8:15pm, 31st March

In a well-lit office with files and boxes neatly organized, Detective Naomasa stood by the only part of the office that was messy: a large board littered with pins and a web of strings that hung by his wall that had details of a case that he had been pouring his heart and soul into.

The 'Gangland Massacres'. That was the name he decided to give it, despite how misleading it was, since the mass murders took place in the areas between Yokohama and Tokyo.

He looked at the number of cases in Tokyo and the number of cases in Yokohama. No, that wasn't right either. Beginning in Musutafu two years ago, the data before him showed that the majority of the killings were based in Tokyo, which made sense since that was where the largest concentration of gangs was.

It was important to distinguish gangs from the shrinking yet ever-present yakuza as the latter looked to exploit loopholes in the law to retain as much control as they can over various businesses even if it meant murder. The former cared little for such observances and were a recent phenomenon. Taking advantage of the confusion after the Escalation, these criminals established small power bases scattered all over the country, mostly taking in youths from disadvantaged backgrounds.

So focused were they on stopping the villains and the Quirk Liberation Army that they neglected to curb the influence the villains had on the people. Detective Naomasa grit his teeth. He should have seen it coming. The Hero Killer, Stain, amassed a significant cult following in his ideology. There were no lies, only truths from another perspective.

One of the major disadvantages of being in a position of authority is the disconnect between oneself and the ones on whom their authority was imposed on. Detective Naomasa understood this. All for One understood this. Re-Destro understood this.

The heroes did not.

Alas, hindsight was 20/20 and right now Detective Naomasa had more pressing matters to think about. Namely, who were the players in the field right now?

As much as he wanted to pin it all on potential suspect Midoriya, he knew there was more at play here.

From the moment he started this case until the Holden Apartments massacre, the pieces seemed to be coming together. Nothing too concrete but enough to start noticing a pattern:

It always took place in a gang's strategic location, whether it be a key money laundering cover or even their headquarters. Some of the minor gangs have been wiped out this way.

The suspect held a grudge. He deduced this from tracing the identities of each important figure killed in every massacre. He was dealing with a killer that was not only skilled but clever as well as there were more than a few outliers. A clear attempt at muddying the statistics to minimize the likelihood of finding them. Even he had trouble connecting the dots, but he pulled through. Whoever this killer was, they were targeting manufacturers and distributors of Trigger. With the suspect's first case taking place shortly after the tragic 'fire' of an apartment complex in Musutafu, and it being the case with highest body count to date, his intuition checked out even if a bit flimsy.

Lastly, the suspect was well-connected. Unless they made a habit of pilfering any firearms from his victims, someone else was providing him with the means to carry out his killings. Moreover, the fact that there were cases in his current station of Yokohama at all proved this.

With all that in mind, the Holden Apartments case was both the biggest blessing and curse that has landed on his lap so far. On the one hand, it gave him Izuku Midoriya, his best matching suspect in years. His mother died in the Musutafu fire, he was one of the few recipients of the rare Plus Ultra Valedictorian award from UA, and he had seen first-hand what Gen. Ed students of Izuku's batch was capable of.

Few noticed them; fewer still remembered but during the fall of UA, it was the General Education students, with co-operation from Hero Support and other minor fields, that helped make the evacuation of the school and the eventual pushback against the villains successful. While suffering the most losses the school has had during the ordeal, the only recognition they received was monetary compensation from the school and the eternal gratitude of the entire police department. They took it on the chin and faded into society; Japan needed Heroes and they understood they were meant to stay away from the spotlight to uphold that need.

This should have made Izuku Midoriya the suspect he was looking for.

On the other hand, Izuku was precisely what made the Holden Apartments the nightmare that he was stuck with now, and the reason why he was even staring at the board to begin with.

If Izuku truly was the suspect, the police could be facing an underground organization made up of highly skilled, highly intelligent people that hid in plain sight. With the jobs they would have had by now, they could infiltrate even the highest of offices with ease as no one would expect it.

And all that trouble was just the ones spawning from the discovery of Izuku alone. Detective Naomasa massaged his temples, already feeling another migraine coming. New evidence of blood traces belonging to the missing mayor, the security breach in the station involving the tampering of an ongoing investigation; what in the world was he getting himself into?

A knock on the door pulled him out of his doldrum.

"Come in," he beckoned, and the door opened to reveal a familiar face. His heart was not sure if he should feel glad or annoyed by this new guest into his office.

Sansa took a cursory scan of his office and whistled. "You know, I probably should take you out for some drinks. Maybe even introduce you to some ladies because boy, you look like you need a vacation."

The detective settled on a snort. "Perhaps. So, is that all you came here for or did you have something for me?"

"Yeah," Sansa shut the door behind him, "I've got some good news and bad news regarding the results of the evidence you sent in the labs to get looked at."

Detective Naomasa groaned and muttered, "…of course, there is. Just say it in whatever order you like."

He noticed Sansa grimace at that. Yup, nothing good.

"Right, good news first," Sansa began. "First off, the security footage from the hospital on the night of Ren Nakajima's murder confirms that the unidentified woman next to Izuku Midoriya was indeed the missing Hero, Creati. While this doesn't really make him the suspect in the way you wanted it to be, at least now you finally have a good reason to start looking into it."

"I can see where this is going but carry on."

"Next off, with regards to the security breach, the unknown liquid found in the coroner's place matches with that of wanted criminal, Himiko Toga. While a major cause of concern by itself, oddly enough, there was no sign of damage done to existing evidence samples of the Nakajima murder case and none of the evidence from the archives we've had on the League have been touched either."

Naomasa's brows furrowed.

"Lastly, the mayor's body was discovered floating by the shores of Ōshima earlier today. Before you say anything, they're waiting on the forensics team in Kanagawa to confirm the cause of death."

He felt his blood rushing to his head; his teeth being ground and his fist clenching. That was bullshit. Absolutely bullshit. They're not even trying to hide that they're hiding something! Anyone with two braincells rubbing together could figure out this was a blatant attempt at a cover-up. Seriously!

"They're really trying to sell the island story, huh?" was all he could say without going into a fit. He took a deep breath and ran his hand through his short hair. "So, the bad news, please."

Sansa gulped before sighing. "Right. I'll just give it to you straight. We've received orders from the Commissioner not to look any further into Izuku Midoriya until further notice."

Any rage that built up suddenly froze over. He gulped.

"Since it involves a missing Hero, the higher-ups have determined that there's the possibility of a potentially extremely dangerous organization that has surfaced given the length of time she's been missing and her status as an established Pro-Hero. Thus, with the evidence provided confirming her last known whereabouts, Izuku Midoriya has been designated a potential threat and as such, his case is now under the Special Assault Team's jurisdiction.

Other than that, total silence on the mayor's case and no further news on the whereabouts of Himiko Toga. Just the usual reminder to change your password every day."

After hearing that, Detective Naomasa went to his desk and sank in his chair; his hand massaging his temples as he took a deep breath. This all but confirmed his suspicions about Izuku Midoriya. As he opted to stare at his board, he noticed Sansa studying it. Now that he had time to mull over things, he noticed Sansa's holster was empty.

"Say, what happened to your pistol?" he asked, causing the cat-headed person's ears to perk up.

"Oh, that?" Sansa answered, giving a sheepish grin, "Well, you see, turns out I neglected to service my pistol and the thing got jammed so I sent it in for repairs."

The detective raised a brow. "I see. You got careless."

"Haha, yeah! You know how it is, right?" Sansa said, his back towards Naomasa, making a move for the door.

"Of course, you've always been like that. Didn't think you were the type to forget that too."

"You got me there," Sansa replied. "Listen, I'll be leaving you to do your thing. I'll let you know if I find a good spot to drink."

Just as his paw reached for the door handle, Detective Naomasa called out to him.

"Hey, I got one question for you, Sansa."

"What's up?" he asked.

"You still remember the cup size of that doctor from the time we investigated the hospital?"

"Huh? Why the hell should I know that, creep?"

"Yeah, I know," Detective Naomasa replied.

Then, he quickly stood up and went for his pistol.

o-o

8:15pm, 31st March

15 rounds, 3 floors, 45 minutes. He adjusted his suit and tie and made sure his mask was snug against his face. After making sure the suppressor was attached properly and that his pistol was loaded, he opened the bathroom door with his free hand while the other hovered over it.

Using the split-second shock the two gunmen outside had, he quickly shot them in the head and dashed towards the opposite wall. He also pulled one of the bodies closer to him so that it was hidden behind the wall.

Already he could hear footsteps approaching; probably the ones that heard the bodies hitting the floor. He peeked behind him to make sure his back was covered only to find the security guard from earlier huddled nearby.

His mask must have spooked him because the next thing he knew, the guard flinched and fell on his back in clear view of whomever happened to be walking between cubicles.

"Hm?" came the confused grunt of the gunman before Izuku rolled next to the spooked guard and silenced the gunman. One to foot, one to the head. Then, he gestured to the guard to hide under the desk of the closest cubicle.

Footsteps grew louder. More frantic. The remaining gunmen on his floor were beginning to panic. Following his own advice, Izuku snuck into one of the cubicles. Just in time too, because he heard two pairs of feet approach the corner he was at a few seconds ago.

"What the fuck!?" said a gunman, likely seeing his handiwork.

"Shit! Is he here? How did he get past us?" said another.

"I don't know! You think it was that scrawny office dude?"

Izuku decided that this was a good time to scan the area, his eyes peeking from the top of the cubicle walls. Aside from the two gunmen right behind him, he saw five others. He also saw the welcoming glow of the emergency exit sign on the far end of the office.

He recalled how many shots he fired. Barely enough. Good thing most of the gunmen carried AK-47s. Considering the architecture of the building, a bit too loud for his liking but their penetrating power was just what he needed once this floor was cleared. Besides, with the device from Mei armed and deployed in the ventilation shaft, the playing field became more equal.

He then turned his attention to the two panicked gunmen behind him. Before vaulting over the wall to where they were, he shot them both in the head. Five more to go.

"What the—"

Izuku snapped around to see a gunman with his arm outstretched, his look of confusion quickly turning into dread.

"No, no, no, wait—"

Izuku pulled the trigger. From the corner of his eye, he saw that the path to the emergency exit was clear. He smiled. Mei's gas was working perfectly.

Picking up an AK-47 from one of the bodies, he crept his way towards the exit, picking off the remaining three gunmen along the way. It wasn't everyday that he could have a nice quiet run of a place but he'll take what he can get.

Once in the emergency exit stairwell, he raced towards the next floor. Despite the setback of the enemy seemingly expecting them at first, this ultimately was to their benefit in the end.

Kōji Hirose, or Hiko as he was more commonly known due to his blonde hair, went about his rounds on the top floor of the JNN building. Being in the same room as that living garbage suffocated him and this was a nice excuse to be away from him for a while. Despite his imposing figure and diamond-tattooed left eye, the men he passed by gave him a nod.

That made him feel at ease. He had come a long way from his painful beginnings growing up in a small apartment in Hōsu. The son of a Russian mobster hiding from a powerful mob boss he pissed off, he was left alone with his teenage Japanese mother when they finally found him. He learned very early on that Quirks were the greatest form of raw power that any individual could possess as it kept him safe from harm that stemmed from his appearance or his background.

With power, came respect. With respect, came loyalty, which was why beings such as the CEO disgusted him so. A parasite that leeched off the success of others, a worm with no moral backbone. People like him was why he formed his gang to begin with; to grant true equality in a society where the strength of one's Quirk determined their worth. Why must the majority bow down to the minority? Why should they, the ones with powerful Quirks, be forced into contrived roles in society?

Heroes, villains, how silly.

Suddenly, he heard it. Though muffled by the concrete floor, he heard it. Vibrating through the walls into his being was the unmistakable roar of a Kalashnikov letting rip. He immediately ran to the surveillance room to see what was going on.

"Boss!" one of the men watching the cameras exclaimed. "The Masked Man, he's here!"

"Was he the office worker that arrived earlier?" he asked, his tone cool while he watched the infamous smiley face mow down his men on the floor below theirs. He had to thank Toga for the detailed report on the man she delivered straight from police archives. Seeing the man's efficiency before his own eyes as he capitalized on the rifle's penetration to shoot through cubicle walls, the report was the real deal.

"I think so, boss," chimed another man. "But we've never taken our eyes off the third-floor camera!"

Hiko glanced at the at the panel labelled "F3-Office". The urge to utter a curse had to be suppressed. Of course the CEO installed the cameras in the dumbest places possible. The camera in question was on a corner of the floor that allowed clear line of sight of people working in the cubicles. That would have been great if it weren't for the cubicle walls effectively rendering its placement pointless as not only was the bathroom obscured but so was most of the spaces between cubicles.

Even cost-cutting needs to have a limit!

"Don't get too hung up on that," he replied. "More importantly, have you informed the rest of the men?"

"On it. I'll send them up here."

"Good. Make sure to order some into the emergency stairwell. Get every point of entry covered."

Hiko checked the time on his watch. It was 8:45pm. If the report Toga gave him was correct, they all should be dead in another fifteen minutes. He smirked. While the report wasn't conclusive, so far it was proving to be accurate. The modus operandi checked out, the assessed skill level was also accurate, and even his possible motivation for killing was proving to be right.

His organization did not deal with Trigger directly, but the CEO most certainly did. The Masked Man's presence confirmed this report's validity.

"Boss, fourth floor's compromised! Target's heading into stairwell now!"

Damn, so soon?! "Go join the others outside! He should be here any second!"

"Yes, boss!" The two men watching the cameras got up and scrambled out the surveillance room; Hiko himself following suit shortly after.

Just as he was halfway to the CEO's office, the windows suddenly burst into pieces, revealing a row of heavily armored and well-armed figures standing by each window they burst from. The surveillance room must have had serious soundproofing because he should have heard the loud droning of the helicopter that shone its spotlight onto them.

"This is the police! Put your hands up or we will use lethal force!" came the deafening order from the helicopter.

What?

What?!

Time seemed to crawl as his brain tried to process the situation. What happened? How could this have happened?! His plans were flawless! There should have be no one to contact the cops and it couldn't have been the CEO.

Unless…

His veins bulged around his face, his visage contorting in a blinding rage as he screamed at the top of lungs, "HIMIKO TOOOGAA!"

o-o

9:00pm, 31st March

He watched the TV from his recliner, a manic grin barely containing his glee. Onscreen was the live broadcast of the raid on the JNN building in Hōsu City. At the bottom, the news ticker was filled with news headers concerning the deceased Yokohama mayor's alleged connections with the Heaven's Chosen Ones and the reported leak of JNN CEO, Keicho Harada's, emails linking him with the tragic Musutafu apartment fire and other shocking deals.

He whistled. "Man, at this rate, the news reporters are going to give Mei a run for her money with how fast they're pumping out stories. She just leaked that intel a few minutes ago, too!"

He then checked his phone for any updates. His grin softened into a satisfied smile. The plan was going smoothly. The insiders on the scene confirmed Izuku's safe exfiltration, Shinsou was on his way to address the Momo issue and Mei was already done prepping the next set of targets for them to focus on.

A light rapping on his door prompted him to turn the TV off.

"Sir, it's almost time for your press conference," said the attendant from behind the door.

"Gotcha," he called out, "I'll be out in a bit."

He got up and gave himself a once over in the allocated mirror. Crisp jet-black suit, light-blue dotted tie and golden lapel pin denoting his party; a perfect match to his slicked-back golden hair and baby blue eyes.

"Well, time to do my part," he said to himself before he stepped out of the room and into a corridor leading to a bright hall filled with reporters, their cameras snapping hungrily upon his appearance.

He went towards the podium in the middle of the stage and took hold of one of the several microphones placed there.

"Good evening, citizens of Yokohama," he began, "As you may have heard already, the mayor has gone missing. As the interim mayor, it is with a heavy heart that I must announce that the mayor has been murdered. It is a great tragedy to have lost a man such as Hiroki Sawano who has served this city faithfully throughout his tenure."

He deliberately took a moment to have a long sip of water, let the reporters speculate on their own. The reveal was more fun that way.

He then gripped both sides of the podium, making himself look like he was holding back anguish.

"However, in light of recent revelations, I must ask all of you to remember him not as the man that you know now, but for the deeds that he has done for this great thriving city. Even if you could not do so, at least spare his family and relatives your ire for I am sure that they are separate from the deeds of the man himself."

Heh, as if. The guy barely did anything for the city aside from making token appearances in events. If anything, the dude was insanely unpopular because of how much crap his daughter gets away with under his watch.

For the next bit, he looked onto the reporters, making sure his attention and gaze gave the impression he was looking at all of them.

"With that being said, in accordance with the law: in the absence of the mayor before the next election, the responsibilities and duties of the position fall onto the interim mayor until the results of the next election for the position has been announced."

He then straightened his posture and made a sweeping gesture with his arm.

"I, Neito Monoma, current interim mayor of Yokohama and Independent representive, shall continue to be in your care and vow to carry out the tasks and duties expected of my position to the greatest extent of my abilities. Here's to hoping that my performance will be stellar enough to allow me to be mayor full-time when the election comes around."

Thunderous applause and rapid-fire camera clicks marked his ceremonious exit from the stage, giving the crowd a deep bow before disappearing backstage.

The manic grin returned to his face. They were now one step closer to toppling the tyranny of the Heroes.

Author's Note: This one took a while to complete since the 31st March plot threads were non-linear for the most part so I had to make sure that everything was legible and airtight. That's not to say general distractions were out of the question but let's just say Covid-19 is equal in her spread of misery.

Now that I'm getting more accustomed to the current flow of things; online classes and whatnot, here's to hoping to a more timely deliver of future chapters to come. Huge thanks to my beta reader/editor, Macdellion for his help in making sure this chapter is up to snuff.

As always, do enjoy the chapter and have a nice day.