Chapter 5
That day, Zuko had to go to school to take his final exam. Five hours of boredom. Well, more like two hours, because he intended to finish the exam faster.
He'd do as much math as he could. He'd skip questions he didn't know. He knew geography perfectly, so there would be no problem here. Same with history.
Additionally, he chose English as an additional subject. He'd easily pass that part of the exam, with a 100% score.
An hour and a half drive to school... then an hour and a half drive back home.
A whole damn day wasted.
And he could have used it for training.
He shouldn't have complained anyway. He didn't have to go to school anyway. He only had to show up for exams twice a year.
His mother had already helped him out. He saved at least three hours on travel time every day. Of course, he used that time to train.
And after the exams, he had a few hours of free time before Pixie-Bob came to pick him up. He could have done anything.
First of all, he planned to stock up on sweets. This was his second life, but he was still only human, and every human has weaknesses... well, at least one.
He held a metal ball in his hands. He was trying to sense metal... Metalbending would be a great addition to his 'armory.'
He first tried it two months ago. As of today, he was able to manipulate metal to a small degree... but the side effect was generating a tremendous amount of heat, which could turn the metal red hot...
He was making a mistake somewhere... he understood that heat was generated by friction.
If he remembered correctly, Toph was capable of metalbending by sensing impurities in metal... but his ball was made not of dirty iron, but of stainless steel. The carbon content in this type of metal was about 1 percent.
He seemed to be starting to understand where he was going wrong... He was trying to use carbon for metalbending... meaning he was trying to control a sphere made of only 1 percent carbon... instead of bending chrome or nickel... or preferably both.
It was so simple now... After all, the movement of the carbon caused friction between the individual metals in the sphere... that's why it heated up.
The sphere began to bubble in his hands, and its temperature rose slightly...
Right... besides chrome and nickel, there were other metals...
Suddenly, the car stopped.
"We're here, Zuko. I'll pick you up tonight. Do you have everything? A calculator? Pens? Student ID? Lunch money?"
"Yes, Mom. Don't worry. I'll survive in this urban jungle."
Pixie-Bob smiled charmingly.
"Remember that if you don't pass math with at least 50%, you'll be banned from eating sweets."
Zuko narrowed his eyes.
"This is pure blackmail."
"Where's your tie?"
"It seems I must have forgotten it, as I've been mentally preparing for the exam, dear mother."
"Oh, never mind!"
Pixie-Bob pulled his tie out of the glove compartment.
"See? What would you do without me?"
Zuko glanced at the tie... then slowly raised his gaze to his mother.
"First blackmail, and now torture?"
Pixie-Bob's voice took on a tone of seriousness. Zuko knew exactly what was happening. He'd just received a warning.
"Put. On. This. Tie."
Without a word, he put on his tie... and got out of the car, taking his backpack with him.
"Have a nice day, son!"
He closed the car door behind him and sighed heavily. He watched his mother drive away... he stood there for a moment before the school entrance... he took off his tie and put it in his backpack.
He hated things like this. He felt like he had a leash around his neck. Wearing a tie with a suit was one thing, but with a school uniform? Japan had truly gone crazy.
He also hid the metal object that had been a sphere just a few minutes ago. It was best not to show off his quirk where he might be punished for it. He stepped through the open gate and blended into the crowd of students.
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Three hours later.
The exam took him longer than he expected. He had to spend more time on math because of a certain threat from his dear mother. He hoped he'd somehow get that 50 percent.
Why the hell would someone need advanced math for a pro-hero's job? What would they do with it? Boring villains to death? Or perhaps using it as a psychological weapon to pacify a crowd of children?
Maybe there was a villain whose weakness was math, and that was the only way to defeat such an enemy?
Zuko shook his head left and right.
Three hours of exams had brainwashed him, and he'd started thinking nonsense.
Every student in the room stared at him as he handed his papers to the teacher and left the room.
He knew exactly what they thought of him. The kid no one knew came to school twice a year, was always the first one out of the exam room, and somehow always passed.
Their opinion didn't matter. Only training mattered. The more he trained, the stronger he became, and the stronger he was, the better chance he would have in fighting real villains in the future.
He went outside and headed for the local mall. First, he needed to eat something. Then he'd play the slot machines. Finally, he'd go shopping. This time, he'd buy more sweets and hide some from his mother... just in case he didn't get a 50% in math...
It wasn't that he was dishonest... he just preferred to be prepared for... sudden drops in morale... yes... exactly. And nothing boosted morale like sweets.
Sugar is a damn powerful drug.
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Yanagi Reiko was in a bookstore, browsing through horror novels. Today, a book by the long-deceased pre-Quirk writer Stephen King was released in bookstores across Japan.
His works had been discovered in the US a dozen years ago and were now being translated into many languages. She bought the book and left the bookstore, entering the main hall of the shopping mall.
There weren't many people there at this hour. She was one of the first to finish her exam.
She glanced at a boy with black hair and blue eyes. She didn't know his name, but he wore her school uniform... the boy who only showed up for exams.
He walked calmly, leisurely, drinking a Burger King drink and looking at his phone.
He walked past her, ignoring her. She wondered who he was and why he hadn't been to class. He had headphones on.
She was surprised that just before he hit a passerby, he took a smooth step to the side, as if he was constantly aware of his surroundings. His gaze didn't lift from his cell phone screen. Perhaps he had some quirk that informed him of obstacles ahead?
He headed for the arcade. She stared for a moment at the entrance where he disappeared, but didn't follow him.
She was a quiet girl. Besides, she had no reason to recognize him beyond a slight curiosity.
She headed for the exit... but a sudden gust of hot air came from outside. Several armed men ran inside, and one of them started shouting.
"No one move! You are our hostages!"
One of them pointed a gun at her.
"Don't move! Everyone against that wall! NOW!"
Reiko was pushed against the wall, which, within a minute, was filled with about 20 people. Shop workers, customers like her... there were also three children here.
"Fuck! We're screwed! It's all your fault!"
One villain started arguing with another.
"My fault? How was I supposed to know that FUCKING ENDEAVOR would be nearby!"
"FUCK, FUCK, FUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
A third one chimed in.
"So what now, boss?"
The villain, gun in hand, walked from left to right.
"Wait...let me think..."
"This is all YOUR FAULT!"
"Shut YOUR MOUTH, I SAID LET ME THINK!"
There was a moment of silence, and after a few seconds, police sirens could be heard outside. Reiko watched as the No. 2 Pro Hero stood several dozen meters from the glass entrance, flanked by police and media. He looked very nervous.
"I know! We'll give them our demands. We'll release the hostages in exchange for two escape cars. Plus, there'll be one hostage in each car. If we're pursued, we'll kill them!"
The villains nodded at their boss's plan. The children began to cry, and their mothers tried to calm them. The people were afraid. Reiko was afraid too. Fear paralyzed her legs. She slowly sank to her knees. The rest of the hostages did the same.
Endeavor began approaching them. The villain leader raised his pistol and fired. Cries of terror rose from among the hostages.
"Don't come any closer, you fiery son of a bitch, or I'll start killing! Get me a negotiator!"
Endeavor retreated. Police, Pro Heroes, media, and ordinary civilians were arriving outside. For them, it was a spectacle. They could see the Pro Heroes at work live.
Then, from behind the villains, a blue-eyed boy's voice spoke.
"Hey! I just messed up a round of Mortal Kombat! Could you all be a little quieter?"
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Zuko paid for a few tokens at the cash register and walked over to the machine. Mortal Kombat... so that game was in this world too. The characters were the same. He wondered if they had a Tekken game here too.
He chose his favorite character, the OG Sub-Zero. He wondered if he could create weapons out of ice like the character in the game...
He started the game, and his opponent turned out to be Scorpion, Sub-Zero's nemesis.
He played for a while until a boom echoed in the hallway, reaching him even through his headphones. He lost concentration and watched as Scorpion performed a fatality on his character. He sighed heavily and looked around... no one was here, which was strange... at least five people had been here a moment ago...
He stepped out into the hallway and noticed what was happening. A group of eight idiots had decided to take hostages... and their opponent was Endeavor....
If he remembered correctly, this Pro Hero didn't care about casualties... He knew he should be quiet... but some stupid part of his mind shouted the words before he could stop himself.
"Hey! I just blew a round of Mortal Kombat! Can you be a little quieter?"
The villains turned to him. Only now did he notice that one of them had a gun.... ugh.... well, he totally screwed up.
"You two! Bring this idiot to the wall with the rest of the hostages!"
Zuko didn't resist. He raised his hands slightly. He wouldn't risk a fight while one of them was armed with a firearm. Two of the thugs dragged him to the hostages, where he sat on the floor next to the gray-haired girl.
She stared at him, eyes wide.
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Reiko watched as this strange boy showed no fear... he looked... bored. He sat calmly beside her and stared at the man with the gun.
The conversation with the police negotiator lasted about ten minutes. The police demanded the release of the children, which the villains refused. Endeavor began slowly walking toward the entrance. Then the leader began shouting at him.
"Stop! Or else!... I'll kill the bitch!"
He grabbed Reiko by the hair and held the gun close to her head.
Endeavor stopped. Cameras were recording every movement inside the building, and the other hostages began to practically whimper with fear....
Reiko closed her eyes... she was trembling with fear... and just like that, one second passed... two... three... and a shot was fired.
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Zuko watched as the fool's hand shook... worse, he held a gun in it, his finger slowly pulling the trigger. He reacted automatically. He lunged forward and grabbed the gun by its end... the wrong end... In fear or surprise, the man pulled the trigger... but the bullet never left the barrel.
The bandit turned his gaze on him. He uttered no words of surprise, but automatically pulled the trigger again...
A second bullet was fired, but it hit the first, which Zuko had blocked in the barrel. Bullets were made of metal, after all...
The resulting kinetic energy had to find an outlet... and if it couldn't exit through the barrel... it exited through the other side, shattering the bolt and injuring the leader's hand.
The leader cried out in fear and pain. Zuko immediately took advantage of the situation. The floor tiles shattered, and a chunk of concrete erupted from beneath them, striking the wounded man squarely in the jaw. The man fell back several meters, knocked out.
Zuko refused to lose the initiative. Training with Iroh, Tiger, and the other members of the Wild Wild Pussycats caused him to react instinctively.
He rose into the air and unleashed two simultaneous fire punches with his leg and fist in opposite directions, striking two of his opponents. The blows knocked them back, but didn't kill them. Zuko didn't want to kill. That would be a mortal sin.
"What the fuck!"
Exclaimed one of the five remaining villains. Zuko drew water from the fountain and shot a wave towards him. He lifted him several meters into the air, along with his two companions, and a second later, he froze the water. All three were immobilized. With another move, he stomped his foot on the floor, causing the remaining two villains, who were standing next to each other, to sink into the ground. Zuko buried them up to their necks.
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Reiko heard a second shot and then a scream. She opened her eyes and couldn't believe what was happening. The boy stopped the bullets with his own bare hand. Then earth shot up from the floor. Then the boy used fire... then water... ice... then buried the last two villains up to their necks... one... two... three... four quirks? How was that possible?
The entire fight lasted eight seconds... The villains didn't stand a chance. The boy straightened and calmed his breathing. After a moment, he turned to face her and crouched down so that his face was at the same level as hers.
"Are you okay?"
Reiko heard exactly what he said... but couldn't answer his question. A moment later, the glass door melted under the influence of the fire, and Endeavor stepped inside, glaring at the boy with anger.
End of Chapter 5