The Okami Hero: Amaterasu

Arc 5: Eight Serpents

Chapter 1: Down the Rabbit Hole

In the two months that followed the battle with Akuma-Moe and the revelations of Dabi's true identity, a lot had changed for the Burned Man. The Konohana Household had woken up the day after Dabi's late night story telling session with Izumi to find that he was like a new man; happier and with a real sense of drive in him. He announced at breakfast that he and Izumi had come to an agreement the night before; that he would stay at the Manor and begin training to become a Hero. The rest of the Household was ecstatic, both to see Dabi happy, and because not only did his staying make Izumi much happier, but it meant they'd have a powerful new Hero on their side. Sakuya was informed of Dabi's past (which almost resulted in her marching off and confronting Endeavor), and she immediately threw her whole support behind Izumi and Dabi's plan.

Dabi began training and studying so that he could enter a Local College with a Hero Course in the coming April Term. As Dabi had been wrongfully institutionalised before he could graduate Middle School or enter High School, he had to pass some exams so that he could prove he had at least the level of knowledge a High School Graduate would have, but thanks to some skilled tutoring and a lot of encouragement (plus Dabi's own intelligence) he managed to pass and began throwing all his efforts into preparing for College Entrance Exams. Those exams came during the late March/early April vacation between school terms, and with a lot of effort, Dabi managed to pass and became an official Hero Student of Musutafu University's Hero Course, which was jointly run by the Commission and U.A. Instead of three years of High School, Dabi would have two years of University to become a Hero. He also signed up for classes in metallurgy and glass-blowing, so he could use his flames for creative endeavours.

Of course, getting Dabi to become a Hero was only one part of his and Izumi's plan, and the very day they'd told Sakuya about Endeavor (the day after Dabi had told Izumi), the Tree Spirit had taken steps to make Endeavor's life a living hell in every possible way she could, short of breaking the law. In a lot of ways, Sakuya actually STOPPED law breaking in regards to Endeavor, as members of the Commission had been more lenient with him due to the number of cases he resolved.

After learning about Endeavor's actions, Sakuya put together an investigative team in record time, entirely comprised of Commission Employees that knew about Amaterasu and were loyal to her. They had orders to observe Endeavor as much as possible and report back to Sakuya on anything even remotely shady. Once the team was put together, Sakuya had summoned Endeavor to her office to inform him of the investigation… Izumi had been in the room, and Dabi had watched via the security cameras and the entire experience had been both hilarious and cathartic. Endeavor was furious, claiming the accusations were false and an affront to his dignity, and Sakuya, to her credit, kept a very calm and understanding expression on her face, assuring Endeavor that she was sure he was right, but it was her duty to investigate so as to protect Endeavor's good name. She even laid a bit of a trap by offering to have Endeavor interviewed by Detective Tsukauchi to prove or disprove the allegations against him, but as expected, Endeavor had just raged that as a Hero, he should be believed without such things. Sakuya bluntly told him that the investigation would have to go forward then, and sternly warned him not to do anything to damage his image.

Endeavor's life became VERY difficult after that.

The Investigation Team watched him closely, and it became clear to the Flame Hero that he couldn't risk his normal behaviour towards his children. Endeavor still trained Shoto, but he couldn't risk hurting him enough to leave a mark, as the eyes of the Investigation Team were watching them closely. Fuyumi and Natsuo began feeling confident enough to start trying for independence, and thanks to their father's indifference and the Investigation Team's presence, they weren't obstructed at all. That would have been the end of it for at least a few weeks, but Endeavor was convinced it had been Rei who made the allegations and paid a visit to her Hospital Room… only to find her being entertained by Jin Bubaigawara, who lived in the room next door. All the staff at the Hospital (and the Troubled Youth Facility Dabi had been shoved into) that had been in Endeavor's pocket had been replaced after being exposed for various acts of bribery and corruption (Sakuya had rightly guessed that if they were taking money from Endeavor, they were likely taking it from others too). Endeavor was too dangerous for those exposed to risk betraying him, so they kept their mouths shut and he escaped repercussions there.

Jin's presence, and the new staff meant Endeavor left quickly, and was quickly banned from visiting again due to the negative effects his presence had on Rei's recovery. Dabi had met Jin for the first time shortly after that meeting (being careful to avoid his mother, who he wasn't ready to see) and thanked him profusely for helping his Mom, resulting in the two becoming fast friends, which naturally made Jin very happy.

Following that incident, Sakuya and Izumi were angry enough to move "Operation: Fuck Endeavor" to phase two. The nature of the investigation was leaked to the press, and while the accusations were widely ignored by the public due to lack of proof, the scandal was enough to make a few of Endeavor's government allies and sympathisers rethink their stances on him. Endeavor had been furious, but Sakuya assured him that she'd grilled the investigation team personally and knew for a fact they hadn't leaked anything (which was true, since Sakuya had done it) so Endeavor was left without a target for his rage, or any of his usual outlets (aka his children), resulting in a very unhappy Flame Hero.

Thankfully, all the negative press and the Investigation Team's presence ensured that Endeavor was much more careful in his Hero Work, as while he was cruel; he wasn't stupid. He knew that with his standing in such a precarious position, he couldn't risk his usual level of indifference to Civilians and Collateral Damage, so Izumi and Sakuya hadn't been given the opportunity to leave him high and dry when it came to lawsuits, but since that also meant fewer people were being hurt by Endeavor, Izumi was taking it as a Win.

Finally, to really rub salt in the wound, the statue of Endeavor in the Commission's Lobby was removed and replaced by a statue of Hawks, with the plaque reading: "Wing Hero: Hawks, a True Hero." Endeavor had almost exploded when he first saw it, but dared not speak out for fear of the bad publicity such an outburst would have. Still, the memory of Endeavor's veins popping out of his forehead as he seethed was one Izumi would treasure for years. The fact the original statue had been "stolen" and later found in a sewage treatment facility was just icing on the cake for Izumi.

Everything was looking up for most people. The Bakugous met Dabi and became friendly with him, inviting him out drinking with them and some of the Konohana Household Staff from time to time. Everyone learned that Endeavor was a prick and widely responsible for Dabi's shitty past (though they didn't know any details) so they all enjoyed the slow fall of the Flame Hero alongside him. Jin was deemed well enough that he could have supervised trips out of the hospital (his supervisor was in Sakuya's pocket, so Jin had free reign so long as he was good). Rei was making slow and steady improvements, with Jin keeping her company as well as frequent visits from Himiko, and occasionally Izumi, both of whom were kind to her too. Fuyumi began to regain some of her lost spirit and started preparing to move out and become a School Teacher. Natsuo regained some of his lost self-esteem and started getting braver, taking his own pleasure in needling his father when he knew the man could do nothing to retaliate. And then there was Shoto… the Investigation Team had reported that the boy wasn't being trained as hard any more, but he still refused to use his fire and was emotionally stunted. They'd tried to get him into therapy, but neither Endeavor or Shoto had agreed to it, so everyone was taking a wait and see approach to the dual-coloured boy. All in all, things were going well for everyone...

The only downside had been for Hawks.

Dabi hadn't known it, and Izumi had forgotten to mention it, but Endeavor had been Hawks' favourite Hero. Hawks had looked up to him, admiring that Endeavor had been the only Hero out there who was genuinely trying to surpass All-Might without also trying to emulate him. When the campaign against Endeavor had started, and Hawks had witnessed Dabi, Izumi, and Sakuya taking great pleasure in his slow decline, the Wing Hero had been confused and upset, leading to a mild confrontation between the four. Dabi, feeling guilty, had told Hawks the truth, making him only the third person to know. Hawks had felt almost betrayed by his idol, but instead of allowing himself to wallow in that feeling, he used it as fuel to propel himself forward and become an even better Hero. He and Dabi had a somewhat awkward friendship after that, with Hawks being embarrassed for looking up to Dabi's abuser, and Dabi feeling guilty for shattering Hawks' view of his idol. It took a month for the two to get over their issues and now they were decent friends. Hawks even offered to give Dabi an internship at his agency when the time came.

As for Izumi, things had largely fallen back into the usual routine. She'd returned to school (explaining her week long absence as a bout of the flu) and gotten back into her studies and Hero Training. She trained with the use of her new Inferno Technique, courtesy of Moegami, and continued her clean up of Dagobah Beach, which was a little bit lonely now since Dabi wasn't always there to spend time with. Izumi thought that if she kept up her current pace, she might be able to finish cleaning the beach in only a few more months!

Outside of her routine and her helping Dabi, only two events of any interest happened. The first had been the Government summoning her to a very important meeting in Tokyo. They'd learned of Izumi's ability to borrow and redistribute quirks via the Quirk Registry, and had summoned her to thoroughly test it themselves. They were kind to her, and Izumi reasoned that with how important quirks were to society, the ability to give and take them was a potentially destabilising factor, but she still felt a little scared being made to use her powers in front of the collection of stern-faced politicians and military officers. Sakuya had almost sent the entire Hero Commission into open rebellion against the Government when one politician insisted on making Izumi take more quirks into her Heart Container than was possible, despite being warned of the consequences to poor Izumi. Afraid of refusing, Izumi had tried to take a sixth quirk and promptly experienced the same harrowing ordeal as last time.

Needless to say, the Government were quick to disavow the guilty politician and make amends. They gave Izumi a large monetary settlement for her suffering (which she promptly donated) and agreed to have her entry in the Quirk Registry made confidential, to stop others learning of her quirk. Lastly, in return for making connections and allies within the Government, Izumi agreed to use her power to take the quirks from dangerous Villains and criminals and redistribute them to Heroes or the Quirkless, which the crooks would agree to in return for a shortened sentence or being sent to a normal prison instead of the hellish Tartarus. Someone at the meeting had laughed and said it was like if All for One became a Hero, but Izumi hadn't known who that was and Sakuya was in no hurry to tell her.

The second interesting event had come shortly after; a Work Experience offer from Endeavor. Previously, the man had always refused if Sakuya asked, citing he was too busy with his own work or training his son. So naturally, the sudden offer was met with suspicion. Izumi and her family weren't sure if Endeavor was making the offer to try and win a favour from Sakuya in order to stop the investigation into him, or more scarily, if he was making the offer because he knew of her new power and wanted to use it. The Top Ten Heroes had all been made aware of it (according to Hawks, All-Might had made a very odd face at the meeting) and Dabi feared that Endeavor might want to use Izumi to take Rei's quirk and give it to him, giving the Flame Hero the same powers as his youngest son.

Regardless of the reason, Izumi sent a polite refusal to Endeavor, stating that due to the current investigation against him and her Foster Mother's position within the Commission, she couldn't accept his offer for fear it would look like he was trying to bribe her. She laid it on thick that she was so sure that Endeavor would never do such a thing (just to further insult the man if it had been his intention) and wished him luck proving his innocence, while also giving a cheery PS that warned him to be careful of losing his Number Two spot to the up and coming Hawks. Then, as a final jab, she improperly capitalised letters at the beginning of certain words, so that all the incorrect capital letters would spell "FUCK YOU" if read in order.

Izumi thought it was fairly classy considering what Endeavor had done. Everyone else just found it hilarious.

And so those two months ended; Izumi, Katsuki, and Himiko finished their second year of Junior High and prepared for their third and final, while Izumi prepared for the last year of her Hero Training!

[Friday 15th April 2281]

[Orugani Junior High School, Asakura Ward, Musutafu]

The new school year had just begun, and the Junior High Third Years were preparing for the High School Entrance Exams. Izumi, Katsuki and Himiko were sat in their home room class, listening as their teacher droned on about the importance of picking the right High School for their future careers and studying hard to get accepted at them.

For Izumi and her friends, their path was set; U.A High School! Himiko and Katsuki were naturally aiming for the Hero Course, while Izumi would be going for General Education, since she would already be a qualified Hero. They had taken the mock exams back at the end of February (though Izumi didn't need to, thanks to her recommendation) and all three had aced it, leaving them confident they could get in so long as they passed the Practical Exam and whatever new material was on the next year's test.

Izumi's spot was basically already saved for her thanks to the Recommendation, so it was just a matter of ensuring Katsuki and Himiko passed the practical and all three would be in the same school again, though it would be the first time since starting Junior High that they wouldn't be in the same class… heck Izumi had been in the same class as Katsuki since Preschool!

Izumi was musing on this when the teacher began handing out some print-outs, drawing her attention. "You are all Third Years now and soon, you'll be High Schoolers. It's important that you begin to think seriously about your futures. Your choice of High School will have an effect on future College Applications and Careers, so think carefully about where you're aiming for." the man lectured.

Once he was back at the lectern, he smiled; "Quite a few of you have even started taking Mock Exams, and some are even aiming for U.A High School! That's quite a prestigious school; every course gets thousands of applicants but only 60 students are accepted in each course, with the Hero Program only getting 36 thanks to their Recommendation System! It'll be a tough road!"

The students, most of which were aiming for U.A's Business or General Education Courses, cheered loudly, making their teacher grin. Katsuki, who was lazily perusing the print-out, grinned and leapt to his feet. "Don't lump us in with those other losers! Our Team will be taking the top spots in the Hero Course!" he boasted.

"Uh oh, Bakugou's getting cocky again!" one of the popular girls giggled.

"Midoriya, you got to keep a tighter leash on this idiot!" a boy grinned. He was one of Katsuki's few guy friends.

"Yeah, seriously! I heard the minimum score for a pass this year was 79! U.A is serious business!"

"Only 36 Hero Students are accepted out of thousands from all over Japan. The odds of getting in are really low..."

Katsuki stood on his desk and grinned menacingly; "That's the chattering of extras! Some of you are going for U.A too, right? Stop acting so weak!"

"He's not entirely wrong." Himiko smiled, her arms behind her head, "He, Izumi, and I aced the Mock Exam this year. I got a 95 and those two both got 98, so we've got a good chance if we can do good in the practical."

The other students looked amazed; "Man, I knew you three were real brainiacs, but I didn't think you were that good."

"The material changes from year to year, so there's no guarantee we'll do so well on the real thing, but we'll be working hard." Izumi smiled.

"Well if anyone's going to get in, it's gotta be the Kami of Musutafu She's already a local hero!" one of Himiko's friends said, making Izumi blush.

"Yeah, and Bakugou beats her in every fight they have." another guy pointed out.

"Plus Himiko keeps up with them both. Maybe all three will get in!"

Izumi giggled behind her hand. She enjoyed hearing the supportive words of her classmates. They all knew she wanted to be a Hero, but none of them knew she was already being trained, and thus wasn't aiming for the Hero Course. She decided to just let them believe she was though, as it would raise too many questions to explain it.

The Teacher indulged his students for a bit, before drawing their attention back to him; "I'm sure we'll all wish Bakugou and the Midoriya Sisters good luck in getting into the Hero Course, but they aren't the only ones going to High School I hope! Let's get back to focusing on your own options..."

And with that, the school day continued. Once lessons ended for the day, the trio congregated around Izumi's desk, where the girl was eagerly reading the day's Hero News on her phone.

"There was a Villain Incident this morning while we were walking to school. A crook with a gigantification quirk snatched a purse and ended up cornered by a bunch of Heroes on some train tracks. Kamui Woods, Death Arms, Back Draft and Air Jet were all there, but the Villain was brought down by a new Hero making her debut; Mt. Lady!" Izumi gushed, "I wish I had seen it..."

Katsuki read the news over Izumi's shoulder, "Huh, Mt. Lady's quirk was similar to the villain's. Why are there so many pictures of her ass and not her moves?" he grumbled.

"Fan Service. Nothing gets fanboys' blood pumping faster than a sexy heroine in a skintight body suit." Himiko grinned.

Izumi blushed and scrolled away from the pictures. "More rumours of All-Might being in town too. Someone saw him running through the shopping district a little while ago. I hope I get to meet him!"

"It would be cool to meet him before we get into U.A and surpass him!" Katsuki said with a smirk, "Forget the rumours. I've gotta go; meeting some of the boys at the Arcade."

Himiko looked at her watch and squeaked; "Oops! I need to get home so I can change and go meet Jin! I promised I'd take him to the Gyoza Place today and if I'm late again, he said he'd dye my hair black in my sleep!" she cried, before grabbing her bag and running out the door. Izumi and Katsuki chuckled and headed out too, separating as Katsuki went to the arcade and Izumi began wandering slowly through the town as she went to work at Dagobah Beach.

"It's a nice day." Ishiko said idly as they walked, having just woken from her nap. She tended to sleep the day away when Izumi had to go to class.

"Yep. It's starting to warm up, which means I'll have more daylight to work in too. It won't be long before Dagobah is trash free!" Izumi smiled.

The Girl walked slowly, enjoying the spring air and the afternoon sun as she headed to the beach. The neighbourhood near the beach was fairly quiet, since the Beach's dilapidated state led the local businesses to move away. Izumi hoped they would begin coming back once she'd cleared the beach of trash, but at least for now she could enjoy the quiet. It was so quiet in fact, that when Izumi heard frantic breathing and the sound of someone running, she couldn't help but look around. Worrying that something was wrong, Izumi entered Demi-God Form and focused on her hearing to try and pinpoint where the sound was coming from, but she needn't have bothered… Just as she was pausing in front of an alleyway, the source of the sound appeared and ran right for her, skidding to a halt in front of the green haired girl.

"Are you okay sir?" Izumi asked, looking at the man in front of her. It was a fairly normal looking man in his early twenties, with dyed blond hair and brown eyes. He was wearing jeans and a red hoodie, and to Izumi's surprise, a plague doctor's mask that covered his entire lower face.

The man panted for a bit, getting his breath back, then looked up at Izumi; "Y-You're the girl, right? The one people call "The Kami of Musutafu?" Please, you've gotta be her!"

Izumi blinked; "How did you know that?"

"My Mom's a local. She told me all about you; you've got a healing quirk, right?" the man asked desperately. "I heard you were cleaning the beach here, so I staked the place out. My grandma broke her hip recently and we can't afford to get it treated! Please, can you heal her!? I don't have much money, but I'll give you whatever I can!"

"Of course I can heal her! I don't need payment." Izumi said, smiling kindly.

The man's eyes lit up and Izumi bet he was smiling behind the mask. "Oh thank god! I saw you from my grandma's window and came running! Can I take you to her now? I'm sorry for the trouble; I'd bring her to you, but we can't afford a wheelchair..." he said sadly.

"No problem! Your grandma's house isn't far from here, right?" Izumi asked.

"No, it's just through here. It's an old shop, but we can't get in through the front; it's all boarded up. I'll show you how to get in from behind. This way." the man said, gesturing to the alley he'd run out from. Izumi nodded and allowed the man to lead the way while she followed a step behind him.

The alleys that stretched through the area were dark and filthy, smelling of rot and dust. It really was a poor area thanks to the state of the beach. Izumi didn't like to judge, but she couldn't help but find the whole place creepy and the hair on the back of her neck was beginning to stand up. Her instincts were starting to cry out. Something didn't feel right about this situation… After a few minutes, Izumi was fairly certain they'd gone too far into the alleys for the man to have seen her from his grandmother's house… if her sense of direction was right, Izumi came from the other side, but then again, the twists and turns of the alleyway had made it hard to keep track of which way they were going.

The man just kept walking, repeatedly saying; "It's just around here." and "Sorry for the trouble!" as he led her around. Izumi, getting nervous, put her hands in her pockets so she could grab her phone and keep it out of sight in the event it was needed. Thanks to her provisional license, she could act if she needed to, but it paid to be somewhat prepared. Ishiko shuddered as the tense atmosphere got to her, and she wrapped herself up deep in Izumi's mossy green hair, concealing herself completely within the soft curls.

Finally, the man led Izumi around one final corner and straight into a dead end with no doors or windows.

"Sorry, kid." the man turned around, facing Izumi with predatory eyes, "The Boss wants you. No hard feelings, eh?"

Izumi's eyes widened and before she could react, someone melted out of the brick wall beside her and wrapped a hand around her face, pressing some kind of oxygen mask over her mouth and nose. The surprise made Izumi gasp, right as the mask began releasing some kind of gas. She inhaled some and began to cough and splutter, her body growing weak.

"Great Mother! Knock out gas!" Tachigami yelled helplessly from within her.

It was too late however; Izumi had already inhaled enough to make her legs buckle beneath her. She struggled to keep her eyes open; they felt as heavy as lead and her thoughts were becoming foggier and foggier as unconsciousness began to ensnare her. Izumi had just barely enough strength to try and attack with her Divine Retribution, hitting both her attackers in the chests, before the last of her strength faded and she finally succumbed to the gas, falling unconscious. As her eyes closed, Izumi prayed the men wouldn't do anything to her in her sleep, and that Ishiko would be safe.

Izumi had no sense of time while unconscious. The gas the crooks had used addled her mind completely, to the point she couldn't even use the time to talk with her Brush Gods. Everything felt topsy turvy, as if she'd been smacked in the head while drunk and suffering the aftershocks of one of Kacchan's explosions. Eventually, the girl's mind began to regain its clarity, making her aware enough to curse her foolishness. The green haired girl had fallen for such a simple ruse; the crook had used her nature against her! Feeding her a fake sob story about his grandma… it made Izumi furious.

After an unknown amount of time, in which Izumi was alone with her feelings and furious with herself, the gas began to wear off and Izumi found herself waking up. As feeling returned to her body, the girl remained still and silent, not letting on that she was awake; if someone was nearby and watching her, she would take them by surprise! Keeping her eyes closed and her face slack, Izumi began to focus her senses to guess at her surroundings.

She could feel that her clothes were different, which horrified Izumi. She feared they'd done something to her in her sleep, but she didn't hurt anywhere and nothing felt out of place, so she chose to believe that nothing had happened… true or not, it helped put her mind at ease. The new clothes were fairly thin and soft, lacked socks or footwear of any kind, and smelled clean. Her Demi-God transformation had come undone when she was knocked out, and she couldn't activate it without giving away she was awake, so she had to rely on her normal human senses. There was something tight around her right ankle, and Izumi couldn't tell what it was, but she guessed it was a restraint of some sort. Izumi also didn't know where Ishiko was or what became of her, but she silently prayed she was okay.

Beneath her, Izumi felt something soft and comfortable, likely a bed or couch of some kind, which hopefully meant she wasn't locked in some cell. The place smelled a bit flowery, but that didn't tell Izumi anything. With touch and smell not providing any more information to her, Izumi began to focus on her hearing. She could hear something moving around in the room with her, almost silently. Only the sound of gentle footsteps gave them away, but Izumi could hear the person getting closer.

Izumi's heart was beating madly, but she forced herself to remain calm. Once the person was close enough, she'd leap up and grab them, forcing them to the ground and then threatening them with her Divine Retribution; that would give her someone to interrogate and a potential hostage to aid in her escape! Since the footsteps were coming from the right, Izumi prepared to transform and then lunge with her left hand to grab the approaching person, so her right hand was free to block an attack and direct her mirror.

Unfortunately, her power refused to activate.

"What the hell!?" Izumi thought. She tried again, but it still didn't work. It wasn't just her Demi-God transformation either; she tried entering Wolf Form or even activating her actual quirk, but they didn't activate either.

"This is bad!" she thought fearfully, "Without my powers, I'm almost useless! My martial arts is good enough to take down untrained adults, but I can't heal myself without my power! Martial Arts won't be enough to escape if I'm locked up in enemy territory!"

"Okami!" Yomigami suddenly yelled. Izumi had to work hard to hide her relief at hearing her friend's voice.

"Yomigami! Thank goodness! What's going on!? Why can't I use my powers!?"

"Great Mother, the object on your ankle is inscribed with a powerful kind of curse! The curse prevents Divine Power from materialising within whatever the curse affects, namely your body. We are lucky to even be able to talk to you. The material of the band is unknown to us, but it is somehow disrupting your body in a way that prevents your quirk from activating too, rendering you effectively powerless." The Dragon God explained.

Izumi restrained herself from screaming in frustration; the material of the band was likely Horileum Koshite; more commonly known as the Quirk Suppressing Alloy. It was strong as titanium and could disrupt the Quirk Factor enough to prevent the restrained person from using their quirks. "Damn it! Brush Gods, do you have any ideas on how to get out of this?"

"I'm afraid not, Great Mother. The Curse effecting you can only be broken by removing the band or purifying it with a large amount of Divine Power, power you can't summon thanks to the band. Someone else, such as Sakuya, will need to do it. There may be a key though, assuming the band wasn't designed to be a permanent addition." The Dragon God explained.

"Your best bet is to wait into the nearby person gets close enough, then suddenly shout to startle and disorient them." Tachigami added, "That will give you an opening to attack and defeat them, and hopefully get the key to the restraint."

"Okay… I'm ready!" Izumi thought before cutting the communication with the Brush Gods and listening for the person to step a little closer. The bed beside Izumi creaked a bit as something leaned on it.

Izumi's eyes flew open and she roared at the person to surprise them, giving Izumi the chance to overwhelm them. However, the person she roared at wasn't a guard or some creep; it wasn't even an adult! Instead, it was a little girl who shrieked in fear and fell on her backside before scurrying back and away from Izumi.

"Ah! Sorry! I thought you were someone else!" Izumi cried, leaping to her feet and carefully approaching the terrified child, who was now pressing herself into the corner of the room. Izumi's heart clenched with guilt, especially once she got a good look at the girl she'd just inadvertently terrified.

The little girl couldn't have been older than four or five, and she was sniffling and looking around in terror, like a rabbit caught in a snare. She was an adorable child with cute features, ruby red eyes and long white hair that had a bluish tint and hung past her shoulders. She also had a little horn on the right side of her forehead and was dressed in a plain off-white dress that resembled a hospital gown. Once she noticed the gown, Izumi's blood ran cold and she began to pay closer attention. The girl appeared clean, but was barefoot and her arms and legs were covered in bandages. She also wasn't screaming; just quaking in fear as she watched Izumi, as if she knew that screaming would do no good. With every step Izumi took towards her, the girl flinched.

"Okay, it's okay. I'm extremely sorry, Little One. I didn't know who was around me and thought it was the bad people who kidnapped me." Izumi said softly, sitting on her knees a few paces away from the child.

The little girl watched her carefully, but when Izumi made no aggressive moves, she began to calm down. Her quaking stopped and while the fear never left her eyes, she didn't look quite like a rabbit about to be eaten any more.

Izumi smiled kindly and bowed her head to the girl; "Again, I'm very sorry. My name is Izumi Midoriya. I won't do anything to hurt you, I promise. In fact, if it makes you feel better, I'll sit right here until you feel more comfortable with me, okay?"

The child nodded slowly, but remained silent. That was the moment that Izumi heard a whisper than made her heart soar; "Izumi! It's me, Ishiko. I'm still in your hair. We're being watched on a camera, so don't respond to what I say! I don't know what's going on, but I'll explain what I know as soon as I can, alright? We need a moment where we can talk undisturbed!"

Izumi beamed with joy and relief, glad that Ishiko was safe. The little girl saw the happy smile, and thinking it was for her, blushed a little and started to slowly relax more, which made Izumi even happier.

Not wanting to rush the girl, Izumi began to look around and take in her surroundings.

She was in a large, childish bedroom. The floor was tiled like a chessboard and the walls and ceiling were painted sky blue and decorated with painted clouds, rainbows, grassy hills, flowers and trees, creating an illusion of the outdoors. The furniture appeared high quality; the bed was a nice size, being enough for two adults to fit comfortably and there was a wardrobe and chest of drawers with a polka dot shaded lamp on top. There were two doors leading to who knows where, and no windows at all. Toys and books littered the floor, but none had been opened, which concerned Izumi.

This was clearly the little girl's room, but then why had Izumi been left here? And on the child's bed too!

Looking down at herself, Izumi paled when she realised her clothes were the same as the little girl's; a plain off-white dress. There was also a black band around her ankle, which she guessed was the quirk suppressing band. Steeling herself, Izumi pulled the collar of the dress out a bit so she could look down and see what was beneath it. Izumi had to look away and swallow thickly to stop herself vomiting; her bra was gone and her underwear had been replaced by a plain white pair. It made her feel disgusted and violated.

Once the disgust began to fade, Izumi found herself frowning angrily; what the hell was going on here? Izumi knew she'd been targeted; the crook who tricked her had called her "The Kami of Musutafu" and later said it was his boss who wanted her… but why did he want her? Worse still, they apparently knew about her Divine Powers and had a Cursed Quirk Suppressor on hand to restrain her. Who were these creeps? What were they doing to this little girl? All the toys and the nice room made it appear that the child was well cared for, but she was obviously petrified of the people here and hadn't touched the toys. Then there was the sinister bandages around her arms and legs… were they coincidental or were they caused by the people here? Izumi assumed the girl had been here for a while… if she hadn't and both she and Izumi had been brought here at the same time, then it meant the things here had been bought in advance or had been bought for another captive; both scary thoughts.

"M-Miss?"

Izumi's attention snapped back to the little girl. The child was on her feet and slowly edging towards her. Her voice was sweet and fitted a cute child like her, but the fear it held tainted it.

"You can call me Izumi, if you like." Izumi said, smiling kindly. She held out her hand slowly, offering it to the girl.

"I-Izumi..." the girl said, testing the way the name felt on her tongue. "Izumi." she repeated, this time more confidently.

"That's right. May I know your name?" Izumi asked, still holding out her hand.

The little girl stared at the offered appendage, then slowly and hesitantly reached out and took it.

"My name is Eri."

Izumi beamed at her, gently closing her hand around Eri's and rubbing her thumb over the tiny hand. "That's a wonderful name. It suits a cute little girl like you. Can you tell me how old you are?"

"Five." Eri answered, blushing a bit at Izumi's compliment.

The older girl's genuine kindness reassured the child and she began to relax a bit, though she never let her guard down completely.

"Five? You're starting to become a big girl then. I'm fourteen and already in my last year of Junior High School." Izumi said. She needed information, but she couldn't interrogate a little girl, so she started trying to get answers by asking roundabout questions. "I go to Orugani Junior High in the Asakura Ward of Musutafu. Have you started school yet?"

Eri shook her head; "I'm not allowed outside."

Izumi frowned; so Eri was kept inside all the time. That made things harder. "That's not nice. Everyone should be allowed to go outside. Have you been here long?"

"I don't know… I don't remember not being here." Eri answered, stepping a little closer to Izumi.

"The child is growing comfortable with us. Unfortunately, it is unlikely she can provide much information. She has spent the entirety of her remembered life in this place." Moegami chimed in.

"That's fine. As long as she's comfortable with us, it'll be easier to escape with her. If she was afraid of us, she might not go along with our break out." The Greenette replied, before focusing on the child again.

Izumi smiled softly; "Do you want to sit on the bed with me? It must be more comfortable that standing on the cold floor."

Eri's ruby eyes shined a bit as she nodded bashfully. Izumi grinned and slowly, so as not to startle Eri, she hooked her free hand around the back of the child's legs and lifted her up, holding her comfortably. Eri squeaked, but didn't protest or react with fear, so Izumi smiled wider at her and gently kissed her cheek, before sitting down on the bed and gently placing Eri on her lap.

"Comfy?" Izumi asked, looking down at the child, gently stroking her hair.

Eri nodded her head, the tiniest little spark of happiness in her eyes. The child didn't smile, but that spark of joy made Izumi beam in response, her cheeks almost aching from it. Eri was the cutest thing she'd ever seen! She was like an adorable puppy, happily leaning into the hand of its new owner as it was petted. Everything about Eri was triggering Izumi's protective instincts… it made her wonder if her Wolf instincts still persisted even when she was in her Human Form.

"Can you tell me anything about this place, Sweet Heart?" Izumi asked, one hand clasped in Eri's while the other stroked her hair and back.

Eri nodded reluctantly; "I only see a little bit. The men with masks come in here every now and again. They usually give me food, or give me a bath, but sometimes HE comes too. HE takes me away, to a room with a chair. HE ties me to it and… and..."

The girl began to shake with terror as tears built up in her eyes. Rage filled Izumi as she wrapped Eri in her arms and hugged her close. Whoever HE was, HE was hurting Eri… HE was doing something so awful, the mere thought had the poor child nearly catatonic with fear. Bitter hatred began to fill Izumi's gut, spreading out through her body like cold flames. HE was going to pay for what he'd done. Once Izumi was free of the Cursed Restraint, she would make him pay.

Hurting a child was something only a Villain would do, and if Izumi was going to be a Hero, it was her job to save the victim and punish the Villain.

"Shh now dear. I'll protect you." Izumi said softly, comforting Eri. The Greenette began to hum a tune that her own mother always used to sing to her when she had a nightmare, and before long, Eri stopped shaking and sniffling.

"You'll protect me?" Eri whimpered, eyes full of hope.

"With my life. I promise Eri, they'll never hurt you again. I'm here now." Izumi promised.

Eri's eyes lit up with joy, despite the tears, and her lip quivered as she seemed to instinctively try to smile. Izumi loved the sight of the little lights in her eyes, and she showed it by gently kissing Eri's cheeks and then wiping her tears. Eri relaxed completely and cuddled into Izumi.

After a while, Izumi stood up and carried Eri with her on her hip as she explored the room a little. The drawers and wardrobe were filled with plain underwear, rolls of fresh bandages and dozens of the same off-white dress. The clothes in the drawers were sized for Eri, but Izumi found the items in the wardrobe were sized for her. There were no bandages for her though… Izumi wondered if that meant she was expected to use the ones meant for Eri, or if Izumi wasn't intended to use them at all. One of the doors leading out of the room was locked tight, and was sturdy enough that Izumi doubted she could break it with any of the items in the room. The other led to a decently sized bathroom and upon investigating, Izumi was horrified to find feminine hygiene products.

Whoever wanted her caught had prepared extensively, and the thought was sickening.

With her face turning an odd mix of green and red, Izumi looked to Eri; "Um, Eri? You said the men who come in here give you baths, right? They don't do anything...weird, do they? They don't touch you in strange places or anything like that?"

Eri tilted her head curiously; "I don't know. They usually just rub the frothy stuff into my hair and pat me down with the towel. Mostly I just sit in the water until they tell me to get out." she said, pointing at the "frothy stuff" which was just some princess themed shampoo.

Izumi sighed with relief; that was at least one load of her mind. Of course, Eri was only a child; Izumi might not receive the same treatment. She stuffed that thought down quickly; that wasn't what she should be worrying about! She doubled her focus on how to get out.

Unfortunately, Izumi was at a loss. The room had no windows to climb out of, the exit door was locked and too tough to break down, and while there were small air vents, they were too small for even Eri to crawl through. Ishiko would fit, and the Poncle briefly lamented that they didn't have the Lucky Mallet, a relic from the past that could shrink others down to Poncle size… Simply put, there was no way out without a quirk or special power, and to make matters worse; a small camera sat in the corner of the room, watching everything Izumi and Eri did. The only way to be free of the camera's view was to go in the bathroom and shut the door. That meant Izumi's only chance would be to hide in the bathroom with Eri in hopes of ambushing the next person to come in… but they'd likely be ready for her thanks to the camera in the main room, and the bathroom door didn't even lock. Of course, Ishiko could sneak out through the vents and get help, but who knew how long that would take, and in her de-powered state, Izumi didn't want to be left alone.

Instead, Izumi asked Ishiko to explore the ventilation system while she tried to get a little more information from Eri. That way there wasn't a risk of Eri or someone else discovering Ishiko, and it could potentially lead to a way out or a source of information.

To her chagrin; Izumi was stuck.

"Any ideas, guys?" Izumi asked her Brush Gods

"My only suggestion is to comply with your captors so as to minimise risk of harm to yourself and Eri while gathering more information. As it stands, chances of escaping with both yourself and Eri avoiding all harm are basically nil." Yomigami said reluctantly.

Izumi was about to curse, when suddenly, she heard the click of the main door unlocking. Eri, still being held on Izumi's hip, whimpered and buried her face into Izumi's shoulder. Izumi carefully shifted the girl so that she was on her back, putting Izumi's whole body between Eri and the newcomers.

The door swung open and five men walked in, each fairly different and distinct. One was the blond man that had tricked Izumi with his fake sob story… he looked quite different now, walking with a cocky self-satisfied swagger instead of his faux worry. The second man was a hulking behemoth; easily over 7ft tall and covered in rippling muscle. His head was completely concealed by a black plague doctor's mask and his outfit consisted of a black tank top, a metal harness with blade-like prongs on the shoulders and a thick metal belt, huge knuckledusters that covered his fists, green pants and red boots. The third man was normal in size, but was completely dressed in a black plague doctor's outfit, complete with cloak and hat that left nothing exposed. The fourth man was completely concealed too, but instead of a black cloak and hat, he wore a white raincoat with the hood up while his mask had gold detailing.

Then there was the last one; the one in the centre that made Eri freeze with a single glance. The man's cold yellow eyes made Izumi shiver as they left her feeling like she was a cadaver about to be dissected. The strange man was wearing a black shirt and pants, as well as white shoes and gloves, which would have been unremarkable if it weren't for his dark green jacket, which had a purple fur collar, a steel grey tie and, as expected by now; a mask modelled on a plague doctor's that consisted of a bird's beak that covered his nose and mouth. It all gave Izumi the creeps and without needing to be told, she could tell that this man was the boss. Despite his casual and largely non-threatening demeanour, Izumi could sense nothing but death and despair from this man.

"Hello, Izumi Midoriya. Or should I say, "Kami of Musutafu"? Or perhaps you prefer "Okami Amaterasu?" Welcome to our home." the leader said, stepping casually into the room. "We've heard a lot about you; enough to decide that you should be utilised for our cause. My name is Kai Chisaki, but you may call me Overhaul."

Next Chapter: The Shie Hassaikai

To be Released: June 23rd 2021

And so begins the new arc, focusing on Eri and the Yakuza! This is going to be the longest and most intense arc by far, and is my favourite one I've written! It should also be mentioned that this is also the beginning of the Manga Timeline, since this chapter takes place at the same time as Manga Chapter 1!

Also, this chapter is the longest so far at 8000+ words. Normally, being over 7500 would mean there would be a two day break before the next one, but since a big chunk of this chapter was recapping the time skip, I'll keep it at one day. This will only be the case on recap chapters though!

Before moving forward, I should give a warning; this Arc is going to be INTENSE. It deals with the Shie Hassaikai, and considering what they were doing to Eri, you can expect some very serious subjects being brought up. This entire Arc has a Trigger Warning for child abuse, violence, blood, gore, and torture. I'm not exaggerating when I say this arc is a lot darker than the others before it. Still, I hope you guys enjoy!

I hope you enjoyed! Please Comment and Review; it really encourages me!