Quirky Row Chapter 48: Dragonslayers

Chapter 48: Dragonslayers

(Wednesday, March 15th, 2124)

“Been quiet recently. Too quiet,” Johnny muttered. Playa sent his best friend an amused look, then glanced over at the gun range that Johnny had been shooting up earlier.

“I’m pretty sure everyone in a ten-block radius heard you venting your frustrations on those poor defenseless targets,” Playa drawled. It wasn’t just guns Johnny had been using. A few grenades had been chucked and even a flamethrower had been deployed.

The leader of the Third Street Saints didn’t even know where Johnny had gotten that last weapon! It wasn’t one of his right-hand-man’s usual tools of destruction.

“You know what I mean,” Johnny huffed as he started to pack up his weapons. “The Ronin have been weirdly quiet. I’d have sworn ol’ Kazuo would have done something by now, but he’s laying low and biding his time. I don’t like.”

“I know what you mean,” Playa agreed. “Kazuo’s a cold man to wait this long after we offed his kid. Makes me nervous. What’s he planning? Any ideas?”

“According to the guys I have keeping an eye on things, the Ronin have gone deep underground,” Johnny replied as they walked out of the shooting range. It was one owned wholesale by the Saints and staffed by loyal members of the gangs, so nobody batted an eye at the absurd amount of firearms he was carrying out.

“It’ll be hard to drive them out of their hiding spots, but they’ll slip up sooner or later,” Playa said confidently as they got into the car. It was a blue SUV, one to be driven around when they didn’t want to be identified as Saints.

Ever since the Brotherhood had been wiped out, nobody but the Saints drove purple vehicles in Stilwater anymore. The Saints had of course purchased any civilian owned ones at a generous price, in order to protect the drivers from being targeted by overzealous cops or gangsters who mistook them for members of the Saints.

Of course, this meant it was pretty easy to pretend to not be part of the Third Street Saints so long as you drove something that lacked the color purple or a Fleur d’Lys decoration. But that worked to their advantage as Johnny and Playa drove back to the Mission.

Playa had enjoyed his easy-going morning, but he had a pile of paperwork waiting for him in his office he needed to finish this afternoon.

As the two friends drove through Stilwater, Playa couldn’t help but admire how it had changed since the Sons and Brotherhood had been removed. The dirty, trash-strewn streets were cleaned up and the bullet hole riddled buildings were being fixed up. Things were becoming better for the city and for everyone who lived in it. Jobs were returning which had the money flowing, and people were even moving in to take advantage of the recent economic upturn.

“Hey, boss, you’ve got a guest,” Pierce said, running out to meet Playa and Johnny as they entered the Mission.

“Is it Vogel again? Can I shoot him this time?” Johnny asked.

“No, it’s not him. It’s somebody else.”

“That helps narrow it down,” Playa scoffed.

“Are they gonna be a problem? Can I shoot them if they are?” Johnny requested.

“Maybe. We’ll see who they are, first,” Playa told his friend.

Pierce led the two of them deeper into the building, entering a lounge area in the main hall where four people were seated on couches and facing each other as an elderly Chinese gentleman was telling Shaundi and Mink something that had the two of them in stitches.

“…and so he goes running around, killing all of the targets while dressed up in a hotdog mascot costume!” Mr. Wong chortled, slapping his knee as he finished telling a story.

“Ha! Oh, my God! No way!” Shaundi cackled, while Mink was trying her best to stifle her amusement.

“It’s true! Didn’t even ask why. Just did it!” the Chinese broker laughed. Even his translator was grinning, though he tried to hide it.

“Oh, no. Please tell me you’re not filling my girlfriends’ heads with nonsense,” Playa groaned as he walked over.

“Never! I was simply regaling them with the adventures of my Hotdog Assassin,” Mr. Wong said with a smug grin.

“Ugh, I should have read the fine print on those damn hit contracts,” Playa sighed, before turning serious. “Mr. Wong, not that it’s not a pleasure to see you again, but what brings you here?”

“A few things,” the crime lord of Chinatown stated as he stood up to greet Playa. “First, let me give you my thanks for killing Kazuo Akuji’s son. His Ronin ran amok for too long.”

“You know the bastard, huh?” Johnny asked, glaring behind his sunglasses at the older man.

“We have a long history,” Wong stated bitterly. “And his son has earned my eternal hatred.”

“Why? What did Shogo do you?” Pierce asked.

“Besides taking over Chinatown and pushing me out of my own damn territory? He killed my dog,” Wong spat out.

“He killed your dog? Are you kidding?” Pierce asked incredulously.

“I do not joke about Sadie,” Wong growled, and Pierce stepped back nervously as the man suddenly sprouted scales and a pair of horns from his head, swiftly gaining a draconic appearance.

“I knew he was a little bitch, but to think he’d actually attack innocent animals,” Johnny uttered in disgust.

“Hmph, quite,” Mr. Wong agreed with a sharp nod. “But he is dead, now. And that brings us to my second reason for being here. I wish to help you finish the job.”

“You want to aid the Saints in bringing down Kazuo next,” Playa guessed.

“That’s right,” Wong said, flashing a vicious grin at the supervillain. “We know many things about him. I know how he thinks. How he will react. And odds are, Kazuo is biding time and building his forces for one final attack.”

“He’s gonna come here,” Playa said, realizing what Mr. Wong was getting at.

“Yes,” the old man nodded. “It won’t be long. I’d say within the next few days is when Kazuo will make his move.”

“I see. Then I accept the offer, Mr. Wong,” Playa said, offering his hand to shake. The older gentleman took it, sealing the deal.

“Good. I will provide everything I know about the Ronin’s remaining assets. With it, we may be able to find where the old tiger is hiding and strike preemptively,” Mr. Wong said.

“…Hold on. Does anybody else hear that?” Johnny demanded, tilting his head to the side.

Playa frowned but directed his attention outwards. There, at the edge of his hearing, was a low rumbling sound. And it was getting closer.

“Motorcycle engines,” Playa realized. His eyes widened. “Oh, fuck! Kazuo’s already here!”

Mr. Wong swore loudly in Mandarin, while his translator and bodyguard gripped his cane tightly and drew a gun.

Meanwhile, Playa began shouting orders, instructing the gang members who were in the Mission to brace for an oncoming attack. There weren’t many members of the Third Street Saints in the building. And those who were there were mainly lieutenants or those who were tasked with desk jobs to keep the gang running smoothly. Not exactly combat ready individuals.

“Mr. Wong, are you ready for a fight?” Playa demanded as he drew his heavily modified revolver.

“I have not killed a man in some time,” Wong admitted, even as he began to transform. His Quirk let him morph into a humanoid dragon-like figure, complete with scales and claws, and he settled into a martial arts stance.

“Don’t worry, it’s like riding a bike,” Johnny said as he began to toss his guns around, arming Pierce, Shaundi, and Mink, as well as a few other Saints as they grouped up to defend their location.

A minute later, and all hell broke loose as several Ronin on motorcycles broke into the Mission, following by dozens more on foot. They swarmed the battlefield, armed with guns and katanas, with plenty of deadly Quirks on display.

“There’s gotta be a hundred of ‘em! Kazuo must have summoned every last Ronin for this attack!” Pierce scowled.

“We have to hold them off!” Playa declared as he shot a Ronin in the chest. He then ducked under a sword-swinging gangster and grabbed their wrist, twisting sharply and knocking the blade from their grasp. He then put a round in their stomach before kicking them backwards.

Johnny was having a lot of fun with his shotgun, just blasting away without a care in the world. A Ronin who could grow crystals from their skin tried to rush him, but some buckshot dissuaded him. Another one was able to coat their flesh in metal, but an armor piercing slug ended the threat permanently.

Shaundi and Mink were staying low, hiding behind the couches for cover and taking potshots at whatever Ronin tried to flank them.

“I sent out a call for reinforcements, but it’ll take some time for ‘em to get here!” Shaundi called out as she ducked down to reload.

“The danger of expanding your territory and spreading your forces thin,” Mr. Wong stated, before spin kicking a Ronin with a bear Heteromorphic Quirk in the chest, shattering ribs effortlessly.

“I am well aware, thank you,” Playa said, gritting his teeth in annoyance. “But what are they even doing?”

The Ronin were acting off. They were rushing into the Mission, but most of them didn’t seem to be trying to go after the rest of the Saints elsewhere in the building, focusing on attacking the main area. In fact, the ones who were rushing towards the stairs didn’t seem to want to fight them, and were just trying to keep them in place.

“Are the Ronin in the rest of building acting this weird?” Playa asked.

“Dunno, let me make a few inquiries,” Pierce said. He ducked behind a couch and whipped out his phone and sent out a few texts, which were eventually responded to by Saints still in the building.

“It’s definitely weird, boss! The Ronin aren’t heading to the upper floors! They all seem to be trying to head downwards. Their objective isn’t up here, it’s down below!” the lieutenant reported.

“Below…? Shit, they’re going to the underground mall!” Playa realized.

“So?” Mink asked, confused.

“That’s where the support pillars for the rest of the structure are!” Shaundi realized with a horrified gasp. “If they blow those up, the whole Mission will become unstable, and could collapse!”

“So that’s their goal! The Ronin aren’t here to fight us, they’re trying to destroy our home!” Playa shouted angrily. It all made sense. The Asian-themed gang clearly hadn’t expected for Playa, Johnny, and the other lieutenants to be here. This had not been a decapitation strike, it was sabotage!

“They must want to destroy this place in order to hurt our morale and limit our operations, since we control the gang from here,” Pierce guessed.

“Shit! Those yellow fuckers just don’t know when to quit!” Johnny snarled. “Come on, we need to push through and stop them!”

A shift ran through the Ronin as the Saints tried to bulldoze their way through to the basement, holding their positions. They no longer threw themselves at the Saints in an attempt to pin them place. Instead, they started to form living walls and barricades in the hallways and rooms.

It worked at first, but with Johnny on the offensive now instead of playing defense and not caring about collateral damage, the Saints managed to kill dozens of Ronin who refused to give way.

“How the hell did Kazuo manage to get such fanatical loyalty?” Shaundi wondered, bewildered as she blew the brains out of a Ronin who could spit molten glass.

“I don’t know,” Johnny admitted with a grimace as he crushed a man’s nose with the butt of a shotgun. “Whatever he’s doing is effective, though.”

“Kazuo has always known how to motivate people,” Wong spat out as he caved in a Ronin’s ribcage with a punch. “Stick and carrot. Extortion and rewards. He has a knack for finding out the best way to control somebody.”

“You know, I am incredibly interested in hearing about some of your past adventurers, Mr. Wong,” Playa admitted as he shot out the kneecaps of another Ronin. “I know you were a big player in the Triads in the early days of Quirks, and I get the feeling you have a lot of stories.”

“Hah! Maybe!” Wong laughed. “You know, I should introduce you to my granddaughter. You would get along with her!”

“I’m already dating a pair of lovely ladies I’m afraid,” Playa said.

“Damn right he is!” Mink nodded before shooting and finishing off the man her boyfriend had just kneecapped and left for dead.

“Eh, what’s one more?” Wong shrugged. “You’ll like her! She’s a hero but knows when to look the other way!”

“Look alive, Chucklefucks! We’re breaching the underground mall right now!” Johnny called out as he kicked down a door. A Ronin had been standing in front of it at the time, not that it mattered all that much.

Entering the sub-levels beneath the Mission, the Saints found the Ronin scattered about. A handful of purple clad Saints were huddled together behind a

“Seems like a few of us made it down here before we did,” Playa noted. “When this is over, find out who they are, and give ‘em some rewards. Promotions, cash bonuses, the work.”

“Understood,” Pierce said, while Johnny just nodded before swapping his shotgun for an AR-15 with an underslung grenade launcher. He began to spray the bullets into the Ronin, driving them away from the cornered Saints.

“Lotta Ronin,” Shaundi muttered, glancing around at the surroundings in frustration.

“How did so many of them get in here?” Playa wondered furiously.

“Sewers?” Mink suggested. “Some Ronin attack us from the front, the rest emerge from the service ducts connected to the sewage system?”

“Sounds about right,” Wong nodded in agreement. “Now come on! We have a gang to defang!”

Saying that, he leapt into battle, pulverizing a Ronin who had an anteater’s head with a punch and then kicking another one into a nearby wall.

“Can’t let that old guy show us up!” Johnny declared, firing a grenade into some Ronin. It blew apart several Ronin, making a huge mess that had Mink gagging a little.

“I see Ronin planting C4 on the support pillars!” Pierce called out, spotting a group of yellow gangsters attaching explosives to the pillars holding up the Mission. “Anyone know how to defuse a bomb?!”

“Just don’t let ‘em detonate, and it should be fine!” Shaundi replied with a cheeky laugh. Playa laughed along with her, only to notice a flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye.

“Whoa!” Playa exclaimed, ducking underneath a chunk of concrete that had been chucked at his head.

Glancing towards where the rubble had been thrown from, he found a large, burly tiger Heteromorph in a fancy suit and yellow tie who seemed to be directing the Ronin.

“I don’t recognize that villain,” Johnny informed Playa as he reloaded. “He’s new.”

“Cut off the head, and the snake dies!” Wong called out, rushing towards the tiger-man.

However, when Wong tried to punch the villain, the tiger caught his fist in one paw. What happened next completely shocked everyone. A burst of electrical energy surged across the paw, electrocuting Wong.

Even as a dragon, Wong’s body wasn’t immune to being shocked, and he let out a cry of surprise and pain. The tiger followed up with a vicious punch to the Chinese villain’s stomach, sending in flying across the room.

“A tiger… with electricity?” Playa muttered. It wasn’t impossible for people with Heteromorphic Quirks to have secondary abilities. And he did know of Asian legends about legendary tiger monsters. After all, if there could be dragon Quirks, why not super-tigers? But this felt different, somehow.

A moment later, Pierce vocalized what Playa himself was thinking.

“Is that Kazuo?!” Pierce exclaimed in disbelief.

“Can’t be! He has an electricity generating Quirk, like his son!” Wong replied as he staggered back to his feet.

“Unless you know of any other bipedal tigers that can create lightning and command the Ronin, I’d like to know about it!” Playa shot back. “It’s obvious that Kazuo bought a second Quirk!”

“Damn it! That fool!” Wong spat out. “I’d have thought he’d know better than to owe anything to the Demon Emperor!”

Playa raised an eyebrow at that name drop, as well as the fear in the old man’s voice. Whoever this mysterious Quirk broker was, he spooked Wong something fierce.

‘And with a grandiose title like that, he’s probably a fucking monster,’ Playa thought to himself.

When it came to villainous names, the more pompous they seemed, the villain in question was either a blowhard and paper tiger, like Shogo, aka Raijin, or they were genuine threats like whoever this Demon Emperor was. And considering how afraid the people who knew of him seemed to be, Playa bet it was the latter.

A piece of rebar shot past his face, forcing Playa to return his attention to the fight. Whatever the situation was around this mysterious Quirk broker, it could wait. Taking out the guys who were tearing up his base was more important at the moment.

“Johnny, we have to distract the big man,” Playa told his best friend, who nodded in understanding. The two then sprinted towards Kazuo Akuji, guns blazing.

The transformed Kazuo showed himself in possession of impressive cat-like reflexes, dodging to the side and avoiding the hail of bullets that would have eviscerated him. Or at the very least been an inconvenience.

Kazuo glanced over, his eyes narrowing as he registered who exactly it was that had attacked him.

“You,” he growled out, his voice deep and rumbling. “You killed my sons.”

“Sons?” Playa uttered with a frown, before it clicked. “Ah. I see. Jyunichi was yours as well. Let me guess, a bastard? That’s why Shogo was in charge and he wasn’t.”

The transformed Oyabun shifted into a karate stance. “I shall wipe away the stain on my family’s honor with your blood,” he snarled.

“Good luck with that, pussy cat,” Johnny taunted.

Kazuo let out a roar and bolted forward, fists raised to strike. Obviously not one to let such a provocation – or target – go, Johnny fired at him. However, to everyone’s surprise, a crackling barrier of electricity surrounded his left hand, which he raised in front of him, palm pointed outwards. The bullets Johnny fired at him were caught in the web of energy and then flung back, forcing the Quirkless villain to throw himself to the side to evade his own deflected attack.

“Electro-magnetism!” Playa exclaimed, slightly in disbelief. ‘Kazuo created a shield of the stuff to block the projectiles!’

The Yakuza Oyabun did not stop charging, and with Johnny no longer nearby, his only opponent was Playa. Naturally, this was a bad thing, and the leader of the Saints raised his revolver and fired off a shot.

Playa hoped the villain would try his shield trick again, but it seemed he knew that Playa’s bullets were loaded with nitroglycerin and simply dodged the shot, twisting to the side, letting it explode behind him.

Kazuo did not let the fact he’d just dodged slow him down, however. Kazuo used the momentum of his movement to spin around, his tail lashing out and striking Playa in the stomach. As it struck him, Kazuo’s original Quirk activated, sending several thousand painful volts into his body. Playa cried out in pain as he was thrown backwards, smoke wafting from his torso where the tiger’s tail had slapped him.

‘Damn it!’ he grunted, cradling his burnt midsection. ‘That hurts! If only I’d been wearing my costume! It could have mitigated the worst of the damage!’

But he hadn’t been able to fetch it due to how fast and unexpected the Ronin attack had been.

‘Note to self, get some copies of my outfit made and stash them around the place. That ought to help,’ Playa groaned out as he pushed himself back to feet.

He was surprised by how fluidly Kazuo had been able to move in his new tiger form. He’d adapted to the Quirk faster than the General or Mr. Sunshine had.

‘Unless Kazuo spent the last two weeks training his newly acquired Quirk,’ Playa grunted in realization, which explained what Kazuo had been doing recently instead of attacking the Saints. He’d had time to practice and get used to the way a completely new body worked.

Playa then looked over the battlefield, growling in annoyance. When he’d been knocked down, several Saints, including Pierce and Mink, had rushed in to fight Kazuo, which had likely been the only reason the tiger-man hadn’t pounced on Playa while he’d been temporarily disabled.

Unfortunately, Kazuo was too strong for them. His new form granted him superhuman strength, speed, and reflexes, and he was thrashing the Saints completely.

Thankfully, he hadn’t killed anyone. Yet. Mink was using her fur as an insulator, which was keeping her safe from the electricity, and Pierce’s Quirk made his riot shield strong enough to hold up to several of Kazuo’s strikes, but it was clear the Japanese villain was merely toying with them.

Glancing around some more, Playa felt a bit of relief as he saw that the Ronin were being pushed back. There weren’t many of them left, though the survivors were all powerful lieutenants. Oh, and Johnny had gotten up and was now pointing his gun at the melee.

“DOWN!” Johnny shouted, and the Saints ducked or scattered as he fired a grenade from the underslung launcher-tube at Kazuo. Unfortunately, it didn’t do anything, as the Yakuza boss managed to kick it away, where it exploded harmlessly against a wall.

“You lack honor,” Kazuo growled, glaring at Johnny. He grabbed some loose concrete off the floor and hurled it at the Saint, who just barely managed to dodge, although it did clip his gun, denting the barrel.

“I think you’re the one who lacks honor!” Playa shouted, charging in towards the bipedal tiger. Kazuo scoffed and raised a fist that crackled with energy, but he suddenly reeled back, gagging as a foul scent struck him.

“Heh, seems like your new body has also enhanced your sense of smell alongside your strength,” Playa mocked while activating his Quirk.

The nasty stench would probably cling to the basement for weeks even with several cans of air fresheners, but it was worth it to see the new leader of the Ronin recoiling in disgust.

Eyes watering, Kazuo tried to swat Playa with one of his big, meaty paws, but Playa wisely stayed out of reach before firing his gun straight at the Oyabun’s chest.

The explosive round was partially redirected by a burst of electricity, but it didn’t stop it from exploding. Flames and a concussive shockwave slapped Kazuo harshly in his torso, forcing him to take a step back.

“You-!” Kazuo snarled, starting to glow with golden flickers of electricity, but opening his mouth proved to be a mistake as when he did so, Playa flicked his hand at him, sending droplets of Quirk-altered sweat at him. One drop managed to land in his mouth, causing the Yakuza boss to gag once more and cut off his rant before it could begin.

As he choked on the foul flavor of Hakarl, Johnny ran up with a holdout pistol, his previous weapon damaged by the blow he’d taken earlier. Johnny fired at him pointblank, to no effect. The smaller caliber didn’t manage to hurt Kazuo, the bullets barely even scratching him in his new Heteromorphic body and he just raised an arm to block the shots aimed at face.

“You wretched, honorless curs!” Kazuo roared, stomping his right foot, cracking the floor and sending a minor shockwave outwards that caused Johnny and Playa to lose their footing.

As they fell, Kazuo lashed out, a palm thrust hitting Playa square in the chest while Johnny received a knuckle sandwich that completely ruined his sunglasses. They were both sent flying, and would have been attacked immediately if Pierce hadn’t jumped in, blocking a deadly strike with a Quirk enhanced pipe. The pipe still bent, showing off just how strong this tiger-form was, but it saved them long enough for a few other Saints to run over and grab them, taking the duo out of harms way.

“PIERCE!” Shaundi called out, tossing him a stolen Ronin katana. The Black villain nodded, snatching it out of the air.

“You think that a filthy Gaijin can defeat me with one of my own country’s weapons?” Kazuo sneered.

“Won’t know till I try,” Pierce shot back. He lashed out, cutting the tiger-man’s left arm and nearly slicing clean through it, to everyone’s shock.

Turns out, when Pierce hardened a blade with his Quirk, said blade became insanely sharp and dangerous. What a wonderful time to discover this previously unknown facet of his power!

Bleeding heavily, Kazuo staggered back, clutching his wounded limb while also evading Pierce’s wild swings. Now that the Oyabun knew how deadly the enhanced katana was, he was very keen to avoid it.

“Sir! We have to retreat!” a Ronin lieutenant Playa recognized as Lee shouted, rushing over to Kazuo’s side. He knocked down Piece and several other Saints with a tremendous blast of wind as he did so. Lee’s Quirk, Aerokinesis, wasn’t normally that powerful, but from the black veins bulging in his neck, he was tripping on Trigger.

“No! We cannot leave! Not yet!” Kazuo snarled.

“They disabled our bombs and we are about to be cut off!” Lee shouted back at him, and the Oyabun grimaced as he realized just how few Ronin were left, and how many Saints were now rushing to back up their leader.

“Retreat!” he growled out angrily.

“You do not get to run away today!” Mr. Wong shouted, leaping at Kazuo with his scaled fists, but Lee knocked him back with a miniature tornado that also worked to kick up a cloud of dust, cutting off the Saints’ vision.

When the dust storm faded, all that was left in the underground area were dead and dying Ronin and the Saints themselves.

“Damn it, the bastard got away!” Johnny growled, trying to sit up.

“Stay still, you idiot!” a Saint scolded him as she brought out a first aid kit. “You have a broken rib! Possibly even two!”

“I’m fine! We can’t let the Ronin escape!”

“I agree with Johnny,” Playa agreed, though he didn’t try to push away Shaundi or Mink who were fussing over him. Pierce was also being treated, having landed on his legs awkwardly, breaking an ankle in the process.

“I’m contacting Carlos,” Shaundi told them. “He’s gonna send the Saints who aren’t here out to find where Kazuo is gonna go.”

“If I know that man, and I unfortunately do, then he will go to ground temporarily,” Mr. Wong said, hobbling over. His scales receding as he turned off his Quirk.

“I’m not so sure about that,” Mink said. “This was the Ronin’s last chance to take us out, and now that they’ve shown their hand they won’t be able to hide for long.”

“Speaking of that, what happened with the bombs?” Playa asked her.

“Oh, those? I disarmed them. Pretty easy, actually,” Mink said.

“Well, that’s good,” Playa sighed in relief. He then frowned. “How many did we lose?”

“Surprisingly few, all things considered,” Shaundi informed him. “Eighteen dead, with twenty-six wounded. The Ronin suffered much worse. Numbers are still coming in, but we’re looking at over fifty dead Ronin, and half as many wounded with various injuries.”

“That’s too many of our own killed,” Playa uttered, anger at the Ronin rising within him.

“I agreed,” Mink assured him, putting a hand on his arm. “What do you want to do with the wounded Ronin?”

A part of Playa wanted to execute them. But after taking a deep breath to calm down, he made up his mind with a cooler, calmer head.

“Treat their wounds and bind their limbs. Make sure they can’t use their Quirks, either. Then cart them off to the police. Make them Troy’s problem,” he declared.

“I don’t like it,” Johnny grumbled as the Saints scrambled to do just that.

“I don’t either. But I’ve told you about what my plans are for after we wipe out the Ronin,” Playa replied.

“You’re going through with it? Really?” Johnny asked, narrowing his eyes at his friend.

“We’ve haven’t spoken about it in length, but can you think of another way that doesn’t involve a legion of heroes descending upon us like a vengeful storm?” Playa demanded.

“It’s reckless and probably won’t work,” Johnny claimed.

“Maybe. But it’s the only way I can think of that will let us survive once we basically end up running the city. You know full well the heroes and government will never allow the Saints to have such control over Stilwater. We need a way to make things… legal.”

“I still think it’d be easier to just not care about what those incompetents in D.C. think,” Johnny huffed. “But whatever you decide, I’m with you. You’ve led us this far, after all.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” Playa chuckled, before shakily rising to his feet.

“You should rest some more!” Mink urged, but he shook his head.

“I can’t. I need to stand and be strong for the gang,” he replied. “Somebody fetch me my costume!”

A Saint ran off to grab it for him, while the rest of the Saints helped the wounded, regardless of gang affiliation.

Fifteen minutes later, Playa was busy putting on his costume despite his bruised bones and aching body, and the underground area had been cleared of bombs and bodies. The families of the dead Saints would receive full compensation and given proper burials. Meanwhile, the living Ronin had been patched up and hauled off, while the remains were being disposed of via Quirks.

Mr. Wong had generously called in the Washers, a group of villainous crime-scene cleaners under his control, and covered the costs. It was, as he said, the least he could do as thanks for eliminating Shogo Akuji and giving his father a humiliating black eye.

“Boss! Boss! We found ‘em!” Carlos suddenly shouted out as he rushed into the garage with Twenty-One at his side. “We found where the rest of the Ronin went!”

“You did? That was quick,” Playa said, surprised.

“Some of our boys work down at the Marina. They spotted a guy with a tiger Heteromorph Quirk boarding a fancy looking yacht,” Carlos said. “We did some digging, and discovered some interesting things. Namely, that the yacht used to be owned by a shell company the Ronin used to use for buying up vehicles.”

“Used to be?” Playa asked.

“It was sold to – get this! – a Japanese businessman. One who has supposed ties to the Yakuza back in Tokyo,” Twenty-One revealed. “And the sale was concluded just last week! And looking closer, it’s being readied to depart on a long trip to Hawaii.”

“That’s a pretty big red flag,” Playa muttered, before blinking in realization. “Oh! Oh, shit! Kazuo is trying to run away!”

“That does sound like something the coward would do,” Mr. Wong grumbled. “He’ll run off to Hawaii, sneak back to Japan, and then send assassins after you. Won’t dare show his face around here for a while after how badly he got his ass kicked.”

“If he leaves Stilwater, we won’t get another chance to kill him!” Johnny snarled.

“Twenty-One, Carlos, contact the boys at the Marina, tell them to keep an eye on the yacht, and instruct them to do what they can to obstruct the departure procedures,” Playa ordered them.

“Got it!” Carlos said while Twenty-One immediately whipped out a cellphone and typed away at it, sending instructions to the watchers.

“Everyone else who isn’t injured and can still stand? Grab your guns, get your uniforms on, and prepare for battle. We’re going to rush over to the Marina and ensure Kazuo does not escape!” Playa called out.

The Saints cheered, eager to finally finish off the Ronin. If Kazuo fell, so too would the last of the Big Three in Stilwater. It was time for the Fog of War to walk the streets once more!

111 &&&&& 111

A convoy of vehicles drove out from the Mission, approaching the Marina with every second that passed. People in the streets pointed and stared. Some even snapped pics or filmed with their phones. Skunk couldn’t blame them. It was a majestic sight.

‘Not every day you see the Saints going to war,’ Skunk thought to himself.

Johnny was leading the charge atop a purple and gold Kaneda motorcycle. He was laden down with several dangerous looking guns that could give even a super-durable Heteromorph pause, and had a dark scowl on his face.

Behind him was a smaller blue and red Ethel. It was being driven by Mr. Wong. Well, technically his translator-slash-manservant was doing the driving. But it was still hot on Johnny’s tail, the old Chinese information broker not wanting Kazuo to escape.

Next came a purple Justice, a large golden Fleur d’Lys on the hubcaps and hood. Mink was in the driver’s seat, Defender was riding shotgun beside her, while Skunk and Rafflesia sat in brooding silence in the back.

Following along were three more cars, a mix of different vehicles sporting the colors and iconography of the Third Street Saints. These each carried between four and six elite Saints who would be helping take care of the Ronin.

As the Saints drove towards the docks where the Ronin were trying to escape, the sound of a phone ringing filled the interior of the Justice. The caller ID that flashed onto the touch-screen attached to the car’s dashboard revealed it was Twenty-One.

“Uh, should I answer it?” Defender asked.

“Yes, she’d only call if it was important,” Skunk said, and his lieutenant nodded, before pressing the ‘answer call’ button on the dashboard’s touch-screen.

“Boss, you gotta hurry!” Twenty-One shouted. “The Ronin are trying to delete everything in their servers! I can only hold it off for so long before they notice my interference and start to physically destroy the servers themselves!”

“Damn it!” Skunk snarled. The Ronin really were abandoning Stilwater! There was no other reason to completely wipe their data!

‘Worse, if they’re doing this, there must be other assets they’re disposing of,’ Skunk realized darkly. Quickly making up his mind, he gave his orders to his lieutenant.

“Twenty-One, you have my permission to use as many Saints as you need to save the data,” he told her. “Steal the servers, the hard-drives, everything!”

“Got it, boss!” Twenty-One replied, relief in her voice.

“And find out what else the Ronin are destroying,” he instructed. “I doubt it’s only the digital stuff they’re erasing. Paper documents, other sorts of incriminating evidence… even people! The Ronin are pulling up roots here in Stilwater so we have to make sure they don’t get away with this!”

“Damn it, you’re probably right!” Twenty-One swore angrily. “Understood, Skunk! I may have to redirect a bunch of Saints who were heading to the Marina, though.”

“That’s fine,” Skunk assured her. “The group I have with me right now should be enough to take care of that kitt-cat.”

“Stay safe, boss!” the lieutenant said before hanging up.

“Sounds like our reinforcements may be delayed,” Mink noted, glancing in the rear-view mirror at her boss in the back.

“We’ll be alright,” Rafflesia declared, shooting her a thumbs up.

“We’re here,” Defender said, spotting the cheerful sign that welcomed visitors to the Stilwater Marina. It had a painted picture of Steel Sponge posing on it. Skunk made a mental note to tease the hero about how cutesy it looked. Later, though. Right now, it was killing time.

“The Number 2 Hero patrols this part of the city, and considering how little we tried to avoid attention, we have maybe ten minutes before he shows up,” Skunk warned.

“The civvies are clearing out already,” Rafflesia noted, watching as people rushed from the area.

“They probably spotted us. Or the Ronin,” Skunk guessed. Up ahead, the sounds of gunfire rang out, the sharp cracks startling the civilians and causing them to stampede away as fast as they could.

“Sounds like Johnny found ‘em,” Defender chuckled as he readied his own weapon; a sawed-off shotgun. Combined with a new riot shield, it would let the villain pin down and tear apart any Ronin who tried to fight back.

Mink suddenly swerved the Justice aside, narrowly avoiding a rocket that sailed past, where it exploded against one of the cars carrying some Saints. Two more came shooting towards them, tearing apart the Marina’s boardwalk.

“They’ve got rocket launchers!” she exclaimed, and Skunk glared out at the harbor, where a trio of Ronin armed with said rocket launchers were standing on a fancy yacht.

“There!” Skunk shouted, pointing to a spot by a restaurant on the wharf. Pull over there! It’s between us and the yacht!”

Mink complied, evading the small arms fire that the rest of the Ronin scattered about began to fire off against them. Thankfully, the Justice was quickly reinforced by Defender’s Quirk as soon as the shooting started, keeping them safe as they drove into cover.

Up ahead, Johnny was already on the war path, Skunk’s right-hand man dueling wielding AK-47’s as he hosed down the Ronin trying to keep him away from the yacht. His motorcycle was lying abandoned near a smoking hole. Clearly one of the rocketeers had tried to blow him up, but failed.

Soon, even more sounds of gunfire filled the air as Skunk and his crew burst onto the scene after getting out of the car. Without

“Defender! Help Johnny and draw some fire your way! Try to get the rocketeers to waste all their ammo on your shield!” Skunk ordered. “Mink, keep your distance, but be ready to book it if any heroes show up. Rafflesia, coordinate with Mr. Wong and our elites. I’m going to make a bit of a distraction while you do so. We have to cut down these Ronin quickly, before Kazuo escapes!”

“Understood!” his members of the Inner Circle shouted, and they split up.

Once they’d left, Skunk checked the direction of the wind, nodded to himself, took a deep breath, and then shifted his gasmask slightly as he popped a small pill made of chili peppers into his mouth. He started sweating immediately, and he let it flow, turning it into thick clouds of teargas that flowed across the pier, causing several Ronin to scream and cry out as the wind blew his Quirk-altered sweat-gas straight into their faces.

“Oh, no, you don’t!”

Unfortunately, the irritating fog only managed to cover a little bit of the area before it was blown back by a sudden burst of air. A miniature tornado blew about, rescuing the Ronin from Skunk’s Quirk.

“There you are,” Skunk muttered, glaring over at Lee. The Ronin’s lieutenant was standing on the prow of Kazuo’s yacht, dressed in a villainous outfit reminiscent of the Tengu of Japan. He wore a cape of black feathers and a red mask with an absurdly long nose. Even with most of his body cover, however, Skunk could see black veins creeping across his skin.

‘Trigger. And a pretty big dose of it, too,’ Skunk noted, eyes narrowing behind his mask.

“So, the cowardly little sparrow shows himself at last,” Skunk scoffed loudly, drawing Lee’s attention.

“The Saints will not win here today!” the last member of the Ronin’s upper command snarled.

“We’ll see about that,” Skunk retorted. “I wonder if you’ll also let another Akuji die on your watch!”

“BASTARD!” Lee roared, shooting blades of wind at Skunk.

The supervillain laughed as he dodged, before aiming his gauntlets towards the Ronin lieutenant and spraying a thick mist from them. It engulfed a chuck of the docks, though by now the other Ronin goons had seen the way the wind was blowing and run away, allowing the two villains to clash against each other.

“Your tricks won’t work on me!” Lee mocked, sending a strong gust of wind that blew away the smoke and stink Skunk had just conjured, only to blink in confusion at the lack of a supervillain hiding behind the smokescreen.

Lee had only seconds to react before Skunk shot at him from behind an overturned hotdog cart. Two bullets zipped through the space the Ronin lieutenant had been standing at moments earlier, and Skunk cursed as he aimed upwards.

But Lee didn’t wait around and was flying about through the air using his Quirk, junking from side to side. It prevented the leader of the Saints from targeting him properly.

With aerial superiority, Lee began to send drilling bullets of air down at Skunk, forcing the leader of the Saints to abandon his hiding spot as it was torn to scrap.

“I hate fliers,” Skunk grunted. “Gotta aim for where they’re going, not where they are… and when they can move wherever they want, that’s easier said than done!”

He fired two more times, trying to shoot down the Tengu, but Lee was quick on the draw and boosted aside.

“HAH! Is that the best you can do?!” Lee asked in a sneering tone.

“No,” Skunk replied, firing a third bullet up at him. Lee easily evaded, but that was exactly what Skunk had been hoping for. A boom rang out and Lee fell from the sky with a massive hole in his chest.

“Nice shot, Johnny,” Playa said, throwing a thumbs up at his best friend as he put away the sniper rifle he’d just used to blow the lieutenant’s heart out.

“He died like he lived. A bitch,” Johnny declared. The other Ronin in the area were on the ground, dead or unconscious. All that was left were the ones onboard Kazuo’s luxury ship.

“Not your best,” Skunk said. Johnny just flipped him the bird before glaring at the yacht.

“Fuck! It’s moving!”

“Kazuo’s trying to escape, is he?” Skunk glowered. “Mr. Wong!”

“What?” the dragonified man asked as he finished punching a Ronin in the face.

“Can you stop the boat?” Skunk wondered.

“Me? No. I only get the scales of a dragon, not its breath or ability to fly,” the information broker replied.

“Damn,” Skunk growled as he reloaded.

“Skunk!” Rafflesia called out. “Can you do parkour?”

“Can I do parkour? What do I look like? French?” Skunk scoffed.

“Well, if you could do it, you could jump from boat to boat to reach the yacht!” Rafflesia pointed out.

“Or we could ramp off of ‘em,” Johnny suggested as he picked up his motorcycle. “Let’s go, Skunk! Hop on!”

Skunk nodded and hopped onto the back of the Kaneda, and Johnny revved the engine before shooting off towards a nearby boat. He hit the gangplank and rode up onto the deck, then with impressive accuracy shot the legs off of a table that was nearby. The broken piece of furniture collapsed, and formed a makeshift ramp.

Johnny gunned his ride and rushed onto the ramp, hitting it and flying into the air. For a terrifying moment the motorcycle was suspended in the air, nothing below it except the water of the bay.

And then it crashed down on the deck of Kazuo’s yacht, spinning out and toppling over. Johnny showed off his incredible driving skill once more as when he leapt off, Skunk at his side, he managed to direct the motorcycle so it slammed into two of the Ronin who’d previously been shooting rocket launchers at them.

The last Ronin screamed in fear and decided discretion was the better part of valor and leapt over the edge, willingly falling into the water to escape.

“Where is that striped bastard?” Johnny wondered as he pulled an AR-15 from his back.

“Right here, Johnny Gat,” Kazuo declared as he stepped out onto the deck from within the cabin. He was not in his tiger-mode, and instead looked completely human. For the moment, he didn’t seem interested in fight.

“Here to surrender?” Skunk asked as he pointed his revolver at the Yakuza boss.

“No,” Kazuo replied. “I am just… confused. What is it that drives you two? It’s not taking control of Stilwater. If it were, you’d have just let me leave. Nor is it you trying to stab

“Stilwater is our home. We simply want it to be safe,” Skunk replied. “We want it to be… good.”

“And your shitty brats killed Aisha,” Johnny added. “Doesn’t matter where you try to run, we will always chase you down for revenge.”

“Hmph. Altruism. Just like that half-Gaijin fool All Might,” Kazuo scoffed in disgust. “But unlike him, you seem to understand that sometimes, people have to die in order for there to be peace.”

He unbuttoned his suit and shrugged it off, revealing a toned body covered in tattoos. A moment later his ink disappeared, obscured by the orange and black stripes of his tiger-form.

“Today, we fight,” Kazuo declared as sparks of lightning danced around his chest. “And one or both of us will die.”

“Fine by me,” Skunk replied, and Johnny nodded.

The three men stared at each other, before exploding into action. Kazuo shot forward with a palm thrust aimed at Johnny. The Quirkless man rolled out of the way, firing a few bullets. They were redirected by his electro-magnetic shield he created around his body into the deck, and Kazuo growled.

He tried to crush Johnny’s head with a spinning kick, but Johnny was fast and he managed to bring his gun up to block. The rifle bent and broke and sent the sunglasses wearing man flying back to slam against the railing.

“This is the end!” Kazuo snarled, turning to Skunk, but the boss of the Saints didn’t hesitate to unleash his Quirk, filling the air with a horrific and utterly foul stench.

Kazuo doubled over, gagging and narrowly keeping himself from throwing up. Skunk didn’t hesitate and fired twice at him. Both bullets exploded uselessly as the tiger-man zapped them with lightning before they could reach him, but Kazuo’s control over his Quirk was weakened as his focus was hampered by the smell.

“DIE!” Johnny shouted, getting back to his feet with two Uzi’s in his hands, a stream of bullets firing at the Oyabun. There were too many bullets for him to block with his Quirk, so Kazuo didn’t even try and instead leapt aside, landing on the roof of the cabin.

“Oh, so he can jump, too?” Skunk grunted in annoyance. He fired at him in annoyance, but Kazuo blocked it, as expected, and he sneered down at the two Saints.

“Even two-against-one, you cannot defeat me,” he scoffed.

“We haven’t lost yet, kitty cat!” Johnny retorted.

“Quite,” Kazuo said, rolling his eyes. He then crouched low and shot forward like a ballistic missile, slamming into the deck. Doing so caused the entire yacht to shake violently, large waves cresting all around. It also caused Johnny and Skunk to fall onto their asses as they lost their footing in the sudden motion.

Kazuo was closer to Johnny when he landed, and he threw a flurry of punches that forced the gangster to block. His Uzis broke under the blows, and Johnny scowled as he scrambled back.

“Do you have any idea how expensive it is to buy customized Uzis that actually pack a punch?!” he demanded angrily at Kazuo.

“I could care less,” the tiger-man replied, only to sway his head to the side, narrowly avoiding a bullet from hitting him in the temples.

“You missed,” Kazuo mocked Skunk.

The supervillain scowled back at him and fired a few more times until his revolver clicked empty.

“And now you’re out of bullets,” Kazuo sneered at Skunk.

“I don’t need bullets!” Skunk retorted as he pointed the nozzle of his right-hand gauntlet at Kazuo’s face.

Before Kazuo could react, a surprising amount of oily, colorless liquid splashed him in the face, and he spluttered in disgust, staggering back from the supervillain.

“Now!” Skunk shouted, rolling further away from the soaked tiger-man.

“Ugh! What is this?!” Kazuo demanded as he tried to wipe some of it away. But as he did, he saw Johnny aiming a handgun at his face.

Sensing danger to himself, Kazuo activated his Quirk to defend himself…

Only to immediately explode as the electricity caused the substance coating him to violently detonate.

The explosion was big, and the shockwave slapped Skunk and Johnny, sending them flying back while also rocking the boat.

When the two Saints managed to get back onto their feet, there wasn’t much left of the crime lord. The nitroglycerin Skunk had sprayed onto Kazuo had reduced his upper torso to bloody mulch. His head was completely missing, and his arms had been severed. Bits and pieces of the Yakuza Oyabun rained down onto the yacht and the surrounding Marina.

“Well, it’s done,” Johnny muttered. “Good riddance to bad rubbish.”

“Yeah. Now, how do we stop this thing?” Skunk wondered as he glanced behind him. The yacht had been moving slowly, but it would still cause problems if it kept going. Eventually it’d hit something.

A plume of water erupted next to the yacht, and a massively buff man in a skintight diving suit with steel-colored racing stripes landed on the roof of the yacht.

“Halt! You’re all… under…” the hero – because who else would it be? – looked around in bewilderment at the scene, turning a little green at the sight of Kazuo Akuji’s corpse.

“What the fuck, Playa!?” Steel Sponge demanded, glaring at the supervillain.

“Oi, you’re supposed to use my villain name when we’re in costume, remember?” Skunk huffed.

“I-I can’t…” Steel Sponge spluttered. “How… why?”

“Good news! The Ronin are gone with this!” Skunk said, slapping his friend from the other side of the law on the shoulder.

“You’re under arrest, Skunk. You too, Johnny,” Steel Sponge uttered in a deadpan.

“Uh… no,” Johnny replied. “I don’t think so.”

Steel Sponge looked around in a mocking way. “Who’re the villains who thought picking a fight where I’m the strongest was a good way to avoid being arrested?”

“We had to stop Kazuo from escaping,” Skunk claimed.

Steel Sponge just pointed his fingers at the two villains. “Surrender or I ‘accidentally’ make a mess of your limbs with high-pressure jets of water. It’d be a shame if it happened, but shit happens, ya know?”

“I do know. Which is why I prepared a brilliant exit strategy,” Skunk declared.

“You did?” Johnny asked.

“Zip it, Johnny,” Skunk hissed at him, before throwing a pellet onto the deck. “Smoke Bomb!”

“You think that will work?” Steel Sponge demanded incredulously as a cloud of grey smoke roiled out, obscuring the top of the boat. There was a pair of loud splashes, and when the smoke cleared the two were gone.

“Really?” the hero wondered incredulously. “Trying to swim back to Stilwater?”

He then leapt off the yacht into the water to give chase to the two villains.

A moment later, the door to the yacht’s cabin creaked open, and two villains peeked out, eyes wide.

“That was so stupid! How did it even work?” Johnny wondered in a low voice. They’d tossed the bike and guns off the side of the yacht to make the splashes, but that the desperate plan had even worked at all was a shock to both of them.

“Dunno, but I’m not gonna question it,” Skunk muttered. “Now, let’s find a phone so we can call our boys. Gotta let ‘em know we’re safe and have them pick us up once Steel Sponge is gone.”

Johnny nodded before turning around and walking into the cabin. “Cool. Gonna raid the liquor cabinet. See what sorta expensive shit Kazuo never got around to drinking.”

Skunk gave his friend a thumbs up as he stayed by the door, keeping watch.

The Ronin had been eliminated. But with the Big Three gone, all that was left was the Third Street Saints. Nothing was going to keep them safe from the city’s heroes for long.

‘Once the shock and awe wears off, it’ll be non-stop fights against the flying pigs,’ Skunk thought to himself. ‘This is happening sooner than I’d hoped, but it seems like it’s time to push for the gang’s ‘exit’ strategy.’

111 &&& 111

Author's Note: Happy Fourth of July! Enjoy a celebratory chapter!