They were focusing on who they viewed as the weak link. In this case, that meant the person who had lesser experience in dealing with these tactics, and whom was also the primary target to begin with. That meant Niko was about to be a tough position, and while Han wanted to do something to change that, there was not much he could do at this moment. He did, however, take special notice of his own two opponents. They weren't actually attacking, just putting on a show essentially. They were there to distract, to force Han to focus on something else so that the other four could close in on the target.

But what if Han could use this somehow? Sometimes, the bait used for a trap could be too tempting for its own good. Perhaps that could be the angle? These men wanted to be bait? Then maybe Han should lean right into and make them regret luring him in in the first place? It was worth a try. Han suddenly pivoted from his usual defensive/evasive stance. Instead he went on the attack, full stop. Something he didn't do even when fighting Niko. These two were so focused on their movement that they left their actual guard practically nonexistent, so all Han had to do was out-speed them. Luckily, he knew the one technique devised specifically for that purpose.

"Taiyoken!" Han used his technique once more to blind his two opponents. He tried to weave between them, and unleashed a furious assault on both men as much as his stamina would allow him to. The faster they could eliminate one or even two of them, the better.

---

Furious Assault ~ Trickster's Wrath
Health: 86
Power Level: 78
Secret Technique: Taiyoken (Solar Flare) - 10 x 2 (20)
Serious Boost: Attack
Attack: 22 x 2 (44)
Speed: 23
Defense: 23

Vs Assassin #2
Attack: 11 x 2 (22)
Speed: 12
Defense: 12

Vs Assassin #5
Attack: 11 x 2 (22)
Speed: 11
Defense: 11

Niko's strategy went as planed, at least at first. He did escape their enclosing attack, but he didn't disappear as well as he would have liked, for while their bodies couldn't react fast enough to stop him, their eyes tracked his movements. They also didn't fumble over each other; they simply made slight course adjustments and body twists. In less than a second, they were back in pursuit of their target.

Then came the second part of Niko's plan, the Tornado Fist! The two assassins at the head of the charge were the unfortunate recipients of this attack. They had read about his Secret Technique in his file, but seeing it in person and reading about it are two completely, different things. Still, they had a strategy in mind. Dodge to the side and down, going with the rotation of the spinning air. Their strategy worked... sort of. They managed to avoid direct hits, but they were still struck by the powerful winds. The winds slammed them into the ground.

With their two companions momentarily on the ground, the other two assassins flanked Niko, forcing him to stop his Tornado Fist assault and defend himself. They tried to strike for critical blows, but Niko was too fast, even after launching such a powerful move. They did however manage to hit him in non-critical areas, just as he was able to strike them. Then seemingly out of nowhere, the two assassins that were knocked to the ground joined the fray. They looked bloodied and dirtied, but they were still just as determined. They too managed to hit Niko a couple of times, which also meant they had to take more of Niko's counter attacks.

By the time the assassins leaped backward for a breath of air, they were not looking well. One of them especially seemed to be hanging on by will power alone. Swollen eyes, blood dripping from every orifice, swollen bruises, and torn clothing: any normal person would have thrown in the towel by now. These were not normal men.

Meanwhile, Wan had his two assassins to worry about. They weren't trying very hard to damage him, but they also didn't want him to assist his companion. In this, they succeeded. Instead of running to his companions aid, Wan chose to tango with his two opponents. He started by using his Taiyoken technique once again. One of his opponents had already had the move used on him not seconds before, so he instinctively closed his eyes at the right moment. His partner however, only raised a hand in the air to block some of the light.

Still, their efforts didn't help too much, because while their eyes were closed or covered, Wan descended upon them. Momentarily fighting by instinct and training, the two assassins managed to fend off any finishing blows.


This time, instead of any fancy maneuvers, the assassins continued with their head on assault. They knew they didn't have much left in the tank. Now was the time to either win or loose. The four assassins that attacked Niko, charged right back at him, as did the two that were fighting Wan. Their strategies too seemed unchanged, as Niko's attackers were looking for a kill and Wan's were still stalling.

Assassin #1
Targeting: Niko

Health: 34
Power Level: 27
---Attack: 19
--Speed: 8
-Defense: 0

Assassin #2
Targeting: Wan

Health: 41
Power Level: 31
--Attack: 0
---Speed: 31
-Defense: 0

Assassin #3
Targeting: Niko

Health: 23
Power Level: 29
---Attack: 21
--Speed: 8
-Defense: 0

Assassin #4
Targeting: Niko

Health: 2
Power Level: 27
---Attack: 19
--Speed: 8
-Defense: 0

Assassin #5
Targeting: Wan

Health: 46
Power Level: 28
--Attack: 0
---Speed: 28
-Defense: 0

Assassin #6
Targeting: Niko

Health: 42
Power Level: 31
---Attack: 23
--Speed: 8
-Defense: 0

A collector of fighters? Angela couldn't help but be interested by the sounds of that, especially considering that Bakuto would be in on it too. But she was just about to head home with her prize money, she couldn't just move on to something else without letting her family know otherwise, she had a promise to keep after all. "Look... I appreciate that you've chosen me for this group of yours... But the main reason I joined this tournament was to use the prize money to help my family... I can't just forget about them." She said before turning to the ramen shop owner and thanking him for the bowl. She chuckled a bit after he himself had taken her autograph offer.

"You have anything to sign?" She asked the shop owner. "And besides... You seem to know me, but I don't even know you. Who are you?" She said as she turned back to the old man.

Pan grinned at Bakuto's excitement. His unyielding desire for battle yet childlike innocence reminded her of her grandpa, Goku. Off training in the afterlife, always getting stronger, never aging, she missed her grandpa. Sure, he could visit any time, but sometimes it would be years between visits.

"Good." Pan said to Bakuto. "I wasn't sure at first, but now, I think you'll fit right in with the team."

She motioned for Bakuto to follow as she started walking toward the ring's exit. "Come on then. I have a private plane waiting for you at the airport. You can ask the pilot to take you anywhere you want today, and you can stay there tomorrow if you like."

They walked through the empty building where the preliminary rounds were fought. "But Tuesday, he has orders to fly to our private training island, with or without you. If you're serious about all this, you'll be on that flight. Understood?"

Pan's eyes were serious as she looked to the young man.

---

The old gentleman nodded with his signature kind smile as Angela mentioned going home to see her family. Then, after signing an autograph for the ramen shop keeper, she asked him who he was. To that he smiled, deciding how formally he should introduce himself.

"Ah yes, I suppose I owe you that much." He set his glass of water down on the table and turned his swiveling chair square to face her. "My name is Son Gohan, but you can just call me Gohan." Then, with great pride, he swelled up. "Though, you may have heard of me by another name, the Great Saiyaman!"

When this failed to get a reaction out of Angela, he deflated. "Nevermind, that was before your time. Anyways, I'm Gohan, son to one of the greatest fighters in the world, Goku. Of course, you wouldn't remember his name. Let's just say, he was a great protector of this world for a long time, but through special means, his name has been erased from the history books."

Afraid that he would loose Angela's attention if he rambled any further, he moved on. "And I understand wanting to be with your family. That is an admirable trait." Finally, Gohan showed her a serious face. "At the same time, I'm not here to ask you to join a fun summer camp or something. There are dark forces on the way to Earth, and we need fighters as soon as possible. They will be here in less than a month, and every day that passes is another day wasted. Now there is a small private plane at the airport that you can use to go home to see your family. You can even stay the day with them tomorrow and get all your affairs in order. After that though, we'll need to get started... if you choose to join us."

The seriousness in his eyes gave way to his previous good natured state. "So what do you say?" He smiled wide.
@BladeSS4 @Darkmoon Angel

This was becoming bad. Han's plan didn't work as well as he had hoped. And instead things were just staying at a stalemate. Meanwhile Niko was taking a rough beating, and it didn't seem like he could take much more. Unfortunately, Han had to admit to himself he'd made the wrong call. He should have helped defend Niko, and that mistake was becoming more costly by the moment. So no more playing their game. It was time to flip this table over on its head.



"Niko, duck!" was all Han had time to say. Hopefully that was enough to get the message across. Because Han can screaming over in Niko's direction, all but ignoring his two Assassins. They could attack if they wanted, but even now Han still outclassed them. They would also be risking their boss's wrath in the event they attacked Niko more aggressively. Either way, Han refused to let anyone stop him. Hopefully, if Niko ducked down in time, Han performed a quickstepped somersault using Niko's back as a sort of platform to flip himself over. This one instant movement would theoretically swap the targets around for everyone. Han would be facing the 4 more aggressive assassins and Niko the two more passive assassins.

But Han didn't attack. Instead he entered the most defensive stance the Shinigami Style offered. The same one he had previously attempted to use against Niko at the climax of their previous match. Let the assassins come. Let them attack with all they could muster. But no matter how the wind may howl, the mountain would never bow down to it.

"If you want him, you'll have to kill me first!"

---

Immovable Shadow! My Body As A Shield!
Health: 86
Power Level: 56
Serious Boost: Defense
Attack: 0
Speed: 0
Defense: 56 x 2 (112)

Vs Assassin #1
Attack: 0
Speed: 0
Defense: 28

Vs Assassin #3
Attack: 0
Speed: 0
Defense: 28

Vs Assassin #4
Attack: 0
Speed: 0
Defense: 28

Vs Assassin #6
Attack: 0
Speed: 0
Defense: 28

This was going nowhere fast. These assassins were trained to give their all and leave nothing to last, even if it costed them their lives. If an assassin just barely managed to kill its target, but had no strength to move after, he could be expected to die in the streets with his target. That was how dedicated they were. Well, that wasn't acceptable to Niko Renzo. They had to expire first, if he had any say in it, and he most certainly did! But how? The best strategy, in his mind, was-

"Niko, duck!"

'That!' Niko ducked without delay, his military training kicking in at the same time as Wu Han's assassin training. Wu knew as he knew: They needed to switch up targets! The four that'd been set on Niko were like attack dogs. The two that were working on Han had been defensive walls, delaying the man instead of fighting him. No longer. The shield and the spear reversed, the next thing the two passive fighters would see was the mad-as-hell face of Niko Renzo...and his right hand doing something they never saw before, not even in the past few minutes.

Niko didn't realize this, Han probably didn't realize this, but those two assassins that hadn't been set upon their actual target had a problem. You would expect that, during this battle, they had seen the Tatsumaki-Ken in action. You would be wrong, though, because they couldn't have. The two men 'assaulting' Han had been protecting their eyes from blinding flashes. It was impossible for them to even know what was coming. Even if their compatriots had the chance to warn them, they might only get as far as "Hey's he's gonna-", and then it would've already happened. The fist blurred in an impossible fashion, and an expanding whirlwind blast would be what assaulted them without delay.

Niko VS Four Two Assassins

Health: 36
Power Level: 68

Surprise Tornado Fist!
Serious Speed Boost!

--Attack: 28 x 2.5 = 70!
---Speed: 40 x 2 = 80!
-Defense: 0

Spread thusly...

Assassin-2
--Attack: 30
---Speed: 40
-Defense: 0

Assassin-2
--Attack: 30
---Speed: 40
-Defense: 0

Yes, it IS the same attack as last turn, but it's far more sudden and they never saw it before, anyway.

The assassins were caught off guard when their targets decided to switch things up. The two who were supposed to be holding off Wan were now fending off a surprise attack from Niko, and the four that were going to attack Niko now had to get through Wan to do so.

Niko's attack did well to catch his opponent's off guard, but it wasn't ass successful as he would have hoped. They both managed to avoid any direct hits, just as Niko's previous targets did. Again, this was thanks to their research prior to this battle.

Meanwhile, Wan had his hands full. The four assassins had to get through his defenses if they wanted to damage Niko. The first two barely managed to slip past him, thanks to the help of the other two. Target still being Niko, they charged to Niko, catching him off guard from behind, still recovering from using his special attack. Unfortunately, they didn't have much energy left, and their attacks didn't do much damage.


With their targets still alive, the six assassins jumped back one more time. They began circling once more, just as they had before. Only this time, they were moving a lot slower. And just when Wan and Niko thought they would attack, they split off in different directions. Apparently, they decided to end the battle here, with everyone alive, but with Niko's and Wan's quest for information successfully ended.

Han recognized the movements that came after. It was a retreat. Good, that meant the two of them had prevailed for now. And good thing too, because Han dropped down to a knee as soon as it was clearly over. He had to stop himself from passing out. That was quite taxing, and if he felt this bad then Niko had to be feeling a lot worse now. Han pushed himself back up to his feet and slowly walked over to Niko.

"Are you alright?" he asked him, offering a hand if Niko needed it, "Looks like we win for now, but we need to make ourselves scarce before police show up." but before they left, Han wanted to make sure they searched the body first. It was possible he still had something on him that could help their investigation. Thankfully, Goda left in a hurry, and the assassins were too busy fighting them to interact with the body. Because of this, Han was able to find that the representative still had his cellphone in his possession.

"He still has his phone. That could be promising. Know anyone who's good with technology?" Han had taken the phone and held it out for Niko to take, "I guess we'll figure it out on the go. We should leave for now."

Well, they didn't see that one coming, quite literally.

Once the half-dozen exhausted attackers saw that their targets had had the good mind to use sound fighting tactics against them, they decided that now really wasn't the time to be around anymore. Niko felt he was a little disappointed in the whole affair, and - at a guess - he doubted that he'd be seeing those men again. Not them, specifically, as their boss seemed the type to execute people for failure. He'd have to ask Wu Han about that. It was his den of assassins they came from, after all. Speaking of which, his battle partner asked how he was doing and Niko responded by spitting some blood on the ground nearby.

"About like that, but I'll be fine."

Wu's statement about police was a fair point, though to be fair, it was mainly to get out of needless amounts of statement-giving than anything else. They weren't in trouble with the authorities. Not unless the assassins paid off the police. It could happen. Okay, so maybe they were potentially in trouble. Han quickly searched the man's pockets - a good idea - while Niko kept a lookout for...well...anybody. Nothing yet, but the clock was ticking. When he pulled out a cellphone and offered it to him, he took it.

"I'm not bad, but I know someone who's better. Alot better. I'll explain on the way."

He pocketed the businessman's cellphone and, in short order, pulled out his own to get both a bearing on the nearest airport, check the time, and then started to make a call. He was already in motion to get moving towards said airport by the time the call went through. Han would probably then hear what sounded like an automated phone directory picking up. It would be a bit muffled, though, since they were now picking through the busy streets of the city. Niko had chosen a route of visibility to deter further brazen attacks on their person. He said the name "Mirai Saito, please.", and then was put on hold for a moment.

"C'mon... She usually works the late hours... Ah! Mirai! Hello! Listen, could I ask you for a favor, one that I will definitely pay you back on? ...no, it's not about the bike. Okay, so here's the deal. I'm in Hong Kong and I need a good jet out of here, two to West City, pronto."

There was a pause as the female voice was clearly pointing out that last-minute stuff like this was never easy to pull off.

"I know you can do it. Nothing fancy about the accommodations. Just speed. I've got a job that needs the very best, and you're on my short list. It's...it's to do with my folks, Mirai. Please."

There was another pause, as a much more chill voice seemed to give their ascent.

"Thank you. I'll make sure to buy some Capsules while I'm there."

He put the phone away, never stopping but glancing Wu's way to explain.

"I have a friend in Capsule Corp. She works at the central office in West City, so that's where we're going to get this thing cracked open. We should have a plane to get there by the time we reach the airport. We can probably get all the evidence we need, or get pointed in the right direction, once she has a few minutes alone with the guy's cell."

Angela sat in silence after listening to what Gohan had to say. She stared at her ramen bowl, lost in thought. World threatening events? And she was one of the people he picked? She was just an inexperienced fighter, sure she won the tournament but that didn't hide the fact that she knew next to nothing about actual fighting techniques. The most she knew was to just give her all, take hits or Dodge them when need be. And she was chosen to be a protector of the planet? She felt a sick feeling wash over her, what if she refused? Would they be down a fighter? Have less of a chance for survival? What would happen to the planet? Her family?

Her family...

Angela took a deep breath and dug into her ramen bowl, finishing it in quick fashion. After her sudden feeding frenzy, she set the bowl down and thanked the shop owner before turning to Gohan. "I'm... I'm in... I only ask that you let me explain things to my mother and sister... Get them set and everything." She said. If this was a threat to the planet, it was a threat to her family. She wasn't about to let them down by running from something like this. Plus, it would be interesting to see what all this training would be about, maybe she'd actually learn more than just punches and kicks.

@Darkmoon Angel@BladeSS4

Angela's plane was the last to arrive. From the sky above, she could make out the tiny island below. The small bit of land in the ocean seemed oddly packed, with what looked like twenty people or so.

"There it is! Kame house!" The happy pilot called out over his shoulder. The small airplane that they rode in was top of the line with a quiet engine. The little man was simply a loud, happy person. He frequently tried to make conversation with Angela on their 2 hour flight from the main land. Half the time, he was talking to himself out loud. Angela could hardly tell. "God, I love my job."

Their water landing was relatively smooth, considering the ocean's waves. When the plane reached shore, the pilot smiled. "Welp, this is it! I got to get back to the city. Got a hot date tonight! Have fun, and don't die!"

Among the crowd of people on the shore, Angela saw Bakuto. He looked right at home among the crowd of ripped men. There were only three other women in the crowd, two of whom looked as masculine as the men around them. The only one around Angela's size was a girl, around maybe 20, who also shared her blonde hair. She visibly perked up as she noticed Angela.

Before Bakuto had a chance to greet Angela, the front door to the small house opened, and old man stepped out. He was small, smaller than anyone else in attendance, even Angela and the blonde girl. He supported his weight with a cane and walked with a hobble.

"Why hello, everyone." He said feebly. "My my, what a strong bunch of recruits we have-"

Mid sentence, the old man slipped, dropped his walking cane, and started to fall. One of the large men, standing closest to him, dashed forward and caught him before he hit the ground. "Are you OK, sir?" He asked respectfully.

The old man smiled widely up at his savior. With the same hand he was holding the cane with, he reached up to grab onto the large man's forearm, for support it seemed. As he did this, the blonde girl, who now stood between Angela and Bakuto, rolled her eyes, then dropped her gaze to the ground in front of her, shaking her head in disappointment.

It happened in the blink of any eye. The large man was tossed by the forearm. He started on one side of the elderly trickster and ended up face down in the sand on the other, feet dangling in the air. The large man managed not to get knocked out, but recovered very slowly.

"Rule number one! Never underestimate the opponent!" He then started laughing, now full of energy. He then kicked up his staff, grabbed it, and planted it into the sand. Then he lifted both of his legs off the ground, crossing them in a seated position, effortlessly maintaining perfect balance with only his staff to support himself. "Let me tell you all a story. The story of this house and two young children that would grow up to save the world... many times."

Niko and Han waited outside the Capsule Corp headquarters, as Niko's friend had instructed them. She had called earlier that evening. She didn't explain much at the time, but she did claim to have some important information for them.

When she showed up, she looked tense. "Hi Niko. Long time no see." She then took a sideways glance at Han, more like a glare. "I told you I found some information, and to be direct, it's mostly to do with your friend there. You see, when you called me, I saw your acquaintance there in the background. Something struck me as off about him, but I figured you always keep strange company, so I ignored it at first. After looking through that phone's data though, I found that its owners indeed belonged to the Martian Mining Company. More than that, it seems that the Martian Mining Company has had multiple contracts with a mysterious assassination in the past. Naturally, I investigated these assassins, and after a deep dive I learned all about them... the Wuye-ying. And this man here is the son of the leader of this organization. He's dangerous Niko. And the Wuye-ying definitely had a hand in the death of your parents, at least, that's what I gathered. It wouldn't hold up in court though. But then... when have I ever been wrong?"

"He might just be waiting for you to drop your guard, so he can kill you easier."

The flight was considerably more pleasant than the fight that preceded it...as well as the meeting with Mirai that followed it.

Having someone who could - given the right prompting - help you to get almost immediately out of the country without pulling any official powers was extremely good, no doubts. Indispenceable, one might say. Not to say that any of this would be habit-forming. All of this was less 'calling in a favor' and more 'asking a favor which would be necessary to repay later', and he would gladly pay whatever it took for this, just so long as it wasn't straightforward money, as he didn't win any and his army pay wasn't going to bury him in luxuries for the rest of his life. Even still, it was a calm and restful flight, and West City soon held their arrival, where a simple cab, booking of somewhere modest to stay, and dropping in at Capsule Corp was to follow.

They hadn't even gotten to see Mirai upon their first showing at the main HQ. She was off-duty, and would be in at the evening, as per usual. They would have to leave the phone there, sent to her inbox to work on. No problem. If you could trust anybody, it was Capsule Corp, and if you could trust anyone IN Capsule Corp, it was the ever-dedicated and ever-diligent types who worked the late shifts. With time on their hands, Niko had decided to make good on his promise of Capsule shopping while there, so it didn't look like he came all this way just to mooch off of the company. He would be dipping a bit into his reserves here, but a Capsule Car and basic storage units were a good investment for your personal needs. It's certainly handle his luggage if he needed to vacate the hotel in a hurry.

Of course, it was then that Niko got a good look at his account and literally went "Agh!" with a double-take. There were a few more zeroes there than he remembered! He was left standing there, basically in WTF Mode, when he looked to the note attached to the transaction history, reading "You forgot this when you checked out. All of our competitors who make it to the Final 16 receive payment for their efforts, and it only goes up, the further you make it. See you next time!" with a smiley at the end of it. Niko was left dumbfounded, but a nervous smile crept along his face, followed by laughter and "I am such an idiot, sometimes.".

It was only later in the evening when the call came to return to Capsule Corp HQ. Niko had spent the time doing various things to distract himself from the matter at hand, as it naturally bothered him a great deal. All except checking to make sure his brother was alright, via phone. The answer was that he was both stable and looked after, so all was well on that front. Sadly, this is the part where things take a definite bad turn, as Mirai had met them in-person now with the results...and what she'd uncovered led to some rather nasty accusations, levied not only at the Martian Mining Corp...but also Wu Han. He was, after all, one of the Wuye-ying, himself. The fact that she found out herself, with no prompting at all to look into it, very well underlined Mirai's performance. However, she was under a misapprehension that was best left cleared.

"He's not going to kill me."

Niko turned to face Han enough so that both he and Mirai were in his field of view.

"If he were going to do it, the most sound opportunity would be when we were attacked by half a dozen men from his organization. Seven men against one me, miles away from where I'd last been seen? That would've been ideal, and if it were a matter of who gets credit to the kill, I imagine the boss' son wouldn't have trouble making the claim, anyway."

Now, he looked back at Mirai to give her a reassuring smile.

"He's on our side. It's a matter of honor for him. He only puts down disreputable targets. And thank you... I know it's not evidence, but up until now, it's only been supicions and worries. Now, I know, and now I can really start to put on the pressure. These people have gone too far, both here and in space, and it's about time they were put in their place."

Han had spent the majority of the flight and waiting periods in silent meditation. Something was clearly on his mind that he had not yet become keen to share. And this time was spent contemplating that something. It was Goda, or rather, Goda's words to be more precise. The way he phrased himself had made it clear to Han that escaping the shadows of his father would not be so simple. Even now, Han was evidently still seen as an asset. He doubted this had anything to do with fatherly love, either, since even when he was a Wuye-ying, such affection was never shown to him. How any parent could view their child as little more than an asset or investment was a horrible thing to think about, but it didn't stop that from being the case.

And the meeting with Niko's contact didn't exactly make things better. She asserted that Han could still be targeting Niko and simply doing all this as a ruse to lower his guard. Niko was quick to jump to Han's defense, but... the conversation still stung. Even here, with strangers in a strange land, Han couldn't seem to escape from being attached to his father and the Wuye-ying. He'd closed his eyes and took a few contemplative breaths. Sure, he could correct the girl, point out that he had severed ties with his father three and a half years ago and had been independent ever since. But what was the point? He doubted it would clear him of any suspicion, and he certainly didn't want to appear overly defensive as that would also serve to make things worse.

But none of this was the focus here. Niko had gotten his answers. He couldn't present it to a Judge as evidence, but he appeared to consider it to be a start at least. Naturally he was eager to put the pressure on and make his would-be killers pay. But Han sighed, knowing this would be far from simple. And while he hated to rain on someone's parade, he had to speak up anyway.

"That will be far from simple." he pointed out, "If this company had such repeated dealings with my father, then there is no doubt that he and all his assassins will be trying to stop us. He may have spared me once, but I doubt that "kindness" will last forever. Especially not from Goda. If there's one thing that man has truly mastered, it's holding a grudge. By now he will have learned of his men's failure and have been reprimanded by my father. He won't be so sporting next time, I'm afraid." he paused, but unfortunately he wasn't quite finished yet, "And there's still the other Lieutenant: Li. He was my father's personal apprentice before he started focusing on training me. And above all that is of course the man himself, probably the deadliest assassin in the entire world by far."

@Darkmoon Angel@BladeSS4

Krillin's story, which was a long one indeed, was on to planet called Namek, after defending Earth from two alien invaders who killed many of his friends. He and his friends were after legendary objects called Dragon Balls, items that kids all over the world had heard about only in bedtime stories. Yet, according to this old man, they were real, perhaps even still are. Unfortunately, they weren't the only ones after these Dragon Balls...

Krillin was so engrossed in telling his tale that he didn't notice Bakuto in the crowd as he picked up a small rock. In fact, he didn't see the rock until the last second, as it emerged from the crowd. He stopped speaking mid sentence and closed his eyes. The rock hit him square in the forehead, and he sighed an exasperated sigh, clearly unharmed but quite annoyed.

He then opened his eyes and asked, "Okay, which one of you kids did that? That was very rude."

Without saying anything, everyone who stood near Bakuto took one obvious step away from him. Krillin noticed the movement in the crowd, even though he was still shorter than most of them. To get a better view, he jumped up onto his staff, balancing on top of it with ease. From this elevated position, he could make out Bakuto's face.

"You there. I want you to do pushups until I'm done with my story. Maybe that will keep you busy if you're bored. Also, what's your name?"

Mirai listened to Niko as he explained why he trusted Han, and she let Han speak his peace as well. Still, she looked very skeptical. Alas, she kept her thoughts to herself. She could tell that her old friend Niko was a man on a mission, and he'd already cleared this Han to join him on this mission. There was no changing his mind now, not without anything more to go on than a bad feeling.

"Fine," She answered after a long pause. "If that's how it's going to be, then I might be able to help. You see, I didn't ask you to come here at this hour just because I'm a night owl. If you really want to keep chasing down answers, you're going to need to go to the horses mouth. You're going to need a ride to Mars, to the headquarters of the Martian Mining Company. And I know you Niko, you'd rather go sooner than later. So I've cleared the use of one special spacecraft with Mr. Brief himself. A day time launch would require a lot more paperwork, but with his permission, he can talk to the board of directors himself and fill out paperwork after the fact. In any case, this is the ship you'll be taking, if you really want to go through with this thing..."

Mirai then pulled out a little remote out of her pocket. She pressed a red button, which triggered a rounded tarp behind her to start moving, as something underneath it came to life. The soft but powerful engine of the spacecraft then blew the tarp upward and to the side, revealing itself in dramatic fashion...



Mirai couldn't help but smiling a little at the sight, but quickly regained her serious demeanor before addressing Niko once again, "He said this craft is usually just used for training by him and his father, but it has been kept in great condition. That said, if you want to try some gravity assisted training on your way to Mars, feel free, but he suggests not going over two times Earth's gravity. I set it to 1.25 times gravity, just to give you a taste, and believe me, that might be more than enough... Crazy thing though... before I turned it on, it was set to 50 times Earth's gravity... Had to have been some kind of mistake..."

She then shook the thought away, looking into Niko's eyes in all seriousness and holding out the remote. "So what will it be?"

Any sane man or woman alive would understand that Niko was planning on undertaking a covert operation, a stealth mission utilizing the fullness of his...and perhaps Wu-Han's...personal abilities. He just wasn't saying it out-loud to give anybody uninterested some plausible deniability, to effect "Well, he never actually said he was going to attack the Martian Mining Corporation.". Mirai seemed to pause, though, after his and Han's words regarding their situation. Wu-Han had added to his own statements that, as of right now, he wasn't likely to be in good standing with his father, the boss of his organization, and that it was even likely that his Lieutenants - Goda and a man called Li - may even act on their own volition. In short, a bullseye was now squarely planted on the assassin's back.

All this, Mirai seemed to be taking with a grain of salt...but she relented, and stated that if he was serious, then it was time to GET serious. What she suggested, though, was a little unexpected, and that the delivery upon that suggest rather surprising. She wanted them to go into space, to Mars itself! She'd prepared a Capsule Ship! It was already prepared for launch and everything! Niko boggled at this sudden turn of events. He was going to owe BIG for this, he could tell, maybe owe her for life... Less paperwork or not, this was a shapeship at his disposal. In his mind, he was wondering exactly what the catch would be, what he would have to do in turn. He knew that Mirai wouldn't be this accommodating - even clearing it with the company owner, Mr. Trunks Brief - without knowing that it would come back to her or the company, somehow.

Perhaps the MMC hurt Capsule Corp in some way too, the way they interfered with RAMI. They had the first monopoly on space travel, until the other corporations caught up with their technology. This is a vintage craft, but in some ways, it's still better than today's space travel.

Capsule Corp's advancements were of well-documented history. spherical ships like this were seen taking off from this very area back when Bulma Brief was in charge, maybe even this ship in particular. In fact, Mirai all but confirmed this fact as he said it was used by Mr. Brief and his father on some sort of training exercises. She mentioned...the gravity controls? FIFTY TIMES Earth's gravity?!

"If there isn't a safety lock on the gravity controls, I'm putting one on there. Fifty, geez..."

Yes, Fifty Gs. That was the problem. It was at about 1.25 Earth's gravity right now, though, so as to give them an idea of what increased gravity was like. Training in that, though... That was like weight-lifting your own body. He hadn't been subjected to the kind of weight training that space travelers get. It could be interesting, even useful. Now, Mirai turned to him with a serious look, friend to friend, and asked if he truly wanted to go through with this. She had prepared this for him, and if he was really serious about this, there was only one proper answer. If he was not, then he would have to come to terms with it being a pipe dream, because he wasn't willing to go the distance. But Niko was adamant on this. His parents deserved better, the truth had to be known, those responsible had to be punished.

Niko took the remote, placing his free hand on Mirai's shoulder with a smile.

"Thank you, Mirai."

He turned to Han and gave him a nod.

"If you want to go that far too, step on in."

If not, he would step back, because the idea was that launch time would be in about five minutes. Either way, Niko felt here was something more to this. It wasn't that he mistrusted his friend, but rather that things were suddenly going a little too smoothly, all of a sudden. Either Mirai or Mr. Brief were up to something, that there were deeper concerns and machinations at play. After leaving Winger and Athena a message stating 'I'm leaving Earth right now. I may be some time.', he gave Mirai one last look and said...

"I owe you, big time, but you'll have to tell me why it was arranged like this when I get back, alright?"

...before entering the ship. He trusted Mirai, but there was just that hint of her not telling him everything. Whether she didn't know or wasn't allowed, there was something more to this, and- Hello... Yeah, that DID feel heavier, all of a sudden. Of course, he might not feel the Gs accompanied by leaving the Earth, but it was still a surprise. Hmmm... Mars had somewhat less gravity than Earth. If he worked at the high gravity - within reason - in here during transition, he would be even faster when he got to Mars...