[The Wharf -- Warehouse District] Summit [Strive Plot]

Choyoku looked at Gauss. He had such a fierce expression. He and the others were so fierce. She was still in the lower ranks of Tokyo's forces, forced to wear a mask. "Th-...they said it was against a top-ranked hero... -Slumberland." She herself was a bit shy of fighting beyond obvious match up advantages. In fact, she often feigns being a quirkless grunt, just to overwhelm foes. It wasn't great for sticking out. Those like Gauss and other elites were people who stuck out, either for continued success, or combat prowess. She needed a way to carve out a lane for herself... "With due time. You'll give hero society what it deserves." A small smile formed.  

The clinking of a wine glass could be heard as Katagiri stood with the top brass at his wings. "Everyone, please stand." He looked upon all in attendance. From business big wigs, to some of the strongest each major city had to offer this summit was going to be a good one. "Welcome. I know all of us don't see eye to eye. Actually, I see a guy who has tried to kill me last week." The crowd would chuckle as he continued. "I'm gathering you all here to let you all know we've taken down our biggest competitor. They didn't engage in violence, but they had quite the lawyer team trying to take us away with racketeering charges. We can thank Kirie for that. In her final mission, she successfully killed the last one trying to defy us." While the Yakuza had many different dividers, groups and delineations, but this meant as an umbrella, they had a monopoly on most sectors of Japan. "Gauss, I know getting a body would be much better, but this is the best we could salvage." 

Two men would arrive to Gauss. One carrying a large metallic shard of her quirked skin, and the other presenting Gauss with a snapped katana. "Please accept this gift. It was an honor to command her. She'll be an irreplaceable member... care to share any words with the group?"

____________________________________________ Meanwhile

BLAM! With a swift punch to the back of a grunts head, Speed gently let the guy rest on his side. After frisking the unconscious body, he paused hearing the crowd begin to chatter. Passing a look to Strive, he took the goon's ear piece and tossed it to his teammate. With a swift slide, he'd clip the next guy before he could realize what was happening. He'd take that person's earpiece. "Now we're on their line." He smirked, as now they had their own comms in one ear, and the yakuza comms in the other ear. 

From what they could hear, Katagiri had just presented Gauss with a gift. Speed didn't want to waste too much time though. He climbed up a stack of shipping containers and tried to peer in the warehouse from afar. They didn't really need to take out all the guards, just the ones who saw them. "I think we should split up and try and find separate ways in. We can communicate what we see. Whoever sees Choyoku first can make the rendezvous call." He held a thumb to the side, to see if Strive would give a thumbs up or thumbs down to the idea. They could use the containers as cover, or use the main road. They could even slowly snake between gaurds. Whatever they did, all that mattered was getting closer. 

There were obvious tussling sounds over Mayoi's comm, but it was to be expected. He took most things head-on and with his usual vicious tenacity. Seemingly his action was garnering a lot of activity, but the villains comms stayed silent. Perhaps they knew party crashers would come and  they thought they had sufficient security outside. Maybe they were a bit too focus on what was going on inside. Maybe they were so confident in the fighters inside, it didn't matter if there were party poopers. Regardless, Benjimaru would find himself a shadowy path to follow. It was at this point, he almost didn't need comms. The warehouse's thin metallic and concrete walls were giving off a muffled version of what was going on. He just needed to move in closer. 

Through his agility, there was a window already cracked open to let the cool sea air in. If he peered in, he'd notice a guard watching the festivities from a balcony. There was another guard a few meters from him coming upstairs. Not too bad. If the hero looked further, getting on the roof would allow a view in from the top. Sure it wasn't as easy to enter, but maybe he could find something important like a clue. Whether he wanted to battle things out, or take things slower and steadier. The choice was his to make. 

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People would clap in response to Gauss's declaration. It was something to be admired especially being from one of the largest Yakuza groups. If the Tokyo group was going to get that aggressive, then the other groups needed to watch out. Actually, Katagiri would raise his hand. "Like Kirie, Gauss exemplifies what it means to be a Yakuza. He may not have grown up in under our wings, but those two have the passion and ferocity to take what they want." He smiled at Gauss, "You have my interest. I'm excited to see what you can do out there. I hope you carry his will with you. Engrave if you have to." With words from one of the leaders, Gauss would receive a secondary standing ovation.  Choyoku cheered for Gauss. Welcoming him back to their table with a full glass of wine. Getting any kind of nice words from that man was an accomplishment. 

He was feared. In fact, it was a thought that one should always be in a public space with him because if he requests a one on one consulting, you may never come back. He'd clink a knife against his wine glass. "I'm typically not one to speak too much at these things but, there are a few announcements before we get back to eating and carrying on." Now that Nocturne was gone, he could make sure everyone was on the same page. 

A tall blonde man stood. It was the director of the Chiba group, "Nata here. The Chiba City group will officially join Tokyo, increasing the territory across the entire Tokyo Bay. There were a few clans who clung to the ways of old, like the Yozara, but they are no more. After all these years of groups beefing, and families holding out... -We can finally move as one unit." This announcement silence the crowd, nervous murmurs rolling around the room. "I'll be nominating for myself and my guys to move if necessary." Some men would stand. They seemed incredibly unfamiliar. What kind of deal did Katagiri cook up? He effectively took over the eastern cities without much effort. 

Katagiri would line these men up with a different group rather than his own elites for Tokyo. "Your men will be heading the Shizouka group, replacing that silly hero. This includes Nagoya, and Toyama cities. At the head will be Burn of Burning knuckle gang, his right hand, his son Knuckle, and Nata's right hand, Boogie." It was a monopoly, Katagiri was seizing the east, and taking steps toward Kyoto. They were dwindling anyway with so many being sent to jail by vigilantes in that area. Regardless, usurping Yoo was an easy task. Half of his task force would be cut off from their resources, and the other half was sitting right here in this room. These were people who were waiting for this moment. They actually cheered. "And don't worry about the Ryuujin. I've seen to his family personally. All that is left is the assets and properties." The man was absolutely ruthless, it made sense he was their leader. 

"I don't want to bore you guys with any more business details. If it's urgent, I'll come to your table personally. Otherwise, let's just enjoy the rest of the night. To a very successful summit. "


___________________________________

Mayoi to Strive- "Did you hear that?  Ryuujin. I knew we couldn't trust that bastard Nocturne. He's a fake! I always hated him!" There was shuffling as he talked. He probably found a good hiding spot and was making his way to the warehouse too. "I swear to god, if we weren't hear for your sister... BENJI... I swearrr... I'll leave it at that. " He seemed to have reached a calm on his end. "Any openings? I think I see a few people coming out. I'll wait til they leave, before trying to go this way."

"Just got to a window." A paused, likely due to searching around for what Strive was describing. Big metal gu- OH. "Yeah okay, I see her...Buuuuut she's surrounded."

Among the crowd, the girl seemed to not fit in so well. Among the many conversations around her, she seemed to get along best with Gauss, but it may have been only because they both were grieving. Her eyes would wonder. Perhaps by fate, she looked up to escape giving anyone else eye contact, only to see her brother. Her jaw dropped. A look a shock passed faster than normal, worry followed. A look that said, ~What are you doing here?~ But her mind came back to the very reason she was at this table. After Strive visited her father, he passed. Safe to say it was his fault! Rage brooded from those same eyes that casted concern for her twin. After a long stare, she cut her eyes away.

She tugged at Katagiri who seemed to be passing by. The man would lean down to listen. "Ah... yes, I was told by a little birdie, he'd come. Preparations were made. Don't worry, he'll be dealt with in a few." The response was so calm and sure, she looked to the boss man in confusion. He'd just pat her shoulder and proceeded to the next table. This almost forced her to look back up. Just what was he talking about? In Benji's ear, Speed's radio signal went to static after the sound of an intense tussle. After a few moments, loud crash could be heard with shipping containers toppling over in the distance. Strive's teammate seemingly landed himself a strong opponent. Was he okay? As Choyoku looked up at Strive through the glass, she noticed another body running toward the hero! She flicked her eyes back to Katagiri. What did he mean, he knew Strive was coming?!?!?

Up on the roof, an unnaturally quiet person raced toward the hero. It was hard to depict any features, as the moon's precious natural light was blocked. With a low drive, he aimed to tackled the hero right off the roof, and to the ground in one go. Yes... from swordsmen to gunners, businessmen to crime bosses, and normies to quirk users... The Yakuza even had ninjas. Whatever this person's quirk was, he was able to get to the roof completely undetected. Was it just some sacred technique, or a quirk power? At any rate, if Strive weren't quick enough, he'd be plummeting.

It was strange. The villain seemed to willingly allow being pick up and thrown. Well, seemingly. he ninja would go nowhere as Strive followed through on him throw. The man had too much tunnel vision on his sister. Landing in a handstand, the ninja flipped back upright and landed in a crouched position. "Heh, guess I should've known it wouldn't have been that easy." Another crash could be heard in the distance, more containers crashing down. Like a curtain, the clouds revealing the moon would gift the area with light once again. It revealed a man yanking a mask off. His blonde hair and jagged teeth were more apparent, but at his side stood a familiar face. A man. A hero who was one with the night.  With blood staining his suit, and dripping from his katana, Nocturne stared at Strive.

"Jogo, you were to stall til I came, not engage. Survey the rest of the area and make sure no one else came." He commanded. The ninja seemed disappointed by the decision. "Fine..." Jogo replied, seeping into the floor and vanishing. 

With a sword pointed at his fellow hero, Yoo would speak. "I'll tell you the same thing I told Speed. This place and these people have lawfully hired a hero to protect them from assailants. As security for this group, I'm gonna ask that you leave." There wasn't much umph in his words. It was clear in his expression, he didn't want to be here. There must have been some underlying obligation. Regardless, Yoo wasn't going to let either Benjimaru pass. Settling into a fighting stance, Yoo spat on the ground. His spit had a red tinge to it, his jacket was badly torn upon further inspection, and his cheek swelled a bit. Speed likely was trying to give the man hell, before being defeated.

"Still considered a hero? I was fighting crime when you were in diapers." He remarked. "The Yakuza isn't something you just join or leave like some silly job. I was born into this, and forged my own lane to clean up Shizuoka against my own family's wishes. I'm more hero than you can fathom, BOY." 

He twirled his weapons, one dancing in the moonlight with a soft glint, the other so dark it was like it repelled light and vanished when a shadow of a cloud passed over it. Yoo operated on a slippery slope. Whenever he couldn't help it, he did put plenty Yakuza of Shizuoka in jail, killed some along the way too. The remaining members of the prodigious Ryuujin were incredibly few; himself, his recently murdered grandfather  Yoosui, and his mother Kanami... who recently went missing. At the mention of a sister, Yoo paused as if he were calculating something. 

"Then the girl morning her uncle is your sister... Choyoku." Sharp as ever, the detective eyed Strive. He sighed... their resemblance was uncanny. It also meant, Strive was mourning too... As if his expression couldn't become more melancholic, Yoo frowned. "Then, you're out of luck. I was told, my mother would be returned to me safe and sound as long as I hold up my end and protect the attendees of this event. Especially so for the mourning parties. Not too much longer til it's over...  " He reaffirmed his stance. If Strive resisted what he was being told, it meant the battle was ON. This was a clash between personal affairs. The strong difference was Strive had confirmation Choyoku was there and okay, Yoo was completely in the dark of his mother's whereabouts. It was extremely rare for someone to escape the lens of his detective agency, but the Yakuza was evolving...

Yoo found himself at fault on all fronts. He knew he was placing a target on everyone's back the moment he decided to be a hero all those years ago and as time went on, the defenses around the compound grew weaker as supporting families left the Ryuujin ranks. It was his fault the Ryuujin clan was in this sorry state, which meant it was his fault his mother was kidnapped and his grandfather killed. He knew a hostile takeover would come at some point. Nothing could have prevented someone from making a move on his family and assets. He only cared about his mother's safety at this point. All he had to do was stall until the event was over, and it was already 80% of the way done. BUT, it meant being a roadblock between Strive and his sister. Keeping Strive from his sister would become his fault too. He hated everything about this... Benjimaru's primary question replayed in his head, ~Are you sure you're still considered a hero, though?~ Between this and the damage the news debacle caused, he damn sure didn't feel like one. For this old candle infused with the scent of justice, he could feel his heroic flame dwindling.

"Not another step. Not another word." He spoke a final time, sadness painting his expression. "Just leave."

Strive- "Lawful? You're being blackmailed by villains. These Yakuza have you doing their bidding like a dog. No, you made your choice. The moment you lost your trust in your fellow Heroes was the moment that the Yakuza beat you. There were plenty of Heroes you could have gone to for help! Instead, you walked away from us! Sorry, Nocturne. I'm coming through. Fight me or fold. The outcome for me will be the same. I just want to talk to my sister, and an unranked Hero like you, under the thumb of enemies and villains, won't stop me. Not today, not ever!"

Bidding like a dog?  Unranked hero like him? "You understand nothing I've been through..." A seething hot breath escaped his lips in an offended whisper. 

So the fight was ON, indeed. Yoo cooled his head with a deep exhale. Getting angry would do nothing here, but at the same time... it was almost impossible not to be emotionally invested. The two seemed to be misunderstanding each other despite clearly stating their purpose, and how easily it could have aligned. It wasn't on purpose, but he spoke to Strive as the shield was thrown. He spoke in haiku, simple but honest. 

He took one step and pivoted. It was a painfully efficient move because, in that same step, the dusk hero expanded his shadow. In the blink of an eye, Yoo appeared at the starting point of his gearshift Strive, clearing both the thrown shield and the high-speed charge. "You're slow..." He noted. "On the uptake, and on this situation... off-duty hero, Benjimaru Yuruginai? " Shadows danced along his frame as he sheathed his licht saber. The light around him instantly dimmed when he did so. A dark night like this was to Yoo's advantage. It was at this point, Yoo was barely visible, a large dragon's maw slowly forming around him. Yo quickly analyzed the "hero" before him. Speed had civilian clothes over his super suit, too. This was an off-the-books mission, clearly. This was against BOTH of their styles as Team Showtime. They were flashy and made it a point to make themselves known. He'd poke at the hero as he gathered surrounding shadows, making this dragon's head and jaws even larger and sharper.

"You act as if hard decisions don't have to be made, brother of Choyoku Yuruginai... nephew of Warikomi "Finite" Yuruginai and I guess that also makes you a cousin of Kanamori, too. " He remarked. Strive was staring dead in the mirror when he said Nocturne could have asked for hero help. The same could have been done the other way around. Most importantly, why now? To his understanding, that young woman had been a member of the Tokyo branch for while... enough for Katagiri to know who she was. Something was up...  He'd let his detective's nose depict what he could ascertain.  "Are you sure I'm the one under someone's thumb? You're not a detective and your idiot best friend isn't one either... So I'm to assume someone tipped you, yakuza OR otherwise. Don't fret, a number one hero like you can be a hypocrite. You're just like everyone else, Pillar." In a way, Yoo existed as Strive's opposite. How they went about fighting crime was different. Benjimaru was born into a hero family, while Yoo was born into a yakuza family. For the people, Strive was bright hero and easy to understand. Nocturne was an unsettling hero, mysterious and somewhat dark. They'd never understand each other fully...

Actually. He and the rest of hero society for that matter...  Nocturne put himself and his agency on an island a long time ago and for good reason. People didn't trust him, and in turn, he preferred being left to his own devices. These heroes weren't his allies. Even with 20 years of experience, very few people actually gave him a chance. No. Of course, he didn't ask for help. As understanding as he was and with as many chances as he gave others, he often didn't get awarded the same grace in return. It wasn't just other heroes. His ex-wife left him, and the number of interns was halved by a simple news story... Why would he ever ask for help? He was destined to be on this island. Strive, Speed, the Yakuza, hero society, disappointed students, disappointed fans... He didn't ask for help because help didn't exist. 

Pointing the tip of his black blade at the number one hero. "Dragon Dive." The serpentine dragon's maw snapped shut before blaring forward like a bullet train. Yoo took this moment to launch himself into the air with a hardy jump. He had quite a few reasons for doing this. First, it was to see if his attack landed true, or if he needed to apply more pressure. This high vantage point also gave him a view inside. It bugged him. It bugged him a lot actually. Kidnapping his mother and asking him to be security to get her back... -and of ALL people Strive and Speed were the threats, not some rival gangs. Something was very off about all of this... Despite how obvious it was that a fight was brewing, the party calmly continued. He scanned the wharf from his high vantage point before spitting out an order into his cuff link cuff link with what little patience he had left. This wasn't for his own sake, but his enemy's. "Jogo, I have suspicion to believe Choyoku of Tokyo's Masks is in danger. Isolate her for me. "

Perhaps it was because he was in combat, but the time it took to get a reply felt like ages. If there was a chance of removing Choyoku from this and getting her into a safe area, he'd at least do that courtesy for Strive if he didn't die in this fight. He'd hate to force the girl to mourn twice, but Yoo was fighting for his own family and he needed to be his mother's hero FIRST. Strive looked like he wasn't going to back down... neither was he. It was to be a clash between The Pillar of Justice, and Justice's Shadow.