CHAPTER VIII

"What are you?" Kesagiriman couldn't help but ask the electrified boy.

No kid should ever be this insane! The boy was already crazy for trying to kill a pro hero, but then the fact that he grabbed electrified wires for a power up despite the high probability that it could kill him added a whole other level of insanity. And now he was coating his entire body in electricity and moving faster than the eye could track. What the hell?

Killua didn't deign the pro hero with a response, he just moved.

It was through instincts alone that the hero managed to avoid a fatal blow as the boy covered the distance between them at unseen speeds.

Pain erupted in Kesagiriman's right shoulder blade as he felt hot blood begin to pour down his back. He hadn't managed to avoid the attack completely. However, the pain brought him back to reality and he was able to refocus on his opponent. So the boy actually had an electricity quirk. That would explain his speed, but not his strength, the man mused. He pushed the thought out of his mind for the moment though; he had more pressing matters. Speaking of which, the now electrified boy was currently lunging at him.

Now that the kid had his full attention, the speed hero realized that the boy was actually moving at speeds he could track. The hero evaded another jab and bent backwards to avoid a high kick. His shoulder blade screamed at him, but he didn't have the luxury to think about it right now. The man issued his own counter attack and clearly took the boy by surprise as his hit landed. The kid was expecting his electricity to make him faster than Kesagiriman, but his assumption had been wrong. But dear god that electricity hurt like a bitch.

Sirens began wailing in the distance.

The began trading blows, Kesagiriman still edging out on top for speed, but now that Killua was almost as fast his stronger attacks were clearly taking a toll on the man.

Another edge the hero had over Killua was that the boy was rather predictable; he kept going for the Kesagiriman's throat like he wanted to finish the hero off in one fell swoop. He was pressed for time and consequentially was sloppy. This made it easier for the hooded hero to evade, but didn't give him many openings to attack either.

The sirens were getting closer.

Killua swore to himself and frantically tried to think of a way to end the fight. Clearly his tactics for every other target weren't working this time. With no extra time to think, he had to go with the first thing that came to his mind.

Instead of aiming a clawed hand at the hero like he had been doing the entire fight, Killua lashed out with an open palm blazing with electrified nen. The hero was taken off guard with the sudden switch up and the boy's hand connected with the hero's chest. The boy willed his nen to flood the man's body. Kesagiriman jerked once and then became frozen in place save for the slight tremors that were assaulting his body.

Killua took a deep breath and stepped back to admire his work. The man was looking down at the boy with an utterly terrified look in his eyes (the only part of his face visible), completely unable to move. Killua had paralyzed him after all.

"You weren't supposed to be this fucking hard to kill, old man," the boy groaned. "Seriously, and you were so close to letting the police know what I look like too."

The hero tried to move his mouth, to move anything to retort, but found that he couldn't. He couldn't even feel at this point. There had been a brief moment of overwhelming pain before nothing. The numbness was probably the most disconcerting part.

The boy allowed his hand to be coated in a layer of that damned electricity and held it up in front of the man's face like a taunt before uttering the single syllable, "Bye."

The next thing Kesagiriman knew, his vision was slowly tilting and the ground was rapidly approaching. His world went black before he felt the impact, and then there was nothing.

Two pro heroes arrived at the scene a few seconds later, police footsteps close behind. However, all they saw as the turned the corner of the alley was a bright blue flash before the narrow road became dark again and they laid their eyes on the beheaded hero's body. The villain mentioned in the radio transmission was nowhere to be found.

Killua released his Godspeed form in the back alley by the League's bar after coming to a sudden halt. He leaned his back up against the gritty brick wall and let out a long breath he hadn't known he was holding. That entire altercation had been way too close for comfort. Not only had he underestimated his target, but he'd almost been found out by law enforcement as well.

The pale boy winced as the adrenaline began to wear off and his heartbeat came back under control. He took stock of his injury and let out a sigh - the hand that he'd grabbed the telephone wire with was a mess. Electricity was brutal. His body was conditioned to withstand large amounts of it, but taking on thousands of voltages at once was not the greatest idea. On the other hand (ha), although the hero had landed multiple hits on Killua's body, none of them had actually left a mark, so that was one less thing the boy had to worry about. Kesagiriman had been fast, but that was all. It was almost embarrassing that Killua had to result to his best technique to match the man in speed honestly. There was probably a way around it, but Killua had been caught off-guard. Pro heroes in general looked so ridiculous prancing around on TV that Killua hadn't taken them as seriously as he should have. And that slip up almost cost him a lot of trouble.

Perhaps he should develop a new technique that just focused on speed without the extreme amounts of electricity needed to power Godspeed. Probably a good idea.

After another minute of allowing himself to catch his breath and relax his tense muscles a little, Killua collected his bearings and put on a straight face before stepping inside.

The boy strode casually into the bar, or at least as casual as one can be with frizzy, static hair and a slightly charred hand. If his body allowed, Kurogiri would have raised an eyebrow as the boy smoothly slid onto one of the bar stools. Unfortunately, the warp user's face was not that expressive so he settled for fixing the boy with a look after setting down the wine glass he had been drying with a towel.

To the kid's credit, he didn't crack under Kurogiri's gaze and simply stared back.

There was a brief stalemate before Killua rolled his eyes and averted his gaze to admire the well stocked bar that Kurogiri kept.

"You any good at mixing drinks?" the boy asked, blatantly ignoring the topic of his injuries.

The wispy man scoffed. "I should think so. I am the bartender for a four star restaurant in Tokyo."

Killua stared at Kurogiri incredulously.

"I use my portals to receive orders and send drinks," the quirk user elaborated. "Unfortunately villainy is bad for my public image."

The pale boy snorted. This was exactly why he was working so hard to keep his assassin identity away from the public eye.

"Alright then, make me the best hot chocolate I've ever tasted," the boy challenged. He really needed something relaxing after such a close call (with law enforcement). Most of his nerve endings still felt as if they were on fire and his hand still smelled faintly of burned flesh. Probably because it was. Grabbing high voltage cables was never the smartest idea. And chocolate was his favorite food, so what better to relax with?

"That's hardly a challenge," the warp user scoffed and turned around to gather the ingredients. "I'm surprised you didn't ask for alcohol to 'forget the pain', or something asinine like that."

Killua shrugged. "I really don't care what's in it as long as it tastes good. I doubt whatever you put in it could affect me anyways." The Zoldycks were all trained to resist the effects of poison, and alcohol fell into that category. His parents had been spiking his drinks since he was an infant to build up his tolerance.

"That's what they all say," Kurogiri mused. "And the next thing they know they're waking up half naked in a run down McDonald's parking lot the next morning."

"Speaking from experience?" Killua inferred.

"Of course not," Kurogiri lied as he set a steaming mug of rich hot chocolate down in front of the small boy. Since he was right in front of the boy now, the man took note of how the boy's pale skin accentuated the discoloration of his battered body and the way he was hiding one of his hands. Kurogiri refrained from asking outright what happened though. He knew the boy wouldn't give him a straight answer.

Killua inhaled deeply and instantly felt his muscles relax as his senses were enveloped by the comforting aroma of cocoa, spices, and cream. He took a large gulp and almost sighed out loud as the warmth spread throughout his body. It was pretty obvious that the temperature of the hot cocoa wasn't the only warmth he felt though.

"You spiked my drink," the blue eyed boy observed.

"Possibly," the warp user said neutrally. Alcohol in moderation did help to calm nerves and ease aches and pains (something the boy clearly was in need of). And if Kurogiri happened to have an expensive cream liqueur that mixed well with chocolate who was he to not use it?

"It's good," Killua hummed as he took another sip.

Kurogiri nodded. Of course it was, he had made it after all.

True to the boy's word, he exhibited no signs of being inebriated even after finishing the large mug of boozy hot chocolate. Any other child of the same height and weight would certainly have been flushed by now. Just another added mystery to the pale haired boy's name, the wispy man thought with a shake of his head.

A name the boy had never disclosed in the first place, Kurogiri internally snorted.

The boy disappeared through a door that led to the residential area of the building and the warp user absentmindedly cleaned the mug before checking the news online. He expected to have to scour a bit to find out whatever the boy had done (it would undoubtedly be something worthy of making the news), but as it turned out he didn't have to put in any effort at all. The top article as soon as he opened the app brazenly stated exactly what he was looking for.

PRO HERO FELLED BY THE GHOST

Well, Shigaraki would definitely want to see this.

Killua slept in the next morning. When he awoke, the sun was high in the sky and the bandages he'd used to wrap his hand the night before were soaked with pus and blood. He let out a small noise of annoyance and dutifully changed the bandages after washing out the burn and applying some antibiotic cream. It shouldn't take too long to heal but it definitely wouldn't be instant. He absentmindedly channeled a bit of nen into his hand to speed up the process.

It would be nice to go to a hospital, somebody was bound to have some kind of healing quirk around there, but then they'd hackle the boy for official documents he didn't have. Maybe Kurogiri knew an underground healer or doctor. Or maybe not, Killua thought with a snort, since Tomura had been injured at USJ days ago and was still wrapped up in bandages. Chizome had to know someone since he got into so many fights with pro heroes. Maybe he was worth seeking out.

Killua was so caught up in his pondering that he was woefully unprepared for what was waiting for him as he tried to leave the building.

Both Tomura and Kurogiri were sitting by the bar pouring over multiple tablets when Killua walked in. They were discussing something seriously, but as soon as the boy stepped foot into the main bar area their attention immediately snapped to him.

"So when were you going to tell us you have an electricity quirk, you little shit?" Shigaraki opened with.

Killua stopped in his tracks. How would they even know about that? He'd destroyed the camera on the street and the only witness was dead. Unless...

"The autopsy revealed that Kesagiriman's body was flooded with electricity before he was killed," Kurogiri supplied on behalf of the manchild. "The police and pro heroes who responded to the hero's call all said they saw a flash of blue light for a brief second when they arrived at the scene as well."

"It was probably just a police car," the boy lied nonchalantly. "They've all got their heads too far up their asses to see straight anyways."

Kurigiri wasn't amused by Killua's explanation whatsoever, but Shigaraki couldn't help the little snort that escaped him.

"Regardless," the warp user sighed. "You lied to us about your quirk, which raises questions about other information you may be withholding from us."

"You never asked so I never said anything," Killua said with a roll of his eyes.

"That was like the second thing we ever asked you, brat," Shigaraki reminded him.

"As if I knew what a quirk was then," Killua shot back.

"Enough!" Kurogiri commanded before the two could go off on an aggressive tangent. "There is no point in arguing over schematics. The boy can explain his quirk to us now."

"Like hell I will," Killua snorted and made a break for it before the warp user could trap him back in the bar. His aura flared to life in his legs and he was gone, the door lazily swinging shut behind him.

Once he was sure that Kurogiri wouldn't be able to find him, the pale boy released his nen and slowed down to a normal walking pace before stepping out onto the sidewalk from a hidden alley about a kilometer away from the League's bar.

He had taken off in the opposite direction of his destination in case he was being followed, so he had a long walk to backtrack to Sato Sweet Shop. Killua arrived around noon and found it to be crowded. The white haired boy made a face to himself and made his way to the back of the line, occupying himself with the lunch menu in the meantime. He didn't even know they made sandwiches since he'd always had a one track mind for their desserts. And the name Sato Sweet Shop really didn't help his assumption either.

Killua absentmindedly checked his phone as the line shuffled forward. Kurogiri hadn't sent him anything, though that wasn't surprising considering they'd exchanged maybe three words over text before. Tomura just sent a middle finger emoji, which was pretty characteristic of him. Killua left him on read and slid his phone back into his pocket. That would probably infuriate the manchild more than any insult the boy could throw back and the thought made Killua crack a small smile.

A few minutes later he arrived at the front counter and Sato-san's eyes lit up when she saw him, the stress of the lunch rush momentarily fading from her face.

"I thought you weren't going to make it today!" Sato-san exclaimed. "You're normally here pretty early in the morning."

Killua shrugged and couldn't help but return her infectious smile. "I slept in," he explained.

She laughed. "Pretty befitting of a teenage boy! It is the weekend after all. So what will you have today? Feeling adventurous enough to try one of our sandwiches?"

"Yeah I'll take one of every dessert like usual and also whichever sandwich is your favorite."

"Coming right up," Sato-san chirped as Killua handed over the cash and told her to keep the change. "Unfortunately some of our pastries have already sold out today since it's lunch time but they were nothing you haven't tried before."

Killua nodded in acquiescence as she quickly and efficiently boxed the desserts and gave him his receipt. However, right as she was about to hand over his boxes, she noticed his wrapped hand and pulled back. She glanced over towards the tables and called out, "Rikido come take these boxes please!"

Killua flushed a little at her overprotective notion and tried to insist he could carry them and his hand was fine but she was hearing none of it. So Killua made his way over to the last open table as the son of the owners carried his desserts for him.

"Sorry about my mom," Sato chuckled. "She just wants to help."

"It's fine," Killua grumbled as he slid down into his chair. Sato nodded at the pale boy before going back to busing the tables so more people could sit down.

Killua had only made it through three slices of cake before the husband delivered his fancy looking sandwich. The boy nodded his thanks and Sato-san smiled warmly at him before returning to the kitchen to fill more orders.

The sandwich was almost as good as the desserts, and by that Killua meant it was amazing. He made a mental note to come during lunch time more often. After demolishing the sandwich, the small assassin went back to his desserts, savoring every bite. The lunch rush soon started to die down, and the Sato's were able to slow down to a comfortable pace that didn't require the three of them constantly working at a hundred miles per hour.

Killua knew it was just a startup family business, but he wondered if the family could hire another worker. Their shop was open seven days a week and it was only the family working. Not to mention the son was at school all week. Killua wondered if there was anything he could do. He wasn't one to just offer help to others, he looked out for the interests of very few. However, when these people made the best sweets he'd ever tasted in his life, he thought it might be worth it to expand his circle.

The pale boy was drawn out of his thoughts as a group of high school students walked into the sweet shop and loudly made their presence known.

"Sato, my man!" a guy with spiky red hair bellowed.

Said boy whipped his head up from where he was wiping down some tables a few feet away and his face instantly warped into one of happiness.

"You guys came!" he exclaimed.

"Of course we came!" an energetic blond boy replied enthusiastically. "Once you told us your parents owned a sweet shop we had to stop by!"

"This is a very quaint shop," a short girl with suspiciously frog-like features complimented. "It's really nice."

A seemingly walking, talking uniformed squealed. "It's so cute, I love it!"

A tall blond boy with a large tail smiled in agreement before glancing behind himself. "Don't you guys think we should order so we don't hold up the line?"

"Step right up!" Sato-san declared as Rikido ushered his classmates to the front counter. "It's great to meet Rikido's classmates!"

Killua averted his gaze and went back to his chocolate cheesecake for a few moments of blessed peace before the loud group oh so conveniently chose the table next to his. Rikido joined them after getting the approval from his parents, who had the shop under control on their own.

Since Killua was only a foot or so away from the high schoolers, he couldn't help but eavesdrop on most of their conversation. They began by talking about their homework for the weekend and complaining about how brutal their teachers were. The pale assassin couldn't help but be intrigued what their teachers had them doing to get this kind of response. They must all be UA students since Sato was, and it was interesting to hear about their experiences from an inside perspective. Since they were being trained to fight villains, Killua wondered if any of their teachers were similar to Bisky or Wing.

The conversation soon turned to the news, and ironically, the Ghost.

"Did you guys see that Kesagiriman was killed by the Ghost?" Ojiro asked the group.

Kaminari groaned loudly. "He has an electricity quirk! What are people going to think of me now that I have a similar quirk? What if everyone starts thinking I'm a villain!"

"There are a lot of heroes with electricity quirks," Tsuyu reminded the blond practically.

"Oh yeah? Name one right now," Kaminari challenged.

The group was silent for a moment.

"Uh..."

"That's what I thought!" the blond bemoaned loudly.

"Then you can just show your stuff at the Sports Festival so everyone knows you're a good guy!" Kirishima suggested.

Kaminari sniffed before saying, "Yeah, I guess that works..."

Killua made a mental note to check what the Sports Festival was about since the students made it sound important.

He began to tune out the UA kids so he could focus on finishing his desserts, and a few minutes later he was collecting the empty boxes to toss into the trash. All three of the family members waved goodbye to him, even Rikido who was busy with his friends. The students all turned to look at the white haired boy curiously, but with a short sentence from Rikido who explained that Killua was a regular, they went back to their own conversation.

Killua wandered out onto the street and aimlessly picked a direction. What should he do now? He would have to return to the bar at some point and face the wrath of Shigaraki and Kurogiri who would undoubtedly be annoyed he ran out on them earlier. He would also have to find a way to explain his 'electricity quirk' and deter them from trying to further investigate his abilities. That wasn't a conversation Killua was willing to have at the moment, so instead he decided to walk around and look for something to do.

The TV's facing the streets were understandably outraged over the Ghost's actions, and the death of Kesagiriman was the most popular news currently playing. There were sad tributes playing for the speed hero while simultaneously analysists were talking about how all it would take was one good hit for the electricity to fry the hero's body even though he must have been faster than the Ghost.

Now that Killua thought back on it, Kesagiriman hadn't been leaking any aura even after Killua completely flooded the pro hero's system with nen. From what the pale boy understood that should have awakened the hero's aura nodes, but then again Killua himself had never awakened someone's aura so he didn't know the particulars of how it worked. Wing hadn't explained exactly what he did to awaken Gon and Killua's after all. Perhaps there had to be intent to unlock aura nodes, which Killua did not have in mind last night. Or maybe this world operated on a completely different system and nen was a foreign entity. Either way it was a mystery.

It would be interesting to see what nen did to the people here, but Killua had no way of testing theories without potentially unlocking the auras of people that didn't need to be using nen. And unfortunately, his only test subject was already dead.

The white haired boy sighed. He would have to be extremely cautious in what he experimented with. The last thing he wanted was overpowered quirk users throwing around nen as well.

A sudden spike in killing intent stopped Killua in his tracks and he quickly turned to face the direction it was coming from.

Speaking of overpowered quirk users... Killua thought to himself with an internal snort. He quickly took off in the direction of the bloodlust so he wouldn't miss out.

Arriving a few blocks away at the epicenter of the killing intent, the scene depicted before him was exactly what Killua was expecting to find. A tall female hero in a skintight suit slightly more sexualized than it needed to be lay in a growing pool of blood, her eyes vacant and bloodstained lips parted slightly. The serial killer stood over her corpse loomingly, his large knife dripping with her blood.

After admiring his work for a few more seconds, the Hero Killer sheathed his blade and turned to calmly walk away from the murder scene. Killua tailed the man silently, taking note to mask his presence since the Hero Killer had shown his senses were adept enough to sense the pale boy's bloodlust the last time they met.

After a few minutes of wandering through alleyways, Stain walked back into a run down part of town where he soon slid into an inconspicuous early 20th century building and began to clean his weapons.

The small assassin walked right up behind the Hero Killer and a mischievous smile made its way onto his face as he shoved his hands into his pockets and spoke out of nowhere.

"Yo," Killua said conversationally. The Hero Killer jumped and instantly swung the jagged knife he'd been cleaning. The boy easily maneuvered around the blade that would have gone straight through his skull had he stood still and waited for the older man to recognize him.

Halfway through another swipe at his silent stalker, Stain finally got a good luck at who he was attacking and pulled back.

"Jesus, kid, you scared me," Chizome chided breathlessly.

"Who's that?" Killua asked.

"Who's what?" the man replied in confusion.

"Jesus."

The Hero Killer let out a sharp laugh. "Nobody I'll ever meet. What are you doing out here stalking me, kid?"

The boy's eye twitched. "My name is Killua, not kid. And I just happened to be in the area," he explained. He didn't mention the fact that he could sense the man's insatiable bloodlust from a few blocks away.

The noseless man eyed the pale boy like he wasn't sure he believed that story, but didn't press any further. Instead he changed the topic to something pertinent for them both. "Not sure if you check the news, but the media thinks we're working together," Chizome informed the boy.

Killua hummed. "Yeah I saw. They try and connect everything we do now just because of that one time."

The Hero Killer gave the smaller boy a strange look. "After what you did last night the heroes are undoubtedly convinced we're working together, kid."

"What's that supposed to mean?" the pale boy asked cautiously.

"You paralyzed a man with electricity, Killua. Who the hell else would they think you're working with?"

Killua groaned. "Great, that means they'll be sending out even more heroes to track us down."

Stain's grotesque mouth spread into a sadistic grin. "Which means I'll have the opportunity to cleanse this world of even more false heroes."

The pale boy scoffed. "Good for you, but I'm trying to keep my identity hidden here."

"And you're doing such a great job with that now that the public knows your quirk," the man replied dryly.

"Nobody knows my face though, so it hardly matters," the boy shrugged dismissively. It wasn't like his techniques were common knowledge. He still had all of his assassin skills hidden away and the only thing about his nen that was revealed was the information that he could, in fact, harness electricity. Not a big deal.

"Now that your electricity quirk is public knowledge they'll think they have you all figured out, which gives you an advantage. They won't be expecting anything else from you," Stain said. "I know there's more to you than what you've shown so far, but I won't hound you about it. You wouldn't have survived this lifestyle if you just had one trick up your sleeve."

"Oh?" Killua asked, intrigued. He hadn't realized how perceptive the serial killing villain was before. From the single encounter they'd had and news articles the man probably read about The Ghost, Stain was already able to deduce that Killua was holding himself back. If he wasn't careful, the older man would probably figure out more about Killua than he was comfortable with sharing.

"I could say the same for you. It's clear your quirk affects people to different degrees," the boy replied, not one to be outdone. He had also done his research on the Hero Killer, and after seeing him in action it was easy to pick up on the signs.

Stain snorted. "The public doesn't even know what my quirk does. They think it has something to do with weapons. The heroes must know but for whatever reason they haven't made the information public knowledge."

Killua smirked at that. People really were dense.

"We think the same way, kid," Chizome mused.

The boy made a face. "Hardly, we're practically opposites. You're killing people self righteously while I'm being forced to kill so I can go home to the two people I care about. I don't know the full implications of what I'm doing to this society by killing semi-important people. Not that I care, but I could really be fucking some stuff up here and I don't even know it."

Stain frowned, but did not seem to share Killua's concern. "Then start being more selective about your targets. You're clearly a major asset to whoever is ordering you around so you should have enough leverage to start making some decisions for yourself. Just because you're in a shit situation doesn't mean you don't have any control."

The man spoke with such easy and certainty that Killua was stunned. He was used to taking shit from no one while travelling the world, but being roped into the League brought the boy back to the days of living on Zoldyck estate and being ordered around constantly without a chance to act on his own. When he finally did what he wanted it estranged him from the family. Perhaps he was subconsciously afraid that if he did the same here, he would lose his chance to return to his world. But there was one thing that Tomura and Kurogiri lacked that his family had. They weren't intimidating or a real threat to Killua.

"They're not pushovers," Killua began, a mischievous light appearing in his eyes. "But I could make them sweat."

The Hero Killer gave a wide, sadistic grin. "That's the spirit."

The two fell silent for a few moments before Killua remembered something he had thought of earlier.

"Know any underground hospitals around here?" the pale boy asked, briefly gesturing to his bandaged hand.

"Not for cheap," Chizome replied. "But I know a guy for when I need it. He admires my work and swore himself to secrecy."

Killua shrugged. "That's fine, I'll gladly blow all of these assholes' money."

The large man gestured for the boy to follow him and they began walking through winding alleyways.

"My offer still stands," the Hero Killer said a few minutes into their walk.

"Hm?" Killua replied.

"You can join me instead of who you're working for now. You'd be a great asset to justice and if my platforms gains enough leverage I'm sure there would be someone who would be willing to assist you in returning to your home."

"That's a big if," the boy said. "I'm not willing to take that risk right now."

The man nodded in acquiescence. "Understandable, but know that you are welcome to join my cause at any point."

"Yeah I was trying to put killing behind me before I got to Japan," Killua grumbled. "So joining your crusade would be pretty counterproductive for me."

"It's very rare for those so young to kill purposely unless they have quirks that are predisposed to it," Chizome informed. "What put you on that path?"

Killua was silent for a moment, contemplating what to reveal about himself. Eventually he said, "I was raised to be an assassin from birth. This is all I was ever taught by my family."

"Sounds lonely," Stain hummed.

"You're one to talk," the boy snarkily replied.

"At least I had a life before I took this path."

"I have a life," the boy replied with a pout. "I even have a best friend."

"Must be a strange kid to be friends with you," the Hero Killer mused.

"He is," Killua confirmed with a small yet fond smile. That was the first genuine emotion Stain had seen on the boy actually.

"But I don't know if I'll ever see him again if I'm stuck here," the boy added with a sad tone, his soft smile faltering.

"Keep your convictions and you will have a much better chance of being successful," the noseless man offered. It was probably supposed to be encouraging in the convoluted way that the Hero Killer viewed the world.

Killua grunted in response and checked his phone for the time before glancing up at Chizome. It was a long shot but...

"You got a phone number?" the pale boy asked.

Stain stared down at the boy incredulously. "If I had a phone my every move could be tracked. That is not a worthwhile risk."

"They make phones without trackers," Killua muttered under his breath, but didn't press the issue since they had arrived at a very shabby looking building that Killua would not have been able to discern as a hospital on his own.

The doctor was a no nonsense kind of guy, but it didn't bother Killua. Apparently he had been kicked out of his position at an esteemed hospital for healing a villain (as protocol requires that doctors heal anyone regardless of their affiliation) but afterwards the villain woke up completely recovered and wrecked havoc within the hospital before escaping. The doctor had been bitter about losing his job and opened his own underground practice that mostly serviced vigilantes, villains, and gangs.

The doctor undid the bandages from the boy's hand and inspected the wound.

"The hell did you do to yourself?" the doctor asked gruffly.

"Grabbed an exposed, live telephone wire," Killua admitted.

"You're insane," the Hero Killer said flatly.

"Touché," the boy replied.

Stain let out a loud laugh. Never had he imagined he'd find someone like this to talk to since he had turned his back on his life as a vigilante. He had burned all his bridges and taken up the lonely path of a self righteous villain, not expecting to ever have another ally or friend again. After all, he was on a path of self destruction; either he would die a villain or live long enough to become a hero in the new world he created. Once that was accomplished, what else did he have to live for? His current lifestyle was a means to an end, and once that end was reached there was nothing left for him in this world. And yet, here was someone else with his own issues to deal with offering him snarky banter and meaningful conversation. It was unbelievable.

The doctor waved one of his large hands over Killua's own and the open wound slowly began to close itself up. The doctor efficiently rebandaged the healing wound and demanded payment. Killua paid with an auspicious amount of bills and the doctor greedily offered his services anytime from now on to the boy.

The two serial killers parted ways outside and Killua grudgingly started to make his way back to the League's bar. He was overdue for an awkward conversation with Tomura and Kurogiri.

Just great, the boy thought to himself with a groan.

For those of you worried about Bakugou receiving nen and becoming OP, hopefully this chapter indirectly answers some of your questions.

As far as Killua and Kesagiriman's fight, yes Killua should have been able to easily defeat the hero but he was suffering from hubris and didn't take the fight as seriously as he should have until the end.

Also, I'm not condoning children drinking alcohol but hey Kurogiri's a bartender and Killua can easily handle himself.

The Sato family deserves lots of hugs and good business, they're great people.

I had to go back and change a small detail in Chapter 4 when Killua and Midoriya gave their names to each other. I really dug myself into a hole on that one so I went back and took it out. So now they know each others' faces but do not know each other's names. Sorry for the inconsistency.

The Sports Festival is coming up in a couple chapters and let's just say both HxH characters will be in attendance...

Sorry for the long wait for this chapter, but it's been a hectic month. My semester is pretty much over now so I should be able to produce a lot more writing in a shorter period of time for the next few months. As always, leave a review if you enjoyed or if I made a mistake! See you guys next time!

Edit: Changed some little things because I realized that Killua should have been much less effected by his fight. I was trying too hard to keep him from being completely OP that I made him not OP at all.