At a beautiful rooftop.
— Since when have you been friends? More importantly, isn't she supposed to be in prison?
— Tatsuya, many things can happen from night to day! Ah, you don't mind if I call you by your first name, right?
— I don't care what you call me, Ishika-... Yuto. You have a talent for making friends with dangerous people...
— Isn't that a great thing? If they are dangerous and my friends, they will protect me!
Unizard jokingly said:
— Oh no, Yuto! You see me as your bodyguard? I want to cry...
— N-No, that's not what I meant, I'm sorry!
— Haha, you're so easy to tease, shortie.
Tatsuya frowned. He was a bit taller than Yuto, but he still took it personally.
— Everyone is short to you, ogre.
— Hey, don't call me that...
Unizard looked away, offended. That insult remembered her of a certain unpleasant person. Tatsuya regretted saying that, but he couldn't apologize.
— A-Anyway, why are you suddenly his friend now? Do you want to backstab him?
— Do you see me as a selfish liar?! How many times did I lie to you, huh?
— This is the first time we talk to each other. How could I tell you're not lying?
— Okay, I get it! You don't trust me and you don't have to. You're too skeptical, damn. Yuto, I know what you're thinking right now.
— Huh? But I didn't say anything yet...
— You called me here because you wanted to recruit me to your team, right? I can read minds, and I learned it the hard way.
Really? So you started questioning why you could hear everyone's pervert thoughts?
— You're thinking too loud, dumbass!
— I-I'm sorry!
— Anyway, you want me to help you kill the top 3, right?
— Not necessarily kill them. They can be nice people, we never know.
— You just killed a level 7 with no remorse.
— That's because she deserved it!
— That's the spirit! But we only know about Slade, the rank 2. And she's definitely not a nice person.
— Really? She was my friend a few years ago. I'm sure I can convince her.
— Do you know how much people can change in a few years? She's not the same Kataki you met.
— What happened to her?
— Well, she was subjected to an experiment under Mifuyu's orders.
— Mifuyu?
Yuto remembered the cientist who stopped him from entering the surgery room years ago. Messy hair, divided into light blue and acid green, glasses, white coat. She also participated in the tournament against Caliel.
— So she's the root of all that experiment?
— In practice, yes. But the Boss asked her to do it.
— I see... Now I know who to kill if Kataki doesn't come back to her normal self.
— She won't. As a friend, let me warn you this, Yuto: there are things not even I can do. Everybody has their limits, and you're no different. Don't waste your time on useless things.
— Are you saying she won't recognize me? Thanks for the "warning", but you're doubting my capabilites too much.
— Don't say I didn't warn you.
In the middle of the heated debate, someone opened the door leading to the building's roof.
— Excuse me, you are Ishikawa-san, right?
— What if I am? Who can you possibly be?
— Did I arrive at a bad time? I'm sorry, I can come later.
— Actually, don't go. I'm sorry for my behavior. How can I help you?
— Good evening, I'm Disruptor, a level 4 hero. Ria sent me here, because she recommended you. My power can control electronic devices.
— Ah, good evening, I'm Ishikawa Yuto, but you already know that. Why are you being so transparent with your power?
— I'll go straight to the point. I want to help you in your mission of killing all the level 7's.
— Wait, what? How did you know that?
— My power can control electronic devices, remember? It's not hard to know everything I want after hacking some of the association's data centers.
— So you know my secrets?
— Yes, but I don't care about you being considered a war criminal. I want to be your ally.
— Why?
— Ria fought Zenith, so I tried talking to her. But she was not in the mood for it, so she said you would be willing to do so.
— No, I mean... why do you want to kill the level 7's? What did they do to you?
— They did nothing bad to me directly. But if you keep fighting strong enemies, this city can vanish in a second.
— So you want to save everyone... that's a hero right there. Why don't you try stopping me? Wouldn't that be easier?
— Technically, it would be easier. But I know this association has more bad secrets than good ones. I'm betting on you to solve them.
Disruptor smiled at him as her black and green hair waved in the light breeze. Unizard and Tatsuya also smiled, reassuring that they would help him too. Yuto realized that all the responsibility was on him for the first time. He was used to depending on his sister. Unizard spoke up:
— Well, I guess it's inevitable that I'll fight alongside you. So I have to save some mana and magic residue.
Suddenly, a smoke cloud covered Unizard's body. After it dissipated into the air, she looked a bit smaller. They were all shocked.
— What is this, Unizard? You're too cute now!
— Are you saying I was not cute before, pervert?
She was actually much smaller than normal. She looked like a child.
— My mana regenerates faster in this state. And my magic residue decays faster too.
Tatsuya laughed at her.
— Who's the shortie now?
— Hey, being too tall has it's problems too, you know?!
Yuto giggled. Then, he asked:
— Disruptor, how exactly do you plan to help me? The level 7's are not to easy to deal with.
— Have you heard of Tokyo's orbital cannon? I plan to hack it.
— Wait, really? Can you control that monster from here?
— Unfortunately, no, I will need to fly there. Also, I'll probably have only one chance.
— You're not planning on sacrificing yourself, right?
— Of course, I'll try to escape after that. But the cannon needs recharge, so I can only shoot once. And they won't let me in again.
— That's good to hear. So I'll have to choose one enemy to use it against. I can probably deal with Stopwatch if I'm with my friends. Slade, I can convince her. How about you use it against Hakkiri, the top 1?
— Are you sure? He has electricity power, so he may be immune.
— That cannon is no joke. It could destroy a whole city if it was used at least once. They made it specifically as a last resort against disasters.
— Understood. When you're ready, please call me. Or not, actually, I know everything you do. When you defeat Slade, I'll go there immediately.
— That's more scary than comforting, but thank you.
Disruptor waved and left. Unizard took the chance and said goodbye:
— Well, I guess I will go to my room to recharge my energy. A big battle is about to come.
— Thank you, Unizard.
— I'm glad you're counting on your friends now.
— Revenge really do wonders.
Unizard smiled and waved, leaving the rooftop by jumping the ledge. Tatsuya said:
— Yuto, I wanted to see the stars. Do you want to come with me?
— What? Why so suddenly?
— I have some important things to discuss with you. And we can use it to ease our mind after so many battles. Have you ever been to a farm?
— No, I like the urban landscape.
— Just as I thought. I like the city view, but there are many others you need to experience.
— Do you own a farm too?
— No, my uncle has one. He owns it, but he's never around. Just to show how rich he is.
— So your whole family is rich, huh. Alright, when do you plan to go there?
— Tonight. You can bring Haji.
Haji was enjoying an ice cream at the moment, so she didn't know anything they discussed there. One of the stolen cards could reflect damage. Yuto decided to give it to her, since she was the weakest of the group. Now she could go anywhere in peace.
In the sports car Tatsuya bought a few days earlier.
— There, make yourselves comfortable.
— Tatsuya, how much did this cost?
— 50 million yen, I think.
— How can you say that so casually?!
— Look, I have a job, alright?
— Even if I had one, I couldn't buy it with my life savings! What the hell is your job? Drug dealing?
— I'll tell you there. But we need to talk about a few things before.
— Really? I thought you would say something like "I don't trust my memories enough yet".
— I don't trust them enough. That's why we need to talk.
Yuto looked at Tatsuya's eyes. He was being serious. What was so important he wanted to talk about? They smiled.
— Well, now is not the time yet. Even the car ride must be entertaining for all of us.
Tatsuya inserted a pen drive into the radio. An electronic music started playing.
— Wow, Tatsuya. I didn't know you had such a good taste in music.
Haji in the back commented, smirking:
— This dork always played electronic music while playing online games. It made him feel like he was in an edit or something.
— Really? That's good to hear. Like I said, I like the urban landscape. Appreciating it while listening to a symbol of the city is so magical.
— You're saying that when we're going to the middle of nowhere, haha...
— Hey, my uncle may be a bit old but he knows everything about technology. His farm is a bit high tech.
— I feel like we're in a science fiction story, right now.
Tatsuya smiled while looking the road. The car was in auto pilot, but he was actually enjoying the view.
— Hey, have any of you seen that meme? Look at me! I drive.
Yuto and Haji bursted in laughter. They felt like they were hearing a dad's joke. Wait, he was actually a dad.
— Tatsuya, you aren't actually driving, but I understand. You're literally me.
— Yeah, that's the spirit!
— Wait, something is off. Genesis should be here! Everything is better with her.
Yuto called Genesesis in his phone. She took a while, but answered it.
— Hi, Yuto! I'm sorry for leaving so suddenly... Is everything alright?
— More than alright, Genesis! Wait, is this a bad moment? You look like you're in trouble.
They saw her face cam. She was in the middle of a shootout. The beautiful starry sky was the background. Wearing a heavy coat and hat, she was crouching behind a small wall. The snow wind lightly swayed her red hair.
— N-No, I'm alright, really! If I was in danger, I wouldn't answer the call, haha...
— Are you sure? We wanted to include you in a group photo!
— A group photo? That's amazing! I can't wait to go back and meet you all again!
Haji commented:
— Hey, the drop of the music is coming! That will be the best time to take a screenshot!
— You're right, Haji!
Genesis, surprised, said:
— Wait, a screenshot? But my hair is messy and I'm wearing weird clothes...
Haji reassured it:
— Who cares, silly? You didn't hear Tatsuya saying the cringest jokes I ever heard! Everyone is being goofy today!
— Hey, I'm not cringe!
Genesis looked at them for a second. They were enjoying it the most they could. She smiled in response.
— Here is the drop!
The music reached the best part. Everyone started dancing their heads to it.
— Go, Yuto, now! Everyone, say cheese!
Everyone looked at the camera and smiled brightly. Genesis had the biggest smile, as always. Yuto took the screenshot with the whole squad laughing. Tatsuya commented:
— Save that photo with your life, Yuto. Everything can change from night to day, so we need to remember this moment.