A chilly breeze caused the tent to flutter just when Spatoon finished setting it up. He wiped a brow from his forehead before admiring his handiwork. The tent he set up had been with him ever since he debuted as Splatoon, the metal-manipulator superhero. That's not the reason why he brought it with him though.
He was aware that the team had to stay on the lookout for who knows how many hours in the night, and it would be quite uncomfortable waiting by the port without something to shield them from the frigid air coming from the sea. That's why he brought the tent. It wasn't a place for relaxation, however, and he made that perfectly clear.
Nighttime soon came, and the winds became even colder. Even Satoshi, who could tolerate the cold, began shivering. He didn't bother summoning Lighter though since the orb of blue flames would needlessly attract attention. In the end, he settled with the Cloak Of Invisibility. He received quite a few gasps though when the others saw his head floating around and his body was nowhere to be found.
There was also the option of letting Ghast set up a portal by the seaside of the Port, but Satoshi couldn't be bothered. It would just waste Ghast's precious energy.
"And now the waiting game begins," Splatoon said in a low voice before sitting down by the corner of the tent and arranging the other bags they brought with them.
Satoshi and the others remained quiet, wondering what they'd do next while uneasily staring at Splatoon. Splatoon ignored them though, he just started rummaging through one of the bags he brought with them. After a few seconds, he started handing out bags upon bags of junk food. They were surprised, but they weren't complaining at all.
"We'll be doing a lot of heavy lifting later, so now's the time to take a breather. Later on, we won't even have time to pause, that's why you have to enjoy the waiting game while you can. I also brought board games. Is anyone up for chess? Snakes and ladders? I have the lot."
The relaxed atmosphere that Splatoon created made Satoshi and the others relax as well and pretty soon, all of them were playing a round of monopoly. Even after a few hundred years, classic board games were still relevant. They really stood the test of time, as expected of classic board games.
"And I'll be taking your apartment."
"I'm getting a loan."
"That's a lot of debt you got there, huh."
Despite their immersion in the game, they were still on the lookout for suspicious vessels or people. An hour had already passed but there were no signs of the 'Dejects' whatsoever. Splatoon didn't feel uneasy, however. On the off-chance that the tip-off was misplaced, he was willing to wait it out. Even if he had to wait for more than a week, he would do so without thinking twice. "There's no way the tip-off is wrong, though. They should arrive tonight." Splatoon reassured himself, a hint of worry creeping in his head.
After another round of monopoly, snakes and ladders was next in line. The game brought about nostalgia in everyone. It had been so long since they played such a childish game and experiencing it once again made them remember the past.
"Being a kid is... well, you know... it's pretty good." Merman suddenly spoke up. "You don't have to worry about paying rent, or buying groceries... you know, stuff like that. And you get to play around every day."
"Yeah, too bad we had to grow up." Splatoon smiled, finding the conversation hilarious. "That's why you should enjoy your childhood while you can, Plume, Satoshi,"
"I sense something." Merman stood up, his skin turning into bluish-green scales. Compared to before where his lower body was mostly shifted into his aquatic form, this time it was his upper body. His ears resembled that of fins, and they twitched on the faintest of sounds.
A superhero who could transform into a merman, Merman can do anything that a merman can do. Be it swimming at insane speeds, having basic connections with aquatic life, or even hearing sounds through the water. It was even rumored that he can communicate with whales, but he hasn't made an official statement about that yet.
"It's a low growl, almost inaudible due to the tidal waves. But I'm sure of it, whatever's making that sound, it's not natural." Merman continued, cautiously approaching the shore and placing his head underwater.
Splatoon and the others awkwardly stared at his rear side, waiting for him to raise his head from the water and give them an update. "I was correct. It was a submarine... no... no, wait"
A shift in Merman's expression told everyone that he was hearing something else. Everyone gulped, thinking that maybe they'd interrupt Merman's hearing abilities if they were to breathe. Merman's brows furrowed, then he bit his lips in anxiousness. Seconds later, he put his head underwater once again.
While the others thought that Merman was trying to listen underwater once again, he was actually doing something else. He hummed, then opened his mouth as if he was saying the letter 'o' as softly as he could. A frequency traveled through the ocean, connecting him to the fishes that swam by. It was like echolocation, or maybe it resembled someone spreading gossip in the neighborhood. In any case, the frequency allowed Merman to have a rough outline of that portion of Yokohama Port.
And just as he feared, his hunch was right on the money.
It was not one but three submarines, heading to the Yokohama Port!
"Um, Flexor, you checked the files for all the ships arriving by Yokohama today, right?" Flexor asked just to make sure that he wasn't mistaken. It was pretty clear that the submarines weren't in the schedule but Flexor just had to confirm. He wanted to grab onto the sliver of hope that the submarines weren't unexpected.
"Yes, why?"
"Did it mention anything about three submarines? arriving tonight?"
Flexor shook his head.
"Three submarines are heading our way. I don't know what kind of models there are but from the sheer size of them, they could easily house one hundred fifty or so people."
"This is bad. The tip-off was right." Splatoon said. "How many minutes before they arrive?"
"About six to eight minutes."
"Plume, contact all the nearest agencies right now, tell them that Heimdall Agency is requesting their assistance. Call the authorities as well, we're looking at smugglers here, the lot of them." Splatoon ordered.
Plume started sending messages through her phone as soon as Splatoon finished talking. Of course, she contacted Eye-Goddess first before doing anything else. If the worst-case scenario would happen, then at least Heimdall Agency would have time to gather more superheroes to aid the group.
Meanwhile, Satoshi couldn't help but get a feeling of deja vu. Every time he gets involved with an incident, it would always take the wrong turn. Starting from the Slime Alien, for instance, then there were the Gates. It's as if he's a living magnet that only attracts trouble. "So much for plot progression," Satoshi said underneath his breath before standing beside Splatoon. He didn't know what to do so the least he could do was appear attentive in front of everyone.
"What do we do now? Do we engage as soon as they arrive?" Flexor asked, slightly worried. Splatoon still hasn't given a single order on how they'd deal with the smugglers.
"No, I can't have you risking your lives here. I'll do what I can to keep these submarines submerged. It will put a lot of strain on my body but I'll keep them down there and buy us some time until reinforcements arrive." Splatoon said. He knows all too well that keeping them underwater is the safe play because if they ever break out of the water, Splatoon knew he won't be able to seal them up since they might have contingency plans to get out of the submarine. Besides, submerging them back in after he sealed them up would expend more energy.
The reason why he can't really seal them up while they were submerged is that his metal manipulation cannot be directed to metal he cannot see. And even if he could see them, the refraction caused by the water would mess with his aim.
"And you, Satoshi, I want you to assist anyone in any way you can. I know I'm asking something so vague but you're the only one who's got the most resilient superpower here. Fill in all the holes that we left in our strategy."
Satoshi nodded, summoning the Nailgun and Sain just in case.
"Oh, looks like the party has started before we've arrived." A voice suddenly spoke from behind them, causing chills to run down their spine. The voice was unfamiliar, so Splatoon knew in an instant that the one speaking was not on their side.
"Isn't that Splatoon? Wow! I never thought I'd get to see him. We're bigshots now, aren't we?"
"Calm down, Rugrat, we still need to prove it to our boss, then we become bigshots."
"Okay!"
Satoshi and the others didn't have to turn around to realize that a dozen or so villains have already surrounded them.
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