(PROFESSOR UZUMAKI) ANOTHER PLAYER AT THE BATTLE AT THE BANK

Shadow Stalker had thought she was prepared for surprises. She had run through the likely failure points in her head before committing, had accounted for missed shots, for the dogs overpowering her despite her planning, and even for the possibility that the Undersiders were holding something back that she had not yet seen. 

What she had not accounted for, not even remotely, was Headphones Girl dropping out of the ceiling like a goddamn ambush predator and slamming straight into Tattletale with enough chakra-backed force to put the loudmouthed bitch down in a single, decisive blow.

Shock did not quite cover it.

For a split second, Shadow Stalker could only stare, mouth hanging open beneath her mask as the scene before her refused to make sense. Tattletale lay sprawled on the lobby floor, her gun skidded well out of reach, limbs slack in a way that made it abundantly clear she was not faking. Headphones Girl staggered back a few steps from the impact site, knees wobbling as she fought to stay upright, her chest rising and falling too fast as she dragged in air with visible effort.

Shadow Stalker was fairly certain she was not the only one frozen in place. The civilians had gone eerily still, their fear momentarily eclipsed by disbelief, and even Grue seemed caught in a stunned pause. A moment ago, Shadow Stalker had been calculating angles and timing, weighing how to deal with Tattletale without giving her any more room to talk or act. Now the villain was very clearly not getting back up anytime soon, and the person responsible was the last one she would ever have expected.

Despite herself, Shadow Stalker felt a smile tug at her lips.

The kid was terrified. Anyone with eyes could see that. Her hands shook, her balance wavered, and there was a raw, barely contained panic in the way she held herself. But she had acted anyway. She had committed fully instead of freezing or hesitating when it mattered most, and that counted for something. More than something, actually.

It earned respect.

Naruto was right again.

Of course he had. He always was.

He had seen something in Headphones Girl from the beginning, had insisted there was more beneath the invisibility than fear and avoidance, and Shadow Stalker had dismissed it at the time as sentimentality or misplaced optimism. Looking at the girl now, shaking but still standing, she had to admit just how badly she had underestimated her.

Halle, she corrected herself absently, the name settling into place more naturally than she expected, is a survivor. 

Whatever reassessment that realization demanded would have to wait, though. There was still unfinished business to take care of, and Shadow Stalker was not inclined to let it remain as such.

More specifically, she had a nemesis she very much wanted to beat the shit out of.

As if summoned by the thought, the lights vanished and the lobby plunged into darkness so complete it swallowed depth and direction alike. The transition was immediate and disorienting, sound dampened and vision rendered useless in the way that only Grue’s power could manage.

“Fuck,” Shadow Stalker swore, breaking into a sprint toward where Grue had been standing moments earlier and relying entirely on memory and instinct. Her enhanced senses were smothered by the darkness, chakra offering no advantage against a power designed specifically to erase awareness. So she slashed and lunged through empty space, boots skidding slightly as she adjusted her path again and again.

She was still too slow.

By the time she reached his last known position, there was nothing there but cold air and the faintest echo of residual warmth. She spun, searching anyway, even though she already knew the answer.

Grue was gone.

“Fuck,” she swore again, the word tearing out of her chest along with the frustration she had been holding back since the darkness appeared.

There was no point chasing blindly now. Even she was not reckless enough to blunder through Grue’s darkness without a clear target, especially not with civilians still present and already traumatized.

Thankfully, the darkness began to thin and then peel away entirely, light flooding back into the lobby and restoring the world in harsh, unforgiving clarity. Shadow Stalker stood exactly where she had stopped, shoulders tight and jaw clenched, as the aftermath revealed itself.

The Undersiders were still there.

All of them except the one who mattered.

Shadow Stalker closed her eyes for a brief, frustrated moment and let out a long sigh. She resisted the urge to kick Regent in the head as he attempted to crawl away on his elbows, choosing instead to plant her boot firmly between his shoulder blades and press down until he hissed and went still beneath her weight.

“Don’t,” she muttered. “You’re done.”

And then, just when she thought the situation could not possibly get any more aggravating, the sound of shattering glass exploded through the lobby.

Shadow Stalker turned in time to see Glory Girl smash through the front of the bank in a spray of glittering shards, blonde hair streaming behind her and aura flaring brightly as she struck a dramatic pose in midair.

Shadow Stalker stared at her, deadpan.

“…Fucking idiot.”