Nezu slammed his paws into the table in frustration. He had just heard the news, and he was absolutely livid with himself. Chatora had called the emergency services, and it didn't take too long for the fire in the forest to be put out, and for the students to be sent to the hospital. Muscular, Mustard, and Moonfish had been arrested, but Nezu didn't give a shit about that.
Who cared if the villains were arrested!? They had taken his kid and no one had any idea where the fuck they had brought him.
The camp was supposed to be safe. He had sent Midoriya to the camp specifically to avoid a situation like this.
And yet, he had been taken as the main target of the villains' raid.
He pressed his head against the table, as tears formed in his eyes.
If he hadn't sent Midoriya to participate in the training camp, this wouldn't have happened. One pro hero missing, and one seriously injured. Fifteen students unconscious from the gas, twelve injured, and one missing.
He had failed once when the USJ had been attacked the second time.
And he had failed once again.
Midoriya slowly opened his eyes, but his vision remained black. He moved his arms experimentally, and was surprised to find that he could move them, but there was something cold around them, and there was a clanking sound as he did so. He tried to move his head, feeling some weight on it as he did so. There was definately something blocking his vision, and there was also something pressing uncomfortably against his jaw, preventing him from opening his mouth.
"Midoriya Izuku."
He strained his ears to figure out what was going on; he couldn't see, he couldn't move, all he could smell and taste was his own blood, he could rely only on his hearing at this point in time.
"So, he's the one that you suspect to have some of anti-death quirk?"
It was a voice that Midoriya didn't recognise.
"Yes, Sensei."
Ahh... that was Shigaraki for sure. He recognised that malicious, deranged aura.
A man took a step towards him, before he could hear the faintest sound of a door being opened.
His heart hammered in his chest.
Where was he?
He felt someone pressing a hand against his forehead, and a phantom feeling of something inside poking around, looking for something in him. He felt something else, something sifting through his thoughts, invading his personal privacy.
The hand let go of him.
"Interesting... You're right, Tomura. He does have a quirk. He can keep it." The unknown voice continued, "Do whatever you like with him."
"You're not going to take his quirk?" Shigaraki asked.
"It won't be beneficial to us." The unknown voice replied, before Midoriya heard some footsteps that grew softer and softer, but he was still there in the room; Midoriya could sense that.
"Huh. Hello, Void." Shigaraki's voice rang out, pressing all five fingers against his shoulder, slowly disintegrating it, "We have a lot to talk about."
Midoriya could feel his skin peeling off, exposing the blood vessels and muscles beneath, and in one quick movement, he leaned forwards, and shoved his forehead where he assumed Shigaraki's face was. A loud bang rang out, before another sound of something hitting the ground, before there was a harsh sound of someone hitting what seemed to be metal bars.
"Feisty..." The unknown voice muttered, echoing about; Midoriya could tell that he was currently in a pretty small room.
"Why you..." Shigaraki growled, "I would really like to get back at you for that, but there's some stuff I have to do first. You're going to be here a while, don't get too comfortable."
The villain let go of his shoulder, before standing up, slamming what sounded like a metal door shut.
Midoriya shook his head, trying to get rid of the dizziness, before slumping back against the wall.
He needed to save as much energy as he could, if he wanted to get out.
Shinsou turned back to the couch in the dorms, before speaking, "Reiko, Ryuto, Dad's driving me to the hospital again... you guys want to come?"
He had moved into the dorms before everyone else, since his parents were also teachers, and he had also been taking care of Reiko and Ryuto since Midoriya was also living in the dorms. Midoriya's collar was in his pocket, and even though Shinsou did not feel that he deserved to have it, Reiko had insisted that he keep it.
According to her, with Koda's translations, Midoriya had given it to him for safekeeping, because he trusted him enough to do so, and Shinsou wasn't going to break that little bit of trust that Midoriya had placed in him.
There was no response, and Shinsou looked into Midoriya's room, only to find it empty.
"Reiko? Ryuto?"
Shinsou looked all over the dorms, in the empty rooms, the kitchens, everywhere, but there wasn't even a single feather or a strand of fur anywhere. He was worried; the cat and hawk had barely eaten since Midoriya's kidnapping, and only ate the smallest bit if Shinsou coaxed them.
Though... come to think of it... they did finish all their food last night for some odd reason...
Where were they?
Shinsou hastily grabbed his phone, and dialed Aizawa, "Dad... they're gone. Both Reiko and Ryuto..."
"Hitoshi, calm down. They're probably somewhere in the building, so don't worry. They can't open doors on their own. I'll bring you to the hospital, and I'll tell Nezu so that he can come and check, alright?"
Shinsou wearily agreed, before making his way out of the dorms and towards the car.
The ride to the hospital didn't take too long. He had been injured, but like many of the others, they were just minor cuts and bruises that didn't need too much attention.
Most of the 1-B students were awake, luckily, since the gas had been quite a fair distance away from the forest they were using for their activity, but Shiozaki, Bondo and Kaibara were still out cold. Yaoyorozu was also still in the hospital from being hit in the head, but she was conscious, and Shinsou was currently heading in the direction of her room; he had been there the previous day with Uraraka and Todoroki, before the police had come to speak with her.
He found the door, and push it open.
"Does this mean you're going to have her make another receiver?"
"What if it does?"
"This is something we should leave to the pros! This isn't the place for us to act, you idiots!"
Shinsou blinked, "What's going on?"
Uraraka turned to face Shinsou, "We went to visit Yaoyorozu yesterday... and when you went to the bathroom during the questioning, she told us she had placed a tracker on the Nomu they encountered and she can create a device that can receive its signal. We were thinking -"
"Todoroki! This is going to end up like that incident with Stain all over again!" Iida yelled.
"Please... quiet down..." Yaoyorozu spoke up, sitting on her hospital bed, "This isn't the place for you all to be yelling."
"I know that, but you weren't there." Todoroki muttered, barely loud enough for everyone to hear, "Midoriya was focused on protecting Bakugou and I... he literally fought to the point where he couldn't even move. He did everything in his power to save us, and I couldn't even do a thing when he needed us the most!"
Todoroki looked up at Iida.
"Midoriya saved us from Stain, and from the League twice. He risked his life over and over for us, and now that he's gone, we can't even repay him that favour!? You want us to just stand back?"
"Iida is right." Asui spoke up, "We don't have the strength or the power to help. Even Midoriya... he had the experience of being a vigilante and knows how to deal with situations like this."
"You're all right." Shinsou spoke up, pushing himself to the front, and turned to look at Todoroki and Uraraka, "But I don't care. Count me in."
Iida's face fell, "Shinsou! You can't just -"
"You weren't the only ones that Midoriya saved." Shinsou glanced at Iida, "If it weren't for him... I wouldn't be here. I'm going to go help him because that's exactly what he did for me six years ago; helping someone he didn't even know when he didn't have to."
"Wait... so you want Yaomomo to make a receiver, follow it, and save Midoriya?" Ashido asked.
"I think that's the plan?" Shinsou scratched his head.
"They weren't actually after Bakugou and I... they just said that to lure Midoriya away so they could take him down." Todoroki added, "I don't think they want to kill him, but we all know how deranged Shigaraki is... he could just snap and decide to kill Midoriya any time. Shinsou, Uraraka and I are going."
"Don't go overboard with your messing around." Iida snapped, but Shoji stepped in, "You weren't there, Iida... Midoriya literally fought until his body couldn't handle the strain. I understand their frustration of having Midoriya stolen from right in front of them. I'm frustrated too... we all are... but we can't let our anger get the better of us. It's just like Midoriya said to Dark Shadow; we can't let our anger consume us and make rash decisions."
"We should leave this to the heroes... plus... Aizawa's order for us to use our quirks was only for the duration of the raid." Aoyama stammered.
"Aoyama is right. I can't say much since I needed saving as well, though." Tokoyami sighed, and Asui spoke up, "We're all shocked from Midoriya's kidnapping, but let's think this through calmly. No matter how you feel, if you say that you want to fight and break the rules... those are the same acts as those of a villain."
"You don't get it."
Everyone turned to Shinsou, as he clenched his fists tightly.
"You don't get it. You'll never get it! Midoriya never fought for himself. He fought Muscular for Kota. He fought the League for Bakugou and Todoroki! You guys won't understand cause you've all got awesome quirks... you don't know what years of abuse and suicide baiting can do to a person!"
"Shinsou?" Uraraka asked worriedly.
"Midoriya doesn't do anything for himself! He didn't care about his life when he went in to fight Muscular, or the rest of the League! He was willing to die there for Kota! He was ready to fight to the death to protect us! He was fully prepared to die if it meant we got out unharmed!" Shinsou growled, "He keeps breaking himself over and over again, and he thinks it's okay for him to get hurt for us! You can't just expect me to sit back knowing that he's willing to throw his life away so easily, because he thinks so lowly of himself!"
The door opened, and a doctor poked his head in, interrupting the ongoing argument, "Uh... I would like to check up on Yaoyorozu?"
"Ah... okay... we should leave..." Sero pointed out, and Yaoyorozu lifted her head, "Alright. I would like to speak with Todoroki, Shinsou, Uraraka, and Iida for a second."
The rest of 1-A nodded, and exited the room, leaving the five students standing by Yaoyorozu's hospital bed. She paused, and took a deep breath, "Heroes started out as vigilantes too."
"Yaomomo?" Uraraka frowned, but Yaoyorozu continued, "Vigilantes break the law, using their quirks to save people as well. The earliest heroes started out as vigilantes."
"Yaoyorozu, you can't be serious -"
"I am, Iida... on one condition." Yaoyorozu looked up at the class representative, "The law states that you cannot use your quirk to harm others, but they can be used in self defence. Your quirks can only be used to protect Midoriya, not to attack villains. No fighting. We'll save Midoriya while toeing the line on the rules. Only then, will I agree to help you. Do you agree to my terms?"
"Sensei... I have a question."
All for One looked up at Shigaraki, "Yes, Tomura?"
"I don't understand... he has a quirk that doesn't let him die... and while you do have a quirk that allows you to be immortal, you're not immune to being killed on the battlefield." Shigaraki pointed out. "I would have killed that boy long before the Nomu should have been in the picture, and yet, he killed it. It's clearly somewhat useful."
"Tomura," All for One reached out his hand, and placed it on Shigaraki's shoulder, "I have several reasons for not taking his quirk, and it not being useful to your cause being one of it."
"Then... you have some kind of plan?" Shigaraki asked hesitantly.
"Of course." All for One replied, "Like I told you before; do whatever you want with him. He can most definitely take it. In fact, if you want to, you can get your little band of friends to play with him as well."
Shigaraki frowned, as All for One continued, "Midoriya, or Void, as you prefer to call him, won't die. He can't die, and his suffering can only get worse. Do you know why I suggested to keep him in a different building, away from the hideout?"
"Because he's bleeding and he'll make the hideout dirty? And if the heroes come and try to take use out and save him, they won't find him here." Shigaraki asked, and All for One laughed, "Smart boy. Those, among other reasons. The main reason is that we can use him to take down the hero society as a whole."
"Really?"
"Tomura, think about it. UA, one of the best hero schools in the world, allowing a student to get kidnapped on what was supposed to be a safe, secure camp; that would shake the entire world, and make them lose trust in the heroes. And imagine; if the public finds out that the heroes, probably the best few in Japan, tried to save him, and failed, the trust that the public has in heroes would just fall even more."
"So..." Shigaraki's eyes glinted, catching on to the plan, "You want us to break Void. He won't die... and he'll slowly lose faith... even he'll stop trusting that the heroes will find him. But the heroes will find him eventually... and Void will blame them for letting him suffer and for not saving him earlier. That's why you also want Void's status as quirkless to be revealed at the press conference... the mass media outbreak will completely destroy Void's faith in the society of heroes, and break him even further."
"Exactly." All for One nodded; his boy was catching on quick, he was really proud of him.
Shigaraki grinned menacingly, "Those heroes... they think they're all so perfect, that they have to follow the rules and keep everyone safe... Void won't die... the heroes will find him eventually... and the guilt for not being able to prevent him from getting hurt so badly to the point where he should be dead... it will eat them from the inside out."
"I got it... UA's press conference is in a few days." Shigaraki spoke up, "They're most likely to try and take him back then, assuming that we're distracted with watching the trust the public has in heroes crumble. I'll tell Kurogiri to be on the lookout. They may target the Nomy factory too, but I don't think they know where it is."
"I'll take care of that; don't worry about it." All for One pat Shigaraki's head, "That other pro is inside as well... they can't be too reckless. Now, rest up, I'm sure you have some things planned for our little guest."
"To have a student kidnapped is UA's greatest failure." Snipe sighed, "They have stolen the trust people had in us heroes, along with Midoriya. And for him to be the same person that had gotten injured in that attack on UA... the news outlets are filled with criticism of UA right now."
"Midoriya had thwarted both the League's initial attack on the USJ and the secondary attack on UA." Nezu seethed, "It's no wonder that Shigaraki holds a grudge against him for that. We were complacent, and assumed that the camp would be safe."
Kayama nodded. Nezu had informed them that Shigaraki and specifically sought Midoriya out during their shopping trip, and they had all agreed that Midoriya should go on the camp. Midoriya's kidnapping wasn't just Nezu's fault; it was all their faults.
"We need to guarantee the safety of our students." Nezu stated, trying to push his emotions away, "The dorms are built, and we should have the students stay in UA."
Yagi lifted his head, and spoke up, "I just talked with Tsukauchi. He has stated that there has been an unexpected development. They have determined the location of the League's hideout, and Yaoyorozu had apparently placed a tracker on a Nomu, so we also know where they are being stored."
"So we can go save him." Ishiyama replied.
"Yes." Yagi nodded, "The police force is currently asking other pro heroes for their cooperation on this, and Tsukauchi mentioned that they may need Present Mic and Midnight's help, as well as mine."
"But Aizawa has to be present for the press conference." Kan pointed out, "If Aizawa doesn't show up, the public would lose even more trust in UA."
"We'll focus on the details later." Nezu stated. "Present Mic, Midnight, All Might, all of you take care and be ready in case you really get called in."
He was also worried. He had checked in the dorms, and all over the campus with the aid with the teachers, but Reiko and Ryuto weren't anywhere in UA at all. There had been a mini-blackout in the night, while everyone was asleep, but that was the last time they had been seen, sitting on Midoriya's bed.
He really hoped they were all okay.
"We have gathered some of our finest heroes here. Now.. let us begin our strategy meeting." Tsukauchi started. "We currently have two places of interest. One, the League of Villain's hideout, and two, the Nomu Warehouse. Both places are located in buildings that are supposed to be empty, so we can strike."
"The pup is quirkless, so I really doubt that they will be trying to use him to make a Nomu." Chatora stated, "He fights well; they may be trying to turn him into a villain."
Most of the heroes were somewhat aware of Midoriya's quirkless status. Nishiya and Takeyama knew about it from the previous USJ incident, Kamihara had heard it from Shinsou during his internship, and Torino knew about Midoriya from Yagi. Enji had known through Todoroki, while Hakamata and Sakamata only knew about Midoriya because Nezu liked to talk about him.
"What use could he be? He doesn't have a bloody quirk." Enji snapped.
"Quirk discrimination." Kayama stated, "As far as we've known, Midoriya's suffered from quirk discrimination. They might be trying to use that and turn him against us."
"Whatever the reason, I think we all agree that Midoriya won't be at the Nomu Warehouse, and that he'll be in the main hideout." Tsukachi nodded, "Now... for Ragdoll... her quirk is useful for keeping track of people, so she's probably at the Nomu Warehouse."
"So, one hostage per building. We should proceed with caution." Kamihara dryly said.
"We should have All Might, Gran Torino, Kamui Woods and Edgeshot take the main hideout." One man suggested, "All Might can easily power through the villains, Edgeshot can take the teleporter, Kurogiri, out before they can escape, and Kamui Woods can easily restrain them. Gran Torino and Midnight can easily knock them out, and the boy in question has trust issues; a friendly face might be good to calm him down."
"I should go too." Enji growled.
"According to the reports... they brought three Nomus to the training camp. It's very possible that they may have more. The police will be standing guard in Kamino, and with so many people, we're bound to be a target. If they do decide to send the Nomus at us, you're quirk will be perfect to prevent them from regenerating." Tsukauchi stated, "Present Mic, you too. You're quirk can prevent the Nomu's from getting any new orders."
Yamada and Enji nodded, the later very much reluctantly.
"Tiger can infiltrate the Nomu Warehouse and rescue Ragdoll. Mt Lady can then destroy the warehouse with all the Nomus inside, while Best Jeanist and Gang Orca can take down any active Nomus and any other villains, if they are inside." Another man suggested, and Tsukauchi nodded.
"Alright, that's the plan. Any disagreements? If there aren't, then you're dismissed. Just rest until we move out."
Tsukauchi watched as the heroes exited the meeting room, as Yagi stopped right in front of him.
"What if... it's really him?" Yagi whispered, and Tsukauchi just pat him on the back.
"Don't worry about it. If we have to, we'll call Aizawa; the police and hero commission will take full responsibility for disrupting the press conference."
"And now, please watch a clip from UA High School's apology press conference that just occured!"
"Oh... it started..." Yaoyorozu muttered, pulling her classmates along to one of the televisions in Kamino. Nezu, Aizawa and Kan were standing up, but Nezu was so short that only his head could be seen from behind the table.
"Aizawa-sensei and Vlad King-sensei... and even the principal..." Uraraka gasped.
"We deeply apologise for the incident that allowed harm to come to twenty eight first years of our hero course due to being unprepared. We apologise for causing unease in society due to our negligence in properly defending ourselves as a place of learning. We are truly sorry."
Kan, Aizawa, and Nezu all bowed, and Kirishima stammered, "Even... Aizawa-sensei?"
"I'm from Yomiuri Television! This isn't the first time that this so-called League has targeted UA, and not only were there were even more students injured, the same boy who had gotten injured in the second attack on UA is the one that got kidnapped. How are you going to explain this to their parents, and what specific countermeasures are you taking?"
"We will increase policing in the surrounding area, and review the security within the school, ensuring the students' safety with a strong position. That is what we told them." Nezu stated.
"What bullshit. They're not being protected at all." One man said.
"Hero schools aren't usually defeated by villains..."
"How's that supposed to ensure anything?"
"Shit... this is bad..." Yaoyorozu mumbled.
"How can they say things like that? It isn't like UA wanted to be attacked..." Uraraka was close to tears.
Another reporter stood up.
"We've overheard some students claiming to be Midoriya Izuku's old classmates... stating that Midoriya, the missing student in question, is in fact, quirkless."
Shinsou bit his lip.
Shit... now everyone knows...
"Quirkless? And that kid beat Todoroki? What a farce." A man laughed, and Todoroki internally seethed. Not because he was beaten, but because they never saw how hard Midoriya worked, how determined he was, and just assumed that he sucked.
The reporter continued, "And apparently, he's managed to beat very promising students from the Hero Course, such as Kamakiri Togaru, Bakugou Katsuki and Todoroki Shouto, who possess quirks that far surpass him in strength and power, despite being from the General Education course where they have no lessons on fighting at all. What does this have to say about the lessons that the Hero Course are receiving?"
"Exactly! How is a quirkless kid supposed to keep up with people with quirks?"
Yaoyorozu took a step back, "I... didn't know... that they thought so badly of the quirkless..."
"Midoriya is a very hardworking child, and he's very intelligent. He is able to analyse his situation well and make appropriate decisions in order to defeat his peers." Aizawa stated calmly, "Analysis is a skill that can be learnt and taught, but it does come easier for some people. It isn't a quirk, but it is a very useful tool that we are also teaching our aspiring heroes."
Another reporter spoke up, "There has been no such thing as a quirkless hero as we're all aware that they don't have any powers, like everyone else. Is that, by chance, the reason why -"
"Are you implying that we let them take him because he's quirkless?" Aizawa growled, and Kan also turned to glare at the reporter.
"No..." The reporter stammered, "But everyone knows that he can't be a hero -"
"No buts." Much to everyone's surprise, the most civilized of the trio, Nezu, stood up on his chair and hissed, "Midoriya has worked very hard, much harder than his peers to make up for his lack of a quirk. We don't know much about his past, but he's been pushing and training himself in order to keep up with his classmates. Just because he's quirkless, you looked past all the hard work that Midoriya put into his training!"
"That doesn't just mean that he can -"
Nezu continued, "Listen to yourselves. What if the villains are letting Midoriya listen, letting him watch this right now?"
All the reporters at the press conference promptly clammed up.
"What if he can see just how little you believe in him?" Nezu spoke up, breaking the silence, "What if he can see just how little people care about him?"
"Are you suggesting that the villains can win him over?" One brave reporter shakily asked.
"Midoriya's heart is too big; there's no way he'd turn to the villains side." Nezu growled, hopping to the ground. "I suggest that you think about your next questions carefully. We will not tolerate any more questions about Midoriya. This press conference is supposed to be about how UA will deal with the current influx in villains, not to badmouth Midoriya behind his back on whether or not he can be a hero because of his lack of a quirk."
"Come on. Jiro said that she'll record it for us." Yaoyorozu muttered, as a receiver emerged from her palm, "We don't have time to waste. Let's go save Midoriya."