NOVPUB
Chapter 76 - The Last Card Under The Sleeve
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|Two days later...|
...
A man with a mohawk for hair struggled to stand up, his legs almost buckling beneath him. His eyes set on the figure standing completely nonchalantly before him, causing his teeth to grind against each with fury. "Ugh, damnit... DAMNIT!! A brat won't be the one to beat me!!!"
"Mimimi, 'I brit win't bit mi'." The figure mocked, arms crossed.
"Y-you... SHUT UP YOU FUCKING—!!!"
-Whack!-
With a quick uppercut, the figure—or rather, Suzaku, who was now wearing his full suit with helmet included—shut the annoying man in one go, sending the guy to count sheep on the cold concrete of the road as his body crashed crudely with it.
"Huff..."
With his foe down, Suzaku exhaled and massaged the wrist of the hand he'd just used to put the guy to sleep, glancing down at the gloves he was wearing with a faint smile.
'These gloves Arata made for me sure have been useful. I barely felt the recoil on that one. Good thing I brought them with me, considering I'm out of staffs to hit people with for now.'
Letting out a satisfied sigh after he moved his wrist a little more, he proceeded to turn to Mirko, who had just delivered one last kick to the one who looked like the leader of the gang they had just intercepted and beat up, sending him flying like a ragdoll across the air.
This bunch weren't villains like the ones they'd been fighting so far, but criminals they were. Before she and he got here, they had been extorting people and threatening everyone they came across like they hadn't been taught any better.
Suzaku scoffed faintly as he glanced at the many thugs lying near him, then at the other pile near Mirko.
'Seriously, if you're gonna act like an asshole, at least have the strength or ability to back it up. This is sad.'
They had been acting like they were Yakuzas or something, but their Quirks were barely anything noteworthy. Just some minor enhancement Quirks, some Quirks that looked more scary than they truly were, etc, etc...
And unlike Suzaku, this bunch didn't have an enhanced body to at least make up for their normalness, so that was that.
With a snort, Suzaku shook his head and walked toward Mirko, who was already calling the authorities to come clean up after them.
After a short wait, during which Mirko proceeded to describe the scene with minimal detail to the police, probably because she was fed up, she finally turned to him and flashed him a thumbs up.
"Alright, kid. Time for our lunch break."
"Finally."
Suzaku groaned, stretching his back as his body went into chillaxing mode right away after hearing her words.
Beating up people was good for stress, he had to admit. But after doing it six days straight, it was starting to get more annoying than fun.
Especially because some of them were his kin—natural trash-talkers—and they constantly yapped throughout the fight.
Unlike him, though, they didn't have the strength to back their words up, so most ended up with a punch or a knee lodged in their gut, getting real silent afterward.
Suzaku shook his head mid-stretch. 'The art of trash talking isn't for the faint of heart... or gut.'
As he finished stretching, Mirko shot him a smile.
"Since today's your last day, this is my treat. Where do you want to eat?"
'Last day?' Suzaku raised an eyebrow and quickly checked the date on his phone, a faint look of surprise flashing across his face.
'Huh. A week actually passed already.'
Still, the surprise only lasted for about a second before something more important came to mind. Food.
"Your treat, huh?" Suzaku massaged his chin with a pensive face. "Then... how about a 5-star restaurant?"
"Don't get ahead of yourself, brat."
Suzaku laughed, shooting her a cheeky grin.
"Pizza, then."
...
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|Some time later...|
...
Suzaku and Mirko sat on opposite sides of a table, waiting patiently for their pizza—with extra carrots on one side.
In the meantime, Mirko was on a call with a friend of hers, someone called Ryukyu or something. Suzaku hadn't really paid attention, nor did the name ring any bells.
He, on the other hand, was scrolling through his phone, killing time watching whatever shorts came to his for-you page.
He was having a good time, watching memes that came up now and then—until a particular video popped up.
"Hmm?"
It was a clip of him, caught mid-fight, beating down a group of goons. Mirko could be seen in the background kicking someone into next week.
The caption read: The Sports Festival's winner is going crazy out in the streets!
"Another one?" Suzaku raised an eyebrow and opened the comments.
[Hide98: Bro ran out of classmates to beat up.]
[Allmightfan156: Today's a bad day for being a villain.]
[Allmightsucks2: Isn't that hero brutality?]
[ExplosionGodDynamight: Lame.]
[Stickforarms: Dude punched all his school and is now moving to the big leagues.]
[Glowingeyeskeleton: Dude is the most violent person I've seen and he chooses Sussy Baka as his Hero name.]
[Batdoctor: It's Sussy Baking Time!]
His smile twitched a bit at the chaos in the comments, but honestly, what could he even do? At least no one was trying to cancel him.
His popularity had spiked after the news about the Hero Killer came out. He wasn't the center of attention, though. The spotlight mainly had gone to the mysterious villain group that broke the guy out.
Still, since the police mentioned he had "helped" in the capture, and with the fact that he was the Sports Festival's winner—of the first year at least—his name started floating around... including his hero name.
[SkibidiMight: What kind of name is even Sussy Baka?]
Suzaku smirked faintly as he saw it plastered all over the comment section.
Sure, he would've loved to be properly recognized as the one who beat the Hero Killer to a pulp. The clout that'd have given him would have been unmatched.
But between being unlicensed and underage, he ultimately had to settle for the "assistant" role in the official reports.
"Damn law," Suzaku muttered, clicking his tongue as he scrolled down, having seen enough of his own brilliant performance beating down thugs.
Unfortunately for his bored self though, the videos after that were just annoying guys staring at the camera while clips of All Might fighting villains played above them. It didn't take long for his patience to run out, and he shut the app with an irritated sigh.
Though, he turned his phone back on for a second—just to check the time—then turned it off for real.
'An hour left before we go back to patrol.' He sighed, glancing around the surrounding tables with a fed-up look.
Truthfully, it was a tiring job. Sure, there were way more exhausting ones out there—some required heavy physical labor, others were mentally draining—but that didn't make this one any easier in its own way.
Constant walking all over the city, always staying alert for trouble, and the constant tension of potentially running into someone incredibly dangerous... or into an emergency where people's lives were on the line.
'Medics probably have it like this... if not worse.' He huffed, leaning back and staring up at the ceiling.
At least Quirks helped sometimes in that regard, speeding up or simplifying the treatments people received. However, in other cases where they changed the physiology of the patients, they just made everything more complicated.
'Damn, poor medics in this world, they are probably on the verge of dying themselves from overwork.' Suzaku grimaced.
And for what? So some lunatic on the corner of the city could blow up a street and dump even more chaos on their plate?
Suzaku shook his head, clicking his tongue in frustration.
'I should stop thinking about this crap. It's just making me want to punch someone...'
After a second of processing that line of thought, he snorted.
'Well... at least I'm in the right line of work for that.'
Just then, their pizza arrived. The waiter set it down in the middle of the table.
Mirko instantly perked up and ended the call abruptly, licking her lips as she rotated the pizza so the side with extra carrots faced her.
As they each took a slice, Suzaku glanced at her.
"So, uh... is it always this busy being a hero?"
She didn't even look up, already munching happily on her slice.
"Depends on the city. Some places are hell. Others are boring as hell. Either 'cause of the crime rates, or just 'cause there are too many heroes stationed there."
Suzaku nodded and took a bite of his own slice. "What about vacations? Do you get any or..."
Mirko shook her head casually, still chewing. "Depends if you're solo or in an agency. I'm solo, so I decide when to take a break. But since we get paid depending on how many messes we handle, no work means no pay."
"Damn," Suzaku muttered. 'There goes having paid vacations.'
Mirko smirked. "But well, at least in this line of work it never gets boring."
Suzaku let out a wry laugh. He couldn't tell if he liked the idea of constantly fighting maniacs and rescuing people from collapsing buildings every day.
While he enjoyed a good fight, he would always prefer lying down on his king-sized bed all day.
Something that, sadly, he hadn't been able to do due to being in another city.
'Well, at least it's my last day.' He thought, enjoying the flavor of his pizza. 'All I gotta do is resist until tomorrow morning, and me and my bed will be reunited.'
As he ate, already imagining the commodity he'd feel once he threw himself at his bed, he snorted, amused at the thought of some catastrophe striking during these last few hours.
'I mean, how likely is it to happen?'
...
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|Two hours later...| (A/N: Recommend you put on some epic music. If it is ominous, better.)
...
'Why did I have to go and jinx it?'
Suzaku stood frozen, staring at the enormous fire raging out of control before him, devouring an entire district. The light from the furious flames glared off the visor of his helmet.
Heroes darted in every direction—some carrying victims covered in burns, others rushing to collapsing zones, trying to support ongoing rescue efforts.
"Move move, they need people at the east side!"
"The fire is expanding, they already contacted fire-containing specialized heroes, but they'll take a while to arrive!"
"Group of injured people incoming, make way!"
Mirko had already dashed off to help elsewhere, telling him to stay put and assist whenever a hero needed help moving the injured.
So now, he stood there, mostly useless, offering a hand when needed... and watching it all unfold.
As he stood idly by the side, he clicked his tongue 'So much for a peaceful night. There's gotta be some God out there screwing me over... An enemy of the Impostor God? A Crewmate God, maybe?'
Even with chaos all around, his humor clung on—barely.
'Okay, maybe not the best time for jokes...'
Right then, a man in his forties was rushed toward him by a hurried hero, half his face covered in painful burns. Suzaku took him without hesitation and carried him to the designated safe zone, away from the inferno.
There were at least four dozen people reunited upon one spot, showing just the sheer disaster that had struck from one moment to another.
For a moment, Suzaku wondered if the problem was starting to die down. With the whole mass of people the heroes had already rescued, surely they would be almost done with the rescuing, right?
But the moment he returned to his spot, chaos hit again.
"We need someone over here! The fire's spreading!"
"Where the hell are the heroes with water Quirks?!"
"That side's collapsing—watch out!"
-CRACKLE!-
—BOOM!!!—
A massive explosion ripped through the air. Half a building came crashing down, sealing off one of the main entrances.
Panic struck immediately.
"Shit! There were still people inside!"
"The heat's spiking! Anyone going in now is gonna get cooked alive!"
"Anyone got a fire-resistance Quirk?!"
"Call backup—now!"
"I'm trying! But even if someone's free, they'll take five minutes to get here. The people inside don't have five minutes!"
"Damn it!"
The heroes stood frozen. No one could do anything. They stared at the ruined building, at each other... powerless.
At least, until someone moved.
-Swoosh-
Suddenly, a figure in red passed by the group of heroes and slipped through a narrow opening, pushing the debris that blocked it aside with sheer strength and squeezing into the collapsed zone—straight into the flame-covered ruins.
"Who was that?!"
"Wait—wasn't that Mirko's intern?!"
"Is he insane?!"
The heroes glanced at each other, frozen. Unknowing what to do with Suzaku having just entered the inferno that had become the building.
Meanwhile, inside the burning structure, Suzaku gritted his teeth, a pained breath escaping his lips. The heat was already seeping through his suit, every second making it harder to breathe.
Still, it kept the fire off his skin.
Barely.
"Damnit, why couldn't God add the ability to be invulnerable to fire in my ability kit?" Suzaku cursed, as a bead of sweat—rather, many—rolled down his forehead. Flames crackled all around him, and more than once he had to pass straight through the burning tongues just to reach the next corridor.
As he traversed the place—sometimes breaking apart debris, other times shielding himself with his arms as the fire intensified—his ears morphed beneath the helmet, shifting into Mirko's.
Immediately, enhanced hearing kicked in, filtering what he needed from the chaos around.
Then he heard them.
At least ten people. Scattered. Trapped in their own apartments.
'Of course it wouldn't be a manageable amount.' Suzaku winced. 'I hate this already...'
But he didn't slow down. His legs pushed on, ignoring the heat and pain, until he reached a door where panicked, ragged breathing leaked through the cracks.
—Bang!—
A sharp kick shattered it open, and Suzaku charged inside.
Squinting past the smoke, he caught sight of his targets.
A kid—and what looked like his parents—huddled in the only part of the room that wasn't a full-blown inferno yet. But from the look on their faces, the smoke was already doing enough damage.
"Don't worry, for I am here and all that shit. Follow me if you want to live."
There was no hesitation. As soon as the words reached them, the parents nodded. Their gazes were hazy, and they looked ready to collapse, but they grabbed their child regardless and started moving, pushing their dizziness away with sheer will.
Suzaku didn't miss a beat. On the way out, he spotted a cotton rug that hadn't caught fire yet. With a few swift hits, he put out the small flames licking at the edges, then tossed it to them.
"Use that to shield yourselves," he barked, then led the way out as the family covered themselves.
From there, he moved fast. Kicking down door after door, calling out to the trapped, tossing rugs, or dragging people out himself when needed.
Some were children. Others adults. Some a mix in between. It didn't matter. Suzaku just kept moving, pushing through flames, trying to end this mess before things got even worse.
In less than three minutes, he'd pulled the ten people from their homes.
He heaved a sigh, his whole body soaked in sweat beneath the suit.
His eyes quickly began darting around, looking for a window. 'Done. Now all that's left is—'
—Crack...—
His ears twitched.
'Aw fuck...'
That sound wasn't good.
"Get down, now!" he shouted, his message getting across quickly, and making everyone duck right away.
And just at the right moment.
The next instant, the ceiling groaned—then, not even a second later, it gave out, coming down on them like a death sentence.
—BOOM!!!—
Chunks of flaming debris rained from above.
Without hesitation, Suzaku surged forward, arms spread wide, throwing himself over the group beneath the rug, shielding them from the collapse.
"AAAARGH, damn son of a—!"
Pain exploded through him as the rubble slammed down, crushing onto his back and shoulders.
But he didn't let go.
Not even a little.
He held. Even as his muscles burned from the strain—and the fire... mostly the fire.
His damn suit was already starting to melt.
'Shit, this is what I get for rushing straight in without a plan. This ain't no anime—this building on fire isn't gonna conveniently collapse in the spots I don't care about!'
Gritting his teeth, Suzaku dug deep, trying to force the crushing weight off of him. Whatever fell had to be a huge chunk of the place—ceiling, walls, who knew? What mattered to him was that it hurt like hell.
"Huff, huff, huff..." He sucked in air through clenched teeth, then—
"Alright, here we go!!!─────────────shit, never mind, it's not budging even a little."
His voice cracked, and he gave up halfway through the attempt.
No use pretending—he was completely pinned.
Trapped under what had to be literal tons of flaming debris, Suzaku's eyes darted, searching for anything—a crack, an opening, a miracle, something to at least get the people to escape on their own...
...
Nothing.
-Cough, cough...-
'Shit.'
Suzaku then noticed the people beneath him were beginning to lose consciousness, the smoke and heat getting to them.
That took the option of them escaping on their own off the table.
Which meant their lives, and his, depended solely on him.
Sadly, with him being pinned and unable to move if he didn't want to get buried in fiery debris, it wasn't looking very likely he'd be able to do much.
Suzaku swallowed hard, closing one of his eyes as a bead of sweat rolled by it. 'Am I dying like this? In some random-ass fire?'
His pulse quickened, teeth clenched. There were no vents nearby, so placing one now wouldn't help, as it wouldn't connect to anything.
Invisibility? Useless.
Kill? Fire wasn't alive, nor were the debris on top of him
Shapeshifting? Maybe. If he copied someone stronger than him, he might buy a few more seconds. But against this weight and fire, it'd only delay the inevitable.
He'd only be getting more time to get crispy.
—BOOOM!—
Suzaku's eyes widened as the sound of the building collapsing further reached his ears.
Instantly, the weight pressing down on him grew heavier. Whatever had come down just now—it made everything worse.
—Crack...!—
"Argh, fucking—!" he growled, twitching as his bones creaked. The rubble shifted again, pressing down harder.
His back bent under the pressure.
He gritted his teeth.
'Fuck, fuck, fuck... There ain't no way I'm dying in a damn fire!'
He glanced down—most of the people beneath him were already unconscious.
Was there truly no way out?
Veins bulged on his neck and forehead as he closed his eyes. Was this it? After everything?
His mind flickered through his life—all the effort, all the time, every person he'd met along the way. All the pain. All the survival.
And it was all about to disappear again? Just like that?
Was he about to lose his life again?
'Aw hell no!'
His eyes flew open wide—and that's when it came to him.
There was one ability that might get him out of this.
One he had tested once... and canceled almost immediately, as it nearly exposed everything when he tried it at home years ago—his biggest secret.
That there had never been a vigilante who saved him.
That it had always been him.
That he had been the one who killed dozens, hundreds.
The truth he'd hidden for so long—it almost got revealed at that time... and it would most likely happen this time too if he used it right now.
Heroes were still outside, and so were bystanders... Hence, tons of Cameras. Phones as well.
If he used that now, everyone would see it.
If he used it, he'd—
"Fuck it. I'm not caring about that right now!" Suzaku roared, his voice strained, his spine on the verge of snapping.
He had maybe five seconds left before turning into crispy meat paste.
So he made his decision.
Then—
...
—Badump—
...
It began with a single heartbeat.
Loud. Like a gong echoing through his chest.
"Hngh—!" Suzaku gritted his teeth, eyes wide.
Then, his pulse surged.
A heat rose—not from the flames, but from deep within.
Hotter than the blaze around him.
But it didn't burn.
This heat was his.
And along with it... came the anger.
Sudden. Furious. Alive.
His muscles tensed and bulged, ballooning beneath the molten wreck of his suit.
—RIP!—
Soon enough, the sturdy suit tore like wet paper as his body expanded—twice its size. Then three. Four. Five.
His skin turned a deep crimson, and his frame shifted, almost in an inhuman way, as if bones were ceasing to exist inside him.
Then, the wreckage groaned.
And for the first time... it moved.
The ceiling debris trembled under the pressure. Cracks spidered outward as the sheer force of his transformation pushed back against the crushing weight threatening to bury him alive.
All, until the one holding it all up was no longer the young hero clad in red armor...
No, it was something else.
A hulking crimson figure now stood there, its form constantly shifting—almost as if it were made of gas, of living goo, or some kind of liquid flesh. Uncertain. Unstable.
At the top of its body—or what seemed like its head—was a single, massive, pupil-less eye, pale blue and unblinking, staring down at the dozen unconscious people below.
Flames danced across its form, but they did nothing. Snuffed out immediately—absorbed or smothered by whatever strange substance this being was made of.
And on its stomach... a gaping maw lined with countless needle-sharp teeth twitched and moved, alive and restless, snapping at the air as if desperate to devour anything it could reach.
It stood there, unmoving—like a statue carved from living muscle and hate, holding the debris upon its shoulders like a pillar—until its single eye shifted.
Then, its head twitched.
—Growl...—
It began low. Guttural.
The sound of a beast waking from a deep, violent slumber.
Then, its whole body jerked upright, pushing the debris with ease, its single eye widening to its limit as a red glow generated at its center.
The gaping mouth on its stomach stretched wide, and a long, razor-sharp tongue flailed out, thrashing like a dying serpent.
Then... It spoke.
—ROAAAAAAAR!!!—
The howl tore through the burning building. Through the streets. Through the chaos.
Every hero who heard it froze.
Every bystander felt a chill run down their spine.
They all had the same feeling.
That howl hadn't been just a sound.
It was a warning.
The sound of judgment.
As if death itself had descended.
...
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-To be Continued...-
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(A/N: The final and most overpowered ability of our MC has finally made its debut. What did you think about it? With appropiate music I think it should have looked pretty good.
Personally, I listened to a cover of the Hide and Seek theme from Among Us while writing this part, since that's literally the inspiration behind this transformation. It's the Unleashed Impostor, one that no longer cares about deception or subtlety. Just pure rampage.)
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