Spider Gwen: Bushido Chapter9:SAMURAI

Following She Hulk through the hallway, Spider Woman was quite curious about what her gamma powered partner was up to. If she’d known her well, it was either she has a solid lead, or a blind double date. For everyone’s sake, she hoped it was the first option, as the Hand/Murder INC case has hit a brick wall. To add things up, she also got a phone call from an unknown number. Not knowing who the caller was and not having the time to find out, she hung up, even after that number tried calling again.

“I really hope you got something worth seeing. I am not in a good mood now. Not after what just happened.” said Spider Woman, putting her phone on silent in order to avoid any more distractions. She was also trying to keep up with the tall amazonian, as she was leading the way through the hospital’s hallways.

“Don’t worry, sweetie. We all know what you went through. Believe me, this won’t be a joke.”

“We? Who is “we”? Who else knows about what happened?” asked Spider Woman, a bit confused. She told nobody about the recent event that resulted in Jeremy’s brutal death and Foswell in Intensive Care. But as the two heroines entered one salon, they were greeted by Agent Marc Specter. He was clearly waiting for them and it wasn't hard to tell due to his frightening lizard form that he was in a serious tone.

“About time you returned, Miss Walters. Our “friend” over here seems to be in a good enough shape to share some information.” said Marc, giving a nod and a discreet hand wave to Spider Woman the second she entered the room. The heroine nodded back at him in return, but then something next to him got her attention. Much to her surprise, she saw Vincent in the hospital bed next to him. He survived Aleksei’s attempt to kill him, only just. He was hooked up on life support, with a tube in his mouth that helped him breathe with a ventilator, but he was awake and aware of his surroundings.

“Marc… dude, he’s already in pretty bad shape, why grill him right now?” said Spider Woman, after seeing Vincent’s state, feeling a bit sorry for him.

“He requested to talk to me. Well, wrote, as he is unable to talk. Thought it was worth calling you and Walters, since we are all now deep in this mess.” replied Marc, as he crossed his arms and took a quick look at the gangster.

“Aw, come on, Agent Hot Stuff. I’m She Hulk in this shape, let’s keep it that way.” said She Hulk, giving a flirty wink, but got a cold stare in response from the mutated agent.

“As I said, I thought it would be best to wait for you AND Walters to arrive so we can ask Vince here some questions…” repeated Agent Specter, getting a visible pout from She Hulk. The heroine expected a different reaction from him, but Spider Woman immediately caught her attention, a clear sign it wasn’t the time for funny business “… well, Vincent. Do you have something to say or do we cut this visit short?”

Unable to talk due to the tube down his throat, Vincent made a few gestures with his hand, requesting for a pen and paper, a wish that was immediately granted. Moving his eyes down to the empty sheet of A4 paper, he began writing something on it before slowly shoving it back to Marc. Taking a look at what he wrote, the crew saw what Vincent wrote: the name Otomo Yamaguchi.

“Who the hell is this guy? Never heard of him.” asked Spider Woman, confused, as she never heard of this name.

“I did.” replied She Hulk, searching her thigh strap pocket and pulling out a phone “Otomo is a wealthy businessman from Japan. He likes being under the radar and discreet, not appearing in the public spotlight at all. I did look him up after finding out he is very friendly with Murdoch. Looks like the guy is the main contact that the Hand has with the Yakuza and several other groups of interest in the Rising Sun Island. They are a strange bunch though… they sort of resemble how Samurais used to operate back in feudal days ....”

“Exactly, Miss Walters. Samurais are noble warriors that used to work for the royal family and nobility, highly respected and feared. They are also real into all this code they got, called Bushido. For them, honor means more than anything. You insult their honor, there will be consequences: either you die or they take their own lives just to preserve their own honor.” replied Specter, visibly intrigued over who is their person of interest.

“Alright, nerd time is over. How do we even find this guy?” quickly asked Spider Woman, ending their brainstorming.

“That’s simple.” replied Marc, pulling out a large tablet device from his uniform and began looking up a database. “I can call some friends from Interpol and get some information on when he will arrive in America. Maybe we could lure him into the country and see if he does something incriminating.”

“So, for now it is a waiting game…” replied Spider Woman, thinking about what will happen next, then turning her attention to Vincent “So, what does he want? Some sort of deal?” she said before getting surprised by the wounded gangster waving his finger, signaling he didn’t give up the name for a plea deal, much to everyone’s curiosity.

“Ok, if a plea deal isn’t what you want, then why did you help us?” asked She Hulk, also confused, as this totally contradicted her experience as an attorney. Just then, Vincent requested the paper again, writing something that brought back a memory for Spider Woman: *NO HONOR AMONG THIEVES*

“ I… see, I have to admit, I do feel sorry for you.” said Spider Woman, feeling real pity for him. Those words were the exact same that Aleksei said before trying to finish him off. It seemed that he didn’t forget and decided to return the favor by blowing the lid of this case wide open, even if it meant snitching “Get well. Do the right thing in court and Marc will make sure you will do your time safely.”

“We will have to wait now. I’ll call some friends at Interpol to monitor this guy’s flights. The second he enters the country, we tail him, see if he gets us to Murdoch.” said Specter before sending an email and wrapping up his gear before getting ready to leave. Afterwards, the entire crew left the room, leaving Vincent to recover in order to stand trial and testify for when the time comes. He will be under heavy guard until he is fit enough to be transferred to a more secure location and prevent an attempt on his life. Him snitching was a sure way to get killed, something Marc and the crew won’t let it happen.

For the next day, both Spider Woman and She Hulk spent the day researching their new target. The file on Yamaguchi that Marc sourced from Interpol was telling some interesting and promising facts: After Fisk’s incarceration and Matt taking over his assets, Otomo began being his main guy in funneling his funds to offshore accounts and then use that laundered money to influence politics in the Far East for their advantage. There were also some suspicions that The Hand was starting to have interest in infiltrating Capitol Hill in order to spread its influence.

“Damn, what are we getting ourselves into…?” asked Spider Woman after reading all the information regarding Otomo, starting to think this guy might be way more important and dangerous than any other criminal she caught. More recent evidence showed an even bigger expansion after starting the collaboration with the Yakuza in Japan and also the newly revived Murder INC, gaining stolen SHIELD tech from Vladislav Ivanovic, something even Interpol couldn’t find how they got their hands on such gear.

“Not used to this level, huh? I was there too.” replied She hulk in a joking manner after seeing her partner was feeling unsure about if she could be capable of finishing this mission “Don’t worry, we’ll get this guy and squeeze the Holy Grail out of him.”

“How? He arrives in New York tomorrow to attend Murdoch’s charity event, but how the hell do we even get close to this guy, let alone interrogate him? If he’s this important, he will be watched by every Hand merc, not to mention possible protection from police that is on Vlad’s payroll.”

“Details, details. Don’t worry, I got this covered.” replied She Hulk before taking a sip of her coffee and looking at some surveillance photos of the target “this will be a walk in the park.”

“Got my doubts, but so far, I see no other option. These guys know how to keep a low profile.” said Spider Woman before looking at the clock and handing over the rest of the paperwork to her gamma powered partner before getting up “We’ll talk plans later, right now I need to get out of town. Marc called in for some more training at the firing range his team practices.”

“Oh, Professor Lizard King is holding training sessions? Planning on joining his team, badge, full gear and the whole set?”

“No, not like that. I mean, it would be nice, but my fugitive status axed this idea, unless a miracle happens. He’s helping me gain some combat abilities in order to fight better against criminals and The Hand. Last time, he mopped the floor with me to prove how easy it is for someone with skills to take me down, even with my powers.”

“I’d like him to try that with me, I wouldn’t mind getting “smashed” by him. With his size I’m sure he’s also big-” said She Hulk with a mischievous smile, but she wasn’t able to finish what she wanted to say because Spider Woman immediately smacked her hard over the back of her head in a fit of anger over hearing this, throwing her into the wall.

“You better forget about it, he is a widowed man and not interested in someone like you. Plus, he has a set of morals. Now stop thinking about banging dudes and focus on getting this guy...” quickly replied Spider Woman before grabbing her backpack and swinging away, as she was already running late towards her meeting with Agent Specter, leaving She Hulk touch the back of her head, both confused and impressed over the fact that the heroine did actually made her feel some sort of pain after being hit in the back of the head.

Meanwhile, at the airport in Tokyo, lots of movement was happening at the VIP terminal, as one person in a business suit was getting its paperwork signed off by Japanese and also British authorities. He was older, in his 60’s and despite the age, was still able to keep up with everyone else. Alongside him were several bodyguards, all of them wearing the same style of traditional Japanese outfits, complete with ceremonial swords.

“All seems in order for you and your associates, Mr Yamaguchi. Have a safe flight and please don’t forget to check in your passport and visa when you land in London.” said one of the British officers, handing them all the documents before receiving a nod of approval from Otomo and a bow afterwards from him and his entourage. Before boarding the private jet, his phone rang. It was an old Ericsson phone from the 90’s, something that was much harder to track than a modern smartphone.

“Yes, Mr Murdoch?”

“Otomo, are you leaving Tokyo yet? Our client is already on his way towards London, he doesn't want to stay too much over there. The latest wave of terrorist attacks put the entire Kingdom on high alert.”

“Boarding the plane now. We won’t be late. We always keep our word.” replied Otomo in a calm manner.

“Good. Just remember, he’s a friend of mine and a very important client. Martin is becoming a major problem and we need to step up our game in New York if we want to finish him off.”

“He’s a major problem for your friend, but I do not see any benefits of The Hand helping Mr Osborn in this situation. The destruction of the Helicarrier is putting this entire operation under a spotlight. Why risk so much for an honorless man such as your ‘friend’ for such little gain?.”

“Do I have to remind you of all the strings and influences that I had to pull in order to get the Japanese government to revert the laws that they applied after the whole Yama-Ichi war? It’s thanks to ME that Yakuzas now can roam freely as they used to. You’re saiko-komon, my advisor. I dictate the rules, and you follow them. Swallow your honor for a moment and focus on what’s important. DO NOT, screw this up, Mr Yamaguchi.” quickly replied Murdoch in a very irate tone, cutting him as he tried to say something one more time before giving up.

“Yes, Oyabun…”

“Good. Call me back once you have spoken with Norman. Have a safe flight.” replied Matt before hanging up, leaving Otomo and his associates quite unhappy over the leader’s attitude. Minutes later, the plane took off, location set to London, UK.

Meanwhile back in the USA, Spider Woman was having quite an interesting experience: she was being given a tour by Marc around the new base he now uses to train the new generation of federal tactical agents that will be deployed across the country in order to handle extremely dangerous situations, just like his team.

“Have to say, quite an impressive gig you got set up here! You are instructing the new generation by yourself?” shouted Spider Woman while covering her ears as they passed the row of cadets that were target practicing with 9mm pistols. The sounds of shots fired in that closed room was almost deafening because she forgot to grab a set of ear protection.

“You don’t need to shout, I can still hear you properly.” replied Marc as he walked past the cadets, unfazed by the gunshots. On one hand, his experience made him used to being around gunfire and on the other hand, his lizard form allowed him to cope with the noise without the need of protection and also hear Spider Woman well enough “Not by myself. A collaboration with The Avengers. I supervise overall and teach them tactics, Luke and Hawkeye with mastering firearms and Black Widow with combat training.”

“Full on SHIELD grade training I see. Trying to leave Fury without a job?”

“We need at least three more teams across the nation. This one will be deployed in El Paso once I deem them ready. Time to deal the Cartels hard blows and bring some peace along the southern border. If it also drops human smuggling to a manageable trickle for Border Patrol, then it is a huge win.” replied Marc as both of them were walking past the cadets that were busy landing good shots. But as they passed the last one, the trainee fired his gun, causing a much louder gunshot, almost like a massive explosion. In a flash, his target, instead of being pierced, completely disintegrated after being hit in the bullseye, splattering wooden splinters over a 20ft radius. Seconds later, full on silence descended, as he turned around to brag, only to see his fellow cadets on the ground, taking cover. Even Spider Woman hit the floor with her hands over her head, eyes closed. Only one standing was Marc, looking shocked and in disbelief at where the target used to be and seeing splinters still in the air.

“Son, where did you get this gun?” asked Marc a bit… speechless, as he pointed at his gun. It was a S&W500 Magnum with a long barrel, one of the most powerful Magnums on the market.

“This? My dad gave it to me. Pretty cool, huh, sir?” replied the cadet, overjoyed by the result and looking at his pistol, but Marc wasn’t sharing his enthusiasm.

“Oh, really? How nice. Give me that for a second please.” said Agent Specter in a very calm tone, taking the gun in his hand “Thank you.” afterwards, using his enhanced strength, he then began bending its long barrel until it looked like a metal German pretzel “Now… you run, don’t walk, to the armory and get your issued handgun. Our goal is to stop the criminal, not spray them all over the room and then vacuum them off the floor.”

After the more “enthusiast” trainee left to get the handgun he was supposed to use, the duo left the rest of the firearms training in the hands of Agent Cage while they entered the gym area. Over there, everything was properly laid out, from workout equipment, to dummies and replica wooden weapons. Immediately it was clear for Spider Woman that it was all arranged for her lesson about weapons that The Hand might use against her, right next to some swords that she could swear they looked real.

“You surely prepared today’s lesson. I presume those are really good fakes... right?” asked Spider Woman with a bit of concern, pointing to the metal swords.

“I can assure you those aren’t fakes. Is what I found from previous cases that were linked to The Hand back in Chicago. I kept them for occasions like these.” replied Marc before lifting one of the real swords and examining the blade “This is a Shinto. Modeled after the famous Katana swords, this particular type is using a special metal that is slightly heavy, but sharp enough to cut through bone, steel and pretty much anything it can strike like butter. Watch this..” he then walked towards a wooden dummy and began waving it in a manner she saw in those old style movies or those Japanese competitions. After taking a few deep breaths, a few preparations and focusing, the lizard agent performed a few strikes that were too fast for Spider Woman to even keep track of them. At first, it looked like he didn’t even touch the wooden dummy, but seconds later, it fell apart in many pieces. The lines where it was cut were so fine, it looked like they were made with surgical precision by lasers, or a scalpel.

“What the-? How the hell did you do that?!”

“Doesn't matter. Just think that this will be you if you’re not careful around this sword. Blink and you will end up sliced thin like a piece of salami on a submarine sandwich.” replied Specter in a very serious tone, much to Spider Woman’s visible horror. To make it even more serious, he quickly threw it in her direction, missing on purpose. The blade impaled in the wooden dummy next to her face, almost going through its head and much to her shock, it all happened so fast. Her spider sense didn’t even react, as she was sure Marc would never try to harm her. Despite trusting him in wielding these weapons, she still got scared after seeing the sword flying so close to her face at that speed “Now, take it and try to slash me with it.”

“WHAT!?”

“You heard me. Do it already.” replied Marc before moving his head to crack his neck a bit. A little hesitant, Spider Woman stopped for a second, but quickly remembered the last time they trained and he made a similar request. Knowing she won’t be able to hurt him, she then pulled the sword from the dummy’s head and charged at him with all her speed. As soon as she was close to impaling him, Marc was able to dodge, causing her to lose her balance. Taking advantage, the agent used her momentum to spin her into falling on the ground, while disarming her of the weapon and claiming it as his own. As soon as the heroine finished rolling on the floor and was aware again of her surroundings, she found herself staring at the tip of the blade, a clear sign she was defeated.

“See? This is for disarming and countering your opponent’s attack. With this simple trick, I was able to strip you of your weapon and now I can use it against you. Now, try to attack me from above. Try to slash me.” said Marc, giving the Shinto back to Spider Woman and readying himself back in position.

“Ok… Here we go again.” said the webslinger as she charged again at him, this time leaping in the air and attempting to slash him, only to have her attack dodged again at the last moment, rolling on the floor. Before she could recover, she felt grabbed by the arm and slammed on the ground before feeling Marc’s foot on her chest and ending up looking again at the wrong end of the blade.

“Alright, now is your turn. But this time, I will use a wooden replica, to be sure you don’t go home one piece at a time. George wouldn’t appreciate that.” said Marc in a joking manner, trying to ease off the tension a bit and lift her spirits “Just remember: your spider sense is your Ace up your sleeve. I don’t think it will trigger here as we are training, but remember in real life combat to rely on it only as an aid, not totally. You need technique to use your abilities to your full potential.”

“O-Ok…” replied Spider Woman, feeling unsure, even if her mentor was now using something that is infinitely less dangerous than the Shinto.

“Ready? Here I come.” said Marc as he got in position, readied the replica sword and charged at Spider Woman. She however, took one step back, feeling quite intimidated by the situation, especially after seeing Marc charging at her. For a moment, she froze, unable to move at all. At the last moment, all she could do was to roll out of his way and avoid the attack, but failed to disarm him.

“Come on, you dodged but didn’t disarm me. You need to go on the attack if you want to quickly gain the upper hand.”

“I-I simply froze. Don’t know why, but I simply was unable to move.”

“Focus, Gwen. You have to focus. Don’t be afraid. Breathe in and let the fear go away. I know you can do this.” said Marc, allowing her to calm herself down and encouraging her a bit before trying again. This time, Spider Woman tried to focus on the wooden blade that was coming at her again. She then managed to leap in the air, dodging the attack, then gave Marc a kick in the back mid-leap, causing him to lose his balance, then seized the opportunity to grab his hand and flip him to the ground, taking his sword in the process.

“There you go. See? Wasn’t so bad, huh?” said Specter in an encouraging voice, making Spider Woman cheer a bit as she saw the wooden sword she held in her hand, barely believing she managed to succeed “Ok, let’s try this again a few more times, shall we?”

For the next couple of hours, the heroine was put through various training sessions, involving various ways to exploit her abilities and maximize their potential in combat against armed enemies. Marc even taught her a few basics on how to stand her ground and last for a few minutes in a one on one sword fight if she’d ever end up having to battle with a sword or even a metal staff. This reminded her of back when she fought Vladislav first time and was nearly killed on that scaffolding high above street level, when the hitman nearly made a kebap out of her, even though she tried defending herself with steel bars as batons. She knew she wouldn't ever be a master in wielding these weapons, or even as experienced as her mentor, but knowing a few basics about what she might encounter was something that will come in handy.

“Alright, I think that is enough for today. We better clear out here before Romanoff comes to host her weekly class on combat.” said Marc, handing Spider Woman some water and some fruit to regain her energy.'' Also, my contact in Interpol gave me a tip: Otomo will be arriving in New York tomorrow. He’s currently in London with some business before taking off for America. I’ll be setting up a surveillance team to wait for him at JFK Airport. We need to play this smart, he could be well guarded and I am not willing to have any of us put in danger.”

“Alright then. Means the countdown is on. Until he touches down, I think I will take a break and recharge my batteries. Last days were pure Hell with all that happened.”

“I heard that. Turned into a real nightmare. I don’t approve of how you handled things. Associating yourself with Vladislav after knowing he was the new leader of Murder INC, helping him with the Colombians and the Bratva situation. I do understand saving his cousin, but still, this decision turned deadly quite quickly.” said Marc with a serious tone, as both were leaving the gym via the backdoor.

“I know, I know… I messed up big time, it wasn’t supposed to go down like this!” replied Spider Woman, lowering her head in shame, still feeling, tremendous amount of guilt over the brutal death of Jeremy and the crook himself in critical condition.

“You need to be more careful, Gwen. Much more careful. This ain’t the regular ‘Purse snatcher gangs’ situation anymore. You graduated to the next level, the stakes are much higher. Now come on, let’s get out of here.” said Marc before opening the back door and heading towards an SUV that was waiting for him “I’ll call you tomorrow when Otomo touches ground.”

Giving a hesitant nod, Spider Woman was also ready to leave, but before leaping in the air, her phone began ringing. Pulling it out of her thigh pocket, she saw it was from a foreign number. Thinking it was a virus, she hung up before resuming on getting out of there as fast as she could. Until the “special guest” arrived, it was enough time for her to rest and regain her energy.

Meanwhile, as the night was in full swing, the jet carrying Otomo and his entourage was in the air above the Atlantic Ocean, destination JFK Airport, New York City. The pilot refueled back at Heathrow in London while the passengers were having their paperwork done by U.S. officials back in England.

“Attention passengers, we have reached cruising altitude above the Ocean and set for the United States of America. You may remove your seatbelts and settle for the 10 hour flight.” said the pilot via the internal communication interface, notifying the delegation about the details of the trip. At this point, Otomo was able to use his phone again and immediately dialed the corrupt lawyer.

“How did it go?” asked Matt the moment he answered the call, not even greeting his second in command.

“As planned, Mr Murdoch.” replied Otomo, visibly not pleased that he had to talk with Matt’s client.

“Well done. The money will roll in as planned. With the weapons and tech supplied by Ivanovic and his contact, we’ll be able to stand our ground against Li or other rival organizations.”

“I’d advise extreme precaution. Your friends are dangerous and untrustworthy, especially Ivanovic. The man is a murderous mercenary dog with no honor or limits.”

“Otomo… once you become Oyabun one day, you will soon understand that money is what makes people follow orders. Honor has no place in businesses. Once you land here, I will send some vehicles in order to pick you and your men. Enjoy the rest of the flight.” replied Matt, before hanging up, not giving a chance to Otomo to elaborate further, making him sigh heavily as she took a sip of his own Sake in order to calm his nerves…

The next morning, back in NYC, Gwen was being woken up by her alarm clock giving her the 9:00 am call. Despite being quite early, she felt rested and re-energized after what she went through over the last few days. It was the break she needed to get prepared for the big moment when she and her friends will capture the Hand contact from Japan and get close to the bottom of this case. After getting some breakfast, she started checking her phone while enjoying the pancakes her father left before going to work. As she was scrolling through messages, she noticed the same foreign number called her again, but again, dismissed it. On a more serious note, she did notice three missed calls from Agent Specter, one that was received at 6:48am. It was odd she didn’t hear her phone ringing. Knowing he wouldn’t have called so early unless it was a major emergency, she immediately called him back, with the lizard agent quick to answer the call.

“Jesus! What took you so long to call back?”

“I was asleep, man! Last days were pure hell.” replied Spider Woman, worried over Marc’s tone. It sounded like something seriously bad happened.

“Fair enough. Listen, we have a big problem. Otomo has vanished.”

“What!? What do you mean?”

“I sent Luke to the airport to do some plainclothes surveillance after Otomo’s plane landed, but the target vanished after he went into Customs office for a routine body search. All I know is that someone or something knocked out the officers and made a hole in the wall of the room towards the outside, taking Yamaguchi with it. Surveillance footage turned up nothing, not one clue.”

“WHAT!?” shouted Gwen, completely shocked over hearing this bit of news. To say it was a setback was a massive understatement, this was a disaster.

“His friends from Japan are not happy as well and staying silent doesn't help out at all. Right now I got people stuck with this investigation while Otomo is God knows where…” said Marc, giving out a slight growl, clear case he wasn’t happy as well over this situation “Anyway, watch yourself. If he was indeed abducted, then The Hand might be on high alert and have their eyes on everyone that interfered in their business. This means you as well. Eyes open and watch your back. Talk to you later.”

“Thanks, Marc. You watch yourself as well.” replied Gwen, putting the phone down before letting out a F-bomb and barely holding herself from punching a hole in the counter. It was supposed to be a smooth operation but now with the target missing, they were back to square one. However, minutes later after reflecting and finishing up her breakfast, this time in a very bad mood, the phone began ringing again, this time it was She Hulk who was calling her.

“Quite the time to call. We have a problem.”

“No time to chat, I’m sending you a location. Meet me there in an hour. Believe me, it will be worth it.” quickly said She Hulk via phone right before hanging up. Gwen was not able to even reply or tell her about the bad news. Seconds later, she received a location for the meet: a disused warehouse in Bronx’s former industrial area, a quiet, secluded place. Feeling like she couldn’t say “no”, she did her dishes and went back upstairs to suit up and head towards the meeting point.

“I hope this is something worth the hassle Jen…” mumbled Spider Woman to herself while she was approaching the former industrial area, looking for the warehouse that is shown on her map app. The whole place looked deserted and grimey, like it was devoid of any sign of human life for decades, with overgrown vegetation starting to hide the crumbling buildings. Even the abandoned streets had growing vegetation through the cracks of the asphalt, the whole place looking like Pripyat, minus the radiation. Eventually, she saw the green skinned superhero waving at her from the entrance of a large warehouse in the corner of the “urban forest”.

“Right on time. This is a first for you!” said She Hulk in a joking manner as she opened the door, inviting her in “Come in, you’re going to love this.”

“It better be good, because we’re f*cked, big time. If we don’t find Otomo, we might as well give up.” replied Spider Woman, entering the warehouse, only to see the large storage room, with one single man tied to a chair, with a bag over his head. He was wearing a business suit and from the amount of dirt and dust on it, looked like he was dragged all over the city. Much to her worry, he didn’t seem to be moving at all “What the-? Who’s this guy and what is he doing here?”

“Say hi to our guest…” said She Hulk as she cheerfully walked past the captive and pulled off the bag, revealing to a shocked Spider Woman who he is “Ta da! I got Mr Otomo Yamaguchi.”

“WHAT!?? How the hell did you get him?”

“Managed to “persuade” someone to give up the flight schedule and once our guest was searched by Customs and Immigration, BAM! Took him, lost any potential heat and brought him here, nice and quiet where we can have a chat about his local friends.”

Spider Woman stared at Otomo who was giving not so friendly glares at both heroines, then she stared back at a Shulkie who was expecting to receive some sort of praise. The webslinger was starting to visibly shake and sweat bullets at the implications of this.

“T-t-this is the most reckless and dangerous move you made so far! Now everyone is looking for him, both The Hand and now the FBI as well! How do you know he’s not being watched from the shadows?” shouted Spider Woman, visibly scared over her partner’s way of how she handled things.

“Nahhhh… it’s fine! I just knocked out all his guards at the airport when i picked him up, i don’t think they will be fit for fight-”

Out of nowhere and without warning, several windows behind her shattered. Before they could turn around, Spider Woman caught with the corner of her eye some shadows moving fast right before her spider sense warned her of imminent danger. Quickly turning around, she managed to quickly dodge some shuriken stars that were close to impale her face and saw the source of the danger: a squad of what looked like ten individuals, all wearing something that looked like traditional samurai warrior suits, but much more technologically advanced. All ten were in formation and pulled their swords in unison, not making one sound, adding to the intimidating factor both heroines felt right now.

“Errrr… they don’t look like the guys I knocked out…” said She Hulk, visibly embarrassed before regaining her composure and readying herself for a fight “Oh well, more meat to pound before starting the chat with our esteemed guest.”

Just then, six of the squad charged directly at the heroines, with Spider Woman barely being able to dodge their attacks, as she was caught by surprise over the entire situation. Three went against her while the other three were attacking She Hulk. The gamma heroine on the other hand was confident their weapons have no chance against her near invincible body, until one burning sensation on her arm broke that confidence. Giving one of them a strong kick in the guts and backing up for a second, she saw a gash in her left bicep that was starting to bleed. Grabbing her wound, the increased pain was also making her quite angry.

“Shintos! Green, watch out, these are sharp as f*ck!” shouted Spider Woman while dealing with her own trouble. At least her agility and reflexes helped her dodge the extremely sharp blades, but only just. She was able to land a few hits but these seemed to only make them back up a bit. It seemed as their armor was able to absorb kinetic force and help them cope with physical attacks much easier. At one point, she thought her eyesight was playing tricks on her, as the samurais suddenly disappeared and reappeared right behind her, kicking her strong enough to send her rolling on the ground. She tried some of the techniques she just learned from Marc, but these opponents were fast and also it seemed like their armors were able to “cloak” them from her view for short periods of time. They weren’t fully invisible, but it was like they were turning into complete mirrors, making them much harder to spot.

“How the f*ck did you-?” Spider Woman was trying to say, but she was interrupted when she saw the empty chair and now Otomo himself was also wearing the same samurai outfit the others were wearing. Seems their objective was to keep the heroines busy while the rest conducted the rescue operation. At this point, even She Hulk was thrown to her side while the Samurais warriors suddenly appeared in formation right in front of them.

“Dammit. These guys are tearing us apart. Their gear is next level stuff.” said She Hulk, breathing heavily after she received a beating from this new type of enemy. She was used to dishing out the ass whoopin, but this time she was on the receiving end, along with a few cuts and her confidence knocked down a peg or two. At this point, one of the leading warriors looked like he was charging a version of the kinetic gauntlets used by the ninjas, but instead of using them in a fistfight, he generated a kinetic wave via his sword, knocking the two heroines down, again.

“Enough, our objective is secure, time to leave.” said one of the warriors, signaling retreat. Moments later, everyone, Otomo included, cloaked and fled the warehouse, leaving both Spider Woman and She Hulk almost knocked out, She Hulk had so many cuts on her body that her healing ability was struggling to close them up to prevent more bleeding, while Spider Woman on the other hand felt like she just came out a blender. The kinetic shockwave not only damaged her body both internal and external, but she could feel the symbiote feeling the strain of the injuries inflicted.

“Owww…”  The duo let out a collective groan as they weren’t able to move, and by the looks of it, it will take a while to barely stand up…

A couple of hours later, Otomo and his Samurai met Murdoch at the Hand base in New York, with the so-called Oyabun not happy at all with the events that just happened.

“What was all of this? What do you mean you let them live?” shouted Murdoch at Otomo after he explained what went down and how he ended up abducted. “Do you know these gaijins are close to exposing all of us, close to exposing ME?!”

“As far as I am concerned, Master, you said that the situation was in complete control and that nothing bad was going to happen, so, care to explain how I was abducted by these… two Vigilanties?” replied Otomo, standing tall in front of his superior, his warriors by his side. Despite him being a rank below Murdock, he was visibly angry at how his master had failed him in keeping him safe during the travel, not to mention that he had to rely on his personal guard of Samurais in order to bring him back to safety.

“We are at war right now, Otomo, as a Yakuza, you should be ready to expect setbacks from time to time, However… My question remains: you had your captors vulnerable and weak, and, considering the fact that they represent a massive thorn to the side of our efforts, WHY, you didn’t dispose of them when you had the chance?” Despite his advisor’s stand point, Murdoch was pressing the question once again, making the saiko-komon frown at the question

“They didn’t represent a threat anymore. Killing them while they couldn’t even fight back against us would be a stain to our Bushido, Master”.

“I don’t care about Bushido when it comes to these rats… They are digging their noses too deep in our business. Martin Li is about to make his move and Norman is getting nervous over his secrets being in danger or exposed. The only saving grace is the Bratva going silent after Vladislav managed to put them in their place!”

“Master, Murdoch! This is not how we operate! Our tradition-...”

“F*CK THE TRADITION!” shouted Matt after reaching new levels of anger, slapping Otomo over the face extremely hard his helmet fell off. He then regained his composure and returned to a more calm demeanor “... We are not in Japan. Otomo, the rules from there don’t apply here. I am Oyabun. I AM over the Bushido first and foremost, so you better get that in your thick primitive skull.” With that, Murdoch turned around and went back to his office, leaving the group of Samurais speechless as Otomo regained his composure, picking up his helmet once again and placing it over his head.

“Go and get yourself clean, Otomo, I have an event to organize, and see how to clean the mess you made…” said the lawyer before closing the doors, leaving his warriors outside. As for Otomo, he just turned around and left the premise, his gaze showing nothing more than scorn and indignation.

“Yes, Oyabun…”

Meanwhile, Spider Woman was waking up after a full day of sleeping. To her surprise, she found herself not on the warehouse floor, but in a large bed, one larger than normal. Looking around and seeing the wardrobe, she immediately realized it was She Hulk’s condo. Getting up quickly, she nearly collapsed back on the bed after still feeling the bruises that were still hurting badly. In the living room, the Avenger was also tending her wounds, something new for her gamma form. Seeing she was awake, she waved at her with her uninjured arm before showing a plate with breakfast ready for both.

“I can’t believe we got our asses kicked by some old style warriors…”

“Their honor code… they might be criminals, but they have honor. We got lucky” said She Hulk while bandaging her bicep “Don’t worry, we’ll get another shot at them. This is far from over.”

To be continued…

9'th chapter of the new story arc, created by me and https://www.deviantart.com/snarkymofo

A new lead on The Hand, one that will go bad.

previous chapter https://www.patreon.com/posts/spider-gwen-and-86421002