Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the My Hero Academia or Bleach universe, I'm just borrowing them.
Chapter 14
"Yes, I see … no, I have no problem going … Aizawa?" Nedzu's beady eyes looked at the underground hero who stared boldly back at the principal. "I'll have to ask him … he is busy with the second years you know … yes, a whole class again … yes, I understand and will ask her … good-bye Gran I'll ask Toshinori to call you later."
Nedzu put the phone back on its cradle with a small 'click'.
"You didn't tell him," Aizawa said looking at the high specs users with disapproval. "The longer you leave this the angrier he'll get."
"True," Nedzu hummed paws making their way to the now lukewarm tea. "If not for Chiyo's discovery I very well would have told them right away. However, telling them everything we found now before gathering all the facts would lead to larger problems later."
"What that one of the most dangerous villains in the past few years is pregnant?" Aizawa asked. "Or the other thing she found."
Nedzu didn't answer right away choosing to take a sip of his tea instead. "And just how is young Todoroki doing?"
The underground hero huffed in annoyance. "He's recruited the Problem Child into whatever plan he's been concocting. I've tried to figure it out but so far most of what they've been researching is on their phones and the only way I can get close enough to eavesdrop on them is if I scaled down the side of the dorms and hope no one notices me."
"What about backtracking Dabi's crimes?" Nedzu asked opening the folder that Aizawa had placed on his desk, it was painfully thin and most of the information started up around the same time as when Bakugou was kidnapped.
"It's like she was invisible," Aizawa replied pulling out a single piece of paper from the file and showing them to the principal. "The only crimes that come close to her MO when a building was torched. Though I did discover that not to long after being hospitalized for an 'accident' Tatsuo's Todoroki's ex-boyfriend was murdered, burned to death if you can believe it."
"Sōsuke Aizen, I remember him," Nedzu spoke pulling out the deceased students' file from his desk. "What I did know however I did not like."
Aizawa frowned and pulled the old file towards him. "What do you mean?"
"Well I couldn't prove it the boy was more dangerous then he let on," Nedzu spoke bluntly recalling management student with a deep frown. "Aside from my own instincts, I suspected that he attempted to hack into our hero records several times though I could never prove it."
Aizawa's eyebrows shot up in surprise, trying to hack any of the schools records was immediate grounds for expulsion when Nedzu figured out who it was, and he always found out who it was.
However, if Nedzu was correct in his assumptions then this meant that this Aizen boy was able to cover his tracks not just once but several times before either giving up or most likely been forced to out of the necessity of the principal catching him.
"Clearly we've been going about this the wrong way," Nedzu said frowning as he looked at the files. "I think its time that you contacted him."
"Asking Gi-"
"I am well aware of the risk," Nedzu interrupted frowning deeply as he spared Tatsuo's school picture a small glance. "But we've run out of time, the dinner between us and the League is fast approaching and if we have any hope of saving that baby, we have to make bold moves to do so."
"And what about Dabi?" Aizawa asked noticing the principal made no mention of the mother.
Nedzu gave the underground hero a very serious look.
*Giran's Office*
Giran crossed off another name from his list and took off his glasses rubbing the bridge of his nose and sighing deeply. The mother who Dabi helped got arrested three years ago for abuse seems to have died in prison meaning she hadn't taken the cremation user.
Another name crossed out, another dead-end hit.
Giran was starting to lose a little bit more of his mind with every dead-end he hit. Dabi could be anywhere and Giran didn't know if she was alive or dead, but he was still better off than the others, he actually had names and faces to go by. The League of Villains had been going after every criminal they could get their hands on, from the lowliest pickpocket to the biggest gangs only to come up empty-handed.
Shigaraki's neck looked permanently bloody from all the scratching. Kurogiri and Mr. Compress were drinking themselves into an early grave. Jin couldn't be left alone for long periods before he started making clone after clone of the cremation user alternating between screaming at her to tell him where she was and profusely apologizing.
Himiko and Spinner by far were the worst off though, each looked at Dabi like an older sister, especially in the wake Magne's death and were cutting bloody paths through the criminal underworld trying to find her.
The League of Villains was again slowly buckling under the weight of their own powerlessness again like when Magne was killed. Only this time there was no Overhaul for them to direct their rage at, only a faceless enemy and a picture showing Dabi in a nondescript room wearing white nightgown brazenly flipping off the said kidnapper.
Fearing the worst after receiving no more communications Mr. Compress cautiously approached Giran with a plan to use the heroes and police to aid them in their search. It was a bit of a Hail Mary but Giran eventually relented knowing that there were some resources they didn't have access to and places they couldn't get into that their enemies could.
Getting up to make himself a drink Giran tried not to let his thoughts go to the darker side of his imagination as a small voice whispered to him that Hawks and his bosses might be involved in Dabi's disappearance.
Turning around to go make his way back to his desk Giran was met with familiar yellow goggled eyes as Eraserhead hung just outside his window hand poised and ready to knock on the glass.
Putting his drink down Giran wordlessly opened the window and let the underground hero inside quickly scanning the roofs and alleyway for potential backup before locking it behind him.
"To what do I owe this visit Eraserhead."
The underground hero lifted his goggles. "You weren't answering my calls."
"I've been busy," Giran said walking back over to the bar and pouring more bourbon into his glass. "Whatever criminal you need information on you'll have to -"
"Dabi," Aizawa interrupted noticing that Giran's posture suddenly went straight and he looked at the underground hero with a look Aizawa had never seen on the other man, hope. "I know you work with the League of Villains Giran; I know it was you most likely introduced her to them -"
Giran sneered at the accusation. "Prove it."
"I'm not here to argue about this with you," Aizawa growled knowing that like many times before he had no way of proving Giran's connection to any of this. "You know I have no proof but at least don't lie straight to my face about it."
"Fine," Giran said slamming the bottle a little too harshly back on the bar. "If we're speaking hypothetically then yes, I know Dabi and yes perhaps I introduced her to the League. What does this have to do with you hero?"
Aizawa could smell the alcohol of Giran's breath already having noticed a couple of empty bottles in the trash can next to the bar. "I know you, you're to careful to let a stranger like Dabi work for you without doing a thorough background check which means you know the same thing about her that I do."
Giran took a large sip of the alcohol nearly finishing the glass as he did and calling what he hoped was a bluff. "And what's that?"
"That Dabi is really Tatsuo Todoroki."
Silence permeated the office for a moment before the glass in Giran's hands shattered under the pressure of his mechanical fingers. The broker barely flinched at the blood and alcohol now dripping from his hand well Aizawa sighed and pulled out the small first aid kit from his belt.
Once he had it laid out on the desk the underground hero sat in one of the two chairs and waited. It didn't take long for the broker to robotically move and sit in the opposite chair removing his gloves and showing the underground hero his new metal digits.
Aizawa just raised an eyebrow at them and wisely chose not to say anything instead grabbing the tweezers and getting started pulling out the glass noticing for the first time just how tired Giran looked.
Ever since they two had first met and started this little arrangement of Giran giving Shouta information on criminals so that the hero could arrest his competition Giran had always kept his appearance immaculate. Now there were noticeable dark rings under his eyes and he looked like he had slept in his suit more then a few times.
"How did you find out?" Giran asked hissing slightly as the chunks of glass were pulled from of his hand.
"We found her apartment and took DNA from it," Aizawa replied grabbing the disinfectant spray. "Once we gave it to Recovery Girl it didn't take long for her to find three matches in the U.A. database."
"Bet Nedzu's fur turned a paler shade of white when he found out who she was," Giran grunted trying not to curse the hero when he gave the cuts a liberal spray from the stinging liquid. "Dabi always liked him for some reason."
Shouta filed that information away intending on asking Nedzu himself later. "Where is she?"
Giran looked at Aizawa, pink eyes boring into dark ones. "Missing, we're looking for her."
"And throwing the country into chaos as you do," Aizawa frowned pulling the last glass shard free. "Why didn't you ask for my help."
Giran gave a short bitter laugh at this. "Because we aren't friends Aizawa, hell we aren't even acquaintances. We're just two people who use each other to get what we want."
Shouta frowned but couldn't deny the words he actually had been trying to have Giran arrested since the first time they met. Well, he understood that the broker walked a very fine line with hero's and villains that didn't take away from the fact that Giran himself was dangerous.
"And I suppose you worked as All for One's equal." Eraserhead deadpanned pouring more disinfectant on the cuts before he started wrapping the hand up.
"Funny you should mention Sensei," Giran said pulling out a cigarette and lighting it looking thoughtful as he did. "I never got his thing to young Tomura until I met Dabi."
Aizawa tensed for a moment and watched Giran take a deep drag of his cigarette puffing out a plume of smoke. "That girl, she's smarter than me and a hell of a lot more fearless too. Watching her grow into makes me proud and depressed at the same time."
"Depressed?" Aizawa echoed looking confused.
"Dabi could be have been anything after what happened to her, I mean Endeavor did declare her dead if you haven't realized. I would have given her any position in my organization or helped her disappear," Giran spoke remembering how at first he had looked at the eldest Todoroki like a game piece to save for a rainy day encase he ever got caught only to have her grow on him as time went by. "But the only thing she wanted was that flaming bastard six feet under so that her family was safe."
Aizawa thought back to what Nedzu said before he left his office to come here.
"When Dabi is found our only concern is that baby, we need to make sure it survives no matter what. If we fail Dabi in this I can promise you that she and the rest of the League of Villains will make Kamino Ward look like a playground squabble."
*Notes*
I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG!
Hard truth I work two jobs which I'm sure you know already if you been reading my notes but here's the thing after the holidays a good number of our employees were let go. Long story short I now work over 12 hours most days going between the two and am exhausted.
Luckily, or unluckily, I got sick and decided to use the opportunity to give you my faithful readers the next chapter in the story so please tell me what you think.
Comments/ Reviews feed the writer and the writer enjoys knowing what people think of her story, it feeds her ego and right now I am so stressed that I need that.
I welcome positive and constructive criticism but no flamers, you try and burn me and I will pull out an extinguisher that would permanently shut down Endeavor and don't think I won't.