Birds of Prey | Tododeku

Chapter 4

Todoroki hid behind a rather large tree, listening for any unnatural noises. After about 15 minutes of waiting, he heard the crunching on almost completely decayed leaves and a couple snaps of old twigs.

He stood as still as a statue in a painting. He heard the footsteps pass by him. He glanced to see his target walking away in the other direction. He slowly crept behind him, only touching the dry parts of the ground as to not create an imprint. The Bird analyzed his character. His pocketknife was in his right pocket, as expected for a righty. Todoroki got close to him, waiting for the right chance. He wasn't wasted to the point he couldn't walk, but buzzed enough for Todoroki to blend in with the sounds of nature.

Todoroki pushed the gun against us back. With his targets focus now on his back, Todoroki slipped his knife out of his pocket. "Hands up, there is a loaded gun on your back," Todoroki demanded softly.

As the target lifted his hands, Todoroki backed away so the gun wouldn't get turned on him. "Who the hell are you?" The target asked bitterly.

"Raven. Put your phone on the ground and take five steps forward," Todoroki demand. His target did so and Todoroki took the phone into his possession.

"A Bird, huh?" The target asked. Todoroki turned off the phone. "And who would order a hit on me? I've done nothing."

"Any document would say otherwise," Todoroki said. "Put your hands out in front of you." The target did so and Todoroki shoved the needle in the targets neck with more force than necessary. The target grunted as the liquid spewed into his neck. Todoroki closed the needle and put it back in his pocket.

He took a few steps back, still pointing the gun at the target. "Come on, we're going for a walk. You know where the river is," Todoroki demanded. The target muttered something under his breath as they continued to walk. They walked down a ledge until they made their way to a river. "Take a seat."

Todoroki examined the river for some good sized rocks. Watching his target from the corner of his eye, he saw him brush his right pocket as he sat down. The look of bitterness quickly turned to fear as he realized his only method of defense was missing. Todoroki pulled his target's pocketknife out to show him.

"I'm not dead yet for a reason. I've dealt with more threatening people than lowlife scumbags like you," Todoroki said, tossing the knife into the river.

"You never answered my question. Who would order a hit on me? I'm nobody important, I don't have money, I've done nothing wrong," he repeated.

"You know," Todoroki sighed. "At first I thought you were just a scumbag. But after hearing you say you've done nothing wrong twice now, I realize you're more than that. You're everything that's wrong with society. You're the type of person that should replace Brutus in the seventh layer of Hell. Tell me this: how do you think you treat your family?"

The target looked at Todoroki. "And why the hell should I tell you that?" He challenged. Todoroki scowled behind his mask.

"So you're aware," Todoroki growled. "People like you piss me off. You think you can just hurt anyone around you just because you're a little pissed off. It's sad, there's no redemption for people like you. Fathers and husbands should be kind, welcoming, supportive. They're not supposed to send their kid to the ER because they got laid off after failing a drug test."

"You think you know everything, huh you little brat? Let me guess, you grew up in a tough household so you ran away. And now you think you're this big deal because your organization is in the news. You think you can do whatever you want because your alter ego is famous. But in reality, you're just a scared little boy with daddy issues," the target snarled.