C57: First Battle
Bang—
With a thunderous impact, a Hand ninja was sent flying through the air. Luke Cage, dressed in his iconic yellow hoodie torn by numerous slashes, stood firm. A razor-sharp ninjatō arced toward his neck but he didn't flinch. The blade met unbreakable skin with a metallic thud, snapping in half. The ninja staggered back, stunned. Cage remained unscathed—his bulletproof epidermis courtesy of illegal experiments at Seagate Prison.
A blur of motion to his left. Daredevil—Matt Murdock slid under another attack, his crimson suit darkened with sweat and dust. With precise grace, he struck forward with his Billy Club, the custom weapon doubling as a grappling hook and baton. It cracked into a ninja's sternum. He pivoted mid-motion, catching a second assassin sneaking from behind, slamming the handle into their jaw.
Bang—Bang—
Nearby, Ah Xing twisted in mid-air, delivering twin tornado kicks. His Vajra Legs, forged in the mystic training halls of Penglai Island, crackled with faint spiritual energy. The arcane technique sent shockwaves through the air. The Hand ninjas surrounding him found themselves repelled by a barrage of kinetic force, crumpling to the ground, temporarily immobilized.
> [Famousness from Hand Ninja +1]
[Famousness from Hand Ninja +2]
[Famousness from Hand Ninja +1]
With a final spin, another ninja was down. Matt, panting from the effort, retreated back-to-back with Luke Cage. Blood seeped from a cut beneath his mask.
"You good?" Matt asked, his breath ragged.
Luke grunted, raising his arm to block a sword slash. The blade shattered on contact. "Still standing."
Matt turned. "Ah Xing?"
Boom—
Ah Xing's sandal collided with a ninja's chest. "I'm fine. No fatigue."
Of course, Li Ran's avatar couldn't tire—as long as the original maintained the spiritual energy supply. Inside his Chinatown antique shop, Li Ran monitored the scene through the clone, his fingers glowing faintly over the incense bowl.
"Then we keep going," Matt growled. He wiped sweat from his brow, gripped his Billy Club, and lunged back into the fray.
---
Bang—
A loud crash echoed above Manhattan.
From five stories up, Jessica Jones landed hard on the sidewalk in front of Midtown Circle Financial, her black leather jacket fluttering behind her. Her boots cracked the concrete. She looked up at the steel-and-glass facade, eyes narrowing.
"This is the place. Midtown Circle Financial," she muttered, brushing dust off her jeans.
Li Ran had mentioned it briefly in the antique store—something about a corporate front for The Hand. She hadn't believed it at first. She'd been drunk. But now, adrenaline surged.
"Pull it together, Jess," she whispered. "You punched Kilgrave through a wall. You can handle a ninja cult."
With a deep breath, Jessica stepped into the lobby.
It was eerily quiet. No reception desk. No security. No civilians. Her instincts sharpened.
Boom—
A figure burst through the plaster wall ahead, crashing into the marble floor. Jessica instinctively ducked. The fallen body groaned—another Hand operative, clad in blood-red gi, armed with twin sai. She raised her head slowly.
On the other side of the shattered wall stood a slender Asian man, his messy hair swept back. One leg still lifted mid-kick. His sneaker was barely intact.
> [Famousness from Jessica Jones +100]
"Who the hell are you?" Jessica asked, wiping drywall dust off her shoulder.
In the antique shop, Li Ran blinked. "She actually found it?"
He hadn't expected her to track down the stronghold. Alcoholic or not, Jessica Jones had investigative chops. Her brief tenure with the now-defunct Alias Investigations wasn't for show.
Through Ah Xing, he maintained composure. "Are you with The Hand?"
Jessica blinked. "What? No! Wait—are you?"
Before she could clarify, Ah Xing's eyes widened. "Behind you!"
"Huh?"
Jessica spun. A ninja lunged at her with a staff. She stumbled back, heart pounding, but then, instinct took over. Her hand curled into a fist.
Bang—
The ninja flew across the room, smashing into a column. Jessica stared at her own fist.
"Yeah. Not exactly defenseless."
She turned to Ah Xing. "Now do you believe I'm not one of them?"
Ah Xing tilted his head. "I'll take that as a 'no.'"
—
Back on the lower floors, Matt deflected a kunai, parried a katana, then blocked another strike only to find no resistance. The next attack didn't come.
"Who is she?" Matt asked, sliding beside Luke.
Luke, watching from above, had seen the whole thing. "She just decked a Hand ninja thirty feet across the room."
Matt furrowed his brow. "A new ally?"
"Apparently."
Ah Xing jogged over. "She says her name's Jessica Jones. Private investigator."
Jessica called from across the room, "Former P.I. Current ninja-smasher."
She punched another Hand operative square in the ribs. The ninja groaned and collapsed.
Luke raised an eyebrow. "P.I.s come with super strength now?"
"Only the good ones," Jessica quipped, cracking her knuckles.
---