Disclaimer: I do not own Hero Academia/Boku No Hero Academia, or any other property in this work that I did not make myself.
My Hero Academia: Entreri Gaiden
Chapter thirty: Investigation and an offer
A while ago, back when he had first run away from home, Fuyuki stopped off at a store where he was able to buy colored contact lenses and spray on hair dye. It was there where he bought a few sets of red colored contact lenses, as well as a few cans of red spray on hair dye, which he uses in his disguise as Entreri, the assassin-style thug who is now in the employ of Fine Wine, the greatest criminal gang lord in the country.
However, after he fell in line with Fine Wine, Fuyuki was able to go back to that very store to buy some more colored contact lenses and spray on hair dye, thankful that the clerk was not all too keen on paying much attention. This proved useful if Fuyuki was ever in the mood to go out for a bit to take care of some personal business. As such, with his hair yellow blonde and his eyes blue thanks to his colored contact lenses and spray on hair dye, Fuyuki looked like a completely different person than either the real Fuyuki or the thug Entreri.
Fuyuki went to a public library, and was able to use the computers to do some research on the internet. Yesterday, Fuyuki was part of a group of men working for Minoru Mineta, aka Fine Wine, looking after Fuyuki's own mother and aunt, Ochaco and Pony, who Mineta had ordered to be kidnapped to be used as bargaining chips in order to coerce the police and pro heroes into releasing more of his men from jail.
During the time that Mineta's men held the women, they admitted to feel as if Entreri should probably just kill them right away. Curious, Fuyuki was able to get them to explain why. It was through that act which Fuyuki learned that he had been fully exonerated for what all had gotten him expelled from UA High School. The truth, which Fuyuki tried to convince his family of before he had been driven into running away, was made available to everyone.
He learned that he was exonerated, that a jealous classmate had set him up. Fuyuki tried to press the identity of the jealous classmate out of his mother and aunt, and their refusal to tell him was a strong indication that they knew full well who it was that decided that taking away his dreams of becoming a pro hero, of following in the footsteps of both of his parents, would be all well and in good fun. However, before he could learn the identity of the jealous classmate that decided to get him expelled, the heroes showed up and Fuyuki was forced to flee.
Now here Fuyuki was, at the library on the computer to use the internet to do some research on the matter. He went onto a news sight that covered a lot of current and recent events. It didn't take the disguised, runaway teen all that long to find something that sparked his interest; it was a video titled 'Son of Deku exonerated of lewd accusations'. To Fuyuki's surprise, the video was dated sometime very shortly before the siege on UA.
"I've been cleared since all the way back then?" Fuyuki thought as he clicked on the video in question. It showed Naomasa himself saying that Fuyuki was found to be actually innocent the whole time. The good commissioner also mentioned the jealous classmate, whose identity was being kept secret so that the family of the jealous classmate and Deku's family would be able to settle things between them in privacy.
He saw a few more videos, read a few related articles, but all of it was connected. It all proved it to Fuyuki that he had been, since sometime shortly before the siege on UA, cleared of what had been forced on him. He had no idea what to make of that. Sure, he was still pissed off to no end at his school, his family, for turning on him because he had been set up, the fact that he was set up now (literally thanks to the news and internet) public knowledge.
He leaned back in his chair at the computer table, letting everything sink in. Despite how he hated his family right now because they had turned on him when he was unjustly made to bear a black spot he didn't earn, there was still a small part of him, buried deep within, to one day be able to actually return home. That's all Fuyuki wanted now; a home, a place where he felt that he belonged. It's one of the main reasons why he's so loyal to Fine Wine. The man had given him a place to call home.
"...I could go home now," Fuyuki thought, "I could potentially go back home right now. I could leave being a criminal behind and return to my family." The disguised, runaway teen gently shook his head, however. "...No, not yet. I still want to know who it was that had framed and had me kicked out of UA. I won't kill them, as I got some choice words for them first at least, depending on who the bastard is." He thought about the matter, trying to figure out a way to learn who it was that had gotten him expelled from UA.
Sadly, he ended up coming up dry. The only way he was able to figure out to learn who it was that had gotten him expelled would be to indeed return home and demand answers, and the idea of returning home without full justice first really pissed him off. Regardless, he figured that he'd make everyone who wronged him work to try making things right to him, and it would be to his standards, not theirs. And gods help them if they try to force him into letting things go.
He'll just run away again, at the first opportunity, and NEVER return home again, consequences be damned in that case.
...There's just one matter though, that being Mineta aka Fine Wine. In addition to the high probability of Mineta putting in effort to find Entreri should the assassin-style thug go missing, a part of Fuyuki, the part that had always wanted to be a hero, would probably bubble up once he returns home and gets back into his old life. Said part will, eventually, undoubtedly want to help the pro heroes and police get ahold of Fine Wine so that they can bring down his criminal empire once and for all.
And what a boon Fuyuki could be to them in that case; he could easily lead the police and pro heroes right to Fine Wine himself. As one of Mineta's most trusted men and one of his elite thugs, Fuyuki was privy to certain knowledge, such as the locations of several properties that were of importance and or great value to the criminal gang lord. Fuyuki acting like he had gone mute further helped, as he wouldn't be able to 'talk' anyway.
All he had to do was discretely let the police and pro heroes know Mineta is Fine Wine, give them some hints to push them in the right direction, and one two three, bam; Fine Wine's taken down at last. He's honestly surprised that no one on the heroes' side, except for Komaru but he was dismissed, had been able to figure it out on their own. But that's besides the point; with what Fuyuki as Entreri could tell the police and pro heroes, they would not only be able to bring Fine Wine down for good, but they would be able to gather up so much in the process.
It would be a field day, the police and pro heroes being like kids in a candy store.
...But Fuyuki first wanted to make a demand in return for what all he could give the police and pro heroes. And he had a half-baked idea that could potentially work.
That evening at the Midoriya residence, Izuku was talking with his wife Ochaco. They had Izuku's step-brother Bakugo over, as well as Bakugo's wife Pony, their daughter Inko, and even Izuku's step-father Masaru. The men and Inko were trying to help comfort Ochaco and Pony, who had just been through quite the ordeal. To be quite frank, both of them were considering themselves lucky to still be alive.
"I can't believe that we were able to not only get out of there alive, but do so without giving Fine Wine what he wanted and also capturing several of his men at the same time," Ochaco said, "We gave him one hell of a slap across the face with that. He'll be mad, no doubt about that."
"And to think," Masaru said, "That horrible man Entreri is the reason because he got curious about the raw deal that had been forced upon Fuyuki."
Ochaco and Pony let out resigned sighs, as did Inko. The three of them were still beat up over how they had treated Fuyuki before he ran away, Inko especially so since it was her who had gone and gotten her cousin expelled from the now destroyed UA in the first place. The whole lot of the entire extended family just wanted to find Fuyuki and bring him back home, no matter how long it may take them to do that, as well as try making things up to Fuyuki for how-
*CRASH*
The whole of the family jumped at the sound of breaking glass coming from the window in the kitchen. Izuku and Bakugo got up to go check, and saw a large rock with a letter in and envelope tied around and over it had been thrown through the window. Izuku went over to the rock, picked it up, and untied the string enough to get the letter loose. To his surprise, the envelope had 'to Uravity and Rocketti' scrawled on the front.
"...It's for our respective wives, Kacchan," Izuku said in an apprehensive tone, before he and his step-brother took the letter out to the dining room where everyone else was still waiting. They explained what happened before Izuku handed the letter to Ochaco, who opened it and began to read it as Pony got up to go over next to Ochaco and read the letter, which was typed up and not hand written, with her.
To Uravity and Rocketti,
As I'm sure that you're aware, I work for Fine Wine. However, let's just say that I'm growing...tired of working for him at this point. I intend to secretly leave his employ at some point in the near future, but I'm too valuable to Fine Wine; he's bound to be unwilling to let me go. As such, I am feeling in the mood to...help you two and the other pro heroes out here. If you should so desire, I can provide info that will lead you and the other pro heroes right to Fine Wine himself.
However, I have two demands in return for bringing Christmas to the pro heroes and police very early. Firstly, I want my involvement in all of this to remain completely anonymous; what I am offering to do is essentially betray Fine Wine, something not even I can survive should my identity as the one who helped to bring Fine Wine to the pro heroes and police get out. I don't even want how I had sent this letter to the two of you, or any of its contents, to get out.
My second demand is the answer to my question that you two never answered while I had you two as surprise guests. My curiosity is itching so, it feels more like a burn than an itch. Here's an idea; have Deku hold a brief press conference imploring anyone who has anything that could help with getting Fine Wine to step forward, and have the jealous classmate of Uravity's son be with Deku during the press conference. Just having them stand there will be sufficient.
I'll grant two days starting from when I throw this letter tied to a rock through the window to see the press conference imploring anyone who has anything that could help lead to Fine Wine's arrest to step forward, with Deku accompanied by the jealous classmate. Show me that you care about bringing down Fine Wine. Help to ease my itching curiosity. I will be keeping an eye on the news, so that I'll know if and when you do agree to my terms. The ball's in your court now.
Entreri
The family had scanned the letter, unbelieving of what it had said, what it implies. It was clear that it really was from Entreri, as all details from rescuing Ochaco and Pony were kept out of the media; they were even able to keep out that it was Ochaco and Pony who were kidnapped. Only someone who was there would know what all went on, and only Entreri was curious about who had gotten Fuyuki expelled and why.
"...So what do we do?" Izuku asked, getting his family to look at him, "I mean, it's clear that this is from Entreri. And he is seriously offering to lead us directly to his boss. This could very well be a trap, but aside from keeping his involvement in all of this a secret and satisfying his oddly surprising curiosity in the matter of who got Fuyuki expelled, he's asking for nothing. And what he is asking for can in no way lead the police and pro heroes into a trap."
"But if we do what the note says and have Inko stand next to you in the hypothetical press conference," Bakugo began, "That could potentially put a huge target on her back. We still have no idea what Entreri will do with the information, much less why he even wants it outside of being just really curious."
The adults looked around, unsure of what to do. After a few moments, it was Pony who spoke up with. "...I have an idea that I'm pretty sure would work." The half-American woman let out a troubled, resigned sigh. "...But not only will someone that I have in mind has to be willing to help out with my plan, but if they are willing to agree to what I have in mind then someone who has died is going to be thrown under the bus."
The adults and Inko looked at Pony in surprise, but once they heard the details on the plan, they figured that it would be their best bet to not only get Entreri to play along but also save Inko from a potential target being fixated onto her back. The plan now all depended on if someone who was living would be willing allow someone who is dead to be sacrificed. They just had to try to convince the person in question to play along.
The following morning, sometime shortly after ten in the morning, Fuyuki in his public disguise went to the library while he was running some personal errands; he in his Entreri guise had told Mineta that he was looking to find and buy the sixth book in the series of books about a boy wizard, having gotten and read the first five by this point. Mineta permitted this, reminding his elite thug only to be careful.
It helped that Fuyuki actually did want to find and buy a copy of the book in question, but that's besides the point.
Anyway, after getting to the library, Fuyuki got to the computers and proceeded to check the same news site that he had been on previously, the same news site that confirmed that he had indeed been exonerated of the lewd accusations made against him. To his mildly delighted mild surprise, Fuyuki saw two separate news video clips that got his interest. The first video, which featured the pro hero Deku giving a brief press conference, got Fuyuki's attention first.
The disguised, runaway teen clicked on it, and listened closely. "The criminal gang lord known only as Fine Wine continues to run roughshod over the country as a whole," the news reporter began, "With police and pro heroes alike struggling to keep up. We now go live to an emergency press conference with Police Commissioner Naomasa and the number one hero Deku."
The video clip then cut to a press conference being given in a news conference room, not unlike the one used in the past by Endeavor, Hawks and Best Jeanist following the fallout of the paramount liberation war of the past. Standing on the stage behind a podium were Naomasa and Izuku, just like they were in the press conference given that elaborated on how Fuyuki had been found innocent of what had gotten him expelled from UA.
"The problem that Fine Wine poses to all of Japan needs to be brought to an end," Izuku said to the press members that were there, "Commissioner Naomasa and I respectively represent all of the police and all of the pro heroes in the nation as we ask, here and now, that anyone who has anything that would help lead to finding and arresting Fine Wine to step forward." The press then proceeded to pelt Izuku and Naomasa with questions.
The video clip then cut back to the news reporter, who was at the local news studio. "You heard it here, folks. The police and pro heroes are asking anyone with any information to step forward and help out with bringing Fine Wine down." The video clip then ended there.
Fuyuki was somewhat satisfied, as his family kept up one part of the deal by having his dad make the plea for anyone knowing anything that would help with nabbing Fine Wine to step forward. However, the only person who was with Izuku was Naomasa, and there's no way the good commissioner could have gotten Fuyuki expelled from UA. However, that's where the second video that got Fuyuki's attention came into play, given that it was titled 'UA student who got Deku's son expelled from UA is exposed'.
Wanting to know the truth, wanting to know who it was that had ruined his life, Fuyuki clicked on the video. Judging from the start of the video, it was the part that immediately followed Deku's plea in the news broadcast. "In other news," the news reporter went on, "Police and pro heroes are still looking for sixteen-year-old Fuyuki Midoriya, the missing son of the pro heroes Deku and Uravity, who ran away from home after being expelled from UA due to having been set up by a jealous classmate."
Fuyuki let off a mildly annoyed sneer; he was none too happy to have been reminded about what had been forced upon him by life. "We have just received confirmation on the identity of the student who had tricked UA into expelling Deku's son," the news reporter said, "Rem Ojiro, the daughter of the pro hero Invisible Girl and the late pro hero Tailman." Fuyuki looked very much surprised by the reveal that it had been his classmate Rem who had gotten him expelled from UA and ruined his life. Fuyuki wanted to know more, so he watched on.
"According to what Invisible Girl had found in her daughter's personal journal recovered after the siege on UA," the news reporter explained, "Rem had expressed jealousy towards her classmate Fuyuki as he always outdid her in academics. As such, she had set him up in such a way that got him framed as a lewd, panty stealing pervert, taking advantage of UA's zero tolerance rule that had been established since before anyone in Rem's generation had been born. Sadly, Rem was one of the many students killed during the siege on UA, with confirmation that she'd been killed by the late villain Ryumaru Okami. We'll bring more on this story as it develops."
The news clip ended after that, and Fuyuki rested back against the chair he was seated in. He had just learned that it was his classmate Rem who had framed him and got him expelled from UA, because she turned out to have been jealous of his academic prowess. It made sense, as Rem was in the bottom half of their class 1-A in terms of academic prowess, although she was ranked at number eleven in the class overall, the top the bottom half, to be fair.
But why would she target him? Why not Tengoh who was equal to him, or Komaru who was top of the class in academics? Why did Rem target him specifically? Sadly, that would be something that Fuyuki would never get to learn as Rem was killed during the siege on UA by Ryumaru. Even so, Fuyuki let out an accepting, resigned breath. His family and the heroes had kept up the end of the bargain he pushed onto them, so he'll keep his end up.
Just like the very criminal gang lord that he was about to betray, Fuyuki is a man of his word.
That evening, Izuku and the rest of his extended family that wasn't missing, dead or in another country (Pony's birth parents live in Wisconsin in the United States) were in the Midoriya house, more or less hanging around and waiting for a response from Entreri. Even Ochaco's parents were present in Izuku and Ochaco's house, but had already passed out in the guest bedroom as they were staying over while their own place was being fumigated.
"Well, we had that press conference Entreri requested taken care of," Ochaco said, "And we were able to convince Toru into going along with the plan that Pony had come up with to use her late daughter as a scapegoat to satisfy Entreri's curiosity while also protecting Inko, as she actually accepted the reasoning that protecting a student who is still alive by having a student who died take the heat was a good move. We didn't even have to tell Toru who it was that gotten Fuyuki expelled from UA."
The whole plan had been discussed at an emergency meeting at the Hero Public Safety Commission building, where all of the remaining 'legendary year' pro heroes and President Mera discussed what the note sent to Ochaco and Pony by Entreri implied. They all could tell that it truly had to have come from Entreri, and the two demands he made not only had no real cost to them but also lacked the ability to lead them into any manner of trap.
And if Entreri truly was serious, if he truly was willing to lead the police and pro heroes right to Fine Wine's front doorstep, then the opportunity was simply too good to pass up. As they waited around, the whole of them jumped when they heard another widow in the kitchen break. The pro hero adults all rushed into the kitchen, found another note tied to a rock sitting on the floor. It was Ochaco this time who went forward, given the last letter like this had been sent to her and Pony. And just like last time, the letter was indeed addressed to Uravity and Rocketti.
Ochaco undid the string tying the envelope to the rock, set the rock aside, and opened the letter to see what it said.
END, CHAPTER THIRTY
Author's notes;
This chapter is the start of Fuyuki's eventual return home, something that I have had planned for a while. Don't go thinking that everything will be all peachy keen when Fuyuki returns home, though; it will take A LOT of time and A LOT of effort for things to begin to mend, especially since Fuyuki will learn the actual truth behind his unjustified expulsion sometime after he returns to his family. And when Fuyuki does learn the truth, it'll hit him harder than any villain could ever hope to pull off.
There's going to be a lot to unpack here. Catch you all later.