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It was kinda crazy to run into a childhood inspiration in a place like this. Especially given they had both broken in here at the same time, albeit for different reasons. Kozue listened, doing his best to keep his excitement in check. Sure, the man looked different than how Kozue had remembered him, but that had been almost a decade ago now. Plus, given how the man's heart had exploded, it made sense that he would have to undergo a few physical modifications to save power. The switch from heroic work to civilian life, probably was a big shift, with his body always running at 100%. Especially when he had the strength to hold up a building.
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Kozue waited, as Ironheart disconnected himself from the power supply, seemingly getting ready to leave. Kozue figured it was probably best to do the same too. Sure, he had only really been dumpster diving, he had still broken in. That would be a pain in the ass to deal with if the cops were called. Or even worse, heroes. Ironheart seemed to have a similar mindset, suggesting the two dipped. Even suggesting the two hang out afterward. Kozue gave an excited nod. "That sounds awesome. I'm totally down. Definitely don't wanna risk losing this baby. And I mean, jail or whatever."
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Plus, he could probably get a few tips and pointers from Ironheart too. On heroics and all that kind of stuff. He was mostly relying on his own research and forum posts for most of his understanding of heroic work. Getting advice from a former pro-hero would probably be super useful. Plus, he had a number of questions regarding the cybernetics the man had used during his hero work. Either way, he could save the wave of questions he had for when they reached wherever they were going. When they were in a safer spot to talk.
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Looking toward the opened shutter door, Kozue felt a pang of guilt for the damage that had been caused. "Should we close that on our way out or something?" The question felt a bit silly, but he kinda hoped the door wasn't totally messed up. If security were to tighten, it would make snagging more parts from their dumpsters all the harder. He wasn't sure how well it would work, but it was better than nothing, right?

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Kozue shoveled food in his mouth listening, as he was given a breakdown of the job. The hours were a bit problematic. Less the amount, and moreso the time. Kozue was a vigilante after all. And he couldn't really do his heroics in the broad daylight, especially with it being illegal. The cover of darkness was kinda a big deal for the vigilante. Sure, he'd have Mondays and Tuesdays off, but the job would really come into conflict with his real passion. Sure, he needed money, but for Kozue money didn't have a point, if he couldn't use it to fund his vigilante lifestyle.
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The job otherwise seemed fine, but the hours would really be an issue. "I hate to be a pain or anything, would it be possible to have an hour or two break around midnight? I kinda have stuff I gotta do around that time. I can come in early to make up the difference or on one of the closed days. I'm not just a tough guy and a pretty face. I have other skills. Hold on, let me show you." Kozue reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone. He searched through some of his photo gallery. Finding what he was looking for, he revealed it toward Zane. He showed off a few images of modified appliances and repairs he had done around the house for his mom growing up. They were decent quality stuff. Nothing super high quality, but it would be hard to guess that it was done by a teen using parts he had dug out of dumpsters.
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"I have like, a lot of experience in like maintenance and stuff. I can probably help with that. Plus, I'm pretty good at jerry rigging parts, which would cut down on repair costs. Hell, no hard promises without seeing your expense reports, but I bet I could cut down repairs costs by half." The pay was pretty good, and he could probably pour more cash into his inventions. He was willing to bend, but he needed some time for patrols. Even an hour or two would be enough. As nice as this job seemed, his vigilantism was the priority.

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[attr="class","excerpt-header"]Kozue Yoshi

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As Kozue moved through the field, his head moving on a swivel. He was in a new environment, so his first instinct was to familiarize himself with his surroundings. He felt an odd shiver down the back of his neck, as the voice screamed out in pain. His body flinched, as Kozue fought the urge to dive into the fray to try and help. His logic was keeping a tight hold of the rein. It was too late. He eyed the weird bird thing, along with the number of ants scurrying along, holding bits of flesh in their mouths. This sight, made Kozue's stomach churn. Luckily, the people he was here working with wouldn't see him turning green. One of the benefits of having a helmet disguising his face.
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Kozue had come prepared, or at least as prepared as he could. He was currently in his full vigilante get up. His modified helmet to disguise his face, the iconic sleeveless red hoodie, and the two aluminum bats strapped to his back, all came together to create the vigilante "Marauder". He wasn't totally sold on the name yet, but it worked well enough. He straightened up a bit, trying his best to seem cool and unfazed by the danger in front of him. Part of the reason he was a vigilante was to treat it as a dry run at heroics. So he still had to act the part and be inspiring and all that jazz.
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The odd looking bird thing circled the group, mocking them. Kozue held his ground for a moment, still coming together with a plan of action. He lacked range, so while the other masked man could fire off his ranged lightning, Kozue didn't have that kind of luxury. As the bird thing circled overhead, firing off those feathers, Kozue raised his fists in an attempt to raise his guard. The bird missed each shot. Or maybe, they weren't being aimed toward them. With the circle of feathers now around them, Kozue looked toward the large wyrm like thing now making its way toward their group. Watching it move, Kozue found himself a bit curious. It seemingly lacked eyes, but was making a beeline toward them. Did it see in some other way? Like by sound or something? Or maybe vibrations? Kozue's gaze shifted toward the feathers, taking note of the humming. Was this how the wyrm knew their position?
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The other suited man ran toward the wooded area behind them. It was probably the only cover they would be able to find in this field. Kozue debated following for a moment, but he still had a few ideas lingering in the back of his mind. Maybe he was overthinking things, but it wouldn't hurt for a bit of experimentation. Taking a sharp inhale, Kozue reached out and grabbed the nearest feather, pulling it from the earth. This thing felt like how they were being tracked why else shoot them in a circle around them? And while Kozue wasn't sure how exactly it worked, he was prepared to learn with some more tests. Pivoting quickly, Kozue began to go back. His end target was the wooded area behind them, but he wasn't just running straight toward it. He was going to the right, almost as if he was trying to flank the trees. If the feather was the key to how this thing saw, he hoped that this little added movement would help prove it.
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As Kozue ran toward the wooded area, he took note of the green lighting flashing blasting out from the trees. Sure, it was a different color, but it was probably the other masked dude's quirk at it again. Kozue kept his attention mostly on the wyrm, watching how it moved and how well the lightning affected it. Once he had a bit more info gathered, he could formulate a plan.

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Since he was currently free from his work duties and he was back in control over the music, Kozue was pretty relaxed now. Not enough to start busting another move, but enough to take out a few pieces from his bag to fiddle with. He still needed to work on the frame for the battery pack, which wasn't fully planned out yet. A half smile was present across his face, as he listened to Arc. However, something caught his attention. From the corner of his eye, something moved in a blur just outside the convenience store.
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As the old woman waiting outside the convenience cried out for help, Kozue was already sliding over the counter. The parts he had been fiddling with dropped hastily on the counter. "Dude, can you like watch the store for like a few minutes. I swear I'll be right back." Kozue didn't wait for Arc to respond, as he quickly bolted out the door. His target was the purse-snatcher making a run for it, with the old lady's purse in their hand.
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"Get back here ya stinky dirtbag!" Kozue gave a battle cry as he chased the robber. He lowered his body as he ran, to help cut back on wind resistance. He was determined to give this dude a thrashing. Robbing an old lady right in the open like that? Unforgivable! A beatdown was pretty much necessary. Plus, he could get the purse back for that lady.

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As the raw food was placed in front of him, Kozue felt his stomach growl. As the grill was revealed and the woman across from his searched for a light, Kozue was tempted to just cook the meat himself. He had done it a few times before. By just holding a piece of meat and heating up his hand, he could flash cook just about anything. He didn't have the skill like cook it well, but raw shit became safe to eat, and when you were short on time, it was a good trade off. But he had already been kicked out of one BBQ joint for doing that, so he abstained.
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He listened as he got the breakdown of how the bar ran. Given the location, it wasn't too surprising. Hell, he was only here, because he lived nearby. Made sense for this place to be filled with locals. Well, when it was filled. As the tongs and chopsticks were placed in front of him, Kozue quickly snagged a piece of pork belly, and laid the meat down on the grill with a sizzle. This place didn't get too many ruffians or anything, but there was always a few. Came with the location.
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The questions involving Yakuza was a tricky one. Given his status as a vigilante, technically he wasn't on good terms with them. They were a criminal organization, even if not every member was committing crimes left and right. But with a bit of further explanation, his beef with the group shouldn't be an issue. After all, any trouble he had with the group hadn't been him. It had been Marauder. Without his mask, he was just a total random to them. "I mean, I don't like the lot of 'em, but they got no reason to consider me an enemy." Kozue had spoken after a moment of thought. His words were chosen a bit carefully, to avoid any lies. He had fought a number of yakuza thugs, but his identity was a closely held secret. Thanks to the voice modulator in his mask, they wouldn't even recognize his voice if they heard it.
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"As for crimes, the worst I've done is a bit of light breaking and entering to root around a few dumpsters. You'd be surprised at some of the shit companies will just toss. Won't even try to repurpose the parts or nothing." The statement wasn't false, but claiming that it was his worst crime might have toed the line a bit. Vigilantism was a big no no after all and he was out on patrol practically every night. But in Kozue's eyes, he barely saw it as a crime. Plus, it wasn't like he wasn't helping people. Sure, a few crooks might get sent to the hospital, but they usually deserved it. Besides, with all the work he put in keeping his identity secret, he wasn't about to let it all slip out during an job interview.

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As the customer asked his question, Kozue felt cynical by comparison. The logic made sense in a broad way. If he enjoyed something, it was something he wanted to do a lot. But when he tinkered now, it was because he wanted to. It was his choice. But if working on this kinda stuff was his job, then he lost that freedom. "I don't want to put any pressure on it. Cause then I'll know that if I don't sell or make enough, then I won't eat. I'll linger on it. Like the lack of it being my choice and all just kinda makes it less fun." Kozue expressed himself clearly. This was something he had put a lot of thought into. Because when he failed his first entrance exam, he considered selling things he worked up. But it didn't feel right for a number of reasons. He chose to go in this direction, so he had some pride in the decision.
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Kozue finished the transaction quickly, blushing once there was a mention of him being a lady killer. "No thank you. I ain't looking to kill any ladies. I got enough on my plate already." With his own tinkering, working here, and his late night crime stopping escapades, he was already busy enough. He didn't have time for dating or even most relationships for that matter. The only people he spoke to with any level of frequency was his coworkers and his mom. He didn't more people to lie about where he was or what he was doing.
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With the transaction finished, and Kozue's job officially done he could fix the music. Picking up the adapter that had become disconnected, he plugged it back into his phone. Taking a few seconds to pick a new song in a similar genre as he had been playing, the store would soon fill with the sounds of a song that he had been obsessed lately. While the volume couldn't be too high, it could still be heard, and Kozue was able to hear it wherever he went in the store. So now he didn't have to wear earbuds. It was the necessary of evils.