We are back in business, baby.
"Catch your breath. We're not done yet!"
Sakura stared at her sensei standing opposite her. Her muscles burnt with exhaustion and her coils twinged and thrummed underneath her skin. Tsunade-shishou's arms were crossed as she looked up at the sky. Her peaceful demeanour didn't quite match the scenery.
A spray of boulders littered the training ground. Sakura didn't think she could have such enmity for inanimate objects, but these boulders were fast becoming the bane of her existence. Kakashi-sensei and Ino would have to make space at the top if things didn't get better soon.
It was simple. All she had to do was channel an amount of chakra dependant on the size of the boulder thrown at her. Following that, she had to throw a punch and release the pent up chakra in the very instant that her hand made contact with the boulder. Very simple.
Sakura took a look at her hand. Bleeding knuckles, swelling, scrapes, cuts and probably a few cracked bones. So maybe it wasn't that simple. She probably should have worn the gloves Tsunade had gotten for her.
"I told you to wear gloves."
Was she that obvious?
"Yes, you are," Tsunade said with a smile on her face as she raised a boulder five times her size with remarkable ease, "Enough of that. You need to get your timing down. Gather chakra and then release it upon impact. You are overthinking things. With your control, it shouldn't be too hard."
Sakura begged to differ. Tsunade-shishou tended to underestimate her own genius. If it really were that simple, then she wouldn't be the only person in the world capable of punching someone to the moon. That hadn't happened yet, but she'd give it time. Jiraiya-sama and Naruto would be back in the village eventually.
"Don't try to understand it. Feel it," Tsunade said before she pulled a face as she went over her words, "On second thought, you should definitely try to understand it... It may backfire on you and you may just lose your arm. Maybe. Anyways, here, catch!"
Her master didn't have to correct herself. Understanding how things worked was one of Sakura's core tenets. Steamrolling her way through things never had and never would be her niche.
"Okay, but I'd like a second to understand so I can—Ah!"
Sakura was cut off as yet another boulder flew through the air at her. This time at far faster speeds than any of the others that came before it. She wouldn't have any time to dodge it or—and it was right in front of her.
Gather.
Sakura's hand pulsed with chakra. Her face was twisted into a snarl as she pulled her arm back and then threw it forward. Her fist met the boulder, many times its size and for the first time today, her hand won. A shower of pebbles washed over as the boulder all but caved before her mighty power.
And Release.
Through the flying debris, she could spy her master's proud smile and a war cry built in her chest. She took in a deep breath and reared her arm as another boulder flew at her.
"Sha—"
"—naro!" Izuku screamed as he punched the wall adjacent to his bed, "Ow! What the hell?"
Izuku's fist had met the wall and lost.
The flash of pain was enough to wake him up completely as he was roused from the clutches of sleep. His hand was pulsing with pain and it took a few moments for him to calm down.
What the hell were their walls made of? It looked like wood, but was it actually diamond? Maybe tempered steel? If he had punched the wall any harder, he may have needed a new hand...Izuku looked at where he had punched and frowned. His All Might Bronze Age poster had a fist-sized hole in it.
"This is just great," Izuku spoke aloud to himself, "They don't make those anymore! You stupid idiot! Why did you have to punch it?! If my hand wasn't so sore, I'd—gah!"
Okay, so maybe he wasn't so calm after all...
"Izuku?" His mother knocked on the door making him clam up immediately, "I heard screaming. I'm coming in!"
The door began to turn open. Oh no. Izuku looked at his hand. Was it becoming swollen? It looked like it was getting swollen.
He had the presence of mind to hide both his hand and the damaged poster. The end result was him sitting against the wall with one hand below the blanket by his lap. His phone was nearby and he grabbed it with his good hand to lower any suspicions his mother may have had.
He looked completely natural and not suspicious in any way at all.
"Sorry for barging in. Are you okay? I heard—" his mother began as she walked in before her face switched from concern to...embarrassment? What was that about?
"What's wrong?" Izuku frowned as he took in his mother's flushed skin, "Are you okay?"
"U-uh," his mother seemed as though she wanted to be literally anywhere else. She turned away from him and instead looked in the opposite direction.
"Look, Izuku. I know you're growing up and all that—"
Oh, no. Did she know about the wall?
"—but you can't just do that. There's a time and place for everything and you shouldn't be so...noisy about it."
For a moment, Izuku sensed that something was off but he shook it off, "Is this about the loud bang just now?"
"That only happened because of a dream," Izuku said thinking back on just a few moments ago, "It was crazy... It felt so real. "
"W-What?"
His mother didn't respond and only stared at him blankly over her shoulder. The baleful and haunted look on her face made it seem as though her soul had completely left her body. Was she still tired? It was odd since his mother was definitely a morning person.
No, it couldn't be that. It had to be the poster. She could see that he damaged the poster, couldn't she? He should have moved a bit more to the right and then this conversation would be a lot less awkward.
With a sigh, Izuku threw off the blankets and his mother's face flickered through a bevy of emotions. From horror to confusion to relief and then right back to confusion.
"What happened to your hand?!"
Izuku frowned, "The dream? I threw a punch in my dream and ended up denting the wall. I hurt my hand so that's why I hid it from you."
"Oh, thank goodness," his mother said raising a hand to her chest before worry overcame her, "Come into the kitchen. There's some ice in the fridge."
"Okay, mom."
His mother turned to leave, but she stopped at the doorway, "Oh and Izuku?"
"Yes?"
"Don't ever do that to me again. Okay?"
Izuku blinked once and then twice.
"Do what?"
Izuku sat in his room with a bag of peas on his hand. The crazy start to the day had gotten his mind off of what had been plaguing him since last night. He unlocked his phone and once again looked at the message from the unknown number.
[I know your secret.]
It had taken Izuku about thirty minutes of mounting panic and stress to realise that Kamui Woods or Endeavor would not be busting through the wall to arrest him. If the messenger wanted the law to deal with him then they would have done so immediately and without hesitation.
He only had a few moments of relief before a new worry overtook. Why didn't they say anything? If they had somehow gotten his number, probably through some top-secret hacking Quirk, then surely they knew his name as well. From there, it was a hop, skip and a jump to finding his address, school and even those Konoha documentaries.
Izuku had not sent a message to the person in question just yet. He wanted to just ignore it and act as if nothing happened, but at the same time, he knew that ignoring a problem never made it go away.
What was more was that today was the day he'd be getting his UA results. Izuku was confident he'd done enough, but there was always room for doubt. Plus, he had to find out if Kendou would be in the same class, and therefore dorm, as him or not. He'd much rather be with her than not.
There was nothing worse than the first day of school. Except for having to befriend up to 19 strangers all by himself. With Kendou there, that ceiling was lowered to 18 and she was way less of a mess socially than he was.
First things first, though, Izuku wanted to get a response out of whoever had messaged him. How could he not? That being said, he felt like he'd be making some sort of rookie mistake if he admitted to it on his phone. Would this person blackmail him or something?
Maybe they were one of the people who Kage had thwarted and they wanted revenge. Izuku could not see a situation where he got out of this scot-free. Still, though, he had to do something.
He had to meet whoever this was.
Izuku took out his phone and finally began to type out a response. Once he was done, Izuku hesitated for just a moment before pressing send. He put the peas back into his room before taking a quick shower.
"Takoba Beach at midday. Come alone."
It was now 11 AM. He would normally wake up earlier than that, but given the circumstances, he had fallen asleep rather late.
He made a point of ignoring his phone as he focused on the reason his hand hurt. It was a good thing that he did not use any chakra to punch the wall. Things could be a lot worse.
The pain was still there, but it wasn't nearly as bad as some of what's he been through. It still irritated him and it would probably remain for a few more days. If only there was a way to speed up the healing—
"...Wait a second."
Should he really try it? On his own body?
"It's not like I have a fish nearby or anything," Izuku said to himself as images of one the dreams he's been having flashed through his head.
This would be the acid test, so to speak. If for whatever reason, he was seeing visions of past Konoha warriors. Not only that, but he seemed to able to use their abilities.
That girl, Sakura, he corrected himself the name clear as crystal in his mind. Sakura had been learning medical ninjutsu and a strengthening technique that made the Fatebreaker look like a joke.
During the exam, Izuku's body had been in a bad way. Yet, pink chakra had healed him and then he had used his master's— Sakura's master— technique. His mind had been flooded with information he did not know.
Information he now knew Sakura had learnt as his, or rather Sakura's, dreams had shown him.
The question now was whether or not he could still use what he had been shown. He thought back to the first vision. The one of Sakura healing the fish. She had used two handseals, one that was kind of like a modified version of the ox handseal.
It took him a few shots to get it right. His right hand still pulsed with pain and his fingers were becoming more and more swollen. Each attempt just felt off until he was finally able to get things right.
He did it multiple times to confirm he was comfortable with it. It still took him a bit too long to make it, but he was putting his fingers in the right place. That was more than enough.
Finally, he wove the handseals while channelling and moulding his chakra in a pattern he just somehow knew. He finished the handseal chain and...nothing. He tried again and again and still nothing. Izuku was on the verge of giving up when it finally happened. He focused on the image of Sakura healing the fish. The way he had felt her chakra twist and bend. The way the gash along the fish had mended itself.
He felt a slight shift in the feel of his chakra. It somehow felt more vibrant and alive. The drain on his reserves was minuscule but noticeable. The previous attempts hadn't used chakra at all.
Finally, the telltale green glow flickered to life on his hands. It wasn't a constant light like it had been for Sakura, though. It reminded him of a faulty light bulb. Flickering on and off as it struggled to remain alight.
He allowed the glow to die down on his right hand before pressing his left hand to his right hand. A strange awareness and knowledge entered his mind. It was almost as if an invisible third arm had sprouted from his body. The green glow faded away as he lost control, the strange sensation far too much to handle.
"What the hell was that?"
It was hard to describe what he had...seen? Or was it felt? The sensation he had felt had used none of his senses and yet it was extremely clear that it was not an illusion or trick of the mind.
It had only happened once his left hand was close to his swollen right hand. It was a clear part of the jutsu, though, so he just had to move on and try again. This time he would not be distracted by it.
His first attempt fizzled out immediately. He focused once more on the image of Sakura healing the fish and the way it's wound had slowly knitted itself back together. The feel of blood and slime on his hands and the warm green light of Sakura using the Mystical Palm Jutsu.
These images seemed to help as he managed to reactivate the jutsu. It sparked to life on both his hands and was a fair bit more luminous than his previous attempt. It still flickered every now and then, though. It was clearly not at Sakura's level, but the progress was encouraging.
"Okay, so mental imaging helps with this jutsu," Izuku said as he stared at his flickering hands, "That would probably go for all jutsu. This probably has to do with the mental energy aspect thing. If so then I probably need to focus on the wound itself when healing."
Izuku pressed his left hand to the wound and this time the flood of information did not throw him off. Not too much. He focused less on what his senses were telling him and more on what his chakra was trying to tell him.
The change in approach helped quite a bit. It was almost like listening to a foreign language that you barely knew. There was a stream of incomprehensible words that was filtered and strained into something he could only partially understand.
He had done some research on muscles and joints and tendons when researching for the Fatebreaker. He needed to how they all worked in tandem so his chakra could support and strengthen the correct areas. The field was called kinesiology.
Tsunade-shishou had proven the Fatebreaker to be extremely inefficient. Her strength enhancement technique had far less and perhaps even no backlash and it also had much better results. That did not mean the Fatebreaker was useless to him now, though.
Izuku was nowhere near the level of doctors or elite trainers, as evidenced by the backlash of the Fatebreaker. However, he knew enough to get by and he knew his body. So, while the stream of information was largely incomprehensible to him before, he now knew that the jutsu was telling him the state of his hand.
He already knew that his hand was in bad shape, but this was important news. The possibilities were endless. He could help diagnose injured people and spot injuries that other people may have missed. It would be invaluable in a crisis.
It would not be that easy, though.
"I need more medical knowledge if I want to be helpful," Izuku said to himself only vaguely aware that he had been speaking aloud for some time, "Right now, I can only tell that I have micro-fractures on my bones. That is what is causing the swelling and bruising."
Izuku channelled his chakra, or rather his healing chakra, into the affected area. He could feel a sort of discomfort as his bones were slowly put back together. The pain and swelling in his hand began to ebb as he focused on healing the damage.
After what to have been around thirty seconds, Izuku's hand was back to normal. He deactivated the Mystical Palm and tested his hand out. A broad smile broke out on his face as he detected no signs of pain or discomfort.
He had just healed his own hand.
Izuku's hand twitched almost on its own. He desperately wanted to write everything that he had just learnt down, but he could not chance it. His knowledge of anything chakra-related would be all in his mind, for now at least. Except for the scroll of course.
The last thing he needed was for it to be found. In all honesty, it would probably be dismissed as nonsense, but a small part of him was worried that his secret would just get blown wide open.
Nonetheless, it was good progress. It also made him realise that he would probably have to figure out a way to reverse engineer Tsunade-shishou's super strength. He had used the Cherry Blossom Impact (and what a terrible name that was) to neutralise the zero-pointer.
There was probably footage of that moment, as well as of him healing himself. He could explain it away as momentarily going beyond his limits, but sooner or later they'd expect him to be pulling that off.
Plus, the breakdown of his Quirk needed some serious adjustment. Kage's use of handseals was fairly well-known. It would be, at the very least, odd that Izuku's Quirk worked in a similar way. He could also play dumb, but it was a matter of time before he got caught.
*DING*
His phone dinged once and then twice and then it was like an infinite flurry of bell noises. He got to his phone and managed to shut it off. He expected this sort of stunt from Kendou and so he got ready to shut her down.
It was not Kendou who had messaged him.
In fact, two different people had messaged him. The first was from his blackmailer— for lack of a better word. He expected a sinister response or for law enforcement to bust through his window. A hostile response was to be expected for someone so evil that they would stoop to blackmail.
He got something else instead.
[Unknown: Great! I'll pick you up and then we can go out for a meal? I know this American style diner that is to die for!]
Izuku blinked.
He typed a message back immediately.
[Did you send this to the right number?]
The response was just as swift.
[Unknown: Yep. Wait, you are Kage, right? Black cloak and cool mask? Wanted vigilante?]
[Unknown: Where did you get the mask? I'm asking for a friend.]
What was going on? Were all extortionists this...Kendou?
"She'd kill me if she heard me say that," Izuku couldn't help but say to himself before turning back to what was a rather vexing conversation.
[Just be at the Beach by 12.]
Speaking of which, he kind of wanted to open his acceptance letter with Kendou. She'd been a big part of his journey even the part she didn't know about.
Somehow it felt appropriate that they found out together. Would it be too late for them to organise a get-together of sorts between their families? He had to ask soon, though. Who knew what time the packages would arrive?
Wait. Should he call her? It would be quicker than texting, after all. He really wanted to find out with her. That was what best friends did, right? It was kind of weird, though. Or was it? They'd had a heart to heart on the floor of a sweaty fighting ring. It did not get much weirder than that.
"Just call her."
Izuku whirled around to see his mother holding a laundry basket.
"M-Mom, what a surprise," Izuku felt his cheeks burn up at his mother's downright devious smile, "What are y-you doing here?"
"Laundry," his mother's was way too wide. She looked as though she were a shark that had smelt blood in the water.
He did not like the tone his mother had used either. It sounded like him when he found a new piece of All Might merchandise. Or Kendou when she had seen his chakra rods. Or him when he found a new hero with an interesting Quirk. Or Kendou when she found a new person to fight with.
He was getting off track here.
"How much did you hear"
"Enough," his mother said as she placed the hamper down, "Call Kendou. I'd really like to meet the girl who has been beating up my son and cutting up his hand."
Oh, no. He had blamed that on Kendou, didn't he?
"Sounds great," Izuku said with a weak smile even as his stomach rolled, "I'm going to the beach to train. Bye!"
He was already in suitable gear. So he sidled past his mother and her smug grin as she began to pack away the clothes. He speed-walked to the door and was just about to enter the living room when he heard his mother call after him.
"Izuku!"
Izuku held back a sigh before turning back to his mother who was peeking out his door.
"I forgot to tell you something. Mitsuki called me and said you should check your phone. Or at least that's what I think. She was shouting at someone on her side too..."
That sounded about right for Aunt Mitsuki. Izuku complied and took his phone as he remembered there being a flurry of unread messages. He finally found it and blinked. He stared at his screen. Oh, no. This was going to be just great. As if today couldn't get any more difficult.
"What is it?" his mother asked and he put on a weak smile.
"It's Kacchan," Izuku looked down at the bundle of messages Bakugou had sent him, "He's downstairs and wants to talk about the exam."
"Oh," his mother said her smile dying down. He was about to leave when she added.
"Are you fine with going to see him?"
She was worried. Understandably. The incident between him and Bakugou had probably been good for his mother and Mitsuk's relationship. Anyone with a working brain could tell Kacchan was abrasive to everyone.
They probably just did not think Bakugou would go as far as to attack him. Izuku knew better than that, though. Bakugou was the reason he'd almost drowned in a river...and also the reason he had chakra.
Needless to say, it was hard to say how he felt about Bakugou.
Still, though, his mother and Bakugou's mother were longtime friends. He could not and would not let his and Bakugou's mess interfere with their mothers' friendship. It would hurt Izuku more if he had a hand in ruining that.
"I'll be fine," Izuku reassured his mother and he did believe that. If push came to shove, he'd be able to take care of himself.
"Okay," his mother said a more genuine smile spread across her face, "And I want to see Kendou and her family tonight! We could go out to a restaurant or something to celebrate! So, call her!"
"I will!" Izuku said over his shoulder before walking outside. He picked up his phone and dialled Kendou who picked up almost immediately.
"Izuku? Hey, what's up? Did you get your UA results yet? No way! How—"
"N-No, I didn't!" Izuku said a bit louder than he meant to. It was just Kendou but even then hearing her voice right in his ear was...something.
"Why'd you call then?" Kendou asked before adding, "Not that I didn't want you to, but this is kind of out of character for you."
Oh, he knew.
"I wanted us to open our UA acceptance letters together," Izuku said barely pausing to breathe, "You don't have to say yes. My mom wants to meet you too and I thought it'd be cool—"
"Sounds great. Let's do it!"
"—if we found together. You don't have to say yes—"
"Yes!"
"—if you don't want to. You know what? I'll just tell my mom—"
"IZUKU!"
Izuku flinched away from the sheer volume of Kendou's scream. Even through his phone's tinny speakers, her voice had packed a real punch. There was still a faint ringing in his ear as he brought his phone back to his ear.
"Uh, yes?"
"I was about to call you to ask the same thing," Kendou said and she took in a breath before letting it out, "Okay, I was complaining to my parents about that stupid prank you pulled and now they want to meet you too. They might make things weird. I already told you about the making friends thing and dad knows we spar so he's also interested and—"
"Kendou! You're rambling," Izuku brought her rambling to a halt. He was, understandably, good at recognising someone spiralling. Unfortunately, that ability didn't seem to apply to himself.
"You actually are rubbing off on me..." Kendou said with fake disappointment, "What's next? Getting my ass kicked by an ancient secretary? Are you still scared of Mai?"
Not this again. It had taken Kendou so long to drop the whole Mai beating him up thing. It was like she didn't understand that even if Mai could beat Izuku up then she'd also be able to beat Kendou up too! He had tried pointing that out, but she'd taken it as him confessing to losing to Mai.
"I need to go now," Izuku said realising that he still had to the beach, "Just speak to your parents and we'll organise things properly."
"Got it. Man, I hope I beat you..."
Izuku held his tongue and instead said, "How much did you get again? Because I got—"
Izuku ended the call right there and then. He smiled as he imagined Kendou freaking out after he baited her twice. She'd probably take it out on whichever nutter took her up in boxing. Even he wasn't that crazy.
In a pure boxing match, Kendou would thrash him. That was just the facts. If they actually made things similar to normal combat then things were a lot fairer. He still needed escrima sticks to really hang with her, but he got by using some tricks with chakra.
Izuku finally got to the bottom floor and he was about to run off to the beach when a hand grabbed onto his shoulder. He turned around and his smile dropped as he met the gaze of a scowling Bakugou.
"I've been waiting for thirty minutes!" Bakugou growled as he held onto the scruff of Izuku's shirt.
"I-I had things to do," Izuku said as he slowly got out of Bakugou's rather tight grip. His shirt was probably going to smell like nitroglycerin for the rest of the day. It smelt like burnt sugar, but that not something you told Bakugou unless you had a death wish.
He did not like being told that he smelt sugary. Burnt or no.
"Listen up, Deku," Bakugou said as he crossed his arms, "Once you get into UA then don't even think of trying to outshine me. I was supposed to be the only one from our school and you ruined that. Ever since I—"
Bakugou frowned and looked away from Izuku as he muttered, "Ever since that holiday, you've been different. You hid your Quirk for years and pretended to be this weak and nice brat!"
The inflexion on the word 'nice' was caked with sarcasm.
"Kacchan, I—"
"Shut up!" Bakugou turned back a snarl twisting his features, "I don't care if you were able to beat that villain or that you saved my life! I could have saved myself I wanted to! I'm going right to the top and you better not be in my way! You got that, Deku?!'
He didn't wait for an answer.
Bakugou barged past Izuku their shoulders slamming into each other. Bakugou trudged away and despite himself, Izuku let him walk. Izuku wanted to say that he would be the next number one hero.
He wanted to say that one day even All Might himself would concede to Izuku. He wanted to say that the number one spot was going to be his and no else's and that everyone else was just wasting their time. He wanted to say that Bakugou had to watch out for him or else he would be the one that was pushed aside.
Izuku did not say anything of that.
He just let Bakugou leave.
Things would probably escalate really quickly if he did say that and in all honesty, Izuku would have probably been a part of the problem too. Wrapped up with the admiration and respect he had for Bakugou, there was an undeniable undercurrent of anger that he couldn't quite shake.
That angry monster within him reared its head in moments like these. Moments where Bakugou talked to him and treated him like he was a non-issue. A non-factor in his quest for number one.
It pissed Izuku, off.
"I'll knock that arrogance out of you someday, Kacchan, " Izuku said as he stared in the direction his friend had taken off of in, "Believe it."
For right now, it was better to bury any anger he felt. He still had things to do after all. Izuku waited until Bakugou was gone before ducking into a nearby alley.
A few handseals later and he was bathed in chakra smoke as his body transformed in an instant. He checked himself using his phone. He had transformed into a nondescript man with short black hair and brown eyes that was a few inches taller than him.
He unlocked his phone to check the time and he smirked at the message from Kendou.
[You are so gonna get these hands.]
It was followed by a boxing gloves emoji and more than just a few middle fingers.
Maybe he shouldn't have done that?
"It's too late now," Izuku said and he cringed at the rather high pitch of his voice, "I need to get that voice imitation down soon. I look thirty but sound fifteen. I bet that will intimidate the hell out of my blackmailer."
Speaking of which, he had about ten minutes to get there. A Body Flicker would be ideal, but he really didn't want to spill his guts. Still, though, it was a necessary sacrifice if he wanted to get the drop on his blackmailer.
If only he had one of those anti-vomiting pills Yaoyorozu had made for Uraraka. That would be pretty helpful, right about now. Izuku went through the Body Flicker's handseals and his body shimmered with chakra before he took off at speed towards Takoba Beach.
He could only hope that this would go smoothly.
It was a lot harder than one would think to be inconspicuous at a beach junkyard. As always, there was no foot traffic and only the occasional car passed by. There was the chance that whoever it was already here.
It was why he had taken the precaution of transforming before using the Body Flicker. Izuku had painted the inside of a trash can with his breakfast upon arrival before finding a vantage point on one of the stacked cars.
He really hoped no one had seen him arrive.
He could see anyone arriving at the beach and by virtue of him being inside an old car, they could not see him. It was not his first choice for a beach, but there was quite a bit less junk around.
It was not a big enough difference for most to notice, but considering he had learnt some chakra fundamentals here it easy for him to see. Maybe the government had decided to do something about it. If it had been a hero, Izuku was sure he would have heard about it by now.
Midday came and went and Izuku was still the only person in sight. He checked his phone, but there was still no word from his blackmailer. The only message was from Kendou confirming details for the UA reveal.
"Okay, so I spoke to my parents and they were a bit too happy. Anyways, they booked a reservation at Naboo's tonight. It's at 9 PM so the UA letters should arrive before then. Then after we both get accepted, I beat you up in the dojo tomorrow. Sound good?"
"Is the last part really necessary?"
"Yes."
"Fine, then. I'll beat you up tomorrow."
After his last message came a stream of emojis and some rather heated words from Kendou. Oh, well. That was a shame. What was he gonna do? Not tease her? He rarely had the upper hand against her.
It was high time he had some fun too.
Izuku was about to type a response when he caught movement in the corner of his eye. He put his phone away as a car rolled into the parking lot. It was a blue sedan in very good condition. The driver parked their car before switching their engine off.
Izuku waited for the driver to get out, but they remained inside their car. He tried to get a better look at the driver, but at that moment his phone beeped. He looked at the message and a kernel of worry formed in his chest.
"I'm in the blue car."
No jokes or questions or anything. Just short and to the point.
Admittedly, it made Izuku nervous about what laid ahead. The cheeriness his blackmailer had shown earlier was clearly a facade of some sort. Now that was clearly out the window. Izuku opened up his bag and grabbed Kage's mask.
He slung it on his back before going out the side of the car that was hidden from the driver's view. His shoes sunk into the sand and he had to shake it off. Izuku put Kage's mask and he checked in a cracked mirror to see that it was on right.
He dropped his transformation of an ordinary dude and a few seconds later, Kage existed once more. The black cloak provided an odd comfort to Izuku. The nervousness and terror he felt faded away as soon as he had the cloak and mask.
He wasn't Izuku Midoriya when he wore this, he was Kage— a vigilante so good not even Kamui Woods or Eraserhead could catch. He had saved many people and faced off against just as many criminals if not more.
He had this.
Izuku walked through the junkyard until he could see the sedan again. Its driver side door was open and he could see that someone was sitting with their legs out. He still couldn't make out their features though.
He charged up a Body Flicker and took off. He landed in front of blackmailer which ended up giving her quite the fright. She shrank back into the car as she looked up at him.
"Uhhhhhhh...hi?"
She had purple hair and black eyes that were flitting up and down as she looked up at him. She wore casual jeans and a hoodie that was unzipped. The thing that caught his attention though was the fancy necklace around her neck.
He had seen that before.
He studied the woman's face closely and it only took him a few seconds to remember it. Her eyes were a different colour than he was used to, but her face was largely the same.
"I know you."
Sumire Utsusu, independent journalist and the reason Kage was popular looked up at him. She had a shaky smile on her face before she finally spoke.
"H-hey, Kage. Long time no s-see. Your cloak looks great. The mask looks shiny too..."
So, his blackmailer was not some scummy crimelord or a devious extortionist. No, instead she was the woman who had recorded him using his powers and exposed Kage to the whole of Japan.
"What do you want?" His mask distorted and warped his voice and it only enhanced the impatience and irritation in his voice.
Sumire tensed up even more somehow before she reached behind her for something. Izuku flared his chakra as he prepared to counterattack only for it to flow away as she offered up a takeaway bag with what looked to be a bakery's logo on the side.
"Do you like doughnuts?"
"...What?"
Sumire's sedan was pretty comfortable on the inside. The seats were wide and made of high-quality leather. The dashboard had a ton of buttons and features and the aircon was silent yet strong enough to cool him despite the blazing sun.
Sumire had closed her door once he had gotten in the passenger seat. That had been about a minute ago. The doughnuts she had bought were slowly losing their warmth and despite the situation at hand, he was beginning to feel hungry.
Of course, he wasn't a fool. He'd seen enough movies to know not to trust the food...but the bakery was a really good one. He had never been to Senyaku Bakery before, but it was regarded as one of the best bakeries out there.
Man, he was hungry.
He glanced at Sumire who seemed to find the junkyard very interesting. She was rigid in her seat and seemed to be too scared to look at him. She had bags under her eye and she held a thermos in her hand. She must have had a rough night to look this... dishevelled.
In all honesty, Izuku was growing impatient and increasingly nervous too— a scared woman in a car with a cloaked man did not a good picture paint. She was probably scared because she thought he was a hardened criminal.
The mask and cloak probably did not help either. He was supposed to be a champion of the people. If he was scaring Sumire so much to the point where she couldn't speak then he was doing something wrong.
"So..." he began and she whirled towards her eyes blown wide open, "What flavours did you get?"
She lost her petrified expression for a moment as surprise and confusion flickered on her face, "What?"
"The doughnuts," he held the bag up for emphasis, "What flavours did you get?"
"Oh," Sumire said and she stared at him for a moment before answering, "A mixed bag really. Cinnamon Twist, Strawberry Frosted, uh, Chocolate Frosted, Caramel—"
"I like chocolate," Izuku said and just like that, silence reigned once more.
This was approaching his conversations with Yaoyorozu levels of awkwardness.
"Okay, this is getting nowhere," Izuku said and he turned to face her fully, "Let me just go through what I know so far. I saved you from some criminals a while back. Right at this very beach."
"You did," Sumire confirmed and she capped it off with a curt nod, "Thank you for that, by the way."
"N-No problem," Izuku stammered before forcing his tone back to being assertive, "I am a wanted vigilante who some very prominent heroes want to catch."
"You are."
"You're an investigative reporter who focuses a lot on heroes, villains and vigilantes."
"I am."
"You texted me a picture of me at the nightclub fire to my personal number."
"I did."
"You blackmailed me into coming to this meeting."
I di—What did you just say?" Sumire's face twisted into a frown, "I did not blackmail you!"
"Come again?" Izuku said his warbled voice thick with confusion, "You forced me to come here. Then, you tried to play mind games with your texts."
"Mind games?" Sumire said aghast, "I was a little drunk and trying to be nice to you. What would make you think I was trying to play mind games with you? Who does stuff like that?"
Kendou...
"And while I do want to speak with you, I do not want to blackmail you!
Izuku's frustration bubbled over just a bit, "Then why didn't you say that?!"
The escalating argument ground to a halt. Sumire stared at Izuku for a bit before turning away and taking her phone out. He saw her scroll around for a bit before she dropped it into her lap. Immediately, Sumire dropped her face into her hands.
"You know what? This one's on me. I sounded weird," Sumire's voice was muffled by her hands, "No wonder you thought I was trying to shake you down. I'm not usually like that. Ugh, it's just this new lead I'm working on is testing me apart at the seams"
Sumire looked up at hi Her very posture screamed exhaustion. Slumped shoulders, bloodshot eyes and he looked in the backseat only to find a cornucopia of crushed coffee cups. What could possibly be driving Sumire so far to the edge?
"How did you get my number?" Izuku asked causing Sumire to perk up, "And why did you message me instead of—"
"Busting you to the cops?"
Izuku nodded.
"The reason I didn't bust you to the cops is simple," Sumire said before taking a swig from her thermos, "I don't trust them."
Izuku tilted his head as he stared at Sumire, "Come again?"
"I don't trust the police to handle this one," Sumire said speaking a lot slower as if her talking speed was the problem, "That goes for a lot of heroes too. I feel like something bad might come my way if I had gone to them."
It was one thing for her to not trust the police, but to not trust the heroes? Izuku could not comprehend it. What on earth could be so momentous that Sumire would be too scared to go to heroes for help?
And what did it have to do with him?
"Look, Sumire," he began his tone apologetic, "I understand that you want to do the right thing, but the heroes are meant to help us. Whatever is you're struggling you can tell them. Or the police."
"How old are you?" Sumire's tone was cutting and acerbic, "I want to go to the heroes, but if I came to them with what I had I'd been ruined. Same if I published what I have now. I need to do more digging. The police and the heroes would bot believe what I have to say!"
Sumire was breathing heavily after her abrupt rant. A scowl was etched onto her face as she glared at Izuku. He shrunk back a bit at the anger and frustration in Sumire's tone. It reminded him of his talk with Kacchan not too long ago.
"Sorry for blowing up at you," Sumire said just above a whisper, "This whole thing is just tearing me apart at the seams. I've been in this daze for a few weeks now. You can leave if you want to."
After all of that, Izuku knew he could not leave. He may not be able to help her directly, but surely they could figure out something. He wasn't even trained! He was just a fifteen going on sixteen-year-old masquerading as an actual difference-maker.
He was supposed to become the Number One Hero. The next All Might, but better. He doubted any heroes had done stuff like this. Vigilantes were not looked upon nicely by heroes or villains.
If he ever got exposed, he would probably never even be taken on as a sidekick, let alone be able to build an actual hero agency. The smart thing to do would be to leave Sumire and Kage and all of this behind and try to become a hero— the right way.
"Where do I fit into this?" Izuku asked calmly— a strong contrast to the furore inside of him.
"I was desperate," Sumire admitted, "Don't get me wrong. You saved my life. I owe you a lot for that, but if I could I would go for someone else that I know, but they're too close to the situation to act rationally."
"I'm not as great as you think I am," Izuku said turning his gaze to the junkyard, "That night I saved you? That was just luck. The same goes for all my other rescues. I don't have the connections or instincts of heroes or resourcefulness of other vigilantes or the killer instinct of villains."
"I'm just me," Izuku finished with a sigh.
This meeting was making him lose any enthusiasm he had for the dinner later today. The car was silent for a few seconds before Sumire spoke.
"Mask."
"What did you say?" Izuku asked a she turned to Sumire.
Sumire was frowning at him her brow furrowed in disgust, "Take off your mask and just stop this vigilante thing if you're gonna start being a coward all of a sudden."
"Look Kage, if that is even your real name," Sumire said as she stared at him, "I've seen what you can do. Clones, swapping with objects, this weird weapon creation thing, deflecting a bullet..."
Sumire's stare became glassy before focusing once more. She took a deep swig of her coffee before continuing to speak.
"You weren't scared when I was being held at gunpoint. You weren't scared when you took down the Red Jackets," Sumire's voice filled with energy and fervour, "I read all the police reports on you. Yes, I know they're sealed off. Eraserhead said you covered hundreds of metres in a flash and that you cut his capture tape."
"He didn't go into a lot of detail of course. Typical hero," Sumire muttered the last part under her breath, "It got me thinking, though. I researched some of his fights and I've seen that scarf withstand a lot of stuff— even blades."
Izuku recognised when someone was about to go on a tirade and just link different pieces of information together. It was a trait he had that had served him well, but now it fell as though that very same trait was in Sumire. A feeling of foreboding came over him as he began to connect the dots as she spoke.
"Those videos are all outdated too so I bet the scarf is even stronger now," Sumire theorised only serving to stoke the flames of his nervousness, "It looks like cloth, but probably has some special metal lining it or something. It is possible that you have a Quirk that can do that, but I know for a fact that your Quirk isn't like that."
"And even so Eraserhead would have had your Quirk erased regardless. Based on what I saw on that beach, you can't be a Mutant type— those were clearly Emitter type abilities. "
Sumire's deduction skills were top-notch which made sense. The quality of her articles were all high and there was a reason her site was becoming the site for hero news— if it wasn't already.
"My point is you can do stuff even some top heroes can only dream of," Sumire said apparently out of investigative reporter mode, "And I know you're a good person or you wouldn't be doing all of this for free. Nor would you have chosen to meet me instead of killing me."
She didn't really think he'd do something like that? Did she? A lot of vigilantes were violent so it was not an unreasonable assumption to make. How desperate did Sumire have to be to risk getting killed all for some scoop?
Izuku met Sumire's eyes and to his surprise, they were still a solid black. The telltale red glow that signified her Video Camera Quirk was nowhere to be seen. Even her phone was clearly locked and not recording.
"You're not recording this?" Izuku asked and Sumire shook her head.
"I want you to trust me," she said and for better or worse something in her tone made Izuku believe her.
"I could have planned an ambush for you. Tons of heroes want a piece of you. I mean Kamui would snap a dog's neck if he got to get another crack at you."
"...Okay," Izuku grimaced at the unfortunate visual she evoked, "There's no denying it. You know a lot more about what I can do than even my friends and family. I do appreciate what you said earlier, but I am not who you think I am."
Izuku took a deep breath before making a handseal. Sumire raised a brow in confusion before the car was flooded with smoke. The chakra vapours were eliminated quickly by the aircon.
Izuku pulled his mask off and turned to face Sumire. Her mouth hung open and her eyes bulged as she stared at him in shock. She pointed a finger at him that was shaking quite a bit.
"You're a kid?!"
Izuku was about to answer when a car parked beside them. Two blonde men—one young and one old appeared from nowhere and walked past the car. They didn't look inside or towards them, but both Izuku and Sumire were spooked by it.
Izuku turned to Sumire once the two men had gone down the beach. Her expression was still a mishmash of confusion and shock and many others. He scratched the back of his neck as a sheepish smile spread across his face.
"You mentioned something about a diner?"
The drive to the diner Sumire had mentioned was awkward. Sumire had not asked any questions or said much of anything. He suspected she was still processing what he had told her. Izuku didn't say anything either as he began to gather the courage and fortitude for what laid ahead.
Sumire must have had dozens of questions.
The diner was in a rather rough part of town. Potholes in the road, cracked sidewalks, overfilled trashcans and bent lamp posts surrounded them as they parked in a dilapidated and half-full parking lot.
They got out and Sumire locked the car before Sumire motioned to a man sitting under a tree in the parking lot they were in.
All she did was point towards her car and the man gave her a firm nod before they were off. They had to cross the road to get to the diner itself. The road was fairly busy with cars with many ignoring the traffic lights.
When the pedestrian light turned green, Izuku had tried to cross and then doubled back to avoid a speeding SUV. In the end, he and Sumire were forced to commit a crime as they crossed when the pedestrian light was red which was also the only opportunity they would have had otherwise.
Despite it being nothing in terms of crime, Izuku was still wary of a lurking hero or police officer. It was ridiculous considering what he had done as Kage, but somehow it being daytime made things very different.
"There are no cops or heroes around here," Sumire said as she spotted him looking around as they crossed the road, "This is a low-priority zone after all."
Sumire's sneer was every bit as sour as Bakugou's regular expression which said a lot. They reached the doors to the diner. The word Akahon was emblazoned on a faded sign just above the door.
Izuku stepped inside the air-conditioned diner and he was surprised by the decor of the place. It was definitely an American style diner for sure. It was exactly what he expected to see in older movies from America.
The booths had an orange colour that was just a bit faded. There was quite the number of other patrons in the restaurant. They settled into a secluded booth where no one would hear them have what was going to be a long conversation.
The waitress took both their orders after Sumire insisted on paying. She returned to give Sumire a large mug of black coffee and she gave him a chocolate milkshake topped with sprinkles and marshmallows and ice creams.
Sumire stared at his milkshake her expression rather blank, "You're going with that? Should I just buy you a bag of sugar to go with it?"
Izuku felt his cheeks burn up, "I-I just like it."
He didn't have a sweet tooth at all. Not at all. He bought this on a whim. He could stop when he wanted to. He had also not sneaked the doughnuts Sumire had bought him into his bag and even if he had done that, it wasn't a crime.
Not much was said as they both silently agreed to wait for the food. Izuku forwarded a message from Kendou about the details of tonight to his mother. It included the numbers of Kendou's parents so he was sure that if anything changed then his mother would tell him before they left.
After some time their food arrived and they both dug in. Izuku was feeling rather hungry so he was just a tiny bit rabid in his motions. Sumire cared a lot less as she ate with less grace than an elephant on roller skates.
They were about halfway dome with their food when Sumire spoke again.
"So, tell me," Sumire said as she put her fork and knife down, "What's your name?"
"You don't know my name?" Izuku was sure his brows were all the way to his hairline, "How? You got my number from me!"
There were so many ways for someone to find the name attached to a number. Izuku could probably find a hundred apps that did that right now. If she didn't know his name then how did she have his number? Was she a master hacker or was it just dumb luck?
"First of all, I wasn't lucky," Sumire groused as she put down her mug, "Second, do you know you mumble under your breath a lot?"
For once, Izuku wouldn't allow himself to feel embarrassed about his habit, "How do you have my number?"
"Remember that picture I sent you of that fire at the nightclub?" Sumire asked and Izuku nodded, "Well, I took that photo."
What?
"That can't be right," Izuku said as he thought back to the night, "You would have had to—"
Wait.
"That was you? The woman with the purple hair?" Izuku asked drawing a nod from Sumire.
He barely remembered any faces from that night. Other than the heroes, Izuku only remembered Muscular, one eye and all, as well as the disfigured man with the blue fire. In his panic, he hadn't registered much beyond basic traits.
"I had a lot of makeup on then, but yeah," Sumire confirmed, "When you handed that guy to me I took your phone out your pocket and then I returned it later. I thought I messed up when I touched your hip, but you didn't even notice. I messaged myself from your phone and then deleted the message. You didn't even have a password."
Izuku took a moment to process that, "I'll try to get past that. Anyways, my name is Izuku Midoriya. The reason I can't help you is because I'm going to UA's hero course."
"Izuku Midoriya?" Sumire said as if savouring a glass of wine, "Wait you're the Konoha Kid?! I thought you looked familiar...This makes everything so much easier!"
"Easier? How?"
Getting recognised as the Konoha Kid was always a pain.
"I doubt you know this, but items from Konoha have been selling at exorbitant prices at private auctions," Sumire said piquing his interest immediately, "I only know this because of someone I have some history with. Apparently, the ruins haven't been fully explored but for some reason, people are after the little that has come free."
Izuku thought back to how Konoha was big enough and it was filled to the brim with many items like plates, vases and of course weapons. Izuku had a ton of them at home himself. After all, some were touting Konoha as the birthplace of Quirks. Surely, people just wanted stuff from such a famous place?
Then again, his mask was borderline magic. It had a filter that blocked out everything and it distorted his voice. Plus, it seemed extremely resilient. It had withstood a blast from Bakugou without so much as a scratch.
"I have a few stuff from Konoha," Izuku said which seemed to surprise Sumire, "None of that stuff is special except for the mask. Is that what people are after?"
Sumire shook her head almost immediately, "It's all about the weapons. Shuriken, kunai, swords and stuff like that. At the same time, the family that owns the island Konoha is on had to get some heroes over there for bodyguard duty."
"Which heroes?"
"Strong ones. Gang Orca, Selkie and Edgeshot's agency were all hired to protect the archaeologists as well as those charged with transporting artefacts."
"Is artefact theft that big of a problem?"
"It's what Muscular and that guy you fought were after," Sumire's casual revelation rocked Izuku, "The guy with the blue fire is apparently called Dabi. He's a wanted man who has killed a lot of high-profile sidekicks and even some heroes. The Hero Commission thinks it's an alias."
"I thought that was a bank robbery," Izuku said before a hint of suspicion leaked into his voice, "Your website said it was a bank robbery."
Instead of being offended, Sumire simply finished her coffee in one large gulp. She called for a refill from the waitress and feeling a little petty Izuku ordered another milkshake.
"It was a bank robbery...of sorts," Sumire said as she smiled at his attempt at pettiness, "The artefacts were being kept in a private storage facility that is guarded by heroes from a lot of prominent agencies. Best Jeanist, Edgeshot, Crust, Ryukyu and Endeavor."
"All of those agencies are employed at the same time?"
It was always a big deal whenever hero agencies collaborated. In emergencies, it was nothing new. One of Izuku's favourite fights was Best Jeanist working together with Crust against a slippery villain.
The way Best Jeanist had used his Quirk was amazing. He had used it to control Crust as if he were a puppet of some sort. Izuku could still see the way Best Jeanist had tied the villain up using his blue jean fibres—
Sakura stared up at the old woman using chakra strings to bind her. She tried to move, but no matter what she did nothing happened. Chiyo was in complete control of her body.
The chakra strings spread out from Chiyo's splayed hand like a spider web. There were numerous strings, some pierced Sakura's skin while others were wrapping around her to restrain her like a rope.
"What the hell is this, you old hag?" Sakura growled as she tried and failed to break free from the chakra strings, "This is so stupid, Chiyo! Suna is meant to be our ally!"
"Then you should have protected Lord Fifth," Chiyo murmured under her voice and she moved her hands forcing Sakura to a kneeling position, "Konoha stole our business and let our youngest ever Kazekage and his siblings die. I think killing the Hokage's protege is an equal exchange or least a good start.."
"You were the one who waited to tell us about Akatsuki. Temari and Kankurou would have never been taken otherwise."
"Taken?" Chiyo's tone was dripping with putrid hate, "That's all that happened?! They were taken! Nothing more!"
A sharp and bitter bark of laughter escaped Chiyo's mouth. She laughed and laughed until she fell quite all of a sudden. Her fingers twitched and Sakura punched herself in the face.
Okay, Chiyo was dead.
"Your Kage won't be happy with this!" Sakura said as she began to build up chakra, "How would you explain this to Baki? The alliance and financial aid are pivotal to your village especially after they got Gaara and his siblings."
Chiyo's smile was devilish and haunting especially on a face so weathered and beaten.
"Who do you think ordered this attack? Our invasion won't fail this time."
That's all Sakura needed to know.
Chiyo took out a kunai and took a step forward, seemingly wanting to do this the old-fashioned way, but she was frozen in place as chakra exploded from Sakura. Lightning chakra. The electricity flowed up the chakra strings and into Chiyo's body.
Chiyo's body froze as the electricity wreaked havoc on her body. Lightning wasn't Sakura's best element, but Tsunade-shishou and Kakashi-sensei had taught her enough to be helpful.
Chiyo dropped to the floor wriggling like a fish on land. It was only once Chiyo grew still that Sakura stopped her attack. Her muscles were a little stiff but that was nothing compared to what had almost happened.
Chiyo's body was frozen in a standing position. It stayed that way before falling backwards onto the floor. Her hand still clutched a kunai tightly. Sakura let out a sigh before taking out a scroll. Inoichi would be able to read her mind. Sakura had only induced a heart attack so her brain should be fine. Chiyo had been off her rocker for a while now.
"You won't be getting a proper burial," Sakura said to the corpse before sealing the body away into the scroll. She rolled it up before bringing it closer to her face."
"I would be lying if I said that made me feel bad.'
"—doriya? Izuku?! You're spacing out on me."
Izuku's hand knocked over his milkshake as he came to. Thankfully, Sumire caught it before any large mess could be made. Izuku's breaths were coming in short and fast and his head throbbed in time with his rising heartbeat.
"Are you feeling okay?" Sumire asked with a frown on her face, "Do you need to get to a doctor or some sort of medication? Just water?"
He had to pull himself together. He could deal with whatever awful thing he had just seen later. Izuku took his milkshake back from Sumire and drank up the majority of what was left. The brain freeze was immediate and terrible and painful, but it also gave him the shock needed to compartmentalise and focus.
Artefact auctions now and visions of a past murder later.
"What was my last question?" Izuku asked and Sumire looked at him concern in her eye before continuing.
"You asked if the heroes work together and they all do on a rotating basis," Sumire said once she was sure Izuku wouldn't randomly space out again, "This is the first time something has ever been stolen from there and a lot of the sidekicks got hurt. Across all agencies."
"I don't mean to be rude, but I don't see what the big deal is?" Izuku said as he fought to suppress Chiyo's death face, "Muscular is powerful. Miruko had to take down Muscular and even then he got away. She's a top 10 hero! I doubt that there are many sidekicks who could beat him."
Izuku did mean that. Whatever Muscular's Quirk was, it put him above the vast majority of heroes. It probably wouldn't be as effective against someone like Endeavour and Eraserhead could cancel it out, but those two weren't your run of the mill of the heroes. Then again, someone with a blade or sword Quirk could probably beat him too. Unless his muscle fibres were enhanced, but then again everything could be cut if the blade was sharp enough. Were there any—
"You're spacing out again...Anyways, this facility is supposed to be impregnable. It has survived direct nuclear blasts," Sumire didn't even sound bothered by him spacing out, "There is a lot of security measures and they get changed constantly at random. This is where the ultra-rich keep all their valuables and even some money. And by some, I mean a lot. The only way someone could possibly get past all of that—"
Izuku's heart sank as the penny finally dropped for him.
"Is if there was someone on the inside," Izuku finished as a sense of foreboding came over him, "And the only people who work as security—"
"Are heroes and the police," Sumire finished before reaching for something in her bag, "One of my sources—"
"You have sources?" The question was out his lips before Izuku could stop it.
"My website has a lot of traffic," Sumire explained as she took out her phone and tapped a few times before turning it to him, "It picked up dramatically after you saved me and just keeps rising. I was also one of the first to break the news on a prominent villain so the ad money is enough for me to retire."
Sumire was talking about the Hero Killer. The man had crippled or killed many heroes across Japan for not being true heroes. His actions were a part of the reason that the section of Sumire's website dedicated to misdeeds done by heroes was very, very popular.
Especially when some of those heroes would end up facing the Hero Killer...
Sumire could stop investigating and sell off her platform. Yet she still chose to find the truth for people. She didn't have a powerful Quirk or powerful backers. Sumire was just resourceful and had a thirst for exposing the truth.
It was inspiring. To think someone like her would want him to help her, struck a chord within him. At the same time, he knew that he was vastly outgunned by the enemies they would face.
Despite Sumire's praise, Izuku knew that he wasn't good enough. He had hesitated against Dabi and had not once even thought about helping the police with Muscular. He was still only 15. He'd learn the stuff needed to deal with this sort of stuff while at UA.
It was already a miracle that he was going to UA. If something went wrong then his dreams could be shattered in an instant. His head was telling him to just tell a hero about all this and get Sumire some actual help while his heart was screaming at him to help her.
As things were, he couldn't decide. Not right now.
"I need to go," Izuku said to Sumire whose face dropped but then she nodded.
She paid for their meal and they left the diner behind. Sumire paid the man under the tree who Izuku now knew was a car guard of sorts. They rode in silence as Sumire brought him near his apartment. She didn't even try to sway or convince to her side. She just let him be. It was a tense and awkward ride and relief filled him once they turned into his street.
She parked across the street from his apartment. before switching her car off. She turned towards him and the disappointment and yet understanding in her eyes made his heart twinge. Why wasn't she more hostile? Her understanding of his hesitancy only made him feel worse for not agreeing to help her.
"If I had known you were a kid, I probably wouldn't have reached out to you," Sumire said before she began to dig through her bag, "I think I do admire you more knowing that you're still just a kid. I know the type of person you are, Izuku. You want to help people no matter what. Did you have an idol growing up?"
Izuku nodded, "I did. It was, is, All Might."
"Of course it is. He's everyone's hero," Sumire smiled a bit sadly at him, "I'm not just saying this to sway to my side, but I do see some of him in Kage and in you. That drive to help people no matter what is an admirable trait. That's why I'm giving your this."
Sumire handed Izuku a note that had an address scribbled on it. He recognised it as the abandoned mall area he had trained that. It was funny and ironic how he seemed to be retracing his steps before going to UA.
First Takoba Beach and now the abandoned mall. What was next? A fight with Kamui Woods by Kendou's gym?
"I got a tip-off that Konoha artefacts are gonna be handed over somewhere inside the mall," Sumire said as she put her bag away, "Whoever is in charge of this thing went around asking a lot of people to act as security. Just ordinary thugs, that's how I found about this."
"You want me to go there and stop it?" Izuku questioned Sumire as he squinted at her, "I think you overestimated my abilities."
"No, it's nothing like that."
Izuku sighed in relief.
"I am going to film the exchange," Sumire said pulverised the momentary relief he had felt, "If I can get a video and some photos of what they took exactly then I can begin to convince people that something is afoot. People with power."
"You could die," Izuku pointed out to her.
"I know," Sumire agreed, "Dabi and Muscular will probably be there. However, I can't just let this die away. There is just something more to Konoha beyond being an extinct civilisation. The public deserves to know what is actually going on there."
"I don't expect you to come, but—"
"I'll be there," Izuku interjected much to Sumire and his own surprise, "If there is something about those Konoha artefacts, I need to help you figure it out."
"What?" Sumire sputtered out, "Are you sure? Like really sure? You've got a bright future ahead of you with your Quirk and being in UA. Is this what you really want?"
"It is," Izuku confirmed with as much certainty as he could muster.
A dark voice had been whispering in the back of his head the more he had heard Sumire speak about Konoha. Even if the evidence was weak or circumstantial or inconclusive, Izuku knew he had to find out more.
After all, it was his fault that Konoha had been discovered in the first place. Sumire seemed convinced that the artefacts were the key to all of this. He had to find out for himself if that were the case. If he had never found Konoha then the spree of destruction Dabi and Muscular ( and who knows who else) would have never happened.
"Send me the pickup point and I'll be there," Izuku said and he sensed that Sumire was unsure so he smiled as wide as he could.
"I'll be there and I'll keep you safe, Sumire," Izuku's gave a thumbs up for good effect, "I never go back on my word. Believe it!"
Author Notes:
That is that. I know some people wanted to get to UA, but there still needs to be some setup involved.
Thanks for all the comments and reviews I've gotten. As well as the people subscribing and giving kudos. The numbers geek in me is very pleased.
QoTC/OC competition: Hero name? Deku? Dekiru? The Legendary Sucker? This is an actual OC competition. If someone comes up with something better than what I want to do then your hero name will be in here. I am also still accepting ideas for Izuku's hero costume just in case you missed the boat first time around.
Discord server: discord. gg/ Ty68TdCDu6 (remove spaces)
Also, those of you on FFN won't know, but on AO3 I embedded some great fanart I got from two guys on the Discord server. One is a Drawing of the Chakra Fruit by an anonymous artist and the other is one of Izuku as Kage by Rustystar6 on Twitter. Rusty has some great art if you're interested in a commissioning something. He's really talented.