he swung the chain back to himself, the metal smacking Izuku's back before he could land. "Augh!" Izuku yelped as the chain knocked him into a table, smashing it in two.
As this happened, Tombstone rubbed his face for a second, only to reveal no damage had been done. "Huh. I felt something there..." He glanced back at Izuku, seeing the teen trying to get up. "That's all you got, isn't it?"
The villain gripped the chain again, cricking his wrist as Izuku's spider sense rang out. A second later, the chain cracked like a whip as it headed straight for the teen, Izuku instantly aiming his shooters at the ceiling. Webbing shot out, hitting the upper surface before yanking himself just as the chain hit the broken table. Splinters went flying from the blow, Izuku spinning around before sticking all fours on the ceiling, only to see Tombstone pull the chain back.
'I gotta get rid of that thing!' the teen thought before detaching from the ceiling and firing another webline, yanking himself over the villain. Tombstone spun around at this, only for Izuku to land on a nearby wall and began firing globs of webbing. The villain readied himself for the attack, only to see the webs all miss.
"Huh?" he muttered before glancing down, now seeing the chain was webbed to the floor. "Seriously?" He glanced back up at Izuku, "You think that's gonna stop me?"
"No." Izuku replied, "But it'll make things easier for me." But just as those words left his mouth, Tombstone let go of the chain and charged, instantly running across the room. Spider sense screaming, Izuku leapt off the wall just as the villain threw a punch, the jab smashing the bricks the teen has just hopped off of. Izuku landed on the floor, rolling for a second before getting on his feet, gasping for a small breath.
Danger!
A fist came for Izuku as he spun around, the teen quickly ducking under it, only for a second punch to slam into his stomach. "Blaugh!" Izuku yelped as the blow instantly knocked him off his feet, a tiny crack noise sound coming out as he went flying across the room.
And as Izuku's back hit the floor, the teen let out a cry of pain as he rolled into a motorcycle. He closed his eyes, clenching in pain as he let out a moan. The teen felt his body shaking, shivering at the sight now walking up to him. Tombstone let out a low yawn, only to turn and walk up to another table, this one having a bottle of whiskey. He grabbed it and began to drink, the liquid slightly falling out of his mouth.
"How disappointing. I was hoping for a good fight." Tombstone muttered as he wiped his mouth. He slammed the bottle down at this, spinning around to see Izuku now standing up, electricity surging through both his arms. "Really? You can't beat me."
'He's right.' Izuku thought as he stood there, his breathing heavy now, 'What do I do? I can't hurt him! I mean, he's strong, but there's got to be a way to stop him.' And as that thought went through his head, a certain voice rang out in his head.
"A real is hero is someone who never gives up."
'All Might is right. I can't give up.' Izuku mentally said as the lightning around his arms continued to spark. He raised up his fists into a boxing like position, taking a long deep breath as he did so.
"Oh?" Tombstone remarked with a raised eyebrow.
"You're right. I can't beat you." Izuku responded before raising his voice, yelling as he rushed at the villain, "But I'm gonna try anyways!"
"Tch." Tombstone spat as he charged as well, thrusting a punch straight for Izuku's head. Spider sense screaming, the teen ducked under the blow before slamming an electrified jab into the villain's face. However, Tombstone didn't even flinch as he swung a second punch. Izuku backpedaled at this, dodging the attack before thrusting another Venom Punch into Tombstone's head, electricity surging all over the villain's body. But as this happened, Tombstone threw another punch, this one slamming Izuku's stomach.
"Blaugh!" Izuku yelped as the blow instantly knocked him off his feet, the teen flying across the room again. His back slammed into another motorcycle, the teen tumbling over it a second later. A moan of pain escaped his mouth at this, only to suck it in as he felt something slam into his stomach again. The feeling of something cracking surged through Izuku's body, and when he opened his eyes, he saw Tombstone was now standing over him, his foot firmly on Izuku's chest.
"How boring." Tombstone sighed as he cricked his knuckles, "Guess you should have tried a different line of work." He then pulled back a fist, ready for it to slam right into Izuku's face. And as his spider sense roared out, the teen did the only thing he could do. He thrust his hands up...and grabbed Tombstone's legs.
"Hmm?" The villain muttered, only for electricity to suddenly surge through his legs, the lightning zapping his body a second later. The man slightly flinched at this, only to let out a long sigh as electricity continued to surge through him. "I told you, that doesn't work!"
WHAM!
Tombstone's fist slammed into Izuku's face, making the teen let out a cry of pain. The electricity cut at this, his hands slightly losing their grip on the villain's legs. Seeing this, the villain smirked as he pulled back for a finishing punch, Izuku's spider sense continuing to scream at him. The teen's eyes were barely open at this, now seeing the fist that was about to end his life for sure.
'No...' was all he could think, his brain burning as his spider sense kept screaming. He couldn't even think properly in that last moment. And when the fist came, he closed his eyes and-
THOOM!
Tombstone's fist came to a stop at this, the villain glancing up to see the regular door to the building now torn in half and encased in flames. And then the one who did this walked inside, the villain's eyes going slightly wide. "Endeavor?"
The Number Two Hero slowly came in, a look of burning fury on his face. Flames poured off the hero, the villain blinking at the sight, as if he wasn't sure if the hero was actually there...or the whiskey was playing tricks on him. But after a few seconds, the villain refocused his eyes, confirming exactly what he was looking at.
"You..." Endeavor growled as he stared at the two, his eyes mainly on Spider-Man, only to see that the vigilante wasn't moving. The sight made his eyes twitch for a second before glancing back up at the villain, "I recognize you. Tombstone, is it?"
And for the first time that night, the villain smiled. "You got that right. Didn't expect you to come into my joint." He slowly released his foot off of Spider-Man at this, "Gotta say, I was getting bored with this bug anyways. Wasn't even a good workout." He cricked his knuckles again, "Maybe you can give me that thrill."
"I don't give villains anything." Endeavor replied before pointing at Spider-Man, "That vigilante is my target. But if you wish to interfere, I will take you down."
"HA!" Tombstone cackled, "That bug ain't worth your time. I'll give you a much better fight than-"
"Vanishing Fist!" Endeavor roared as he suddenly appeared right in front of the villain, a burning fist slamming into Tombstone's face. The blow knocked the man off his feet, the villain colliding with a motorcycle. He stumbled at this, not fully falling over as he got back onto his feet.
"Huh. I kinda felt that." Tombstone chuckled as he put a finger up to his lip and rubbed it, "Nice." His eyes went back up to Endeavor, the villain cricking his neck before charging at the hero. "Let's do this."
Endeavor didn't speak as the villain rushed at him, the hero pulling back his fist in response. Flames consumed his form, only to thrust his other hand as Tombstone tried to punch him, the hero catching the villain's jab with his free hand before slamming another fist into Tombstone. Flames covered Tombstone as Endeavor let go of him at the moment of impact, fire consuming the villain before the flames flew out behind Tombstone. But despite this, Tombstone didn't fly back this time, instead thrusting another punch, Endeavor quickly side-stepping the attack before hitting him with another flaming punch.
"Urgh!" Tombstone grunted as the fist smacked his face, only to lunge his hand up, grabbing the hero's fist. Endeavor felt him grip it, only to see Tombstone try to hit him again, Endeavor quickly catching his other hand. And as both were now locked, Endeavor's body exploded in flames. the sight making Tombstone laugh, "Nice! Turn up the heat all you want! It won't do a thing to me!"
"We'll see." Endeavor growled as the flames concentrated into his hands, "Hell's Curtain!"
Flames poured out of Endeavor's hands, the fire slamming into the villain as tried to stay standing as he got hit point blank. Tombstone kept his grip on Endeavor, the flames encasing his body as his jacket and pants started catching on fire. "That all you got?! Cuz I'm gonna-"
"Flashfire Fist!" Endeavor yelled as he twisted his hand from grabbing Tombstone's fist before thrusting the jab straight into the villain's stomach, the blow instantly knocking Tombstone off his feet. A resounding crash happened a second later as Tombstone's body flew across the room, his back slamming into a wall, a small crater appearing on it.
"Worthless villain." Endeavor spat as cricked his hands, feeling a bit of tension from Tombstone's grip.
"Heh..." Tombstone chuckled as he pulled himself out of the wall, "Been a while since I felt this much." He then glanced down and saw that the flames had hit the webbed-up chain, incinerating the web fluid as he walked up and grabbed it. "Let's keep going."
As he said that, Endeavor marched up to him, only to see Tombstone crack the chain, whipping it at the hero. But just as it came for him, Endeavor just reached out and snagged the chain, stopping it in one single motion. "Ignited Arrow!" Endeavor roared as he thrust his other hand, flames shooting out and hitting the villain. Tombstone flinched at the flames, only to pull on the chain, yanking Endeavor slightly as he got closer to the villain.
And as this happened, Izuku's eyes creaked open, his spider sense alerting him as a small bit of fire began to creep over to him. The teen felt a surge of pain cover his entire body at this, making him flinch before slowly raising up. "Ow..." he muttered before his eyes darted around, the pupils refocusing as he saw what was now happening. "Endeavor?"
He then saw Endeavor slam another two fists into Tombstone's face, the villain trying to counter with a punch, only to get hit again. The sight made the teen tense up, only to feel pain surge through him again. And after another moment of just sitting there, he stood up as a single memory went through his head. It was what his mom had told him earlier.
"But don't go too far. If something goes wrong, call the heroes. Got it?"
'Well, I didn't call the heroes, but I guess this works.' Izuku mentally said to himself before flinching, putting one hand over his stomach. He then saw Endeavor counter Tombstone again, only for the villain to actually score a punch on the hero. The blow made Endeavor stumble back, only to thrust two palms into Tombstone's chest, flames bursting as it smacked Tombstone a few feet back. 'Endeavor's amazing. He's beating Tombstone with ease...and I couldn't even hurt him. I really am weak.'
Izuku felt another surge of pain at this, making him almost flop over, 'I uh...I don't think I can do anymore Spider-Manning tonight.'
The vigilante turned invisible a second later, spinning around and walking out the door Endeavor had broken down. And as he got outside, he saw a full group surrounding the whole building...but none of them were staring at him. 'Whoa. Thank goodness for this...invisibility quirk that spider gave me.'
He spun around and began to crawl up the building's outside wall, quickly getting onto the roof. The teen glanced around, seeing no one on the roof and walked to the edge before firing a webline, soon invisibly swinging away.
Burnin let out a long yawn as she stared at the building her boss had just went into a few minutes ago. She twiddled with her fiery hair after this, only for a man wrapped in bandages to walk up to him. "Hey Burnin."
"Yeah Kido?" She replied as she turned to the man.
"We caught a bunch of thugs trying to leave through the back of the building. Looks like Tombstone's gang was holed up in there."
The girl raised an eyebrow, "Huh. Figures. Didn't Spider-Man fight those guys a while back?"
Kido nodded at this, "Yeah." He glanced back at the building, "When do we go in?"
"When the boss wants us to. I just hope the vigilante doesn't get away. He's been super angry about it recently."
Kido shrugged in response, "Eh, its not like its any different with the boss."
"Don't let him hear you say that." Burnin chuckled, "Though I'll bet that-"
WHAM!
The two turned to the sudden sound, only to see the building's garage door contort before flying off its hinges, the metal door slamming into the street as a few on the men surrounding the place scattered at the sight. A pillar of smoke covered the broken door as they glanced back at the building, seeing Endeavor walk out of the now open garage. Their eyes went back to the garage door one more time, now seeing a smoking, and quite naked due to all his clothes being burned off, knocked out Tombstone.
"Spider-Man has escaped!" Endeavor roared, "Search this area now!"
The group hopped at the outburst, all quickly running around, trying to see where the vigilante had gone. But it was too late, for none had seen him leave.
And as this happened, another figure was staring at the scene. They were just out of eyesight and on a rooftop, the individual was a bulky man wearing a brown jacket while looking through a pair of binoculars. He let out a sigh as he stared at the knocked-out Tombstone, soon putting away his binoculars and pulling out a cellphone. "He's not gonna like hearing this." He grumbled as he tapped the screen a few times before putting it up to his ear. "Hey, its me."
Somewhere unknown...
The sound of a small, almost silent click rang out as a certain man in a black and blue striped suit let out a sigh. The most notable feature was the top of his head, which was flat as a board despite his jet-black hair covering it. His forehead was wide, a few tiny veins pulsing on it. His name is Hammerhead, which is a literal name, as his quirk was also called Hammerhead. It gave him the power of a steel-like head, one that could absorb blows with ease.
He had a shot of bourbon in one hand while his other had a phone, the man taking a small sip before sighing again. He shook his head as he put the glass on a nearby counter, glancing up to see a man in a white suit with a purple rose on it while wearing a full head purple mask. Only his eyes could be seen, the man staring straight ahead at Hammerhead.
"Did the deal fall through?" the white-suited man asked while refilling the shot.
"Yup. I just got informed." Hammerhead growled, rubbing his face a second later as he put his phone away, "The boss is gonna be really angry about this one. Tombstone was really good for business."
"Tombstone was always a loose cannon." The man responded as he finished making the shot, Hammerhead taking it and instantly drinking it down.
"Yeah. Idiot just bit off more than he could chew."
"I suppose this...Spider-Man will be coming for us next?"
"No idea, but there's a good chance." Hammerhead grumbled as he rose up from his seat, "I...gotta go talk to the boss."
"Don't panic so much. He will be angry, but that is what happens when business goes wrong."
"Whatever." Hammerhead hissed as he left the room, the white suited man taking out another glass and began to fill it. After finishing the drink, he slowly lifted the mouth part of his mask as he took a deep breath. The tip of the glass touched his lips, slowly pouring it down his throat.
A minute later, he put the glass down and closed his mask before pulling out a phone, seeing a small text had just come through, "Hmm..."
The phone said one message: The next prototype is ready.
"At least we have some good news." He then began typing a text back that said: Understood. Name a time and we can meet.
And as the masked man put the phone back into his pocket, another voice spoke up, "I'd say you have more than just some good news." He glanced up to see a certain female officer with long blonde hair tied in a ponytail. She was wearing a giant grin as she added, "I got what you wanted."
"Excellent." the masked man chuckled before pulling out a small briefcase from under the bar, opening it to show a bunch of cash. "Thank you for your service."
"With this kind of pay, I would keep working for you till the cows come home." the woman laughed as she closed the briefcase and took it.
The masked man laughed at this before saying, "Well, I do have another job for you. One that will...take a bit longer and is much more dangerous, but the pay will be triple."
"Oh?" The woman leaned over on the bar, her grin widening, "Do tell."
Izuku wasn't sure how he got back home. He wasn't sure how long it took, or what path he used, or even if he was invisible when he did it. All he knew was that he got away, and was now suddenly back at his home's roof. That and pain. Tons of tons of pain raging all over his body. Every muscle ached, vision blurry, and he just felt awful.
As such, he wall-crawled down to his room's window, opened it and fell onto his bed without even taking off a bit of his costume. Sleep instantly took him despite the pain, his body shutting down as he sunk headfirst into the mattress. A second later, his room's door was opened to reveal his mother, Inko sighing at the sight before going over and closing the window. After this, Himiko's head popped into the room, going wide-eyed as she saw the teen was laid out on his bed.
"You're going to be the end of me, aren't you?" Inko muttered as she walked over and yanked Izuku's mask off before starting to take off his costume. Toga blushed at this before looking away and closing the door. She then put her ear to the door, listening to Inko's grumbles as she said, "I told you to not go in over your head, and what did you do?! You didn't listen!" The sound of something stretching came next, Inko commenting, "Thank goodness you have a healing factor with all these...quirks."
After this, it mainly went silent, a few minutes passing before Inko spoke up again, "You can come in now Himiko."
The girl slowly opened the door, now seeing Izuku had been flipped onto his back and bandages were all over him his torso. The bottom half was covered by the bed covers, Inko now pulling them up on Izuku. "Is...is he gonna be okay?"
"He'll be fine." Inko sighed, shaking her head, "He just needs rest."
"Oh...okay." Himiko fully walked into the room at this, sniffing the air for a second. "I smell blood on him."
"He'll heal." Inko replied as she sat down on Izuku's desk chair, crossing her arms, "But he's not going out as Spider-Man for a while."
"I see." Himiko added as she now stared at Inko, seeing the glare on her face, "Are you...angry?"
"Hmm?" Inko turned to her, her glare disappearing as she shook her head again, "No. Just...I'm still not used to..." She gestured to Izuku, "This."
"Oh."
"Yeah. But at least with this, I can make him slow down for a few days. He keeps going in over his head, and he really needs to stop."
Himiko put a finger to her chin at that, "Is it that bad?"
"Recently, yes." Inko replied, "When he first started being Spider-Man, I asked him to take it as slow as possible. And he did...until he just started fighting one crazy thing after another."
Himiko giggled at this, seeing the tired expression on Inko's face before the mother stared back at her, "Sorry."
"Its fine." Inko slightly chuckled, glancing back at Izuku. "I just need to make sure he heals up."
"Well, he did say that Tombstone guy was his next big case. Maybe he found him and beat him." Himiko added as she sat down at the end of the bed.
"I guess so..." Inko sighed again, "Either way, I'm making sure he doesn't go out as Spider-Man for a few days."
Himiko turned to her with a frown, her mind going over that idea. And as she watched Inko finish tending to her son, she spoke up, "Do you think that's a good idea?"
Inko glanced back at her, seeing the frown on the girl's face. The expression alone told her everything as she looked back at her son, "I...don't know."
Toga slowly asked next, "You don't like him being a vigilante, do you?"
"I...have problems with it." Inko admitted while expelling a deep breath, "I know he was born for it. He...loves it." Himiko almost flinched at that, surprised the woman would just say that. That is, till Inko shook her head, "I just wish he would slow down."
Himiko felt her own frown growing before saying, "I think he would if you just told him."
"I can't do that." Inko instantly responded, turning to Himiko again as she saw the girl's frown. The sight made her shake her head again, "I know. I know I can, but I won't get in the way of his dream." She glanced back at the sleeping teen, "That...is what a parent does."
Himiko blinked at the statement, her mind going over the sentence before looking back at Izuku. Inko then patted her shoulder, gesturing for them to leave the room. And as they left, Himiko looked back at Izuku before closing the door. 'What a parent does...' she thought before walking into the living room. 'Huh.'