With just one palm attack, Star Spangled garnered the attention of both Tatsuki's party who was defending the Dimensional Portal, and the Japanese Navy who was determined to destroy the Dimensional Portal altogether without considering the livelihood of the people on the other side.
Albeit his attack was to disrupt the infighting, it could be considered a direct confrontation with the Japanese Government. With that, it was easy for other people to misunderstand that Star Spangled was siding with Tatsuki's party even though such wasn't his intention at all.
"Oh, Star Spangled, what brought you here?" Tatsuki casually asked, shaking the hand of a fellow number one superhero.
In response, Star Spangled shook his hands as well as he wore a smirk on his face. "I see you're still as soft as ever, Tatsuki." Star Spangled muttered. "You're still not using your superpower to its full potential. Why? You could easily annihilate this Japanese Navy. Why aren't you doing it?"
"You do know what you're talking about, right?" Tatsuki gritted his teeth. Star Spangled grip on his arm was getting stronger. "This is the country's government we're talking about here. Even if I could, it wouldn't look good if I suddenly go at it against them. Defending the Dimensional Portal is fine since it's a form of self-defense but bringing the fight to them? Either I'm crazy or I'm asking for a death sentence if I were to do that."
Star Spangled was already using his maximum strength enhancement and even applying gravitational pressure on his grip. Still, Tatsuki just wouldn't budge. "Yeah, it's an act of self-defense, you should totally bring the fight to them."
"Look, that's not how it works."
After a couple of seconds of gritting their teeth and exerting unnecessary effort just for a mere handshake, Star Spangled finally let go of Tatsuki's hand. He then confidently floated towards one of the Japanese Navy Battleships where Eugen Hood was located.
As mentioned before, Eugen Hood is Chief of Naval Operations of the Japanese Navy. In other words, he's one of the high-ranking officials who were tasked with commanding the navy. And as proven by his ridiculous superpower, he could actually contend with top heroes despite not being recognized as one since he never affiliated himself with the SAO.
Meanwhile, Eugen Hood, who had been tensely awaiting orders while standing on the deck of the battleship, slightly panicked as he saw Star Spangled slowly float towards the battleship. He didn't know how to react, and moreover, he had no idea whether Star Spangled was hostile or not. And it's not like he could just fire at him willy-nilly. After all, he's the number one superhero of America. Messing with him is pretty much asking America to mess with you. It was a simple equation, really, and it made it easier for Eugen Hood to understand the overall situation in a snap of a finger.
Waiting for Star Spangled to make the first move, Eugen Hood stayed where he was, trying to act unintimidated while gripping the railings out of anxiousness. He gulped, swallowing his nervous saliva while maintaining the poker face he wore. Even though he was shaking in his boots, he chose and managed to stand his ground.
Eugen Hood may be strong, but he knew the gap between him and Star Spangled and that's why he didn't act all high and mighty as he approached.
Ring. Ring.
Ring.
Rummaging through his pockets, Eugen Hood finally found his phone which suddenly started ringing. It was a call from a higher-up so he immediately answered, temporarily averting his focus from the approaching Star Spangle to the phone call at hand.
"Yes?"
"Chief Eugen, don't engage." The voice on the other side of the line spoke as concisely and as clearly. There was nothing Eugen Hod could do but say yes in response before he listened to the rest of the call.
"Also destroying the Dimensional Portal is a futile venture. We weren't expecting Midoriyama Tatsuki to go against us, not to mention that Star Spangled is also here. It would in our benefit if we withdraw. We're receiving quite the backlash from the people as well."
"Yes, sir," Eugen Hood muttered before he heard a resounding click which ended the phone call.
Once he brought down the phone and hastily put it in his pockets, Star Spangled arrived, floating down towards the railings and standing on top of it. He didn't have to do something so unnecessary but it did the trick of showing off to everyone, which intimidated them in the process. Long story short, Eugen Hood wasn't the only one who froze in place.
"Eugen Hood, correct?" Star Spangled extended his hand so he could shake it.
Eugen Hood nodded and obliged with the handshake. His legs had turned into jelly now but he didn't show his nervousness on his expression.
"So, why is there a civil war in Japan on my arrival?" Star Spangled asked. "Is your contact around? I'd like to speak with him."
"I'm afraid that's not possible sir. And also, there seems to be a misunderstanding." Eugen Hood spoke with a stiff tone to his voice. "I was already told to withdraw since the higher-ups have changed their minds."
"I see, and why exactly did they start this in the process?" Star Spangled sat on the railings with a comfortable expression on his face. "You see... I received some intel from the higher-ups as well. You wanna know why the Japanese Government is keen on destroying the Dimensional Portal?"
For the second time, Eugen Hood gulped. He could feel bloodlust emanating from the Star Spangled as he brought his face closer to him. Star Spangled was already intimidating enough for Eugen Hood but now it was an altogether different feeling. Eugen Hood felt like he was about to be swallowed whole.
"It's not like they're afraid of an invasion..."
"They're afraid of someone, the cowards they are." Star Spangled emphasized, grabbing Eugen Hood by the collar.
Foll𝑜w current novℯls on fre𝒆web(n)ovel.co(m)