The Deity Entertainment Network

The Next Day

Dance Studio

Tokyo

"Step, Step, Step, Open Side, Finish, Step, Step, Step, Spin, Yes, Very Good, Step, Step, Step, Open Side, Finish. Step, Step, Spin and Dip. Excellent! Are you sure this is the first time you have ever danced, Mr. Wayne?" Madam Tessiar said, the lithe older woman standing beside them as he spun Mei around the room, clapping her hands to keep a tempo. Yu and Rumi were standing to the side, talking quietly about going back out on patrol soon.

"Not formally, no. Though I have been told I'm good on my feet." John said, thankful for that dancing skill. He looked down at Mei, the girl's face slightly flushed from the exertion of the dance. He pulled her back up from the dip and let her go.

Maybe we should include her in the cardio training; she shouldn't be this out of shape.

"You certainly are. Now, Miss Usagiyama, take your place again. And please, remember to follow Mr. Wayne's lead." She said, looking over at Rumi.

The Madam had been teaching the four of them to dance several different styles for a few hours now, though it was more a refresher for Yu and Mei, while he and Rumi didn't have much in the way of formal dance training. Slow dancing with his wife for over fifty years, and the odd line dance in their teens and twenties didn't really count as dancing compared to learning how to Tango, and frankly, he wished he knew how fun this was back then.

After the commotion yesterday, it took a significant amount of time for them to get home. Both Yu and Rumi went on night patrols as all heroes and police were put on high alert. That left John to hang out with Mei, the girl using Rumi's bedroom, so she wouldn't be alone at home while her mother might be out all night, in case the heroes' homes became targets of the attacks. There were several targeted attacks against hero agencies and banks while the announcement was being made, causing mild panic across the country, though there had been no major follow-ups since then.

John thought dance lessons would have been cancelled today, but once the women woke up later in the morning, it was apparent they intended to go through with it. That is also when John discovered that Rumi intended to join them at the ball, saying she was being affected by what the Takeyamas could be planning and wanted to be there. He saw no reason not to let that happen, so he agreed.

That was until they arrived at the dance studio to learn a few dances. As light on her feet as she was, she had never worn high heels in her life, nor was she accustomed to allowing a man, or anyone else for that matter, to lead. Suffice to say, John was glad he wasn't wearing his good shoes for practicing.

"Yes, Madam," Rumi replied, then stood up and took Mei's place. She looked like she was about to fight a battle, not following a few simple steps.

"You got this, darling. It's just like those katas you have been teaching me, step by step, without pausing." John said, trying to encourage her.

"You're not the one wearing this ridiculous footwear!" She said, glaring at the six-inch stilettos she was wearing and trying to learn to dance in.

"Wear flats then." He suggested, already knowing the answer.

"No!"

"Well, do your best and just follow my lead."

And don't step on my toes again, please!

"Step, Step, Step..." The Madam started, and they continued to practice.

After another thirty minutes and only a single broken toe, their time was up for the day. After thanking the woman for her time and listening to her praise him again, they left the studio and headed back to the train station. Rumi was frustrated and immediately took off to go on patrol, telling John she would be home late again. He thought he would be joining her, but as his 'hero' suit hadn't arrived yet, she refused to let him come out on patrol.

Yu and Mei lived in another city, so after a quick hug goodbye, they boarded a different train from John, leaving him alone yet again.

"I guess I can go train some more... but do I really want to?" He mused. Then, on a whim, he hopped on a train to Musutafu. The hotel he stayed at for a few days when he first arrived in Japan had live music on the weekends and reasonably priced drinks. He wanted to sit back and relax for a few hours, knowing next week was going to be hectic, and he didn't want to drink alone by the Koi pond at home right then.

Hopefully, Rumi doesn't kick my ass for skipping an evening of training, but I need to destress a bit.

An hour and a half later, he found himself sitting in that same gaudy red bar, this time at a table near the stage. He ordered some food off the menu, lamenting once again that his steaks were sitting untouched in the fridge, and a whiskey. He scrolled through his phone idly while waiting for his food, noticing that the media was covering a slight uptick in villain activity across Japan, though nowhere near as bad as they had predicted yesterday. One thing that he did notice was that the criminals were almost all escaping through a weird, gassy cloud, which was like how that one villain had escaped John's wrath on his first day here.

That is what they meant by they will be there for you. This League of Villains is recruiting people while they are in the middle of a crime. God, if they can just teleport around, nothing is safe. Damn it, All Might, you should have let me kill that guy.

John lamented that for a moment, then put his phone away. He was there to relax, not to doom scroll. The room started to fill up, though it was noticeably less packed than the first night he was there. Shortly after his meal arrived, the lights began to dim, and the curtains on the stage opened up, revealing the first performance for the night. He cocked his head slightly, surprised at who it was.

Anan was dressed in a simple black dress that left one shoulder bare, seated behind a grand piano. She waved as the crowd gave her a light applause, then began to play. He dug into his meal to the sounds of the music, some of the compositions familiar, others new to him.

She sat there smiling on stage, swaying to the music, almost like she was off in her own little world. She was very good, and he thoroughly enjoyed the night's entertainment. After he finished his meal, he sat there for a while longer, nursing his drink as he listened to the melody she was playing. When the waiter came by to see if he wanted anything else, he thought for a second and smiled.

"Just the bill, and a drink for the lady on stage. If she asks who it is from, just say it was from a friend who enjoyed a good show." He said, then paid him with more than enough cash to cover the meal, tip, and the extra drink.

"Very good, Sir." The man said and left John alone. He sat there until she finished her performance, then joined the crowd giving her applause before taking a quick trip to the bathroom. He would have loved to stay for another set, but it would be near midnight by the time he got home, and he had to work in the morning. He lamented that fact for a few moments, missing the less scheduled time he had after he had retired, but he was getting tired. He only took two Substance X balls earlier today, forgoing the last one so he could drink without spilling all his secrets.

Not that those won't be exposed soon enough. Damn sword. How could I know that a weapon could have a spirit attached to it that could read your mind?

He washed his face, then hefted his art case on his shoulder. So far, it seemed to be working as a way to avoid being questioned, though thankfully he hadn't needed-

*BOOM*

*SCREAMS*

"Oh, for fuck sakes," John said. He started to rush out of the bathroom, but stopped. He had a tool for that now.

He started flicking through security cameras with his eye, finding a bunch of hallway cameras above him first, then one in the hotel lobby. A half a dozen men and women were raiding a room to the side of the concierge desk, pulling out bags of stuff from what he could only guess was a small vault. He flicked his camera again, and this time it showed a nearly empty lab. He flicked it again, and the bar was displayed, showing him nearly a dozen more villains holding up people at tables, robbing them of the valuables they were wearing.

Well, this might be above my pay grade. Better call someone.

He pulled out his cellphone and started to dial 119, but there was no signal. He sighed. "So much for calling in the cavalry."

He activated his armour and pulled out his sword. Tossing the case to the side, he popped a pill as well. He suspected he was going to be on the run shortly, and didn't want to be exhausted if he was trying to outrun anyone.

He stepped out of the bathroom and started to advance slowly down the hall towards the bar. Shouting came from inside, causing him to pause and watch the altercation through his camera.

"Release the hostage, and I'll let you go free!" Anan said loudly, holding her hand up to the group of villains in front of her. They all looked like antagonists from a post-apocalyptic movie, with spiky hair, mismatched clothing, and carrying clubs or wearing brass knuckles. One of them was holding a woman hostage, holding a kitchen knife to her throat.

"Naw, I don't think so, Missy. What yer gonna do is put yer hands behind yer head, and my pal here, he is going to seal yer Quirk. Then you're going to come along with us. Our boss is dying to meet with someone like you. If you play nice like, we won't start executing people." The man said, pressing the knife harder against the woman's neck.

Ten villains with reinforcements nearby, one hero, and she can't actually use her Quirk in a crowd without hurting innocents.

"Let them go first!" She said, not dropping her hand.

"Not a chance, lady. I don't know what you can do, but if you haven't already, it must be pretty indiscriminate. Get on the floor and put yer hands behind yer back, now. Or shall we start killing them one by one?"

Anan stared at the man, then lowered her hand. John cycled wind magic through his body, waiting for him to ease the pressure on the woman's neck. If he got to her soon enough, he could prevent her from being cut, or worst case, he could heal her with holy light in a hurry. Plan ready, as soon as Anan was on the ground and the guy who could seal quirks started towards her, John made his move.

Sprinting as hard as he could from the side of the room, he raised his hand and shouted "Dig!" as soon as he was in range. He made a hole under the man's foot, causing him to throw his knife hand out to the side to maintain his balance. That was all the time he needed before he closed the gap, punching the man with an armoured gauntlet powered by wind magic. His head snapped to the side violently, causing him to release the woman.

John grabbed her and carried her to the side of the room, depositing her behind the bar before spinning back around and drawing his sword. "Drop your weapons or die!" He roared, activating his Quirk.

Some actually did, which surprised John, but he didn't wait as two rather brutish people approached him, wielding large axe handles. He stepped forward and slashed at the man on the right, cutting the handle and both of the man's hands off with a single cut. The other man brought his club down on John's shoulder with incredible power, driving him into the ground. He changed from wind to earth magic, grabbed the club with his left hand and pulled the man forward, running his guts through with his sword.

The first guy was screaming, but had a deranged look on his face, with his two stumps growing a new pair of hands. John didn't have time to marvel at that as he stood up, kicking the second guy off of his blade, then smashed the regenerating guy with his sword's pommel with as much strength as he could muster.

People were running to the back of the room to escape, causing more chaos amongst the villains, but they were too focused on him to bother trying to take another hostage.

Balls of what looked like electricity started to fly towards him slowly, along with another woman firing... fingernails at him like a gatling gun. He turned his head slightly as the nails were bouncing off his helmet, keeping his good eye safe. He raised his sword and started to intercept the balls of electricity before they connected with his body, switching his mana's element to electricity. Sparks flew as the sword connected with the balls, and his whole body started to look like some crazy Tesla coil.

"Bolt!" He shouted, firing a blast of electricity at the woman shooting nails at him. She dropped to the floor, shaking as the lightning struck her, small wisps of smoke rising from her hair.

"Got you!" A male voice said behind him, and pain shot through his skull as his Quirk suddenly shut off.

"Saved me the trip!" John growled, stepping backwards into the man, sliding his sword into his guts. With a roar of rage, he ripped it upwards, tearing the man's insides apart. He spun, then dived under a table as more villains charged into the room and an assortment of ranged Quirk powers flew towards him.

"You're surrounded! Surrender now, and we will let you live!" Another voice said, a voice John remembered back from the U.S.J.

"TK? Where did you come from?" A voice said to his right. John spun his head enough to see that Anan was taking shelter under the table with him.

"Use your Quirk, Anan. Just watch for the warp gates." John replied, then rolled out from under the table again before she could reply.

"Let me live? No, I don't think so. You and your thugs attacked a class of children. You'd better run, else you're dying here tonight, partner." John said, pointing at the gassy man with his sword. He changed his element back to wind, then activated his invulnerability.

Including the gassy man, there were eight villains in the room, two looking rather muscular, while the others were smaller, but many seemed to have Quirks with ranged capabilities.

Wait, nine, there is a blonde girl behind him holding a large bag, assuming all the loot from the lobby.

He rushed forward, tanking all the incoming damage easily, then slashed the first bulky man, chopping a leg out from underneath him. The next guy slammed his fist into John's side, a sickening crack coming from his wrist as his hand crashed against John's shoulder, the invulnerability blocking the damage. John kicked upwards, catching the man in the jaw, severing the tip of his tongue as his teeth sheared it off.

John kept rushing forward, intent on killing the man who could use warp gates. He seemed to sense John's bloodlust and cast out several gates in front of John. He didn't have time to dodge before a burst of high-pressure water slammed into him, sending him flying backwards, landing up on the stage where Anan's piano sat.

"Black Hole!" Anan shouted, still under the table. The water's pressure diminished as Anan activated her Quirk, drawing the water and parts of the room into her hands and destroying them with her incredible power.

"Kurogiri, the charges are set." A woman shouted, John barely hearing her over the sounds of Anan's Quirk.

The gassy figure turned to her and, after a moment, closed his gates and halted the instant flooding of the room. Another gate opened behind him. "Through the gate immediately, we have achieved our objectives." He said, then looked over at John, who just managed to get his feet back underneath him.

"Get back here!" John shouted, rushing back towards the villains who were rushing through the gate. A hand gripped his leg like a vice, pain shooting through his body as his invulnerability ended, causing him to fall over. John kicked hard, smashing the thug who had the severed tongue in the face again. He then stabbed downwards, burying the blade in the man's skull.

By the time he removed the dead man's hand from his leg and got back to his feet, the villains had all retreated but Kurogiri, who was casting more gates under the unconscious and dead villains. John tried to step forward, but the man was already backing into the gate. John just watched him disappear, his anger turning to frustration as it no longer had an outlet.

"Argh!" John growled, flicking his sword and then slamming it home into his scabbard. "Anan, are you okay?"

"Yes... They didn't hurt me, though they did hurt others." She said, still kneeling where the table had been.

"Right. We need to evacuate this building immediately, one of them said something about charges." He said, offering her a hand up out of the knee-deep water still in the room.

"What?"

*BOOOOOMMMM!!!!*

John grasped her and dived to the floor, covering her body with his as the ceiling began to collapse and the world fell into darkness.