...
The two brothers chatted amicably about the easier topics. A tension Izuku hadn't realized was there eased out of him. Gordon had a way of easing pains out of those around him. Panov watched them with a faint smile.
Eventually it was time for them to go. At Katsuki's insistence both Izuku and Gordon went with him. They would have dinner at the Bakugo household before heading to one of the safe houses. There were things they couldn't talk about while others could hear.
Outside of the Bakugo's household Izuku paused. There was an unfamiliar car on the street just outside of their house. There was nothing odd about other than the fact that it was there. Gordon immediately took notice of his attentions. A frown crossed his face and questions in his eyes.
Katsuki said sharing their frowns, "The hag didn't say anything about someone visiting. She doesn't usually let anyone visit if you're going to be here."
The two soldiers shared a look. Their good natured mood suddenly gone. Only Gordon had a sidearm on him. Izuku of course had one of his many knives. That may or may not be of help depending on how many people were inside.
Katsuki glanced at him noticing their shift in behavior. His red eyes widened in surprise before he stepped back. While he wanted to be a hero he wasn't trained for situations like this. He wasn't trained to kill.
Gordon said placing his hand on his sidearm, "I'll go first."
Izuku glared at him, "Absolutely not Gordon. You were not trained for combat."
"I," Gordon tried, "I can still fight just as well as you can. Besides you're not mentally cleared to be holding a sidearm outside of the school."
Izuku snorted without any mirth behind it. They both knew that was a lie. Gordon was many things but he was not a killer.
Izuku said shoving a finger under the man's nose, "If I can have a weapon around children I can have one here. Especially if the family is in trouble. Out of the three of us I have the best chance to eliminate any threat."
"Izu..."
They didn't get the chance to consider their options any further. The door to the Bakugo's household opened. Mitsuki Bakugo stepped out she noticed their tense body language. Strangely she sighed and approached them.
Mitsuki greeted, "Izuku, Katsuki," her red eyes held suspicion as she turned to Gordon, "Who are you?"
Izuku put himself between them as he answered for Gordon, "This is Gordon Webb Captain in the American Army. I'm a friend of Izuku's."
She blinked at Gordon before replying, "Any friend of Izuku's is a friend of ours. Izuku, I wanted to warn you but it seems you have already noticed. The car belongs to a man I would like you to meet."
Izuku's nose wrinkled in disgust as he asked, "Not my sperm donor?"
Mitsuki yelled making Izuku and Gordon wince, "Hell no! I would not have contacted him if he was the last person on the planet. No, it's not that particular bastard. Inko probably never told you but she had an older brother."
"A brother?"
There were many things he had been prepared for. An uncle previously unknown to him was not one of them. Who was this man? Why had he never heard about him before now? Surely his mother had a good reason for not allowing them to meet.
Mitsuki must have seen the doubts on his face, "It's not my story to tell but I can assure you that he is a good man. It was more hurt feelings and pride that kept your mother from reconciling with him."
Izuku glanced back at the house biting his lip uncertainly. He could deal with the darkness of war. Giving orders came to him easily during the war. Izuku wasn't sure if he could deal with this easily.
Gordon whispered kindly, "Little brother you don't have to talk to this man. It's up to you however."
Izuku took a breath and considered his options. There wasn't much of a choice for him. This was the only family he had left. So he glanced back to look at the door again.
Then he said, "I'll meet with him."
Mitsuki sighed, "All right Izuku. Katsuki take Mr. Webb up to your room. We will need to give Izuku and his uncle a little time to get to know each other."
...
Cupping the hot coffee mug in front of him he thought about the strange turn his day had taken. Naomasa sat in the kitchen of the Bakugo family. Before now he had not ever been invited into their house. He had met Mitsuki Bakugo and her family at the funeral of his dear sister. Mitsuki had been genial enough to him but there was a clear blatant mistrust.
Naomasa didn't blame her as he wasn't around his sister. Not when she needed him the most. His beloved sister who had caught him out of her life. He never considered that she had depression. For that he would never forgive himself for not checking in on her. That he hadn't respected her wishes for him not to contact her.
He blew on the coffee before taking a sip as he pushed away the self hatred. Relief had filled him when he learned that Izuku was alive. The war had been terrible, many soldiers had been declared Missing in Action or MIA. Learning that he was alive took a ton of weight off his shoulders.
All he wanted now was to meet his young nephew. Get to know the last remaining member of his biological family.
Naomasa heard the door open and he looked up. Mitsuki Bakugo was the first to enter. She was followed by a short figure in a black military fatigues. Green curls lay on the top of his head and emerald green eyes stared up at him. His breath caught in his throat. There was no doubt that this was Inko's son.
As soon as his brain registered this Naomasa was on his feet. The force of him standing up nearly made his chair topple over. Green eyes shot up to take in his features. They were cold he realized. Not innocent like the eyes of most children. He had seen veteran officers with warmer eyes.
Mitsuki said her voice betraying nothing, "Izuku this is your uncle Tsukauchi Naomasa. Tsukauchi this is Izuku Midoriya your nephew. Try not to fuck this up. I won't forgive you if you hurt the kid."
With that she was gone leaving the two alone. The kid, Izuku shifted slightly clearly unsure of what to say or do. He felt the same. Both of them were in uncharted water in this situation.
Swallowing dryly he said, "Here sit. As Mitsuki said I'm Tsukauchi Naomasa. You can call me Naomasa if you like."
Izuku stared at him with unreadable green eyes. Then he nodded and headed towards the other end of the table. He sat on the very edge of his seat as if he expected the need to jump away.
The boy said in a quiet whisper, "You can call me, Izuku."
Then they fell into an uneasy silence both unsure of what to say. Naomasa took a sip of his coffee. He tried to find the words to express why they hadn't met before now. He didn't want to place blame on anyone especially not his dead sister.
Izuku questioned carefully, "What do you do for a living?"
That was a good starting point. Out of all the places they could start it was an easy answer.
Naomasa answered with a small smile, "I am a Detective with the Musutafu Police Department. I work hand in hand with many heroes that patrol Musutafu. Though most of them are underground heroes."
Izuku questioned something dark in his eyes letting Naomasa know he was on thin ice, "What's wrong with the Underground?"
Realizing his mistake he backtracked, "Nothing. I quite enjoy working with them in fact. A lot better than many limelight heroes," Naomasa caught the sparkle of interest in the child's eyes, "Who's your favorite hero?"
Izuku seemed to consider it for a moment before he said, "Nighteye. While he worked for All Might as a sidekick he now is a strong member of the underground. His analysis are some of the best in the business. I respect him for his skills and his ability to change as the situation permits. I do have to wonder about his quirk. Foresight... so little is known about it. What is, is mostly redacted by the Commission. Most likely having a two step activation with a limit."
Naomasa listened to the child mumble his interest peaked. It seemed Nighteye was not the only one who had the skill to analyze quirks. Izuku could with at least equal skill to that of Nighteye. Keeping up with the mumble was exceedingly difficult at times but he couldn't bring himself to interrupt. Something told him that if he did the boy would retreat into himself.
So Naomasa listened leaning one elbow on the table and a cheek against his palm. Sansa liked to ramble in such a way but it was usually about senseless things. This was actually quite interesting to listen to.
Several minutes passed before Izuku seemed to come back to himself. He blinked in surprise before glancing at the man. A hint of red began to creep up Izuku's face.
Naomasa said in good humor, "Don't stop on my account. From what I've seen you are fairly good at analysis yourself. Is that way you like Nighteye?"
Izuku said coolly, "It's because he proves you don't need a physical or a combative quirk to be a hero. Or a quirk at all. He fights mostly quirkless."
Understanding flooded him. To know that you can achieve your dream, that you're not chasing the impossible. That was what Izuku sought and found in Nighteye. He thought back to his own dreams at that age and understood. Like Izuku and probably most children he had wanted to be a hero. Constantly he was told his quirk would never be good enough for hero school. Unfortunately they had been right and while he got into a good high school it was not a hero school. At the advice of his guidance counselor he had gone into the Criminal Justice soon followed by the Police Academy. Naomasa never forgot that dream he had carried even if it became more realistic of becoming a detective who worked alongside heroes.
Naomasa said truthfully, "It's going to be a lot of work to become the first quirkless hero. You will face an uphill battle and constantly fight to be accepted. But I don't think it's impossible."
Izuku's eyes had gone hard in the beginning only to soften with surprise. His jaw had dropped open and once again Naomasa was reminded of his sister. He looked so much like Inko at that age. How he missed her. Still he welcomed the chance to get to know Izuku and would try not to compare them. Even in the safety of his own mind.
