Chapter 148

(A/N: This chapter is brought to you by Jarrad Leigh.)

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After donning short-skirted maid outfits, padded panties, stockings, garter belts, and eye masks, all provided by Momo, the feline trio of Shino, Ryuko, and Tomoko exited the breach to ascertain the situation and see if they couldn't locate the person that had trespassed.

"Oh, wow, Ryu-chi, someone really did a number on your wall," remarked Tomoko, staring wide-eyed, as usual, at the massive, visibly charred hole that had ostensibly been created by an explosion.

"Stay focused," said Shino, prompting Tomoko to raise her right hand and respond with a spirited "Hai, hai~!" before activating her Quirk, sending an invisible pulse through the area. Originally, her Quirk, Search, only allowed her to keep track of targets she had seen and 'saved' in her memory. Now, thanks to her [Area Scan] perk, she could detect and keep track of up to a thousand people within a 10km radius.

As her inordinately large eyes twitched, focusing on groups of people only she could see, Tomoko expounded, "There are a lot of people nearby, but most of them are Royal Marines, Airmen, and British Army."

"No one stands out...?" asked Shino, crossing her arms. She didn't expect immediate results, but because of Izuku's provocations, she was feeling a little 'anxious' and wanted to wrap things up quickly.

Bringing her right index finger to her chin, Tomoko issued a protracted "Hmmm..." before responding, "There are a few Heroes in costume, but most are with the British forces, gathered near breaches. I could try-"

Before Tomoko could finish speaking, a shiver ran through Shino's body that compelled her to tackle the green-haired girl, the sound of a gunshot reaching them 'after' a bullet impacted her side.

Reacting nearly as quickly, Ryuko created an earthen wall while Tomoko, recovering from her momentary stupor, placed Shino in a recovery pose on her side. Their clothes, despite resembling sexy French maid cosplay, were resistant to most standard calibers of bullets, and thanks to Shino's innate toughness, she only had the wind knocked out of her, two cracked ribs, and an area of expanding rigidity that was bound to develop into a very large bruise.

"How is she!?' asked Ryuko, her voice loud and expression pissed as she reinforced the dirt wall and sent hundreds of earth-formed rats scurrying into the surrounding forest in search of their assailant.

"I'm fine..." groaned Shino, wincing and gritting her teeth as she forced herself to a seated position and rose to her feet with the help of Tomoko. This was far from her first time being shot, so she willfully suppressed the pain and stated, "The shot came from the seven o'clock direction when facing the breach, one o'clock facing away. Judging by how quickly the sound reached us after the impact, they can't be more than six or seven hundred meters away..."

Prompted by Shino's words, Tomoko glared in the indicated direction, sending out multiple waves of her Quirk to bypass the 1,000 target limit. The greatest weakness of her [Area Scan] was that it could detect more than just people, but with a proper header and a better idea of what she was looking for, she immediately found their quarry.

"There are two of them, both carrying firearms and wearing uniforms of the UKSF(United Kingdom Special Forces]," revealed Tomoko, furrowing her brows. She might present herself as an enthusiastic airhead, but after boosting her Intelligence from 67 to 200 and further developing it to 233 as her Level increased, she was objectively the most intelligent member of the Pussycats. As such, she immediately picked up on a few things she would have previously overlooked or disregarded, such as the frequency the duo's radio was set to before they changed it.

While Shino used [Mind Crush] to temporarily disable the men and Ryuko used her Earth Beasts to retrieve them, Tomoko pulled out her cell phone and reported her observations to Nezu. The latter took a minute or two to respond, but when he did, he casually provided information the two men wouldn't have revealed, even if their minds were read or they experienced brutal torture.

"Why are you on your phone...?" asked Shino, a disproving frown marring her face, albeit with the main causes of her grimace being the pain in her side and the realization she would invariably need to inform Izuku she had been shot.

"According to the Principal, our assailants are Russian Special Operatives," replied Tomoko, handing Shino her phone as she appended, "But the main culprit appears to be a China. We won't know for certain until the Principal hacks their systems and identifies the origin of the kill order."

"Right..." muttered Shino, feeling a little taken aback by how serious and 'astute' Tomoko was being. At the same time, she couldn't help thinking, 'I should invest more of my Free Attributes into Intelligence.' She previously prioritized stats that complimented her existing skills and fighting style, but with her Quirk being a mental type, it couldn't hurt to boost her brain and processing power...

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Though girls like Inko and Yu initially felt sorry for Anan, as she had pulled the shortest lot, they eventually realized she was the most fortunate of all as, without anyone else in the queue, Izuku could take his time. Anan also insisted on privacy, so while the other girls only received between twelve to fifteen minutes of Izuku's care and attention, the pillowy space Heroine had him to herself for nearly a half-hour, followed by relaxed cuddling.

Catching Izuku a little off guard, Anan, her head resting on his chest and eyes closed, abruptly asked, "Should I also have your baby...?"

Recovering after a mental pause, Izuku replied, "To be honest...while I would do my best, I don't think I'm father material. Because of that, I've made the mistake of acting like I didn't care and that it was the decision of the women I slept with whether or not we had kids..."

Adopting a faint smile, Izuku tightened his hold on Anan's arm, pulling her closer as he added, "I've matured since then. But even if I hadn't, I would still want to have a baby with you. Not to embarrass you, but your mommy energy is off the charts...astronomical even..."

"That was incredibly corny..." muttered Anan, but the contented smile on her face made it clear that Izuku's response pleased her. Because of her Quirk, she had actually been advised 'not' to have children as the odds of something going tragically wrong were exceptionally high in her case. Her body constantly produced radiation, and it got even worse when she was on her period or her hormones were imbalanced. She took a special kind of beta blocker to regulate the effects, but that would be impossible while she was pregnant.

With her recently acquired [Ergokinetic Suppression] and [Healthy Body] Perks, Anan no longer experienced adverse side effects from her Quirk or lethargy-inducing medicine. Now, though it was difficult for others to tell since she had gotten used to restraining her emotions, she constantly felt light, fluffy, and full of energy. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that Izuku had given her a new lease on life, so if his genes were really as 'adaptive' as his file claimed, Anan was at least willing to try if he wanted to have a baby. Rather...

Breaking a lengthy silence, Anan moved the hand she had resting on Izuku's chiseled abs, gently caressing them with a listless look on her face as she faintly, plainly admitted, "I want one..."

"Keep being this adorable, and I'll give you ten..." mused Izuku. Then, though it would invariably require him to explain himself, he rolled over and pinned Anan beneath him. Her lips parted as if she had something to say, but instead, she transitioned to a dreamy, loving smile and spread her legs...

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As it was nearing midnight, Izuku was standing near the breach with his arms crossed, preparing to pass through when Shino, Ryuko, and Tomoko finally returned, the latter duo grinning when they saw him.

Seizing the initiative, Tomoko attempted to pounce forward but sank into the ground as Ryuko shifted the soil beneath her like a quagmire, causing her to sink up to her thighs. In retaliation, she attempted to grab Ryuko's ankle, but the blonde-haired cat girl deftly avoided her before leaping the full distance to Izuku, the latter dutifully catching and propping her up by her ass as she wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him.

Feeling Shino's incertitude as her mind linked with his, Izuku, instead of directly asking what happened, expressed, 'Welcome back. I was starting to get worried.'

Exhaling faintly through her nose, Shino returned a smile, helping Tomoko get out of the ground as she replied, 'Let's talk about it once we return to the compound. Right now, I'm starving.'

'Then let's fill your belly and get some rest,' teased Izuku, breaking away from Ryuko's kiss to add, "We should return to the others. I had them on standby in case shit hit the fan."

Licking her lips, Ryuko was tempted to ask Izuku to carry her but instead responded, "Sure. But after I finish washing up and preparing food, I want to cuddle. I worked really hard today, you know?"

"You definitely did..." affirmed Izuku, rewarding Ryuko with another kiss before setting her down and exchanging saliva with the other two feline beauties. He noticed Shino wince when he touched her side, but instead of asking what happened or if she was okay, he very tenderly held her to assure her he wasn't angry. She wasn't a bird or, more accurately, a cat he could lock away to keep safe. So, instead of fretting over something that had already transpired, Izuku felt it was better to focus on what came next. If she and the other girls were simply more powerful than the forces targetting them, the only thing they would need to fear is complacency...

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Waking with a start, Toshinori rose to a seated position in the blink of an eye, causing the blankets covering his muscular form to fall.

"What's wrong? Is it a villain attack...?" asked a voice from Toshinori's right, emanating from a similarly muscular woman with long golden hair, currently in disarray.

Placing his hand over his chest, Toshinori responded, "You might think this strange, but my former Master appeared in my dreams. And let me tell you, she wasn't happy. Not one bit..."

"Shimura-san did?" asked the muscular woman, speaking immaculate Japanese as she rose and leaned against Toshinori, nestling her head against his shoulder.

"Sorry, Cassie, but give me just one moment..." said Toshinori, smiling apologetically as he separated from the woman, America's No. 1 Hero, Star and Stripe. Fortunately, she wasn't even remotely troubled by his behavior, lying on her side and watching him with a loving smile as he searched for and checked his cell phone.

Seeing that he had several messages from Nezu, the first telling him not to worry and that everything was in hand, a bead of sweat condensed on Toshinori's brows, following the contours of his face to the tip of his nose as he read what transpired in the Highlands. He was supposed to be there to prevent such incidents, but since Izuku and Nezu had both told him to take his time and enjoy America, claiming that it would split their enemies' focus, Toshinori had permitted himself to get a bit carried away, enjoying being a Hero full-time and spending time with Cathleen...

Before Toshinori could say anything, Cathleen covered her mouth to stifle a loud yawn before scratching the back of her left calf with the big toe of her right foot as she said, "No need to apologize or anything. Even at this age, I consider myself your biggest fan. If you have duties elsewhere, I'd feel like a right cold bitch if I tried to stop you."

Exhaling a sigh, Toshinori briefly slumped before turning to face Cathleen with his usual smile. After the death of his Master and enduring more loss than most could fathom, he resolved to remain and die alone, fearful that anyone who got close to him would die at the hands of a villain. That fear was still deeply ingrained in him, but after meeting with Izuku, Toshinori's perspective gradually shifted. Now, for himself and the sake of the world, he was willing to permit himself to love and be vulnerable again...

"Then, before I go..." whispered Toshinori, staring lovingly at Cathleen as he caressed her cheek and combed aside a few loose strands of her hair. He intended to ask her if there was a secure line they could use to keep in contact, but Cathleen misinterpreted his actions, placing her hand over his as she narrowed her eyes and stated, "New Order...my pussy becomes perfectly suited to pleasure Toshinori Yagi's dick..." before giving him one hell of a send-off...

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(A/N: Talk about a twenty-one-gun salute...)