Midnight Hunt

After spending the day clawing one of my scratching posts into oblivion in an effort to calm my nerves, I decide to call the person I'd thought of when Nezu asked if the Cult would help with the raid.

Kendo Rappa, the undisputed champion of the Underground Masquerade. Also the coach who'd helped Himiko and I to hone our fighting abilities. It's actually thanks to him that I thought up my Cat Armor move. Of course, it wasn't easy to convince him to train us.

First of all we had to fight our way through the Masquerade ourselves until we eventually managed to claim the number two and three spots, as well as hold them for a good amount of time. Occasionally we'd lose them to some especially skilled fighters, but each loss improved our own skills further than the restrained spars at the gym. It was only after we'd managed to hold the spots for a full forty-five days that Rappa agreed to train us.

Which was odd, considering that we established that we'd honed our fighting skills to that point in the first place. Not to mention that I'd already made a name for myself as a vigilante/villain. But it turns out that getting there was the bare minimum to meet his standards.

His 'training' mostly consisted of spars where he'd critique every aspect of our fighting styles. From strength, to agility, to our techniques. Each was judged, advised, and honed under the brutal 'Learning Fists', as Rappa likes to joke.

…It is a joke.

But yeah, my danger sense and reflexes got sensitive enough that it wasn't all that difficult to dodge the punches of the All Might and the Nomu back at the USJ. Or rather, it's only thanks to the fact that I got used to avoiding Coach's fists that I was able to keep away from any solid hits. At least until I got too focused on my main prey that I ignored the secondary.

He also recommended a series of exercises that helped enhance our natural flexibility, along with other trainers who could guide us for that aspect since he doesn't really weave around attacks. He's more likely to punch whatever the attack is to see if it's strong enough to challenge him. Which tends to be a resounding 'no'.

Anyways, over the years we grew to the skilled fighters we are today, and the organizers of the Masquerade even gave us nicknames!

'The Champion's Gauntlets' we're called. Because whenever someone wants to challenge Coach, they'd have to defeat both Himiko and I in order to prove that they're worth Rappa's time. It's at least reduced the amount of people he punches the heads off of in irritation when they aren't able to put up a decent fight.

I was fully aware of his offer to join anyone who managed to defeat him in a match in hope of luring in stronger opponents. But I was also aware of how unlikely it was for him to actually lose.

Which is why I'm of half-a-mind to claw someone's head off when Rappa tells me that he can't join the hunt because he's working for the people we're hunting! It's tempered by concern that Overhaul actually managed to beat him, but still.

"Just like I said, Blue." I can practically hear the shrug in his voice. "He beat me, so now I'm working for him. Which also means that I can't help you out by attacking him. Won't tell anyone about the attack since I like you and Yellow though."

I hiss, though given what I saw of Overhaul's quirk… "Did he actually win, though, nya? Just using his quirk for an instant win is nyat very honorable, now is it?"

He chuckles over the phone. "I know what you're trying to do, but the answer's still the same. Doesn't matter if I didn't get an actual fight out of it, a deal's a deal."

"Do mew even know what he's doing? Why he needs someone as strong as mew?"

"Course I do. Has a plan to make quirk erasing drugs and a cure, then sell both to bring the yakuza to the top of the underworld. I know, a plan for the weak, but what can you do."

"How about not experiment on a kitten to get the end result," I growl.

There's silence for a moment before a confused "What?" comes over the speaker. So he doesn't know… I wonder how many of the Shie Hassaikai actually do. Maybe we can use that…

"He's using a kitten to learn how to make those drugs, using his quirk to tear her arms and legs apart before purrting them back together."

Now, normally Rappa doesn't care about other people unless they can give him a thrill in a fight, But like most of the people I work with, he has a hard line against hurting kids. His reasoning is that they could grow up to be strong enough to challenge him one day. An odd reason, but still one that supports my own bottom line. But will it be enough…

"I still can't work against him," he actually sounds a bit regretful now. "But…" he considers his next words, "getting heroes assigned to your raid who can give us Eight Bullets a good fight should be fine."

It's twisted logic where he justifies giving us helpful information in the name of his own ideals, but if it works for him, I won't complain.

"That's good, nya. I'll text Himiko that you'll be giving her the information to pass onto me-ow."

"Heh. So Yellow is already here? I should have figured as much. I'll do that, then. Just make sure that there's someone who'll be able to match me, Blue!"

I chuckle. "Of course I will Coach, nya."

I hang up, looking around my room. There's bits and pieces of the scratching post all over the room and I know that even after I clean up, I'm still going to be finding pieces even in a few days. And the conversation with Rappa has gotten my stress back up! Not as much as when I first left Nezu's office, but still not as calm as before I called him.

"Maybe I should sneak out tonight, nya…"

Hunting has always helped me calm down when I'm stressed, even when it temporarily rises when I see heroes acting like villains. The stress they give me is always swiftly taken care of when I turn them into my prey.

Or maybe I can swing by the Masquerade, see if anyone interesting has worked their way through the ranks. Either way, a good fight is just what I need to distract myself.

As I leap from my balcony and land lightly on the grass, I consider how I'm going to get off of campus. Though… do I really need some kind of plan? The smartest people do overlook the simplest of things…

So, making sure to avoid the robots patrolling the darkened grounds of UA I make my way to the front gate. And then… I step through it.

I wait for a moment, but after not hearing anything that would signal that they know I left I nod my head. "Most students would be under the impurression that there's something that purrevents them from walking through the gate, so they'd make some overly-complicated plan to get out. But I guess that as long as you have the pass the alarm won't yowl."

I leave UA behind to make my way to the nearby apartment I'd bought before the dorms were implemented. Only instead of using it as a living space like I intended, now it's more of a den for the Cult to stay when they're operating in the area, as well as a place for me to store my vigilante gear. Can't have a proper hunt with my face on display.