The moment Nezu saw Endeavor's request for Midoriya's internship in front of his desk, he knew his original plan had fallen to pieces. Though Nighteye commanded a lot of respect as the former sidekick of the number one hero, his rankings paled in comparison to the likes of Best Jeanist and Edgeshot. Though he could use his leverage as principal to force Midoriya to intern with Nighteye, it would draw unwanted attention.
That was why he had his closest staff in his private meeting room, along with Nighteye on video chat. Nighteye looked baggy-eyed and haggard as he droned into his microphone. "I still intend to make my request. Quirk or no Quirk, his performance was exceptional, and though he has some idea of how to work a crowd, his personality needs work that I can help him with."
"I appreciate the offer, but the Hero Commission is getting involved." Nezu slapped Hawks' request on the table. "They called me into a meeting to discuss this year's internships."
"Which they have never done before," Aizawa said dryly.
"Exactly. So, unless I can put an extraordinary offer on the table, the Hero Commission will either scrutinize Midoriya closely, and perhaps discover the same thing we did, or sweep him under the rug to keep him from challenging the status quo."
"I haven't seen anything that Midoriya has done to make them upset," Hound Dog said. "Everything on his social media is polite and supportive of heroes."
"It's what he represents that's the problem, but we can talk about that later. First, Yagi-san, since Nighteye doesn't have the ranking to call dibs on Midoriya, I'll need you to take him on as an intern."
"Me?" Yagi asked. "But I hardly do hero work these days."
"You'll be doing more over the summer. If Midoriya goes with you, I'll see if he has somewhere in particular he would like to patrol."
"Are you sure that's wise?" Nighteye asked. "So far, any attempt to decipher what path his Quirk will take has misled us."
"If I don't make conditions as favorable for Midoriya-kun as possible, he will make more favorable conditions. I suspect that, like a flowing river, his Quirk takes the path of least resistance to his desired destination."
"I see. How do you plan on involving me then?"
"It wouldn't be so out of place for All Might's former sidekick to pay him a visit, now would it?"
"And during those times you want me to work with him. I'll do what I can, but I'm busy with-"
"Help me out with this and I'll look into the Shie Hassaikai on your behalf."
"Deal." He glanced over at Yagi, who flinched under his stare. "Will we also be discussing One for All?"
"Why not?" Nezu said cheerfully. "Yagi-san, have you found a successor yet?"
"Well… no. No one at the sports festival caught its interest. I felt like Midoriya-kun would make a great choice, but it still said no."
"There you have it. Do you have any other questions, Mirai-san?"
"I suppose not," Nighteye growled. "I'll keep in touch."
The video call cut off, leaving Nezu with his staff. Hound Dog glanced around the room and asked, "Is there anything else we need to do?"
"Nothing at the moment. I just wanted to touch base with you all in case you had anything new to share. Shuzenji-san, how were his vitals during the tournament?"
"Strained, but nowhere near as bad as during the USJ incident. I'd say he left himself barely enough to stay awake through the awards, as he fell asleep immediately afterwards."
"Thoughts, on his behavior, Inui-san?"
Hound Dog scratched at the back of his head. "Nearly impossible to get a read on that kid. Six therapy sessions with him did next to nothing. I advise taking a break from it for now, give him the chance to come on his own instead of forcing it on him."
"Fair enough. Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules. Our next meeting is at 3PM the day before the next school year starts. I'll contact you all if there is an emergency or a cancellation."
Once they all left, Nezu stayed behind with a cup of tea. About fifteen minutes later, Power Loader made his way into the room.
"You wanted to see me, Nezu-san?" he asked. His scoop-like arms clunked solidly on the table as he sat down.
"Remember that incident with Midoriya-kun's hero outfit?"
"Course I do. Not every day a mix-up like that happens." He cocked his head. "You want me to look into it?"
"Exactly. I'd like you to audit their outfit designs and handling records. See if you can spot any other irregularities."
"Will do, sir. Did you send them a notice for their audit?"
"It's at 10AM on Monday."
"In two days? What's the rush?"
"I'd like to get this matter dealt with before we order the outfits for next year. If there are any problems that come up, it'll give me plenty of time to find a solution. I'd hate to have a more serious incident when we have a much larger batch to work through."
Power Loader scratched at his head with the excavator claws on his hands. "Yeah, guess it's better to just get it out of the way. Alright then, I'll take care of the audit. Give 'em the old third degree and see how much we can fine them, eh?"
"Make note of which outfits are potentially compromised as well. I'd like to thoroughly examine each one."
Power Loader's brow furrowed. "How serious do you think this is?"
"I don't expect to find anything, but it never hurts to be thorough."
"Well, alright then. I'll have the report on your desk when I get back."
"I look forward to it. Thank you for your time."
Once Power Loader was gone, Nezu went back to his personal office. A quick change of clothes into his nicest suit and a cup of his strongest black tea preceded the trip to the Hero Commission. Considering that there had yet to be any legislation around animals driving vehicles, Nezu needed Aizawa to drive him to his destination. He could've chosen anyone else, but only Aizawa was considerate enough to wear a scarf sufficiently bulky to serve as a personal chair and hammock.
The Hero Commission met in a tight-walled conference room with security that rivaled his own. A couple minor pro heroes stood guard outside the door as the commission's executives waited for Nezu's arrival. No chair was built to accommodate Nezu's smaller stature, a statement so hackneyed and overdone it gave the principal the urge to roll his eyes, so he kept his seat in Aizawa's scarf. It was more comfortable than the solid wood chairs anyways.
"You're late," one executive grumbled.
"I apologize for the delay. As principal of this nation's most prestigious hero academy, I often find myself exceedingly busy, even during summer."
"Well, now that you're here, we can continue discussing the internship of-"
"Continue?" Nezu cut in with words sharp enough to cut glass. "You mean to say you have been deliberating on the internships of my students without consulting me? I wasn't aware the commission had the authority to dictate the arrangements of my students."
"We do have the authority to veto any arrangements you make," one executive sternly reminded him. "Given that the ramifications of this year's internships could have a widespread impact on the hero industry as a whole, we believe some… precautions may be necessary."
Nezu folded his hands and smiled at them. "Let's not beat around the bush, gentlemen. Why do you want to deny Midoriya his internship?"
Nezu watched for reactions and found two faces stiffen under his gaze. Out of seven, not as bad as he had feared. One executive, a private friend of his, smiled with amusement, while the others gave him blank frowns.
"Deny is a strong word, one that would cause too much commotion," one executive said. "We were thinking more along the lines of…. guiding."
"So, which hero were you thinking? Flash Point? Death Arms?"
Throwing around the names of commission patsies made some executives shift in their seats, but it got nowhere near the discomfort Nezu would have expected. "Far too low on the rankings, considering the other offers he has gotten. Hawks would be much more appropriate for the situation."
Nezu felt his metaphorical eyebrows rise. "I've already received his request, though I believe he was far more interested in Tsukuyomi."
An executive waved it off. "Hawks can handle two interns, and Deku would hardly have any reason to complain about an offer from the Number Four hero."
"An offer is one thing, but to be forced to accept that offer, when he has three better ones on the table."
"Wait, three?" one executive snapped.
Nezu put on his best Cheshire cat grin. "All Might just filed his request this afternoon."
A tense silence filled the room. An executive asked, "How much have you spread this around?"
Nezu shrugged. "I may have told a few of my staff on my way here."
"Keep them silent. This offer has to disappear, you understand?"
"I don't, actually. Are you intending to veto an offer from the number one hero?"
"That's exactly what we intend to do." The executive addressing him crossed his arms. "You know full well what kind of backlash we'd get having such a controversial student paired up with the Symbol of Peace. There'll be people claiming that he'll be the future of the hero industry, someone who would belittle and downplay our finest heroes."
"The strength of our system lies in our heroes being seen as infallible," another executive chimed in. "You know this as well as I. This child would have everyone see heroes as just everyday ordinary people. Villains would get bolder, and civilians would turn to vigilantism, thinking that they can be just like the heroes themselves."
"It is for the best if this wayward student of yours is forgotten. Give it an uneventful summer, and people will eventually get bored of him. He can spend the summer with Hawks, do nothing of note, and go right back to class in the fall." In a conciliatory tone, the executive said, "We're being very generous here, Nezu-san. We know this is a pet project of yours, don't try to deny it with all the changes you made for the Sports Festival. All we ask is that you keep this pet project of yours from rocking the boat too much. Is that clear?"
"You couldn't be more clear if you tried," Nezu said. "Unfortunately, I have no intention of complying with your request."
"You dare to-"
"The problem with your argument is that Deku is correct. Heroes are only human. All Might won't be around forever, and when he's gone, the villains will realize that no hero can measure up to him. There needs to be a new generation of heroes, one that strengthen the people they protect, instead of leaving them over-reliant on the system."
Aizawa gave him an appreciative glance, but the rest of the room took his words far more coldly. "Careful, Nezu. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were a follower of Destro, with talk of uprooting the hero system."
Nezu laughed out loud at that. "What, for advocating a Quirkless hero? Destro would be rolling in his grave."
The executive looked chastised at his barb being thrown back at him, but another picked up slack. "I will admit there's little we can do to stop this internship from happening, especially if you make All Might's offer public. However, you would be wise to remember that we set the exams for probation licenses."
"I have every confidence that Deku can handle whatever you throw at him." With a cheeky grin, Nezu added, "You're welcome to take that as a challenge. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work to get back to."
No one made a move to stop them as Aizawa left the room. As they got back in the car, Aizawa asked, "Was it really wise, provoking them like that?"
"There was little point in trying to hide my interest in Midoriya-kun. By recontextualizing that interest into general change for the hero system, they'll miss his actual value."
"A few of them looked like they wanted to turn you into a rug."
"Oh, I'm sure, but if they could, they'd have done it a long time ago." Nezu peered out the window and saw his favorite tea shop just ahead. "I'm running a bit low on supplies, let's make a quick stop."
When Endeavor had gone into the meeting with the Hero Commission's executives, he had expected accusations of nepotism for trying to take his son as an intern. Finding that the conversation immediately went towards Deku left him both intrigued and irritated.
"What does it matter why Deku caught my interest?" Endeavor asked sourly. "And I fail to see why you wasted my time with this meeting when I could be out doing my job."
"It's simply that your interest in Deku appears quite… irregular. Considering that your agency focuses on powerful Quirks, we wondered what motivation you had for taking on someone without one."
Endeavor raised a fiery eyebrow at them. He could hardly tell them that he was taking Deku on out of a bet they had made, but he didn't have any other idea of how to answer them.
"He won. Is that motivation enough for you?"
"You've overlooked past winners of the sports festival for having more subtle Quirks. Look at Lemillion, for example."
Was there subtext to all this he was missing? Was their interest in Deku out of a desire for him to thrive, or to fail? Considering the public controversy and his own attitude towards Deku's side business of provocative art, they likely wanted Deku gone.
"He beat my son, even after I had trained him since he was five. His technique and skill are of personal interest to me, so others like him won't find the same success."
As Endeavor had guessed, the executives were mollified by this. They were definitely looking to have Deku gone.
"Yes, that is quite understandable. Still, we would be interested to know how you intend to handle his internship." The executive let his fingers drift around the edge of his coffee mug while he watched him, as if weighing his intentions. "It might be best to keep him away from the worst of the action. After all, in a situation with powerful, volatile Quirks, he could easily be caught in the crossfire."
"I disagree." Before their faces could sour too much, Endeavor said, "I intend to have him fully experience what he will get into. If he can't handle being around dangerous Quirks, then I will personally make sure he never gets his license."
Their eyes practically gleamed. "An excellent idea. Yes, you're quite right." The executives all exchanged nods. "An internship with you would definitely benefit Deku. We will do what we can to make sure it happens."
"As long as I get to have my son as well…"
"Yes, yes, that won't be a problem. Now, I believe we've taken up enough of your precious time. Have a good patrol, Endeavor."
At the obvious dismissal, Endeavor left. He didn't bother returning the farewells from the heroes flanking the door. Commission toadies weren't worth his time.
The patrol had been long and uneventful, and at the end of it all, his sidekick had badgered him yet again about taking on a Quirkless scrub for an intern. The atmosphere at the agency was still sour about that announcement, considering how they all felt personally slighted at Deku's insistence that Quirks don't matter. He made his way past two P.R. employees that had thought to corner him on his way to his office, brushing them aside as they tried to make more arguments at the new hire. They spouted something about Detnerat before he slammed the door shut behind him. They had spouted doomsday prophecies before of public backlash and terrible ratings, as if he gave a care about his terrible P.R. metrics.
As Endeavor filed another stack of villain confrontation reports, a phone call came through his landline.
"Endeavor speaking."
"I have heard that you are among those considering Deku for internship opportunities."
Endeavor felt the flames on his shoulders stand on end. "Who is this, and what concern is it of yours?"
"I represent a group of concerned citizens that worry about the hero organization's reputation. It's alarming enough that U.A. allowed someone with such a disability to play at being a hero, but to have them actually out on the field? Who knows how many people they will let down, or even get killed, that were expecting a real hero and got him instead."
"The entire point of an internship is to determine his worth as a hero," Endeavor shot back. "If he proves too weak for the job, then he will be weeded out with the rest of the incompetents."
"Very true, but he has already cheated the system twice, once by getting into U.A. and again by winning the festival. Who's to say they won't cheat it again, especially when rumor has it a particular rat is scheming to make him a public figurehead."
Endeavor's thoughts drifted immediately to Nezu. Even back in his U.A. days, he never liked the look in the principal's eyes. Over the course of his career, he had caught wind of Nezu pulling strings behind the scenes, terminating hero licenses, tearing down agencies, and bankrupting businesses. Nothing could ever be directly pinned on the U.A. principal, but enough whispers went on behind closed doors to lend some credence to those rumors.
"All the more reason for me to examine his worth for myself. Nezu may play favorites, but I have no such intention."
The voice went quiet for a while. It returned with a honeyed edge, as apologetic as malicious. "It would be a shame if word about your family situation got thrown around on the morning news."
Enji's temper flared up along with the flames on his head. "I don't know what you are talking about."
"Don't try to play dumb with me, Endeavor-san. I know why your wife is in a mental institute. Your ratings are already poor, but I daresay they would hit negative digits once people find out you've been abusing your wife and children."
"A Quirk marriage and some rigorous training hardly qualify as abuse."
"Oh, true, what you've done isn't strictly speaking illegal, but that doesn't change who the public will perceive it. You wouldn't be the first hero forced into an early retirement by a massive scandal, and we have the material to make it happen. I could make one phone call and leave you a ruined man by tomorrow night."
Enji ground his teeth. He was tempted to tell this mystery man exactly where he could shove his threats, but the rational part of his mind wanted to know exactly what this mystery faction was after. "What do you want from me?"
"Before, I'd have let you off with simply rejecting Deku. Now? I have something better in mind."
"I'm not killing the kid," Enji growled.
"Relax, I wouldn't ask anything illegal of you. Instead, make sure the kid screws up, gets in trouble, something to get him blacklisted from the hero industry. Pull some strings with the Hero Commission if you have to."
"Why not approach them, if you really want Deku gone?"
"We already have. They see eye to eye with us, but sadly, they don't quite have the same drive. They're content to wait, but we don't believe in taking chances."
Enji ran through the list of possible interested parties with enough clout to catch the ear of the Commission's executives that would possibly have a grudge against a high-schooler. He knew of Quirk supremacist groups, hell, a few had even approached him from time to time, but those were fringe groups, eking out a pitiful existence in shadowy internet forums and dingy basements. For one to show itself now meant that they were looking to make a big move sometime soon.
If he took on Deku, that big move would likely happen right on top of his agency.
Either he could reject the offer outright and face a public scandal he had spent years and millions burying, or play along with whatever scheme this supremacist group had planned. The man on the other end was courteous enough to give Enji a few minutes to review his options.
His first impulse was to slam the phone on the receiver, consequences be damned. Blackmail or no blackmail, he would not let someone put a leash on him. The thought of refusing Deku to spite this group, however, didn't sit right with him. He had given his word as a hero to take him on as an intern, and though he had made that oath not believing he would ever have to keep his end of the bargain, now that he was here, and having seen exactly how far the young man had been willing to go for that opportunity, he wasn't about to break his promise.
From there, he could let them carry out whatever plan they had. He'd likely come out just fine from that, able to point out that someone without a Quirk had no place in the industry, but that too left a sour taste in his mouth. What the kid lacked in a Quirk, he made up for with raw talent and sheer determination. Every stunt he pulled off showcased months of grueling practice, each block and punch had hours of repetitions behind them, and he pushed through pain and injuries that would leave lesser men screaming on the ground. As someone who prided himself on pushing past his limits, he had to respect someone who outright broke them.
At that moment, it surprised Enji how protective he felt of his future intern. He was already planning out how he would keep the kid safe during patrols, what to warn him about, and how to find these bastards before they carried out whatever plan they had in store for him. With that realization in mind, he made his choice.
"I'll make sure he comes to my agency."
"Excellent," the voice at the other end practically purred. "If we need anything, I'll be in touch again."
Once the line went dead, he paged for his IT technician. When the man entered, he pointed to his phone and said, "I just got an anonymous call. I want to know exactly where it came from and who made it."
"Uh, why exactly?"
"Ongoing investigation. Can't give any details. Have the report on my desk tomorrow morning."
"R-right away, sir. I'll have it done."
It hadn't been five minutes before the technician came back in. Enji hid his surprise behind a stack of papers. "Is there something you need?"
"Ah, well, no. I won't be able to find out who exactly called, but I do know where the call came from."
"And that is…"
"Detnerat. Specifically, their headquarters out in Musutafu." He looked nervous as he went on. "I made sure it wasn't a spoof. The call came out from one of their landlines in the engineering department. I could pass this on to the investigative team if you need-"
"That will not be necessary. Thank you for the quick work."
"Anytime sir."
That certainly explained how his mystery caller had gotten access to his personal landline. He ran through all his possible options, but the nation's second-largest tech company was beyond even his reach, and most people he could think of were either powerless or unwilling to help him.
Reluctantly, he dialed a number he hadn't called in years. When it picked up, he asked, "Have you done any digging into Detnerat lately, Nezu?"
A/N: it's a huge relief to finally be on break for Christmas. The plant I work for won't be needing me for next week, since they're just doing project work I won't be involved in, so I get a full ten days off.
This sounds like it would be amazing for my writing, but past experience tells me that I get too lazy and distracted to do serious writing on vacation. Bummer. Don't worry, though, I can manage a chapter in that time, and even if I can't, I have two in reserve.
Just reorganized my kitchen cabinets, and my god, did they need it. I have a single shelf devoted almost entirely to my spices. I have canned and dried goods I panic-bought back when the pandemic hit, and more stuff just lying around on my table that I finally found space for.
I intend to do a metric ton of cooking this weekend and bite into that stockpile I have built up. Cocktail meatballs, jalapeno poppers, lemon custard bars, hummus, tomato soup with ham sandwiches, corn chowder (also with ham), oatmeal with dried fruit, dried date energy bars, and fajitas are all on the menu this week.
But enough about me, let's talk about you guys!
To SandaKagami, Izuku would only know about the Trigger's existence if he had seen it used or had otherwise known it was there. Katsuki is a joy to write as always, as his abrasive inner thoughts let me play around with the tone and word choice. I doubt I could write a whole story in that style, but having it around for half a chapter here and there is perfect to spice up the story.
To ShadowPillow, great to hear from you again as well. I will neither confirm nor deny Izuku's intentions on figuratively tipping his hand a bit.
To Jiggly Joe, very true.
To Bakeku67, you are correct, they did take Izuku's gear at one point. However, in a previous chapter, Nezu got alerted to the theft by a tracking device a teacher had put in the suit and intercepted them in time to prevent the sabotage. As to how they tampered with Bakugo's outfit, that one got commissioned to Detnerat to improve on, as U.A. contracts that outfit work to professional companies.
To Karma, as amusing a thought it is to have Aldera's teachers and former students gawk at Izuku's success, there wouldn't be much point in giving their perspective, as I have no plan for them in this story.
Thanks again for the follows, faves, and reviews, give me more of those please. See you all next week!
