The night air hung heavy with anticipation, and the bustling city seemed eerily quiet to Remond as he walked briskly down the cobblestone streets, a sense of unease prickling at the back of his mind. He had just finished his evening classes when his phone buzzed with a call from Yuki.
"Remond," Yuki's voice was laced with concern. "Hayato ran off suddenly. He said he had something urgent to do."
Remond's brows furrowed as he stopped in his tracks. "What? Where did he go?"
"I don't know. He just left," Yuki replied, her worry evident. "He seemed... different, like he was in a hurry to deal with something serious."
The words rattled around in Remond's mind like loose change in a pocket. Hayato was always a bit of an enigma, but this was unusual even for him.
"Alright, thanks for letting me know," Remond said, his voice steady. "I'll figure it out."
After hanging up, he immediately tried to call Master Ho Dieng, thinking that if anyone knew what Hayato was up to, it would be him. But each call went unanswered, leaving only an ominous silence.
Frustration mounting, Remond shoved his phone into his pocket and started walking home, hoping to piece together what was going on. As he passed under the golden glow of a streetlight, his phone buzzed again. This time, it was a notification from Fakebook.
He tapped on it absentmindedly, only to be met with a breaking news alert:
"Heist in Progress at Downtown Jewelry Store – Police on the Way!"
Remond froze, his eyes scanning the article. The report detailed a brazen robbery at one of the city's most prominent jewelry stores. Eyewitnesses described masked men carrying advanced weaponry and wreaking havoc inside the store.
The pieces began to fall into place in his mind, his thoughts accelerating like the gears of a well-oiled machine. Hayato's sudden departure. The heist. The fact that Hayato had been acting strange for weeks, disappearing at odd hours.
His heart pounded as the realization struck him.
"Could it be... Hayato?" he murmured under his breath.
---
Remond's mind raced as he hurried down the street, his shoes slapping against the pavement. The city lights blurred into streaks of yellow and white as his focus narrowed.
"This isn't the first time Hayato's acted like this," he thought. "He's been slipping away, always with some excuse. And then there's Sid. He's been distant too, always tinkering with his gadgets, avoiding questions. It's like they're hiding something."
He replayed Yuki's words in his mind. 'He seemed... different.'
"And now this heist," he muttered, glancing again at the news on his phone. "A high-profile crime, happening right when Hayato vanishes. It's too much of a coincidence."
His instincts as a budding detective kicked in, connecting the dots with surgical precision. "If Hayato really is involved, then... is he trying to stop it? But why would he—"
The image of the vigilante from the previous night flashed in his mind. The news had been buzzing with tales of a mysterious figure taking down criminals, someone who fought with ferocity and skill.
"No," Remond whispered, his breath hitching. "It can't be. Hayato... is the vigilante?"
The thought both terrified and fascinated him. If it was true, Hayato was risking his life every night to fight crime. But why? And how?
Remond's pace quickened as he made a beeline for downtown. If his hunch was right, he needed to be there—not just to confirm his suspicions, but to make sure his friend survived the night.
---
Meanwhile, the jewelry store was a scene of chaos. The robbers, clad in black and armed with assault rifles, moved with military precision, smashing glass cases and stuffing priceless jewels into duffel bags. The sound of shattering glass and blaring alarms filled the air, mingling with the panicked cries of the store's staff who had been forced to the ground.
A sleek black van idled outside, its engine purring like a predator waiting to pounce.
Above them, perched on a streetlight like a shadow made flesh, was the vigilante. Hayato adjusted the reinforced gloves Sid had built for him, his sharp eyes scanning the scene below.
Sid's voice crackled in his ear through the communicator. "You're outnumbered, Hayato. Be careful."
Hayato smirked. "When am I not?"
With that, he leaped from the streetlight, landing in the middle of the store with the grace of a predator. The robbers spun around, startled by the sudden appearance of the masked figure.
"It's him!" one of them shouted, raising his weapon.
But Hayato was faster. He lunged at the nearest robber, delivering a lightning-fast punch to the gut that sent the man sprawling. The next attacker swung the butt of his rifle at him, but Hayato ducked under the blow and countered with a kick that knocked the weapon out of his hands.
The fight was a blur of motion, Hayato moving like a shadow as he disarmed and incapacitated the robbers one by one. His gloves crackled with energy, emitting faint blue sparks as he used them to amplify his strikes.
Within minutes, half the crew was down, groaning on the floor. The remaining robbers backed away, fear etched into their faces.
---
A slow clap echoed through the store, cutting through the chaos. Hayato turned to see a tall, muscular man step out from the shadows, his presence commanding and ominous.
Lu Shueng was unlike the others. His movements were deliberate, his eyes cold and calculating. He carried no weapon, yet his aura was more menacing than any firearm.
"So, you're the one causing all this trouble," Lu Shueng said, his voice deep and mocking. "I've been looking for a challenge."
Hayato's instincts screamed at him to be cautious. This man was different—a predator, just like him.
Lu Shueng didn't wait for a reply. He lunged at Hayato with blinding speed, his fist cutting through the air like a blade. Hayato barely managed to dodge, the force of the blow grazing his side and sending a display case shattering.
The two clashed in a flurry of strikes and counters, their movements almost too fast to follow. Hayato's gloves sparked as he delivered a series of punches, but Lu Shueng blocked them with ease, his martial arts training evident in every motion.
"You're good," Lu Shueng said, smirking. "But not good enough."
He feinted left and then struck right, catching Hayato off guard. His fist connected with Hayato's stomach, the impact sending him flying into a wall. The breath was knocked out of him, and he struggled to get up, his vision swimming.
Lu Shueng approached, his steps measured and confident. "Is that all you've got, little vigilante?"
Hayato gritted his teeth, forcing himself to stand. "Not... even close."
Summoning every ounce of strength, he launched himself at Lu Shueng, their fight reigniting with renewed intensity. The room became a battlefield, the once-pristine jewelry store now a war zone.
But despite his skill and determination, Hayato found himself outmatched. Lu Shueng's experience and raw power were overwhelming, and every blow he landed left Hayato closer to defeat.
---
As their battle reached its climax, Lu Shueng delivered a devastating strike, his fist colliding with Hayato's chest and sending him crashing through a glass display case. Hayato lay on the ground, blood trickling from his lips, his body screaming in pain.
Lu Shueng stood over him, a satisfied smirk on his face. "Pathetic," he muttered.
Hayato's vision blurred, but he refused to give up. With trembling hands, he reached for his gloves, activating the hidden mechanism Sid had installed. A faint hum of energy surrounded him, and he prepared for one last stand.
Meanwhile, outside the store, Remond arrived, his heart pounding as he took in the scene of destruction.
"What the hell is going on?" he whispered, his eyes darting toward the shattered windows.